Just wrote to them and sent emails!
(Source: norwichdiocese.org, via acatholicvibe)
A world without God is hell. Literally. And being totally with God, that’s literally heaven. What are we doing on this earth— and which are we creating?
…so that just hit me. brb, praying.
(via rainyautumntwilight)
(Source: wheels-of-faith, via iwilltrustinyou)
(Source: cslewisquotes, via christological)
“Life is entrusted to man as a treasure which must not be squandered, as a talent which must be used well.”
― Pope John Paul II
(via catholicfemininegenius)
(Source: iwilltrustinyou, via idapearl)
La Divina Pastora
A Spanish holy card of Mary as the Divine Shepherdess. Note the wolf fleeing in the background.
I cannot be a priest because I’m a woman— and this is one of the hardest things I’ve recently had to come to terms with. I’ve tried to understand, and failed to, and prayed about it, and it’s just kind of sad for me at this point because I don’t understand, and I still feel like it’s my vocation. I guess I must be called to something else, but it’s still difficult for me.
But today in church, a thought came to me. We always hear about the shortage of priests, especially in the US and other superpower countries. Actually, I don’t think that’s true—we don’t need more priests. We need more faithful, dedicated lay people. In fact, I think we need fewer priests— my generation is not one that likes take information from authority, especially religious authority. The regular, not-particularly-religious or strongly atheist people my age (early 20s) do not take priests seriously, and discount their opinion because theyre ‘biased because they’re part of the Catholic church.’ And let’s face it, the church gets a lot of bad press, from the molestation problems in the 80s and 90s, to the contraception fight now. People my age do not trust the church, and do not take priests seriously. More priests won’t fix that. Fewer priests, and more faithful people who function as normal people in the real world but who are religious and dedicated to the Church might have a chance.
(But, that’s a catch-22 because how do you raise faithful people? Good priests.)
You know, I think in the end, I don’t think there will be priests and lay people. There will be no distinction—just the faithful, and we will be with Christ. I can do the work of Christ without being ordained. And maybe God saves some of the good priests to be undercover priests in society, filling the roles of friends and siblings and coworkers. Maybe that’s where the real evangelization and religious work has to be done— in regular, every day action that speaks of Christ without ever saying a word.
Before he ascended into heaven, Christ gave each of us a mission: to be His witnesses in all ends of the Earth. I am still sad that I will never be a priest (unless my man Ben 16 changes things, and quickly) but now I realize that perhaps I can serve Christ more effectively as a lay person. It’s a challenge, along with the cross of being a woman who feels called to the priesthood, that I’ll accept and do my best to meet.
