Shock and Awe

When we normally hear the phrase "shock and awe" we think of Shock and Awe (technically known as rapid dominance) which is a military doctrine based on the use of overwhelming power, dominant battlefield awareness, dominant maneuvers, and spectacular displays of force to paralyze an adversary's perception of the battlefield and destroy its will to fight. The doctrine was written by Harlan K Ullman and James P Wade in 1996 and is a product of the National Defense University of the United States.  As defined - this type of shock and awe is connected with a battle or fight between two groups which typically ends in death and destruction.  This is not exactly what I am referring to - rather my focus is on the results of yesterday's Chili for Charity chili cook off.  The local Knights of Columbus and St Vincent de Paul Society sponsored an all day event for families - the main attraction was a chili cook off that featured 17 cooks producing 21 chilies in the competition. It was a beautiful day to be out and about for participants and observers alike. The camaraderie  between competitors was excellent with competitors helping each other out - loaning equipment and supplies to each other. The battle or fight was not among those cooking - rather the battle was against poverty and unemployment - fighting the system to help the less fortunate in our county - the victory sought was raising funds to help the needy.  The day progressed well - as planned - with a great turnout to support this first time effort - the fairgrounds flooded with the yellow volunteer shirts worn by the Knights and Lady Knights. The shock - for myself and friend Deanna - was in the judging when both of us won first place trophies for our chilies. What a surprise and shock that we won - and the awe of everyone involved who made that day such a wonderful experience and a success!

When we are walking alone - wandering throughout life - living an existence of loneliness and misery - not knowing where our next meal will come from - not knowing if the meal we eat will be enough to sustain us another day in a miserable situation - we are shocked and awed when God intervenes and makes things happen that changes our life for the better. We are caught off guard - pleasantly surprised when things change for the better.  We - who believe - are awed by our God who loves us so much that He is always there to help - to support - to forgive - to build new - to create something out of nothing - to give us the strength and companions that together - with His blessing - we can make our life and the lives of others better! Praise Jesus!

Deacon Dale 

FIRE!

Fire! screamed from the top of one's lungs may be a warning of impending danger or the excited yell of a youngster - depending on the situation.  Watching a neighbor's house engulfed in flames spreads terror in the hearts of those around - sitting excitedly around a campfire and roasting marshmallows quite another experience altogether. Like many natural forces - fire has the ability to be both good and bad.  It provides heat and light - keeps strange animals away from you in the woods - disposes of unwanted trash. It also destroys and causes anxiety when allowed to burn out of control.  Fire may be external or internal. An internal fire might be the result of a disease or infection in which the body tries to burn up or eliminate a bacteria or virus - seeking to make the body whole and pure.

When you first became a believer in Jesus as the true Son of God - when you were baptized with water and your sins washed away in that purification ritual - you were cleansed and enlightened. As an adult - when you recommitted yourself to Jesus and proclaimed Him as Lord and Savior - you were born again and the fire of His love filled you - you became one with Him in the Spirit. Today your inner fire may have become a small flicker of faith - dulled by society and life situations - to re-kindle that fire that once fed and nurtured your life - you simply have to pray "Come Lord Jesus - Come".

Deacon Dale 

Say What?

Now a days we are all experts - we join Facebook and LinkedIn and become experts on anything - no matter how well educated we are or are not - we start blogs - and profess knowledge of specialized subjects - valuable and otherwise. We get to say what we want - when we want - how we want. The other day I ran across one of those "experts" who had done a minor project involving tracking financial donors - his newest claim to fame since that project - he is now calling himself a financial services expert.  In his mind -maybe - to the rest of the world - ?  - I can avoid judgement - he has his reasons.  For those of us who write blogs about our faith and faith journeys - we are held to a higher standard. We profess what we have experienced in our personal lives - we preach the Good News from both a head and heart perspective. We do not profess to be experts or specialists - we are not infallible or without sin - we are ordinary people doing the best we can to share the Faith that we have received.

As Roman Catholics - we are bound to the Truth - which is Jesus Christ - we profess the Creed in the way we live our lives - we share the teachings of the Church Fathers - We believe what we read - we teach what we believe - we practice what we teach. No more - no less.

Deacon Dale 

9-11

Today we pause - we put on hold - we hesitate - and use those few spare minutes to remember and reflect on September 11, 2001 when this nation was attacked by terrorists and thousands of innocent perished in a reckless act of violence.  Nothing was proved that day - no battle won - no victory for any groups - aside from taking innocent people and in one swift action terminated their lives. To be able to brag about the taking of life - is nothing to brag about - to take a life of an unarmed innocent person - is nothing to brag about - and yet - it happens day in and day out.  Around the world there is always one individual or another who places no value on human life - life that is so precious - that it should be protected and preserved - not terminated. Even in our own country there are those who do not respect life - life of the unborn - the terminally ill - the aged.  Respect comes from within - respect is natural for most - respect is universal - crossing all barriers.  Only those who do not respect their own lives are able to perform deeds such as this.

Jesus told his disciples and followers "I have come that you may have life and live it to the fullest" (John 10:10)  Jesus offers us hope when there is no hope - Jesus offers us love when there is no love - Jesus offers us life when there is no life.  He does not force it on you - He stands at the door - waiting for you to knock - to ask - that He may give you all that He has promised. Chose life - Chose Jesus.

Deacon Dale 

Tradition

Most of us have traditions that we observe - ethnic - cultural - historical - spiritual. In my family we have a blend of traditions incorporating both mine and my wife's family.  Some center around specific times of the year - such as Easter and Christmas.  Others - such as anniversaries and birthdays - follow the calendar and still others - such as family reunions - were based strictly on how and why and when the tradition began.  For example - in regards to our annual family reunion - selecting a time of year when the majority of the aunts, uncles and cousins were available took some developing but eventually we settled on Labor Day weekend. It works for most but not all - but the majority are able to participate. Thus the tradition of meeting yearly over Labor Day weekend has become one of our traditions. Because one or both of our parents were descendants from Italy - we honor the Italian traditions of our ancestors by serving an all Italian menu and playing Bocce - a favorite Italian game.  Other things have been incorporated and made apart of the annual reunion so that after 17 years the family reunion has become "tradition'.

The Catholic Church is based on two pillars - Scripture and Tradition. Just as in our own families - the Church has developed traditions often not found in Holy Scripture. Some people have a problem with this since it is not referred to in Holy Scripture - and thus deny the authenticity of that particular tradition. Any intelligent person will immediately recognize that the authors of the different books of the Bible did not record every single event - thought or action of Jesus.  That would have been impossible - since NOBODY knows the mind of God. To think otherwise would be almost blasphemous - making yourself more knowledgeable than God. From our Church family we celebrate and rejoice in the beautiful traditions that have been been incorporated into our understanding of God and in our Worship.

Deacon Dale 

Pierogi

Pierogi are dumplings made from unleavened dough filled with a variety of foods - meats - potato - cheese - fruits. Pierogi are popular among the peoples of the former Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, The West Slavic Poles, Czechs, and Slovaks, as well as the East Slavic Belarusians, Russians, Ukrainians and Rusyns, and the Baltic Estonians, Latvians and Lithuanians. Depending on the peoples -the name may be different but they all boil down to a dumpling. While in Poland earlier this year - I was traveling with my wife and another deacon couple. Although the food in Poland is varied as in most cultures - the only thing my deacon brother wanted to eat was pierogi. That and potato pancakes - placki ziemniaczane. I tried my hardest to have him try the other Polish dishes - but pierogi was it.  He ate pierogi from Krakow to Warsaw to Gdansk where we found a restaurant that served 21 different types of pierogi. Those with sweet cheese were among the most popular. He nicknamed that restaurant the "Pierogi Palace" alternatively the "Pierogi King".  Last Christmas - my wife and I made about 700 pierogi to be shared with our family - a task we do not repeat that often.

When we first come to Jesus - we are starving for His Word - the Words of Life that build us up - that edify us - that strengthens us - that fills us. As we grow in our relationship and learn about the Liturgy of the Church we learn about Eucharist and how important it is to Catholics. In the Eucharist we receive Jesus - the Bread of Life and once you connect with Him in this special sacrament - nothing else will ever fill you in the way that Eucharist does. You begin longing for it - searching it out - at home and in your travels - because you have found in the Eucharist the Truth that is Life - the Truth that is Christ - the Truth that is God.  Nothing - not even pierogi - will ever fill your soul the way Jesus does!

Deacon Dale 

Family

Saturday my wife and I hosted the annual family reunion.  This is the family from my mother's side - so since her maiden name was Bonvini - we call it BonviniFest.  It is always a great time reconnecting with our cousins - the games - the food - the stories - the new babies - it is one constant party from start to finish.  Although the morning started with rain - it quickly stopped - partially because of the rosaries Arlene hung outside - partially because of all  the prayers we said asking for some dry time. This is our yearly time to celebrate our Italian heritage - to discuss our travel plans to Italy and to share stories about the family still in Italy. Of course we play games - bean bags for one and definitely the annual family bocce tournament. This year I was able to show off the bocce court I constructed in the back yard - all 80 feet of it with its 58 thousand pounds of rock used to construct it. The cousins were impressed to say the least and everyone wanted a turn on the court.  At the end of the day it is all about family - staying connected.

When we gather at church on the weekend for Holy Mass that is exactly what we are celebrating - family - the Family of God - the family of unrelated individuals who share a common bond as people of God. We may not be playing games - but still - we share in the actions of Holy Mass - calling Jesus our Savior and God our Father as our priests and deacons lead us through the Sunday worship.  At the end of the day - it is all about family - staying connected to the One who loves us - the Author of life!

Deacon Dale 

Pebbles

This summer I have been wearing sandals a lot more than I normally would. Being almost barefoot has its benefits. I know some people like to wear socks with their sandals - I prefer the barefoot experience - I do not like the pebble experience.  You know - how every so often from out of nowhere a pebble decides to jump inside your sandal - usually under the ball of your foot - does not feel very good - frequently actually painful - thankfully it is a simple procedure to stop and remove the offending stone.  While I was in Israel - I wore sandals all the time - frequently I picked up a pebble - here in the Mid-west or Israel did not make one difference.  

I am sure that Jesus and his disciples had to contend with the same issue of pebbles in their sandals - it had to be a normal part of life - wearing sandals and walking in the desert with sand and pebbles.  When I think of pebbles my thoughts automatically go towards rocks - that brings me to Saint Peter - the Rock upon which Jesus promised to build his church.  Even though Peter was not perfect - put his foot in his mouth on more than one occasion - it gives me hope - it gives you hope - that God will be as gentle with us as He was with Peter.

Deacon Dale 

Water Works

I have a koi pond - actually it is mostly a goldfish pond - although I did introduce two koi back into the pond last fall.  Earlier in the summer I noticed that it was steadily losing water - so the decision was made to tear the pond apart and rebuild.  It has taken a lot longer than I originally thought.  A simple re-do turned into a major project and just when it was almost completed a friend asked where my skimmer was.  Skimmer?  Needless to say - I started the project over from scratch.  Just the other day I filled it with water - success - or so I thought - until I noticed a drop in the water level - a leak!  Yes I found it - yes I fixed it.  Finally it is completed and new landscaping can be done.  The fish?  Yes the fish found a temporary home in the hot tub - not a bad place to be - as long as it was turned off.  Nice -quiet - boring.  They must have been happy to be back in the pond - complete with a nice new waterfall - they swim with renewed gusto.

Fish Enjoying New Pond

When we first come to Jesus - we feel like fish out of water - we try to grasp and comprehend all the new things in our life - the new words - they new gestures - the new life that we experience as a disciple of Christ. Thank God that we adapt quickly to this newness - and soon become like fish in a pond - swimming with the current that is the Holy Spirit - rejoicing in the presence of God that flows around us like water.

Deacon Dale 

Holy Land Pilgrimage Epilogue

The 2012 Holy Land Pilgrimage is over now - it has been almost 4 weeks since our return.  Life has returned to normal - with jobs - commitments - back to the old routine.  But we are a changed people - we will never be able to put into words exactly what happened to each and every one of us. We experienced the same and yet different things - in the exact same place. We felt the hand of God on us - we saw Jesus in the eyes - the doorways to our hearts - in each other -  we laughed - we cried - we sat in awesome wonder of the space that we shared with the people of Israel.  We talked with each other and locals - we ate their food and drank their wine - we walked in the footsteps of Our Lord and Savior - and already we long to repeat the experience.

Bar Mitzvah Celebration at Western Wall

Our God is an Awesome God!  He provides for us and call us to discipleship.  Just as the original twelve disciples - the 36 pilgrims - all of us - are called to spread the Gospel of Jesus to everyone we meet.

Deacon Dale