Holiness: Responsibility

What is so difficult about taking responsibility for our own actions? Why are we afraid to admit that we made an honest mistake?

Mistakes, failures, all a part of life. With every up must come a down. Like with the Great Depression. The US economy steadily grew and grew, but with all that upward growth must come a downward spiral.

Everyone makes mistakes, so what makes us so afraid of the responsibility? The shame, the feeling of failure, perhaps. But, the experience allows for growth. I mean, what if we had not learned not to put our hands on hot objects? Who knows? Maybe eventually we would have stuck our whole arm on the stove and set ourselves on fire. Mistakes are a part of life and growth. Part of making a mistake is the responsibility that goes along with it. Accepting responsibility shows maturity, that we are able to say "yes I accept the consequences, and I have learned from this experience." Through this, we are able to learn and grow into better men and women, and eventually bring upon our children, and even grandchildren, the lessons we have learned from our past mistakes.

Holiness: Sportsmanship

Sportsmanship. An aspect that is all too often forgotten in modern-day sports. I recall a lecture that my coach gave us earlier this year, the day after one of our first Water Polo games of the season. The day before, our varsity had beaten a team 18-0. But was this really a win? No. The game was not a win. Our team may have won on paper, but our opponent left feeling like they just played against "a group of spoiled rich kids."

Part of playing a sport is the opportunity to represent your school. It is an opportunity to show the very best player inside of you, and play against another team doing the exact same. Being a good player comprises your skill at the sport, but it also comprises your character. How are you going to act on and off the field? How are you going to act if you win or lose? Winning or losing is merely a state of mind. If you really did play your best and gave it your all, maintained sportsmanship, and accepted that you lost on paper, then you did win.

We need to be respectful when we compete, not only to our opponent but ourselves. A game is just that, a game. It is not the end of the world if you lose. Winning does not make you all powerful. Not all schools may have a sports program as established as others. We should be respectful and fortunate that we have the opportunity to compete against them in the first place. In time, their program will grow, and one day they could be a formidable opponent to truly give a challenge to all who face them.

Sports may allow us to stay fit and compete. But what else? They are an opportunity to compete. They are an opportunity to be the very best of who we are. But not only that, but sports opens the doors to friendships, lessons in life. Playing is only half the game. It is how the players carry themselves on and off the field that truly defines how a game is played.

Holiness: Losing

What is it about losing that gets us down? Is it that we were outmatched by our opponent? Or rather, that the loss makes us feel like we did not try out very best? How about that losing is just the worst thing that could ever happen and the world will end if we don't win? 

Losing is part of life, or rather, failure is a part of life. We can't all be winners all the time, I mean think about it. If everything we did was perfect, what would there be to strive for? Life would be pretty boring, wouldn't it? Our mistakes are a way of learning. Mistakes are good; they help us grow. Otherwise, why would God allow them? God would only allow something bad to happen in the first place if he saw the greater good coming out of it. 

But even if we know this, why do we still get down when we lose? It takes a strong person to accept a loss, and an even stronger person to take it even further, and love their opponent, and sincerely congratulate them on their victory. Losing does not necessarily mean you are not good enough, but that your opponent performed better in that particular situation.  Losing is not the end of the world, but rather it is the beginning of a new opportunity. The opportunity to take the mistakes you made and your failures, and improve upon them, build upon them.  

Reflections: Ronald Davis

"Wait a minute, I'm not a bum, I'm a human being."

These are the words of Ronald Davis, a homeless man who was interviewed in a moving video that is currently going viral all over the internet. Ronald's words serve as testimony to the cruel, cold life that people like you and me endure everyday. These people are in our communities, on the streets we drive on every day, they may even be having a cup of coffee in the doughnut shop you stop in on your way to work. How immoral is it that we get to have a nice warm bed, a nice home, a job, and people just like Ronald have had all these stripped away and are struggling to survive?

What do we normally think of homeless people? In the interview with Ronald, the word bum was mentioned, along with the common "get a job!" phrase. We tend to not think too highly of homeless people. It is ironic that we see them everyday, but few of us stop to offer some aid, and fewer even look deeper into their situation. Sadly, most of us are the "get a job" sayers. However, think for a second. Who would want to hire a homeless person? They have no home, they drag with them the filth of street life, and who knows what history they have? What if they are some kind of serial killer? Yeah, didn't think so.

Homeless is simply a state of being. These are just ordinary people created by God, just like you and me. Just because they are deprived of a home does not take away their dignity as a human person. People like Ronald are fully capable in doing good for society, but what they need is not so much money or food, but rather, an opportunity.

Reflections: All Are Welcome!

Today I will reflect on an article by Cardinal Dolan of the Archdiocese of New York. In his article, Cardinal Dolan talks to us about the classic saying of "hate the sin, love the sinner." After reading the article, I would just like to elaborate on a few of his points.

First, Cardinal Dolan talks about the prominent issue in today's society known as abortion. He states "the Church loves, welcomes, and respects a woman who has had an abortion, and the man who fathered the child and encouraged the abortion...but would be united with them in mourning and regretting that deadly choice." In other words, the Church has a solid stance on its role in defending life and most importantly, creation. However, just because abortion is a mortal sin does not mean that anyone associated with the process is excommunicated from the Church. Rather, the fact that they have sinned greatly increases the need for the Church, her comfort, and her support.

Second, Cardinal Dolan also talks about the the Church's stance on homosexuality, stating "The Church loves, welcomes, and respects a woman or man with a same-sex attraction...while reminding him or her of our clear teaching that, while the condition of homosexuality is no sin at all, still, God's teaching is clear that sexual acts are reserved for a man and woman united in the lifelong, life-giving, faithful, loving bond of marriage." One of the main causes of dispute is the misunderstanding of the Catholic Church's stance on homosexuality. Homosexuals are in fact welcome in the Catholic Church. The Church respects them and sees them as people, just like heterosexuals. However, the Church hates the act of sexual intercourse between a same-sex couple. This goes back to the Church's role in defending life and creation, and since same-sex couples are not capable of yielding life, the Church cannot condone such an act.