Welcome to MyCatholicConnection

Priest Plays Poker to Win Money for Church

COLUMBIA, S.C. - A South Carolina priest missed the $1 million top prize in a poker tournament to be televised this weekend but he won $100,000 for his church and he hopes his participation gives viewers a “fun twist” on their perceptions of the priesthood.

The Rev. Andrew Trapp said he entered the PokerStars.net Million Dollar Challenge in hopes of putting St. Michael Catholic Church “super close” to its $5.5 million fundraising goal to build a new facility. He also wanted to strike a public relations blow for priests.

“At the very least, even if I didn’t win any prize money, I was hoping it would help people to see that priests can have fun and be normal people and hopefully get a little bit of a fun twist on the image of the priesthood,” the assistant pastor said Tuesday.

The top prize went to retired New York Police detective Mike Kosowski. But Trapp won $100,000, untaxed, in a semifinal round in October for the coastal church’s building fund, which has amassed $4 million after four years of fundraising.

For the final episode, a camera crew filmed a Sunday mass at the church, about 10 miles southwest of Myrtle Beach, and taped Trapp talking about the need for a new building.

'God gave me a gift'
“It’s really old. It’s too small for our needs, and it’s really vulnerable if a hurricane comes,” he says in a segment on PokerStars.net.

He adds, “God gave me a gift of playing cards — that interest, that hobby — and I could put it to use to help build our church. That just was really exciting for me.”

Congregants will gather Sunday afternoon at the church to watch the final televised round.

The 28-year-old Aiken native said he started playing poker in middle school at family gatherings. But it was in seminary in Columbus, Ohio, that he learned Texas Hold ’Em.

“We just played for fun,” he said. “It was just a way to hang out with each other and to enjoy each other’s company.”

Ordained in July 2007, Trapp is the youngest Catholic priest in the statewide diocese.

“A lot of young people out there, young Catholics, have never seen a young priest,” he said, adding that maybe the show will lead others to consider the profession.

Before playing, Trapp got permission from his pastor, who told him to “go for it.” The Charleston bishop later gave him permission to be on TV, he said.

Joseph Ohens, executive assistant to the bishop, confirmed Trapp had the bishop’s permission. “He wanted to show the world that priests are human beings like every one of us. ... He wanted to demystify priesthood.”

Poker-playing priest an attraction
To earn a spot on the poker finals, Trapp had to place among the top 10 in a free Internet tournament involving 10,000 contestants, then submit a two-minute audition video.

Trapp said he knew he would be chosen if he could just earn the right to audition: A poker-playing priest would attract attention and viewers. He played in his priestly attire. Since that’s what he’s used to wearing, it would’ve felt weird not to, he said.

PokerStars.net notes Trapp’s profession in promoting the show, calling it “a story of biblical proportions.” Officials from PokerStars.net did not immediately return a message seeking comment.

Trapp calls it a game show where, instead of answering trivia questions, he plays cards. “This isn’t even gambling, so to speak,” he said, since everything, including the trips to Los Angeles, was cost-free to him and the church.

Trapp said the Catholic church doesn’t see a moral problem with playing cards or games of chance, within reason.

“It’s a question of moderation — just like anything else,” he said. “We believe it’s fine to enjoy a beer or glass of wine, but not to abuse it to get drunk.”

The Awakening...

By the numbers:

1 the number of full time youth ministers
3 the number of parishes involved with our youth ministry program
11 the average number of tissues used in one week at youth group
13 the number of assistant youth ministers/chaperons
14 the number of retreats that we have coordinated this past year
35 the number of youth who attended the last Blessed Sacrament youth group
51 the number of youth who attended the last Sacred Heart youth group
53 the number of youth who attended the last Saint Andrew youth group
90 the number of people who attended our last Steubenville trip
102 the number of people who attended our Halloween Skating Party last week
217 the number of youth who are active within our youth ministry program
240 the average number of pizza slices consumed in one week by our youth groups
3000 the number of people expected to attend Justin Fatica's youth rally on November 1st

I hope you have enjoyed seeing our youth ministry program broken down by the numbers but remember if we even change one heart and are able to support the faith of even one youth, then we have done our job successfully!

Peace. Jesse

Vatican welcomes Anglicans into Catholic church

ROME, Italy (CNN) -- The Vatican said Tuesday it has worked out a way for groups of Anglicans who are dissatisfied with their faith to join the Catholic Church.

The process will allow groups of Anglicans, including bishops and married priests, to join the Catholic Church some 450 years after King Henry VIII broke from Rome and created the Church of England.

The number of Anglicans wishing to join the Catholic Church has increased in recent years as the Anglican church has welcomed the ordination of women and openly gay clergy and blessed homosexual partnerships, said Cardinal William Joseph Levada, the head of the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

Their talks with the Vatican recently began speeding up, Vatican officials said, leading to Tuesday's announcement.

"The Catholic Church is responding to the many requests that have been submitted to the Holy See from groups of Anglican clergy and faithful in different parts of the world who wish to enter into full visible communion," Levada said.

Levada said "hundreds" of Anglicans around the world have expressed their desire to join the Catholic Church. Among them are 50 Anglican bishops, said Archbishop Joseph Augustine Di Noia of the Congregation for Divine Worship.

Should Anglicans be allowed to join the Catholic Church? Have your say below

The Anglicans will be able to retain their Anglican rites while recognizing the pope as their leader, Vatican officials said. The British monarch is the head of the Anglican Church.

While married Anglican priests may be ordained as Catholic priests, the same does not apply to married Anglican bishops, Levada said.

"We've been praying for this unity for 40 years and we've not anticipated it happening now," Di Noia said. "The Holy Spirit is at work here."

The Church of England said the move ends a "period of uncertainty" for Anglican groups who wanted more unity with the Catholic Church.

Both groups have a "substantial overlap in faith, doctrine and spirituality" and will continue to hold official dialogues, the archbishops of Canterbury and Westminster said in a joint statement.

"Those Anglicans who have approached the Holy See have made clear their desire for full, visible unity in the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church," Levada said. "At the same time, they have told us of the importance of their Anglican traditions of spirituality and worship for their faith journey."

Preserving Anglican traditions, such as mass rites, adds to the diversity of the Catholic Church, he said.

"The unity of the church does not require a uniformity that ignores cultural diversity, as the history of Christianity shows," he said. "Moreover, the many diverse traditions present in the Catholic Church today are all rooted in the principle articulated by St. Paul in his letter to the Ephesians: 'There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism.'"

CNN's Hada Messia contributed to this report.

A Deacon Ross Homily! 10-15

Paul, writing to the Romans, wants one thing to come through – the Good News of Jesus. “I am not ashamed of the Gospel,” Paul tells the Romans in chapter one. “It is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes.”

That is very good news. The gospel is to be understood not as a book, but as the very power of God, the power of Christ, the power of love.

Since everyone has this ability to love, salvation is for everyone who believes and who trust in God and are faithful to living out peace and justice in their lives.

The rightousness or justice of God is revealed from faith to faith. It was only 44 years ago this month that Nostrae Aetatae was written to address the fact “that all humankind is being drawn together, and the ties between different people are becoming stronger.” (NA)

Paul surely understood this idea and was eager to remind people that what can be known about God is evident to them, because God made it evident to them.

There is something in each human person that is pointed towards God and God’s plan of love. Humans can, and often do, know God immediately in their hearts. They know God through created things, through nature, the created order, and of course other humans. There is no excuse for any one of us not to know the power and love of God in each every person.

We have no excuse for rejecting anyone because of race, color, condition of life, or religion. We have no excuse for injustice and no excuse to become idolatrous.

We must be careful not to change the divine order of things: God make us in God’s image and likeness, not the other way around.

We must also be aware that even if we speak about God or Christ or Love, we might be altering the one Gospel, the one that Paul was not ashamed to preach.

We can look to others, those on the outide of our relgious beliefs – the Jews, Muslims, Sikhs, Hindus, Buddists, etc. and point fingers. We can permit language, violence, and hatred towards them, even if we are not directly involved. Why? We can very easliy become vain in our reasoning and our senseless minds can be darkened.

We can also point to those inside our own system of belief – to other Christians, setting up ideas that we are totally against one other. That they have nothing to offer in the way of truth and the Gospel they price is nothing compared to ours.

We can even point to ourselves, those who claim to be Catholic. We can make distinctions between those of the left and those on the right, or between the rich and the poor, the brown and the white. We can justify in our own minds reasons to hate, to put down, to slander others while at the same time claiming to be proclaimers of the Gospel.

We are easily fooled by our own creations. We are easily fooled by the ideas we have – those ideas about how liturgy should be celebrated, who should be allowed to participate in various ministries, who deserves our love and protection, and who deserves to be discriminated against all in the name of Christ.

We should always hold on to our own ideas very lightly, so that God is free to shift them. If we hold to tightly, then we have failed to worship the Creator and have instead decided to worship the creature, our own idols carved by our senseless minds and hearts.

The Pharisee who invited Jesus over for dinner is just one example of someone who places his or her own idea of what God wants before the Gospel, the very power of God, the power of Christ, the power of love.

He thinks he is doing good because he follows the prescriptions and commandments of God and Moses, but Jesus tells him and others that they are filled with plunder and evil.

If only they would give alms, they would be free from their own selfishness and selfish desires because they would be demonstrating the real Gospel of Love.

You fools! Jesus says, you fools!

Is Jesus speaking to us?

A VERY INTERESTING CONVERSATION...

An Atheist Professor of Philosophy was speaking to his Class on the Problem Science has with GOD, the ALMIGHTY. He asked one of his New Christian Students to stand and . . .

Professor : You are a Christian, aren't you, son ?
Student : Yes, sir.
Professor : So, you Believe in GOD ?
Student : Absolutely, sir.
Professor : Is GOD Good ?
Student : Sure.
Professor : Is GOD ALL - POWERFUL ?
Student : Yes.
Professor : My Brother died of Cancer even though he Prayed to GOD to Heal him. Most of us would attempt to help others who are ill. But GOD didn't. How is this GOD good then? Hmm?

(Student was silent)

Professor : You can't answer, can you ? Let's start again, Young Fella. Is GOD Good?
Student : Yes.
Professor : Is Satan good ?
Student : No.
Professor : Where does Satan come from ?
Student : From . . . GOD . . .
Professor : That's right. Tell me son, is there evil in this World?
Student : Yes.
Professor : Evil is everywhere, isn't it ? And GOD did make everything. Correct?
Student : Yes.
Professor : So who created evil ?

(Student did not answer)

Professor : Is there Sickness? Immorality? Hatred? Ugliness? All these terrible things exist in the World, don't they?
Student : Yes, sir.
Professor : So, who Created them ?

(Student had no answer)

Professor : Science says you have 5 Senses you use to Identify and Observe the World around you. Tell me, son . . . Have you ever Seen GOD?
Student : No, sir.
Professor : Tell us if you have ever Heard your GOD?
Student : No , sir.
Professor : Have you ever Felt your GOD, Tasted your GOD, Smelt your GOD? Have you ever had any Sensory Perception of GOD for that matter?
Student : No, sir. I'm afraid I haven't.
Professor : Yet you still Believe in HIM?
Student : Yes.
Professor : According to Empirical, Testable, Demonstrable Protocol, Science says your GOD doesn't exist. What do you say to that, son?
Student : Nothing. I only have my Faith.
Professor : Yes, Faith. And that is the Problem Science has.
Student : Professor, is there such a thing as Heat?
Professor : Yes.
Student : And is there such a thing as Cold?
Professor : Yes.
Student : No, sir. There isn't.

(The Lecture Theatre became very quiet with this turn of events)

Student : Sir, you can have Lots of Heat, even More Heat, Superheat, Mega Heat, White Heat, a Little Heat or No Heat. But we don't have anything called Cold. We can hit 458 Degrees below Zero which is No Heat, but we can't go any further after that. There is no such thing as Cold. Cold is only a Word we use to describe the Absence of Heat. We cannot Measure Cold. Heat is Energy. Cold is Not the Opposite of Heat, sir, just the Absence of it.

(There was Pin-Drop Silence in the Lecture Theater)

Student : What about Darkness, Professor? Is there such a thing as Darkness?
Professor : Yes. What is Night if there isn't Darkness?
Student : You're wrong again, sir. Darkness is the Absence of Something. You can have Low Light, Normal Light, Bright Light, Flashing Light . . . But if you have No Light constantly, you have nothing and its called Darkness, isn't it? In reality, Darkness isn't. If it is, were you would be able to make Darkness Darker, wouldn't you?
Professor : So what is the point you are making, Young Man ?
Student : Sir, my point is your Philosophical Premise is flawed.
Professor : Flawed ? Can you explain how?
Student : Sir, you are working on the Premise of Duality. You argue there is Life and then there is Death, a Good GOD and a Bad GOD. You are viewing the Concept of GOD as something finite, something we can measure. Sir, Science can't even explain a Thought. It uses Electricity and Magnetism, but has never seen, much less fully understood either one. To view Death as the Opposite of Life is to be ignorant of the fact that death cannot exist as a substantive thing. Death is Not the Opposite of Life: just the Absence of it. Now tell me, Professor, do you teach your Students that they evolved from a Monkey?
Professor : If you are referring to the Natural Evolutionary Process, yes, of course, I do.
Student : Have you ever observed Evolution with your own eyes, sir?

(The Professor shook his head with a Smile, beginning to realize where the Argument was going)

Student : Since no one has ever observed the Process of Evolution at work and cannot even prove that this process is an on-going endeavor, are you not teaching your Opinion, sir? Are you not a Scientist but a Preacher?

(The Class was in Uproar)

Student : Is there anyone in the Class who has ever seen the Professor's Brain?

(The Class broke out into Laughter)

Student : Is there anyone here who has ever heard the Professor's Brain, Felt it, touched or Smelt it? No one appears to have done so. So, according to the Established Rules of Empirical, Stable, Demonstrable Protocol, Science says that you have No Brain, sir. With all due respect, sir, how do we then Trust you’re Lectures, sir?

(The Room was Silent. The Professor stared at the Student, his face unfathomable)

Professor : I guess you'll have to take them on Faith, son.
Student : That is it sir . . . Exactly! The Link between Man & GOD is FAITH. That is all that Keeps Things Alive and Moving.

That student was Albert Einstein.

New CD!

Check out Mike Rogers' new CD at:
http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/mrodgersband
Mike is extremely talented and we are blessed to have him in our diocese.

“What do we need to do to inherit eternal life?” Mk 10:17-30 or 10:17-27

This man in the Gospel reading asked a simple question that all of us retain within our hearts. Today’s youth must listen to the words of our precious Lord, living by God’s commandments is not enough… we must put other’s needs before ours. Giving everything to the poor goes much deeper than material items, it means self-sacrifice, volunteering personal time, and helping those in need! We all can get caught up into the “my” world. When we live only for ourselves instead of a deeper love we endanger our salvation. Take a few minutes and pray this simple prayer today; Lord Jesus, “What do we need to do to inherit eternal life?”

The 7 Cries of Today’s Teens

For several years now the Gallup Poll has surveyed thousands of teenagers to discover their most important needs. The seven needs listed below have been in the teen’s “top 10” list for the last 6 years.

1. The need to be trusted. Teens believe that their elders distrust them and regard them as responsible and unpredictable. Teens today want to be taken seriously – and we, as their parents, would be wise to create an environment at home that allows them to earn that trust.
2. The need to be understood and loved. Please note that the teens who responded to the survey did not asked to be “fixed and made whole.” I believe they know their lives are in heavy transition at this point. But the data from the research is clear that teens tend to believe that their elders do not understand them. Teens crave to be listened to and loved . . . preferably by parents or guardians. (And if they don’t get this need met by you, Mom and Dad, they’ll go somewhere else!)
3. The need to feel safe and secure. Say what? Wild, reckless, self-confident teenagers who know no fear need to feel safe? That’s right. They need to know their home is secure and their school is safe. Sadly these days such is not always the case.
4. The need to believe that life is meaningful and has a purpose. Studies show that this is a growing need in the populace as a whole. Society in general is realizing that there are moral absolutes – and I’m convinced that Millennial (pre-teens and teenagers) can be the transitional generation for bringing spiritual revival to the world!
5. The need to be listened to – to be heard. Though this might sound like #2, there’s a huge difference between feeling “understood” and “listened to.” The latter takes time, and the breathless pace we lead our lives doesn’t make that possible. As parents, we need to make sure our kids know they are being listened to and being heard.
6. The need to be appreciated and valued. A poor self-image is a key factor in anti-social behavior . . . just ask the residents of Columbine and Paducah. Roughly one-third of all respondents to the Gallup survey indicated they felt worthless and unappreciated.
7. The need to be supported in their efforts. This means anything from helping with homework to showing up at Little League or soccer games. Its one thing to get your kids involved in a lot of activities; the real benefit to your children, however, is when Mom and Dad also participate.

By and large, teens remain eternally optimistic, particularly about their personal futures. At the same time, however, they are apprehensive about the future of society as they face a host of problems that simply were not on the scene just a few decades ago.

They need you adults to stand in the gap with them. They have a heavy load to bear. But, with God’s help, you can make a difference in their lives. After all . . . you’re not just raising them to be good kids – you’re training them to become responsible adults!

(Excerpted from the book, The Seven Cries of Today’s Teens: Hear Their Hearts, Make the Connection by Tim Smith)

Offspring Video! Pretty neat!

Something to think about....

!!Warning Graphic!! But some need to see this! Texting while driving PSA from England!

Saint Andrew's Lock-in 2009!

Check out our videos from our Saint Andrew's Lock-in this year. Our latest video might make some of you reconsider dancing or singing in public again. I know it did for me! Peace. Jesse
http://www.eriercd.org/vine.asp

The Gospel of Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23

Mark’s gospel tells us the story of Jesus and his disciples eating a meal without the normal Jewish cleansing traditions. Jews wash their hands before and after meals, unlike Christians, Jews say a benediction after their meal instead of before. The Pharisees and scribes found Jesus and his disciples disrespectful and unholy because they were not following certain traditions. Jesus responds with a quote from scripture that explains the rituals without a full heart and spirit are done in vain. We have much to learn from this story. We must pray and be with whole heart when entering into the Mass or even saying a grace before meals. Our precious Lord wants our full attention; remember the Pharisees and scribes went through the motions as well. Enter into prayer and everything thing that we do with a full intention and know that God will draw us closer to His most Sacred Heart. Peace. Jesse

A homily from Deacon Ross

Goldfish will grow as big as the container they are placed in and the food they receive will allow. They may start out small, but if they are given a large fish tank or a pond, they will keep growing to fit their environment. Another interesting fact about goldfish is that they lose their golden color if they are placed in the dark; even overnight, you can notice a change of color. If they are kept in the dark for too long, then they will eventually lose their color altogether and become gray.
The reason I bring up these creatures from the east is that I saw kids winning goldfish at the fair this week. It’s always a great prize to bring home a goldfish, name it and place it in a bowl or fish tank. Then you go to the store and get some goldfish food, those little flakes that keep Mary or Joseph, or whatever one might name a goldfish nowadays, satisfied.
What can goldfish teach us about theology? Well, if Elijah had a goldfish, I wonder how long it would survive. He was chased out into the desert and decided to go to the mountain of God to worship at the site of the covenant. It would take about 40 days and 40 nights to get there and if everything went well, as well as desert travel can go, he would be safely into the desert itself in just a few hours and finally begin his journey through the wilderness. But, after just the first day, Elijah was ready to give up and quit. Elijah would have been concerned for his pet goldfish, he would have known that it needed food and water and the desert is a scary place for most animals. In one sense, Elijah needed the same materials his pet would need and God provided Elijah with bread and water, so much so, that Elijah was able to make the journey and continue being a prophet of God.
If we know how to take care of such a small creature, how much more does God know how to take care of us and our needs?
Jesus, the son of God, knew exactly what the people needed. He knew they needed food and drink and care and concern. He knew they needed to be taken care of so they could flourish and live in the world created for them.
So Jesus tells them, “I am the bread that came down from heaven…” to which they get out poster board and immediately draw a family tree, outlining how Jesus is the son of Joseph and how they know his mother and father…” Jesus tells them to stop murmuring… which apparently works because he then goes on to explain the whole situation. Really, its simple Jesus says, your ancestors, and I know they are your ancestors because they murmured all the time as well about that bread from heaven… these ancestors all died, even though God fed them from heaven. But Jesus says it again, “I am the bread of life…so that you may it and not die, but live forever.”
My sisters and brothers, we are being fed with finest of food. While the world may feel like a giant fish tank where the bigger, more powerful fish get all the food, we are all fed from one source. Our lives are lives of holiness and virtue and peace when we listen to, and feed on, the word of God. In fact, because God’s love for us is so immense and powerful, God feeds us in courses.
This liturgy is the fulfillment of how and why God feeds us. First, we celebrate Mass with two parts, the first part is called, the Liturgy of the Word. It is a feast of the very life of God as recorded in sacred scripture and proclaimed to us through the Holy Spirit. Jesus feeds us first with His words, slowly, quietly, peacefully, we would almost not notice how gently His hand is over us feeding each of us in a way that only he can accomplish.
The second part of Mass is called the Liturgy of the Eucharist. Having heard the word of God and tasted how sweet the very life of God can be, we enter into that word and become that word and eat that word. Jesus is that Word that was made flesh. Jesus is that bread comes down from heaven that really and truly feeds us.
We need not fear that God will forget to feed us or refresh our tired souls when we feel like we have left the safety of the church.
We are God’s beloved children and God wants to feed us regularly with real food and real drink. We must be ready to come to the surface once in a while and take that which is given to us. We must be willing to grow in Christ to fit the situations we are placed in. We must be willing to reflect and radiate the light of Christ in our very bodies, our very flesh to everyone we meet.
A group of goldfish is called a “troubling” – which is also a good word to describe a group of Christians who want to take Jesus seriously. We might do well to trouble others when we speak up about injustices in our places of employment. We might do well to trouble others when we take time to treat others with dignity and respect. We might do well to trouble ourselves when we feel that we cannot go on and yet turn to God, to be our nourishment and strength.
Jesus feeds us and gives us the room to grow into full disciples. Let us take this week ahead to feed our souls as much as we feed our bodies. Recall our common meal prayer: Bless us O Lord and these gifts which we are about to receive, from thy bounty, through Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Theology of Grandparents

Grandparents are a gift from God. Their words are gentle, their intentions are pure, and their love is never ending. Even our Precious Lord had a grandmother, her named was Anne. Think about that for a moment, when Jesus was a toddler, she picked him up when He fell and scraped His knee. She held the baby Mary close late at night and told her a bedtime story. St. Anne's role was a very important one and she embraced it with tender loving care. We need to appreciate our grandparents and their role in our life. Just remember that Grandma's homemade cookies would cure the world of any problems big or small. Grandparents are a gift from God. Peace. Jesse

• Grandmas are moms with lots of frosting. ~Author Unknown
• Grandmothers are just antique little girls. ~Author Unknown
• Grandchildren are God's way of compensating us for growing old. ~Mary H. Waldrip
• If nothing is going well, call your grandmother. ~Italian Proverb
• The best place to be when you're sad is Grandpa's lap. ~Author Unknown

• What is your greatest memory of your grandparents or a grandparent figure?