cant recommend this enough but if youre able you should go on walks every day. like fuck weather fuck circumstance uust go outside. got rained on today and it was blissful. even just sit outside get fucked up by crazy ass wind youll never forget how small you are and rememebr everything matters
8 April 2023 : Currently, I'm working on a midterm for my Asia Pacific International Politics class. I've done a ton of research for it, so I'm feeling somewhat confident about the writing process (for once)! It's about the impact of the rapid rise of China on Sino-ROK relations. :)
you forgot the best part tho
(via @butchmuppet)
no lie, the second half of this post really helped me put a different perspective on my life and greatly the decreased the anxiety i have about my life to come
They go inside a building to talk to their god. We go out into the natural world and our Creator speaks to us...
This statement is not wrong, but it is not completely right, either. It is a basic observation from a genuinely religious people, who are simply unaware of the transcendent nature of that other religion's building.
Let me begin by correctly affirming the implication here of divinity within nature:
"The entire material universe speaks of God’s love, His boundless affection for us. Soil, water, mountains: everything is, as it were, a caress of God... God has written a precious book, “whose letters are the multitude of created things present in the universe,” [and] no creature is excluded from this manifestation of God." (Pope Francis)
God absolutely speaks to all people through nature; the created world is our most direct and immediately universal revelation of the beauty of the Creator. "Natural religion" is called that for a reason; it is an instinctive response to the divinity we see reflected in the blessed earth around us. Some cultures stop there, and worship nature itself-- not realizing that nature is our sister, not our mother (as Saint Francis beautifully penned). Some cultures do imagine "gods" in control of nature, but they are not creators, not of the very hearts of things; nor do they satisfy the even deeper human desire for something greater-- something we can know and touch, here, to tell us vividly of God, of the Heart of beauty itself.
Honestly? I say we still miss the Garden. We still dream of Paradise, after being cast out from it. Our "wanting more" was misplaced, as we already had everything... everything except loss. So we lost everything, and now we ache to return, not because it was lovely, but because of why it was lovely... because of Who created it and us.
That is the deeper point. For the Christian-- and especially Catholic-- soul, there is a recognition and explanation of the innately longed-for depth beyond the surface sparkle:
"When we immerse ourselves in the beauty of nature and be attentive to what is going on in our soul, we find that we have a longing for even greater beauty. No one ever said, “That sunset was all I ever wanted to see.” We always want one that’s a little brighter, a little longer, a little more picturesque. The beauty in nature awakens in us the desire for Infinite Beauty, Jesus Christ Himself." (Christian Williams)
And THAT is where the "building" comes in. It is not 'necessary' for worship, or for prayer, or for talking and listening to God. Nature is, indeed, a wonderful place for all those things. But nature has not been specifically instituted by God as a memorial of His Saving Sacrifice, as a specific and sacred spot of spacetime where He can still be with us physically. God is there in nature, yes, but not literally so. You can only touch God through the hands of a priest, and such a staggering miracle both deserves and demands a particular place to occur, something "set apart" from even the beauty of the natural world, which-- although inherently good-- can easily get tangled up in pagan pantheism, and whose greatest beauty pales spectacularly in the Presence of Christ.
We go inside a building to talk to God because He is literally there. We built Him a house we can visit Him in, like a friend, like a lover-- a place uniquely His own, built by His family on earth, something tenderly human and beloved even in its flaws. A church is not a sunset, but oh, once you have met the Lord there, you would gladly give up ever seeing another sunset, if it meant you could stay with Him instead, and taste Heaven on earth.
You will never have to hunger for Paradise again.
Adoring my chaos a lot. Drowning in studies for latin. But things will be alright.
february productivity challenge, day five: what’s the most recent thing you’ve dreamt?
the most recent dream i can remember is the one i described here in my journal, which was basically just a detailed work dream where i was talking about dog food to a customer on the phone hahah. i’m not even sure how often i dream because i usually forget about them so quickly
“Even if we should have mounted to the very pinnacle of virtue, let us consider ourselves last of all; having learned that pride is able to cast down even from the heavens themselves him who takes not heed, and humbleness of mind to bear up on high from the very abyss of sins him who knows how to be sober. For this it was that placed the publican before the Pharisee.”
St. John Chrysostom
“The heart can change several times in one moment - to good or evil, to faith or unbelief, to simplicity or cunning, to love or hatred, to benevolence or envy, to generosity or avarice, to chastity or fornication. O, what inconstancy! O, how many dangers! O, how sober and watchful we must be!”
St. John of Kronstadt
2/4/22
Getting some reading done in the law student lounge.
when a line in a book is so good that you have to reread it over and over just to let it truly sink in
When you meet "the one" don't expect them to fix you and always make you happy. That's not their job, it's God's. Their goal should be to help you draw closer to Christ and be more like Him and vice versa. When you meet them you're gonna have baggage, as will they. It's through Christ you will help each other to remove that baggage and grow stronger in Him.
December 29, 2021
The book – "Sorry", by Gail Jones – may be a bit difficult to go through, but the afternoon was cozy and quiet, and it felt like the perfect time to put on the adorable socks my mom got me for Christmas :). Hope you're all having a nice day!
10/25/2019
Hah! That guy reading the passage doesn’t even realize he’s doing the same thing as the Pharisee! Thank GOD I’m nothing like… wait…
The Gospels as clickbait:
This messiah DESTROYS Satan’s temptations in only 40 days
The Pharisees HATE him. Find out his secret to eternal salvation
This famous teacher saw a tax collector climb a tree. What he did next will SHOCK you