Called To Witness

Called to a Higher Standard than Swearing

2016-06-07T01:33:00.003-07:00

When I was younger I used to believe swearing was something Catholics didn't participate in. I thought it was a really big deal and no one used that kind of language. However, as I've grown older, I've realized this isn't the case. For a lot of Catholic young adults swearing is the norm, and it's considered normal, and not a big deal. But I want to challenge that belief and encourage any readers who find themselves swearing to hold themselves to a higher standard.

The reality of life is our language it important. Just as much as how we act, how we speak defines us, either in a positive or a negative way. As Christians, we're so often told that our words should build up, be positive, and glorify Christ. But I would daresay swearing does none of those things.

First, swearing doesn't build anyone up. In fact, I think that it does the very opposite and beats down the people you're using that language around. Now you might be thinking, "Well no, when I swear around people it's me being real and showing that I'm comfortable around them" However, I think I'd challenge any belief along those lines. Here's what I mean: chances are, if you were having your parish priest over for dinner, meeting the archbishop, or even just around a friend's mother you wouldn't find yourself using inappropriate language. Why not? Well, it's a matter of simple respect. Anyone would agree that it would certainly be disrespectful to swear in any of these situations. So when you swear in front of your friends or co-workers what you're really saying is I don't respect you as much as the people I wouldn't swear in front of. And maybe they won't take it that way, or you don't consciously think it. But the reality is, if you'll abstain from something around one group of people out of respect but not around another group of people, it demonstrates a lack of respect for the second group. And not only that, it shows a falseness. Now, I'm not saying you're likely to act the same around your parish priest and your best friend, but, as far as something like swearing is concerned, a willingness to do it around certain people but not others is probably a good indication it's something you should be abstaining from. We're called to reach our full potential as saints, and a part of that is living out life as God wants us to, without masks.

Second, we're called to be positive. I think this should be fairly evident to Christians: we have an incredible saviour named Jesus Christ and he died for our sins to give us life, so what is there not to be joyful about?? I don't think swearing embodies that positivity or joy. I'm trying to keep the blog G rated, but if you're someone who likes to swear think about a few times you've done it in the last week and ask yourself whether those instances showed a fullness of life and a desire to live that moment with joy and thankfulness to God for the abundant gifts he's given us. Maybe I'm wrong, but the times I can think of when I swear (yes, this is something I'm trying to work on as well) or when I hear other people swear certainly seem negative. In fact swear words have the negative built into them; none of them speak of anything positive and if they're used in a positive context it's a misuse of the word. God calls us to live joy filled positive lives and I think it's pretty clear swearing doesn't fit that bill.

Then finally, does swearing glorify Christ? I think that's a pretty resounding no. I'm not sure about any of you, but I can't picture Jesus dropping F-bombs or other swear words. Jesus wants us to be wholesome in every aspect of our lives. And, as far as I'm concerned, swearing doesn't cut it. Jesus tells us in Matthew 15:18 "whatever comes out of the mouth comes from the heart". And then, in Philippians 4:8 Paul tells us "let your minds be filled with everything that is true, everything that is honourable, everything that is upright and pure, everything we love and admire - with whatever is good and praiseworthy" I don't think anyone is going to argue that swearing is honourable or pure. When you think of someone who has these qualities you probably don't think of their speech being filled with swearing.

So, I want to encourage you all to use wholesome speech and abstain from swearing, whether it's using the full words or abbreviations (AF, LMAO, OMG etc). I know it's possible. I've never heard a swear word from either of my parents and the ability to overcome faults and be saints is within us all. So let us learn to use our language to build others up, be more positive, and glorify our Lord by being wholesome and pure in everything that comes from our mouths. Let's leaving swearing as a thing of our past.

~Daniel

Do We Choose Christ?

2015-12-09T01:57:00.002-08:00

Lately I've been wrestling with the question of holiness. For years I've been in a relatively good place spiritually. Of course I've had ups and downs like everyone, but I would say up until recently I was pleased with where I was at. But this fall God has been moving a lot of things within me and I've been incredibly blessed with a few people who have really helped that process. The result of this movement of God is that I'm finding questions arising within myself, questions that I don't have all the answers to.

The big question I've been struggling with is what is the right balance between God and modern society? I would dare to say that our culture is not only 'not-Christian' but 'anti-Christian' in almost every sense. Whether we're looking at social media, tv, or music, we find an incredibly large amount of things that are contrary to our Christian faith. I always used to just accept it as the way things are. I had a "live in the culture but don't become one with it" type mindset.

Lately I've really been thinking about sainthood and the many amazing saints we venerate in the Catholic Church. I was blessed to start reading The Diary of Saint Faustina a month or so ago (God was kind enough to put it directly in my path and almost make me read it) and it made me question my mindset about the culture.

Let me get to my point. I particularly was thinking about this in relation to the television shows I watch. I'm a huge fan of Seinfeld and Friends, I absolutely adore Community and I'm pretty sure I've watched every episode of The Office at least 5 times. That list could go on and on. But after reading The Diary (my new term of endearment for Saint Faustina's diary) I've called into question whether or not I should be spending my time with these shows, or supporting bands that might have questionable lyrics or messages, falling into the trap of spending so much time and caring so much about social media, etc.

Who are the people who have been the greatest saints? The ones that give literally EVERYTHING up. Saint Peter gave up his family and fishing practice to follow Jesus, Saint Francis gave up his inheritance, Saint Faustina gave up her worldly life to become a sister and gave all of herself to Jesus, constantly undergoing sacrifices and mortifications. I name three saints but the list could go on for pages and pages. Aren't we called to be just that radical? If Jesus had been born in the 90's like me, would he spend his time watching Seinfeld and Friends? Would he approve of the total focus on sex and personal gain? If he was to listen to most mainstream music over the last 50 years, would he approve of the focus on sex, the theme of bringing someone home, or the use of profanity? I don't know about you but I struggle to picture Jesus sitting in front of the tv watching Ross and Rachael argue about whether they were 'on a break' or listening to Drake sing "wonder if you bendin' over backwards for someone else ... Doing things I taught you, gettin' nasty with someone else".

I'm not saying I think doing any of the above is necessarily a sin. But at the same time, as Christians is it something we want to be doing? Don't get me wrong, I still do all that (except listen to Drake), but now I'm wondering if it's something I should be doing. And yeah. Avoiding that stuff might not be easy. TV is easy, music is easy, media is easy. But God doesn't call us to take the easy road, he calls us to take the narrow, thorny, steep route that most of the world would call impassable. It makes me think of the words of Pope Benedict: "The world offers you comfort. But you were not made for comfort, you were made for greatness". This quote gets thrown around an awful lot, but do we really take it to heart?

When it comes down to it, God made us for unity with him, and we're all called to be great saints, the next Peter, Francis, or Faustina. If Jesus wouldn't watch The Office or listen to Drake, why would we? The saints I just mentioned literally gave up EVERYTHING for Christ. Can't we give up the things that don't point us back to God? Because really, when we're at the end of our lives the actions we did will fall into two categories: those that brought us closer to God, and those that distanced us from him. A very dear friend once told me something about relationships that applies here, she said that you're always either getting closer or further away from people. There's no middle ground. That's the same with our relationship with Christ. At the end of our lives we're going to be accountable for all of it, don't we want to be able to tell Christ that when we had the option of choosing the world or Him, we chose Him?

I don't have all the answers, and like I said, I still do all these things. But the more I think about the issue, the more I wonder why. If we're called to be saints and give up everything that doesn't bring us closer to Christ, we'd better learn to do so.

~Daniel

Why "Called To Witness"

2015-12-09T01:53:00.002-08:00

Hi everyone! I've been meaning to start a blog for a while, but it's really been on my mind this fall. Anyone who knows me knows that a couple of my best guy friends that I have a lot of really deep theological chats with are away for school/on net! Which is super cool, but it means all of a sudden I don't have as many ways to share my deeper thoughts on living a Catholic life and what that means. On the bright side, I've been writing more and more of these thoughts down in a journal, which means I now have some material (and therefore more motivation) to start the blog I've been meaning to!

In this first post I just want to talk about the name of the blog. There are two reasons why I chose this name. First, it's kind of a throwback to Searching In The Spirit 2014 which was an incredibly life changing experience for me. It really made me understand the need for friends and Catholic community in a way I hadn't before. Searching in the Spirit has five different day themes, and the theme for Day 2 is 'We Are Witnesses' and, of course, that was the day I was assigned to lead with a couple other super inspiring young Catholics who taught me a lot (witnessed to me!) leading up to, and during the week. The second reason, is I truly believe The Church needs to step up and start witnessing to the world. We as a Church are under attack from every side and the world is filled with complacency, fear, selfishness, and so many other detrimental views and habits. It's time for us, as Catholics, to point the world to Jesus, a mission, in my opinion, we have been extremely lax in. So that's the title!

I just want to make a note too on future posts. A lot of times when I post things, it's because it's something I'm struggling with. I'm so incredibly broken and in need of God's grace and I definitely don't have everything (or many things at all for that matter) figured out. What that means, is a lot of times when I post things it's because I'm wondering about them or trying to figure them out or trying to inspire myself to follow my own advice or what I know I should do, not because I have any answers.

That's it! Hopefully a couple people decide to read it, and hopefully I'm able to keep up with posting!

~Daniel