I'm responding to a question posted by Elizabeth Scalia at Patheos: Why do you remain Catholic?
And all I can think of is: how can I not?
I feel like being a Catholic is in my DNA.
I'm not a convert, and I've heard people say that cradle Catholics (like me) never made that conscious choice that a convert might have made.
I make that choice every single Sunday when I go to Mass.
I make that choice every single time I receive the Eucharist: the Body, Blood, soul and divinity of Jesus.
I make that choice when I pray the Liturgy of the Hours, when I attend gatherings of the Secular Franciscans, when I play music and sing at Mass, when I pray for someone in need.
Being a Catholic–and, even more than that, being a Catholic and a Franciscan–is the air I breathe. It's a part of me that I cannot separate out.
I can't point to some earth-shattering moment when I knew this was the right thing for me.
I've visited other churches, for funerals or weddings–and something is missing. That something, the Real Presence, is what makes Catholicism stand apart.
I didn't make one conscious choice–but there have been thousands of little choices, every week, every day, that keep me in my Church. And I am thankful for the grace that helps me to make those little choices.
Image by Barb Szyszkiewicz, OFS: Empty Tomb at St. Casimir Church, Riverside, NJ (Easter 2007). All rights reserved.
Maybe I should change my graphic. It's not morning–not here, anyway. But it's Monday, so that means it's time for a Monday Recap!
You can tell it's spring, because two out of my three articles are on the subject of gardening. Yes, this Black-Thumbed Girl has found some success in that department!
I reviewed Margaret Rose Realy's new book, A Catholic Gardener's Spiritual Almanac.
This unlikely gardener shares how to grow an herb garden in a vintage red wagon, including a great gardening resource.
July 6, 2014 franciscanmom Catholic, Church, What's up with that?	Catholic, Church, traveling Willburys, what's up with that?
I can be flexible on most other things–but not these. Joe Paprocki makes the point in chapter 4 of A Well-Built Faith that there's a reputation associated with brand names, much like there's a reputation behind our faith. In fact, there are three names behind the Catholic Faith: the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
The best part of this chapter was the "So What?" section at the end.
We're also reminded that acts of self-giving love share in the life of the Trinity. I never though of it that way. It takes that whole "give a cup of water in My Name" thing to a whole new level.