Pray To God Today

 Living in 2022 is no easy task, and I won't go further into the troubles of our times, because you already know them. But living as a Catholic in 2022 seems to be even more difficult. Living as someone who believes in God, believes that we will rise again, believes that bread is the Body of Christ, believing in life and believing in a God centered world is a lot to ask for in 2022, especially when society, friends, family and social media consistently supply us with a humanistically pagan, pleasure-seeking teleology to our existence.  If you haven't seen or read part 1 or part 2 of this series, I would recommend catching up on them before we conclude with this piece today.  One question remains why believe? What is the point of believing if in believing we aren't going to get it an easier and it might actually be more difficult for us, especially if we are in high school or in a place constantly surrounded by a small number of people that we desire to fit in with?...

Following God in 2022 is tough for anyone, but especially the young and all of us who are still under the influence and formation of our peers. It becomes increasingly difficult to: say you are Catholic, to practice your faith and to live a life that often goes against popular opinion and societal standards for an 'acceptable' and 'inclusive' person.  Not to mention the baggage and labels that can often come towards someone who is Catholic and who practices or the fact that in many places it can become dangerous to practice your faith.   If you haven't seen the first post in the series, you can do so here, it is worth a read before you pick up on this one.  The one thing that becomes abundantly clear, however, when  you do choose faith, and when you do choose God over society, ideas and movements, is that God is the God of abundance. Yes, believing in God will set you apart, for you are believing in something that holds God as the ultimate being (not humans!), ...

Trust me when I say that I know that living in North America and being young and being in high school, and trying to fit in, finding yourself and trying to gain as many friends as possible, makes it extremely difficult to live out your faith. Certainly in our day and age, saying you are or practicing your Catholic faith is extremely difficult: you are seen as being again progressiveness, you are labeled as uncool and believing in a myth, you are seeing as someone who says no to what appears to be all the good things in life, you are labeled as someone different, weird, or even a bystander to all that is going on. Some people may even stop talking to you because your association with the church; with the stance on abortion and gay marriage, with the church's stance on sex before marriage or that bread actually becomes the body of Christ.  We live in a world of division, and you certainly do not escape that when around your friends, family, and social media. The church and believing ...