Two Edge Talk

A Salute to Mothers!

What a great conversation with Deacon Tim for this week's podcast!  I took a break from all the wiping that accompanies motherhood (countertops, my children's body parts, etc.) and sat down to tape our interview about motherhood, and I left feeling positively renewed!  Deacon Tim somehow managed to make all the day's wiping seem like a noble calling. 

If you'd like to dig into the Church's teaching about motherhood, here's the document Deacon Tim refers to: Vatican document.

Hope you send this podcast around to the moms in your life - they deserve it!

To play the podcast on your computer now, CLICK HERE
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Personal Conversion

There are many different types of conversion, and Tim tells a very personal story today of his son Dan, who went from a troubled youth to an on-fire Catholic.  An inspiring story, a living testament to the truth of "Train up a child in the way that he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it."

Tim also tells about his experience in New York with Pope Benedict, and Cyndi has an observation about modern worship.  Lots to think about in this podcast!

To listen now, click here
To download to your computer, save this link: Download 063_personal_conversion.mp3

The Groaning of the Church

Pope Benedict and Tim talk this week about Romans 8:22-25.  Lest you misread that sentence and think that the two of them have chatted, unfortunately, they've been playing phone tag and have missed connections.  But, in this podcast, Tim does talk about the Pope talking about this passage of Romans:

"Yes, we know that all creation groans and is in agony even until now.  Not only that, but we ourselves, although we have the Spirit as first fruits, groan inwardly while we await the redemption of our bodies.  In hope we were saved.  But hope is not hope if its object is seen; how is it possible for one to hope for what he sees?  And hoping for what we cannot see means awaiting it with patient endurance." 

So, there's the rub: "Hope is not hope if its object is seen."  No wonder our spirit often groans as we live this Christian life!

To listen now, click here
To download to your computer, save this link: 062_groaning_of_the_church.mp3

Audacious Hope?

On the eve of the Pope's visit to the U.S., Deacon Tim contrasts the vision of hope laid out by Pope Benedict versus the vision of hope that seems to be capturing the imagination of American voters.  The idea of "change" that is sweeping the country actually has its roots in the French Revolution.  Is this the change we're looking for?

To play the podcast on your computer now, CLICK HERE
To download the podcast to play later, save this link: Download 061_audacious_hope.mp3

Give Us This Day

How do you start your day?  If your thoughts immediately jump to your "action items" for the day, this podcast is for you!  Cyndi suggests a great cup of coffee for God, St. Basil Coffee, while Deacon Tim has some spiritual caffeine for you.  For what it's worth, I just woke up and did exactly what Deacon Tim counseled, and I'm ready for a great day for God!   

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Eucharistic Adoration

If Catholics believe that Jesus is truly present in the Eucharist (and we do!), then we believe that the little piece of bread that we receive for Communion is no longer just bread, but the real presence of Jesus.  I know, I know, this is where we lose many of our Protestant brethren.  I guess my response would be, "Are you going to leave me too?" which is what Jesus said to the apostles after everyone left him when he laid out the idea of his own body and blood being real food.  (please re-read the Bread of Life discourse beginning with John 6:25 through the end of the chapter).

If, then, we believe that Jesus is truly present in the Eucharist, then it makes sense that we could adore Him in the Eucharist, and that's what we do in Eucharistic adoration.  I'll let Deacon Tim explain the particulars, but let me just say that if you'll listen to this podcast with an open mind and heart, and accept the challenge I offer at the end, your life will never be the same.

At the end of the podcast, Deacon Tim and I mention one of our favorite musicians, Michael John Poirier, and I wanted to link his site.  Every CD of his is amazing, and his concerts are even better.  I was excited to find that he was going to be in my area in a couple of weeks!  Here's the link: Michael John Poirier

Peace be with you this week, and we'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments section!

To play the podcast now, click on THIS LINK
To download for later listening, save this: Download 059_eucharistic_adoration.mp3

It's a Family Tradition

Deacon Tim has successfully raised his family, but my family is still a work in progress.   I have always valued my friendships with couples with older children; I have always observed their families with keen interest, trying to soak up the lessons from these more experienced parents.  Now that God has blessed our podcast with an Orthodox Jewish listener, I'm getting the benefit of her insights into child-rearing - "been there, done that" centuries ago!  This podcast is simply my conversation with Deacon Tim about some of the things I'm learning.  I hope you'll send this podcast along to everyone in your address book - I know it will enlighten and enliven every family who takes it to heart!

This podcast talks about family traditions and family dinner table topics - would you do me a favor and post a comment about what you're doing in your family?  I want to learn from you!

To play the podcast now, CLICK HERE
To download the podcast for future listening, save Download 058_family_dinners.mp3

The Passion

This week, as we (hopefully) immerse ourselves in the Passion of Christ, we reflect on how we can live that Passion, with passion, in our own lives.  For a Catholic, our saints are our role models for the spiritual journey, and Deacon Tim shares some insights he gained from a retreat which used St. Francis as the guide.  He's more than just a garden statue, you know!  As promised in the podcast, here's a reflection from St. Francis, which I hope will give you a renewed vision of Christ and the Mass.

Let the whole of mankind tremble
     the whole world shake
     and the heavens exult
when Christ, the Son of the living God,
     is on the altar
     in the hands of a priest.
O admirable heights and sublime lowliness!
O sublime humility!
O humble sublimity!
That the Lord of the universe,
     God and the Son of God,
so humbles Himself
that for our salvation
He hides Himself under the little form of bread!
Look, brothers, at the humility of God
and pour out your hearts before Him!
Humble yourselves, as well,
     that you may be exalted by Him.
Therefore,
     hold back nothing of yourselves for yourselves
so that
He Who gives Himself totally to you
     may receive you totally.

To play the podcast now, CLICK HERE
To download the podcast, save this link to your computer: Download 057_the_passion.mp3

Cocktail Party Talk

Want to get your name on the "Don't Call" list for cocktail parties?  Have we got a podcast for you - one full of religion and politics!  If you're a Catholic having trouble wading through all the issues of picking your candidate, it's not surprising - there isn't a candidate out there who lines up perfectly.  It is important, however, to realize that how you vote is just another extension of your faith.  One's faith, well-lived, should infiltrate every moment of his life, including (maybe especially) that time in the ballot box. 

Here's someone else who wouldn't be too welcome at a cocktail party:

 "But I feel that the greatest destroyer of peace today is abortion, because it is a war against the child - a direct killing of the innocent child - murder by the mother herself. And if we accept that a mother can kill even her own child, how can we tell other people not to kill one another? How do we persuade a woman not to have an abortion? As always, we must persuade her with love, and we remind ourselves that love means to be willing to give until it hurts. Jesus gave even his life to love us. So the mother who is thinking of abortion, should be helped to love - that is, to give until it hurts her plans, or her free time, to respect the life of her child. The father of that child, whoever he is, must also give until it hurts. By abortion, the mother does not learn to love, but kills even her own child to solve her problems. And by abortion, the father is told that he does not have to take any responsibility at all for the child he has brought into the world. That father is likely to put other women into the same trouble. So abortion just leads to more abortion. Any country that accepts abortion is not teaching the people to love, but to use any violence to get what they want. That is why the greatest destroyer of love and peace is abortion. "

To listen now, CLICK HERE
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And Now I Digress....

Our blog posts have never been anything but an introduction to our podcasts, but I (Cyndi) have decided to veer from the beaten path for a moment.  One of the great joys of this podcast has been the connections that I have made with people in far-flung locations.  God has particularly blessed me with Linda, our Orthodox Jew podcast listener, and we have become friends.  Let me just say that if you don't have a Jewish mother in your life, you need to find one!

Linda has nine children, all amazing and a credit to their faith, and her 6th grade daughter, Ruthie, is a gem.  She's doing high school math and reading The Iliad for fun, so when she asked her mom if she could watch "Project Runaway," we were a little taken aback.  "Why would a smart girl like you want to watch a show about fashion?" I asked.  Sure enough, it wasn't because it was "like cool."  After I saw her position paper on "Project Runway," I had to forward it to my husband's cousin, a gifted fashion designer.  Claire, our designer, decided that Ruthie's manifesto warranted a blog post, and in the course of the post, Claire references the Biblical Job.  Interestingly, I have learned from Linda and Ruthie that the Jews have a unique understanding of Job.  I'm going to ask Ruthie to tell us the Jewish perspective on Job in the comments section, so stay tuned!

What's the point of all this, you might wonder.....I'm learning what a sense of humor God has, for one thing.  When Deacon Tim and I started this podcast, we at first thought that only Catholics would tune in.  As it turns out, we probably have more Protestant listeners, and Deacon Tim and I like to think that the podcast is helping Protestants deepen their faith by introducing them to some of the riches of Christianity left behind in the Reformation.  In their attempt to rid themselves of Catholicism, the Reformers stripped away anything that smacked of the faith they were leaving behind, and Deacon Tim and I believe that some of the real treasures of Christianity were discarded.

When God brought an Orthodox Jew into my life, I now see that Christians may have done the same thing with Judaism that Protestants did with Catholicism.  In many ways, we threw the baby out with the bath water!  As I am learning some of the richness of Judaism, I am rediscovering the treasure of our common past.  The Catholic mass echoes with the voice of our elder brother in faith, the Jews, and I am beginning to hear the melody. 

When Ruthie tells us her perspective on Job, please know that you aren't going to find it in the Bible.  Judaism, like Catholicism, carries some of its wisdom forward through oral tradition ( see 2 Thessalonians 2:15 for support), passed from generation to generation.  Some of Judaism's treasures are held in rabbinical writings, and I wonder why we Christians never refer to some of these writings - after all, the Old Testament is their book!  What you will hear from Ruthie reflects both oral tradition and rabbinical thought, and you may not agree, BUT, you may not pick on an 11-year-old!  I will reserve the right to remove ugly comments! 

Until Ruthie writes us, I want to point you to Claire's blog - she is an amazing designer, artist, and photographer of her underwater adventures.  I'm linking the post where she summarizes Ruthie's letter and references Job in her explanation of fashion.

Claire Kennedy Design blog

If you're reading this and haven't listened to this week's podcast, scroll down a bit - it's a really good podcast this week (if I do say so myself!).

Peace be with you!