The "just" war vs. "jihad"

     There are certain conditions that justifies Christians to take up arms. WWII is a clear struggle with evil.   

     But Christians do not engage in "jihad" with non-believers ( - not in my lifetime at least).

     On the contrary, I've heard a rumor that during the ethnic cleansing at Kosovo, the late Pope John Paul II sent armaments to help the Moslems - not the "Christians".

Turning the Other Cheek

     Turning the other cheek is not the acquiencense of the weak & cowardly, but the non-violent resistance of the patient & the brave. Gandhi used this to free India from Britain. (They may be Hindus but Gandhi got the idea from the Gospel.)  It took down Communism at Gadansk. It is the soul of the civil rights movement in the US.  And the inspiration of many "People Power" movements all around the world.

     

Fraternal Correction

One tells the offender what's wrong. If that does not work, one brings a group like an "intervention". Finally, one uses tough love & shuns the unrepentant one.

Cross on devil's cape

Back when I was a novice, I was cleaning the study hall when my Novice Master pointed to the lopsided crucifix at the center of the hall. "That's how much he means to you." he said as he walked out in disgust.
Yesterday, we went to an amusement park and almost had a perfect family day. It was ruined by a stage show "Disco Inferno" where the demons had huge crosses on their capes. I wanted to walk out but my wife wanted to finish the show, after all the demons already took off the capes. This morning I am writing to everyone who can stop or change this.
Jesus, the Incarnate Son of God, obeyed the Heavenly Father to the point to dying on a cross as a restitution for our disobedience. Because of that, we all can become children of God once again and inherit eternal life. And even if you were the only person around, Jesus would become a man to carry & die on that cross. He is your personal Savior. That is how the cross has become a symbol of God's great love - that He would give up His only Son to pay for our sins.

Priest in a brothel

I know a priest to went to a whore house & met someone. But it isn't what it appears to be. What happened was the parents of the girl saw him earlier and told him how their daughter ran away & and got into debt. To pay that off, she ended up a prostitute.
The priest dressed like a civilian & paid for the services of this woman. While in the room with her, he sat quietly until the woman spoke, "It's almost time, won't you do anything?" He answered, "I already paid for your body, but what I want is your soul."
In moral theology, one considers the action together with the intention and circumstances. Here the act is going to a brothel. The intent - to help the runaway. That is why the Lord Jesus commanded us not to condemn others.

A Latino construction worker

A priest friend, Fr. Jimmy Hernandez, told me about a Latino construction worker who would use his lunch break to visit a nearby church. It took him 30 minutes to get there, so all that he can do is knell and pray, "Lord, this is Jose. I just dropped by to say hello." Then he'd hurry back to the site.
One day he fell from a scaffolding and was hospitalized. When his friends visited him, he was laughing. He said the Lord stopped by saying, "Jose, this is the Lord. I just dropped by to say hello."

To fly, one needs to be light & unattached

While his fellow birds were set on finding fish to eat, Jonathan Livingston Seagull was obssessed with flight. All he did was fly, trying to go higher each time. He lost weight and kept it off. He wasted no time in anything else. Because of this, he soared into heights that no seagull has ever reached and then some.

During these lean times, many will do without or with less. This divestiture is a chance to become less destracted and dissipated with stuff and think about flying for a change; flying to the Provider not for His gifts but for Himself. And when you find God, then it is like finding a buried treasure worth more than anything.