Those words were spoken to me by my oldest son...a boy who is having a really hard time right now...OK, a really hard time for the last few months. He is and has made some very poor decisions, but he is wrong about one thing. I love him dearly. With his sister, he was my first child. They came into our lives at 10 and 20 months old...biological siblings. I tell them the story of my first sight of them in the children and youth office. He strut into the office, big and brash. I swear he was jailing his overalls...so much swagger carrying a bottle of milk. I said "OH God, please let that be my boy..." His sister came in next in the arms of the social worker, wide as she was long and such a mean look on her face, I said..."I hope that isn't the sister!" At 10 months old, she scared me already. But the boy...I loved him at first sight. An 16 years later, I love him even more. No, I don't treat him differently, though I pray daily not to let my irritation show. I know that he needs my grace more than any of them right now. I think his perception of what I think of him causes him to think I am angry with him. A very adolescent response. However, on a daily basis he rains down hate on me. This morning, I thought, "wow, this feels like a physical assault..."
the man replied, the woman whom you put here with me-she gave me fruit from the tree, and so I ate it. The Lord God then asked the woman...she answered, the serpent tricked me into it, so I ate it...
Ever since Adam and Eve first allowed sin into our world, our first response to it has been an adolescent. We hide, then we cast blame; we excuse our behavior rather than accepting it in a mature way and asking forgiveness. Today is The Feast of the Immaculate Conception of Mary. In the first reading at Mass, we hear about Adam and Eve allowing sin into our world. The Garden of Eden was closed to all. On the Feast of her Immaculate Conception, we hear, in the Gospel, about how Mary agreed to be a Conduit to allow Jesus to be born into the world to be our Savior. To die for our sins and to open the gates of the Garden of Eden again...Life, eternal...
I had to wonder if when we deny sin in our adolescent way, if it feels, to Jesus, like a physical assault...
photo from pintrest
This weekend we will be celebrating the third Sunday of Advent...we are done with the penitential part and moving to celebration of our Savior's birth. I am afraid we have been celebrating Christmas a little too much a little too early. For the next few nights, we will be discussing our sins and doing a good examination of conscience. Many of the younger Murphy's are either not old enough to have had their first Reconciliation or just not been baptised yet. Still, none of them are too young to know the difference between right and wrong. We will spend the next week or so examining our sins praying for forgiveness so we can fully enjoy the joy of our saviors birth. Tomorrow, I will discuss how to make a good examination of conscience. However, today, I will touch on making a good confession. We learn how to make the sacrament of Reconciliation in 2nd grade and it is never talked about again. Consequently, many people are still confessing like a 2nd grader. A thorough examination of conscience is one way to avoid this. Also, telling the Priest confessor your marital status can help with his understanding of your sin. He doesn't have to know everything about you, but that can help him to put things into context. You don't have to confess every sin. He doesn't need to know that you missed Mass unless it was a larger part of habitual sin. He needs to know the one or two things that weigh most heavily on your heart. God knows the rest...
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