logic, reason , faith

It is idle to talk always of the alternative of reason and faith. Reason is itself a matter of faith. It is an act of faith to assert that our thoughts have any relation to reality at all. If you are merely a sceptic, you must sooner or later ask yourself the question ‘Why should anything go right; even observation and deduction? Why should not good logic be as misleading as bad logic? They are both movements in the brain of a bewildered ape?’”

—	G.K. Chesterton, Orthodoxy, 39. (via thirstygargoyle)

Source: thirstygargoyle

the creed

Hope

To imagine ourselves outside the temporality that imprisons us and in some way to sense that eternity is not an unending succession of days in the calendar, but something more like the supreme moment of satisfaction, in which totality embraces us and we embrace totality-- this we can only attempt. It would be like plunging into the ocean of infinite love, a moment in which time-the before and after---no longer exists. We can only attempt to grasp the idea that such a moment is life in the full sense, a plunging ever anew into the vastness of being, in which we are simply overwhelmed with joy. This is how Jesus expresses it in Saint John's Gospel: 'I will see you again and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you' (Jn 16:22). We must think along these lines if we want to understand the object of Christian hope, to understand what it is that our faith, our being with Christ, leads us to expect.

These are good thoughts to think on from Spe salvi 12, by Benedict.  

let them see you

Examination for Pride

 examination that comes from a Full of Grace Study Guide:

Do I...

.Evaluate all things by the affect it will have on my family OR me?
.Boast about accomplishments-overtly or subtly?
.Put my own preferences above that of others?
.Feel the need to command (or control) every situation?
.Talk about myself and my own concerns in every conversation?
.Want people to have a good opinion of me at any price?
.Use every opportunity to point out another's mistakes?
.'Bad mouth' others?
.Get impatient when contradicted or corrected?
.Want to be 'in the know'
.Enjoy the limelight?
.Refuse to readily admit faults, if at all?
.Try to cover up or excuse sins--even in confession?
.Believe deep down inside that I am better than others in any way,
  be it socially, spiritually, or morally?
.Attribute any and all success to my own efforts?
.Cling to self-complacency:
.Get irritated (even slightly) if someone else gets attention and     
  praise?

These are some things to really think about and I need to work on some!!!

The Byzantine -rite churches, both Orthodox and Catholic apparently pray a prayer during lent (everyday), and it is called 
The Prayer of St. Ephrem.  It is good:

"Lord and Master of my life, do not give me a spirit of laziness or
         idle curiosity, of ambition or empty talk.
Instead , grant to me, your servant, a spirit of self-control and
         humility, of patience and love.
Yes, Lord and King, enable me to see my own failings, and not
         to judge my brother or sister, for you are blessed
         unto the ages of ages. Amen

O Come, Emmanuel/ The Piano Guys

Hallelujahs by Chris Rice

give me Jesus

o my soul

Rivers and stones and the trees of the field, they sing in the night
And a thousand tongues lay deep in your lungs to raise to the sky

Don't lie to yourself, O my soul - love your God.
Don't lie to yourself, O my soul - love your God.

Deep in your heart you feather and tar your folly and fear:
Expose them all for the fools they are, and the world becomes clear.

Don't lie to yourself, O my soul, just love your God.
Don't lie to yourself, O my soul, just love your God.
Love your God.

Your worries will never love you
They'll leave you all alone
But your God will not forsake you
O my soul, my soul.

Don't lie to yourself, O my soul - love your God.
Don't lie to yourself, O my soul, just love your God.
Love your God.

better than a halleluah