So exclaimed my 10-year old niece to no one in particular.

Her mom and pediatrician were discussing her during an office visit.  My niece was in the corner taking it all in.

My niece has a variety of physical, emotional and intellectual issues.  Most are just major inconveniences; nothing life threatening.  But her older brother and sister are good to go, so it’s hard for her in comparison.  Every malady in the family seems to have fallen on her.  She is going to have obstacles in life that she will have to overcome.  It’s not going to be easy for her.

But she can overcome.  God has a plan for her and her issues are going to play a major part in that plan.

The key for her is that, at some point, she is going to need to turn to Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary.  She is going to have to unite her suffering and her trials to those of our Savior and our Blessed Mother.

I know.

Due to birth defects and other developmental issues, I have a host of things wrong with me.  All are just inconveniences; everything is adaptable; nothing is life threatening.  But there are times when I want to be like my niece and yell to the world – “nothing is right with me!”

But I’ve learned that, to the contrary, everything is right with me; because God made me and all of my issues are a part of God’s plan for me.

I look at Jesus on the Cross and I see his suffering and I know that he shares my suffering.  I look at others in pain and know that Jesus shares their suffering as well.  I find myself uniting my suffering with theirs and my suffering becomes diminished, if not inconsequential.

When I start to feel sorry for myself, I look for our Blessed Mother and know that she is extending her arms to console me.  She’s been there.  I am not alone.

My niece is going to have to find Christ and Mary in her own suffering, in her own way.  They are going to be there for her, but she is going to have to find them and allow herself to be embraced.

And I am reminded that all of us are called to reach out to those who are suffering; and that those of us who have unique life challenges are called even more so to reach out with Christ-like compassion.  For we know; we’ve been there.

The Militia of the Immaculata, started by St. Maximilian Kolbe, has a monthly intercession that they ask of the Blessed Mother.  For February, it is this-

“Immaculata, please intercede that following your example, Mother, we may learn to love Jesus in the sick-those who suffer in body, mind, and spirit.”

I know that I’m going to be called to help my niece find meaning in her suffering and trials.  It’s going to be a long road; but it’s one that leads directly to the Cross and our Lord.  It’s a road on which we will be like the Blessed Virgin Mary and learn to love Jesus through our suffering and that of others.

I know who she is because she drives a distinctive car and, one morning, there she was waiting at the light at the end of my exit ramp (which happens to be right at my office).  I got right behind her and watched as she drove into my office parking lot.  It was then that I realized she works in my building.

Yesterday morning, I looked in my rearview mirror about four miles from the office and there she was-brow furrowed, fingers tapping on the wheel in impatience, waiting for us to get past the line of cars in the next lane.

We cleared the cars and sure enough-whoosh, she shoots by me and accelerates away from me.  A quarter of a mile or so ahead she comes to another car, slams on her brakes, rides the bumper, and then, when clear, zooms past that car and out of my sight.

I stayed at my speed (slightly above the speed limit) and pulled off the rather long exit ramp.

And sure enough, there she was waiting at the light.

I pulled in behind her, followed her into the parking lot, and walked into the office building about 30 seconds after her.

Me-I was rather relaxed (I had been listening to Chopin on the way).  Her-frazzled.  You get the point.

We have to slow down our lives.  We shoot through our days, worried about the next thing we have to do.  We fill our days and our kids’ days with too much stuff.  We are on electronic and information overload.  We try to do so many things.

But do we do the things that God wants us to do?  Do we make the time to really talk to him and build our relationship with him?  Do we make the time to be the face of Christ and build quality relationships with others?

Or do we just fill our time with activities that bear no relationship to what God wants from us and for us?

I’ve been on a slow-it-down mode the past few months.  I’ve taken a hard look at how I’m spending my days, especially my nights and weekends.

And I’ve spent more time in prayer and sitting in silence.

I’m trying to figure out if what I am doing in my day-to-day life is answering my call to holiness.  Am I fulfilling my personal vocation?  Am I sanctifying my work and activities, both professional and personal?

I got my tires replaced around Christmas.  One of my front ones wasn’t balanced quite right and it vibrates when I go above 70.  I should get it checked out.  But, I’m hesitating because, when it starts vibrating, I kind of like the reminder-slow down, you’re going too fast.

In our lives, God gives us these reminders in many different ways.  It’s up to us to listen and slow it down-to make sure that what we are doing is God’s work.

Of course, this lack of sun can take a toll on folks.  The mood in my household is approaching toxic levels.   Tempers are getting short; we’re weary and short of energy; kids are acting up; games are getting boring; there is just a general malaise and listlessness around the old homestead-broken only by the laboring over of household projects long since ignored.

Whether we realize it or not, weather impacts all of us.  Sun and mild weather cheers us; prolonged rain, cold and clouds can send some of us into an Eeyoreish gloom.

I’ve struggled with this mood all of my life.  Growing up in the Ohio Valley, one gets rather intimate with winter clouds.  It’s an intimacy that can grow increasingly destructive to one’s own psyche.

The good news is that this year I, at least, am handling it better.

A couple of weeks ago, I focused in on this passage from Psalm 118 –

“This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice in it and be glad.”

Every morning for the past week or so, when I leave for work, I shout this line into the gray nothingness of the sky.  God made this day, no matter how dreary, and I must accept it and rejoice in it.  I don’t know why he lets us go two weeks without sun, but he does.  It’s just up to us to deal with it.

But then this weekend, I started thinking.

Is it that he gives us these periods so that we are forced to turn to him?  Or is it to remind us that he needs to be the source of our joy?  Even when we cannot find joy from his creation, we need to find joy in him-by our prayers, our good works, our sacrifices, and our love.

In Daniel 3, there is a song of deliverance sung by the three who were thrown into the fire by King Nebuchadnezzar and escaped unharmed.  The canticle plays a primary role in Morning Prayer for Liturgy of the Hours.  In it, they sing-

“Every shower and dew, bless the Lord; praise and exalt him above all forever.

All you winds, bless the Lord; praise and exalt him above all forever.

Fire and heat, bless the Lord; praise and exalt him above all forever.

Cold and chill, bless the Lord; praise and exalt him above all forever.

Dew and rain, bless the Lord; praise and exalt him above all forever.

Frost and chill, bless the Lord; praise and exalt him above all forever.

Ice and snow, bless the Lord; praise and exalt him above all forever.

Nights and days, bless the Lord; praise and exalt him above all forever.

Light and darkness, bless the Lord; praise and exalt him above all forever.

Lightnings and clouds, bless the Lord; praise and exalt him above all forever.

Let the earth bless the Lord, praise and exalt him above all forever.”

This song gets it right.  It doesn’t matter the weather, we must praise and exalt God in all things, because he made them all.  We must find our joy in him.

Now, how to explain all of this to my kids and how to keep from looking at real estate in Arizona or Florida.

Spring Training is less than a month away!

I slept on this thought and woke up this morning with this thought . . . .

While I don’t think we should take religion out of the discussion, I don’t think we necessarily need our faith to rationally reason it out.

In the unborn, we are talking about human life itself.  It doesn’t matter whether the human life is viable or not; what matters is that the life is human and worthy of dignity and protection.

And logic dictates that this humanity begins at the moment of conception.

How do we know the life is human from the moment of conception?  Precisely because science has failed to determine otherwise.

We cannot deny that at some point during pregnancy, the unborn child is human.  Science has proven so.  We witness the humanity of the child through ultrasounds and other tests.  We know so by the movements of the child during pregnancy.

So, given that science has proven that the unborn child is human at some point during pregnancy, we now turn to what science cannot prove.  We know that science cannot prove that humanity does not start at conception.  So we cannot assume that there is some magical moment between conception and birth when the humanity of the child begins.  We must assume that humanity begins at conception.  To do otherwise is to play God.

In fact, we instinctively know this humanity to be true.  We mourn miscarriages; we prosecute unborn deaths that occur through violence and negligence; some government programs even count pregnant women as being two people.  When someone is pregnant, we do not celebrate the expectation of human life; we celebrate the reality and presence of human life.

Those who ignore the truth of the humanity of the unborn child do so either through theoretical and intellectual self-indulgence or because they profit in some way from the ignorance (whether financial, political, emotional, or lifestyle). Many deny the truth of the humanity of the unborn the same way many denied the truth of the humanity of the slaves.  And that’s why this issue is so hard for them; because if they were to acknowledge the humanity of the unborn, they would have to change; they would have to do something about it.

I come back to the fight over ultrasounds.  The pro-abortion folks fight tooth-and-nail against ultrasounds.  Showing an ultrasound on national TV is considered worse than porn.  I think primarily they want to self-servedly “protect” the mother from the truth of the being inside of her in order to keep their business going; but I also think they want to protect their own ignorance.  For they cannot do what they do if they acknowledge the humanity of the unborn.

Tomorrow is a National Day of Prayer and Penance for the Unborn.  May God bless and protect the unborn.

I know the prayers are flowing for the people of Haiti.  Let’s not forget prayers to the patron saint of Haiti – Our Lady of Perpetual Help.

O Mother of Perpetual Help, grant that I may ever invoke thy most powerful name, which is the safeguard of the living and the salvation of the dying. O Purest Mary, O Sweetest Mary, let thy name henceforth be ever on my lips. Delay not, O Blessed Lady, to help me whenever I call on thee, for, in all my needs, in all my temptations I shall never cease to call on thee, ever repeating thy sacred name, Mary, Mary.

O what consolation, what sweetness, what confidence, what emotion fill my soul when I pronounce thy sacred name, or even only think of thee. I thank God for having given thee, for my good, so sweet, so powerful, so lovely a name. But I will not be content with merely pronouncing thy name: let my love for thee prompt me ever to hail thee, Mother of Perpetual Help.

They are going to be a long time in recovering.  Let us give them all of the spiritual and financial support we can.

May they not lose their hope in Christ.  May they feel our love.  Jesus, Mary, Joseph, be with them.

The following is a short summary of each saint or blessed with their feast days.  (Those with an asterisk are not on the liturgical calendar.) As this year goes by, we should take special note of these of our brethren who fought especially well and finished the race.  They provide us with the example of how we should live and serve Christ for they helped build the Kingdom and bring others to Christ.

We may also want to listen to the Lord and figure out in what way he is calling us to be a saint-for we are all called to be saints, each in our own ways.

• January 4^th – St. Elizabeth Ann Seton (1774-1821) – founder of American Sisters of Charity; convert and widow who was instrumental in establishing the Catholic hospital and parochial education system in the U.S.
• January 5^th – St. John Neumann (1811-1860) – Bishop of Philadelphia.
• *January 23^rd – Bl. Mother Marianne Cope (1838-1918) – Franciscan nun who replaced Fr. Damien in Hawaii in ministering to the lepers.
• March 3^rd – St. Katherine Drexel (1858-1955) – heiress (her father endowed Drexel University) turned missionary nun; founded Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament to serve the Native American and minority populations; established a network of schools.
• May 10^th – St. Damien of Molokai (1840-1889) – ministered to the lepers in Hawaii.
• July 1^st – Bl. Junipero Serra (1713-1784) – Franciscan missionary who founded and administered missions in California (e.g. San Francisco, San Diego, San Jose).
• July 14^th – Bl. Kateri Tekakwitha (1656-1680) – Native American convert, known for her sanctity and courage.
• *October 3^rd – St. Mother Theodore Guerin (1798-1856) – head of Sisters of Providence in America.
• *October 5^th – Bl. Francis Seelos (1819-1867) – Redemptorist priest in Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Detroit and New Orleans
• October 19^th – St. Isaac Jogues (1607-1646) – Jesuit missionary; martyred (part of North American Martyrs).
• November 13^th – St. Frances Xavier Cabrini (1850-1917) – founder of the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus; missionary to Italian immigrants; established hospitals, schools and social organizations.
• November 18^th – St. Rose Philippine Duchesne (1769-1852) – Sister of the Society of the Sacred Heart; missionary to the pioneer poor and Native Americans.

The Church’s prayer for today proclaims-

“His ministry strengthened many others in the Christian faith: through his prayers may faith grow strong in this land.”

As Catholics in America, we need to pray to St. John Neumann and all of the American Saints that faith will grow strong in our land.  As importantly, we need to ensure that our own prayers, thoughts and actions strengthen ourselves and each other in our faith.  The American Saints helped build this nation; through their prayers, they can help us strengthen it.

St. John Neumann and the American Saints, pray for us!

We tell the kids that it’s Santa’s spy and that the elf keeps watch over them and tells the Big Guy whether they’ve been naughty or nice.  The elf is up there all year round, typically unnoticed; but effective around this time of year.

While I know that the elf will eventually lose his impact, I happen to think that he is good preparation for a larger lesson in life for my kids.

God sees and knows everything!

In Psalm 139, remember that David told us-

O LORD, you have probed me, you know me: you know when I sit and stand; you understand my thoughts from afar. My travels and my rest you mark; with all my ways you are familiar. Even before a word is on my tongue, LORD, you know it all.

God knows everything about who we are-our dreams, goals, successes, triumphs, sins, failings, weaknesses. Even if we do not utter a word, he knows our every thought. He knows that good deed we did sight unseen, but also that corner we cut when no one was looking. He knows the good we did for our wife, as well as the attractive woman we checked out at lunch (if even for a second). He knows our every word, thought and action.

He knows EVERYTHING!!!!

Missed Mass on Sunday because you wanted to sleep in, he knows it. Ignored your wife or kids when they needed you, he knows it. Slouched off at work, he knows it. Looked at that porn; he knows it. Had that one-night stand, he knows it. Had that one drink too many, he knows it. Was mean to someone, he knows it.

He knows EVERYTHING!!!!

So, we either cower in fear that his little elves are going to tell on us; or we live our lives in full anticipation that we will have to someday answer for our successes and failures.

Most importantly, we must offer up to him our every prayer, work, thought and sacrifice of each moment of each day; and we must strive to ensure that they are worthy of so great a God and so wonderful a gift that he bestows on us each moment of each day.

It’s not easy knowing that there is no place to hide; no room to slip up without him noticing it. But, the good news is that he expects our screw ups-that’s why he gave us confession. He will still love us no matter what we do. It’s just up to us to return this love by working on our shortcomings, staying on the path of holiness, and building his kingdom here on earth despite our weaknesses.

God doesn’t need any elfs, because he can watch us all the same. But, maybe we need to aware of the “elves” in our lives and strive to live our lives to be worthy of such an almighty and forgiving Father.

In any case, last night, she and I were talking about the sacrament and its meaning.  Why we do it; why Christ gave us the sacrament; why we should do it eagerly and often.

I was struggling to come up with a simple way to explain the results of the sacrament, when I came up with the following -

In our life, we have a balloon that we carry around with us.  The bigger it gets, the more we are separated from God and off the path that Christ wants us to walk.  The balloon only gets bigger when we sin.  If we do little sins, then little puffs of air go into the balloon.  If we do big sins, then bigger puffs of air shoot into the balloon.

Most of us do the little sins.  We try to do good but we screw up from time to time.  We forget or we give in to temptation.  But even these minor sins blow air into the balloon.  After a while, it’s these little puffs that have caused the balloon to grow bigger over time.  All of a sudden we realize that the balloon has gotten rather large and we find ourselves separated from God.

We have to find a way to pop the balloon; but we find that we can’t do it ourselves.

The good news is that Christ has given us the Sacrament of Reconciliation.  We can go to a priest and confess our sins.  Sitting in the place of Christ, he will forgive our sins and pop the balloon.  We are made clean and we can start anew.  We are no longer separated from God and can go about doing Christ’s work.

When the balloon gets some air in it again, we can go to confession and have it popped again.  The trick, of course, is to make sure the balloon doesn’t get too big; by living a good life and by going to confession often.

After I finished, my little girl seemed to understand.  Even if she didn’t, I’m feel blessed that she cares so much about what she is going to do tomorrow.

And I guess we all need to remember that Advent is a season of conversion in preparation for the coming of Christ.  The Sacrament of Reconciliation is indispensable to this conversion.

Go to confession in the next week; even if you haven’t been in a decade; even if you are as nervous as my little girl.  If it’s been awhile, just tell the priest.  He’ll be glad you are back and will walk you through it. 

(Trust me, I started going again four years ago after having been away for 15 years.  I remembered nothing and Father just led me without question or reproach; just like the Good Shepherd.)

Pop the balloon; get straightened out with Christ.  It will make Christmas that much sweeter.

Fr. Mark Burger is the pastor of St. John the Evangelist parish in West Chester, Ohio.  He is also a renowned speaker and retreat leader.  He appears annually at the Cincinnati Men’s Conference and always leaves us pondering whether we are truly listening to the voice of God that is always in our heads, even if we have hit the cerebral mute button.

Fr. Mark decided to publish a book, “Hearing God’s Voice.”  We received advance notice of the book at this past Men’s Conference in March so I was looking forward to its release.  He decided to self-publish it, which means some unfortunate publishing house missed out on the chance to sell people something that is going to actually enrich their souls and lead them closer to our heavenly Father.

The book is laid out as a daily meditation.  Each day of the year carries a different sermon.  Some are of the slap-you-across-the-face variety, while others reveal themselves to you slowly and profoundly as you mull the message over during the course of a day.

The important part of Fr. Mark’s insights is that he always tells a story.  It’s not lecturing or postering-it’s just spinning a tale and then hitting home the point.  It’s also ecumenical in scope.  For me, it’s a great way to spend the five minutes before I walk out the door in the morning.  I find myself reflecting on the story during my ride into work.

A good example is today’s reflection for November 18th.  Fr. Mark tells the story of a friend who gave him a prayer to bring someone peace in troubled times.  After relaying the prayer, Fr. Mark concludes by sharing with us that -

“Jesus promised to give us a gift that no one else can, the gift of peace. His peace comes when no other sentiment, feeling or emotion will satisfy. Only His peace has the power to keep our eyes focused on heaven.”

We do live in unsatisfying times that are calling out for the best in all of us.  Fr. Mark’s book may be one tool that God is putting into your hands to help you answer this call.

You can order the book through this link – Hearing God’s Voice.  You just need to fork over $13.95 (and I’m assuming S&H and applicable taxes-you also have to register with lulu.com).

Advent is around the corner.  These meditations may be just what you need to start off the new liturgical year right.

Required Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this book from a friend who worked on the book with Fr. Mark.  I provided free and rather poor guidance to Fr. Mark on how to set up a blog to publish his daily meditations.  I have not received and will not receive anything of value in connection with this book.  I just think it’s a cool worship tool worthy of your time and money.

When President Reagan spoke at the Brandenburg Gate in 1987, history remembers his call of “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall.”  Unfortunately, other parts of his speech are left without remark.  And, it’s a shame because he gave such an exhilarating embrace of freedom – an embrace that we need in this day and age.

President Reagan was unapologetic about freedom -

“[T]here stands before the entire world one great and inescapable conclusion: Freedom leads to prosperity. Freedom replaces the ancient hatreds among the nations with comity and peace. Freedom is the victor.”

How is truth and prosperity tied to freedom? -

“[T]ruth can flourish only when the journalist is given freedom of speech, so prosperity can come about only when the farmer and businessman enjoy economic freedom.”

Do you want peace – real and lasting peace? -

“[W]e believe that freedom and security go together, that the advance of human liberty can only strengthen the cause of world peace.”

President Reagan then hit his stride -

“[W]e must remember a crucial fact: East and West do not mistrust each other because we are armed; we are armed because we mistrust each other. And our differences are not about weapons but about liberty. When President Kennedy spoke at the City Hall those twenty-four years ago, freedom was encircled, Berlin was under siege. And today, despite all the pressures upon this city, Berlin stands secure in its liberty. And freedom itself is transforming the globe.”

And then came the call for self-reflection for the people of Berlin – the call for self-reflection for us all -

“[W]hat keeps you here? Certainly, there’s a great deal to be said for your fortitude, for your defiant courage. But I believe there’s something deeper, something that involves Berlin’s whole look and feel and way of life – not mere sentiment. No one could live long in Berlin without being completely disabused of illusions. Something instead, that has seen the difficulties of life in Berlin but chose to accept them, that continues to build this good and proud city in contrast to a surrounding totalitarian presence that refuses to release human energies or aspirations. Something that speaks with a powerful voice of affirmation, that says yes to this city, yes to the future, yes to freedom. In a word, I would submit that what keeps you in Berlin is love – love both profound and abiding.

President Reagan then gave the unassailable difference between liberty and oppression -

“Perhaps this gets to the root of the matter, to the most fundamental distinction of all between East and West. The totalitarian world produces backwardness because it does such violence to the spirit, thwarting the human impulse to create, to enjoy, to worship. The totalitarian world finds even symbols of love and our worship an affront.”

And then President Reagan finished with a story that brings us back to the source of our freedom and liberty – back to God.

He told how the East Germans built a huge television tower on Alexander Platz as a grandiose secular monument. Unfortunately for the authorities, the top of the tower turned into a Cross whenever the sun shined. President Reagan used this symbol to emphatically exclaim that “this wall will fall. For it cannot withstand faith; it cannot withstand truth. The wall cannot withstand freedom.”

God gives us freedom as his children; Christ gives us freedom through his Cross.  Let us never ever forget that this freedom is given to us as a divine gift, as a birthright. It is up to us to decide how we will use it and whether we will strengthen it or squander it.

And it’s up to us to pray for those of our brothers and sisters that live under political oppression – that someday their walls will fall as well.

I believe God has a sense of humor, or he just finds innovative ways to get our attention. One way was through the Opening Prayer for this Sunday’s Mass.

“God of power and mercy, protect us from all harm. Give us freedom of spirit and health in mind and body to do your work on earth. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.”

“Freedom of spirit!”  Freedom to do God’s work on earth. On this anniversary of the Fall of the Berlin Wall, let’s renew our commitment to freedom, liberty and peace. Let us gratefully acknowledge and embrace this most divine and precious of gifts, and cast off the illusions that will separate us from this freedom and separate us from God’s plan for us.