2012 Goals/2011 Goals Review.

Ok, here are my goals from last year:

Goal 1: Continue my process of getting down to 210 lbs, and a 10% body fat.

Goal 2: Work on shrinking my debt, and begin building my credit score at the same time. It is too low to make me happy.

Goal 3: Increase my religious studies and reading.

And the drum roll for the results??

Goal 1: Not so good. Went back up roughly 15 lbs, mainly due to a leg needing surgery again, and not being able to exercise the way I should have been. (And also due to not eating right, in the way if probably eating the wrong foods, and too much there of!) However, my body fat is actually down by about 15% from where it was last year!

Goal 2: This goal I did much better on! I am much, MUCH closer in this area!! And I’ve not added any new bills (except medical, which is now a gone thing as well, no new medical bills as of July of last year!) My credit score has gone up a small amount, but NO WHERE near enough!

Goal 3: A TOTAL success! I read and pray for about 2 to 3 hours each night! And I pray all day when at work as I work, provided I’m not talking to someone, or someone isn’t talking to me.

Goals 4 and 5 (that I kept to myself): Goal 4 was a total success. Goal 5 I am still working on.

This years goals?

Goal 1: Continue my process of getting down to 210 lbs, and a 10% body fat.

Goal 2: Work on shrinking my debt, and begin building my credit score at the same time. It is too low to make me happy.

Goal 3: Increase my religious studies and reading.

And there are a couple of private ones as well….

Yep a re-run of last year, with the exception of 5 is now 4, and a new private goal 5 is in place.

A Book Review: Lectio Divina Bible Sutdy

Over the past 10+ years, and more so over the past 7ish years, I have been an avid reader of the Catholic Theology and Philosophies. I am striving to “grow into” my faith in a more profound way than I have to date, and I am always looking for a good book t read on the subject. Through The Catholic Company, I have found a great resource of books to choose from, and I get some free by reviewing them, as I am this one.

This book is a hard book to review. While it has several great Bishops and other people giving it great reviews and a strong backing, I fear I do not agree with their thoughts on the book. While it is structurally correct, as near as I can tell in my neophyte status within the Church, in general I do not agree with the resources he pulls together to support his claims. The writing is hard to read and follow, and over all I was not impressed.

The book does have some good gems though, and the concept the Author, Stephen J. Binz, shows is valid, and is a good way to process the Bible as you read it.

Not an easy read, and not a book I’d want to have bought.

This review was written as part of the Catholic book reviewer program from The Catholic Company. Visit The Catholic Company to find more information on Lectio Divina Bible Study: Sacraments.

The Government And Money…

One of the biggest issues here in the US, and probably all over the World right now is about money, taxes, and benefits in general. And with reason. Money is tight for everyone right now, be it an individual, a family, a city, state or the national government.

This is an issue we need to look at very closely. But the subject is a VERY touchy subject for many of the wrong reasons, as it deals with individuals and their goals.

This is were I see things as it deals with the US, my family and I…

First off, we need to start at the bottom and at the top of the structure concurrently. I will start here with the “top”, national government of the US, and work down to my family and finally me.

Having worked in the US Government initially in the US Army, and now as a Veterans Administration Employee (as well as one other position) I have seen how the US Government spends money and how small or big it is. Many aspects of our US government are WAY too large, while in a few they are way to small. We spend too much money on financing and looking at entitlement programs for individuals and “groups” (those groups beings social/racial/sexual) and in managing those programs once they are set up. Once we realize that EVERYONE is a human, and treat everyone the same, regardless of their race/creed/sexual preference, and get rid of a vast majority of the entitlement programs out there, our national budget will start (but not get there) to get under control. At the same time, because we are doing away with the programs, the size of the over reaching government will shrink. (Don’t worry, I’ll talk about jobs as well!)

The Government, at the top levels needs to start participating in the health and retirement programs, which probably should stay in place, just like their constituents are required to. And once they leave office, they should have the same benefits that would be given on the “civilian side”, meaning they don’t get their non-contributing pension when they leave, even if they served for only one or two terms. Speaking of terms, ALL positions in the US Government should be term limited, with no more than eight (8) years of service before moving on. Since the majority (ALL?) of the members of Congress are not farmers or active business people anymore, we need to do away with the long term breaks, which were set up to allow the original members to go back to their farms and plant, harvest, etc. They are paid full time salaries now, work full time like the rest of us. They should have the same leave (vacation) practices that the rest of the Government employees have. In just these steps, several millions of dollars are actually saved.

Our law making process needs to be looked at, and in many cases cut back on. Funding the “investigation” into laws that “protect the individual from themselves” needs to be cut out, and the emphasis should be on laws that protect the citizen from others. Removing laws that protect an individual from themselves (what they can eat, where they can get it, adults wearing seat belts (although I think every person should wear one, that should not be a law that requires monitoring, etc.), etc. should happen immediately. Laws should deal with protecting someone from someone else. Requiring children to wear seat belts makes since, as they do not have the reasoning capability to understand the dangers of not doing so. Laws on toy manufactures restricting what they can use in the production of toys that may harm kids makes since. This change in our law system will save even more money, and help focus the time spent on the floors of Congress being reviewed and in-acted.

There are some government organizations that do need to be increased in size. Our military as it makes since for readiness and ability to respond to US issues and, in a somewhat more limited fashion, global issues. Our intelligence agencies should be properly funded and staff to meet our need for proper intelligence for the safety of our nation. And laws should be review, rewritten and/or deleted to better focus on the national protection of citizens, more so than individual protections as it seems to currently be.

Now, how do we fund these things? First off, EVERYONE, individually, not business (more on them shortly), in every State of the US should be taxed the same. My recommendation is a flat 10% of gross income, across the board, for all income levels. Eliminate all the tax loopholes that are out there that stop people from getting breaks, which will reduce the need for such a large collection agency we call the IRS, reducing it’s size significantly, although not getting rid of it, as it has a valid function, allowing only charitable donations as a reduction of taxes up to 25% of the total tax paid. Tax should be done on gross income, before expenses. This is earned income, including on investments, etc. Once you earn it, you pay the taxes. If you reinvest that earnings, after taxes, be ready to pay taxes on the earnings that investment garnishes later! No deferment till you actually put it in your pocket, because when you invest it again, you put it in your pocket for a second before you re-invested it!

Business should be taxed at a flat rate of 10% as well, after operating expenses are deducted. Again, aside from operating expenses, get rid of all loopholes to reduce taxes. Public companies should pay their taxes BEFORE paying dividends, which should not count as operating expenses, but benefits to investors. Buying back stock is NOT an operating expense in this case either. However, assisting employees in medical expenses IS an operational expense!

With the reduction of Government jobs as outlined above, there will be some people “on the streets” without work. We need, as a nation, to get back to providing our own food. Farming needs to become an important business again, and that will require many hands and bodies to work the fields and make things grow. This will do several things. It will decrease, in the long run the cost of food. We need to open our own oil fields. This will further reduce the cost of food, while it helps reduce the cost of oil products as well. Both of these two endeavors will increase the need for labor pools. We need to get back to being the innovative nation we use to be, bringing our industries back within our shores and building things again, from the ground up!

All of this requires that we begin re-building our education system as well. Which will require more teachers, again more jobs. Our education system should get back to the basics, focus on the foundations of business and innovation, reading, math, history (to learn from past mistakes and good events), and social studies. It should include the arts: music and art, which should be MANDATORY up to a certain age, and start early to get the foundation there.

This nation was built on “faith” in God. That faith needs to come back as well. This will cause ripples, but it is fact, and should be looked at closely, as the departure of that faith has caused many of the problems we now see here in the states!

Next in life.

As I move into the next stage in my life, I am returning to Religious Life. In that I just turned 50, there are no, non-contemplative, Religious Orders that I have been able to find, that have a Charism that fits with what I feel called to.

So, in order to correct to that problem, I have decided, after MUCH prayer and contemplation to open a new Order, one that accepts any Catholic male in communion with the Roman Catholic Church, from (edited to add) at least the age of 18 to …. They must be of 18 years of age, in communion with the Church, and healthy at the time of entry into the Order. There is no upper age limit, provided they meet those requirements.

You can read more about the Order here. It’s name is “The Order of Brothers of Reconciliation”, and it is a 501c3 compliant Kentucky Corporation, currently a Lay Order, pending approval by the Bishop of Lexington as a Religious Order. We live by a Rule of Life, give the vow of obedience, chastity and poverty, living in community but working “in the world”. The doors are open now for Postulates!

The Order of Brothers of Reconciliation

As my ever changing life continues to move forward, I have opened a new lay community that is pending approval and supervision of the Bishop of the Dioceses of Lexington Kentucky. This Order, The Order of Brothers of Reconciliation is open to all Catholic men eighteen years of age or older (no upper limit, except based on health and mental status, and the Canon of the Church) who are in communion with the Holy Roman Catholic Church and able to meet the requirements of Religious Life per the Canon of the Church.

To learn more about the new community and to express your interest, go to The Order of Brothers of Reconciliation’s web page and follow the links there.

We are also looking for US tax deductible donations, which you can find more information on here. Prayers for our growth and approval and supervision by the Bishop are greatly needed and accepted as well!

In Christ!

Meet the Saints: A Book Review

Over the past several years I have been very interested in the Saints of the Catholic Church. I have been wanting to know their history, how they became Saints, and a bit about them. I have read many books on individual Saints and a few on groups of Saints.

Most of those books put words into the mouths of the Saints, as well as feelings and thoughts, that I often felt the author had no way of knowing if it was true or not. Basically putting words into the mouth of the Saint where I felt they shouldn’t.

This book broke the mold I was seeing in the other books. The book takes 12 months of articles posted in a newsletter series called “Walking With the Saints”. It covers the lives of 37 Saints and what got them Sanctified.

It is an easy book to read, well written and informational. It appears to be factual without glorification. The result is well received by me, and I’m betting by you as well.

This review was written as part of the Catholic book reviewer program from The Catholic Company. Visit The Catholic Company to find more information on Meet the Saints. They are also a great source for a Catechism of the Catholic Church or a Catholic Bible.

The Sabbath…

Many years ago, when I was a child, I wondered why the Bible showed us that the 7th day of the week was a Holy Day, but the Churches my family went to all had the “Holy Day” on Sunday, the 1st day of the week. I never understood it. I asked a minister when I was in my early twenties, why we went to Church on Sunday instead of Saturday as decreed by God in the Bible in giving us the 10 Commandments. The answers I was given didn’t ring right with me, and consisted of “We are celebrating the Resurrection of Christ”.

When Jesus was alive, He kept the Sabbath on Saturday. In fact, the second earliest document that states a change to Sunday was in 74AD for a few small groups, but the general exception of the Christian faith “moving” the Sabbath to Sunday was over 300 years after Jesus passed away. It was not founded on any comments in the Bible, or any such decree from God.

God clearly said that He was celebrating the completion of His work of Creation of the Universe and human kind. The Sabbath was given to all man to be the 7th day of the week, Saturday on the current calender, not Sunday. Why does the Catholic Church and most Protestant Churches celebrate on Sunday?

My research shows a few reasons for this:

The more I pray on this and the more I read the Bible, the more I feel compelled to follow the Commandments of God and take Saturday as the Sabbath. I am still Catholic, will still go to Sunday Mass (and soon to Mass every day with a change in my work schedule), but from sundown on Friday, till sundown on Saturday I will be refraining from work, reading the Bible, and meditating on Christ, the Bible and life. During this time frame, I will not be on my computer, will not be using the phone to check emails, Facebook, Twitter, etc. This does open Sunday to work, such as mowing the lawn as needed, and any other work I have been refraining from doing on Sunday. I feel confident this is what God has told us to do.

In Christ,

D.

Clement and the Early Church of Rome: On the Dating of Clement’s First Epistle to the Corinthians – A Book Review

I selected this book from the list available at the Reviewers section of The Catholic Company, as I am very interested in the foundations of the Catholic Church, and the early writings of the Church.

I highly recommend before acquiring or reading this book that you acquire and read a copy of the two letters sent by St. Clement to the Corinthians, as it will make the reading of this text mean more to you.

Over all the book was pretty good. Reverend Thomas J. Herron goes into great detail into the history of the time and the reasoning he has for dating the writings as he does. He has, what I believe to be, sound reasoning behind his though processes, and gives strong validation to those thoughts.

Why is this important? It provides a context to the extent of the Church at the time of Clement before and after he took over as the “Pope” (he was not called Pope in that time in history) of the Christian Church. This book is a must read for anyone interested in the foundations of the Christian and specifically the Catholic Faith.

It is a well written book, worth the read, but I’m not sure most lay people would want to acquire this book, unless they are historians.

This review was written as part of the Catholic book reviewer program from The Catholic Company. Visit The Catholic Company to find more information on Clement and the Early Church of Rome . They are also a great source for serenity prayer and baptism gifts.