My Catholic Lens

            Today, I want to explore a concept that I stumbled upon while speaking with the reporter.  It is my Catholic lens and how it changes the way that I view the world.  About five years ago, just a few months into my renewed relationship with Jesus and the Catholic Church, I read Brideshead Revisited.  It is a classic book about a Catholic family set in England during World War II, written by Evelyn Waugh in 1945. Early in the book, the main female character notes that being Catholic means being different.

               At that point in time, I did not understand her perspective.  I thought, millions of people are Catholic, so why is being Catholic different.  I have come to believe that this character was right!  As the months have passed, and my relationship with the great Triune God has deepened, I am coming to realize what it truly means to be Catholic. So much so, that I now view the world from the Catholic perspective. Scripture study of both the Old and New Testament, reading the works of early writers and learning about the history of the church  and the lives of its Saints have all contributed to my current Catholic lens.

               In today’s day and age, we need to see and feel and touch everything. It is the Catholic faithful who believe that every time they receive communion, they are truly receiving the Body and Blood of Christ.  It is the Catholic faithful who understand that each time they go to confession, that it is the priest who is mediating for Christ and that what happens in the confessional is supernatural.  It gives a dimension to life that cannot be understood by those who do not believe the tenants of the Catholic Church.

               As I am drawn to spend time in prayer and to frequent the sacraments, the lens comes more into focus and I see the world far different than most of the world.  At times, I have pictured that my faith journey has created a huge abyss between me and much of the world.  A few months ago, at a “Girl’s Night Out”, I had little to contribute to discussions about face lifts, celebrity gossip and the hottest male actor.  As I drove home that night, I understood how the desire to follow Christ has changed my life.

               My lens has me focused on the next world, not this one.  So when speaking with the reporter about Pope Francis, I had to comment that my lens, or world view is much different than the average America.  I am listening to him as if he is speaking directly to me, not an audience on the left or an audience on the right.  His words are focusing my Catholic lens, and for that I am thankful.