st. catherine qoute

BE WHO YOU ARE AND SET THE WORLD ON FIRE!
(St. Catherine of Siena)
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Tuesday, September 28, 2010

The Magnificent Seven (part 2)

So I am continuing my oh-so-fun analogy of the sacraments to an old western movie......

So 3 down, and 4 to go.

-Confirmation. Growing up, I thought of Confirmation as the day you become an adult in the Church (which to me was code for you could stop going if you wanted to at that point ;-) Now I realize, Confirmation is so much more just than choosing to stop going to church. The Holy Spirit comes upon us in a powerful way (just like at Pentecost with the Apostles). The Spirit infuses us with spiritual gifts to become soldiers of Christ; working to grow in our own relationship with Jesus, as well as sharing our faith with others. We choose a "Confirmation name" of a particular saint we relate to or feel a certain closeness to. The point of that is to have a particular saint you are drawn to, who can help pray for you as you grow in faith. Some Scripture verses for this sacrament include: Acts 19: 5-6, Acts 8: 14-17, 2 Cor 1:21-22, Eph 1:13, and Heb 6:2.

-Holy Matrimony (AKA Marriage) I am a HUGE fan of this sacrament..even though I am not (yet ;-) married. You need an example of what marriage is all about...what a good one looks like??? Take a good, hard, long look at a crucifix! Marriage is all about self-sacrifice; dying to your own self and desires for the better of your spouse. From my friends who are married and older couples I know, it is hard work, but totally and completely worth it. Clearly Jesus saw this as something special, unique, and set apart because he performed his first miracle at a wedding. Seriously, how cool would that to have Jesus show up at your wedding and work a fancy shmancy miracle?!?!?!? Some fun Scripture quotes for marriage include: Matthew 19:5-6, Mark 10: 7-12, Eph 5:22-23, and Heb 13:4

-Holy Orders. This coolio sacrament enables a man to become a priest and bring the faithful (us!) the grace of the sacraments. At the Last Supper, Jesus instituted the holy priesthood when he told the 12 Apostles "do THIS in remembrance of me!" He wanted them to continue this life giving action/meal (AKA Holy Mass...the Eucharist) until He comes again at the second coming. Because of Holy Orders, priests through the grace of the God, can bring us the sacraments...so this is an essential step! Take a peek into Scripture: Acts 20:28, Luke 22:19, John 20:22, 2 Cor 5:17-20, James 5: 13-15, James 6:16, Matthew 18:18, and 1 John 5:16.

-Anointing of the Sick. This sacrament can sometimes be mis-understood as only for people who are on their death bed; yes, it can be for those peeps, but also for the emotionally and spiritually sick too. Jesus said in Scripture, " I came for sinners...the sick need a physician..." (something like that). Jesus walks with each of us at all stages through our lives, and through the Church we experience that in tangible ways through the grace of the sacraments.

So don't forget the amazing, awesome power of the Magnificent 7...