We Carried One Another

Recently I have gotten into spoken word poetry. I have found it to be my favorite medium when it comes to writing. It combines my love of words with my love of theater and it becomes a place where my voice comes alive. Last night I found myself zoned out a little bit. It is typically when I feel zoned out that my walls come down allowing my subconscious to come out more. It is during these times that I find it easiest to write. Last night I pictured myself in front of an audience, as I always do when I write, and when I was done I read over what I had just written and I knew that I had to share this. Now keep in mind that this is meant to be spoken so the tone and voice inflection does not come across perfectly when simply reading the text.

We Carried One Another
By: Amanda McGowan

Sometimes I wish I could fly into outer space 
To see the world from a whole new place 
I wonder what the world would look like 
If I were not subject to what I have seen or heard 
But rather I could see the world from the perspective of God 

I like to think that if I saw everything I could finally have all the answers 
And that if only I had enough money to travel the world 
Then maybe I could understand a whole lot more 
However that is not where I am called to be 
I am called to be here in this moment with you 
On this very day I am called to this moment where nothing exists but you and I 
I am here saying these words that may be forgotten the moment I step off this stage 
But I still find myself up here speaking hoping that you will listen to me 
Even though I'm just another person 
I'm just another person trying to find my place in this big world 

I don't know where I'm going or where I'll end up 
All I know is that I'm here in this place with you 

I like to think that in a single moment the world can change 
That I can do or say the right thing and a difference will be made 
I don't know if I will ever make any of those things happen 
But what I do know is that I can love 

I can love you like no one has ever loved you before 
I know that if you tell me something that goes against everything I ever believed 
Then I am going to do my best to prove you wrong and if I can't 
I will get down on my knees and I will look up to you and say 
Teach me please, because I've got a lot to learn and I can't do this on my own 

And when you've taught me something I will go and I will share it with others 
So when you meet my students one day, you will know that you made a difference 
When my students come to me and they thank me for all that I have done 
I will say "you can thank me but also thank my teacher" 

And in a world of endless teachers and preachers 
We find that we are not individuals who just happened to be stuck on this planet we call Earth 
We are a people living and breathing in this world that we share 
And that when I exhale my carbon dioxide will be taken into a plant that will transform it into oxygen 
That you will then breath into your lungs 

We are people that are connected 
And though we may fight and wars may break out 
We are a people and we are the same 
No matter where we come from or what we believe 
We will together be free to say what we believe 

And together we will walk along this path called life 
We will stumble and trip scraping our knees 
We will bleed from the thorns caught on our veins  
But we will stand, putting out an arm for each other 
We will wrap our arms around each others shoulders 
Carrying each other as far as we can 

And when we think that we've got nothing left 
Our wounds will start to heal and we will get a little stronger 
Go a little farther and we will carry one another 

Without each other this life ain't working 
If we did it on our own then there's something we did wrong 
So if you think that you've got it all figured out 
Speak a little louder because I'd like to know what you've figured out 
I'll tell you what I've learned and you'll share with me too 
And in those moments that we share we will carry one another 
We will get a little stronger and we will go a little farther 
We will climb all the way to the top of the mountain 
We will look down below and see how far we've come 
And with our arms stretched out holding one another 
We can speak to God above and say 
"We didn't know what we were doing, so we climbed up here to you 
Here are my brothers, we carried one another"

Reflection:

Background: Over the past year one of the most valuable lessons that I have learned is that I am not always right. In fact, I find that often I am quite wrong about things. It is a hard lesson to learn no doubt but this ability to accept that we are wrong allows us to see the world with so much beauty. When we open ourselves up to new ideas we open ourselves up to beauty and love. This idea of seeing the world with a new set of eyes has been on my mind a lot lately and it has become something that I strive for.

In addition, over the past week I have probably heard 3 homilies on the subject of keeping our focus on the destination ahead. So often we get easily discouraged and distracted that we forget what and where our destination is. Lent is a time when we should do this most and it is also a time when it is easy to struggle with this.

Personal thoughts: When I was writing the beginning I originally wanted to start at the top of a mountain but I changed it to space because the journey up the mountain had not yet taken place. As I was speaking the poem out loud to myself, doing with my arms what I had written, I realized that my body movement resembled that of Jesus when he was carrying his cross. As I was writing this it hit me that although our desired destination is Heaven, the Earthy form of that destination is at the mountain where Jesus was hung on the cross.

Even Jesus, who is God with us, needed help carrying his cross. So often we like to do things on our own and it can be easy to push people away. No one wants to inconvenience others and it can be hard to share our burdens with others. Opening ourselves to accepting that others want to share our sorrows can be one of the toughest lessons that we learn. However, it can be difficult to know how to love others if we have not let others love us first.

When I got to the top of the mountain I started trying to figure out what I would say to God. I was then reminded that Jesus' last words were, "Forgive them Father, for they know not what they are doing." Part of being a Christian is being Christ for others and that means helping our brothers and sisters in Christ climb up that mountain. When we enter the gates of Heaven I imagine it being something that we do together. When I see God face to face at the Heavenly gates I would like to be able to say, "look I brought friends."

Response:

I would love to know what other people take from this poem.
1. What does it mean to you?
2. What mountain are you trying to get to the top of?
3. What is the most difficult part of the climb for you?
4. Is there something you would like to say?
5. I like spoken word poetry, some like art, music, writing, etc. What is your median for communication? I am always interested in learning new ways of how others express themselves!

Feel free to respond by leaving comments or by sending me an email at mcgowan.maria737@gmail.com because I always love hearing peoples' responses.

What My Dad Taught Me About Santa And God

Wow has it already been almost 6 months since my last post?! What a semester it has been! Due to the constant requests that I start blogging more I have decided to start blogging once again for personal interests. Due to the little time I have to write in the midsts of finals I'll make this one short and share with you a story from when I was young.

One Christmas many years ago when I was about five years old, give or take two years, I wanted a puzzle (I believe it was a Barney puzzle but it might have been Tigger). When I begged my parents for this puzzle they told me to ask Santa. For weeks I couldn't wait for them to take me to the mall to sit on Santa's lap and ask for this puzzle. However, when we finally made it to the mall and I finally got on Santa's lap I forgot about the puzzle. Afterwards I remember being upset and asking my parents to take me back so I could tell Santa but I had missed my chance. I was devastated.

Christmas morning when I went into the living room toys from Santa filled the space. In front of all the toys displayed...there it was....my puzzle! I remember asking my dad to take of the plastic so I could play with it. As he did he said the words that I have never forgotten, "You didn't even ask Santa for the puzzle but he brought you one!" To me it was a Christmas miracle.

Why do I bother telling you this story? Think about it. I knew what I wanted from Santa, but because I was in awe of him when I finally spent time with Santa it slipped my mind. Santa however still brought me the one toy I wanted most. Our parents are intended to be the first example in our lives for the love of God. My parents, and in this case my dad, were a wonderful example for how God will answer prayers even when we do not ask. So many times in prayer I think it is all too easy to be ashamed or to forget to bring our deepest desires to God. Somehow though, God still provides. God blesses us, even when we forget to ask him.

As the stress of the end of the year piles on for each of us in our various points of life, let us bring our deepest desires to God in prayer. More importantly let us never forget to thank him for the blessings that he brings us, even if we did not necessarily ask God for that blessing.

On a final lighthearted yet very powerful note (you must not laugh otherwise you will miss the last and best line):

Pep-Rallies

So the other day I was in mass and as usual I got distracted. I found my mind wandering. What was I thinking about? Pep-rallies. When I was in junior high I remember hating pep-rallies. The entire school was forced to attend and the popular kids only drew more attention to themselves. When I got to high school the pep-rallies were no longer required, though I went to a few. During the average pep-rally some kids would get really into it though most students sat there enjoying it but never fully getting excited. At other times we would have pep-rallies for a big championship game at which almost everyone would get excited. It was at these pep-rallies that everyone could feel the students come together as one student body to be an encouragement for each other.

Eventually I realized I was getting distracted and I began to pay attention in mass. However, I couldn't help but think about what God intended to do for us through the mass. I began to think about all the times my parents forced me to go to mass against my will. I thought of how as I got older I grew tolerance for mass. Then I thought of my first mass after my conversion and how I felt when I finally began to participate in mass. It was there in my distractions that I began to see why God created such a thing as mass. Life is hard and it is full of struggles. God doesn't expect us to do it alone so he sent us His son Jesus to fight the battle for us. God gives us the mass as an opportunity to be with Jesus to remind us of the struggles ahead and prepare us for the fight ahead.

Now during my freshman year at Blinn College I had the opportunity to join a friend one night for what Aggies call, Midnight Yell. Midnight Yell is essentially a pep-rally but much more intense because you have all of the student body coming out to Kyle Field the night before any home game. Standing in that crowded stadium that night, feeling totally clueless as to what was going on, I experienced something amazing. Jocks were no longer jocks, freshman were no longer freshman, and every other title a person had disappeared. If you were there, you were an Aggie and that was all that mattered. It was that night that I first knew that I wanted to be an Aggie. I saw a spirit there that was like no other and I wanted it...bad.

Mass, in many ways, is like a pep-rally and Midnight Yell. What makes mass better is that the spirit of God is so much more powerful than any school spirit. I think at times we all forget how connected we all are with the rest of the Catholic church during each and every mass. Without the Holy Spirit to bind us with each other at mass, we having nothing. It is the mass that allows us to be one with the saints, the martyrs, family, and strangers alike. It is this spirit that we take with us on the journey to a high school pep-rally, to Midnight Yell, or wherever it may be that we come together in order to support and encourage of one another.

Phantom of The Opera: The Phantom

I love The Phantom Of The Opera. It is by far one of my favorite musicals. Andrew Lloyd Webber is a genius and the entire idea of it is amazing. There are many people find the plot of it somewhat disturbing. I, on the other hand, could not be more intrigued by the plot.

When Christine's father is dying, her father tells her about how his angel will teach her how to sing. This angel, who turns out to be the phantom, comes to her in her dreams throughout her childhood to be her teacher. Eventually Christine reaches a point where she is the most talented but due to various reasons she is not given the role that she deserves. The Phantom has one goal though and that is to make Christine a star so he steps in and comes to her rescue and even threatens those who try to get in the way of his plans. Christine trusted in the Phantom and he always rewarded her by making her a star in his dwelling place, the opera house.

When Raul, another man, falls in love with Christine the Phantom becomes jealous. This pushes the phantom to reveal his true feelings for Christine by expressing his desire to her his bride. Even though the Phantom has made his existence known Raul still tries to deny the Phantom's existence or power.The Phantom goes as far as to threaten to kill Raul. However, the Phantom can see that Christine loves Raul and she would be devastated if the Phantom were to kill Raul and the Phantom lets Raul go so that Christine may make her own decision. When Christine first falls in love with Raul she maintains her teacher-student relationship with the Phantom. As Christine grows closer to Raul she falls further away from the Phantom. In the last scene the audience sees Raul many years later at Christine's grave. When Raul gets there he notices a rose placed on the grave by the Phantom. In this scene we see that, even though Christine ultimately chose Raul, the Phantom's love for her never died.

So what's the point to all of this? When I look past the sadistic nature of the Phantom I see many similarities between the Phantom and God. I see how my father has sent down his spirit in order that we may be taught. I see how my God rewards those who trust in him. I see how the further away I am from God, the harder it is to continue to accept him as my teacher. I have a God who wants to make me his bride out of his strong love for me. I also know that my God never gives up on me. I know that no matter how many times I deny him, he will always be there loving me and waiting for the day I return to him.

The power of the Phantom is in the choice that he gave to Christine. This is only one point of view but from this point of view Christine chose the wrong guy. The Phantom loved her so much that he did not force Christine to be with him, the good. God loves us so much that he allows us to love him on our own. What good is goodness if someone had forced it upon us without allowing us to discover it on our own? God in many ways is a mystery just as the Phantom is and so much of his beauty comes from the experience of unveiling that mystery.

Playing the Offence

This time of year many of us prepare for travel whether it be on vacation or just simply going home for the summer. In College Station I have been blessed with a wonderful Catholic community at St. Mary's. I have grown more devout in my faith than I could have ever imagined. Having St. Mary's feels like I have been on a retreat all year. As we all know, when we come off of a retreat we have the "Jesus High" and it becomes hard to maintain the spiritual growth once the high is gone. Now we've all heard the classic talk about not letting the high be the end and how to stay on top of it. However, no matter how great the talk is, it is never works the way we wanted it to. This begs the question: why is it so hard?

"In my opinion, there is hardly anything else that the enemy of our soul dreads more than confidence, humble confidence in God.  Confidence in God is the very soul of prayer."Servant of God Solanus Casey 

The answer because we come back knowing the "other side" has beat us before and are probably stronger than us. We go into battle with a strong defensive line, we prepare to keep the enemy from advancing and this works for a while because most enemies don't have the defence to fight our weaker offence. What happens though when we face an enemy with a strong offence? If you haven't figured it out yet I'm building up to one of the most memorable games in Texas A&M History.

Defence is a great skill to have and Alabama was known as the best team in the SEC, for many  reasons but a big reason was, because of their strong defensive line. Their defensive line was great at getting the ball back to the offensive line. No other team could beat them because no offence could stand against Alabama's defence.

Now we look at A&M's Fall 2012 season leading up to that game. Everyone saw that A&M was in fact good enough to compete with SEC teams in "big boy football" and that the strong offense played a major part. Still though, many wondered if A&M's offensive line would still look as good next to the defensive line of Alabama. A&M showed Alabama, and all of college football for that matter, that even the number one ranked team in the nation look weak when faced with a team that could withstand their defensive line.

My point to all of this is that in our spiritual battles it is not good enough just to have a good defence. Instead we need to go into the battle knowing we are strong enough to defeat the enemy. We need to go into battle ready to win. We need to have the confidence that our offence.

“The nature of the enemy's warfare in your life is to cause you to become discouraged and to cast away your confidence. Not that you would necessarily discard your salvation, but you could give up your hope of God's deliverance. The enemy wants to numb you into a coping kind of Christianity that has given up hope of seeing God's resurrection power.” Bob Sorge, Glory: When Heaven Invades Earth 

At the first game of the season for A&M everyone laughed thinking the Aggies would get their butts kicked. Even though A&M did loose that first game, though not by much, A&M from the start was never afraid and many wondered why. Maybe it was the loyalty to their team, maybe it was the excitement of the first game of the season, maybe it was the excitement of the first game in the SEC, or MAYBE it was the fact that A&M placed all their confidence in a certain redshirt freshman quarterback Johnny Manziel who would go on to win the Heisman Trophy. Johnny Manziel, or as us Aggies call him Johnny Football.

The reason we play defence instead of offence is because we have forgotten that we have Jesus on our side. Jesus a man who was the son of a carpenter and conceived out of wedlock. Everything and everyone says that he should fail but he didn't. Jesus, the one destined to fail, WON. He didn't win a Heisman Trophy, he didn't beat the number one ranked football team in America, and many people thought he was crazy. Instead, he did the one thing no man has the power to do. Jesus defeated death. Not only that he sent us the Holy Spirit to be with us wherever we go. For that reason, whether are coming home from college, a retreat, or just trying to hold onto a sense of hope, we should always be confident.

I heard a story the other week (I may have parts of the story wrong so bare with me) about a man present during the collapse of the Aggie Bonfire. Many foul words came out of the mouths of many who were there that night but one man who was hanging from a harness above instinctively said "Jesus, Mary, Joseph!". The next thing he remembered was standing safely on the ground and out of harms way. This is a perfect example of the type of confidence we should have in the man we call Jesus.

Harlem Shake and Jesus

I would like to first start off with a Harlem shake video that was made at Steubenville on the Bayou this past weekend.

Now on a more serious note:

This past weekend I witnessed one of the most incredible things in my life. I was in a room that was dead silent with 3,000 teenagers. On top of that, not one teenager had a phone out to text and no one was getting up to go to the bathroom because they were bored. There was no music playing and every teenager was kneeling. Why? To gaze at a simple piece of bread. 3,000 teenagers completely captivated by a piece of bread.

This past week I went to be apart of Mercy Crew which helps with anything and everything in order to make Steubenville on the Bayou run more smoothly. I had the time of my life. I myself spent most of the weekend working to spotlight for the conference. Like every job it had it is a rose but it still has its thorns. I was able to be apart of almost the entire conference but at the same time I was separated from everyone.

He came to Jericho and intended to pass through the town. Now a man there named Zacchaeus, who was a chief tax collector and also a wealthy man, was seeking to see who Jesus was; but he could not see him because of the crowd, for he was short in stature. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree in order to see Jesus, who was about to pass that way. When he reached the place, Jesus looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, come down quickly, for today I must stay at your house.” And he came down quickly and received him with joy. When they all saw this, they began to grumble, saying, “He has gone to stay at the house of a sinner.” But Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, “Behold, half of my possessions, Lord, I shall give to the poor, and if I have extorted anything from anyone I shall repay it four times over.”And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house because this man too is a descendant of Abraham. For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save what was lost.”Luke 19:1-10

Here I was up in the tree. I was a spectator, not a participant. I felt disconnected and lonely but God was still with me and I still had purpose. I was separate from everyone yet God used me where I was. In fact I had possibly the most important job of all. My job was to put the spotlight on Jesus, the single most important person in the universe.

What's the point to all of this? I'll tell you. Something cool about the picture of the Eucharist at adoration is that it was in the same place where the penguin had been dancing in the harlem shake video. The Lord grants us the ability to be in his presence through the Eucharist yet so often we blow it off as just a piece of bread. The same goes with anything in our lives. We forget that Jesus is always with us and present in our lives until we meet him in adoration. I did not come to Jesus because I was hanging in a tree. Jesus in his power and love came to the tree and said “Zacchaeus, come down quickly, for today I must stay at your house.” Let us never forget that even when he is absent he is present and he is coming to be with us.

The Harlem Shake may have seemed silly and unnecessary but when Catholics can do something so normal, so cool, it speaks to teens and they become more intrigued by the Catholic church. That simple act may seem like nothing but to a teen it may have been the only thing to open up their hearts to the Catholic church. Even though Jesus wasn't present in the Eucharist during the Harlem Shake, he was still present desperately calling out to us.

Show Me the Love

We spend our entire lives searching for one thing. Love. There are many forms of love such as the love for a spouse, love of science, love of art, love of music, love for a brother or sister, love of sports, etc. In every place where love can be found sin can be found.

Music can be beautiful when it expresses God's love and love for one another while at the same time, in today's culture, music is often the expression of a life of sin. Sports show the beauty in which God has created the human body and we see God's love in our abilities to push the limits. On the other hand, sports drive competition which can lead to pride and jealousy. Science shows the intricate work of the hand of God but science is also used to try and discredit God.

There is a song by Rihanna called We Found Love. If you have never seen the music video DON"T. The music video is one of the most sinful and depressing things I have ever watched in my entire life. However, if you have never seen the cover of the same song done in Africa by Lindsey Stirling WATCH IT. It is the most hopeful beautiful things I have ever seen.

We can't escape sin because it is the sinners who need God the most. For those of you who don't know, the song God of This City was not written by Chris Tomlin. The song was actually written by an Irish band called Bluetree. Bluetree actually wrote the song in a brothel. In this video Chris Tomlin tells the story of the song. (The video is kind of long so feel free to skip to the 2:40 mark)

We find love when we bring the light of Christ to those who need it most. When we lead a sinner to the light we are seeing love flow from us, love is shown to us from them, and best of all God's love for us is magnified. The Father's love for us is magnified because we have brought his child safely back into his arms.

If they had been thinking of the land from which they had come, they would have had opportunity to return. But now they desire a better homeland, a heavenly one. Therefore, God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them. 

Hebrews 11:15-16

Learning to Listen

Growing up we all have that "momma always says" phrase. It's different for everyone but it's the words of wisdom that we never forget from our moms. For me, my momma always says, "you can't tell someone to love God until you love them first". The power of that phrase is that we should not have to try so hard to convert others. God is so wonderful and so powerful that his love speaks to everyone of every background. We don't have to try so hard because ultimately His truth prevails.

Sometimes, even as Christians we sometimes find ourselves just as stubborn as those we are hoping to convert. I myself am guilty of this. Last night I was having a good discussion with other Catholic friends of mine. I found myself a little less conservative than the rest of everyone in the group and it was an opinion I was not going to budge on. I was not open to hearing the opinion of my friends. I simply wanted them to see things the way I did because in my mind they were the ones who were close minded. I let them speak just trying to do the right thing and, by the grace of God, my ears were opened. I learned a lot last night and I'm the better for it. I saw this quote this morning and loved it:

Ok that sounds great, except I ultimately did accept the thought in that conversation so how does that quote mean anything to me? What I learned is that most of the time I am so unwilling to accept another thought that I never "entertain the thought" as Aristotle puts it. How does one entertain a thought while staying true to their beliefs? As humans we are on this quest for truth. Even when we find the truth we should always be looking for a deeper understanding of that truth. We entertain the thought because our need for truth should and does call us to hear any opportunity to learn about truth from one another. The problem is, we become convinced that we have found the truth. We then stop searching for a deeper understanding and become arrogant when others approach us with a different understanding of truth.

Our search for truth is what allows us to dismiss a thought while still taking the time to understand the viewpoint. We are all guilty of this at some point in time whether we admit it or not. Learning to listen can be the hardest thing at times. When we do listen with open minds, ears, and heart, we discover a power we never thought we had.

“Those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.” 

― George Bernard Shaw

His Word

Most of the time my posts are never planned. I may get an idea in my head and I'll spend the next few hours getting my thoughts out. In a way this has become an outlet for my brain. Today I just feel I need to write having no idea what my topic even is as of now. Here goes nothing.

So give me Words to speak
Don't let my Spirit sleep 
Every night, every day 
I find that I have nothing left to say 
So I stand here in silence
awaiting Your guidance 
I'm wanting only Your voice to be heard 
Let them be Your Words 

 -Aaron Shust: Give Me Words to Speak

The other day I was driving from my home town to Texas A&M for my New Student Conference. I was driving and along my route I got lost. There were two places that I know for a fact I had been which were: the spot I last remembered being before I got lost (lets call it point A) and the furthest I ended up going in the wrong direction (and this one point B). I know how I got from point A to point B based on landmarks along the road.

The driving time between point A and point B, according to multiple mapping websites, was about 30 minutes. So one hour total to get from point A to point B and back. The strange thing was I was delayed less than 20 minutes total. In addition, I never once went above the posted speed limit.

Now let me back up to the 60 seconds leading up to the point I got lost. There were many confusing exits I had to take and drivers were insane. I almost had a full blown panic attack because I was so scared. The last thing I remember of cars driving dangerously was the moment when two cars came into my lane from either side in front of me almost crashing into one another. At this point I freaked out and just began loudly praying, "Jesus, Mary, Joseph. Jesus HELP ME!"

This is sort of how I felt:

It took me 10 minutes to realize I had gotten lost and I was already at point B. As I was driving back to point A (which should have been 30 minutes but only took 5) I was listening to the Houston Christian radio, KSBJ. A woman called in on the radio saying she had seen a terrible accident at point A and to pray for the people there. I couldn't believe my ears, I thought I had heard the location wrong. Sure enough, as I approached point A, it was bumper to bumper due to the accident.

So cool story but why is it worth sharing? Because the end of the Bible does not mean there is an end to His word.

It is this disciple who testifies to these things and has written them, and we know that his testimony is true. There are also many other things that Jesus did, but if these were to be described individually, I do not think the whole world would contain the books that would be written.John 21:24-25

Priests: Surgeons of the Soul

Many times, when talking with friends who are not of the Catholic faith, the question of why priests are needed pops up in conversation. I used to have difficulty defending myself of that one but not because I didn't believe it myself. I had difficulty because I could see why many protestants didn't see the necessity of it. I knew that we believe in apostolic succession and I believed it myself so that was not the issue. The defense I often got was that because Jesus came he allowed us to speak directly to God instead of needing a priest to be the  intercessor.

Their answer made sense to me. Jesus became the intercessor. Now if you are a Catholic reading this you may be thinking, "how could you not understand?". I trusted the church in it's entirety. My belief was not what lacked. What lacked was my knowledge of how to defend what I believed.

For a long time I thought that if I read more, studied more, I would have the answer. That I must say is true, but the understanding came when, through reading scripture, I saw the parallel in my own life.

Before I continue I want to say that this is not about my beliefs in the health care system or anything of that sort, this is just the best way I can explain the necessity of priests.

Many argue that healthcare is something that should be free to all. As Americans we have some of the best healthcare in the world but it does come at a price but for good reason. Take a moment to think about what a surgeon does. The job of a surgeon is to cut into your body while you are asleep to do things to your internal organs in order to make you better. That surgeon has the power to kill or save you. Would you trust an average person off the street to cut you open and stick their hands inside your body? Of course not because you want the person who is highly qualified to do that.

Doctors take the time to spend years learning about the human body and how it works. When we pay for things like good health care we should not have an attitude of "here I need to be fixed, how horrible of you to make me pay so that I don't die". Instead what we are really saying is, "I could die, I want the best chance of living, please help me, I'll do whatever it takes".

Doctors in America are so good because they learn the most. First they get an undergraduate degree, then they go to medical school which takes years, then an internship, and then residency, before finally becoming an attending. (I could be wrong on that but the point is that it takes a long time) We don't pay doctors to do a job, we pay them to keep us alive. THAT is a HUGE responsibility. The people that take the time to go through that education and the demands of the job sacrifice a lot. When a doctor gets a call from work to come in at a moments notice they can't say no because it really is life or death. The families are also affected largely by the little time they see them.

So often we see the role of a priests as just a person who is in charge of a church. Though that is true in a lot of ways, the first and foremost job of a priest is to be a healer. We are not trusting a priest with death or life. We are trusting a priest with something so much more than that, Heaven or Hell, eternal happiness or eternal pain.

Now I speak to those who do not believe in the necessity of the priesthood.
Who is the one who administers baptism which frees you from original sin?
Who is the person you share your sins with so that they may be forgiven?

Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The fervent prayer of a righteous person is very powerful. James 6:16 

What are their qualifications?

I was reading the daily mass readings for today (Monday May 20th 2013) and there was something that struck me.

When he entered the house, his disciples asked him in private, “Why could we not drive it out?” He said to them, “This kind can only come out through prayer.” Mark 9:28-29

Jesus has just driven a demon out of a boy. What struck me is that, when the disciples question how Jesus did it, Jesus says because it took prayer. Jesus does not say, "only I the savior can do it". Jesus in a nutshell says, "you have to pray more". Jesus is basically saying that in order to heal the soul, one must be more in tune with God than doctor is in tune with the human body. When it comes to Heaven or Hell, eternal happiness or eternal pain, you better believe I'd rather have the guy who has given up his entire life to pray.

To every priest, deacon, brother, sister, and lay person: 

THANK YOU for your countless hours of studying, prayer, and service.