Good Morning Friends & Digital Neighbors! Hello ADD Irregulars, Curmudgeons & Vagabonds of the Weird Shit Niche! Hey there Rubin Report Refugees, Phamily, and all you other outliers of the internet! We come to our final O Antiphon: Emmanuel — God with us. It is the name Jesus never gets called, even though Christians claim that’s exactly who He is. Obviously not everyone subscribes to the God-Man. (No subscription fee, but He does expect a life of conversion and discipleship.) Jesus or no Jesus, I hope you acknowledge some sort of Higher Power—something or someone higher than yourself in your life. If the face staring back at you in the mirror is your higher good, your higher power, shooting for the stars is probably not your thing. Narcissist much?

I can’t imagine any human going through life without a higher purpose. Far too many people seem to live with nothing greater than personal preference, the emotions of the moment, and the imposition of their will on whatever (or whoever) is in their path. I think such a life can leave people content in a greyscale sort of way, but the vibrancy of life will be missed—and I doubt it will ever be known. Even as I type this, I realize I could be among the self-deceived and delusional. Still, I think the rest of my life and conversations show some rationality and reason. (I know it’s limited and certainly questionable if you spend enough time with me.) Again, this is not stealth proselytizing. Everyone has their own path, guided by their own navigational system and the questions they’re willing to ponder.

We all ought to do some wrestling with the Mysterium in the dark hours of the night. It can be life-changing; it was for Jacob of biblical fame. That contentious twin was renamed Israel by the Divine. The Mysterium seems much happier with contentious seeking souls than with lip-servicing lackeys who say yes but never act on it. The doing matters far more than the thinking, and infinitely more than the feeling. God & Nike: Just Do It! Take me home 1988!

I don’t think the Divine wants non-stop contention. Some people never know when to celebrate the win, accept the arrival, and must find a new battle and a new hill. There comes a point when the battle is to maintain and secure what we treasure rather than to find another injustice to fight. (SJWs aren’t even mentioned much these days—they’ve been so thoroughly parasitized by WOKE activism that the term itself has faded.)

God with us. GOD—a lot of weight in those three letters for a Being that may not exist. I of course do believe, but I know many more who don’t, or who—if they do believe—treat it as something that doesn’t really matter. Again, no judgment, but there is a puzzled disappointment when people believe in something that doesn’t actually change anything. I guess I’d be asking: why bother? Sixty to seventy percent of Catholics don’t show up for worship, which should be the natural response once you’ve really received the message. God doesn’t need worship; His children do. Worship is the cultivating of our hearts to yield a harvest in this life and the next. It is acknowledging the Divine. In Cath-O-Land, there is a dance of humble contrition, attentive listening, grateful remembering, and mystical communion for those with open hearts and awakened souls.

Sure, there are commandments—every family has them—but transformation and imitation are the real work of worship, faith, and spirituality. Those are three different realities, but all interconnected. People often complain about religion and all the problems it has brought to the world. Might I suggest a more honest and humble target: humanity. Religion is just the tool when humanity goes on the warpath, when darker currents move our hearts. The real good of worthwhile religion is its ability to transform those darker realities, not justify them. Let that be your measuring stick for a religion’s worth. Look at what they profess to aspire to be, not what some fail to live up to. Good religions will have scandals; bad religions are a scandal. Sinful humanity is the common challenge.

Almost Merry Christmas! I hope there is some brush with joy, some small taste of peace, the presence of a few vibrant souls who accept you as you are—warts and all. Blessed Advent and Happy Tuesday dear neighbors!