…will he find faith on earth?
 
Zenit.org had an interview a few days back with Father Richard John Neuhaus that is quite interesting. He hits the nail on the head with this question and answer:
 

Q: Are the main problems in the Church today primarily intellectual or spiritual?
 
Father Neuhaus: The main problem in the Church today — as it has been from the apostolic era and will be until our Lord’s return in glory — is a lack of faith. Our sinful nature resists, does not dare to believe, the good news of our salvation now and forever. This has intellectual, spiritual, aesthetic, moral and whatever dimensions you want to name.

 
It’s so true! I see in myself how my lack of faith makes it more easy to give into temptation to fear and to worry, in big things and in small things, and also to avoid doing good things that God wants me to do.
 
Blessed Mother Theresa once said that God called her to be faithful (rather than successful), and what Fr. Neuhaus says here echoes here wisdom. The answer is to ask our Lord for the gift of faith, and then when he gives it to us, to embrace it and always seek to increase in our correspondence to his grace.

 
Katie and I just took the FOCCUS inventory to help us find out what topics and areas we need to communicate better about.
 
I had heard of this inventory before from the “ABCs of Choosing a Good Wife”, so I was excited (and so was Katie) to take this inventory. The questions are good, and we just sent our answers independently to Father Andy, so we will find out soon what we need to work on.
 
I recommend it to all couples who are engaged to be married in Christ!

 
I read this article on the internet about a recent study done analyzing the effects of stress on pregnant women and their babies, especially stress due to working full-time or even longer hours. more…

 
I had read Father Todd’s blog off-and-on over the past few years–priest’s blogs are always an incredible blessing. I never knew that he was a Texas A&M Aggie until I read his obituary.
 
I just realized that I was listening to the radio on the day he died or the day after, and they mentioned a man dying in a jet ski accident–I had no clue it was a beloved priest of God and a man whose blog I had read.
 
May our Lord, who called Father Todd home for his perfect reasons, have mercy on his soul and grant him life eternal!

 
John Paul II explores the idea that God made man and woman to be a gift to each other—their very persons, expressed through their bodies, become a gift to one another. In this chapter of the Theology of the Body, he explains what this means in more depth: more…

 
I enjoy trying my hand at movie reviews from time to time, and the more I do it the more I realize how good Steven Greydanus at decentfilms.com is at writing them. Read on for my review…
more…

 
A note from the publisher
of the National Catholic Register
 
The founder of the Legion of Christ, Father Marcial Maciel, has been accused of terrible crimes. Considering his advanced age — he’s 86 — and his frail health, the Holy See decided not to conduct a canonical trial. Father Maciel is confined to a life of prayer and penance, away from any public ministry.
 
He becomes like an accused priest awaiting trial. Only, in this case, there will be no trial.
 
Many newspapers are giving this story big play, repeating the accusations, exploring the nuances of the Holy See’s declaration, and quoting opinions from supporters and detractors as to what the implications for the Legionaries are likely to be.
 
The Register is not taking that approach to this story, for a couple of reasons. more…

 
Today is the last day of school before the bliss of summer. If you had been so blessed as to visit Miss Bateson Language Arts class today, you would have received a Candy Award.
 
You might have received a PayDay, meaning “You’ve earned my respect.” Or, you might have received a few Hershey’s Kisses, meaning, “You’re super-sweet!” Finally, if you received neither a PayDay nor any Kisses, you might have received an Almond Joy, awarded to indicate “You make me laugh with joy!”
 
My students are brave and strong, in the face of incredible suffering, and I’m honored to know them. May Christ keep them as I leave Deming High School and move to Austin to prepare with Devin for our marriage!

 
It could have been my vote that put him over the top….
 
I hope Katharine gets a recording contract, too, because she is a very talented young lady. The one thing she should do is dress more modestly and not give in to the pressure to be immodest.

 
…I voted for one of the people on the American Idol finale tonight.
 
Richard likes the show a lot and records it on the DVR, so we can watch it without commercials, and I confess that I have gotten into it in these last four episodes. They are both good singers, and Katharine has much more “star appeal” than Taylor, but I voted for Taylor because I think he’s the underdog.