Let earth recieve her King

I've always thought Catholicism was beautiful. I love the sacredness, the holiness that is so absent from the baptist youth group scene. God is terrible, terribly wonderful.

Much more has been said about the modern-day baptist church and how reverence would benefit it, so I'll spare you the lecture and simply say that I've been considering it.

I read Catholic liturgy and I always marvel at the pictures they paint of God and the way we should see Him. Their prayers of petition are so beautiful. They seek to glorify God even as they are asking Him to remedy something.

I don't mean to "evaluate" prayers or to elevate the eloquence of one kind over another. It's silly to gravitate toward the church that makes you "feel" God. You should remain in the community of believers you have covenanted with. That's why I'm not considering going Catholic too much.

I thought, though, "If I set up a rosary that reminds me to pray, that will help me practice the presence of God!" Because I was looking for a physical thing that would force me to seek God.

The real appeal, (it's not the rosary or the liturgy) is the discipline, I think. The practice of the presence of God. The act of choosing to set my eyes on heavenly things instead of worldly ones.

Lastly, you know me, I'm not going to tell you about how silly I think patriotism can be. I champion the notion of "celestial monarchy" and maybe I'm not entrenched enough in the battlefield of this world, but, I want to leave you with this hopeful thought I had.

Today is the tenth anniversary of something terrible that happened to my countrymen. Today ten years ago my brothers hurt my brothers. People sing "God Bless America" but the words of my favorite carol came to mind: (from Joy to the World)

Let earth recieve her King!

We should pray for America, we should pray for our city, and bless the people around us, but we should also pray for our world.