Feeling Catholic

This past weekend, I went on a retreat with Newman Hall here on campus at the U of I. I really haven't done much with Newman in the last couple years, as after I moved out, I would go to Mass and that is about it. My involvement with Illini Life has really been my spiritual community. Throughout my spiritual walk I have felt more Roman Catholic or Non-Denominational. This week, after the retreat, I feel quite Catholic. It is a neat place to be. In all honesty, this retreat was the first time I felt like I'd seen a devotion to Christ and a devotion to Community in the same place in the Catholic church and I've felt part of it. There are times when I've seen one, the other, or both and not been a part of it, but this was a good experience for me.

The theme of the weekend was God's Divine Mercy. The painting above was inspired by Jesus in a vision to one Saint Faustina. It represents God's mercy. The red is the blood of Christ spilt out for our sins and the white is the water that washes us clean. I'm really glad that I went on this retreat. It was truly a blessing and God helped me work through a lot of things. Now, this isn't to say that I'm going to jump into anything specific, but it was a great way for me to balance my life.

OTHER THOUGHTS:

Alan got a job offer this week. He has to decide by Friday. Stressful much? This offer is with an engineering company. I'll let those that care know in a while when a decision is made. I did have this thought presented to me today though...

Our very word "decide" comes from the Latin decidere which means "to cut off."

Something must be cut off in my life this week. Some dream of a future, some possibility. It must be pruned away so other dreams can flourish more readily.