Get Dignified

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Oh Good Grief, are you going to tell us how to dress now?

No faithful imaginary reader, I am talking about about a slightly higher calling, which may, or may not, affect your attire.

I have been praying a lot about dignity lately. That my new friend Bob would know his own God given dignity, and that those who pass him would be given the grace to see it. I have also been praying for a restoration of my own sense of dignity, something that I only fully realized I should/could posses when I became a Catholic.

One of the main, although less focused on, differences separating the Catholic church and most Protestant denominations, is the belief on whether or not we are born basically good, or rotten from the core. The Church teaches that we are born broken, but basically good; whereas many non-Catholics have bought into Luther's idea that we all kinda suck, but that through Christ's eyes God can see us as good (Luther also gave sermons on his bowel movements, so whadaya expect).

As one who's own self loathing could have garnered a Gold medal at the International Whine Festival, I must confess that it was easy to believe that I was incapable of being good without Christ's intervention (but instead through the image of Himself we were born of). The problem is that of all the absolutely wonderful non-Christian people I have met in my life, who I honestly saw Christ in.

I have seen God's love in the actions of a wonderful Jewish girlfriend who was the first to truly show me unconditional love. I have seen it an AIDS infected friend, who walked with more love and peace for others than I have ever witnessed. I experienced God's love from a "Spiritual" woman I dated who fully respected my desire to be chaste (sadly, in contrast to the first Christian I dated, who accused me of homosexuality, because I wouldn't respond to her physical advances).I saw it in a Muslim customer, who was one of the few people who knew me (barely) that sent flowers to my mom's funeral.. . . .and I could keep going too.

If we are born in God's image, than that must mean that we are born with some of the goodness and love of the Creator. God didn't make us bad, we did. We choose to let the world mold us, and so we develop a worldly mold of self-centered-ness that is not part of God's image of/for us.

Anyhow, my daily struggle is to see the dignity that God sees in me, and to see it in others. To walk in that dignity, and to carry a mirror to help others see their own. Worrying about how others view me ain't gonna do it, and checking out a cute wiggle ain't exactly doing it either (the wiggler has dignity, the wiggle not so much, nor my focus on it).

So today, see yourself as God sees you, and get Dignified!

Please also, pray that Bob and I can reclaim that dignity
which we have freely given away.
thanks and God bless,
mike