If there’s one thing that I noticed from Pope Francis’s visit to the United States, it’s not the fact that he managed to make a politician cry (although my parents tell me that Congressman Bohner does that a lot) or what people wish he could’ve said. It’s that in spite of the hip issues (seriously Pope Francis, see a doctor about that please!) and the constant travelling and all of the events he attended, Pope Francis was able to do... Read more
In light of Pope Francis’s recent visit to the US, I am gonna look into Not Just Good, but Beautiful, a compilation of interfaith talks from Humanum: An International Interreligious Colloquium. This book gives perspectives on marriage from Catholic, Protestant, Eastern Orthodox, Mormon, Jewish, Muslim, Jain, Buddhist, and Hindu perspectives. Since the Humanum Colloquium was organized by Pope Francis, there are more Catholic perspectives, but the beauty of this book was that while the theme of of the colloquium was to... Read more
I’m not talking about medical scrubs here. So what is a scrub you ask? Time for a 90s flashback! In other words, scrubs are the guys at the bottom of the barrel. The guys that the Tumblr Hive Mind think about when they talk about catcalling, harassment, and “nice guy syndrome.” The guys who won’t take a hint and back off. It’s one thing to be nice. It’s one thing to let your armor down for a guy who really... Read more
I’ve mentioned before that for me, when it comes to relying on God, I like to think more along the lines of believing in providence rather than prosperity. The word “providence” comes from the word “provide,” which means “to make available” or “to supply.” The word always takes into account what is to come. Prosperity means “successful, flourishing, thriving.” Not that there’s anything wrong with having a life that’s successful, flourishing, or thriving, but at the same time, meditate on this Bible... Read more
Mr. Vice-President, Mr. Speaker, Honorable Members of Congress, You have no idea just how much Pope Francis just pwned you with that speech. I’m sorry if I sound like a word that starts with B and rhymes with witch, but I hope you guys were actually listening and not just waiting to applaud. I expected Pope Francis to mention Martin Luther King and Abraham Lincoln, but the fact that Dorothy Day and Thomas Merton were also major parts of the... Read more
I’ll be honest when I say that I don’t consider myself to be an apologist. I’m not like Trent Horn or Patrick Madrid or Scott Hahn or Taylor Marshall. I did better in my philosophy classes than in my theology classes in college. And yet, as a Catholic, I am called to defend my faith when the situation calls for it. My Protestant friend, Holly, commented on my “Yes, I am a Christian AND?” post with a really long comment... Read more
One awesome I’m doing at Radiance and Grace Magazine is profiling saints with a Marian devotion to inspire people to consider Marian Consecration. Today is Padre Pio’s feast day so check out what I have to say about him! Ever since I stopped being a college student, there have been three very significant days on my calendar for September: one is the feast day of Mary’s birth on September 8th. The second is my mom’s birthday on September 22nd. And... Read more
One of the biggest influences in my life is Julia Cameron’s The Artist’s Way. I learned so much about what it meant to be creative from that book. The most important lesson being that art doesn’t have to be perfect, it just has to be yours. A singer/songwriter that I admire said that artists always take the pain they have and put it in their art so that they can share their pain with others. And I think that’s the beauty of art.... Read more
Interesting fact: I first met Christopher Kaczor, author of The Gospel of Happiness when he was giving a lecture at Cafe Catholica. His lecture focused on “The 7 Big Myths About the Catholic Church.” One of the myths he mentioned was that the Catholic Church doesn’t care about earthly happiness and he mentioned this book in his lecture. The Gospel of Happiness looks into how the practice of positive psychology can be incorporated into a Catholic lifestyle. In spite of the preconceptions people... Read more
There are people out there who raise an eyebrow when they find out that a show that’s written for and marketed to kids and teenagers has a large number of grown-up fans. The most egregious example being the Bronies aka the adult male fans of the show My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. However, as someone who’s also a fan of children’s TV and lives her life as a part-time adult, I can say that children’s shows these days are hugely... Read more
Monique Ocampo Writes
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