This year’s Alaska Catholic Youth Conference in Anchorage challenged me to dig deeper into my understanding of Catholicism and, as a result, how to practice my faith in daily life. This intense four-day spiritual journey featured a large variety of workshops, ranging from tech addiction to medical bioethics to human dignity, as well as keynote speakers after every meal.
The ministry of safe environment requires sincerity, authenticity and accountability. It is not just about meeting formal requirements to ensure safety; it is about authentically embracing the mission of protecting the vulnerable and ministering to those who have been harmed. It is about living our belief about the dignity of the human person.
Clare House is an emergency shelter for women with children in Anchorage. Over the years Catholic Social Services has received great support from the community to operate this Anchorage outreach. Many extraordinary volunteers have dedicated time and effort to improving the lives of women and children in need. Surprisingly though, it is not a place that many people in Anchorage have ever seen. And if they have seen it, they may not have known they passed it.
Teens clamor clearly for two things they feel elude them: true solitude and authentic friendship. Alaska Catholic Youth Conference attendees directly named digital devices as threatening their interior life and distorting their social connections. They perceive their peers as inauthentic and distracted in face-to-face exchanges, leaving little room for the vulnerability and generosity required to build emotional intimacy.
In announcing his presidential bid earlier this summer, Donald Trump made a speech in which he said: “When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best. They’re sending people that have lots of problems. They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists.” This column is written in response to these statements.
Some may point out that the number of American polygamists is so small that changing the law won’t impact the wider culture or the vast majority who support traditional marriage. So what real difference does it make when a society redefines marriage to fit a new cultural norm? Well it certainly impacts what is taught in schools and promoted and enforced by law.
There are solutions to homelessness; there are communities in this country where homelessness has been eliminated. Perhaps Anchorage can be next. We hope and pray this could happen.
People travel extensively nowadays. But a trip to a vacation spot, or a pricey tour, does not necessarily make a pilgrimage. Likewise, staying in our own environment does not mean we’re not pilgrims. A pilgrimage might take us to the local shelter or a refugee program across town or even a thoughtful walk to morning Mass. We can’t all hike out of Mexico, but we can journey out of our comfort zone.
The devil is in the distractions. He encourages us to look away from Jesus. This is not to say we don’t address the storms but the storms are reasons to have more faith, not less. It is a time to go to God, not away from him. Our faith in God replaces our fear. If the devil distracts us from our lord and savior, he wins — and he will do everything in his power to distract us.
For the first time in human history, we live in a culture that says we can create our own meaning of life apart from God — a culture that denies all absolutes or norms. It says we can make up our own purpose in life, a self defined purpose.