Group News

Baptism is an act of faith by proxy.  Thankfully, the person or people that speak up for you know what's going on and years later when you are of sound mind and judgement, you get to speak up (confirmation) for yourself.  I was taught that anyone NOT baptized would never enter heaven and remain in a kind of blank space/netherworld called "limbo".  The Catholic church weighed in on this issue several years ago and declared that "limbo" did NOT exist (hurray!).  Where does that leave us?  There are some people that say even if you ARE baptized, you still will not enter heaven unless you are "born again".  Well, now I'm REALLY confused.  Why don't we just live our lives the best we can, help the needy in whatever way possible, raise our children to respect others and honor their elders, and follow the 10 Commandments.

How can we be denied entry if we lead the best lives we can without hurting anyone else?  Life is too short 

My youngest son showed an interest in going to New York this past Saturday to see the Pope.  We neither encouraged him nor tried to disuade him from this "pilgramage".  We went !  Can I say here that after waiting 4 1/2 hours and celebrating The Holy Father's arrival with song, dance, strangers, souveniers, mega security and the like --- his procession was almost anti-climatic.  I suppose I have to resign myself to that fact.  But New York is New York, and the jaded populace dropped what they were doing to at least acknowledge the Pontiff's presence.  In the end, it was all about the Pope and my son, who is very mature for 14 years young,  who says his nightly prayers, who wants to be a psychologist or psychiatrist to help people, and whom I am very proud of.  A once in a lifetime experience only comes once in a lifetime and let's face it --- this IS life and NOT a dress rehearsal.  

Maybe it's me, but I wonder if I've reached a plateau (of sorts) with no way to move up and on and no

back-up to keep me grounded.  Do you listen to yourself giving other people advice without heeding it yourself?  I know I do.  Remember, this is life as we live it and NOT a dress rehersal.  Let's make it count for all the right reasons.  Be true to yourself---if it feels wrong, it IS wrong---forget counting to 10 and say a prayer instead---family FIRST (they're with us the day we're born and more likely than not, they're the only one's with us when we pass on)---be real, not phony---kiss your kids...