Category: Virtues

Humble or Prideful? Why We Must Choose

Posted: by Virginia Lieto

humility 3

Humble. We should all be humble. We are human, and as humans we sin, make mistakes, and at times do not always make the wisest of decisions. We need to keep that in mind when pride wants to rear its ugly head. We need to remember that we are no better than anyone else. We need to remember that we are all created in God’s image and likeness. Humility gives us strength – yes strength – to resist temptations to sin, because when clothed with the virtue of Humility, we are opened“… to the grace of God…Humility is the basis for all good action, for it acknowledges our obligations to serve and to be lovingly obedient to God. Humility recognizes the worth and value of the neighbor and does not demean his or her accomplishments or virtues. Humility promotes the well-being of conscience, leading to prudence, astuteness and thoughtfulness.”1  Read more…

Humility: How Utterly Misunderstood!

Posted: by Virginia Lieto

Humility

Humility: How utterly misunderstood this virtue can be in the minds of humankind! I will be the first to admit that I fall into the camp of those who have truly misunderstood the value of the virtue of humility until I started to research this virtue in depth. Once I knew what humility was really all about, I began praying to Jesus for a clean and humble heart.

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No Good Deed Goes Unrewarded!

Posted: by Virginia Lieto

Corporal Works

No good deed goes unrewarded! I know, I know – the real and often quoted phrase is “no good deed goes unpunished!” How cynical is that? I’m glad God doesn’t think like that. Rather, He rewards us for good and merciful deeds. We may not see the rewards instantaneously in this life, but the rewards for our good and merciful deeds will be received, if not on earth, then in Heaven.  It is in the performance of good deeds, especially via the extension of mercy that we get where we need to be: virtuous and holy in God’s eyes! That’s where I want to be! So, how do we get there?

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Why Be Merciful? What’s in It for Me?

Posted: by Virginia Lieto

 

Unmerciful Servant 2

Merciful – me – why should I be merciful? Isn’t it enough that I forgive, I now need to be merciful? Serious gut check here – how many times have you secretly had these thoughts? If you are like me, you have had these thoughts more often than you would like to admit. Mercy is a tough virtue to “want” to grasp, from a “giving mercy” perspective because we naturally think it’s a one way proposition – the other guy gets the mercy, but “What’s in it for me?” As human beings, we always want a quid-pro-quo (I do something for you, you do something for me). However, that is contrary to how mercy works. When we provide that softer attitude toward a repentant sinner rather than the deserved punishment, we are in essence, giving a person a second chance. That is why many of us find it difficult to be merciful.

So, let me shed some light on what’s in it for you to be merciful:

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Saint Valentine and Chastity

Posted: by Birgit Jones

Saint Valentines Day has come and gone but the betrayal of the virtue of Chastity continues. Not only has the feast day for this martyr saint been hijacked by commercialism, but now it has also been used as the springboard for encouraging sexual deviancy and perversion.

In 50 Shades of Chastity and Saint Valentine, the connection is made between the purported freedom of today’s popular culture and the moral decline of human sexuality. This perversion of the freedom has led to the bitter fruit of homosexual ‘marriage’ and promiscuity.

50 shades of grey

The Catechism of the Catholic Church tells us: “So called moral permissiveness rests on an erroneous conception of human freedom; the necessary precondition for the development of true freedom is to let oneself be educated in the moral law. Those in charge of education can reasonably be expected to give young people instruction respectful of the truth, the qualities of the heart, and the moral and spiritual dignity of man.” (CCC #2526)

Find out what you and I can do to stem the tide by reading more here.

 

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Birgit Jones is a 50-something cradle Catholic who is passionate about the Church and the prolife movement. She has been married to her Catholic convert husband, Rick, for 40 years. They have four children and eight living grandchildren (all age eleven and under). Their frequent visits eliminate any fear of an empty nest!

Birgit is Graphics Editor and Columnist at Catholic Stand. She can also be found on her personal blog Designs By Birgit and Facebook fan page Designs By Birgit, where she utilizes her Fine Arts training to promote Life through her prolife memes.

Difficult to Forgive? Pray!

Posted: by Virginia Lieto

Forgiveness

Pray! Forgiving others is not an easy task. On many occasions, it will take some Divine assistance. Sometimes the hurt is so great we can’t even see or think clearly. We are so caught up in the emotion that forgiveness is the last thing on our minds. It’s during times like this that we must first pray. We need to ask God to alleviate the pain caused by the offense. We then need to pray for the ability to forgive. Actual forgiveness requires us to let go of the harbored anger and resentment. We must relinquish the pain to God, so that He may free our souls to love and trust again.

There are two things to consider when determining whether to forgive someone or not: Read more…

 

Forgive Others – What’s In It For Me?

Posted: by Virginia Lieto

Forgiveness 4Forgive others – Not so easy a task now is it? What stops us from being able to forgive others who have hurt us? Today is Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent, a time set aside for us to repent, pray and give alms. To repent means that we are sorry for what we have done wrong. To repent is to ask for forgiveness. Yet, if we really listen to the words from the Our Father, where we recite “Forgive us our trespasses AS we forgive those who have trespassed against us,” what we are really asking is to be forgiven to the extent that we forgive others. That word AS may be a little word, but it carries a big punch.  Can any of us really say that we have forgiven others to the extent that we would want to be forgiven? Read more…