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May Letter: Searching for Truth in Numbers
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Searching for Truth in Numbers
Have you noticed in our culture how we have this focus on numbers?
Like the more followers, friends, possessions, fill in the blank ____, mean that you're more successful.
The question I ask myself, though, is what is truly success?
I like this one:
"Success is the maximization of the abilities that God gave you."
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Zig Ziglar
There are many distractions in this world that make us believe that we are successful. What should be most important to us, as Catholic men, is how God sees it.
Take for example Colossians,
Chapter 3:5-6
"Put to death, then, the parts of you that are earthly: immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and the greed that is idolatry.*Because of these the wrath of God* is coming [upon the disobedient]."
I recall in the early days of (what was then called) the Bishop Perry Men's Prayer Breakfast, the other founders and I were decideing on what type of person was going to be invited as a keynote speaker for our events. Do we bring in a popular and magnetizing person to pack the house, or do we bring in a person who will speak the Truth of the Catholic Magisterial teachings regardless of their popularity.
Like, I'm sure you've been to (or heard of) the many dinners and fund raisers where a packed house of people show up not because of what the speaker will say, but rather because the organizer can get that figure into the room.
Yes, there is a certain energy that comes from having a packed house, the energy you might also find like a sports stadium or concert. Yet, numbers alone does not mean success.
Take a look at social media. What goes through your mind when you see a person on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram who has a boat-load of followers? Too, if you own a business, do you believe that more followers means that you're seen by more people, and thus make more sales?
The thinking on Linkedin is that 'it's not who you know (your connections), but it's who they know (their connections)'.
There's some truth to all of this, and on social media, as in life, its more true that activity doesn't mean accomplishment. It's like going to a Chamber of Commerce meeting and passing out business cards.
That's just activity.
For accomplishment to happen, usually networking, conversations, and developing relationships takes place, and this takes time before a sale happens. And then, because of the relationship, when done correctly, many more sales can follow that.
So back to the prayer breakfast's and finding a speaker. There's this concept that is known as growth by attraction, not by promotion. It's like how several years ago what caused all of this is that we became interested in a Chicago baseball player, who publicly was known as a devout Catholic, to speak for us.
But we learned that we could not afford his fees, and his organizers would not let us talk to him directly to see if he might do special arrangements for a Catholic apostolate. This caused us to reflect on why it was important for us to have this man speak in the first place.
We knew there would be a lot of autographs, (selfie) photographs made, and a packed house, etc.. So could what this man had to say be
'watered down' or even heard, or, more importantly, remembered and lived out?
It's about the message, not the messenger.
This is where the truth in numbers comes into play. Something my late Father often said:
"You know that you're doing your life's work when people tell you that you are."
Notice that he didn't say make a lot of money, have many friends, or possessions (above our true needs).
I remember reading about Zig Ziglar around the time he passed away, and how his speaking fee was six figures, because this is what the level of his client was paying at the time, and he was known to be sincerely concerned that he delivered more value than what his client paid for.
Yet, he also stopped into the local church group or business association at a very reduced rate or did pro-bono presentations.
This difference is that Mr.Ziglar felt that he had something important to say. That, through his struggles in life, he had much experience to speak from. Did you know that Zig made over
3,000 speeches before he was paid for one?
You will never be successful by your own efforts, but through the abilities that God gives you.
The lesson here, I have found, is when you have something to say, or contribute to the world, and you actually see impact in others from it, this is one form of
the maximization of the abilities that God gave you. But don't let this overwhelm you, because numbers alone don't matter.
"It's the embrace of the journey rather than the end result."
--
John Abbate
Your life may impact three thousand others, before
one person will tell you what you have done for them. It's about '
Living the Goodness of a Catholic Man'.
The same is true with the Men's Prayer Breakfast, most recently called Catholic Chicago Men's Conference. Because we have something (different) to say to make disciples, by developing men who stick and stay with the mission, rather than (us) do the things that build the numbers.
Jesus said
"Feed my sheep". He didn't say to count them.
John 21:17
Ultimately, us men live for an audience of One. God is the only One who is worthy of our affections and allegiance. When we compare ourselves with others, we quickly become consumed with pride or envy, and our passion for Christ quickly fades.
To make the choice for Godly passion, we need to value God's purposes more than getting ahead of others, and we need to care about people's souls (including our own) than cars, clothes, and vacations.
As for CMCS, here is what Deacon John Rangel, CMCS co-founder and director of Mission, has to say:
"Evangelization is ALL about attraction because of the zeal of the evangelizers fired by the power of the Holy Spirit.
CMCS' effort should be no different!
But remember all three synoptic Gospels conclude with Jesus Christ's command to "Go and make disciples of ALL nations....".
The Apostles were not satisfied with sharing the Good News only in
Jerusalem but rather joyfully spread it throughout the whole world.
Our (CMCS) mission statement is exactly about making Disciples not followers." |
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Frank J Casella, CMCS executive director,
and co-founder of Catholic Chicago Men's Conference
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One Question from CMCS
Dear CMCS Men,
I'm reminded of the proclamation made by the two disciples on the road to Emmaus after their encounter with the risen Jesus ... . "Were not our hearts burning while he spoke to us"......Lk 24:32
Would you be interested in attending an event in the Fall of 2018 to continue the conversation from the recent men's conference? If so, please click the button below.
I recall how moved and the openess in sharing during the uplifting experience when we engaged in a dialogue with other men during our discussion session.
Are you ready to continue that experience? Or, if you were not able to attend, do you want to experience this?
This will be a simple gathering, and not be a full blown conference, in Fall 2018 for the purpose of continuing the discussion and nurturing our spirituality as Catholic Men.
Please click now the button below to indicate that you're interested, and as things formulate we'll send you E-mail updates plus an invitation. |
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God continue to bless you on your Journey with the Encounter.
Frank J Casella, Co-Founder, Catholic Chicago Men's Conference,
and CMCS Executive Director
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Website New Look
We've been working hard to update the website to be world-class with information and design. Take a look at the link below and tell us what you think!
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Please Help Support the Mission of Catholic Men Chicago Southland
Dear Reader,
We hope you are encouraged and challenged by the content you are reading. Our mission is to provide a perspective on the news of the culture as seen through the eyes of the Catholic Man.
We encourage and assist Catholic Men in personal holiness, to make Jesus Christ the center of our daily lives -
'Living the Goodness of a Catholic Man'.
CMCS is a Catholic Apostolate of Most Reverend Joseph N. Perry, Auxiliary Bishop of Chicago. Executive Director, Frank J Casella
After more than 14 years, the Catholic Men Chicago Southland Apostolate and website nurtures Catholic men's spirituality in Chicagoland, an with men from across the United States.
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May God returen to you double for what you share with us! Bishop Perry and the CMCS Team keep you and your family in our prayers, always! |
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Religion and the Opening Up of the Mind (Google Talk)
Watch this video of Bishop Barron's talk at the Google headquarters (Googleplex) in Mountain View, CA on March 20, 2018. He addressed a room full of Google and YouTube employees on how religion doesn't shut down the questing intellect, but in fact opens up our minds, causing us to seek the fulfillment of our deepest longings. These yearnings won't be satisfied by wealth, pleasure, power, or honor, but only by the God who wired us to be satisfied in him.
While Google may have defined the modern-day search engine, Bishop Robert Barron, known as one of America’s premier Catholic preachers and teachers, believes that today’s search for meaning is inextricably tied to religion as much as technology.
While he has been a strong advocate of the many virtues and benefits of new media, Bishop Barron has also cautioned that it can become an idol into itself - an argument he made once more while at Google.
This, Gentlemen, is what we need to watch this presentation for, with ourselves and with our family members in mind. The Church teaches all things in moderation.
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