#Yes to God

[momentsbeforemass]

Benedict XVI

(by request, my homily from our Mass for the Dead for Pope Benedict XVI)

A few days ago, we learned of the death of Pope (Emeritus) Benedict XVI.

Before he was pope (when he was Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger) and even when he was pope, although he was a gentle soul, fond of cats, classical music, and playing the piano, he was popularly portrayed as grim and heartless.

Although he did more than anyone in Rome (including John Paul II) to end child abuse in the Church, he was often blamed for it.

Although he was a warm and open-minded scholar, he was branded a close-minded enforcer of inflexible dogma. Some even labelled him “God’s Rottweiler.”

Which says more about the people throwing the labels around that it does about him. If nothing else, it says that they never read anything that he wrote.

Because if you read anything that he wrote – whether as Benedict XVI or as Cardinal Ratzinger or even Father Ratzinger – what always shines through is his focus on what he saw as the essentials of our Faith: love and hope.

Which almost doesn’t make sense.

Because he grew up in Nazi Germany. When the horrors were happening, he was old enough to understand what was going on. When he was 14, his cousin was taken away and killed by the Nazis. His cousin’s crime? Having Down syndrome.

He literally saw humanity at its worst. He had every reason to despair, to give up – on himself and on humanity.

It would have been easy to turn away from it all. A lot of Germans of his generation did.

But that wasn’t him. God made him with a heart like Mary’s. And instead, he turned to God.

And gave us a very clear-eyed understanding of the heart of our Faith when he said,

"To have Christian hope means to know about evil and yet to go to meet the future with confidence.

The core of faith rests upon accepting being loved by God. Therefore, to believe is to say ‘Yes.’ Not only to God, but to creation, to creatures, above all, to people.

To try to see the image of God in each person and thereby to become one who loves."

That is the heart of Benedict XVI.

The news and social media have been filled with countless versions of Benedict XVI and his legacy, some offer a bit of insight on a good and godly man, others are little more than recycled caricatures.

But to me, this is the real legacy. This is what informed everything that he did, as a priest, as a professor, as a cardinal, and even as pope.

A heart full of love. A heart full of hope. A heart like Mary’s.

And a very Marian model of a life of faith. Not one just for saints and popes, but a life of faith available to each one of us.

All flowing from the call that God gives to each one of us. The call to say “Yes” to God.

And in so doing, “to say ‘Yes,’ not only to God, but to creation, to creatures, above all, to people. To try to see the image of God in each person and thereby to become one who loves."

In this new year, may God grant us the grace to live that legacy.

Today’s Readings

[creed-of-cats]

"If voting changed anything they wouldn't let people do it-" grabs your face THEY DIDN'T JUST "LET" PEOPLE DO IT, MOST PEOPLE COULDN'T VOTE FOR HUNDREDS OF YEARS. PEOPLE OF COLOR ONLY GOT THE FULL RIGHT TO VOTE 50 YEARS AGO IN THE US, THATS BARELY A GENERATION.

IF IT DIDNT MATTER AT ALL WHY WOULD THEY SPEND SO MUCH TIME GERRYMANDERING THE SHIT OUT OF EVERYWHERE?? WHY CAN'T FELONS VOTE?? WHY CANT PUERTO RICO VOTE? WHY DO THEY KEEP SWITCHING DATES AND LAWS AND TIMES AND WHATEVER THEY POSSIBLY CAN TO STOP PEOPLE FROM VOTING?? WHY DO THEY MAKE EFFORT AT ALL??

BEING DISILLUSIONED IS A REASONABLE RESPONSE. BUT PEOPLE FOUGHT AND DIED AND ARE STILL FUCKING DYING FOR THAT RIGHT, DONT SPIT IN THEIR FACE.

[waveoftheocean]

wahoo finished this in time for superbat week day 5: tired dads!!

[stardayzzing]

[Athena & Apollo]

This is an absolutely shit doodle but all I can think abt is how funny it was that Apollo just went "Idk he killed some sirens and I like songs so that kinda sucks" and Athena was like "they were gonna kill him" and Apollo like "Damn ur right"

[arsenicpanda]

FIVE NIGHTS AT FREDDY'S (2023)

[kaiju-krew]

big grumpass cat

[miriel-therindes]

its me boy im the seventh cool textile hobby you wanna pick up speaking to you inside your brain listen to me boy you DO have time for me you wanna do me so bad

[fairycosmos]

it's crazy arguing with your parents as a fully grown adult because it's like i can't talk about childhood without sounding like a bitter insane asshole but those experiences literally shaped the person i am and i don't understand why they just get to dismiss it all and make me look cruel for being maladjusted when they played a massive part in making me this way

[tooquirkytolose]

~The Most Beautiful Woman in The World~

Download on itch.io for extra content!

[celestialalpacaron]

I just want them to be happy together 💕

[nedlittle]

it drives me bonkers the way people don't know how to read classic books in context anymore. i just read a review of the picture of dorian gray that said "it pains me that the homosexual subtext is just that, a subtext, rather than a fully explored part of the narrative." and now i fully want to put my head through a table. first of all, we are so lucky in the 21st century to have an entire category of books that are able to loudly and lovingly declare their queerness that we've become blind to the idea that queerness can exist in a different language than our contemporary mode of communication. second it IS a fully explored part of the narrative! dorian gray IS a textually queer story, even removed from the context of its writing. it's the story of toxic queer relationships and attraction and dangerous scandals and the intertwining of late 19th century "uranianism" and misogyny. second of all, i'm sorry that oscar wilde didn't include 15k words of graphic gay sex with ao3-style tags in his 1890 novel that was literally used to convict him of indecent behaviour. get well soon, i guess...

[momentsbeforemass]

A heart that’s truly free

(by request)

Today is the feast of the Immaculate Conception.

Right in the middle of Advent. We’re supposed to be waiting in hope. Focused on the One who is to come.

But no.

We’re messing it up. With some random thing about Mary. Because, why not?

Just more of the Mary stuff we do as Catholics. We drag Mary into everything. Why not Advent? Even if it makes no sense, right?

Actually, the truth goes something like this:

“Joy to the world, the Lord is come! Let earth receive her King! Let every heart prepare Him room,”

Today, is all about the first heart to “prepare Him room.”

The Immaculate Conception is about Mary. That Mary was conceived free from original sin. Why?

So that Mary’s answer to the angel, the one we hear in today’s Gospel, could be a truly free choice. Not clouded by ego and pride. Not made desperate by separation from God through sin.

But an answer freely given. From a heart that’s truly free.

Some people think that Mary, being conceived free from original sin, means that Mary was God’s perfect robot. That Mary really had no choice.

Okay. Let’s look at the history of choices made by people conceived free from original sin.

Mary. Free from original sin. Said “yes” to God.

Jesus. Free from original sin. Said “yes” to God.

Adam. Free from original sin. Said “no” to God.

Eve. Same thing.

That’s 50%. Half the people free from original sin used that freedom to say no to God.

Clearly, lack of a sinful nature does not mean lack of a free choice.

Great, but what does this have to do with Advent?

Advent has its roots in the Prophets. Isaiah, Elijah, and the others who foretold the One who is to come. The longing of age after age for a Savior.

Mary is the patron saint of Advent.

Because the Immaculate Conception grabs hold of the longing of the ages. And takes it from dreamtime. To our time.

Mary’s “yes” to God takes it from someday. To today.

Because she said “yes.” Because she first, prepared Him room, we can say,

“Joy to the world, the Lord is come!”

Mary shows us the power of saying yes to God.

Imagine what could happen if we said yes.

Today’s Readings

[miss-americanbi]

was chatting with my brother about gravity falls (again) and i said something like “man, can you believe stan waited and worked for 30 years just for the chance to try and bring his brother back?” to which my brother responded, “yeah, it’s nuts when you think about it. i wonder if stan got trapped in the multiverse instead, if ford would do the same.” HELLO???

[aveloka-draws]

From Darkwood.

[hinamie]

I'm always pushing you away from me / but you come back with gravity / and when I call, you come home

[d-does-art]

Ace wakes up on a random island two years after his death as a ten-year-old. But he has no memory of his adult life. Sabo just died, and he has a little brother to look after. Or maybe an older brother?

There is a bit of time between Ace waking up and Luffy finding him.

Sorry this is so long I'm still trying to figure out how to do comic-y things.

Part two