I’M NOT ALONE!

I’m not alone to worry about our Christians’ faith! The NewSunday Missourian published two weeks ago (March 12), a great story about the “Uncommitted CHRISTIANS”. Sarah Blaskovich wrote this story. Here are some quotations.

“American overwhelmingly profess to be part of a Christian nation. Our president is a Christian. Our neighbors probably are, too – more than three-quarters of Americans describe themselves as Christians. However, a slew of research in recent years suggest that, as a group, Christian adults are becoming increasingly apathetic about their faith. Church attendance has been slowly declining. Interest in organized religion as a staple of American life is waning. And a majority of Christian Americans, according to a leading Christian research organization, do not know what is in their Bibles…”

This general remark gives us some ideas. The story is about all of Christians in US, especially in Columbia. And catholic Christians in US are 66,3 million, so 22% of the population. Let us read bellow.

“…It’s easy to believe that our nation as a whole is faithful when the religious habits of others countries are considered. A Gallup poll found in 2005 that 35 percent of Americans, regardless of religious affiliation, went to worship services at least once a week…”

Remember, US Americans Christians are 85% of the population. Here we go!

“…While Columbia pastors say the declining attendance is hardly a crisis, they acknowledge that many people simply believe they have better things to do on Sunday morning. Several pastors point to American’s short attention spans as a major road bump in religiosity. It takes a split second to send and receive e-mails, three minutes to grab a cheeseburger and half an hour to get film developed. It’s no surprising, pastors say, that some churchgoers get bored during religious services, which can last an hour or more…More and more, pastors say that Church is competing with parishioners’ secular interests and activities…”

Great!!! Keep reading.

“…Researchers asked 1,002 Americans to list their personal priorities, and only 15 percent ranked God and faith first…”

What’s about the 292 million of Americans? Expert readers in arithmetic can make the calculation. Don’t stop reading.

“…Americans have also been found to be lacking in knowledge of Christianity. According to a 1997 poll, only about 30 percent of Americans can name the four Gospels. Even fewer people – one in five – say they are confident with their understanding of the Bible, according to 2005 survey by the Barna Group…”

You must know, you can’t believe if you don’t know in whom you are believing! And Sarah concluded:

“…For centuries, religious understanding among the faithful was the province of the Pastor. Now with more Americans seeking alternative spiritual outlooks and exploring different beliefs, the roles of the pastor, the church and even the Bible may not be as important as they once were.”

Pope Benedict were right when he said (talking about Europe) two months ago, “The West is exhausted of God”. Is it true for USA? Not yet but in five years, maybe! Thank you Sarah.

St. PATRICK DAY IS COMING!

Who is he?
Saint Patrick, Apostle and Patron of Ireland were born in Scotland in 387. In his sixteenth year, he was kidnapping by the Irish marauders and was sold as a slave in Ireland. He considered himself a pagan. And Ireland at this time was a land of Druids and pagans.

For six years he herd and tended sheep. During his captivity, he became closer to God. In 411, he escaped from his captivity and went to Gaul (France) by boat. He was ordained by St. Germanus, the Bishop of Auxerre, whom he had studied under for years. Later, Patrick was ordained a bishop, and was sent by Pope Saint Celestine to take the Gospel to Ireland.

He travelled throughout Ireland, establishing monasteries across the country. He also set up schools and churches which would aid him in his conversion of the Irish country to Christianity. In the thirty-three years of his apostolate, he succeeded in converting the whole country. He was arrested several times, but escaped each time.

Some of this lore includes the belief that Patrick raised people from the dead. He also is said to have given a sermon from a hilltop that drove all the snakes from Ireland. Of course, no snakes were ever native to Ireland, and some people think this is a metaphor for the conversion of the pagans.

Though originally a Catholic holy day, St. Patrick's Day has evolved into more of a secular holiday. One traditional icon of the day is the shamrock. They say Patrick used with ability the three-leafed shamrock to explain the Trinity. He used it in his sermons to represent how the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit could all exist as separate elements of the same entity. His followers adopted the custom of wearing a shamrock on his feast day.

For the "drunk beer tradition", I guess Irish like good food and beer. And because of it's the whole country feast, they have taken advantage of this to drink more beer. But, there is no connexion with the life of Saint Patrick. Green colour because Spring is beginning.

So “the drunk beer day” is coming somebody says. Sure! But don’t forget. Saint Patrick fought to bring back those who didn’t believe in God. Reminder and tell about what you see in your Church this “Holyday”.