Resolutions for Lazy Catholics
by Daria Sockey in Reviews on Wednesday, January 05, 2011 6:00 AM
Our parish bulletin on January 2 had a message from our pastor reminding us that although New Year’s resolutions to lose weight, exercise, and watch less TV are great, we shouldn’t forget to make a few to improve our spiritual life. He then included a list of these for our consideration.
Lazy person that I am, I had not yet made any resolutions, spiritual or otherwise. Part of it was that I was too busy with other things on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day. The other part was sheer reluctance to set myself up for failure, since I rarely stick with my resolutions. Especially the spiritual ones. Daily mass? Daily scripture reading? Yeah, right. I’ve made those a million times.
And I guess I’m not the only one.
So I came up with some scaled back ideas for me and people like me. Things that really seem do-able even for a spiritual couch potato. Or for the hyper-busy Mom who has so far failed at pushing out Martha to make more room for Mary. I’ll have a helping hand from some digital media.
1. I will read listen to the entire New Testament.
At last there is a Catholic audio Bible! And best of all, it’s read by actors and has background sound effects to rivet you attention.
I was thrilled to receive the Truth&Life Dramatized Audio Bible from Ignatius Press. This is a full cast performance that includes Sean Astin, Michael York, John Rhys-Davies, and Julia Ormond. There’s a foreward by Pope Benedict XV, and the blessing of Archbishops Burke and Chaput.
This is what I’ll be listening to on my commute to and from work each day. Each band on these discs is a single chapter of scripture, so it’s easy to mark your progress if you only want to do a couple of chapters each day. There’s no way to goof up on this resolution.
2. I will pray first thing in the morning.
I know I should slither out of bed on to my knees as soon as the alarm clock goes off. But I fall prey to the temptation (especially in the winter) to stay warm under the covers and doze until the last possible second, and then hit the ground running. Result: if morning prayers get said, it’s in the car.
So here’s my fix: train myself to remember to start praying the moment I awaken, even if I am too lazy to kneel down. I can use the feature of my alarm clock that turns on a music CD of hymns. Hopefully that will tell my subconsious brain, “Pray!” People who rely on their cell phones could download a Catholic ringtone to wake them up, and I suppose there are alarm clocks with iPod docks as well that could be used for the same purpose.
A quick google search also turned up some Cds and downloads of voices reciting Catholic prayers, which might work for those who are even sleepier in the AM than I am. Those with better radio recpetion than I might find it easiest of all to have their radio alarm tuned to a Catholic station that will lift their hearts in the right direction.
3. I will start praying the Divine Office.
Actually, this is something I’m fairly good at, but for the benefit of my many good-intentioned friends who own a breviary and really do plan to learn how to use it someday, here’s another hi-tech help. Universalis.com has been available as a free online breviary for years.
What’s new (to me at least) is that for a one-time fee you can receive a member’s code. This entitles you to additional features, the best of which is to have any or all hours of the day’s liturgy emailed to you each day. No more remembering to visit a website. Morning, Daytime, or Evening prayer will just pop up in your email. Kindle and phone apps are available too.
Do any of you have super easy resolutions for Lazy Catholics? Please share!
—Senior writer Daria Sockey writes from her home in Pennsylvania.
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