Mid-Term Vocab

Introductory Unit

Heart-the center of the total personality, especially with reference to intuition, feeling, or emotion
re-a longing or craving, as for something that brings satisfaction or enjoyment

Reality-the state of things as they are or appear to be, rather than as one might wish them to be

4 Truths of the “I”- are the Four Noble Truths, Life means suffering, the origin of suffering is attachment, the cessation of suffering is attainable and the path to the cessation of suffering.


Religious Sense- is the acknowledgement and understanding of what religion is

Ontology-the branch of metaphysics that studies the nature of existence or being as such.

Being-conscious, mortal existence; life.

Anointing of the Sick

Suffering- is the state of feeling pain, misery or loss expierenced.

Job-a piece of work, especially a specific task done as part of the routine of one's occupation or for an agreed price
.
Original Sin-a depravity, or tendency to evil, held to be innate in humankind and transmitted from Adam to the race in consequence of his sin.

Presbyters- (in the early Christian church) an office bearer who exercised teaching, priestly, and administrative functions.

Who administers the sacrament?- the priest, deacons and bishop

Who can receive the sacrament?-anyone that has been baptized.

Viaticum- (among the ancient Romans) a provision or allowance for traveling, originally of transportation and supplies, later of money, made to officials on public missions.

Theodicy- a vindication of the divine attributes, particularly holiness and justice, in establishing or allowing the existence of physical and moral evil.

Apocalyptic- predicting or presaging imminent disaster and total or universal destruction

Apostolate- the dignity or office of an apostle.

Extreme Unction- A sacrament to give spiritual aid and comfort and perfect spiritual health, including, if need be, the remission of sins.

Society of Jesus- a member of a Roman Catholic religious order (Society of Jesus) founded by Ignatius of Loyola in 1534.

L’Arche Community- is an international network of faith-based communities centered around people who have developmental disabilities (or learning disabilities as they are known in the UK).

Stations of the Cross- a series of 14 representations of successive incidents from the Passion of Christ, each with a wooden cross, or a series of wooden crosses alone, set up in a church, or sometimes outdoors, and visited in sequence, for prayer and meditation.

Reconciliation

Penance- a sacrament, as in the Roman Catholic Church, consisting in a confession of sin, made with sorrow and with the intention of amendment, followed by the forgiveness of the sin.

Confession- a formal, usually written, acknowledgment of guilt by a person accused of a crime.

Forgiveness- is the renunciation or cessation of resentment, indignation or anger as a result of a perceived offense, disagreement, or mistake, or ceasing to demand punishment or restitution

Conversion- a change of attitude, emotion, or viewpoint from one of indifference, disbelief, or antagonism to one of acceptance, faith, or enthusiastic support, especially such a change in a person's religion.

Empathy- the intellectual identification with or vicarious experiencing of the feelings, thoughts, or attitudes of another.

Ten Commandments- the precepts spoken by God to Israel, delivered to Moses on Mount Sinai; the Decalogue. Ex. 20; 24:12,34; Deut. 5. Though the numbering of these commandments may differ in some religions, that which has been followed in this dictionary is based on the King James Version of the Bible.

Examination of Conscience- is what we do before we go to confession and it is the in depth look into what we have done and how it may have affected our conscienesness.




Contrition- sorrow for and detestation of sin with a true purpose of amendment, arising from a love of God for His own perfections (perfect contrition) or from some inferior motive, as fear of divine punishment (imperfect contrition)

Confession of Sin- is the acknowledgment of sin (or one's sinfulness) or wrongs. It is a religious practice in a number of faith traditions.

Absolution- a remission of sin or of the punishment for sin, made by a priest in the sacrament of penance on the ground of authority received from Christ.

Sin- any act regarded as such a transgression, especially a willful or deliberate violation of some religious or moral principle.

Mortal Sin- a willfully committed, serious transgression against the law of God, depriving the soul of divine grace.

Venial Sin- a transgression against the law of God that does not deprive the soul of divine grace either because it is a minor offense or because it was committed without full understanding of its seriousness or without full consent of the will.

Original Sin- a depravity, or tendency to evil, held to be innate in humankind and transmitted from Adam to the race in consequence of his sin.

Personal Sin- a sin committed by our own doing and effects us internally.

Restitution- reparation made by giving an equivalent or compensation for loss, damage, or injury caused; indemnification.

Concupiscence- is a lust and desire, sexually.

Fornication- is the reproduction of new life between a man and a woman.

Heresy- opinion or doctrine at variance with the orthodox or accepted doctrine, especially of a church or religious system.

Schism- division or disunion, especially into mutually opposed parties.

Matrimony

Abortion- an operation or other procedure to terminate pregnancy before the fetus is viable.



Contraception- the deliberate prevention of conception or impregnation by any of various drugs, techniques, or devices; birth control.

Sterilization- the destruction of all living microorganisms, as pathogenic or saprophytic bacteria, vegetative forms, and spores.

Fidelity- devotion to duties, obligations, etc; faithfulness

Divorce- a judicial declaration dissolving a marriage in whole or in part, especially one that releases the husband and wife from all matrimonial obligations.

Polygamy- the practice or condition of having more than one spouse, especially wife, at one time.

Adultery- voluntary sexual intercourse between a married person and someone other than his or her lawful spouse.

Annulment- a formal invalidation, as of a marriage, judicial proceeding.

Purpose of Marriage- is to pro create and live fruitful and multiply.

Unity- the state or fact of being united or combined into one, as of the parts of a whole; unification.

Procreation- is a male and a female that are married and have sex with the intent of creating a child or offspring.

Intimacy- a close, familiar, and usually affectionate or loving personal relationship with another person or group.

Exchange of Vows- are the promises and love shown between husband and wife through words.

Grace- the divine assistance and power given to man in spiritual rebirth and sanctification.

Family- a basic social unit consisting of parents and their children, considered as a group, whether dwelling together or not.

Cohabitation- to live together as husband and wife, usually without legal or religious sanction.

Creation- something that has been brought into existence or created, esp a product of human intelligence or imagination.

Holy Orders

Diocese- an ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop.

Vicar- a person acting as priest of a parish in place of the rector, or as representative of a religious community to which tithes belong.

Infallibility- person or thing that is incapable of error or failure.

Imprimatur- an official license to print or publish a book, pamphlet, etc., especially a license issued by a censor of the Roman Catholic Church.

Parish- an ecclesiastical district having its own church and member of the clergy.

Celibacy- abstention from sexual relations.


Bishops- a person who supervises a number of local churches or a diocese, being in the Greek, Roman Catholic, Anglican, and other churches a member of the highest order of the ministry.

Pope- the bishop of Rome as head of the Roman Catholic Church.

Priest- a person whose office it is to perform religious rites, and especially to make sacrificial offerings.

Deacon- a member of the clerical order next below that of a priest.

Cardinal- a high ecclesiastic appointed by the pope to the College of Cardinals and ranking above every other ecclesiastic but the pope.

Clergy- the group or body of ordained persons in a religion, as distinguished from the laity.

Chasuble- a sleeveless outer vestment worn by the celebrant at Mass.

Discern- to perceive by the sight or some other sense or by the intellect; see, recognize, or apprehend.

Grace- is what is renewed in us as we visit the church and participate in mass.

Baptism


Definition- a ceremonial immersion in water, or application of water, as an initiatory rite or sacrament of the Christian church.

RCIA- The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA) is the process through which interested adults and older children are gradually introduced to the Roman Catholic faith and way of life. Children who were not baptized as infants are also initiated through an adapted process of this rite, sometimes incorrectly referred to as the Rite of Christian Initiation of Children (RCIC).

RCIA Process- is a communal process and involves a number of stages punctuated by liturgical rites to aid and assist the potential convert toward the final rite, usually at the Easter Vigil at which time they will become full members of the Roman Catholic Church.

Candidates- a person or thing regarded as suitable or likely for a particular fate or position.

Catechumens- . a person under instruction in the rudiments of Christianity, as in the early church.

White Garment- is what an adult or child wears when they are being baptized.


Water- is what is used when a candidate gets baptized.

Concupiscence- sexual desire; lust.

Confirmation

Definition- a rite administered to baptized persons, in some churches as a sacrament for confirming and strengthening the recipient in the Christian faith, in others as a rite without sacramental character by which the recipient is admitted to full communion with the church.

Seal- an embossed emblem, figure, symbol, word, letter, etc., used as attestation or evidence of authenticity.

Holy Spirit- the presence of God as part of a person's religious experience.

Fruits of the Spirit- Love, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Self-control, Joy, Peace, Gentleness, and Faithfulness,


Gifts of the Spirit- Wisdom, Knowledge, Faith, Healing powers, Miraculous powers, Prophecy, Spiritual discernment, Speaking in tongues, and Interpretation of tongues

History- the record of past events and times, especially in connection with the human race.

Pentecost- a Christian festival celebrated on the seventh Sunday after Easter, commemorating the descent of the Holy Ghost upon the apostles.

Sponsor- a person who vouches or is responsible for a person or thing.

Community- a social, religious, occupational, or other group sharing common characteristics or interests and perceived or perceiving itself as distinct in some respect from the larger society within which it exists.

Laying on of hands- a rite in which the cleric's hands are placed on the head of a person being confirmed, ordained, or the like.

Eucharist

Definition- the sacrament of Holy Communion; the sacrifice of the Mass; the Lord's Supper.


Transcendence- Theology of God having continuous existence outside the created world.

Consecration- the act of giving the sacramental character to the Eucharistic elements of bread and wine, especially in the Roman Catholic Church.

Transubstantiation- the changing of the elements of the bread and wine, when they are consecrated in the Eucharist, into the body and blood of Christ.

Tabernacle- the portable sanctuary in use by the Israelites from the time of their wandering in the wilderness after the Exodus from Egypt to the building of the Temple in Jerusalem by Solomon.

Other Names for the Eucharist- is the body of Christ

Eucharist Meal- is a Christian sacrament by which, in a common interpretation, those who celebrate it commemorate the Last Supper by consecrating bread and wine.

Mass/Liturgy (Eucharist)- the service of the Eucharist, especially this service (Divine Liturgy) in the Eastern Church.

Introductory Rites- is the penitential rite, it is a time of reflection on one's sins and a prayer for God's mercy.

Liturgy of the Word- Consist of The First Reading: -The Hebrew Scriptures, The Responsorial Psalm, The Second Reading - The Christian Scriptures, The Gospel – Alleluia, The Gospel Reading, The Homily (or mini-sermon), The Profession of Faith: (the Creed)

Liturgy of the Eucharist- consists of the preparation of the altar and gifts, Eucharistic prayer and the communion rite.

Corpus Christi- celebrating the tradition and belief in the body and blood of Jesus Christ and his Real Presence in the Eucharist.

Sunday Obligation-It is both a precept of the Church and Church law that Catholics must worship God on Sunday by participating in the Holy Mass.

"I Confess" Extra Credit

Imagine you are a movie critic. Write a review of the movie "I Confess" and tell your audience why you think this movie is (or is not) worth seeing.

In the movie “I Confess” I thought that it was a pretty interesting and entertaining movie for being in black and white. The movie had a lot of suspense and mystery between the characters even though you know from the start that the murder is Otto Keller, the caretaker . I enjoyed this movie and would recommend others to see it as well. The movie has you hooked and interested as the story line progresses. If people like mysteries and detective movies than “I Confess” will be a great movie for you. I found the actors did a pretty good job with their role and the movie showed quality and interest towards the audience. However, there were still parts that I was annoyed of such as the overly dramatic music as well as the quick scene changes. The storyline to this movie was pretty good and was very entertaining to follow. I like how the priest was targeted as the main suspect and seemed suspicious because he was not able to say what he knew. The movie played with the audience to have the priest know the whole truth and not be able to say anything even though police are targeting at him. This movie is also worth seeing because it has a romance twist that you don’t suspect from the beginning between the priest Logan and women Ruth Grandfort. Once again the movie  had an exciting story idea that has a priest facing trial for a murder he didn't commit, and refusing to clear himself even though the killer had confessed to him in the church, where God and himself were present. This movie shows how sacred and serious priest take the church confessional to be, especially when it leaves a killer to roam free to potentially be able to kill again, but to also get redemption when he dies at the end. The director, Hitchcock, has made a great suspenseful movie that is entertaining to watch as well as enjoy with a number of top-notch performances from the actors.

Why did the priest remain faithful to his vow to never reveal anything from a confession when it would have been easier on him to just reveal the information? What does the movie's resolution at the end demonstrate Hitchcock's own view of God? How would you have ended the movie?

         The priest remained faithful to his vow to never reveal anything from a confession when it would have been easier on him to reveal the information because as a priest you are suppose to keep a vow of silence. Priests are not allowed to discuss what they heard in confession and if they do then they are not a priest. Priests have a commitment to the church, God and the people, with that comes responsibility and trust towards the priest. When becoming a priest they learn and know that they can’t break their vow in confession because it is a time that is meant for the person, God and the priest as the vessel of the Lord. No matter what the sin a priest a cannot speak of it outside of confession because it is also a time where the sinner faces their wrong doing and looking for forgiveness towards something the person is truly sorry for.  Father Logan seemed to be a good priest and never broke his vow of confession. The resolution at the end of the movie shows that Hitchcock own view of God is being able to trust the priest with your confessions even if the confession affects the priest. Also the movie shows at the end that Hitchcock believes that our sins will be forgiven, but if we don’t take responsibility for our actions we will have to pay the consequences. I liked the ending of the movie because everyone got what they deserved except the murders wife. How I would have ended the movie is to have had Father Logan and Otto sit down and talk about what he did and for Otto to confess his sins towards the police and to regain Father Logan’s reputation for a crime he did not commit. Lastly, I would include for Otto to go to jail for the consequences of his murder and the murder of his wife and Logan to be a respected priest with Ruth as a faithful friend.

 Look up Alfred Hitchcock's biography and find some articles about his Catholic faith. How do you think his faith informs his view of the cinema? Give examples from "I Confess" (or other Hitchcock movies) to make your case.

 

         Alfred Hitchcock was raised as a catholic. When Hitchcock as younger, he would go to Mass every week, where he was temporarily an altar boy and he also graduated from a Catholic prep school. Hitchcock was a very religious and stayed that way throughout the course of his life. Hitchcock’s wife, Alma Reville, even converted to Catholic faith for her husband. She and her husband always went to Mass every week where they also gave back by donating large amounts of money towards the church as well as several Catholic charities. Even after his death, Hitchcock’s funeral was held in the Catholic tradition. He was very thankful for his Catholic education, but he admitted that he had resisted the fear and guilt that came along with the religion. He said: “My Catholic upbringing taught me organization, control, and to some degree analysis… I don’t think the religious side of the Jesuit education impressed itself so much upon me as the strict discipline one endured at the time… but I’ve grown out of religious fear now” (Kershaw). But oddly enough all of that thrilling darkness in his films seemed to have come from somewhere because many film analyzers argue that Hitchcock’s movies are filled with references to Catholic dogma, or code of belief, and imagery. The use of imagery was mainly in his movies theme of guilt and sin as only obtainable in the characters minds of liberation or recovery. In “I Confess” there are a lot of religious beliefs that are taking place such as sin, guilt, redemption, vow of silence in confession, as well as the life of priesthood. The movie was heavy on fear and suspense as well as guilt for the crime Kellar committed. Hitchcock’s religious beliefs were influenced in this movie along with others, but in this movie he portrays a murder and confession that were key points in the movie. He shows the struggle of a priest who is convicted for a crime he did not do when the murder confessed to him. The movie stresses the importance of a priest not revealing what he heard in confession no matter how badly it was or may affect the priest. From Hitchcock admitting that he resisted fear and guilt from the religion he shows a lot of it in this movie as well as many others. He portrays the characters in a way where you know and feel the person’s guilt and fear for a crime they have done or mistake they have made. Hitchcock’s faith informed his view of cinemas through the guilt Kellar felt throughout the movie, Father Logan never revealing what he knew about the murder as well as the redemption Kellar receives for his unjust actions at the end of the movie, where he slowly breaths his last breath. In the end, Hitchcock influences his catholic beliefs in this movie through his ability portray the fear and guilt of the characters in which he claims that he resisted from the religion.

Work Cited

Kershaw, Tom. "The Hollowverse." Alfred Hitchcock's Religion and Political Views. N.p., 3 Dec.

 

      2012. Web. 11 Dec. 2012.

 Answer the question on the movie poster: "If you knew what he knew what would you do?" Tell me why, and compare your own reaction to the priest in the movie.

      It’s hard to say what I would do if I was the one who knew the murder because their two different ways to answer this question. If I wasn’t a priest, like Logan, than I would tell the police who did it and be done with the situation. This because no person has a right to kill a person and the way Otto Kellar, the murder, said he killed the person as an accident really didn’t seem right anyways. He was going to steal from the man he killed, so he was already doing wrong in the first place. I would have told what I knew not only for the safety of me, but for others as well as because this man was dangerous. He also proved he didn’t learn his lesson because he killed his own wife that tried to do good on behalf of her husband’s mistake. The other situation is that if I were a priest like Logan and in the same situation as he was I wouldn’t tell. This is because I wouldn’t be allowed to and the movie stressed a lot how Logan couldn’t reveal the truth. If I was a priest that would mean I would put my faith first before my own self because that’s what I believe in. As a priest you learn that your faith is important and that in confession you can’t reveal anyone’s sins. If I was in Logan’s situation I would do the same as he did by never revealing who committed the crime because as a good priest you are suppose to abide by the rules as a trusted man of the faith. I was surprised how dedicated Logan was in not revealing the information and how wrong it was that Kellar even turned on Logan to save himself, but I can understand that priest have to keep that secret no matter what even if effects them. Logan put his religion first and saw that as more important and personally I would agree with him because it takes a strong priest and loving vessel of the Lord to do that. In the end, I have split decisions because there are two ways of looking at the question, as a priest or as a citizen. It has been made clear that as a citizen for the safety of everyone I would tell, but as a priest strongly intertwined with the faith I would keep the vow of silence from the confession and would not reveal the information I knew.

Universal Call to Holiness

In the prompt what it means to say, "if I need something, I chase after it if it goes away" is that if man needed something from the church he doesn’t go after it until it’s already gone. This part of the prompt is telling man how they have failed the church. When man needs something they wait too long or when it is too late to achieve it. Man fails the church because he fails on his responsibilities to maintain what he needs from the church and only waits until it has gone away to show action and need for it. This can relate to the universal call to holiness in many ways. The main way is that man fails the church when we are called for holiness because we don’t take action towards strengthening our holiness until it has passed.

We are called to holiness through Christ and the church. The Church teaches us that all within the church should live holy lives. Through living a holy life, it is a lifelong process of seeking God himself, through Jesus Christ. The universal call to holiness in the Catholic Church is connected to baptism and uniting a person with the Second Person of the Blessed trinity. Christ preached holiness of life towards everyone and has influenced those to be made holy through the grace of God. God’s grace and love works through the church so that we can be called to holiness as well as take action through faithfulness towards the Holy Spirit by practicing charity. All of members of the church are called to the fullness of a Christian life an perfection of charity, no matter their social rank.

In order to attain or uphold holiness there are four ways to do so. Catholics are considered to follow these four ways to answer the call of holiness. These four ways are that we should use our strengths and talents as a gift from Christ. We should follow Christ and become like him, seeking the Father's will in all things, the glory of God and the good of our neighbor. We should use our personal gifts and fulfill our duties in the spirit of faith working through love and lastly, we should receive all things with faith from the hand of the heavenly Father. Through these four ways of attaining holiness can be grouped into two basic attitudes. The spirit to accept all things as coming from the loving hand of God, and the aim to do all things in accordance with God's will out of love for him. Through the sacraments, such as the Eucharist, participation in the liturgy, prayer, self-denial, service of our brothers and sisters, and the practice of all the virtues. These actions are ruled by charity and two other types of charity, enlivened by charity, and expressions of charity. Now expressions of love towards God are martyrdom as well as virginity, poverty and obedience.  For martyrdom, there is no greater love than to lay down your life for Christ and one's brethren and  for virginity,  poverty, and obedience are all special means for promoting  holiness of the Church,  where each component has its own way as a particular imitation or likeness of Christ.

            Through catholic upholding these four ways and live those out they break what the prompt means when it talks about how man fails the church. The prompt implies for Catholics that they don’t realize what they are losing or have lost until it is gone. The prompt is telling Catholics to do better and make sure they don’t fail the church as well as the church failing them. As a catholic what I think it means to "say who Christ is" without shame is that he is someone who is loving, charitable and there for us through his teachings and our prayer towards us. I have no shame in saying who Christ is because in knowing his teachings and stories of his life as a model for us it has opened my eyes towards knowing who he is. Through going to church and understanding the universal call of holiness, as a Catholic I know no shame in who Christ is and how to attain holiness and the fullness of a Christian life. In the end, through reading the prompt and comparing it to the universal call to holiness there has been a deeper understanding of the two relations; and how if man doesn’t realize what he needs now then later it will already be too late. As Christians in the catholic church we have to understand the faith and answer the universal call to holiness through the four ways as well as the ability to understand and interpret the life of Christ as model intertwined with our own.

 

 

 

 

Baptism Video

"She Went by Gently" Answers

1.      The ability to love others as God loves us in women’s treatment towards girls is seen through the kindness and not being a judgmental character toward the girl. God doesn’t judge us and is a God of second chances. God will never shun or avoid us for our sins. Instead, God sent Jesus down to earth, so that he can have a human experience, so that we can be able to relate to him as well as saving us from our sins. The woman did not judge the young girl, and didn’t think poorly of her, even though she had sinned and made very poor decisions in her life. She soothed the young girl as well as assured her that she had nothing to worry about. This shows ways on how God is with us, through letting us know that he’s always here for us, and that there’s always another day to try again and change our mistakes for the future. These women do not show violence or anger, but instead a sense of guidance and influence towards being nice and caring. In the end, the women shows love towards others as God loved us through their kindness, compassion, caring and lovingness in situations where the girl needed a mother figure.

 

2.      When the woman says “I have saved him” what she means is that she washed away the baby original sins before he died allowing the baby to be able to go to heaven. The woman saved the babies spirit so that it could live eternally with God. She helped guide the baby in the direction of faith with God. The lady saved the baby through her faith and baptizing him as well as her trust in God. She says I saved him, meaning she saved him from death with her oil, and also that she “saved” him with the Baptism. When you get baptized, you get “saved” and that’s what she did to the new born baby. Baptism is our cleansing of sins and our beginning towards the church and Christian faith. In the end, that is what she does for the baby through the sacrament of baptism, she saved him from sin.

 

3.      The women’s journey home seemed unique and unlike a normal person her walk wasn’t very simple, instead it was very detailed. Normally, people don’t’ really notice everything they pass when  they are walking or traveling somewhere because we are too wrapped up and distracted by our own lives and interests faced . But her walk home was very descriptive, meaning that the lady noticed everything that was going on around her. There was so much detail to what was going around her, that it made the reader get a perfect visual of where she was and what she was seeing. Her words were clear and very descriptive of her journey back home. This was so that the readers could visualize what she saw and noticed. The author is trying to convey that even though the women had so much distraction in her life and what just happened that she could block all of it out and be able to notice the small things unlike normal people on her way back home.

Gifts of the Holy Spirit

1. How do you see the Gifts of the Holy Spirit working in your life?

The gifts of the Holy Spirit work in many ways through my life. The first piece of knowledge to know about these gifts are that they are not gifts a person can easily pray to in times of emergency, rather, these gifts are present to a person as long as he/ she remains in a position of purifying grace. These gifts help a person accomplish dedication and bring to perfection the virtues, both the theological virtues (faith, hope and charity) and the infused virtues (prudence, justice, fortitude, and temperance). The main idea is that these gifts help a person to share in life and nature with God. The seven gifts are wisdom, understanding, fear of the Lord, right judgement, knowledge, courage, and reverence. The gift of wisdom and understanding work in my life through the education I receive, at McNamara, which helps open my eyes to the faith and through the outside necessities to progress. The gift of fear of the Lord applies to my life because in the life I live and the school I attend to learn my faith, I am aware of the glory and majesty of God. With this understanding of the gift I know that God is the perfection of all we desire through perfect knowledge, perfect goodness, perfect power, and perfect love. The gifts of right judgement, courage, knowledge and reverence all work in my life because the right judgment helps me to become a better person in my choice between right and wrong, courage helps me to be brave and defend my faith and awareness. Knowledge so that I can understand the gifts and their meanings as they are applied in my life and reverence to have the ability and faith in God through church, praying and learning at a Catholic school. In the end, these gifts have always been in my life and have helped me to become a better student in the faith as well as in real life through being educated.

 2. Which Gift of the Holy Spirit do you think you need the most in your life today?

            The gifts that I would need the most in my life today would be the gift of wisdom, understanding, knowledge and reverence. The reason for this is because I believe I need more wisdom and understanding of the faith and comprehend how I need to live as followers of Christ. With progression in the Holy Spirit gifts of wisdom and understanding I will not be confused by the conflicting messages in our culture about the right way to live out the faith and the capacity to love spiritual things more than material ones. Along with these gifts I need more of the gift of knowledge because with this comes the meaning of God and I would like to expand on the views of God so that it can help me be able to have a good idea in what God stands for and what he does to show his love and dedication towards us. Also through being in a Catholic school taking a religion class I am able to have a more knowledgeable approach towards God and his meaning. Lastly, I want to have more reverence or piety as the gift of the Holy Spirit because I want to be able to have a stronger faith and connection with God. To have a deep sense of respect for God and the Church as well as recognizing my  total reliance on God and that comes before God with humility, trust, and love in him. In the end, through strengthening these gifts of the Holy Spirit I am showing pride, willingness, and faithfulness towards God. I am also influencing myself through deepening my meaning of God and the church with these gifts as well as looking for a higher understanding with them.

Are Sacraments Narrow Answers

1.      Ludwig’s problem is that he doesn’t understand the meaning of grace , impaired through the sacraments.

2.      The church is not thinking about grace when it comes to sacramentality when they don’t propose sacraments to deny God’s universal love to save us and the church doesn’t hold that un baptized people of good will denied salvation because they haven’t been baptized.

3.      The church is thinking about grace when it comes to sacramentality when they are against Christian sects who assert the damnation of people, the church is with force to sternly condemn any doctrine that limits the scope of God’s redemption to anything less than every soul created by God and they are careful to point out the salvation is essentially a relationship.

4.      God reveals and give to each individual human being his universally offered grace by the Incarnate Son of God; the church sacraments are an extension of his power and work in the world.

5.      The Christian doctrine that is the foundation for the sacraments is God’s omnipotent as well as his creation and communication, will, towards each human soul.

6.      The gobs of modern spirituality tell us that it often speaks as though God is sort of extended and will discredit himself the crudeness of matter. It also tells that to be spiritual is to be more or less ghostly and to dwell in the realm of institutions and concepts and secret mental revelations that are unknown to those who are less highly evolved.

7.      The Christian repudiation of such spiritual snobbery was declared good in the beginning of creation, but God has continued to manifest himself though it until God came into physical form of Jesus Christ, spirit, body and soul.

8.      No, in fact it was so that Jesus could rise from the dead and be resurrected so that there would be a renewal and redemption not just for our disembodied spirits. With Christ dying we are free from the bondage of decay and our soul will be able to go into heaven.

9.      Sacramental worldviews sees more than just a symbol in a sacrament because of God’s gracious power where he reveals himself through grace as the hands, breath, body, blood, spirit, soul and divinity of Christ. Also through artistic ways of poetry and paintings as well as lover imparts love through a physical kiss.

10.  What G.K. Chesterton means by what he said was the understanding between the sacramental real presence in the Eucharist and the universal grace of God through sacramentality, omnipotent, and the savior Christ who, because of him, saved us through his sacrifice and has open up heaven. Through Chesterton’s words he is reiterating everything said in this essay to emphasize the importance of God, grace and how He affects us.

11.  What grace does is allow people to see God through his symbols, know compassion, survival and access to God, and protection of a remainder to be saved, a chance in the holy place, new life, light to our eyes.

Religion Articles

"Sacraments: Introduction - Fulton Sheen"

         In this article it talked about a divine sense of humor that consisted of sacraments that are considered to be seen, tasted or touched and others which are unseen to the eyes of the flesh. What this means is that there is a relation between the two that have the physical word of God and then the spiritual implied meaning. An example is that a handshake is like a sacrament because there is something to be seen, felt, and namely, but there is something that is also mysterious and unseen the communication of friendship. The book of sacraments is written because man lives in a world that is too serious. Without faith in the spiritual, structural design can’t have symbolism. When man loses belief of the immortal soul the respect for humans decline. The two errors that mar our understanding of the natural world are to cut off entirely from Almighty God and to confound it substantially with Him. We have to look at the world more than what we can see, feel and touch, we have to see and understand the unseen and spiritual part.

 "Sacraments - Bible is Sacramental-Fulton Sheen"

            In this article it talked about how the bible is a sacrament in the way that it has a foreground and a background. The foreground are the people, cults, temples, wars, sufferings, and glories of man while the background was all pervading the presence of God as the Master, who subjects nation to judgment according to the obedience and misbehavior to moral law as well as the use of incidents for types of symbols that will reflect something that happened. The article also talks about how the word sacrament is translated in Greek means mystery and how the sacraments were also to become the effective sign of Jesus’ death. Lastly man is compared to a cow if we were only a biological organism, but we are different because we also have souls and a spiritual destiny that makes us unique.

 

 "Sacraments - What the Sacraments Bring to Man - Fulton Sheen"

            In this article it talks about how sacraments bring divine life or grace. This higher life which is divine is called grace because it is the free gift of God. The article goes on to mention that man lives at three different levels, the sensate, the intellectual, and the divine. The sensate represents those who deny any other reality except the pleasures that come from flesh. The intellectual level of existence is from a historian, scientist, humanist, journalist and a man who has brought to peak all of the powers of the human reason and will. Lastly the third level is grace, in which the human heart is expressed through truths that have unknown reasons.  The article also says there were two kinds of contacts, a visible contact with humanity in which Jesus’ power is communicated and an invisible contact where Jesus’ power works in miracles at a distance. The second contact is anticipation where Christ extends and communicates His power through the sacrament.

 

 "Sacraments-Seven Conditions of Life and Efficacy of the Sacraments-Fulton Sheen"

            In this article it talks about how in the physical or natural life requires seven conditions, but five of them refer to the person as an individual and that the other two as a member of society. The five conditions are one must be born in order to live, he must nourish himself, grow to maturity, he must have his wounds bound and healed, and if he has diseases traces of it must be driven out. The last two are he must live under government and justice in human relationship and he is called to propagate the human species. The article then talks about more conditions towards being a spiritual person and then conditions concerning visible signs and spiritual significance.

            The power and efficacy of the sacraments means that the sacraments deserve their power and efficacy from the passion, death and resurrection of our Lord. Blood is required to bring us the seven sanctification because life our blood as well as sin. Blood is considered to be the greatest symbol of sacrifice because blood is the life of man. Christ blood had an infinite value because He is a divine person.

            The article also talks about the application to the sacraments. It mentions that each of the seven channels of the sanctification of man. And how it is a sacrament by which the power of the Risen Christ is bestowed on souls by a spiritual and effective contact. The article also says that the blood of Christ applied at different moments of life can result in a different kind of power. Lastly the blood of Christ and its merits flood in upon the soul and depends on the one who is receiving it.

What is a Divine Sense of Humor?

What is a Divine Sense of Humor?

             The divine sense of humor is the ability to see through something. To be able to see more meaning in something that is said or even touched. A handshake or a kiss is considered something with meaning because a kiss is a symbol of love and faithfulness. While handshakes are considered a symbol of help or friendship. When the Archbishop is talking people are laughing because his words are intended more than just a material use of them, but as something more meaningful and that people can laugh to. The divine sense of humor is something that includes a physical or material use of words and objects as well as an invisible meaning that only a person with a divine sense of humor can see and understand. The invisible meaning is what makes our divine sense of humor possible because with it we have a deeper understanding of something said or about an object. An example is the word school, when someone hears this word they think of learning, test, teachers and clubs. The word school implies more than just the word, its meaning leads to several things that are all considered when you hear school. Another example is a comedian, they talk about situations in their life or in general, but the situation are suppose to be funny because what the comedian is saying has an invisible meaning intended for people to laugh. In the end, our divine sense of humor is intended for us to understand the physical and invisible meaning of life, objects, or even words.

Justification and Grace examples from The River

Justification

An example for 1987:

Mrs. Connin is going to take Harry toa a religious healing at the river with a preacher named Bevil.

An example for 1988:

Harry reflects on how he is glad that he has been able to leave his own home with this babysitter and has discovered that "he had been made by a carpenter named Jesus Christ," a name he thought was a curse because of the way it was used in his household. Mrs. Connin gave him a children's book about Jesus’ life to look at and to be able to understand.

An example for 1989:

They arrive at the river, where Bevil the preacher begins to speak. He tells the people that if they have come just to be healed and to "leave your pain in the river," then they have come for the wrong reasons and not for Jesus.

An example for 1990:

Mrs. Connin tells the preacher, Bevil, that she has brought a boy from town who has not been baptized. He dunks Harry in the water, baptizing him.

An example for1991:

Mrs. Connin calls out to the preacher saying that they need to pray for the boy's mother, who is sick. But, when Bevel asks Harry what his mother suffers from, he answers, "She has a hangover."

An example for 1992:

Then the preacher shouted, ''Listen to what I got to say, you people! There ain't but one river and that's the River of Life, made out of Jesus' Blood.  That's the river you have to lay your pain in, in the River of Faith, in the River of Life, in the River of Love, in the rich red river of Jesus' Blood, you people!''

An example 1993:

The preacher tells Harry before baptism ''You won't be the same again,'' the preacher said. “You'll count.”  Meaning he will be a part of the faith and be able to be invited and go to the Kingdom of God.

 

An example for 1994:

When Mrs. Connin returns to the house to drop off Harry she gets in an arugument with the boy’s mother saying “he Baptized this child this morning!''His mother sat straight up. “Well the nerve!'' she muttered.“Furthermore,'' Mrs. Connin said, ''he’s a healer and he prayed for you to be healed.'' ''Healed!'' she almost shouted.  “Healed of what for Christ's sake?'' “Of your affliction,'' Mrs. Connin said angrily. This shows justification of sinner and wicked.

 

An example for 1995:

            Harry leaves the house to returns to the spot where he had been baptized the day before, and goes into the river, aiming to find the Kingdom of Christ and drowns. Harry saw the tastelessness and dissatisfaction of life in the physical world compared to life with Christ and with the ignorance of a child; he left his parents to join the Father who welcomed him with open arms.

Grace

An example for 1996:

            The people come to the river for a favor to be healed of their problems and sickness like cancer or a disorder that makes an old women’s arms flap and her head wobble for thirteen years. The preacher talks about “Listen,'' he sang, “I read in Mark about an unclean man, I read in Luke about a blind man, I read in John about a dead man!  Oh you people hear! All these things he talks about are favors.

An example for 1997:

            The preacher, Bevil, doing the baptizing is participating in the life of God by curing the sick and cleansing the sinners as well as preaching the word of God as well as the Kingdom of Heaven.

An example for 1998:

When the preacher is talking to the people he tells them about these stories that the same blood that makes this River red, made that leper clean, made that blind man stares, made that dead man leap!  The people with trouble, “lay it in that River of Blood, lay it in that River of Pain, and watch it move away toward the Kingdom of Christ.''

 

 

An example for 1999:

When the preacher baptizes the boy he says “If I baptize you, you'll be able to go to the Kingdom of Christ.  You'll be washed in the river of suffering, son, and you'll go by the deep river of life.  Do you want that?'' This will heal the boy of sin and he agrees to be baptized.

An example for 2000:

            Harry gets the gift of being knowledge about Jesus and religion as well as be counted, meaning that he will be able to enter the Kingdom of God. He is also accepted into the religion once he is baptized.

An example for 2001:

             In preparation for Harry to be a part of the religion he learns about Jesus through a children’s book that Mrs. Connin gives him to look at and she takes him to the river of healing where they meet the preacher and listen to him talk before Harry agrees to be baptized.

An example for 2002:

            Throughout the story each character has the freedom of choice such as Harry lying about his name, Mr. Paradise being skeptical about the preachers miracles as well as Mrs. Connin to get Harry more involved with religion through baptism. One other example is the preacher telling people off on why they really come to the river instead of Jesus.

An example for 2003:

            Harry achieves Grace in death, since he chooses to strive for salvation rather than live in the unreligious household with his parents who are considered sinners of the story as well as people of no faith.

An example for 2004:

            When Harry goes to Mrs.Connin’s house this is where he learns religion and is informed from what he has been deprived of. The family that he sees is very religious and has good faith in Jesus as well as being a model of the Christian life and teachings. Through being baptized, having books that mention the learning and understanding Christ as well as visiting the preacher.

An example for 2005:

            When Harry is being babysat by Mrs.Connin he escapes his experience of  life and what he know to someone who is educated in the religion as well as understanding grace through faith. Harry and his family know nothing of faith and close to the end when Mrs. Connin drops Harry off she realizes this and what this boy has been robbed of. It is one of the main reasons Harry fails to understand Bevil's preaching’s and drowns himself in the River.

 

                                           

 

 

The Man Without a Face Movie

"The Man Without a Face" was a very good movie that showed an unexpected friendship and bond between two different people, a boy and a man.  The movie showed how a man who excommunicates himself from his town because of his looks and be alone can have so many made up stories and false rumors portraying him in a bad and scary way. While at the same time a young boy named Chuck is dealing with the problem of not getting into the boarding academy as well as the mystery of what happened to his father. They both stumble across each other when chuck accidentally leaves his books on McLeod’s property and learns he is an ex teacher. At first chuck seems to be scared and interested in the man and thought of him as repulsive and mean as well as his teaching abilities pointless, but through time they develop a friendship where the fear and disgust is gone. They develop their relationship with each other through learning and getting to know each other.

Chuck has gone through life as being considered the family “retard” where learning has become an issue especially when reminded by his older half sister. Chuck is perceived as misunderstood and dump because of the dull look on his face when he spaces out. Life hasn’t been the best for him especially because of his older half sister who shows great hatred towards him and his unknown father, that later you figure out he was addicted to alcohol and died in a mental institution. Chuck wants to go to a boarding academy to escape from his family and life with his mother and two half sisters, but his grades don’t meet the requirements for getting in.

McLeod is a guy that is a loner in the town and is also misunderstood because of his appearance and lack of communication. He is an ex-teacher who taught at an academy and has a disfigured face from a burn that was a result from a car crash. Everyone is frightened and curious about who he really is and what he does. The adults think he is a murder or has been active in crimes and the children call him hamburger face and make up scary stories about him. McLeod is scary towards children from his appearance and makes it hard to find trust in him. He is also hard to communicate with because he tends to be alone and has no one to talk to.

By fait these two crossed paths and Chuck learned to overcome his fears of McLeod appearance and be able to see the good within as well as the knowledge and kindness he has to offer. Not only does chuck overcome his fear and learn to trust McLeod, McLeod learns to trust others and to become more active again with other instead of subjecting himself toward people. Throughout this movie the two form their friendship through learning and getting to know each other and challenges of their past. McLeod can be seen as a father figure in Chuck’s life, that he is deprived of, that he needed. Also Chuck learns to see a person more than their appearance because he even says that he’s gotten to know McLeod and spend time with him that he doesn’t even see the scares on his face. Through their time spent with each other and the information taught to Chuck you see that he can trust McLeod because they have become so close in their friendship and understand each other and their problems from the outside world.

Chuck surpasses his fear and doubt that was raised by the rumors by getting to know McLeod and to bond with him through learning. Chuck saw that he was a teacher and was able to really get over his fear by having McLeod tutor him. Through their learning experience the two get to know each other and connect. When the movie starts to come to the end people start to perceive their relationship as odd and make accusations like McLeod is molesting Chuck or trying to compare McLeod’s previous pupil, who died in the car crash that he was in. it so important for McLeod that Chuck not "cheat" on the problem of using his freedom to decide on his own whether the rumors are true because Chuck should know that through their time together that no rumor that was ever said was true because they both knew the truth about each other. In the end the movie was very good and was really interesting between the boy and the man as well as their connection to each other.

What does it mean to know something?

        Knowledge is information on something particular that is either obtained by our minds or misunderstood. It is the idea that helps us understand what things are and their meaning. To know something is to be aware of and develop the idea of what it is through information or sources pertaining to a plans, proposals, or thoughts. When you know something it means you recognize what something is and the idea that portrays. A good example is the Nike logo because when you see it you know, understand, what it is as well as get the idea that it’s a company that makes shoes and athletic wear/ equipment. Just by a check mark you know that its Nikes because the industry portrays itself to the public in a way where  it markets  athletic wear/ equipment and shoes so that next time you see the symbol you recognize it because it creates in our minds an association of what the symbol means, Nike.  Also when you know something you can easily relate to it. This can mean when you go out to a party without your parent’s consent and you get caught, you get in a lot of trouble and you go through different emotions and regrets. While a week later your friend gets busted for the same thing, at that moment you can relate to how he must feel and understand the regrets and emotions he’s going through. Knowing something is the feeling of I recognize, understand what’s that symbol means or I am aware of the situation you’re in because I can relate to a similar one. To know is to experience what you have learned through life and the understanding of what you have yet to learn or be familiar with.

"Cathedral" by Raymond Carver

     In the story "Cathedral" by Raymond Carver, the narrator says that his wife’s blind friend is going to spend the night at their house. He isn’t happy about man and his blindness unsettles him. The wife met the blind man ten years ago when she was working for him as a reader to the blind in Seattle. The narrator describes his wife’s past, saying that she married her childhood sweetheart and became an officer’s wife. She became unhappy with her life, she tried to commit suicide one night by swallowing pills, but she survived. She and the blind man kept in touch by sending audiotapes back and forth to each other throughout her marriage, and she told everything to the blind man on tapes.


      Before they meet the friend the wife reminds him that the blind man’s wife, Beulah, just died and says to welcome the blind man into their home. The narrator inappropriately asks if Beulah was “Negro,”and her response was asking if the narrator was drunk. She then tells him more about Beulah. Beulah became the blind man’s reader after the narrator’s wife stopped working for him, and they eventually got married and unfortunately after eight years she died from cancer. The narrator thinks how awful it must have been for Beulah to know that her husband could never look at her.


        The narrator’s wife goes to pick up the blind man at the train station as the narrator waits at the house. When they arrive, he watches his wife laughing and talking with the blind man as she leads him by the arm to the house and is shocked that the blind man has a full beard. They are introduced to each other and we learn that the blind man’s name is Robert. They sit down for dinner and eat, not speaking, awkwardly until they finish. After dinner, they go back to the living room to drink more scotch where the wife and Robert talk about things that have happened to them in the past ten years, while the narrator occasionally tries to join in. He learns that Robert and Beulah had run an Amway distributorship and that Robert is a ham radio operator. The wife later goes upstairs to change clothes and is gone for quite awhile. The narrator then offers Robert some pot, and they smoke a joint. The wife joins them when she comes back saying she’s going to just sit with them on the couch with her eyes closed, but instead falls asleep. At this time the narrator changes the channel and asks Robert if he wants to go to bed, but Robert decides to stay up so they can talk some more. They begin to watch a program about the Middle Ages on television. The narrator asks Robert whether he has any idea what a cathedral looks like. Robert says he doesn’t and asks the narrator to describe one. The narrator tries, but he knows he doesn’t do a very good job. Robert asks him if he’s religious, and the narrator says he doesn’t believe in anything his reason for not describing the cathedral is because cathedrals are meaningless for him.


        Robert asks the narrator to find a piece of paper and pen, he and the narrator sit around the coffee table, and Robert tells the narrator to draw a cathedral. He puts his hand over the narrator’s hand, following the movement of the pen. The narrator draws and draws, getting wrapped up in what he’s doing. His wife wakes up and asks what’s going on and Robert answers that they’re drawing a cathedral. The wife doesn’t understand and they continue to draw the cathedral with their eyes closed and he goes through an experience that he knows he is in his home, but he feels like he is nowhere. In the end he doesn’t open his eyes to the picture and keeps his eyes closed.


       The story was really interesting and enjoying to read. You learn a lesson from this story and you realize that we are lucky to have all of our senses and to be able to see the beauty of the world as well as not be grateful when there are those who can’t have the same experience. This story was touching and really went in-depth with a lot of meaning when they both drew the cathedral and you can tell there was a lot of emotions and realization of a new way of seeing things. This story was great and it had a great meaning behind it between the blind guy and the narrator.




1. The narrator was not really happy to meet the blind man because the blindness makes him uneasy and that he jealous because he knows that his wife and the blind man has a strong relationship with his wife. His feelings reveal about his character is that he is the type to get jealous over his wife and that he doesn’t like blind people.


2. Yes I do believe it is possible to read the experience the narrator’s wife had of Robert touching her face as an experience of being “seen” by him because it is not uncommon for blind people to want to touch other peoples face to see them, that’s how they can visualize what you look like to them. Writing of poetry relates her desire to be seen because she is expressing her personal thought and ideas which relates to being seen in a way through her words. Her attempted suicide also relates to her desire to be seen because she how her emotions and struggles and what kind of person she can become when unhappy with her life, she is showing the world that she has been through rough patches in her life and was able to pull through and find happiness.


3. What it means to receive another’s friend is that you’re welcoming them with your best behavior and being nice to them. You’re treating them with respect they deserve and not annoying or talk negatively towards them because there your friends or family’s friend.


4. I think that Robert “saw” Beulah because they both were very much in love and where happy with each other. What it means, more deeply, to see and be seen is that Robert not only touched her physically but was also able to see her beauty through her soul by her lovingness towards Robert as well as their happiness together. He was able to see her inner beauty as well through her commitment and love knowing that her husband wouldn’t ever be able to see her physically.


5. The characters smoke pot to relax and just chill out. There is no specific reason they smoke it except that they want to get high and this doesn’t reveal any of their desire because the narrator and Robert just start to talk and stay up watching TV. This could reveal that the desire is that The blind man wants to talk to the narrator now that they are starting to feel comfortable with each other.


6. Churches reveal many things about the culture of God because it is a setting where there are murals, stain glass, carved objects that were considered holy and to tell a story relating to how great God is and this is because churches are beautifully built to show that it’s God’s house as well as have things relating towards religion and God’s culture from the bible.


7. The narrator has a difficulty describing the cathedral because they don’t mean anything to him and because he not a religious person. At the end of the story the narrator draws the cathedral in his head and sees that, but when he keeps his eyes closed he doesn’t feel like he is in anything when he knows he is inside his house in that moment he realizes what it feels like to be blind.