Meeting Two Angels

I recently got back from spending a weekend chaperoning a group of my parish's high school youth to my diocese's annual Diocesan Catholic Youth Conference.

In summary, it was a really awesome experience because some new changes were implemented, and our very own bishop was present the whole weekend. We had Mass all three days of the conference, and two opportunities to adore Christ in the Eucharist. Pretty cool! I certainly feel transformed after going back to the basics and encountering our Lord, Jesus Christ, in the Eucharist, which is the source and summit of our Catholic faith. Conveniently, the theme of the conference was, "Transform ME".

One of the keynote speakers for this year's DCYC was Jackie Francois! She's a pretty popular Catholic speaker and musician from Orange County, CA (shout out!). Her husband, Bobby, was also at DCYC helping sell some of her merchandise.

I've read some of her blogs, I've listened to some of her talks, I follow her on Twitter, and I've listened to some of her songs. She was in the local area several months ago at a monthly Catholic event to play her music, but I was unable to go though I really wanted to. I might have been in Washington, D.C. or Rio De Janeiro or something. As for her husband, I've read some of his blog posts, and I've heard a talk by Jackie on how they met, how they handle their relationship, and cool stuff like that.

I really like her talks because she's a really good speaker, and she isn't afraid to dive deeper on very real topics about real struggles regarding chastity, love, and relationships.

Recently, Bobby wrote a blog post about a really nerdy conversation he had with a priest about comic book superheroes and how Captain America is the most Catholic of the recent ones in the movies. It was really cool to read so I shared it with others since it gave me a deeper appreciation for Captain America. You can read it here: The Catholicity of Captain America

So, with Jackie being here at this conference, I couldn't miss the opportunity to at least meet her and her husband!

At one point during the first night of the conference they were sitting at their table, and I was nearby loitering with some of my fellow chaperones. I didn't want to go talk to them alone so I grabbed a few of my chaperone friends to go talk to them. I introduced myself, and I brought up how I really liked Bobby's blog post, and all of us talked about it. Ultimately, I wanted a picture with them, but our conversation was cut short because Jackie had to be on stage for her keynote. I mean, I wasn't upset, since there was still plenty of time to get that picture. Meanwhile, my teens were bragging about their selfies with them. lol...

The next day, I had the opportunity to eat lunch with them! Since I helped out my youth minister friend and another giving a workshop for this conference, I was entitled to attend the presenters' lunch. When I arrived at the lunch, I noticed Jackie and Bobby were sitting at a mostly empty table so me and my other workshop buds decided to sit at their table. Really odd, but hey! 'Twas an opportunity!

That was really cool because it was just totally casual talking about whatever. Because Jackie is pregnant and due in a few months, the topic of pregnancy and birth came up, which one of my workshop buds was anxiously awaiting the call from his getting-ready-to-give-birth wife. And the dynamics of everyone at the table somehow led to the logistics and technicalities of giving birth unashamedly told as it is. I mean, I can't think of a more appropriate conversation while enjoying hotel cheesecake and coffee... I just couldn't relate, lol. #SingleCatholicGuyProbs

During the lunch, we had the idea of asking Jackie if she would be willing to talk to one of our former teens on the phone. One of our former teens is such a huuuuuuuuuuuuuuuge fan of Jackie and aspires to be someone like her. We actually did ask Jackie, and she actually did agree to do so after we were done eating. Meanwhile, we let our former teen know, and she was freaking out and texting in all caps. When mostly everyone left except my buddies and Jackie and Bobby, she asked about making that phone call. So I let Jackie borrow my phone, lol.

It was cool! They had a ten minute conversation, and when Jackie was done talking to her and handed my phone back to me, I tried talking to our former teen. She was just speechless, possibly hyperventilating, possibly even sobbing. Lol, I told her to grab some tissues, and I'd follow up with her when she calmed down.

After that, we went our separate ways. Jackie wanted to take a nap before the evenings' events.

Later that night, I saw Jackie and Bobby at their table again so I finally asked them if I could grab a picture with them.

She says he looks like Leonidas...and by "he", I don't mean me

Pretty awesome!

Now that I've met Jackie, I really want to start listening to more of her music and more of her talks. I also want to properly follow their blog at jackieandbobby.com and keep up with it.

And really, she was just truly a blessing for the conference because having her there really added to the awesome experiences that we had. She's so down to earth and is really relatable in her message to the teens. Through her keynotes throughout the weekend, even I gained better insight about love, dealing with struggles, and allowing Christ to transform our hearts. And interacting with her and her husband was more of the same, but one-on-one.

Bobby's last name is Angel. And that's how I met two Angels.
- JD

PS Pictured are actually three (3) Angels. Hopefully next time I run into them, I'll get to meet Baby Angel! ;-)

Captain America // JackieAndBobby.com

A Religious Sister Rockin' Out On THE VOICE (IT)

I saw this floating around in the Catholic blogosphere and other Cath social medias (be sure to turn on the captions, which you might need to click the YouTube button in the corner below to actually go to YouTube to do so):



Incredible! I just loved the judges' reactions when they hit the buzzer to turn their chairs around to see who was singing. They totally didn't expect it to be a religious sister. I also really loved just her absolute joy in having this opportunity to share her God-given gift of singing so well!

Looking at the judges' comments and the crowd's reaction, you can tell that they were touched and amazed by this performance. Psh, even blog site Jezebel, which isn't necessarily a friend of the Catholic Church (both authors and commenters) agreed!

There's something about Beauty that resonates within us as human beings. When we encounter something objectively beautiful,  we are moved. That beauty points to something greater (as beauty is meant to), and Sr. Cristina is a beautiful witness to that. Seeing her and her fellow sisters rootin' for her really gives me a sense of what real Catholic joy is.

So, the title of my blog is "En Fuego". Sr. Cristina is being who God created her to be...she's being herself as God created her...and this is audio/visual proof of her setting the world on fire.

18+ million hits.
- JD

Picture of Raffaella Carra surprised from Melty.it
Picture of joyful nuns from Jezebel

7 Quick Takes (Vol. 13)

--- 1 ---

I had the fortunate opportunity of going to see Audrey Assad in concert at a local Catholic university last weekend. She recently released her newest album, Fortunate Fall, and is touring around the country to promote her new album.

I have to say...I'm a fan! She's got such a pure voice and to hear her sing is always pretty awesome.  She performed her whole album plus a few crowd favorites from previous albums, and she ended the night with Matt Maher's, "Lord I Need You."

Uhhhh. Can't get better than that!

Oh yeah, this isn't my first time seeing her in concert. There was that one time that I got to see her in a private concert in a house, got to meet her, buy her previous two albums, and get them signed.

--- 2 ---

On Monday I took a "So you've never shot a handgun before" class. Groupon can be a dangerous thing, and it has led me down this path of firearms that I've previously ignored, but am now getting into it.  I think my previous skills and appreciation for archery, combined with my aerospace engineering skills, has increased my love of projectiles. And apparently handguns are the next step after Nerf guns. Oh and after airsoft guns too.

Don't worry. I've taken the time to educate myself on safety, Texas' gun laws, and all that jazz. And I have extreme malice towards paper...like so:

Not bad! ...at 3 yards

--- 3 ---

Napping in my car is now a bad habit. 60-mile commute to work, one-way...and carpooling has been a difficult thing as of late.  Therefore, I have mastered the art of the 10-minute nap so that I'm not falling asleep at the wheel...

Travel-sized pillows are a blessing. And once again...Groupon strikes again! ...because a memory foam travel pillow is that much nicer, especially at discounted price. ;-)

--- 4 ---

But all that napping is due to all that overtime-ing. Things have been hectic at work since I've gotten back from Brazil.  Like, mandatory 10 hours of overtime per week for nearly all of August! Pulling a near 12-hour day plus the commute for several weeks has burnt me out, and the only consolation is that glorious 10-minute nap before work in random parking lots.

Though...all that overtime has been nice. But then I severely lack...time. >_>

--- 5 ---

A good way to de-stress from overtime-ing is to laugh. And I literally LAUGHED OUT LOUD for several minutes like a crazy psycho maniac at this video:

So simple! So hilarious-for-some-irrational-reason!

...and I haven't even delved into the variations on this theme of a waffle falling over!

...I could easily overtime on YouTube for the sake of falling waffles...

--- 6 ---

It's always awkward to have a conversation with a dental hygienist. Well, clarification. It's always awkward to have a conversation with a dental hygienist while they are currently cleaning your teeth. But luckily this past week, I didn't really have to maintain any sort of conversation while I felt the picks and pokes and gentle turns of the brush-drill with the instant flow of water out one nozzle and into the other.

Actually, the most intriguing conversation I had with my dental hygienist was just before she lowered the chair.

Chocolate covered bacon...served with cheese.

-Spanish accent- Repite.

Chocolate covered bacon...served with cheese.

But it was a conversation on the start of football season which ultimately led to the greater conversation of football food traditions.

Though the conversation was short. I ...don't have any football food traditions...unless it's me serving concession stand food along with my fellow Filipinos at a Texas A&M home football game. A bucket of popcorn is exciting stuff. But I didn't get a chance to talk about that with my hygienist because I was already under the lamp.

And the whole time...I was very much intrigued at the idea of ruining my cleanly fresh teeth to have but a taste of chocolate covered bacon...served with cheese.

I must save this idea for future reference.

--- 7 ---
Speaking of football, I thoroughly enjoyed watching the Cowboys play last Sunday. Sundays are always busy for me in that I'm usually running around doing stuff for my ministries.  But it was nice to chill after all that was over by going to a fellow volunteer's house to watch the Cowboys play the Giants.

Nevermind that he had a 115" (projector) screen, his couch was comfy, an oversized ottoman was conveniently located near my feet, and a cold adult beverage was served.

And it was glorious!

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!

- JD

Chocolate covered bacon // Samantha Food Culture, Blogspot

Beauty in America's Got Talent

I've been reflecting on beauty moreso than usual lately. I won't get into why...but...just know that I am.

And...it's always interesting to see how we react and respond to beauty. Truly, if man and woman encounter objective beauty, there's a certain stirring from within that tends towards something infinite. Perhaps a sense of wonder and awe and the desire to be consumed by that beauty.

So, to help illustrate that, I found an example from a popular TV show, America's Got Talent.

This unassuming group pretty much surprised everyone with their singing. Notice that their skillful melodic harmonies evokes a sense of awe, wonder, and surprise from the judges and the audience to the point that the audience even gives a standing ovation even though they aren't even done with their audition! And wow, even Howard Stern looks on and listens with a smile!

We respond in a good way whenever we have a true encounter with beauty. Sure, the song they performed is in Latin, but they do it so. freakin'. well! And that, in and of itself, is beautiful.

And you know what? This is totally Catholic. Anything that is Good, True, and Beautiful? That becomes inherently Catholic even though it might not be explicitly Catholic.

But the song they sang is totally a Catholic hymn. 

Here's the YouTube video I saw that inspired me to write this post:

Beauty with a beat.

- JD

Forte - Pie Jesu // Rickey

Singing to Jesus...Literally

I think every Christian can understand the idea of singing to and for Jesus.  Through song we praise and worship our Lord and Savior. Walk into any Christian church on a Sunday and you'll find the congregation (and choirs, if applicable...though usual) singing hymns and songs praising the glory of God.

And praise God that we're able to hear such songs outside the walls of our churches. One of the ways we can do that is through the radio. I know of several Christian/family radio stations here in north Texas. Obviously, in order to fill the air waves with Christian music...you need Christian music artists.  And I'm sure we can list all our favorites!

From what it seems like to me (and I could be wrong), a lot of Christian music artists also double as worship leaders.  And by "worship leader" I mean they lead congregations/groups of people in worship of our Lord through song whether they're singing/playing solo or with a band.

Thank goodness we have such people who help us focus our minds and hearts towards the Lord through praising and worshipping in song! And oftentimes, we, the congregation, really feel the power of praise in song. Like, it gives more sense of legitimacy and intention in our prayer through song. St. Augustine is often quoted in saying:

He who sings well, prays twice.

(though apparently he didn't really say that exactly, but...that's a famous mis-quote).

So if Christian music artists and worship leaders help bring our focus and attention towards God through song, and then there's that whole Gospel-according-to-Matthew idea about Jesus being present whenever two or more are gathered in His name...then yes, combining these two help bridge our prayers to Jesus, Who is present because two or more are gathered (unless our churches consist of only 1, =P).

Now, I have to ask the awkward question...

What would it look like if I were to take a famous Christian artist/worship leader leading a large congregation, and place that artist/worship leader, hypothetically, in front of Jesus Himself? Like, Himself in the flesh. Like, able to reach out and touch. Would the focus of the Christian music artist/worship leader be different? Would we, the congregation, have a different, perhaps more profound, sense of our praise and worship knowing that Jesus is truly there in front us?

(you can fast forward to ~4:20 for the song to start...the first 4 minutes are exactly what the big screens of Copacabana Beach were showing so you'll see what I could only see during Saturday night's vigil of World Youth Day...Pope Francis had asked for silence...after that, some brief reflections in different languages...then Matt Maher sings)

I think that YouTube video helps answer that awkward question.

So yeah, I was there on the beach! So was Jesus. So was Pope Francis. So was Matt Maher. So were 3+ million of my fellow Catholic brothers and sisters. I think the lyrics of Matt Maher's "Lord I Need You" really resonated with a lot of us that night since Jesus was truly present in the Eucharist, and we all recognized the necessity of God in our lives. And looking at various comments on YouTube videos after the fact...it seems as though this was many people's favorite moment/song through all of World Youth Day. And I agree!

This scene is especially striking to me because here we have a famous Christian music artist and worship leader on his knees facing Jesus literally and singing to Him literally...and focusing on Him literally...yet at the same time leading the 3+ million of us to do the same. At slightly higher elevation is Pope Francis, the successor of St. Peter, sitting and adoring in reverence with his helpers kneeling...all of them before Jesus elevated above everyone else.  Without a doubt, with everyone facing towards the Eucharist, the focus was definitely on Jesus. It makes it easier to worship and focus on our Lord when you can see Him. Even if I didn't know what was going on...to see Matt Maher kneeling as if facing something (not the crowd)...I would begin to ask what it is exactly (or rather, who) he is facing and why?

Maybe the YouTube video doesn't convey the profoundness of singing this song to Jesus while kneeling...maybe this blog post doesn't even convey that...but, I assure you, as a first-hand eyewitness to these moments...this experience was profound but ... normal to me.

This was profound to me because I was sharing this moment with surrounded by, truly, the universal Church from all over the world. And to kneel there together adoring Christ, recognizing my need for Him...I couldn't help but be grateful for the gift of spending that hour adoring Him with humility. But this experience at World Youth Day was also normal for me because I'm a fan of Matt Maher, and I listen to his music often (maybe just a few days earlier I saw him live in concert in Rio de Janeiro). And I often go to adore Christ in the Eucharist on my own, usually after work or before/after Mass. And sometimes I go to Adoration where there is some sort of music leader leading adoration, praise, and worship.

But...as cool as it is do have Adoration done this way with song, with the Pope, with other people, etc... my favorite way to adore Christ is in silence, usually in an empty-but-open Catholic church.  There's a greater profoundness spending that time with Jesus truly present in the Eucharist when it is just Him and me in silence, free from the distractions of other noises and other people. And I mention this because I'm at a point in my journey of faith that I don't require music to be playing in order to praise and worship our Lord. And though Adoration is a form of worship of Jesus for us Catholics...I think it's important for us Catholics to know that Adoration is possible without all the bells and smells of a setting like this experience at World Youth Day or at retreats.

Anyway, don't get me wrong... it is still very much a good thing that our worship leaders and favorite Christian music artists, and choir ministers lead us in praise and worship of Jesus in our churches. But I think to do that before our Lord, truly present, brings about a deeper and more profound sense of focus and really helps us call to mind a deeper sense of why we even sing to Jesus in first place.

Lord, I need You, oh, I need You. Every hour I need You. My one defense, my righteousness. Oh God, how I need You.
- JD

Praise band from Hearts On Fire Rally 2009 // xuthiensun, Flickr

Addendum: Angels and Saints at Ephesus

Allow me to quote a blog quoting a blog regarding the Benedictine Sisters of Mary, Queen of Apostles' latest album, Angels and Saints at Ephesus in addendum to my previous blog post.

From The Back of the World Blog (quoted in Fr. Z's blog):

A few weeks ago, I was sitting at the computer while my two-year-old son noisily played with some tupperware behind me. I clicked on a link to listen to a song from “Angels and Saints at Ephesus”, a new CD by the Benedictines of Mary, Queen of the Apostles (which, incidentally, has been tearing up the Classical music charts). The beautiful, a capella voices of the Sisters came softly over the computer speakers as they began a Gregorian chant in Latin. 

Suddenly, I noticed that the banging of tupperware behind me had stopped.
I turned to see my two-year-old, standing, staring at the computer, eyes wide open and mouth slightly agape. He took a few steps forward, and then said, breathlessly: “Dada…that’s Jesus music.” 

I was stunned. How on earth did he know that? (Our parish certainly doesn’t do any chanting at the N.O. Mass we attend…).He crawled up into my lap, and we listened to the rest of the chant together. And then we listened to it again. And then again. And then again. My boy was totally captivated, totally transfixed, totally enraptured…each time the chant would come to an end, he would look up at me and plead “again, Dada?”
I bought the album, and now every night my son asks to listen to the “Jesus music” as he falls asleep… 

***

Fyodor Dostoyevsky once said: “Beauty will save the world.”
Cardinal Ratzinger once said: “The encounter with beauty can become the wound of the arrow that strikes the soul and thus makes it see clearly, so that henceforth it has criteria, based on what it has experienced, and can now weigh the arguments correctly.”
Mother Theresa once said: “You have to learn from the Heart of Jesus. That is why Jesus said ‘learn of me’–not from books.” 

And somehow, in ways I will never understand, my two-year-old boy is listening to the beat of the Sacred Heart. He is encountering beauty, and listening to it with childlike ears of faith. He’s learning lessons that only the gentle notes and chords of Heaven can teach him. And all I can do is sit back and treasure up all of these things in my heart…

Wow, that's pretty cool.  Do I recognize beauty not only with my eyes, but also with my ears? It doesn't take a band nerd or Catholic nerd to appreciate the sisters' music because it is, in fact, beautiful.  When I encounter beauty, am I "totally captivated, totally transfixed, totally enraptured"?

Hmm...if not, at the very least I can at least begin to allow myself to be captured by beauty and listening to this album points me towards that direction.

Maybe it helps to know why the cloistered nun sings:

- JD

Angels and Saints at Ephesus

I suppose one of the fruits of listening to Catholic radio in the morning is learning about all sorts of different things.  One day recently, I overheard them talking about a new CD by cloistered nuns.

Basically, the background is...this husband and wife, after years of working in the recording industry, decided to start their own record company with the idea of recording the music of religious communities and all other sorts of Sacred Music.  They really try to capture the authenticity and genuineness of their recordings by recording the music in the religious community's natural habitat (ie. in their church/chapel, etc) doing their normal singing/chants.

They were on Catholic radio promoting this new CD with recordings of the Benedictine Sisters of Mary, Queen of Apostles.  This community of cloistered nuns follows the rule of St. Benedict for monastic life and they chant in Latin.  

From the CD insert...

The Benedictines of Mary, Queen of Apostles is a monastic community located in rural Missouri.  Consecrated to the Queen of Apostles, their lives are dedicated to contemplative prayer, especially for priests.  They support themselves primarily by making priestly vestments. Professing full obedience to the Church's teaching, the community upholds a loving commitment to preserving the liturgical heritage of the Church in the Extraordinary Form of the Mass and traditional monastic Office.  This is their second recording with De Montfort Music and Decca Records.

Because they are cloistered, it's difficult to get a hold of them and they don't go out in public, but I'm grateful that De Montfort Music reached out to them and recorded their beautiful music.

And my primary motivations for even getting the CD in the first place was that my iTunes library is lacking sacred music, and I figured I could use this for future Catholic reasons, whatever they may be.  I was sold after listening to a sample of a song on their website.

The music is absolutely beautiful! Yes, I'll admit I'm a fan of mainstream radio music and I often tire of its simplistic melodies and repetitive noise, and the band nerd in me appreciated the complex melodies and harmonies found within Angels and Saints at Ephesus. I don't recognize most of the tracks mostly because I've never heard the melodies and...a majority of the tracks are in Latin. Truly...their voices are quite angelic and saintly...though not for their own sake...

The Sisters say this about their CD (again, from the insert, emphasis mine):

Called to embrace a liturgical spirituality, our lives literally revolve around Christ as a many-faceted jewel, manifesting His majesty through the mysteries of His own life, that of His Mother, and by extension through His holy ones, the angels and saints.  The feasts of the angels and saints reflect the Light of the World in their own way, reminding us to follow them, shining forth only insofar as we reflect Christ.  At the Priory of Our Lady of Ephesus, these interspersed feasts are especially commemorated in song.  The saints and angels are honored either in hymns written for them or, in many cases, hymns written by the saints themselves.  In this way, we can take up their own words to share in the eternal hymn they now continually raise to God.  It is our hope that this music raises your hearts likewise to Him, that at the end of our life here, our souls may be prepared to share the company of the angels and saints when we behold God face to face.

Awesome! Yeah, I think these hymns, as performed by them, definitely has that effect.  I decided to listen to it the first time while I was at work and things got pretty stressful.  Their music helped me stay more at peace by reminding me of God by uplifting my mind (through my ears) to Him. Cliché-sounding, but true.  And really...because the recordings are done well...because they sound freakin' awesome...because the words, even though I don't know Latin, are directed at God, I cannot help but think of Beauty, Goodness, and Truth!

And fun fact!  Angels and Saints at Ephesus has been in the Top 10 of the Classical Albums Billboard chart since its release a month ago.

You can learn more about the sisters at www.benedictinesofmary.org

Ave Regina caelorum: Ave Domina Angelorum: Salve radix sancta, ex qua mundo lux est orta. Gaude gloriosa super mones speciosa: Vale valde decora, et pro nobis, semper Christum exora. (Track 12)
- JD

Divine Mercy

Click here to scroll down to instructions on how to pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet.

Before explaining what Divine Mercy is, I should define what is "private revelation." If you already have an understanding, then don't click the following link.

What is private revelation...?

First, what is "public revelation?"  Public revelation is what we know about God through Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition through the deposit of faith given by Him.  God revealed Himself publicly to the Jewish people, and we know this through reading Scripture in the Old Testament.  From the apostles, we know they passed down what Jesus had taught and revealed to them.  God's final, definitive revelation is His Son, Jesus Christ. With that said, the Catholic Church teaches that public revelation ended with the death of the last apostle.

From the Catechism of the Catholic Church (emphasis mine):

66 "The Christian economy, therefore, since it is the new and definitive Covenant, will never pass away; and no new public revelation is to be expected before the glorious manifestation of our Lord Jesus Christ." (Dei Verbum 4) Yet even if Revelation is already complete, it has not been made completely explicit; it remains for Christian faith gradually to grasp its full significance over the course of the centuries.

Yes, even if God has revealed everything we need to know about Him in Jesus, our understanding is not completely clear.  Over the course of time, our understanding grows clearer and clearer.  Sort of like going up a river from its mouth where it is muddy and dirty to its source where it is clear.  Or like the sunrise that begins to slowly stretch its rosy fingers over the horizon.

Sometimes God reveals Himself in a very personal way to us.  Or maybe He sends an agent like a saint, an angel, and yes, even His Blessed Mother.  In these instances, He reveals something meant for us personally.  This type of encounter is a "private revelation" which happens all the time, but some individuals may experience a more profound and blatant encounter of God's revelation.  How are we to understand such things?

Again, from the CCC:

67 Throughout the ages, there have been so-called "private" revelations, some of which have been recognized by the authority of the Church.  They do not belong, however, to the deposit of faith.  It is not their role to improve or complete Christ's definitive Revelation, but to help live more fully by it in a certain period of history.  Guided by the magisterium of the Church, the sensus fidelium knows how to discern and welcome in these revelations whatever constitutes an authentic call of Christ or his saints to the Church

Christian faith cannot accept "revelations" that claim to surpass or correct the Revelation of which Christ is the fulfillment, as is the case in certain non-Christian religions and also in certain recent sects which base themselves on such "revelations."

So in other words, "private revelation" is okay as long as it does not conflict with what has already been revealed and that it helps us live more fully in what has already been revealed by God.  How can we be sure that "private revelation" doesn't conflict with something?  The teaching authority of the Catholic Church.  Whenever someone makes a seemingly out-of-ordinary claim through "private revelation," the Church will investigate to make sure that it isn't heretical or contradictory to what we already know through the deposit of faith.  And since the Church has been around since Jesus, who better to keep track of the deposit of faith than she?

The other thing I should highlight about "private revelation" is if it is Church-approved, then we, the faithful, should make attempts to gain deeper understandings of what was revealed.  However, if a "private revelation" is not Church-approved, then we are not required or encouraged to pursue it.

For more explanations, go here:
Private and Public Revelation - EWTN
Private Revelation - Catholic Answers
Apparitions/Private Revelations - EWTN

With all that said (if you read it), that leads me to Divine Mercy.  Essentially, Jesus gave us a clearer understanding of His infinite and divine mercy through private revelations given to a Polish religious sister named St. Maria Faustina Kowalska.

Who is St. Maria Faustina Kowalska?

Her original name is Helena, and she was born into a poor, peasant family in Glogowiec, Poland.  She was the third oldest of ten children, and "from childhood she distinguished herself by her piety, love of prayer, industriousness and obedience as well as by her great sensitivity to human misery" (Diary, xv).  At the age of seven, she started feeling the call to religious life.  Her parents were not keen on letting her join a convent, and she tried repressing her desire to join a convent.  But from a vision of the suffering Jesus, she strengthened her resolve to join a convent.  She ended up in the Congregation of Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy in Warsaw.  There, she received the name Sister Maria Faustina.  She completed her novitiate (basically, the novitiate is the newb stage to religious life) and professed her perpetual vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience after five years of being in the convent.  She worked in various houses for the Congregation in different locations in Poland, especially as cook, gardener, and doorkeeper.

Sr. M. Elizbaeth Siepak writes in the Introduction of St. Faustina's diary:

To all external appearances nothing betrayed her extraordinarily rich mystical life. She zealously went about her duties, she faithfully observed all the religious rules, she was recollected and kept silent, all the while being natural, cheerful, full of kindness and of unselfish love of neighbor.  

Her entire life was concentrated on constant striving for even fuller union with God and on self-sacrificing cooperation with Jesus in the work of saving souls. (Diary, xvi) 

The Lord also endowed her with many graces and gifts.  These include the gift of contemplation with deep knowledge of the mystery of God's mercy, visions, revelations, the hidden stigmata, the gift of prophecy and reading into human souls, and also the rare gift of mystical espousals.  However, she wrote:

Neither graces, nor revelations, nor raptures, nor gifts granted to a soul make it perfect, but rather the intimate union of the soul with God.  ...My sanctity and perfection is based upon the close union of my will with the will of God (Diary, par. 1107)

I'm a fan of that last sentence.  She willed to align her will to that of God's will.

As she grew older, she started having health problems.  And sometimes she experienced a profound spiritual suffering known as the "dark night" where a soul doesn't receive any consolation from God as if He has abandoned the soul.  She grew very sick and eventually died in 1938 at the age of 33.

Because of the life she led, her personal piety and obedience to God's will, and passionately serving as a conduit to God's message of mercy, she was canonized as a saint by Blessed Pope John Paul II in April 2000.

How was Divine Mercy revealed?

She kept a diary, which is out in publication.  Apparently Jesus revealed to her that she should keep one.  I started reading it a while ago, but haven't yet finished it.  In it, she shares her daily struggles with religious life and life in general, but most intriguingly she wrote down what Jesus said to her whenever He appeared. It's almost conversational, as if St. Faustina was really talking to and listening to someone.  Or rather...Someone.

Through these private revelations, it is clear that Jesus was with her throughout her life, especially during her times of suffering.  Though He spoke to her a lot, I want to focus on His message of Divine Mercy.

Again, from the Intro, Sr. M. Elizabeth Siepak summarizes Jesus' mission for St. Faustina:

"Today, I am sending you with My mercy to the people of the whole world. I do not want to punish aching mankind, but I desire to heal it, pressing it to My merciful Heart" (Diary, par. 1588)

"You are the secretary of My mercy; I have chosen you for that office in this and the next life" (Diary, par. 1605) ... "to make known to souls the great mercy that I have for them, and to exhort them to trust in the bottomless depth of My mercy" (Diary, par. 1567) 

Her mission is to remind us about the truths of God's merciful love for us as well as providing us with new ways to have a devotion to The Divine Mercy.  There are several ways to have a devotion to Divine Mercy as revealed to St. Faustina by Jesus. They are as follows:

• The Divine Mercy Image (seen at the top of this post), which is a painting of a vision St. Faustina had of Jesus.  The elements of the image has special meanings.
• The Feast of Divine Mercy, which is the day that Jesus specified to focus on the shelter of His Mercy. He specifically said that the second Sunday of the Easter season (ie. the Sunday after Easter) is to be the Feast of Divine Mercy.  Blessed Pope John Paul II declared in his homily at the canonization of St. Faustina that the second Sunday of Easter will be known as "Divine Mercy Sunday"
• The Chaplet of Divine Mercy, which is a prayer of atonement and appeasement of God's wrath dictated to St. Faustina by Jesus
• The Novena to Divine Mercy, which is a 9-day recitation of the Chaplet in preparation for the Feast of Divine Mercy or for whatever petitions by the faithful
• The Hour of Mercy, which Jesus specified as the third hour whereby the faithful should focus and immerse themselves in his Mercy

More info about each can be found in the intro of her diary by Sr. M Elizabeth Siepak or at DivineMercy.org.

A Pick Up Line Song

Here's the "Catholic Pick Up Line" song by a fellow Aggie Catholic:

David Casper was a familiar face at St. Mary's while I was in college.  We were on retreat staff for Aggie Awakening #85. But, I didn't meet him officially until last December when he did the Mass music for a friend's wedding as well as be the DJ for the reception.

You can check him out at DavidCasperMusic.com, on Twitter @dcaspermusic, and on Facebook.  Apparently he's got a new song about the new pope.

Lastly, he's performing this Saturday at The Shepherd's Cafe, a local monthly Catholic event with a Holy Hour and coffee house entertainment afterwards here in DFW.  Check 'em out here: TheShepherdsCafe.com.

Sadly, I won't be in attendance because I'm gone all weekend for different Catholic reasons.

I'd be a second-class relic if you just give me a kiss ;-)
- JD

Away In A ... What?

You know what...sometimes I'm too accepting of of whatever I hear and never really stop to think more about stuff.  Praise God I'm an engineer because it helps me try to make common sense of things by seeking a better understanding of...things.

So that leads me to the Christmas carol, "Away In A Manger."

All together now:

Away in a manger,

No crib for His bed

The little Lord Jesus

Laid down His sweet head

The stars in the bright sky

Looked down where He lay

The little Lord Jesus

Asleep on the hay

The cattle are lowing

The poor Baby wakes

But little Lord Jesus

No crying He makes

I love Thee, Lord Jesus

Look down from the sky

And stay by my side,

'Til morning is nigh.

Be near me, Lord Jesus,

I ask Thee to stay

Close by me forever

And love me I pray

Bless all the dear children

In Thy tender care

And take us to heaven

To live in Thee there

I don't think you can buy this in stores...

So, I don't know about you...but...I never really questioned the song.  I'm all like, "yeah, I get that."  But after thinking about the song more, it fails to explain or detail the most fundamental aspect to this song: what in heaven is a manger?

Perhaps I'm not cultured in late 18th century Europe from which the lyrics to this carol originated, but in living this modern life, perhaps knowing what a manger is has become lost to me as common knowledge.

Context clues from the rest of the song tells me that a manger involves animals and somewhere to put a baby.  Mmk, so stable?  A manger is a stable?  Errmmm.  Sure.  I'll take that!  Makes sense!  Let's move on!

But see, that's not exactly what a manger is.  I was finally enlightened after like...20 years of understanding a manger to be some sort of stable that somehow held baby Jesus.  In actuality, a manger is simply a type of food trough for animals.

A food trough for animals.

How can this be, that the God of the Universe, our Creator, our Father in Heaven, begot His only Son, the King of kings, incarnate of the Virgin Mary...and because Mary and Joseph could not find a place to stay...Mary had to give birth in a stable.  With nowhere else to place the baby, Jesus, he was placed in a manger wrapped in swaddling clothes (Luke 2: 1-7).

Perhaps it's my modern mind that thinks that someone of great importance deserves the best, and yet here is Jesus, Son of God, placed in a food trough for animals.  How incredibly humbling, if you think about it.  And it's practical too.  I mean, it's not like He could fall out.

Being the Son of God, Jesus probably had this radiant glow about Himself in the manger.  A glow that speaks adorableness, beauty, cuteness, and all the synonyms.  You know how sometimes babies are just sooooooooooo cute, you just want to eat them up?  Or at least stick their foot or hand in your mouth?  I'm not a father, but I've been around enough babies and their parents to see this happen.  Actually, one of my fav bloggers blogged about it once, Bad Catholic: On Wanting To Eat Your Baby.  Marc Barnes eloquently ties Beauty to the desire of wanting to eat your baby--I cannot match his expression on this matter.  Worth reading.

But back to the manger.  I can't help but think that by Mary placing Jesus in a manger (like she had a choice...) kind of says, "hey, eat Me!"  And again, Jesus must've been divinely adorable as a newborn--Mary and Joseph probably eyed his arms hungrily (in the sense mentioned in the above paragraph, I should stress).

Mmm

And fun fact, Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea.  In old Hebrew, "Bethlehem" means "house of bread."  Somehow, I'm seeing a theme of food here.

Reflecting on all this, perhaps Jesus wasn't parable-ing or being symbolic in John 6: 22-59 in His Bread of Life discourse.

Anyway, cool stuff.  A manger is a food trough.  How wrong I was to think it meant the stable, but now knowing that Jesus was away in a [food trough] with no crib for a bed, He had a place to lay down His sweet head (yes, it was probably pretty sweet... ;-) ).  Which lends towards a more beautiful understanding of what took place that first Christmas day.

Now pardon me--I'm hungry. #multimeanings
- JD

Worst Church Singer Ever

When I was in high school, our youth minister also happened to be the leader of a Catholic band/apostolate.

He would often quote St. Augustine.... "When you sing, you pray twice."

He would also often say, as words of encouragement to get us to sing along, "God gave you a voice.  You should make him suffer for it."

Believe me...this is twice the suffering:

He talks for a little while before actually singing.  Worth the wait.

Shout out to my bro for sharing this with me! >_>

Faith. Hope. Charity.  Because I need those three virtues when watching this video, haha.
- JD

Unique Opportunity

Tonight was pretty cool. I got to attend a private house concert performed by Audrey Assad. She's an up and coming Catholic singer/songwriter.

But! I didn't even know who she was until two weeks ago. I received an email about this opportunity to go watch her perform live at a house near my work. And I decided to go!

To be honest, even though I heard of her for the first time a little while ago, I didn't go look her up on YouTube or anything. And after watching and listening to her perform tonight, I think I am just that more blown away by her talent.

She has this really pure voice, and the way she sings reminds me of Colbie Caillat and Sarah McLachlan. Tonight she only had herself playing the piano and a bass player. And her voice. And that's all she needed.

I loved how as she progressed through her hour-long set, she intermixed stories of her experiences, especially regarding her husband. Her stories really put the songs she sang in context such that we could relate to her more.

She's also such a humble and approachable person who's also very talented. That's a combination you normally don't see among famous people.  It was pretty funny and embarrassing for me when I bought her two CD's.  She like...demonstrated this clever way of freeing a CD case of its plastic.  She did it for me on the first CD she signed and saw me struggle with the second CD.  She then helped me open that one too...

Cool fact.  Her merch can be purchased with a credit card because apparently they have an iPod touch with a card reader and app to scan cards.  Convenient.

Anyway, I'm glad I had this opportunity to hang out with some of my Catholic friends in this special opportunity to enjoy Audrey Assad performing her music in a private venue.  Cool stuff. :-)

If you want to know more, her website is: www.audreyassad.com and from there you can find her on Twitter, Tumblr, and Facebook.

And I recorded two of the songs she performed (which also happen to be Matt Maher songs since she collaborated with him in these two songs).

"Restless" - Audrey Assad

"Garden" - Audrey Assad

Faith. Hope. Charity. "Is Audrey Assad married? ...Dang, I guess I'll keep discerning..." (from Stuff Catholic Guys Say)
- JR