Ten years ago I was a morbidly obese, non-practicing, Catholic with almost a master's degree in Theology. Today I am a slightly less obese, practicing and evangelizing Catholic with almost a master's degree in Theology. How did I get here? I'm not good at giving the short answer so I'll try my best.
I was born and raised Catholic, went to Catholic grade school, went to Catholic high school and like many people with the same background, I was easily disenfranchised. That might not be the best word. Actually the best word, believe it or not, would probably be uneducated. This is the spot where it all went horribly wrong. I had typed four and a half pages at this point, when I went to ask my wife how long a blog is supposed to be. Her exact response was "not four pages." She said this because she knows me. She had no idea how many pages I had typed yet. She said "if you think the details are important, they're not." I know what she means. This is not an autobiography. So, dejected, here is the short, short version.
I was born and raised Catholic, went to Catholic grade school, went to Catholic high school and like many people with the same background, I was easily disenfranchised. That might not be the best word. Actually the best word, believe it or not, would probably be uneducated.
I ended up getting a degree in theology with a minor in philosophy. There aren't a lot of job prospects for a Catholic man with no interest in celibacy yet armed with a degree in theology. I can either go back to school for a different degree or go back to school to get an advanced degree in the same field which would lead to the same amount of job prospects. I chose the second option.
After graduate school, armed with even more theology and even less job prospects, I moved back in with my parents and worked at a Best Buy. This was the point in my life where this post began. The next five years saw me systematically ruining my potential, wasting my life away, with no purpose or ambition. Then my dad died. It was December of 2007. Have you ever seen the movie City Slickers? There's a scene in that movie where the three guys talk about the best day of their lives and the worst day of their lives. One of the characters tells a story about the best day of his life. The worst day of his life was the same day. Looking back, I can easily say that the day my dad died was my best day and my worst. That was truly the catalyst for my losing the weight in making something of myself. That was the day when my insincere prayers of "God please give me blank" were replaced with sincere prayers of "God please lead me to do whatever it is you want me to do."
One year later, I had dropped 199 pounds. Six months after that, I met the woman who is now my wife. That time, unsurprisingly, also saw the resurgence of regular mass attendance. One year more saw me engaged with a substantially better job. The next year saw me get married, buy my first house, and have my first child. During this whirlwind of events, my wife thought it would be a good idea for me to use my theological education to help out with the local youth group. Whoever said, that "the only way to truly know something is to teach it" was right. I have probably read more in the five years I have known my wife than in all of my previous coursework in theology and philosophy.
Now, I have led multiple Bible studies. I am preparing to lead my parish through a condensed study of the entire Bible starting in September. I will be teaching moral theology through the ELM program of my diocese starting in April. And I feel that God is finally answering my most sincere prayer. I am doing what He wants me to do. So I plan to keep writing. If you plan to keep reading, I can promise you three things. First, I am long-winded. Second, I love movies and I will often quote them. Finally, my goal is to evangelize, and I will do that to the best of my ability.
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