My Scripture Sharing Group

My Scripture Sharing Group is overloaded with testosterone.  By that, I mean that when Mary doesn't come, like last time, I'm the only female.  And let me tell you, the feminine point of view is needed.  Otherwise, those guys would only see their side of the story.

Those guys actually thought that Elisha and the hospitable woman in 2 Kings 4:8-16 were doing hanky panky.  That thought NEVER entered my mind.

I also remember that when John 8: 1-11, was discussed, the guys said the adulteress was naked.  How else would they know she was committing adultery?  Again, that thought NEVER entered my mind.  The verses don't say that, but those guys envisioned the same picture.

Actually, that's the reason why I love this group.  I see different interpretations that would never enter my mind when reading alone.  By reading and reflecting with faithful people, we all benefit from each other's wisdom.  And isn't the Bible the story of God's relationship with His people--male and female?

Laughing Alone

In Writers' Group today, a few didn't have anything to offer.  They didn't write anything, but they came for the socialization.  One said that we changed her attitude--we made her laugh, and she needed that.  This topic led to a discussion of laughter.

Laughing is important.  Someone made note that comedians seem to live longer than most people.  It certainly is good for one's health.  There are laughing groups where people go there to laugh.  Most of the attendees are people who are ill or recovering from illness.

The woman who teaches the laughing class came to TOPS once to do a program.  What I remember about the class is how hard it was to force myself to laugh.  Eventually, the whole concept struck me as so ridiculous, that I did laugh, for real.

This discussion also brought to mind an occasion when my friends saw a funny movie without me.  They insisted that I go see the movie.  So we went to one of those cinema setups that house 4+ movies at once.  Everyone went to see a movie in one theater and I went alone to see the recommended movie, in another.  I sat by myself. It was funny.  But every time I laughed I quickly looked around to see if anyone saw me laughing.

Why?

I don't know.  I just felt awkward laughing by myself.  It was so strange--both laughing alone and being embarrassed to laugh alone.

Validity of Matter for Eucharist

Vatican asks bishops to ensure validity of matter for Eucharist: VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Bishops should look at ways to help verify and guarantee the validity and worthiness of the bread and wine used for the celebration of the Eucharist, the Vatican said in a recent interview.

This article from the Pilot is about checking the ingredients:

 "The bread used in the celebration of the most holy eucharistic sacrifice must be unleavened, purely of wheat, and recently made so that there is no danger of decomposition.

-- Wine used in the celebration of the eucharistic "must be natural, from the fruit of the grape, pure and incorrupt, not mixed with other substances," well conserved and have not soured.


There are few exceptions and with stipulations. Read the article for the specifics.

Monday

Monday Mornings is a novel by Sanjay Gupta.  To me, it was a beach read.  I read it this summer and it is a good, easy read.  If the author sounds familiar, maybe you've seen him on TV.  Sanjay Gupta is a doctor on CNN as the chief medical correspondent and a special correspondent for CBS news and 60 Minutes.  Now you'll know him as a good novelist.

Monday Mornings refers to the conference the doctors at Chelsea General every Monday morning.   There the doctors discuss any mistakes that had happened.  No one wanted to be on the hot seat but it definitely was a learning experience.

The novel is mainly about the personal and professional lives of five doctors.  You will like them all and become emotionally involved.  That's the beauty of the story.  You're in it.  You'll care about the characters.  You'll enjoy this read.

ISBN: 0446583855 (ISBN13: 9780446583855)

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Monday-Mornings-Novel-Sanjay-Gupta/dp/0446583847/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1499691855&sr=1-1&keywords=monday+mornings+sanjay+gupta

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/monday-mornings-sanjay-gupta/1102267279?ean=9780446583848

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13176500-monday-mornings

Wild Bird in the House?

There's a post script to yesterday's tale of woe.  We were in and out of the house so often that doors were left open, specifically the door connecting the garage to the house.  And the garage doors were left open.  Well--a bird flew in the house. It almost hit hubby in the head. He just opened another door and it immediately flew right out.

Did you know that wild birds in the house were portends of death?

This morning all hell broke loose.  My daughter's father-in-law died.  She telephoned me early to ask me to come over to babysit because he died.  She had to go get her husband and tell him that his father died.  Everyone was very upset.  She turned to her own father and said, "I love you, Daddy."  That brought tears to everyone's' eyes.

We remembered that bird from last night.  I never put stock in that old wives' tale if a bird flew into your house through an opened door or window, death was not far behind.

Well?

Well, God uses many opportunities to touch base with us.

A Hard Lesson

Hubby and I were stuck at home all day long. I needed to go to the bank.  I needed to pick up a prescription at the drug store.  And I needed to go teach my RCIA class, which I've been absent from for a month!  All went out the window!  My car battery was dead.  Hubby tried charging it.  We started around 9:00 AM and it's now past 7:00 PM.  He kept going outside to try starting the car--no luck.  This picture is showing one cable attached to the red node.  The other cable is just attached to the car front to be grounded - that's all it needs.

My adult children don't live far.  The one with no kids said she'd be over to help jump start or leave us her car and she and her hubby can use one car.  BUT!  She had "spin" class first, then she'll come to help.  Hubby wasn't home from work yet, because he had a softball game.

My other daughter has two children and she works.  In fact, she wouldn't be finished work until 6:00 PM and then she has to drive home.  Her husband is at the kids' hockey practice.

Forget my son.  He lives too far away.

Everyone was momentarily too busy. We just had to wait.

Well, we definitely will have to buy a new battery.  What size and what kind?  We looked at the battery to read markings. We couldn't find anything.  In fact, what we thought was the battery was only a cover.  And this was under it.

What the hell is this?

Is this some new kind of computer battery?  We better look up and read the manual.  First, we had to find it.  Fortunately, it was in the first place we looked--the glove compartment. And what to our wondering eyes appeared?

"Your vehicle's battery is located in the trunk." huh? 

Yes, that's right.  The first sentence on the page was the revelation.  

Who knew?

So, we opened the trunk.  We took out all the beach chairs, bicycle pump, rope, snow brushes, etc.  Then we lifted out the bottom and saw our spare tire.  And there beside the spare tire was...you guessed it...the battery.  

Live and learn.

It's an Exciting Time to be an Evangelist

It's an exciting time to be an evangelist, convocation delegates told: ORLANDO, Fla. (CNS) -- There's a convention of Catholic leaders in Orlando, Florida.

This summer, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops will be convening an unprecedented gathering of key leaders from dioceses and Catholic organizations from all across the country in order to assess the challenges and opportunities of our time, particularly in the context of the Church in the United States. This has been an ongoing initiative of the Bishops' Working Group on the Life and Dignity of the Human Person. The gathering will assemble Catholic leaders for a strategic conversation, under the leadership of the bishops, on forming missionary disciples to animate the Church and to engage the culture

At first, the statistics depressed everybody.  Church membership is declining.  But Bishop Robert Barron changed the tune.  He told the audience that it's an exciting time to be an evangelist.  It's an opportunity.  The people are really ignorant of the beauty, never mind the Truth, of the Catholic Church.  It's time to engage -- evangelize.

Following Bishop Barron, was Patrick Lencioni, an author and management consultant.  He said to follow a business model.  I immediately thought of my real estate broker training.  Some things I could use to evangelize.  I remember I was told to be a joiner.  I was to belong to a lot of clubs to network.  That would work and does.  I've brought people to prayer group from my cribbage group.  Of course, they were going to church anyway, but it shows how networking works.  There was also what we called "farming."  Actually, that's what the Jehovah Witness do, and the Mormons.  I used to go door to door and just ask if people were interested in selling their house.  When they said "no," I handed them a business card for when they were ready to sell.  And I kept in touch with them.  That method of "farming" never worked.  But I remember we were told that we'd get 100 "no's" before we got a "yes."  That goes to show you that you shouldn't get discouraged, just keep at it.  Persistence and perseverance were the keys to success in salesmanship and I can see where that would hold true in evangelisation.