Things Every Catholic Teen Should Do

     Hello! I'd like to say that of course this list can't hold everything that everyone thinks a Catholic teen should do. This is just my own personal take, I would even say it's sort of a bucket list for me. Well I probably shouldn't keep you waiting too long. On with the list!

-Come and see a religious order. (There's many to choose from!)

http://vocations-syracuse.org/ 

-Pray the Morning Offering every morning

http://www.catholicspringtime.com/large-size-cards/morning-offering-prayer-card-LARGE.html 

-Make at least one holy hour every week

http://www.stbrendansatl.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/adoration.jpg 

-Try to attend daily mass whenever you are able to. (And every Sunday no matter what).

http://daybreaktv.org/RegularProgramming/TheDailyMass.aspx 

-Spend at least 15-30 minutes everyday to learn something new about the Catholic faith.

http://www.aboutcatholics.com/beliefs/the-role-of-the-catechism-of-the-catholic-church/

-Attend the March for Life wherever you are able to, whether it be in Washington D.C. or your state capitol. 

http://www.olmcumberland.org/right-to-life-2014/

-Use every opportunity that you have to share and stand up for your faith.

http://www.stpeterslist.com/3834/i-stand-with-the-catholic-church-10-pictures-in-defense-of-the-church/ 

Our Lady of La Vang/ Marian Days Mobile Background

I took many pictures at Marian Days! And my devotion to the Blessed Mother has increased daily. So I wanted to share the photo I edited to have an Our Lady of La Vang and Marian Days phone background. Feel free to download and use for your person use, and I hope you like it!

Marian Days

     Maybe you've heard of Marian Days, maybe you haven't. Either way, this blog post will give you a little bit more knowledge on this lovely event. To start off, it's held in Carthage, Missouri every year around the first week of August. It takes place on the grounds of the Congregation of the Mother Co - Redemptrix. Thousand and thousands of Vietnamese Catholics gather at Marian Days every year for this event.
     Usually it starts on a Thursday an opening mass, but if you're unable to make it to that one on time, there's another mass for souls later at night. There's been about 80,000 people at the recent years, but I'm sure that the amount will increase over time. There's multiple masses throughout the next few days of the event which lasts until Sunday morning. Throughout the week there are speakers for families, adults, and youth. I can't even begin to count how many religious orders are there, to even participate or to showcase their order. Wherever you go, you'll see people excited about not only the Vietnamese culture, but also about their Catholic faith. For many, they were refugees or first-generation immigrants. This event brings many Vietnamese Catholics together to celebrate who they are as Vietnamese Catholic.
     Of course this doesn't mean that others who aren't in the two general groups cannot attend. Anyone can come!! The local Knights of Colombus have a stand where they sell food. And I almost forgot, there's plenty of places to enjoy authentic Vietnamese food and cuisune. Before I forget to mention, there's also plenty of places where you can get smoothies and other wonderful cold drinks for the hot weather. There's also many talks given both in Vietnamese and English for everyone there. Another great thing is that there's usually always confession avaliable, either outside or near the adoration chapel avaliable in English and Vietnamese! Also, there are wonderful spaces to visit such as the area for the stations of the cross, or the garden with names of deceased ones. Usually on Saturday night, there's a concert from either of the two Vietnamese entertainment companies, Paris by Night or Asia. 

     I personally enjoy the shops that are avaliable. They range from religious books to tiny keychains, to fans or to personalized mugs. My personal favorite is all the t-shirts avaliable! There's so much to be done at Marian Days and so much to learn more about the Catholic faith and Vietnamese culture. I'd say one huge negative is the bathroom lines. Usually you wouldn't see bathroom lines of thirty or forty people for both men and women. But it's alright since it's a time to be more spiritually aware than anything else.

     Overall, these couple of days are a time for renewal and appreciation. Many first-generation immigrants will be thankful for the opportunity that we have given to us by our parents and grandparents' sacrifice. We learn more about the Vietnamese culture, and another reminder to look back at ourselves to see if we're the best that we can be. It's time spent with family and friends, for some, it may even be a time to discern. Whatever a person's purpose is of being at Marian Days, everyone's invited!

Reflection on "Son of God" movie (past assignment of mine)

I was looking through my homework from my sophomore year and I found this assignment which was to reflect on the movie "Son of God" that we watched in class. Hope you enjoy my reflection.

     I really enjoyed the movie Son of God and I think it did a good job of portraying the ministry and life of Jesus. After watching most of the movie, I felt guilty for my sins being one of main causes of Jesus’ death. I went to Stations of the Cross later one of the days and being able to connect the stations with the gospels and some scenes from the movie created really gave me a better understanding of Jesus’ love for us that he would suffer in order to save us from sin. The parts with the Sanhedrin and Caiaphas were interesting because we were able to see what they could’ve talked about. While watching the movie, I was able to reflect on some feelings that Jesus must’ve had while going through his last years on Earth. I didn’t like the actors and actresses very much, especially the person who portrayed the Virgin Mary.
     I don’t think this movie was exactly accurate and some lines from the gospels were adjusted, but I was still able to enjoy the movie. I felt that the first half had scenes with transitions that didn’t work very well, but during the second half, it seemed to get better. I think that the overall movie was a beautiful production and it seemed to be somewhat accurate with the gospels. Some things were put together such as the parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector was when Jesus was calling Matthew to follow him. One thing I found intriguing was the fact that Jesus’ mother Mary had not followed him everywhere, but the second time we see her in the movie is when she is told that Jesus has returned.  I really liked the beauty of the film and especially the portrayal of the power of Jesus such as when Jesus met Barabbas.
     This movie made me appreciate the great sacrifice the Father made by sending his only Son for us. I think that everytime I consider doing something not right, I should remember that my sins cause a heavier cross for Jesus and they cause Jesus’ crucifixion. I enjoyed watching an interesting portrayal of Jesus’ life and the important parables and moments in the gospels. It was a great film that powerfully shows Jesus’ life and especially during his years of ministry. This film is one that I would want to watch again, and I think it’s great for the Lenten season!

Female Altar Servers? Women Being "Ordained"?

Certainly, there have been numerous debates among the Catholic community everywhere on different topics. The one topic I’d like to discuss today is the topic of female altar servers. I’d like to first say that this could be very controversial and each person may have their own opinions, but in this blog post, I’d like to talk about my own experience as one and my views. Thank you, and I hope you will read this blog post in its entirety.

    I grew up in a parish in the Diocese of Winona, and female altar servers were very normal to me. My older female and male cousins were at one point servers, so it just seemed like a very normal ministry in my church that I could do. After receiving my First Holy Communion at age seven in second grade, I had to wait until I was in 3rd grade in order to be trained as a server. I remember the first time I was being taught how to serve and how anxious and nervous I was on the first mass I was to serve at. My parents constantly reminded me that the altar was very sacred and I had to be extremely respectful and reverent.

    My experience as an altar server was not only limited to Sunday masses, but I started attending daily mass in which I participated in serving everyday. The congregation who attended mass never said anything about how females shouldn’t serve, so I still found females altar serving to be very normal. I expanded my daily mass ministry by playing piano or organ for a communion reflection, and then returning to serve afterwards. I was surrounded by people who never said a thing about why females shouldn’t serve at mass.

    When I was a freshman in high school, I attended a High School Immersion at a religious sisters’ house of formation. It was in a different diocese than my own and there was no one else from my diocese there. It was there that I learned so many other young females my age had the thought that females shouldn’t be serving at mass. It was very eye-opening and all though the view on the subject was very different from mine, I still appreciated and tried to understand their view.

After that retreat, I spent time looking up the topic and reasons why females shouldn't be altar servers. Among those reasons, one that stood out to me was that altar serving was to try and inspire vocations to the priesthood to males. There's concern that females might interfere with that vocation, or that they themselves might think it's possible for females to become priests. I didn't quite agree with the thought since I myself had never had the intentions or belief that females can be ordained in the Catholic Church. My cousin is a seminarian in our diocese, so I've gotten to know some seminarians quite well...and let me tell you, I support the priesthood more and more everyday. I pray for those in the seminary, and I take any opportunity to explain to people why women shouldn't be ordained.

I do understand that female altar servers are still a topic of discussion within and outside the Catholic Church. I think the main point is the difference of the diocese. If a girl grows up in an environment where female altar servers are the norm, there is a very small percentage that the girl will think that females altar serving is wrong. I personally have decreased my time altar serving and have instead played piano/organ during daily mass for communion, or accompanying on Sundays.

The few points I wanted to make was that not all female altar servers think that women should be ordained. I think that altar serving was something that brought me closer to God and a clearer understanding of my vocation. Because of the close proximity to the Eucharist, I've found myself more conscious of the actions, thoughts, and things that I say. In a way, I could say that altar serving has brought me to be more open about becoming a religious sister. Although, there's still a lot of time and prayer before I know what God is truly calling me to be, I and many other female altar servers know that ordination to the priesthood is not one of them.
Please let me know your thoughts in the comments :)

~VibrantCatholic

Culture of Life Group!

Hello everyone!
I hope everyone has had a lovely day whenever you are reading this blog post. I am currently writing this post with finals a week away, but there is something very exciting I wanted to talk to everyone about!
It's been an idea of mine for awhile to start some type of pro-life group or a group promoting the culture of life in general. I wasn't sure whether it was something God wanted me to do...but one day (3/11/2015 to be specific) I went into my school's chapel to spend some time in prayer and was praying to God about the group. When I left to use the restroom, I had not noticed any bugs or insects in the chapel. After taking a rosary from the book stand in the outside of the chapel, I went back inside the chapel and was about to kneel down. Then, I saw a bug on the ground and found it strange...I'm not really a fan of bugs, so when I saw this bug where I was going to kneel down, I almost killed it. But stopped.
I thought about the mission of the group I wanted to create. It was to protect life of all living things, and that counted bugs. Then I made a connection that maybe when a unexpected pregnant woman thinks that she feels threatened or not alright because of her child, she will want to kill the child in order to provide "safety" for herself. I felt at that moment, it could be connected to why I wanted to kill the bug in order to cause me ease, but that was not the correct thing to do. We need to let everything a chance to live, because that is what is deserved and entitled.
Anyways, back to the group...it is happening!!! I discussed the ideas with my friends and we've brought it up with our campus ministry, and it should become an official group next school year :) I am so thankful that everything is working out. In our group, we wanted to protect all life and promote the culture of life. I am so excited to share this wonderful news with everyone. Since my city still has a Planned Parenthood, I am hoping that with this Respect for Life group, we will be taking another step in the movement towards a culture of life.

~Thao-Vy

Pro-Life in Korean Drama, "Hogu's Love/Fool's Love"

     Well, since this is a new blog, I'd like to introduce myself. My name is Thao-Vy, currently 15 years ago.

(May contain spoilers...DOES contain spoilers)

     That was a short introduction, but a longer one can happen later because today I'd like to introduce to everyone a wonderful show. The name of this show, more specifically, Korean drama is called Hogu's Love a.k.a Fool's Love. What is this Korean drama (kdrama) about you may ask? Well, our main two characters are Hogu and Do Hee. These two have known each other since high school although they didn't keep in touch later on in life.
     When we start getting into the show, we see that Do Do Hee is now a professional swimmer, but is not contempt with her monotonous silver medals. Hogu on the other hand, is an artist and animator, although not very successful, he smiles freely at everyone. After several new encounters between the two, Do Do Hee recommends that they go to the seaside. Hogu, being the fool his name indicates (in Korean), kindly agrees and they go to a sea in South Korea.
     During the time there, Do Hee says multiple things and does actions that indicates to the viewer that she's most likely pregnant. Do Hee tells Hogu to smoke so that the "thing" inside of her will go away, she screams to the sea to "take it away! Take it away!" The next day, she informs Hogu she is staying for a surgery, but while they are on the bus, they are robbed by a woman with a baby. Do Hee confronts the woman in the bathroom, only to hear that the woman would rather do these things than to abandon her child.
     Now this is where I'll speed ahead and talk about the rest ahead of the drama and the pro-life ideas and themes in this drama. After watching the entire drama we learn that Do Hee was actually sexually assaulted by a fellow swimmer. Even through that hatred for the one who hurt her, she didn't get an abortion. She went to the abortion clinic, but the conversation with the woman who robbed people, but wouldn't abandon her child, Do Hee leaves the hospital.
     She goes into hiding, and not even her coach can find her. The only person that can is Ho Gu and someone who Ho Gu mistakes is the one who got Do Hee pregnant. In the end, when Do Hee and Ho Gu are finally a couple, Do Hee is worried that Ho Gu will hate the baby in the future, but Ho Gu denies and they decide to get married and raise the child. Do Hee is an example of someone who chose to keep her own child even though she was raped and her career was on the line. We see examples of people who would do anything in order to provide their children with a better life, such as the woman that stole, but would later allow her child to be adopted.