Tonight was really rough. I just feel like I got punched in the gut, and haven't been able to recover. I turn on the TV and see people dancing in the street rejoicing Obama, the savior (I say that with the utmost sarcasm), and his re-election. I log onto my computer and see social media abuzz with celebration and jubilation for the President. I just sit back and say, what is going on with the country and world that I live in? What in the past four years gets people so excited for the next four? Unemployment goes up, inflation goes up, cost of living goes up, number of jobs go down, national debt goes up, the number of unborn children murdered goes up, what in there gets people so excited and so hopeful? Pro-choice activists have turned the abortion debate from an issue regarding what constitutes a life, to a women's health issue. (You can't get an advil at school without getting parental consent, but a 16 year old girl can get an abortion without even letting her parents know!) Same-sex marriage advocates have turned anyone who believes in maintaining the sanctity of marriage into a bigot. Obama issued the HHS Mandate, starting to infringe on Catholics religious liberties, and Obama carries the so-called Catholic vote. I clarify it as "so-called" because I truly believe you cannot call yourself a Catholic and support Obama, it's counter-intuitive in very nature (i.e. Catholics belief in preserving and defending life from inception to natural death whereas Obama endorses the genocide of countless unborn children). *Deep Breath* In all honesty I cried a bit tonight, just asking myself and God the question, "are we going to be alright?" When I asked, I suppose I was thinking more of my family, which has struggled mightily these past four years. When I asked, I suppose I was asking selfishly, because I have struggled with the things of this earth mightily these past four years. On a night like tonight I feel hopeless. I see no way out, I see no future, I feel broken. It sounds strange, but I hope Jesus comes back sooner rather than later. I am ready, I am ready for my family to be together in Heaven and stop suffering. I am ready for Jesus Christ's return. The longer I live on this Earth the more I understand I wasn't made for it.
Freedom, America, and Faith:
Freedom seems to be, almost the mask behind which we commit our sins. "I should be free to choose if I want that baby, or who I can marry, or what I can do with my body because it's mine!" In the United States we place an emphasis on freedom and individuality above all else. But so often I see these people who claim to be living there life in total freedom, or who place an emphasis on being free to choose above all else, as pawns, or zombies, or carbon copies of everyone else in the world; mindlessly following their god's of freedom, slaves to their idols and icons, blindly following their fleeting emotions. Freedom isn't necessarily being able to choose whatever you please, rather it is avoiding things or accepting restrictions. If we lived in a world where there were no traffic restrictions and no rules to follow on the road, does that mean we would be driving in total freedom? Absolutely not. One can easily see how this would quickly lead to dangerous chaos. Simply driving to the grocery store would be terrifying, and most people would choose to avoid the roads altogether. In other words, they would feel impelled to greatly restrict their movement. Yet by putting a few restrictions in place, traffic laws make driving a freeing experience. I as a Catholic am free to skip Mass, but I miss out on the Graces afforded to me in the Eucharist, in His body and blood. "The person who worships at the altar of freedom ultimately engages in self-worship." True freedom lies in self-service. There is no better evidence of this than Jesus freely choosing to lay down his life for you and me. The times I felt most free in life is when I completely abandon or subject myself to God. By becoming a slave to God, I have felt total freedom. "Alright God, I give up, do with me as you please and help me to avoid doing just what I want." I've prayed this prayer, or a similar one so many time. It is the most freeing prayer, in which the paradox lays, Lord I'll be a slave to you so that I can be free. When you freely choose God you choose to serve Him, serve others (His people), and in turn God serves you with His grace. The more you choose God, the less you choose self, the more you truly become Free.
