Androcles and the Lion

I just finished reading Androcles and the Lion (for the nth time).  Shaw might have been an atheist, but I think he was reaching for something, whether he realized it or not....

"That is the strange thing, Captain, that a little pinch of incense should make all that difference.  Religion is such a great thing that when I meet really religious people we are friends at once, no matter what name we give the divine will that made us and moves us...But, when men who believe neither in my god nor in their own--men who do not know the meaning of the word religion--when these men drag me to the foot of an iron statue that has become the symbol of terror and darkness through which they walk, of their cruelty and greed, of their hatred of God and their oppression of man--when they ask me to pledge my soul before the people that this hideous idol is God, and that all this wickedness and falsehood is divine truth, I cannot do it, not even if they could put a thousand cruel deaths on me"

Lenten Update

It's been a long time, brothers and sisters...Like, almost a year!

I was looking over old posts, and have a few updates.  First, things are starting to look better with the friend I talked about in my last post.  The secret I'm learning is baby steps and lots of prayer.  A friend of mine is a priest and he told me that I should say the rosary for her.  I hate saying the rosary, so it was a good sacrifice, haha.  So, on my commute, I say a decade, which is just about all I have time for (on the drive, I mean).  The results have been interesting.  First, I'm noticing a bit of a change in my friend, and I'm certainly noticing a change in me.  I'm starting to dread the rosary less now.  And I'm staring to enjoy my new morning routine (almost).

I'm writing now for a few reasons.  One, it's almost Ash Wednesday (by the time most of you read this, it WILL BE Ash Wednesday).  The other reason was that I thought it might be nice to reach out again.

What are your Lenten resolutions?  Do you have any?  Oftentimes, I think this is a wasted opportunity.  Either we give up something frivolous (like chocolate) or we don't do anything at all, because we think of Lenten sacrifices as frivolous (like I did just now).

So, I'm trying to put together a mix of different things.  First, I'm giving up sugar (to an extent).  I love coffee, but I'm going to go black for Lent.  So, no cream, no sugar.  And it's going to suck.  That's my fasting (in addition to fasting from actual food).  I'm also going to focus on praying for priests.  And finally, I have two mottoes for the season: "Let your yes mean yes" and "Savor".  These won't make a ton of sense to you, per se, but they mean a lot to me.

Finally, I'm wrapping up my prayer life with some spiritual reading.  I have The Little Black Book, Magnificat (monthly), Magnificat (Lent), and The Word Among Us.  I'll have so much spiritual reading that my head will be spinning!  But, I'm looking forward to filling my precious reading time with very good things.

I'm wishing you all a faithful and fruitful Lent!

God bless,
♥Little Sister

A Call For Prayer

My dear brothers and sisters,

I write this post with a heavy heart.  I have been struggling with my feelings towards a friend of mine.  Namely, she's a very...shall we say "militant" liberal, whose rantings and frustrations online (and sometimes in person) are getting more and more aggressive towards everything that I stand for as a Catholic.

Her feelings tend to be if you don't agree with everything from LGBT rights to abortion, you're somehow a bigot and a monster.  And as a quiet Catholic, I feel my heart hurting every time she speaks out about these things.  At the risk of sounding dramatic, I'm honestly getting to the point where I feel that there is no place in her worldview for someone like me--a Catholic who actually adheres to the Church's teachings.

My struggle right now is that after seeing so many of these comments from her, I'm finding it very hard to want to be around her.  I know she thinks that she's doing the right thing.  I know her heart is in the right place.  But, I'm having trouble finding a place for myself and for our friendship in a world where I can't exist.

Please pray for both of us.

♥Little Sister

Your Song

What's New?

Hello, Brothers and Sisters!

This is going to be a quick and easy update, but I wanted to ask for your prayers.  I'm currently in the process of finding a spiritual director.  Lately, I've been feeling a stronger draw towards God, but I still feel that something is missing.  I think I'm missing a bit of direction, and I'm hoping that I can find the right person who help and guide me.  I've actually been in contact with someone, and I'm hoping to hear from them again soon.

But, all the same, I've never been a patient person, so the wait has been difficult, and I don't even know if this person is going to be my director in the long term (we're just meeting first to see if we're a good match).  So, please keep both of us in your prayers, that we can determine what is the best arrangement for both of us.

Thank you, and God bless!

      ♥Little Sister

A Change of Pace

Hello, brothers and sisters!

For a little while now, I've tried writing posts on this blog dedicated to talking about Catholic theology.  And so far, I've not gotten any followers.  Of course, followers aren't everything, but I'm starting to wonder if my lack of readers can be attributed to my style  of writing.  Maybe people aren't looking for a "lecture", per se, but more of a personal blog.  A conversation.

So, I'm thinking that I'll try and write more about me.  I mean, I'll write about Catholic topics in a way that is more natural, more relaxed.  I'm still not interested in going into a ton of details about my personal life, but I'll try to make an opportunity for you to get to know your Little Sister a bit more.  Maybe that will be the breath of fresh air that this blog needs.  And if you have an opinion either way, let me know in the comments.  Better yet: if you're out there, and you're reading this blog, leave me just one comment below.  You don't have to comment after that.  But, at least let me know that you're out there.  In other words, stop by and say "Hello!"

I'll be waiting!

♥ Little Sister

Patron Saint of 2018

Back in 2016, I talked about how some Catholic families use a tradition of selecting a saint to be your patron or patroness for the year.  At that time, I was given St. Walburga.  I didn't do this in 2017, because (and I suppose this is a little silly), I was worried about "replacing" her.  That's like saying you can only have one friend, and will never make new ones.  So, this year, I decided to try again and add a new saintly friend to my circle.

I was secretly hoping for St. Joseph or St. Theresa of Avila.  But, the Good Lord knows what is best for me, and after some thoughtful prayer and reflection, I selected my saint.  (I use a Saint Name Generator, which you can find here if you're interested).  And once again, I was gifted with a new saintly friend...whom I have never heard of before!

So, Brothers and Sisters, please allow me to introduce you to my patroness of the year: St. Radegunde (not to be confused with St. Randegund, since it appears that even though they have the same feast day, they were apparently different??)

A little about my new patroness: St. Radegunde is the patroness of difficult marriages, loss of parents, weavers, scabies, fever, leprosy, drowning, scabs, ulcers, and potters.  She was born as a princess, daughter of a pagan king in what is now Germany.  Her father was murdered by his brother, who was in turn killed by the invading kings Theodoric of Austrasia and Clotaire I of Neustria.  Radegunde was taken prisoner and eventually married Clotaire.  She founded hospitals and cared for the sick, including lepers.  It was only when Clotaire killed her brother that Radegunde left the courts and became a nun.  During this time, she founded a monastery and lived out the rest of her days there.  She also secured a piece of the true cross for that monastery.  To read more about Radegunde, follow this link here.  

I'm excited to see what lessons I can learn from St. Radegunde in 2018.  And as for the rest of you, I pray that God will bless you and keep you, and that he will help you to grow in your faith each and every day.  Have a wonderful new year, everyone!  God bless!