How to have a better Sunday

I used to really dislike the phrase “Sunday scaries,” because it conjures up images of monsters waiting under the bed, or a hideous feeling of being out of control. It’s like the week is so bad, we allow ourselves to be paralyzed with anxiety about what’s coming. Shouldn’t we, as adults, be able to handle those feelings? Or at least our schedules, or the things causing the “scaries?”

But, whatever. The phrase itself is kind of dumb, but I get the sentiment. The experiences of this strange year have also made me care less about what I can and cannot control - or what other people can or cannot control.

The Sunday scaries have taken on a whole new meaning for many people this year, as some dread each day that passes and brings the first of the month and a possible eviction closer. Or, Monday is the renewed job search, or the juggle to work from home and provide activities for the kids at the same time. So, yes. The scaries are real.

I wrote an article about this a year ago called 4 Steps to a Better Sunday, which I was thinking about today. The four steps for a better Sunday that I lay out are to make extra time for prayer, enjoy wholesome Sunday-appropriate content, practice hospitality, and do something for someone else.

These days, practicing hospitality is a little more difficult, even if you have a nice, open back yard. And the last thing you may want to do is watch any more TV or listen to any more podcasts after these months of quarantine. But I do still think prayer and doing for others are incredibly important right now for mental health, and fighting those scaries.

Prayer, because it centers you and connects you to God. It reminds you of your place in the universe and the unbreakable bond you have with God, who is always present for you. It provides a place and a way to put your concerns into His hands, and know that He has them. Perhaps start with the Our Lady, Undoer of Knots prayer.

Doing for others: this is always the best way to get out of a funk. Give someone a call, make a donation online, drop off food or clothes at a shelter, ask your church and your favorite charities what they need. Reach out, outside of yourself.

I will also add that I think walking and prayer are extremely compatible. Remember that you can offer just about anything up to God, including, for example, a strenuous hike or the mid-day heat. Let your movement be fused with prayer.

For me, today I will be writing a few letters. There are birthdays and babies coming (a good reminder that life goes on, even in a pandemic). Letter-writing is personally therapeutic for me, and I see it as an act of service to the other, as well, and a perfect way to both be creative and reach outside oneself. I may still feel a little of that dread unique to 2020 - what will this week bring us? - but I have, at the very least, tended to my own little corner of the world, and I suppose that is the most we can ask of ourselves this year.

What do to when a nun-bot texts you

A few years ago I donated to Catholic Charities of South Carolina because of a disaster there; I think one of the bad hurricanes of the past few years. I have since taken myself off their email list, though I do occasionally receive a piece of their upbeat snail mail.

Imagine my surprise earlier last week when I received the below text:

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Don’t mind if I do!

Who could say no to that??

I admit, I did not get much past the first initial texts. After answering a few questions about anxiety, which apparently Nun-Bot thought I didn’t have too much of, she (it?) sent a video about anxiety to watch. I didn’t, but I’m sure if I did, and let her know, she’d be there, no matter the time of day or night. And there is something comforting about that, even if it is just a machine.

So anyway, I’ll refrain from making fun of the concept of a nun-bot too much, especially because I am hesitant to ridicule anything that would provide anyone some sort of relief right now (or ever, really). I think it is ingenious that Catholic Charities has created this, with the double benefit of providing a service and keeping the organization in donors’ minds. I am sure the former was the primary motivation; the latter is all right too, though.

So, if you need to, reach out to “Sister Hope” (good name, btw). The number is above. She will not judge you - and that’s a fact!

Stop thinking about politics

I wrote an article for Catholic Stand called Ecclesiastes and Turning Politics Over to God. Living in the metro DC area, one simply cannot escape politics (spoiler alert: maybe that’s why I chose to live here), but even those of us immersed in the news cycle need to CHILL OUT sometimes. Combined with the fact it’s an election year and I guess, y’know, the country is falling apart, it seems we all are worshiping at the altar of politics, rather than Jesus. So I wrote about that. Linked above and see below. Happy Sunday!

Ecclesiastes and Turning Politics Over to God

A friend recently told me that the Old Testament book that brought her back to the Catholic faith was Ecclesiastes.

“What is it about?” I asked, realizing I had never read it.

“Vanity, vanity, all is vanity,” she responded. “Nothing is new under the sun.”

I decided to read Ecclesiastes, and as I did, my mind moved to the American obsession with politics. We always believe our particular circumstances, in this time and place, are the most important – as, I would guess, has every generation of humans.

Nothing New Under the Sun

Ecclesiastes was written by character named Qoheleth. Ecclesiastes is actually a Greek translation of Qoheleth, which ”means “assembler” (of students, listeners) or “collector” (of wisdom sayings).”  Early on, Qoheleth tells us, “Nothing is new under the sun.”

“What has been, that will be; what has been done, that will be done. Nothing is new under the sun! Even the thing of which we say, ‘See, this is new!’ has already existed in the ages that preceded us. There is no remembrance of past generations; nor will future generations be remembered by those who come after them.” (Ecclesiastes 1:9-11)

We may think living through a pandemic is unique (even though it is not).  As such, I think it is interesting to consider Qoheleth’s statement in light of human emotion and experience, generally, as opposed to solely earthly current events.

We know human nature never changes, and the things you worry about now, have been worried about by generations before. But generations, as Qoheleth points out, have come and gone without any remembrance.

The point is, as you cry for your son who has an addiction, or wonder when you will meet your wife, or wonder how you will pay the bills, or bemoan a tyrannical boss or landlord, or become exasperated with those in elected office – so has every generation of humans. To dwell hopelessly on our own concerns, legitimate as they are, is to forget that God is in control. I know it is easy to do, and it takes work to push back and instead choose hope.

All is Vanity

Reading Ecclesiastes, I wondered: is it a form of vanity to suspect that one’s own time is the most consequential? More importantly, is it vanity to pray too much about a political situation? At what point does praying about politics become just about what I want – and not about what God wants? I believe we do ourselves, and our relationship with Jesus, real harm when we obsess over the political state of things.

Someone once told me that if I wrote down all the things that worry me today, and looked at that list in five years, I would most likely have no idea what half the issues were. None of us will forget what we are experiencing as we live through this pandemic and the abundance of social and political issues. But the immediacy – the pain, the heat, the sorrow – will eventually subside, and even be replaced by something else. What is hopeful is to recognize this as an opportunity to give all that sorrow to God and know, perhaps for the first time in our lives, that we are truly nothing without God. Apart from Him we are nothing and we have nothing.

Turn Politics Over to God

It is imperative that Christians pray, at all times, for our leaders and our nations. But we must also trust that God has everything in control, always.

If you are feeling hopeless about the state of our nation and culture, and are looking for prayer warriors to work on your behalf, I recommend four people: St. Rita, St. Jude, St. Therese of Lisieux, and Our Lady of Guadalupe.

St. Rita and St. Jude are known as patrons of hopeless causes. “Hopeless cause” is a great way to describe American politics!

St. Therese of Lisieux is a personal favorite, called by Pope John Paul II as “the most powerful saint of the 20th century.” I have never gone to her and been unaided.

Our Lady of Guadalupe is the Patroness of the Americas. She sees everything we are experiencing, and she loves us.

Let’s also add in a couple other saints for good measure – those who understood politics, and suffered under the whims of political leaders. St. Thomas More and St. Maximilian Kolbe come immediately to mind.  Both of these intercessors are excellent friends to call on if the political situation seems beyond recourse.

Whatever you do, however, do not let politicians become your saints!

You Are Where You Are Meant to Be

In prayer, thank God that you are alive today, to see what he wants you to see, to live where he wants you to live, and to pray for what he wants you to pray for. God did not call any of us to be Twitter warriors.  He does, however, call us to be disciples, to love others, and to do His will. That’s about it.

There is no circumstance in which politics should replace faith, or in which our devotion to the news cycle ought to come before our time before God. Remember that no politician will ever save you, and achieving a desired political outcome does not absolve you of a need for a relationship with Jesus. To be overly devoted to politics is to lose hope in God and His plan.