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As I was well into Ash Wednesday, last week, I was experiencing an interesting emotion. I was happy it was Lent.
Kevin, Kevin, Kevin, what is the matter with you?
You’re happy it’s Lent? You’re happy it’s a time of sacrifice and penance? You’re happy it’s a time when the joyous “A” word is not to be said or sung? You’re happy it’s the “sorrowful” time in the Church for 40-days until we get to Easter?
Yes, I am. Here’s why.
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By the time you’re reading this, we’ll be in the season of Lent — the annual 40 days of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving that leads us to Easter.
Being blessed with the COVID-19 pandemic a year ago, it might seem like we never really left the last Lent we had.
With how we’ve been living the past almost 12 months, we might not feel we have to give up anything for Lent this year. We might feel like we’ve been giving things up this whole time.
Here’s my uneducated, unscientific, un-everything else thought: Don’t. Don’t “give up” anything this Lent.
OK, truth be told, I am still giving up some things this Lent. I’m giving up soda and desserts (I’m sweet enough already?).
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Like the fellow once said, in song, (and yes, a line I’ve already used in a past editorial) “And you may ask yourself, ‘Well, how did I get here?'”
The word “fake” feels as natural to put together with the word “news” like “peas and carrots” or “Forrest” and “Jenny.”
For the countless number of people whose livelihood it is to deliver the news — be it on-camera, at a microphone, behind a computer, in a control room, or at home (thanks, COVID) — it’s a troubling prospect to have a significant count of people tell you what you do is “fake,” especially when you’ve put so much effort into making sure it’s clear, concise, and accurate.
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In June, it’ll mark 23 years since I graduated from a Catholic school (sorry, Mom and Dad, if that makes you feel old).
I attended Two Rivers (Wis.) Catholic Central School (TRCCS), in the Diocese of Green Bay, from 1989 to 1998, from kindergarten to eighth grade. Like some students in the Diocese of Madison, I attended school in two buildings throughout those nine years — St. Mark for grades K to four and St. Luke for grades five to eight.
Unfortunately, the school, later known as St. Peter the Fisherman, is no longer open.
Name changes and school closings are also known to some people in this diocese, so my experience was somewhat “universal” with what other Catholic school students go through all over. |
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Several years ago (I’ve been here that long?), I wrote a feature story on a young woman who was in her parish’s RCIA program and was on the path to being a full member of the Catholic Church come Easter Vigil.
During my interview with her, she remarked, with a huge smile of anticipation, that she couldn’t wait to receive the Eucharist for the first time.
It made me pause and wonder if I ever felt that excited about Holy Communion.
I don’t think I felt that way at age eight when I received for the first time, and any sort of pumped up and glowy feeling probably lessened after that. |
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It’s January 7, the morning after the latest installment of “I never thought this could happen here”.
Yesterday, January 6, 2021, gave us images of the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C., being invaded by violent persons who fought with law enforcement, damaged the parts of the building, and even found time to take selfies as they occupied various legislative parts of the facility.
This was all done while U.S. senators and representatives were doing their thing with the electoral votes from the 2020 Presidential Election and later had to be evacuated for their safety
Because of the conflicts, that work was paused until the late evening hours and into the early morning.
I had a hope that yesterday’s breaking point leading to those images and actions would create an immediacy for unity and calm.
I was wrong.
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Welcome to the future! If you’ve dragged yourself through A.D. 2020 and just wanted to move onto the next year, congratulations! Here we are! 2021 — the future. This is what we wanted, right?
The way I’m looking at it, one of two things is going to happen as we make our way through “’21”.
Either things are going to be way better, relatively speaking, than they were in 2020, or things are going to reach new levels of 2020-ness, and instead of saying things are “so 2020,” we’ll be saying things are “so 2020s”.
How about that?
We could have an entire decade like the year we just had. Instead of the “Roaring 20s,” we’d have the “Abhorring 20s”? |
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Dear Santa,
For Christmas, I would like:
A case of Caffeine-Free Pepsi, a package of bacon, an Amazon gift card, and some Babcock Hall cookies ‘n’ cream ice cream.
I’d also like the energy, ambition, and desire to pray more. I want the habit of opening my Bible more and embracing God’s word. I want to make Holy Mass a centerpiece of my life and feel like every time I am going up for Communion that it’s the most important thing I’m doing that day.
I want an increase in discipleship and evangelization. I want Catholics to know and live their faith so well that leading others to Christ is a natural and normal occurrence.
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Other than the strong few that are holding on to tradition and doing things as they’ve always been, in spite of 2020 doing its 2020 things all around them, I can divide everyone into two groups.
Those who started their Christmas season as early as possible (12:01 a.m. on November 1) and those who haven’t gotten around to their shopping, putting decorations out, getting the tree up, etc., yet all because “it doesn’t feel like Christmas yet.”
And yes, Church-ily speaking, it’s Advent, now, not Christmas.
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We love to make lists. Be they shopping lists, Christmas wish lists, bucket lists, or future vacation lists, we are always making lists.
They help to illustrate and organize thoughts and plans in our minds. They also aid us as reminders. We are less likely to forget something if it’s “on the list”.
