Questions

As my first post since I have joined CCFM, I must say that I am very excited where God has called me this year. I cannot fully explain how He has led me here without taking up many paragraphs, so in the interest of your time (and the scary chance you will stop reading my incredible words of wisdom), I won’t try today. I am also thrilled to have this opportunity to write about what God has done and continues to do everyday in our ministries and in our lives.
What you will not find here are simple updates on what games the students enjoyed this week or what food was donated (unless it’s MasFajitas, because that place is just good). What you will find instead is a record of God’s fingerprints throughout our ministries. I hope to tell you what gifts and graces God has shown to us lately, and its affect on myself and these ministries. Well, that pretty much sums up my mission for this blog. In the words of the Black Eyed Peas, let’s get it started.
Journey at St. Mary’s Catholic Church began on September 5th, almost two months ago. We have already covered such topics as “Who is God?” “Who Is Jesus?” “What is Sacred Scripture?” “What is the Trinity?” Simple stuff really, and the students had been learning so much, so I decided to give them a break last week. The week before last, I had the small group leaders (our unbelievably goodhearted volunteers) collect questions from the students so that I could know what they wanted to learn about. They could ask any question concerning God or our faith. While I did have some excellent questions that were easily answered like “Does the devil have horns?” (No) and “Does God have a nickname?” (G-Delux), the majority of the questions wanted to know what the purpose of life is. This is, of course a much bigger question compared to asking for God’s nickname.
And believe it or not, as I began to explain the purpose of life, more and more questions were asked (is there a sarcasm font?). It seemed that as soon as I explained something, they wanted to know more. I also have a friend who is not Catholic, but has begun to ask me questions concerning the Church and God due to natural curiosity. So the past couple of weeks, I’ve found myself in the midst of some fairly big question marks. Now I pride myself on having a sizable knowledge of Church teaching and if I do not know something, I will find out, but what I found inspiring in these circumstances is the childlike inquisition we all share. It does not matter what state of life we are in or came from, we will constantly ask questions and seek answers. Doesn’t this prove God’s infinite love for us? Why else would we have a constant desire for truth? We know food exists, because we become hungry. We know water exists, because we become thirsty. We know God exists, because we have an innate desire for truth. As St. Edith Stein, who was an incredible philosopher and martyred at Auschwitz, said, “Anyone who seeks truths seeks God, whether or not he realizes it.”
So should we not continue to ask questions? We would never have answers unless someone had not asked a question (and yes I was once a philosophy major). Whether you are a youth minister, a catechist, a parent, or basically human, do not be afraid of questions. Do not be afraid to ask them. Do not be afraid to answer them. Do not be afraid to google how to spell transubstantiation. I am very young compared to the countless ministers, catechists, and Christians across the globe, but I have never once doubted the gift Christ gave me in sealing me with His Holy Spirit, namely Wisdom and Understanding. Rely on the source of truth, who is God Himself. Remember that no question is unanswerable with a prayer and the Catechism of the Catholic Church.