Isaiah

As I was reading through Isaiah 50-53 these verses spoke to me:

"It is the Sovereign Lord who helps me. Who is he that will condemn me? They will all wear out like a garment; the moths will eat them up. Who among you fears the Lord and obeys the word of his servant? Let him who walks in the dark, who has no light, trust in the name of the Lord and rely on his God. But now, all you who light fires and provide yourselves with flaming torches, go walk in the light of your fires and of the torches you have set ablaze. This is what you shall receive from my hand: You will lie down in torment." (Isaiah 50:9-11)

Everyone has a time in their life when it feels like you're stumbling through life in the dark. It is one of those adventures in life where you are trying to find your way and can't see where to go. Life is hard, figuring out who you are, what you want out of life, what's important to you, and figuring out what you truly believe. This verse gives me an inspiration: don't try to find your way by yourself with light in darkness, it will only hurt you in the end. Instead, trust and rely on God to show you the way through life. He will then be the light and light up the darkness. 

God and Dorothy Day

So, as we were assigned the 5-minute writing in class Friday, it really made me think about God's role in Dorothy Day. So this is what I have concluded:

In Day, we start with a young girl who was not taught or forced a religion in her home life. She prayed and believed he was real. However, she soon realizes that she has been taken advantage of him and comes to a point in her life where she is exploring a new world on her own. She reflects back on times when she did not have God in her life and realizes better decisions could have been made with his help. When Day gives birth to her daughter, love overflows. She believes it is crucial for her to have to find it. Finding God's love is not easy as she has to reject her own husband to join the Catholic church, which she finds necessary. Day feels that finding God's love her is not only important for her, but also important for her daughter. 

In Isaiah I cam across a passage that I really liked. (page 109)

" ' I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips' (6:5). Being unclean (literally: polluted) is a state of estrangement, a state in which one is kept away from the holy."

When I read this passage, I interpreted it as Isaiah believing we are all sinners including him self. I believe this passage is very important for everyone to realize because even though he is a prophet it does not make him perfect. I remember being younger and thinking a prophet must be someone special to God. However, that's not the case and here Isaiah is saying: " I'm just like everyone else."

In Day's book on page 181 it reads: "We have always acknowledged the primacy of the spiritual, and to have undertaken a life of silence, manual labor and prayer might have been the better way. But I do not know. God gives us our temperaments, and in spite of my pacifism, it is natural for me to stand my ground, to continue in what actually amounts to a class war..." Day does not seem to seriously question what has been done and what could have happen if things were done differently, but she realizes there could have been a different outcome. My all time favorite quote is: everything that happens is for a reason. Day seems to feel that way. She is saying things could have been different, but they weren't. God has made everything the way he has planned it to be. 

Final Project

For the final project as a justice-related issue, I have chosen to focus on infant mortality. Infant mortality includes malformations, deformations, chromosomal abnormalities, premature birth, low-birth weight, Sudden Death Syndrome, and accidents such as household dangers or falls. Although I am aware and know some information about these conditions, I previously had never referred to these conditions as infant mortality. I would like to focus on researching to learn more information about infant mortality. I would like to focus on researching and learning more about infant mortality and/or maybe volunteer with an organization linked to this condition. Researching this condition would include investigating into causes, the diagnosed rates, the effects, and other factors that play a role in the facts about infant mortality. If I volunteered with an organization I will have a learning experience that would go beyond web sites and books. Because I have plans to become a neonatal or pediatric nurse, it is a great interest of mine to invest and learn more about these types of issues and the injustice or justice they may bring to the family, friends, and community.

"What about God?"

As I was reading Dorothy's Day "What about God?" I came across a line that really made me relate: "We did not search for God when we were children. We took Him for granted." (page 17) 

Growing up as a child, I cannot remember not knowing about God. If the church doors were open, then I was probably there with my dad, mom, brother, and sister. It was expected. The same routine was performed over and over: go to church on Sunday mornings and nights, Wednesday nights, and say your prayers everyday. Even though I did not know any difference I knew this was the "right" thing to do and did not question it. As I grew older, I started learning there was so much different in the outside world that I felt like I had been protected from, it made me question myself. And just like Day I felt the same for the first in my life, "I began to be afraid of God, of death, or eternity." (page 20) I realized I too had been taking God for granted. Coming to college was a big transition. Everything was becoming new to me... and sometimes still is. I was finally stepping out into the "real world" and discovering what the world had to offer. For once in my life I was not around the same people I had known all my life and was not around the same temptations my small town had to offer. I have grown up in the same church ever since I can remember. As I came to college I did not even know how to go about finding a church that I feel is "close to home". I feel all of these life-changing events have led me to make a choice: go out and experience what the world offers or choose God. Knowing that I wanted to choose God, I knew it would not lead to any easy road, just as Day was to keep secret about how she felt, I feel I can too relate. 

Throughout Ecclesiastes there is a repetitious focus of everything being meaningless. Solomon was the king of Israel at the time and lived the fabulously rich life anyone could ever imagine or ever want. He had power, wisdom, popularity, prestige, and anything he desired. I don't know about you guys, but if I were in his shoes, I would probably take advantage of that opportunity. However, Solomon sees this as a gift from God. (5:19) Even though he had all these things he still thought everything was meaningless. This concept sounds crazy, but in reality we all know that we can't take anything with us when we die. In Ecclesiastes, Solomon says: "Naked a man comes from his mother's womb, and as he comes, so he departs. He takes nothing from his labor that he can carry in his hand." (5:15)

Next, I came across the final chapters of the book. These spoke the strongest to me. We are to enjoy each day God has given us to its fullest. "Be happy, young man, while you are young, and let your heart give you joy in the days of your youth. Follow the ways of your heart and whatever your eyes see, but know that for all these things God will bring you to judgment." (11:9) 

Just like every other person I am not perfect and sin, however I feel like I know right from wrong. When I do something wrong I always have this guilty conscience telling me I did wrong. At the end of Ecclesiastes, Solomon concludes: "Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil." (12:13-14) Sometimes this can scare me, but it always inspires me to be a better Christian everyday.