Tradicat

   + JMJ Locus of Control refers to an individual's perception about the underlying main causes of events in his/her life. When you failed a test who did you think was responsible?  Was it yourself for not studying or do you blame the teacher because you feel the test was too hard? How you answer this and similar questions helps to define your 'Locus of Control.  In general, it seems to be psychologically healthy to perceive that one has control over those things which one is capable of influencing. With control comes responsibility.     So this leads to the concept of Divine Providence.  God arranges events etc for us to the best advantage. However, He does not take away our free-will to make decisions counter to the His Will. As mentioned previously, ultimately our decisions are our own, influenced by Grace, but still free.  So the next time you want to blame Pope Francis or someone else, think about what decisions you made, because I doubt...

 + JMJ     https://despair.com/products/mistakes?variant=2457302467 At some point in a competition, exhaustion starts to become an internal competition between the body and the will.  The same can be said for the continual struggle to be a good Catholic in this world.  I know, I know ... there are millions of Catholics who are not SSPX or even Traditional who are "good Catholics".  The key difference is how much they care about what has happened over the last hundred years.  Yes, you read that correctly. The fight for the soul of Catholicity started well before the Second Vatican Council.  That was when the closeted Modernists came out of their respective closets.  Since then, for those aware of the conflict, it has been a continual battle against the World, Flesh and Devil. The problem is that, if you just pour yourself into the battle without a strong protected supply chain (see list) then you will run out of energy for the fight, become di...

+ JMJ     There is a lot of confusion these days. Things within the Church are lacking order (disordered), difficult to understand (obfuscation reigns), and lack clear distinctions. This is a fertile field for disagreements and conflict. So what is a person to do?     First pray, a strong spiritual life (not a scrupulous one) will of great aid in keeping a broad perspective on the events, actions and words of others.   Second, go to the source documents on what the Church Teaches and try to understand what they contain.    Third, hold judgement in check until you've been able to critically review the event, action and words.  It is highly unlikely that these things that happen in the Church require immediate action. Most require a carefully considered and measured action. Fourth, learn how to argue in a manner that is useful and not inflammatory. Trying to outshout someone else isn't very useful.  I recently watched a debate with Jordan ...

+ JMJ  A decade ago, in the height of the 'will the SSPX be regularized' discussion, I was called many things by denizens of various forums (Cathinfo, Ignis Ardens and Angel Queen) this included Mezingite and Tragical.  Periodically, I was thanked for being a voice of reason amongst all the screaming of the 'resistors' warning of dire consequences if the SSPX accepted a no-compromise regularization. When that compromise failed to materialize at their magic words, they concocted examples of a compromise within the SSPX ranks.  One resistor even wrote a 'book' of the 101 compromises - including a reference from this blog. That all seemed so important back then.  I'm a decade older and, while not regretting the combat and spiritual fatigue that it engendered, it was a great learning opportunity.  This set the stage for in person argumentation - I got a lot of practice there and had led me to today's thought. Start now, tomorrow is a wish, not a promise. The...

;+ JMJ Intro Stress is a normal part of life.  If the 7 point buck you've been stalking during bow-hunting season suddenly turns on you, throws you in the air and punctures your legs with the tines of its antlers - you will be stressed. If someone cuts you off in traffic and acts aggressively (esp in the USA), you will be stressed, during and for some time after the event. If you have great responsibility and have to work long hours to succeed which conflicts with your duty of state, you will be stressed. Stress:A feeling of emotional strain and pressure.[1] Stress is a type of psychological pain. (Source: Wikipedia )  My point is that stress has always been present in one form or another. The key difference being that the stressors ( Link to Wiki definition ) have, in the more developed regions of the world, changed and proliferated. Step1 - Recognize when you are under significant stress for a sustained period of time The first step is to recognize when you're ...

 + JMJ   By Lilrizz - Personal Photo, CC0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=16381754 NTS: Journal July 14, 2022  A number of factors conspired to make me decide to spend more time golfing this year.  Stress relief was the major factor.  Getting up early in the morning for a 7am tee-time is, frankly, great.  I was able to beat the heat of the day (which was gruelling this summer) and take a two hour 'walk' to exercise and disconnect from the issues causing my stress levels to increase. On one of these 'walks' I realised that golf has some analogies for life: You don't hold life in your hands, it sits there waiting for you to do something, while all the external variables continue to shift. You need to pay attention to a lot of subtle variables to make a good shot and even then the wind and other hazards (ie. bunker) can suddenly change and make a great shot into a good shot (which I would be happy with) and a good shot into a bad one. You are ...

 + JMJ  Uncertainty is a part of life, we just don't think of it much until we are surprised by something out of the ordinary. For example, most of us don't think twice about driving a car or other vehicle.  However, the increase in speed brings with it the increase impact if there is an accident.  Only the suicidal or homicidal leave their homes with the intention to have a car 'accident'.  First a definition: Risk is uncertainty that matters.  Anything else are just worries. In the Catholic Life, uncertainty matters if it creates an impact on your ability to achieve your Catholic Vision, Mission, Goals and Objectives ( see Part 3 of this Series - Strategic Planning ). At the top of the strategy is dying in a state of grace.  This matters greatly! For example, entering a place that is an occasion of sin is definitely a risk. The next thing to consider is the likelihood of the risk occurring and its impact. In risk management we typically plot these on...

+ JMJ  Strategic planning is an exercise that businesses use to decide what actions to take to be successful. There are a number of models for strategic planning and the one that I employ creates a hierarchy of  Vision, Mission, Goals and Objectives.  In this model there is one vision, supported by one mission, support by a number of goals that, in turn, are supported by a number of objectives (see image below). These terms are defined as: Vision: Desire future state Mission: Our purpose Goal: What you need to achieve in order to fulfill your mission and ultimately your vision. Objective: What you need to accomplish in order to achieve goal.    I have been involved in strat planning and recently noted the similarity between the goals of strategic planning and one of the first Catechism questions:  Q. Why did God make you? A. God made me to know Him, to love Him, and to serve Him in this world, and to be happy with Him forever in heaven. I realized...

 + JMJ I've been thinking about Murrax's question and realized that I missed a key principle: Respect. So this article is on that topic and in particular meaning #2: Due regard for the feelings, wishes, rights and traditions of others. In "others" I would include Family, Friends, Authority and God (not necessarily in that order).     Thinking critically, I wondered what does "With Due regard to ..." mean? According to Merriam-Webster (link) , "with due regard to ..." means: With the proper care or concern for ...   Putting this together we have the following composite definition for respect: With the proper care or concern for the feelings, wishes, rights, traditions, of God, authorities, family, elders, friends, and others. So, holding a person in respect means that we will consider them as we make decisions and take action.  This becomes critical when the 'feelings, wishes, rights and traditions' run counter to our own personal desire...

 + JMJ https://www.publicdomainpictures.net/en/free-download.php?image=ship-in-stormy-sea&id=175312   The Question   I received the following comment from Murrax on the 'unhinged' post: Hi Tradicat! I would like to know your perspective on how you think being a balanced traditional Catholic plays into family life, particularly being a good father and a good husband. I find that the best Catholic families are typically ones where there is balance , but finding that is hard. Some fathers are too strict and the children are either unbalanced or easily scandalized when they encounter the world and don't have the proper tools to deal with it. On the other hand, some are too liberal and the children and spouse sometimes end up worldly or give into the world entirely, sometimes leaving the faith . You mention the fostering of the spiritual life in yourself and those who you are responsible for. This prioritization of the spiritual life in the role of the fa...

 + JMJ   This series has, metaphorically, been a lifetime in the writing. I've been a 'Traditional' Catholic, as opposed to an [Modern, Liberal, Conservative, Communist, etc] Catholic since 1982.   Up to 1982, I was a regular Post-Conciliar Catholic, growing up at the tail-end of the rout ( definition ) of Catholic Belief that happened after the end of the Second Vatican Council and after the introduction of the Novus Ordo Missae (NOM) in 1970.   One of my earliest memories of that era was trying to get as much of the pew in front of us in my mouth. It tasted awesome. A part of that memory is of a church lady scowling down at me as I continued to taste the pew.  I remember the parish priest was really conservative.  Throughout that church he had stashed relics of the Traditional Mass. Candle sticks, statues, side altars, thurible, Missal, tabernacle. His sermons were as good as any I have heard from the SSPX priests.  As a side note, his pari...