"You're all @$%& stupid." My letter to my generation.

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Hello, all.

If the title of this post is overly offensive (though let it be known the symbolled-out curse word was original and intentional) I have no objections to its alteration.

However, the title has a point to it.

I'm 21. After having walked the Camino de Santiago, and having gotten to speak with many, many people within ten years of my own age, I really do believe that the world is in trouble and is far more in need of prayers than, perhaps, I believed before.

Most--and I really do believe it is a vast majority--of young people my age or within ten years of it share the following ideas:

-(Casually blurted) "I'm not religious" or "I believe in all religions" (Which for all purposes equals "I'm not religious"). -Homosexual unions, acts, ideas, behavior, expressions, media, legal priviledges, etc. are fine, even good. -Contraceptives are absolutely GOOD and the Church needs to endorse them. -Waiting for marriage before sex is unheard of. -Abortions are, at worst, unfortunate necessities for some people. They'll get over it. People who fight them only make things worse.

And so, without further do, I say to everybody my age who adopts any or all of the above statements: You're all @$%& stupid. And I mean exactly that.

You've all @$%&'ed your brains out. Your heads are all totally empty; all of your thinking happens behind the fly of your jeans. You are completely deaf to the historically grounded, natural, and human teaching of the Holy Catholic Church, because they (perhaps unfortunately) require a brain + some chastity to understand (and the grace of God, which you would do well to accept it since he's been trying to give it to you since you were born).

As a part of a systematic program of "thinking for ones-self", my generation has summarily rejected all of the wisdom and example of all human history that came before. It has traded this for being "on the cutting edge", which actually means treading the shallow surface of very deep waters, where the only people to imitate are each other, which, ironically, is why everybody in my generation seems to "spontaneously" generate the same trite @$%& stupid ideas and parade them around as if they invented them.

None of this will change, and I suspect that if something radical doesn't happen, the world will be run by these people. (Incidentally, Nietzche was right to believe that democracy is stupid.)

Not that it makes any difference--and for that matter, this whole thing is more likely a product of my bitter mood than any measured sociological opinion--but I have the following suggestions for anyone my age who is a victim of the world's lies. If you want to _really_ be different, or have any sort of radical, productive, humanity-saving, world-benefitting ideas, do the following:

1.) Disabuse yourself completely of any idea that "good sex", or any sex, or any access to sex, or anything of the sort is necessary or demanded of the human condition. Honestly, if people just stopped $%&@# so much, maybe a quarter of my generation (and a half of the next) wouldn't be aborted. Maybe civil authorities would have more power to keep unprincipled atheistic homosexual activists under control. Maybe people wouldn't care about Humanae Vitae because, eh, they're not @#$%&!!!

2.) Disabuse yourself completely of any idea that any of your ideas actually came from or started with you. You're a zombie, a drone, a clone, a factory-made, ready-to-buy-and-feed-sex-starved-capitalism profit-unit! You're a sheep, whether you like it or not (and consider the idea that Jesus is a far kinder shepherd than your current butcher).

¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬

OK, enough of the anger. You know, this stuff has been making me loose sleep for two nights, and I know there's something really flawed about all of this (it's not the sort of thing a saint would write) but I just gotta tell you, I'm really afraid that the world's going to Hell and the next century is only going to be worst than the last. I know, we're told, "seek not such much to be consolled as to console," but I could really use some consolation; or at least someone to tell me to get off my darn soap box and realize that I'm just being a self-righteous pig.

But I can't help but to feel that the only kind of hope that's possible is hope against all reasonable odds.

In love and care,

-- Skoobouy (skoobouy@hotmail.com), August 03, 2003

Answers

What can I say? I see it all the time, too, and I don't speak out enough against it.

I'm sorry.

You are an inspiration, Skoobouy. I'll pray for courage.

-- Catherine Ann (catfishbird@yahoo.ca), August 03, 2003.


Yes, as an old black man I know recently said, "We're raising a generation of lost kids." What comes after Generation X? I dunno, but it sure is scary! 1st graders smoking pot and discussing gay sex. 2nd and 3rd graders "dating" and trying things out. Sometimes I think evil has so penetrated our culture that the only way God can deal with it is "scorched earth".

But for every one soul we save from the fires of hell, ALL the angels rejoice, Christ rejoices with dancing, and Mary and the Saints weep for joy! Can't give up!!!

Gail

-- Gail (rothfarms@socket.net), August 03, 2003.


this is all so true, and if you extrapolate out there is nothing but evil.

the solution must surely involve identifying the source of the problem; but my sad conclusion is that it is source in our basic human nature. its only human to be lazy, greedy,.......

but that is, IMHO, fed primarily by the media and big business. everything from Disney to McDonalds prey, in particular, on our young. children dressing like Britney Spears (ie like a prostitute) eating rubbish and getting fat. parents too busy comforting themselves to take the harder road.

at least we no longer send kids up chimneys or treat non-white races as animals anymore; but society is simply losing the plot at an alarming rate.

stay on the soap box.

-- Ian (ib@vertifgo.com), August 03, 2003.


It isn't a matter of stupidity, it's a matter of the will. People choose this life over the next.

While you're at the knifepoint of admitting reality, perhaps it would be a particularly good time to put in yet another boring, worn-out and irritating plug for a return to traditional Catholicism.

Did that sound forced? =)

-- Emerald (emerald1@cox.net), August 03, 2003.


It probably isn't that bad, Skoobouy. People change. And the world is probably getting more conservative (compared to the sixties?).

-- Stephen (StephenLynn999@msn.com), August 03, 2003.


"Let the one who is without sin among you cast the first stone"

Peace be with you Skoobouy.

-- Kiwi (csisherwood@hotmail.com), August 04, 2003.


Skoobouy,

I appreciate your post and honor your heart as one who's speaking to his generation.

Speaking as a parent, this is a struggle that burdens most faithful parents every day. When I was growing up, the pressures and temptations on kids to sin was present, but not like today. Kids are now bombarded with immoral messages and the battle for their souls is just that, a very real battle.

It is all the more important for today's parents to be real and uncompromising about their faith. Parents need to know what's right versus wrong, and be able to explain that clearly to their children and be able to live out as an example. Kids can't just here that God will send them to Hell if they sin. It's imperative to teach about the reality of Hell and the consequences of sin, but it's just as important to teach and model Jesus to them and the reality of what sin does to our relationship with Him and the reasons WHY sin is bad.

When older kids want to know why God doesn't want them to have sex before marriage, parents need to teach them why from multiple angles: diseases that can cause death, making babies, becoming one flesh with someone who is not your spouse, the emotional and spiritual ties that are created in sex, the nature of a covenant and why we need to honor covenants both with God and man, the fact that sex is the consummation of a covenant - not a few minutes of pleasure, the love we have or Jesus and the desire we need to have to please Him and to keep ourselves pure for His sake as well as our own - we were bought with a price and our bodies do not belong just to ourselves.

If we as parents work hard to help our children understand the ramifications of sin and the reasons why we need to avoid it, kids will be empowered to make the right decisions.

In a day in which the culture that surrounds kids undermines everything that parents teach, parents then need to recognize that threat and battle for their kids souls with more perseverance than ever. As I stated on an earlier thread, if we don't indoctrinate our children into the truth and Heaven, the world will indoctrinate them into falsehood and Hell.

And biggest component in this battle is something our sister Theresa is always reminding us of - INTERCESSION. Like Job, we need to be interceding before God's throne for our children.

Prayer, speaking the truth clearly and patiently, and living our lives to love and nuture our children in the admonition of the Lord is the recipe for Godly success.

Dave

-- non-Catholic Christian (dlbowerman@yahoo.com), August 04, 2003.


-yup...

add divorce/annulment to your list -more iterations...

Daniel

-- Daniel Hawkenberry (dlm@catholic.org), August 04, 2003.


Calling people stupid ain't the answer friends. Gail at least your post has redemption!!!! Let's go to Hebrews 12:2!!!!!!!

Yes it's pretty bad out there, but it's also pretty good. And let's go to 11 corinthians 4:7-18... now before I'm accused of being falsely pious and having my head in the sand...I can speak from brokenness.. I'm not seperated from suffering, I'm facing some crisis in my own immediate family {Gail knows... I'm not free yet to publicly speak them out yet}.. but there is hope and victory in Christ, and let's not forget it!!!

In John 17 He prays for us, He intercedes for us, He says when we are unified He will come. I believe this unification is on its way. The word is getting out, people are hungering for God, I believe the Lord is about something, He's about something big, and we are on the verge of a season of conversion, and SHAKING UP. And we need to be ready to move from a position for prayer. As our brother Dave implies, a position of intercession.

Now how can we intercede {as Moses did for his leprous sister, Marion}, unless we have a HEART for the people, a heart pleading for their forgiveness and for God's mercy on them!!! Oh God forgive their stupidity! Lift the veil so they can see truth. We come against this enemy, this liar in Jesus' Name! And we claim our children for God!

We know the end of the story folks, and Jesus' prayer is that NONE WOULD PERISH!!! So we need to align ourselves with His compassion and will to save, to save every last soul. There's no one yet outside of His love. In the end, when all is done, and He wills to return, then we can relax and all is His, He will judge. And we pray none will perish, every knee will bow and tongue confess, every evil heart will see Him as He is, and justice will be done by the King.

I know it can get discouraging, let's not lose hope. We lift each other up. Theresa

-- Theresa Huether (RodnTee4Jesus!@aol.com), August 05, 2003.


AMen, Theresa youre a woman who actually understands her faith.

This is one of the most dissapointing and "un Catholic" threads ever. I can understand a 21 year old boy finding his feet in the world but the puritan doom and gloomers who tagged along offering nothing from our faith to help Skoobouy ... shame on them to call themselves Catholic, they should know better.

Just find out what your faith and your Pope says on the young, the world around us, the position of grace over law, and centrality of forgiveness, love and hope..etc etc to what it means to be Catholic.

STephen was the only one to offer some hope... well I dont think hes American either so hes not trapped in such a distorted and frankly un Catholic worldview.

God Help Americans,

BTW my old man narrowly missed becoming another victim of terrorism yesterday. By all means pray for the world but keep it in perspective.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/nelsonmail/0,2106,2603696a6007,00.html

I think I have more rights than most to think the world is a bad , place !!!

AGAin "Bowling for Columbine" in conjuction with Crossing the Threshold of Hope, for all Bible Belting Fundies out there.

-- Kiwi (csisherwood@hotmail.com), August 06, 2003.



"i'm more Catholic than you are.... na,na,na,na,na...." from the CAtholic who doubts that the Pope can speak infallibly.

just wake up and smell the coffee, friend.

this world is going to pot and our Curchis doing next to absolutely nothinga bout it.

one encyclical, that causes a minor ripple, for one day, and is then ignored by the world's Catholic politicians. where is the comeback??

we spend all our time these days trying not to offend anybody -- we should be on the streets and in the news.

every Friday, a complete fast from morning to midnight. how's about that for starters.

and when did your priest lasttell you to think about the environment (we are destroying this beautiful planet gifetd to us by God) or to shun Disney/ Mac Donalds etc.

nope, he's too busy announcing the next ecumenical session with our Christian friends down the road.

you stick to following Kung, and leave the Catholic stuff to the Catholics.

-- Ian (ib@vertifgo.com), August 06, 2003.


"This is one of the most dissapointing and "un Catholic" threads ever. I can understand a 21 year old boy finding his feet in the world but the puritan doom and gloomers who tagged along offering nothing from our faith to help Skoobouy ... shame on them to call themselves Catholic, they should know better."

What I find amusing, kiwi, is that I agree in some respects with Skoobouy, but I'm pretty sure he wouldn't be caught dead siding with me on anything. I wouldn't be caught dead siding with Theresa on anything to do with the Charasmatic Movement. You wouldn't be caught dead siding with me OR Skoobouy over this matter. Catherine and I believe people need to speak up more often, but Catherine wouldn't be caught dead speaking up along side me even if we were to be saying similiar things.

I find this amusing. One thing is for sure, though...

We'll all be caught dead at some point.

=)

-- Emerald (emerald1@cox.net), August 06, 2003.


Really, Emerald? That made me laugh. ;)

-- Catherine Ann (catfishbird@yahoo.ca), August 06, 2003.

Catholic <> ostrich

-- Ian (ib@vertifgo.com), August 06, 2003.

Were Jesus to take the same attitude as the writer here, noone would be saved. Before you try to remove the splinter from your brother's eye, remove the beam from your own.

-- anon (anon@hotmail.com), August 06, 2003.


what is the beam specifically?

-- Daniel Hawkenberry (dlm@catholic.org), August 06, 2003.

We'll all be caught dead at some point.

True, and (hopefully) we'll find out then that we've been in the same boat (ark?) all along. :=)

-- Stephen (StephenLynn999@msn.com), August 06, 2003.


Perhaps built out of the beams that anon talks about.

Go'fer wood?

-- Emerald (emerald1@cox.net), August 06, 2003.


cute,Emmy, yeh, I guess you're right, we'll all be 'caught' dead at one point. Although I hope I'm not exactly 'caught' off guard, hey, I'm ready. Just curious, was there anything in my post you particularly wouldn't line yourself up with ? theresa

-- Theresa Huether (Rodntee4Jesus@aol.com), August 07, 2003.

Well, I would align myself with this much: we are in fact on the eve of something very large.

-- Emerald (emerald1@cox.net), August 07, 2003.

well, now tell me, how exciting is THAT!!!!

speaking of eves... it's late here in sunny Calif.... good night! God bless!! Theresa

-- Theresa (Rodntee4Jesus@aol.com), August 07, 2003.


Not real exciting; I'm not ready for anything.

=)

-- Emerald (emerald1@cox.net), August 07, 2003.


"Before you try to remove the splinter from your brother's eye, remove the beam from your own. "

if i had a penny for everytime i have seen this old chestnut used in debate. it is intellectual worthless because it cuts both ways. and so its use is not remotely constructive.

"everytime you point a finger, there are 4 pointing back: na, na, na- na, na .........."

"takes one to know one, and a bigger one to say it: na, na, na-na, na .........."

-- Ian (ib@vertifgo.com), August 07, 2003.


or, more typically, 3 pointing back.

-- Ian (ib@vertifgo.com), August 07, 2003.

Dear Ian

I think youre a nasty simple bitter man... with the intellect and moral formation of a stunted retarded gerbil to boot. Ive been arguing all night against pro choice freaks elsewhere but seeing your drivel just makes me think they might have a point, youre one sorry individual.

I considered carefully how to respond to you as my first instinct was to go for the jugular, it remains an option however Im trying hard to be a better person and well it’s the Christian thing to do. The road to Christ is never an easy one for all of us and we will all suffer setbacks along the way. I am giving you the benefit of the doubt, to see if you can redeem yourself... lets make it clear though I think youre a mean little bigot.

Ill say Im sorry if I offended you or any other Americans upthread however I reject your view of the world and believe you and many others unconsciously and unnecessarily damage Christ’s church and are a major obstacle to salvation of secular youth today.

I believe you do however in a limited way (in your inimitable "style") touch upon the real issue for Skoobouy and my own generation which is the abandonment of faith and enslavement in technology that has created this crazy preoccupation with consumption and fear through the media. But do not turn your anger toward this generation, there are many signs for hope indeed the secular youth share much of the Churchs views of social justice: the protection of human rights the promotion of international understanding, the rejection of globalistaion, the end to exploitation of workers, the rejection of unjust wars, the freedom of religion and general concern for the well being of fellow man etc etc.

Your attack on the clergy was unfortunate and highlights only your own all too obvious inadequacies( seroms of the the evils of Mcdonalds, and the envirmonemt... give us a break moron) perhaps youd like more fully explain that exact nature of your complaint.

In understanding how we can change whats wrong with the youth of today we need to learn to distinguish between Catholic theology and political ideology and your isolated personal experiences: view the Church as a whole. You need to understand how freedom operates in a Catholic context, in the tradition of Erasmus in that we all have free will to open the doors of choice . You need to understand how such negative freedoms differ from positive freedoms of Hegelians, which rightly should be mocked.

Essentially technology distances ourselves from mankind, it is an attempt of total explanation of reality. You need to understand that this reality is seen as inadequate by increasing numbers of young people today despite what you may see or hear, they are searching for answers. I should know, as that was me not so long ago(ok Im getting old), in fact still today, I remaining a doubting Thomas at times. Anyway Im a teacher so I see plenty of young people most of whom have no love for Jesus explicitly but Gods love is working through them. They just need a hand, yet I wouldn’t take the hand you offer, who would youre a right piece of work.

Are YOU ready Ian to share the truth with them beyond your closed inward negative “fasting”? Cause that aint going to cut drongo, you need to CONNECT to hold out your hand, to be a LEADER . Jesus did not merely "fast" he sat down and ATE WITH THE SINNERS( the implications of this act are so far beyond your understanding I dont know why I bother sometimes),with the moral failures, he suffered the wrath of the righteous as a friend of tax collectors and sinners. It didn’t get any worse than that. Its not an expression of liberal tolerance and humanitarianism, it’s the essence of our faith: peace and reconciliation for all, even the moral failures. Simply understood Christianity is the ultimate form of humanism, and I use that word not in the context you or others perhaps perceive it despite the apparent “conflicts” it brings to the shallower puritan minds who cannot understand change.

The comparison with others is not what Christianity is about, selective morality and superior piety is what stands between God and man on so many levels. It is the work of the devil, for such attitudes push the youth away from the Church. At the same time it places the modern Pharisees ( they are alive and well in the Church today )in mortal danger, believing themselves to be saved they lose their love for their fellow man, they become completely without self criticism and they take themselves far too seriously. You and everyone must realise that SEPARTNESS is the very embodiment of Pharisaism, they became Jesus worst enemies. Those who finally sealed Jesus fate were not the murders, or the adultery or the drunks or the whores no they were the highly moral people. Who thought they were doing a service to God.

Youve spoken some bold words lets see you back them big guy. Ignore my words above Ill dig up some thoughts from his Pope John Paul II for you to respond to,after all he is your Pope ..isnt he or have your fallen completely away?

God Bless you and help you back to the faith

-- Kiwi (csisherwood@hotmail.com), August 07, 2003.


Err ok Ian so you ticked me off and I might have overcooked the reaction a bit. ANyway Ive decided to post a few quotes to get the ball rolling from JPII on another thread.

-- Kiwi (csisherwood@hotmail.com), August 07, 2003.

Dear Ian, I think youre a nasty simple bitter man... with the intellect and moral formation of a stunted retarded gerbil to boot. ... lets make it clear though I think youre a mean little bigot. Ill say Im sorry if I offended you or any other Americans upthread however I reject your view of the world and believe you and many others unconsciously and unnecessarily damage Christ’s church and are a major obstacle to salvation of secular youth today.

Methinks that Ian is not "American," but English. You two "simple, bitter, stunted, retarded gerbils" of the British Commonwealth can leave us ignorant, perverted Yankee Colonials out of the picture for once.

-- Art (ars@gratia.artis), August 07, 2003.


Ha! WHoops that will teach me, fair enough Art!

-- retarded gerbil (csisherwood@hotmail.com), August 07, 2003.

Dear Art and Kiwi

no offence taken from either of you and yes indeed there are a big fat three staring right back at you both. and it takes one to know one,....etc etc

Anyways, you can dream on all you like. the world is in terminal decline. moral decay all around us. Skooboy is 100% on the money.

-- Ian (ib@vertifgo.com), August 07, 2003.


hmmm...

Ian may be a nasty nasty man...

Kiwi may be a loving genuine soul...

So what. So -what? yes...

The truth is the truth independant of the messenger -focus on the message -compare the message to the truth that God & Church lay out or you may miss the message and either accept or reject without ever discerning validity...

hmmm... Do I take sides as Kiwi suggests, where Kiwi suggests -- who is the better messenger, more liked messenger, more popular messenger?

-what of the message...

-- Daniel Hawkenberry (dlm@catholic.org), August 07, 2003.


Ian Ive gone on a complete and total overkill on you on this and other threads. APologies, its 4 in the morning here and I had come home from a party earlier in the night..not in the best of shape. AT least no work tommorow!

-- Kiwi (csisherwood@hotmail.com), August 07, 2003.

no worries Kiwi. didn't notice. doesn't matter.

-- Ian (ib@vertifgo.com), August 07, 2003.

Hello,

Before I get into some new issues, I have a few brief notes:

My first post here should be understood as an anguished ejaculation-- It is not representative of my (generally more 'somber') approach to the world around me. In short, I was indulging in a little tantrum.

King David did the same in some Psalms. But we do not, after all, read the Psalms the same way as we read the epistles (what with childrens heads dashed against stones and all).

I want to take another look at this situation I'm in. Speaking strictly for my age group, I am a minority in a world where secularism has a veritable deathgrip. One of the nice things about faith is its inexhaustible source of hope (which is why the Church never gives up).

In ways, I am worlds different than my peers, but in many ways I am not. I grew up within the same influences, and have many of the same values, and many of the same distinct characteristics. I can SPEAK to people my age, I can share their thoughts, and their patterns of reasoning (which really seem reasonable for one who has them). In a sense, I still have a foot rather firmly IN secularism itself, which for me is always a threat but also my best bridge to my pre-religious life and to everyone around me.

ERGO, it is possible for me to, in a way, view everyone around me in a state of pre-religiousity rather than simply irregligiousity, and that gives me a great deal of hope. God gives me hope, perhaps, through this.

A recurring theme in my spiritual growth has been a hope placed in the examples of saints, and of holy people close to me. My father is a prime example--I've hardly known of someone who was more principled, who had a soft hard but a will of stone. He has sacrificed much of his pride and personal autonomy because he (by the grace of God) WILLED the GOOD of his family, the _other_. My Dad trascended himself in a way that the saints often did. He kept the faith even when he didn't feel it; he kept the rules, stubborn as a mountain.

And if he can do something like that (the monumental task of raising a good family), then I can ALSO do something as radical as live my faith.

And if I can, then anyone in my generation can. And perhaps God has given this world to me, or given me to the world, with all of my strangeness and "secular religiousity" or "rigidly soft orthodoxy" or however you describe it, so that eventually I can join the Church in building a bridge, bringing hordes of lost souls back to where they belong.

Before I go, one characteristic of my generation= highly idealistic. Go figure.

-- Skoobouy (skoobouy@hotmail.com), August 08, 2003.


Hi Skoobouy,

I (and I think the majority of those here) got the point of your message. I was just too lazy to post earlier.

You write:

"King David did the same in some Psalms."

It's funny that you should mention the Psalms. Specifically, I was thinking of Psalms 14 and Psalms 49 (also, Psalms 1, 12, and 31).

---------

Hi Kiwi,

Hey: when are you going to stop thinking that Hollywood provides an accurate portrayal of Americans? If you want to know Americans, you have to hop on a plane and stay here for a while. :-)

God bless you both,

Mateo

-- (MattElFeo@netscape.net), August 08, 2003.


PS--Emerald, I wouldn't be caught dead agreeing with you! OK, maybe just this one time... :-)

-- (MattElFeo@netscape.net), August 08, 2003.

Oh yes you would. You're just trying to play the contrarian. =)

-- Emerald (emerald1@cox.net), August 08, 2003.

hey check my post above on catholic monarchy you seem to be the type of guy we need to help us! excellent post sometimes talking to them that way is the only thing they understand look at the response you got!

-- chip waguespack (cmonarchp@aol.com), August 12, 2003.

I must say that the author lacks a good understanding of ancient History in order to see the lack of originality of his rants ...

since the first centuries A.D. we had people claiming that the *end* of the world was near because the *next* generation was a degenerated one ... ( i will pass a long dissertation about the middle ages btw) and guess what : we 're already in the XXIth century ...

I do not pretend to know God 's will and sugest to the poster to do the same . His fatalism doesn 't seem justifiable at all and we must remember that God's Wills and Paths are not necessary obvious to us, mere mortals ... One thing we can be sure : His Word won 't die/disapear until the end of the times ...

-- António Meireles (am@epandemic.com), August 13, 2003.


Antonio,

You should read my second post (above). My first post, while sincere, was mostly only emotive. Read it as an expression, not as a doomsday prediction.

However, you have to be pretty optimistic if you don't see that we're in a post-Christian world. "There's nothing new under the sun" is not true--this generation IS more sexually liberal, IS less religious, and IS more apathetic than previous generations.

I'm not saying that doomsday is happening. But I am saying that it's upsetting.

-- Skoobouy (skoobouy@hotmail.com), August 13, 2003.


Thank you...we should all say this more often.

-- Chris Merchich (mo4ane@yahoo.com), October 21, 2003.

I believe what you're saying has much truth, but seeing as how God hasn;t given up on the world yet, maybe you shouldn't either. I attend a Catholic University and much of what I see practiced here by students is contradictory to the Church. They complain about rules and regulations set forth by the University through its Catholic and Christian background. I am upset by this, but there is much goodness that gives me hope. Personally, I don't think much has changed in 2,000 years. Jesus preached against many of the same sins of which we today fight to be rid. We really have only found new ways of doing the same old bad things. Yes I think our society condones many things, abortion, contraception, and so called sexual liberation being among them, and perhaps they are more widespread than ever, but there are so many young people who look at the world today and wonder what is wrong with it, how we can fix it. At my Catholic university there are hundreds of young people who don't conform to "normal college life", who wish to change the world, and are doing so. There is no reason to give up on our generation yet. We have good people and not so good people, but so did every other generation. It is our job, as those who believe in the Catholic church, to make sure that it endures. We must pass on these values to our peers and our children, and everyone in between. The Kingdom of God is now and the world needs people who know the truth like you to fight for it. No one ever said being a good Christian was easy, but it doesn;t mean that its not worth trying. Here are some passages from the New Testament for those who need some motivation:

1 Corinthians 13:13 James 1:2-4 1 John 5:4-5

May God bless and keep you always

-- Shannon (lilwimp03@yahoo.com), January 24, 2004.


topv

-- topv (1@1.!), January 24, 2004.

I like what you are saying, Shannon. Keep up the good fight. Stay fervent and hopeful! Your fellow students will learn most of all from your good example.
John

-- J. F. Gecik (jfgecik@hotmail.com), January 30, 2004.

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