Triumph of the Cross

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On September 14th the Church celebrates the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. We read in the Second Reading from Today’s Mass, from Paul’s Letter to the Phillipians:

Phillipians 2:6-11

Brothers and sisters:
Christ Jesus, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God something to be grasped.
Rather, he emptied himself,
taking the form of a slave,
coming in human likeness;
and found human in appearance,
he humbled himself,
becoming obedient to death,
even death on a cross.
Because of this, God greatly exalted him
and bestowed on him the name
that is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus
every knee should bend,
of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.

Because of His humility in accepting a horrific death He was exalted by God, and all who wish to follow Him must likewise accept whatever crosses that are bestowed upon them. This is a central belief in Christianity, that accepting suffering is honorable and necessary and essential for what Christians call “successful” and “normal” .

Note that this differs strongly from what the world refers to as “successful” and “normal”. Christianity, and especially Catholicism, offers the only real explanation for suffering (Original Sin, read Genesis 3) and offers the only real solution (acceptance). Others deny it or avoid it and the world tells you that you should take something or do something to eliminate it. This is why we drink and drug, and why perhaps some of us abuse said drink and drugs.

We find our victory in the Cross of Christ. On His Cross, death was destroyed forever, inasmuch as it will never again keep us out of Heaven. We can still reject God and Heaven, but that’s another issue. If we follow God’s will as best we can, guided by the Church and the Holy Spirit, we will eventually find our union with God for all eternity.

The suffering that we endured while drinking and recovering we nail to the Cross of Christ. We unite our sufferings to His. As He destroyed death, so too will we achieve our victory over whatever we are addicted to.

This is the contradiction of the Cross, that in apparent defeat and death, victory and life are achieved. We had reached the nadir of our life when we hit our bottom, and reached that point where we thought that if we continue to drink we will die, but if we stop we may only think we will die.

But somehow we pulled ourselves up (or more than likely had help) and sought to live. Our old selves were crucified, and we arose in a resurrection of sorts and in some manner unique to our abilities bring the hope of our sobriety to others.

Nail it to the Cross. Whatever it is that is disturbing you or keeping you awake at night. Look upon a crucifix (a cross with Jesus’ body hanging from it) and regard that as your hope. For it is. Without the Death and subsequent Resurrection of Jesus we would all be barred from Heaven. Protestant Christians prefer crosses without the body of Christ on it, claiming that the victory has been won in His Resurrection. This is only partly true. But you cannot have the Resurrection without the Crucifixion. Good Friday comes before Easter Sunday on the calendar.

Without the suffering, there is no living.

The Holy Cross of Christ, with Him on it, is the symbol of our hope. It is our reminder that our sufferings will end, that they have merit, and will lead to our own victory.

Nail it to the Cross. Gaze upon the Cross of Christ and hope.

From the Gospel from today’s Mass:

John 3:16;

For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him might not perish but might have eternal life.

That Cross is our sign that we will not perish.

I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

Luke 1:49

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The Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is His name.

I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

Trials Permitted to Happen for a Reason

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While randomly flipping through the Douay-Rheims translation of the Bible last night while in Eucharistic Adoration, I chanced upon this passage from Tobias (Tobit in the NAB. Please note that the translation in the NAB is very different from the D-R. If you don’t have a copy of the D-R, there’s a link to it in the blog’s sidebar in the “For all things Catholic” section).

Tobias 2:12-14

Now this trial the Lord therefore permitted to happen to him, that an example might be given to posterity of his patience, as also of holy Job. For whereas he had always feared God from his infancy, and kept his commandments, he repined not against God because the evil of blindness had befallen him, but continued immoveable in the fear of God, giving thanks to God all the days of his life.

Tobias had become blind, despite having led a virtuous and faithful life in very trying circumstances. (Why do bad things happen to good people?)

Note that the passage says that the Lord permitted this trial to happen to him, meaning perhaps that God could have prevented it.

But the passage also states that there was a reason for the trial’s happening, “so that an example might be given to posterity for his patience.”

OK, so a bad thing happened to a good person. And perhaps such things fit in with God’s overall plan for your life, that a bad thing occurs so that something good is drawn out of it. In Tobias’ case, it was so that others would benefit from his patient endurance.

How do you react to your alcoholism or addiction? Are you angry and resentful that you cannot drink like normal people? (You might know the joke told in AA meetings: “If I could drink like a normal person, I’d drink all day.”) Or do you accept your addiction, deal with it, incorporate the principles of your recovery program into your life and seek to determine how you can learn from your experience and apply it to other people and situations?

In my cessation from drinking, I learned I needed more that what AA’s spirituality offered. I returned to the Catholic Faith, feeling that only a 2,000 year-old religion with its breadth and depth can truly keep me sober and alive. AND I eventually started this blog, with the idea that there are other Catholics and spiritual seekers who need to dive into deep waters to sustain them, because other spiritual solutions are unsatisfying.

So, what are YOU doing with your sobriety? If your sobriety is a private affair, that is wonderful, you are still an example to others in a little way. But if you feel called to do something more than just not drink, that is wonderful also, as you are seeking to reach out to others and bring the Gospel message to those who need it.

Do whatever is within your abilities and don’t apologize for not doing more, if more is beyond your reach. As long as you end up viewing your sobriety as a gift, and your recovery as something that brought you closer to God. We are not all called to start Catholic sobriety blogs, or whatever else. We are meant to stay sober and draw closer to God. Whether in small ways or big ways, you’re doing God’s work. This is more than most.

I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

Happy Birthday, Mom

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Today is the Feast of the Birthday of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Happy Birthday, Mom!

May all of you out there be inspired by her ready acceptance of the will of God in her life. Call upon her when you are struggling with God’s will. What it is, or if you know it, with getting through its difficulty.

Hail Mary, full of Grace,
the LORD is with you,
Blessed are you among women,
and blessed is the fruit of your womb, JESUS!

Holy Mary, Mother of GOD,
Pray for us sinners,
now, and at the hour of our death,
AMEN

I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

New wineskins

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An excerpt from today’s Gospel of Luke is a parable I like, as it symbolizes our changes in a way almost designed to catch an alcoholic’s attention:

Luke 5:36-39;
And he also told them a parable. “No one tears a piece from a new cloak to patch an old one. Otherwise, he will tear the new and the piece from it will not match the old cloak.
Likewise, no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the new wine will burst the skins, and it will be spilled, and the skins will be ruined.
Rather, new wine must be poured into fresh wineskins.
(And) no one who has been drinking old wine desires new, for he says, ‘The old is good.'”

The parallels are clear as relevant to the focus of this blog : the old cloak and old wineskins are our old selves in our practicing alcoholic lives. The new patch and new wine is our new way of living, through our Catholic Faith and spirituality along with whatever recovery program we work.

The new cloak and new wineskin are our new selves, having received the new patch and new wine in our recovery and conversion/reversion to the Church.

The new message will not fit in with the old self. The new self must change to accommodate the new message. You have to be humble, get ourself out of the way, and become teachable. You’re not going to learn anything by clinging to old ways with their old failures.

I’ve written about this before , although the earlier post used the Gospel according to Mark. Check that out, too.

I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

Not destined for wrath

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Since this passage from the First Reading from today’s Mass refers to being sober and drunk, I could hardly pass it up:

1 Thessalonians 5:6-11

Therefore, let us not sleep as the rest do, but let us stay alert and sober.
Those who sleep go to sleep at night, and those who are drunk get drunk at night.
But since we are of the day, let us be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love and the helmet that is hope for salvation.
For God did not destine us for wrath, but to gain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep we may live together with him.
Therefore, encourage one another and build one another up, as indeed you do.

This is what we are to do. We are sober Catholics, we used to get drunk, but do so no longer (or at least plan to). Just like what you hear in AA meetings about what we were like, what happened and what we are like now. We have returned or are returning to Jesus and His Church. Our Faith is our armor and guide, it defends us and directs our actions. It is our sure guide to salvation, the only guaranteed path to Heaven, written by God Himself.

We are not destined for an eternity of pain and suffering, although that can be chosen by those who reject God. Nor are we supposed to live a wasted life, enslaved to alcohol and drugs. We are destined for better things, ultimately, to live together with Jesus and the saints in Heaven.

And we encourage each other. That’s sort of what I had in mind with the Twitter thing I joined yesterday. Still not sure of it’s usefulness, but time will tell. Perhaps Sober Catholic readers who want to “encourage one another and build one another up” can start something in a chat room, if that’s better. Less restrictions that the 140 character limit of Twitter, but maybe Twitter can supplement a chat room.

Any, at least meditate on the Scripture passage, allow it to build yourself up.

I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

Twitter

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As an experiment, mainly as I have no idea how useful it is, I signed up for Twitter. Twitter is a “nanoblogging” tool, become recently popular.

Each post, or “tweet”, is a maximum of 140 characters, and is used to inform people of what you’re doing at any given time. Tweets can be written from your computer or mobile phone. As I am not terribly interesting, beyond a recently brewing romance (she’s the interesting one) my tweets may be good for an insomnia cure.

You can find out about it at: Twitter

Groups of tweeters (or whatever users are called) can follow each other around, as “friends” or some such thing. I suppose it’s like an IM buddy list.

Perhaps that can be the use for this Twitter thing. Sober Catholic readers can sign up, and we can keep track of each other, offer mutual support and such.

Anyway, you can read my tweets in the sidebar under “Twitter Updates”. I may lower its location in the sidebar as it may be too prominent right now, but like I said, it’s an experiment.

My Twitter ID is “Paulcoholic”, like the blogger ID. Wow.

NOTE: The Twitter thing is being discontinued, read the second comment in the combox. (Sept. 15, 2007)

I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

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Awaking from sleep

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This was a reading in the Liturgy of the Hours from a few days ago:

Romans 13:11-14;

…it is the hour now for you to awake from sleep. For our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed; the night is advanced, the day is at hand.
Let us then throw off the works of darkness (and) put on the armor of light; let us conduct ourselves properly as in the day, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in promiscuity and licentiousness, not in rivalry and jealousy.
But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the desires of the flesh.

People in recovery can see in this Scripture passage their own awakening in sobriety. When we stop drinking and enter the sober life, we “awaken from sleep”, inasmuch as while we were drinking we were asleep to real living, caught in the nightmare of our own making. Having made the first forays into sobriety, we realized that life is worth living and starting to work out our salvation. Much time was lost, but regardless of how much time is left, our new day is dawning.

We cast aside our old, alcoholic and addictive ways, and don a new set of clothing, our new selves wrought by our program of recovery and also our Catholic Faith. We learn a new way of living, a new way of reacting to things, and proper conduct amongst other people. We now know (or are learning to) how to relate to others.

“…Not in orgies and drunkenness, not in promiscuity and licentiousness…”. I am using words from the passage directly now instead of in a rough paraphrase. One thing I’ve noticed amongst some (not a lot) in early recovery is a fast and loose regard for morals and the dignity of others. Halfway houses where people in early recovery live with other genders (a violation of Catholic teaching about living with the opposite sex outside of marriage), and Internet use by said residents visiting public libraries where their online activity is on lewd dating and soft-porn sites. This is why I put the “For those addicted to porn” links in the sidebar. As we begin to value our own new lives, we should also learn to value and appreciate other people as dignified children of God, and not as sexual objects, stripped not just of their clothing, but also of their value as unique human beings, with intellect and immortal souls.

The selfishness (“rivalry and jealousy”) we exhibited in our alcoholic state is past. Entering into our new sober living, we decide to make the best of our past. Instead of moaning about it, we seek to help others and with God’s assistance, establish mutual support. Either formally or informally we seek to help others regardless of who they are. We were wounded. We are still wounded. We heal our wounds in the healing of others.

We are drawn to Jesus Christ, and to His Church. We seek to become like Him, as Christians are obligated to do. We “make no provisions for the desires of the flesh”, meaning that as Christ, the Son of God died in His body, we as Christians, die to our flesh, we follow the spirit of Truth and not the morals and ways of the world. Truth liberates, the world enslaves and denigrates.

How awake are you?

I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

A Good Focus

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A friend sent me this scripture quote in an email:

Romans 12:12;

Rejoice in hope, endure in affliction, persevere in prayer.

A simple notion, but an example of a person who is focused in the right direction.

We are Christian, hope is the predominant theme of our existence. The hope of eternal salvation and union with God and reunion with our loved ones.

We endure affliction, we do not shun it or seek to escape it. And, as sober alcoholics, we understand the folly of artificial palliatives like alcohol. It doesn’t work t o ease the pain. At first yes, but after abuse, no.

We persevere in prayer. Prayer is the uplifting of our heart and mind and soul to God. It is our way of communicating with our creator. We offer up our joys and sufferings in prayer. We turn to prayer instead of alcohol.

Rejoice, endure and persevere.

I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

Division

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You are embarking upon a new way of life. You are sober and have left the bars or solitary drinking behind you, and are also living (or learning to live) a Catholic life.

Some people aren’t going to like that.

A lot of people have this New Age-ish 1960’s or 1970’s touchy-feely view of Jesus as just this swell long-haired freaky hippie dude who just wants people to get along and be nice.

Not quite.

From the Gospel of the Mass on the 20th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C):

Luke 12:49-53

Jesus said to his disciples:
“I have come to set the earth on fire,
and how I wish it were already blazing!
There is a baptism with which I must be baptized,
and how great is my anguish until it is accomplished!
Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth?
No, I tell you, but rather division.
From now on a household of five will be divided,
three against two and two against three;
a father will be divided against his son
and a son against his father,
a mother against her daughter
and a daughter against her mother,
a mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law
and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.”

Like I said, not quite the peace-and-love flower handing out “Can’t we all just get along”, acoustic guitar strumming, (OK, Paulcoholic, we get the idea.) guy of pop culture derivation.

Jesus was a radical who knew that commitment to His teachings and living them out would be a sacrifice. Not everyone would go along with your conversion or reversion to the Catholic Christian life. Any convert or revert will attest to the fact that acceptance of Catholic Christian living will be met with less-than-enthusiastic embracing by other members of their family, friends and acquaintances.

Some people will reject you for your new way of life. As is heard quite often in the meeting rooms of 12-Step groups, sometimes people may need to be left behind if they are a hindrance or obstacle to your survival.

Even if they accept your sobriety, they may draw the line at your Catholicism. So you may feel compelled to quit you new-found Catholic Faith and instead pick a less radical way. Just keep to 12-Step meetings or a less demanding Christian denomination.

OK, fine, do that. But the risk to your soul is not worth the gamble of picking the easier, softer way of 12-Step meetings or a different denomination. Only the Catholic Church contains the fullness of the Gospel and Apostolic teachings from Sacred Scripture. Pick pretty much any post in the “Church” label in the sidebar and there will be something written about that.

Do not expect the easy path. It will be difficult and you will lose people. But consider the probability that the people who oppose your new way of living are looking out for their own self-interest. They may resent your change simply because it reminds them they may have to, as well. Or you commitment to a radical new way of living is incomprehensible to them.

Be that as it may, pray for them, and if needed, let them go.

For an explanation as to why you’re reading this on a post date of “Thursday” instead of the expected “Sunday”, read this post .

I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)