They say that the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, that the best way to begin to understand someone is by meeting their parents and seeing where they come from. Like it or not, we often take the traits of our parents, including their values, sense of humor, subtle mannerisms, and annoying ticks.
Ladies and gentlemen… my parents.
While home on vacation last week, I had the wonderful opportunity to sit down with my parents and ask them fan-inspired questions in this week’s video. Ranging from vocations to what I was like as a child, my parents don’t hold back in their answers, sharing their joy, their support for me, and just enough personality to reveal the proverbial tree from which I fell. In my case, I didn’t fall far, and I’m okay with that.
For regular blog followers, this week’s video will be nothing new: I find the habit to be an effective way to evangelize and so I wear it whenever I can. Even to the airport. In what turned out to be a similar video to my first ever video (which I strongly recommend never watching), join me as I travel by bus, plane, and car to get home for Christmas vacation.
I hope everyone has a great Christmas and a happy New Year!
Yes, you read that title right: “Six Reasons Religion Does More Harm Than Good.” And I stand by it. This might require some explanation…
You see, I can across this article a few days ago listing six reasons that religion was bad for the world. It’s not the most nuanced or well-thoughtout articles being that it’s just a mix of straw man arguments and hasty generalizations. Not exactly something we should be worried about.
And yet, something about it made me want to respond. Maybe because the arguments were so ridiculous or because it was exam week and I wanted something easy to respond to, I decided to make it my vlog reflection for the week: more or less, “why this article is wrong.”
What you’ll find when you watch this week’s video, however, is that I decided on a completely different approach. Rather than spending a lot of time refuting the claims, I actually affirmed them. Whaa?? The more I thought about it, the more I realized that each of these points had a basis in truth. While it was completely unfair and logically false to come to the conclusion that the author did—that religions are inherently bad for the world—the evidence presented isn’t completely wrong. Religion can and has done more harm than good in the world at times.What I find useful in this article, and why I present the refection I do, is because these six points offer us a reminder and a warning of what we are capable of when we lose track of what our religion actually calls us to.
Bad religion does exist… and sometimes it’s closer than we think. Let’s not prove the article right.
It has come to my attention that some of you may be confused about my identity. Having gained a decent number of followers over the years, I assumed it was because many people were interested in learning about religious life, wanted to grow in their Christian faith, or had a Franciscan heart that needed nourishment. And if that’s you, great. This message isn’t for you. For the others… I may have some bad news:
You know I’m not a Jedi, right?
I’m just checking! Given the amount that I get asked that on the street by curious pedestrians, I realized that I might have been working under false pretenses all of these years and that all of you were interested in my writing and videos because you thought I could teach you the ways of the Force. Hopefully that’s not the case.
But if it is… this video is for you. For all those who still might be confused what the difference is between a friar, our cousin the “monk,” and those space-traveling warriors for harmony in the galaxy, “Jedi,” I have presented all you ever needed to know! Believe it or not, we are distinct in more than just name, but also in habitat, duty, beliefs, and even appearance!
In all seriousness, I hope you enjoy this video and hope you are just as excited as I am for this weekend’s release! The brothers in my community have had tickets to see The Last Jedi for over a month now and plan to use the showing (plus dinner and a short meeting) as our fraternal outing and house chapter for the month. Such nerds, right? Oh well. Let’s just hope it’s good! Peace and good to you all, and may the Force be with you!
When I moved to Chicago, I was hoping to have a space specifically devoted to making videos, a place where I could leave me stuff set up so I wouldn’t have to break it down for every shoot. What I got was great! In the bottom floor of the house, off to the side, was a wide open space that people used as a walkway to get out the back door. All I needed to do was push my stuff to the side and I could keep it there.
It was great. For a time.
But then I started shooting more reflections in my room, which meant lugging that equipment back and forth two flights of stairs. And then the weather got colder and I realized that the bottom floor room wasn’t very insulated. Not exactly a dream location, but, oh well. I was grateful for what I had.
Breaking In The Habit 