Breaking In The Habit

Extremely Underrated Film

Peace and all good everyone! A lot of great things coming from Breaking in the Habit this week! Hope everyone is doing well.

My Favorite Movie?

In general, I like cerebral, aesthetically beautiful and original movies. Think Christopher Nolan. And yet, the movie that I have seen more than any other movie (30+ times?) and will never grow tired of is A League of Their Own. It was a movie we watched a lot in my family when I was a kid, and my appreciation for it has only grown over the years. This is not just a sports movie. It’s more than a World War II period piece. I think it’s an important film.

Rules for Life

I say, if you want to be a better Christian, read the beatitudes (more on that next month). If you want to be a better human, follow these eight rules.

Four things to improve every relationship

If you ask me, the easiest approach to prayer is to treat God like any relationship you have. What works with your family and friends? What doesn’t work? If you want to improve your relationship with God and others, I suggest four things to do every day.

@caseyofm

Improve your prayer life and all relationships and four easy steps. #catholic #prayer #priest

♬ original sound – caseyofm

Upon Friar Review on hold

Unfortunately, there is no new episode of Upon Friar Review at the moment, as it has been put on hold indefinitely. Fr. Patrick went home last week for a family emergency, and while he was originally planning on returning Monday, that is in question at the moment. Obviously, creating YouTube videos comes second to caring for loved ones, so we will just have to wait until he returns. Please pray for his family.

Updated Summer Calendar

Although the Major League Baseball owners continue to be greedy and refuse to fairly negotiate with the players, Fr. Tito and I are still planning on visiting each stadium for a game this summer. We’ve had to make a few minor changes from our original schedule, so I’ve provided an updated list of games below. If you plan on attending a game, I would wait a little while longer to buy tickets, as there could still be a few changes in the next month. Only 96 days until we leave!

I hope everyone has a wonderful week!

Peace and good,

Fr. Casey

A Stereotypical Week

At long last, Breaking In The Habit is in full swing with a pile of content this week. As you’ll see, I’ve tried some new things this week but I think they’ve turned out well!

Confessions Stereotypes

As a confessor, I get to see people at their most vulnerable, revealing their sins and bearing their hearts to God. It can be an extremely gratifying moment for a priest. That said, there are some issues that arise in the confessional that make it a less-than-ideal situation. Here’s my attempt to fix that.

Stereotypical Dudes

What is more “guy” like than trick shots, competitions, and making fun of each other. That’s what you get with the hit YouTube channel Dude Perfect. This week, Fr. Patrick and I watch some of their best moments… and try it out for ourselves.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjBMf8qB0Po

Not Your Stereotypical Kung Fu Movie

When I think of classic martial arts movies, I think of Bruce Lee: serious, traditional, precise. The master is never phased. Admittedly, I’m not an expert on martial arts movies so this might not always be the case, but I can tell you that Police Story with Jackie Chan certainly breaks that mold. With Chan, you get a lot more slapstick comedy, casual situations, and self-deprecating humor. Enjoyable watch.

https://everydayliminality.libsyn.com/jackie-chans-police-story-1985

From the Vault

One of the problems with constantly producing content for the internet is that things inevitably fade away. Some things absolutely need to fade away, but others get put on the shelf and get forgotten way to fast. This video, from November 2020, shares a message that is very important to me.

That’s it for this week! Peace and good to you all!

Fr. Casey

New Year, New Season

As the excitement of the holidays and New Year fade into a distant memory, we find ourselves back in the swing of “normalcy” as we enter the month of February. For me, that means new content returning to Breaking in the Habit, and a new outlook on the year.

Overlooked Masterpieces

Last season, Fr. Tito and I took a look at the most iconic movies of all time, analyzing the movies we all know and love to see what makes them so “classic.” This season, we’ve decided, in a sense, to do the opposite.

https://everydayliminality.libsyn.com/season-8-trailer-under-appreciated-films

New Year, New Me

New Year’s Resolutions have never really worked for me. Despite being a very motivated person, there’s something about converting habits that is extremely difficult. I suspect that many of us are in this position. This year, I have a different strategy. So far, it’s been working extremely well.

Want a sticker?

In thanksgiving for your support, signing up for this newsletter, I want to send you a stick of the Upon Friar Review logo. I can only ship them to the US, it might take me a little while to get them all out, and can’t guarantee that everyone who signs up will get one, but if you’d like a chance to win one, fill out this form here!

https://forms.gle/1w7B3R1agVvqAKAU7

Hope everyone has a great week!

Peace and good,

Fr. Casey

Let’s do more than just remember

Carrying on King’s Legacy

Over the past week, you have no doubt heard many people quote Martin Luther King Jr. You probably heard stories about the civil rights movement, recounts the heroism that he showed in standing up to bigotry. You probably even saw advertisements invoking his name and using his speech. It’s wonderful that it is popular, even ordinary to hear his name spoken with such fondness.

And yet, racism continues to exist in our country. As much as we would like to tell ourselves the narrative of progress– “Look how bad things were back then! Look how far we’ve come!”– the fact of the matter is that we still have a long way to go. Having spent decades thinking that racism was over, many have failed to recognize that some things are actually worse today for people of color than when I was born.

The first problem, as you will see in the comments, is the outright denial that racism still exists. I suspected that I would receive some of this pushback but not to the extent that I received it. I realize that many people fail to accept (or simply grasp) the concept of communal sin and so the idea of racism as a structure of evil is entirely foreign to them. I plan to address this in a video later this year.

There are, of course, many others who received this video with great defensiveness, responding that they felt attacked. There is an unwillingness to accept that one can contribute to the problem of racism without being a “evil person” themselves. The problem of social structures is that few people willingly or consciously promote evil, but they benefit nonetheless. Believing themselves to be “good people”–and I have no reason to object to that–the idea of racism is flatly rejected without further consideration.

What I wanted to do in this video is to push people beyond the common language of the day to actual action. To look at what they say and ask, “Do I actually oppose racism?” It takes more than quoting Dr. King each year. When racist structures exist in our world, the one who carries on King’s legacy is the one who is humble enough with themselves to recognize their own implicit biases, who resists policies and actions that give advantage to white people at the detriment to others, who put their money where their mouths are and actually support the leaders in the black community today who continue to demand change, who do not think for a second that the fight is over.

How can we quote Martin Luther King today while at the same time opposing those who continue his work? This, to me, is a problem, which is why I ask, “Would you have marched with Dr. King?” Would you have put your safety and reputation on the line for this cause? The only way to know is to ask yourself if you’re doing it with his successors today.

Podcast Trailer next week!

Be sure to check Everyday Liminality for a trailer of our new season this Tuesday. More information to come next week!

Prayers welcome

By the time you read this, I will be on my way with eight high school students up to Philadelphia where we serve at the Franciscan’s soup kitchen for a week. It will be a challenging new experience for them. I ask that you prayer for our safety as we travel into the cold, but maybe more importantly, that these students have an experience of poverty and “minority” (not necessarily in terms of race but with the “other” and outcast) that draws them deeper to the poor Christ.

Peace and good!

Fr. Casey

The Word On Fire Bible

It’s been quite an up and down month for me here at Breaking in the Habit, but I’m refreshed and gearing up for a good semester! Look for a full slate of content very soon! For now, just a few odds and ends.

“A Cathedral in Print”

Bishop Robert Barron is on a mission to evangelize through beauty. It’s evident in the videos he produces and in the Bible he published. Volume 1 was a huge hit and now he is ready to release volume 2. Fr. Patrick and I got a sneak peak of its artfulness prior to its release and we want to send you a copy! You can enter to win here.

https://youtu.be/0aXeTiJ69Ho

Reclaiming Catholicism on Hold

It’s been a while since I’ve posted a video of any sort, but even longer for the Reclaiming Catholicism series. At this point, Patheos is going through new management and rearranging its internal structure and so all of their video series have been put on hold. I have a list of topics I’d like to explore once we’re back, so hopefully that will be soon!

TikTok is Taking Off

This week I posted two videos that have started to get some traction. Believe it or not, this is a great platform for reaching a lot of people!

@caseyofm

Many people have this idea that the Catholic Church is immensely rich and doesn’t do enough charity. It’s kind of ridiculous. #catholic #charity #vatican #priest #breakinginthehabit

♬ original sound – caseyofm

@caseyofm

I don’t spend a lot of time thinking about what I’m going to wear in the morning…#priest #friar #franciscan #catholic #breakinginthehabit

♬ original sound – caseyofm

Solitude and Nature

Last week I spend five days in the mountains of South Carolina on retreat. It was just me, a cabin, and a lot of trees! What an incredible time! You can see my pictures over on Instagram, but here’s a taste of what I saw.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Casey Cole, OFM (@caseyofm)

More on the horizon!

Next week I’ll be traveling with a group of high schoolers on a mission trip, but after that, it’s back to full content! I might even have a video finished before I leave!

Peace and good everyone,

Fr. Casey