Peregrination Meditation

peregrination (noun) 1: An act of traveling or traversing 2: A travel or journey, notably by a pilgrim 3: The period of a human's life on earth meditation (noun) 1: The act or process of meditating 2: A devotional exercise of or leading to contemplation In short, a reflection on my journey, both of my life and my religion

[raskdishwasher]

It occurred to me that St. John the Baptist is the perfect patron for my summer job(camp lifeguard), as he is known for standing in a natural body of water while loudly haranguing people to get their act together.

[peregrinationmeditation]

And then he goes on to convince himself that God, the infinite, the transcendent, is also a “thing,” an “object,” like other finite and limited objects of our thought!

- New Seeds of Contemplation (excerpt) by Thomas Merton

The Tao that can be trodden is not the enduring and unchanging Tao. The name that can be named is not the enduring and unchanging name.

- Tao Te Ching (excerpt) by Lao-tzu, J. Legge, Translator

If I didn't know Merton was aware of and had studied Eastern religion, that excerpt would heavily hint at it to me. Feels very similar to that section of the Tao Te Ching to me.

[peregrinationmeditation]

Contemplation is the highest expression of man’s intellectual and spiritual life. It is that life itself, fully awake, fully active, fully aware that it is alive. It is spiritual wonder. It is spontaneous awe at the sacredness of life, of being. It is gratitude for life, for awareness and for being. It is a vivid realization of the fact that life and being in us proceed from an invisible, transcendent and infinitely abundant Source. Contemplation is, above all, awareness of the reality of that Source. - New Seeds of Contemplation (excerpt) by Thomas Merton

[peregrinationmeditation]

Alright, got my first lector reading this Sunday. I'm excited. I love reading out loud. I used to belong to a speech club long ago and really enjoyed it so this, knock on wood, shouldn't be nerve wracking.

[peregrinationmeditation]

That did not go well. Was running late, forgot I had to check in, and did not get to read. 😥 Oh well, I know better for next time.

[peregrinationmeditation]

Alright, got my first lector reading this Sunday. I'm excited. I love reading out loud. I used to belong to a speech club long ago and really enjoyed it so this, knock on wood, shouldn't be nerve wracking.

[creekfiend]

I think a lot of this 'religion is necessarily oppressive' stuff honestly is kind of like the confusion about ppl thinking that like, slavery and scientific racism and etc came about BECAUSE OF beliefs that Black people etc were not fully human rather than those beliefs -- those ARGUMENTS, really -- being JUSTIFICATIONS that were invented to allow white ppl to continue to engage in slavery which was at its core about economic exploitation. Like that most systemic bigotry serves a Useful Purpose to those in power and that's why it exists; the policies aren't put in place because of the beliefs. The cart isn't pulling the horse. Christian stuff was used to justify the same things that later, "scientific progress" was used to justify in the west (e.g. scientific racism, eugenics, etc. Very very very much rooted in the idea of certain beliefs and cultures as inherently more rational and forward thinking because BEING RATIONAL AND VALUING SCIENTIFIC PROGRESS WERE CULTURAL VALUES AT THE TIME.) (This does not say anything about Science. It says things about Institutes and power and oppression.)

Similarly, you see a lot of people saying "well religion is used to justify oppression by the people in power" and its like yes. Religion is not unique. Beliefs about what is true about the world -- ideology -- can always be used to do this and frequently is.

When there are common beliefs held by a majority of people in a given culture those beliefs will be used by the people in power to explain and justify the things they do to maintain power and control in society.

This isn't a function of religion. It's a function of power.

When people say "well, this religious rhetoric is/was used to justify misogynistic legal standards in this society" the answer is yep. And if it wasn't that it would be something else because that society had an investment in that specific kind of oppression of women. We have seen this morph into 'rational' 'scientific' explanations for women's inferiority and justifications for making women second class citizens once the cultural values swing more towards rationality and science, as well. Thats... regular.

Like... love to have a good faith convo about this with someone who doesn't get weird and reactionary about "Religious People" but sure not seeing much of that going on. Weirdly.

Anyway.

[chamerionwrites]

#i think this can be a tough pill to swallow bc it necessarily involves#accepting that your secular ideology and philosophy can be exploited just as easily for violence and harm#as religious ideology can#because thats humans babey#fascinating also to me is the phenomenon of people believing that bc they do not subscribe to any beliefs that they see as#''religious'' or ''spiritual'' they are immune to magical thinking of any sort.#i promise you that is not true in the slightest.#and also the things that we each identify as SILLY AND OBVIOUSLY UNTRUE FAIRY TALE SHIT is... culturally determined hee hee#im sorry to tell u that no one is objective about reality. thats rough buddy!

[langernameohnebedeutung]

Schism? Schism today?

[langernameohnebedeutung]

🍿

[turuin]

Wow, I didn't have "catholic schism" on my 2026 bingo card

[mygogglesdosomething]

Schism today

[westiec]

for the record: these are not some cool 'fuck the man' rebels with a funky throwback preference for Latin

this is a bunch of antisemitic fascists (literally) who think the catholic church got too woke and needs to RETVRN to acting as a state religion with an official policy of violent suppression of every non-catholic person, who they consider subhuman

From their Profession of Faith:

This is why I profess that those who govern society must submit to the salutary influence of the Church, which enlightens minds through her Magisterium, heals and strengthens wills through the grace of the sacraments, and directs man towards his true supernatural destiny, of which she is the guardian. The good of society consequently demands that heads of state recognize their right and duty to favour and protect the holy Church, and likewise to oppose by the laws of their government whatever would obstruct her necessary influence, which is that of the one true religion.

and

I likewise hold that, although man possesses an ontological dignity which raises him above material beings, the human dignity to be respected is not indifferent to the truth and error professed by persons, nor to the good and evil they accomplish: he who professes error or does evil forfeits his moral dignity. This is why legitimate authority in no way attacks human dignity when it punishes crimes according to the demands of justice, by proportionate penalties, in order to defend the common good against grave disorders.

(emphasis mine; "professes error" here = "is not catholic")

That it took this long for the catholic church to cut them off is embarrassing.

[aprillikesthings]

One day and three hours until @bluedandylyon's plane is supposed to land, and both of us have confessed to being too excited to sleep, which means we're both currently wired AND sleepy

Thoughts and prayers for Azul to get here safely and without hassle are appreciated

[aprilsjesusblogging]

[biglawbear]

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; he leadeth me beside the still waters.

He—wait. Why dost the Lord hath clippers.

[biglawbear]

The Lord sheareth me.

[teaboot]

“Jesus Shaves”

[notaplaceofhonour]

kinda hate the (almost exclusively pejorative) term “organized religion”, as if the only form of religion is some kind of diy spirituality you do by yourself. kind of hyper-individualistic really.

and a big fuck-you to religions where their entire thing is being community-focused.

tf did a minyan ever do to you?

[psalms-and-spells]

This image actually came from an anti-Catholic blog that purposely tags wrong, but I find that it brings me comfort. It does not matter how many times you reach out. He will be there for you. Again and Again.

[lilyofthemohawks]

God made the world for us to frolic upon it, literally made it all because he adores us. Creation is literally a love letter.

[johnprinetimetv]

I love this sentiment and! Also! It’s the opposite! God made this earth with its skies and water and critters and still felt like there was something missing. So God made us in the divine image. This world wasn’t made for us, WE were made for this world, and that’s just so cool

[peregrinationmeditation]

Listen, I know this is right but calling Joseph the legal father just strikes me as a weird way to put it.

[sacredheart-stigmata]

damn that Acts 9 am i right?

[demigirl-in-christ]

according to my catholic calendar, St Paul is a patron saint of writers and authors. does that also make him a patron saint of fanfic writers by way of transitive property?

[peregrinationmeditation]

Absolutely. A fanfic writer is still a writer, just of a more specialized type of writing.

[holymagdalenes]

"There's no hope for the future." And that's how they felt during the Atomic Age, during the World Wars, during the Enlightenment Revolutions, during thr plagues, during the Viking raids, during the fall of Rome.

Yet, we persisted.

[ave-immaculata]

[letmetakeastabatit]

CS Lewis had something to say about this

[peregrinationmeditation]

“LGBTQ people do not need the church’s permission to be loved by God. They never have. The work of the church is not to stand between God and the people. It is to help people discover God, to unveil love, and to open wide the paths to love and dignity.”

— Dean Katie Churchwell