Gaudium et Spes<\/em>, 22)<\/p>\nYears ago, I told an older man that I was working on my Masters.\u00a0 He asked, “In what?”. \u00a0When I told him Theological Studies, he looked at me with a confused face and said, “What are you doing that for? \u00a0You are in business, right? \u00a0How, in the world, are you going to use theology in business? \u00a0What’s the purpose? \u00a0Why would you do that?”<\/p>\n
Yet, today, different people ask the same questions.\u00a0 They ask, how can you use theology in medicine, in personal finance, in politics, in parenthood, in anything?\u00a0 Inherent in these questions lies a common errant presupposition: since theology and its topics involve spiritual matters, it really has no place in the “real world” – in schools, at places of business, in politics, anywhere where real concrete decisions have to be made and real actions have to be taken publicly or privately.\u00a0 The thought process that flows from this presupposition sounds like this: How can the invisible and immeasurable have anything to say about how we are to live, what we are to do, what choices we should make? If it’s not measurable, it’s opinion.\u00a0 As such, believe what you will, be as spiritual as you would like, but don’t tell me what I should believe.\u00a0 Especially, don’t tell me what I should do based on your opinion, based on your faith.<\/p>\n
We find ourselves in the midst of an entire culture that thinks this way.\u00a0 As Catholics, we must be able to provide the answer to our culture.\u00a0 We must because we alone have the <\/em>answer,\u00a0 We have Jesus – the One who makes the invisible God visible.\u00a0 The starting point of taking back this culture begins within the family.\u00a0 If we cannot provide the answers to our children to the questions posed to me by the older man so many years ago, then we’ll never be able to provide it to the culture.\u00a0 In fact, our children will be the answer to those questions.\u00a0 With that in mind, here are three things every parent should keep in mind:<\/p>\n1. Have Faith & Trust God\u00a0 –<\/strong><\/em>
\nTo trust or to believe in God requires that God reveal Himself to us. \u00a0How else could we come to know Him? \u00a0We can’t measure Him. \u00a0We can’t weigh Him. \u00a0Heck, we can’t see Him – He’s invisible. \u00a0He must reveal Himself to us. \u00a0Otherwise, we will be lost; we will be confused. \u00a0So, God gives us directions, so to speak, so that we can walk by “faith” – specific directions so that we do not blindly and aimlessly wander through this life.\u00a0 He guides us in and through our gifts and talents.\u00a0 He informs us in the correction of a parent. \u00a0He directs us in the wisdom of a priest in a confessional.\u00a0 He speaks to us in the question of a child.\u00a0 Invisibly, he acts for our benefit in and through the concreteness of our day to day lives.\u00a0 Are\u00a0 we listening?\u00a0 Do we trust Him?\u00a0 Do we have faith?<\/p>\n2. Remember Faith includes Content<\/strong><\/em> <\/strong>– The answers to all our longings, questions, and concerns are found in the Truth.\u00a0 Jesus said, “the Truth will set you free”.\u00a0 The doctrines of the Church, the content of the faith, are essential to making every day decisions.\u00a0 The Trinity – God being 1 God in 3 Persons – reveals us to ourselves.\u00a0 The Incarnation – Jesus being 100% God and 100% Man – teaches us something that we need to know in order to live abundant lives.\u00a0 So, study the content of the faith.\u00a0 Interestingly, God didn’t send theology books down from heaven. \u00a0He didn’t even send the Bible down from heaven. \u00a0He sent Himself. \u00a0He didn’t give us directions. \u00a0He gave Himself. \u00a0He is the Way. \u00a0He became one of us. \u00a0God became man. \u00a0The invisible God became a visible man – a sacrament, a mystery. \u00a0Why? \u00a0Not only to reveal God to us, but also to reveal us to us. \u00a0He showed us the way by becoming the Way.\u00a0 Study Jesus!<\/p>\n3. Live Comfortably in Mystery – <\/strong>the word mystery comes from the word mysterion<\/em> translated into Latin as sacramentum<\/em> – the word from which we get our word sacrament, which is defined as a visible sign of an invisible reality instituted by Christ to confer grace.\u00a0 We live among visible and invisible realities.\u00a0 Heaven is real.\u00a0 So is hell.\u00a0 Angels exist.\u00a0 Jesus’ body, blood, soul and divinity are present in what looks like a cracker.\u00a0 Just because we don’t see something doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist.\u00a0 Remember, St. Paul, in 2 Corinthians, says, “we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen; for the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:18). \u00a0Later, he says, “we walk by faith, not by sight”(2 Corinthians 5:7).<\/p>\nTo be Christian means to always keep the invisible, the faith, in front of us while we live our concrete lives in the visible world.\u00a0 The faith is the only thing that makes sense of our lives – our joys, our sorrows, our struggles. To live as Christians, we must be open to mystery and to the uncomfortable realization that we will not fully solve the mystery.\u00a0 In fact, because of this, mystery is exactly what makes life an adventure!\u00a0 With the eyes of faith and a sacramental sense, we continually are uncovering clues of the invisible God at work in our lives, living a mystery.\u00a0\u00a0 Having a sacramental sense is what awakens our faith. And our faith gives meaning to our concrete circumstances.\u00a0 Our happiness lies in cultivating that sacramental sense, in searching for clues amongst the visible realities to answer the questions that continually confront us (the questions that God has put deep in each of our hearts) – Does God exist? \u00a0Does He care about me? \u00a0Why do bad things happen to good people? \u00a0What happens when I die? \u00a0Why am I afraid to die? Why am I here? \u00a0What is the purpose of my life?<\/p>\n
By studying theology, we will never fully solve the mystery of God. \u00a0He is forever infinite.\u00a0 Instead and to our surprise, in asking questions and seeking their answers, we will actually discover the mystery of ourselves and the meaning and purpose of our lives. \u00a0In fact, only<\/em>\u00a0in studying the faith, in studying the Word made flesh – the Invisible One made visible, the One in whom we have faith (in whom we trust) – will we, will anyone, ever know what they ought to do in business, in politics, in parenthood, in anything.\u00a0 In Jesus, and in Him alone, will we find the Way, avoid the confusion that comes from only accepting the measurable as truth, and live full, conscious, and active lives in the “real world”.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In reality, it is only in the mystery of the Word made flesh that the mystery of man truly becomes clear … Christ the Lord, Christ the new Adam, in the very revelation of the mystery of the Father and of His love, fully reveals man to himself…He, who is the “image of the… [Read More]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":157,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[671],"tags":[55,51,127,359,50,2890,1708,720,165,598],"class_list":{"0":"post-39783","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-column","7":"tag-catholic-2","8":"tag-catholicism","9":"tag-children","10":"tag-culture","11":"tag-faith","12":"tag-family","13":"tag-mystery","14":"tag-parenthood","15":"tag-parenting","16":"tag-theology","17":"entry","18":"has-post-thumbnail"},"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":190002,"url":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/2015\/12\/catholic-liturgy-101-introduction-to-liturgical-catechesis\/","url_meta":{"origin":39783,"position":0},"title":"Catholic Liturgy 101: Introduction to Liturgical Catechesis","author":"Michael Raia","date":"December 23, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"A handful of friends and colleagues have requested a very basic survey of concepts on Catholic worship and liturgical catechesis \u2013 that is, teaching on liturgy. I find the progression in the following outline very helpful when explaining what liturgy is and why it's important in the big picture of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Faith"","block_context":{"text":"Faith","link":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/category\/acnm\/blog\/faith-blog\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Central mural in the triumphal arch above the apse of St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church in Westerville, OH by EverGreene Architectural Arts. (photo by Meleca Architecture)","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.austincnm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/EverGreeneArchitects-550x413.jpeg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.austincnm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/EverGreeneArchitects-550x413.jpeg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.austincnm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/EverGreeneArchitects-550x413.jpeg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":361384,"url":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/2017\/02\/providences-hidden-grace\/","url_meta":{"origin":39783,"position":1},"title":"Providence’s Hidden Grace","author":"William Rooney","date":"February 10, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"God's providence has granted me grace upon grace. \u00a0And sometimes graces come in very small packages. Above you\u2019ll see a picture of each of my two god-children Elle (top) and Benedict (bottom). I promised to help their parents raise them in the faith. I traced a cross on their foreheads\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Blog"","block_context":{"text":"Blog","link":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/category\/acnm\/blog\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/atxcatholic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/2016-12-10-16.36.46-550x440.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/atxcatholic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/2016-12-10-16.36.46-550x440.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/atxcatholic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/2016-12-10-16.36.46-550x440.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":119096,"url":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/2015\/06\/sunday-says-june-7-2015-mass-readings-and-reflection\/","url_meta":{"origin":39783,"position":2},"title":"Sunday Says – June 7, 2015 Mass Readings and Reflection","author":"Crist\u00f3bal Almanza Herrera","date":"June 6, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"The Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ (Corpus Christi) Lectionary: 168 (NAB Translation) (Jerusalem Bible Translation) This is the great Corpus Christi Sunday where we take a Sunday to focus on the gift of the Eucharist. Reading 1 Exodus 24:3-8 This week\u2019s first reading from Exodus\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Sunday Says"","block_context":{"text":"Sunday Says","link":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/category\/acnm\/podcast\/sundaysays\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Sunday Says Podcast","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.austincnm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/SundaySaysPodcast-logo-300x231.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":339830,"url":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/2016\/12\/mary-never-enough\/","url_meta":{"origin":39783,"position":3},"title":"Of Mary, Never Enough","author":"Rachel","date":"December 22, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"\"De Maria, nunquam satis!,\" St Bernard of Clairvaux once said. Of Mary, never enough! \u00a0In these last few days before the great feast of Christmas, perhaps you're feeling harried or haven't had time to prayerfully prepare, or just aren't quite into the Christmas. Or perhaps you're drowning\u00a0in carols all day,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Blog"","block_context":{"text":"Blog","link":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/category\/acnm\/blog\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Mary","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/atxcatholic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/IMG_3104-630x630.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/atxcatholic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/IMG_3104-630x630.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/atxcatholic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/IMG_3104-630x630.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":41357,"url":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/2013\/08\/mystery-parenthood-gods-vulnerability\/","url_meta":{"origin":39783,"position":4},"title":"The Mystery of Parenthood: God’s Vulnerability","author":"Trey and Stephanie Cashion","date":"August 29, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"\u00a0 \u00a0 Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and as innocent as doves.\u00a0(Matthew 10:16) We've been contemplating this concept of the mystery of parenthood for years - the idea of living parenthood with a heightened sacramental sense. \u00a0We've attempted\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Column"","block_context":{"text":"Column","link":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/category\/acnm\/column\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"http:\/\/www.dreamstime.com\/royalty-free-stock-image-mystery-image28583466","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.austincnm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/08\/dreamstimemaximum_28583466-2-300x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":181178,"url":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/2015\/12\/in-the-spirit-of-advent\/","url_meta":{"origin":39783,"position":5},"title":"In the Spirit of Advent","author":"Ablaze Ministries","date":"December 2, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Every year during Advent, the Johnson clan leads a church-wide food drive.\u00a0 We ask our church community to draw a family from our sister parish in downtown Houston and pray for them, give them boxes of food, and maybe get them a present or two.\u00a0 Then two Uhauls get filled\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Faith"","block_context":{"text":"Faith","link":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/category\/acnm\/blog\/faith-blog\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Advent-CCFM","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.austincnm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Advent-CCFM-550x366.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.austincnm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Advent-CCFM-550x366.png?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.austincnm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Advent-CCFM-550x366.png?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39783","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/157"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=39783"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39783\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=39783"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=39783"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=39783"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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<\/a>In reality, it is only in the mystery of the Word made flesh that the mystery of man truly becomes clear … Christ the Lord, Christ the new Adam, in the very revelation of the mystery of the Father and of His love, fully reveals man to himself…He, who is the “image of the invisible God” (Col. 1:15), is Himself the perfect man who has restored …that likeness to God which had been disfigured ever since the first sin.<\/em> (Vatican II,\u00a0Gaudium et Spes<\/em>, 22)<\/p>\n