I Gave At the Office

I try to be a generous person. There are a few charities to which I give on a regular basis and a couple which receive something once in a while. But I think I am on charity burnout.

Why do charities have to send so many appeals? I get at least one a week from several. There was one political association which sent me 2 to 3 emails a day! It makes me wonder how well they are using their fundraising resources.

As a result, I find myself giving less instead of more. Coming home and getting my mail is like walking through the streets of a third world city where you are surrounded by beggars. There is appeal after appeal after appeal. And my favorite is when you pledge to give a specific amount each month and you still get dunned with appeals and mailings asking for even more money.

And a word of advice: don't write 4 to 6 page letters. Do you think anyone reads them? Those are the ones which reach the recycling bin first. Do this: We are XYZ Charity. Purpose: save the whales. Check us out on Charity Navigator and, if you like us, send us some money please. And when you do send something, the charity should have a box which you can check that reads: This is a onetime donation. If you start dunning me, I'll never give you another cent.

I sometimes think the fundraising executives of these charities had their training with the Mob.

Catherine of Aragon

I have been watching the show "The Tudors" and, as a result, I have been thinking about Catherine of Aragon. She really went through hell having to deal with her errant husband. I cannot imagine the humiliation of watching your husband show off his bastard son, also knowing about all his affairs and having his mistress flaunted before you.

This led me to think of what a good role model she is for any woman who is going through a miserable time with her husband. I know that she was very devout and wondered if perhaps she had ever been considered for sainthood. Alas, she has not. However, I have decided that it would alright to ask her to pray for us. Why not? So, if you are going through a rough patch in your marriage or know someone who is, ask Catherine to remember you or them in her prayers. It can't hoit.

Fat Pride

Anyone who knows me also knows that I am not a thin person and I am always fighting the good fight against the battle of the (midriff) bulge.

However, it seems to me that many people today do not really care how heavy they get. I sometimes feel like Twiggy when I see how truly obese many people are. And they don't seem to care a whit about it. If I were as heavy as some of the woman I have seen, I'd take a sabbatical and go on the Atkins for a month.

And they don't even try to cover up! I saw a woman in the grocery store one day who weighed about 300 lbs and she was wearing a halter top! Man, the rolls of fat were oozing out between the straps on her back. You don't dress that way if you are embarrassed by your weight.

I guess I can understand somewhat that you shouldn't be self-conscious about your weight but there is also the health aspect. At this point in my life, I think about that more than getting into a bikini. Do they not even care about that? One really does feel better when one is eating healthy.

Think I'll go eat some celery.

Credits

Another irritating aspect of the Novus Ordo is the credits which are often recited after Mass usually on a feast day. "I want to thank the organist, the choir, the celebrants, the altar servers, the janitor, the flower lady, ad nauseum". What is the purpose of this? Can we not just do these things for the glory of God? Okay, if you want to recognize those who helped, put it in the bulletin. In my younger days, I was part of the crew which cleaned the church (for free!) and never, ever expected to be publicly thanked. It was just part of our duty as church members and to show our love and devotion to God.

And have you ever heard this person who is thanking everyone say, "We thank our Lord & Savior Jesus Christ for the gift of the Eucharist which we received here today?" No, I didn't think so.

At Mass we adore, give thanks, atone and pray. It is not a big party where we all get a chance to be a star.

Avoiding Hell

While hell is a real place, Our Lord & Savior Jesus Christ did not suffer and die on the cross because He wants you to go there. He wants all of us to be with Him in heaven. We have seen the unspeakable horror which is hell and one might ask, "How do I avoid hell?" It is really not that difficult: repent, make good and frequent confessions, keep the sacraments and follow the teachings of the Church.

Of course, many of us do not want to give up our sins. A big one is sex. What a stumbling block for so many people. I'm not referring to the occasional lapse but to those who say emphatically that they will not give up illicit sex. Is it worth it to burn in hell?

Or, who thinks they can sin and they'll just go to confession later on so they can go to heaven? I think of the people who die unexpectedly every day. So many never have the chance to make things right with God. Surely, you do not want to be one of those people, do you?

Is it easy to remain in a state of grace? No, it is not which is why we were given the wonderful sacrament of confession. No matter how many times we fall, Jesus is ready to pick us up again. But we do have to make the effort as we were given a free will.

Heaven or hell: it's up to you.

Hell

I've been thinking about hell lately. I don't think a lot of people take the concept of hell seriously. I hear all the time, "Oh well, I guess I will burn in hell" but they really don't think they will.

Unfortunately, if you die in a state of mortal sin, you will burn in hell forever. Can you fathom that? For all eternity?

Yes, hell is a real place and it isn't a nice place. Here is a description from Sr. Lucia, one of the children who saw the Blessed Mother at Fatima:

"She opened Her hands once more, as She had done the two previous months. The rays [of light] appeared to penetrate the earth, and we saw, as it were, a vast sea of fire. Plunged in this fire, we saw the demons and the souls [of the damned]. The latter were like transparent burning embers, all blackened or burnished bronze, having human forms. They were floating about in that conflagration, now raised into the air by the flames which issued from within themselves, together with great clouds of smoke. Now they fell back on every side like sparks in huge fires, without weight or equilibrium, amid shrieks and groans of pain and despair, which horrified us and made us tremble with fright (it must have been this sight which caused me to cry out, as people say they heard me). The demons were distinguished [from the souls of the damned] by their terrifying and repellent likeness to frightful and unknown animals, black and transparent like burning coals."

I don't know about you but this doesn't sound like Club Med to me. Frankly, it scares me. Just thinking about this helps to keep me on the straight and narrow. What is that you say? Jesus loves us and won't send us to hell? Oh, really? Think again, my friends, think again.