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The Catholic Bird Lover

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Recreation, Outdoors and Religion

2024-06-20T22:49:31-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

3 Very Catholic Truths Mexican Culture Teaches About Life

Last updated on: June 20, 2024 at 10:49 pm By Mariel Ortega

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The constant hum of the fan weaves with the dramatic gongs of the most recent telenovela my grandmother is watching. The carcass of a mosquito, bloated with my blood, lies over the edge of the bed. My own stomach is bloated from the remnants of my grandmother’s birthday dinner a couple hours ago. It’s a peaceful, quiet existence and I reflect on the waves of nostalgia that come every time I visit my family in Mexico. Nostalgia for the life... Read more

Family, Parenting and Religion

2024-05-31T09:07:27-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Is my dream a message from God?

Last updated on: May 31, 2024 at 9:07 am By Mariel Ortega

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There are some days when God whispers in a still small voice…And there are some days when he smacks you upside the head. God has been whispering to me for the past few days. Well, actually he’s been whispering for months. The past few days however, he’s been stage whispering. On my drive home from capoeira every night, my attention was drawn noticeably to that one turn that leads to a 24 hour chapel. But that chapel is scary at... Read more

Family, Parenting and Religion

2023-12-11T13:16:43-06:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Wishes Make us Human, but What Happens When They Change?

Last updated on: December 11, 2023 at 1:16 pm By Mariel Ortega

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Wishes, our deepest desires, our longing for more… This is what makes us human. It’s what connects us to one another. And it is what connects us to God. It is the longing for eternity. The desire to create something to inspire generations. The desire to fly, to touch the stars…These are wishes that must be pursued, even at the risk of heartbreak, even if they may never come true. Because in pursuing them we find our truest selves and we... Read more

General Christian

Women in Religion

2023-10-13T15:18:57-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

God’s Presence in non-Church Things: Capoeira Martial Arts

Last updated on: October 13, 2023 at 3:18 pm By Mariel Ortega

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I love the universality of Catholicism. On my trip to Korea, I found familiarity and rest inside any Catholic church. This trip, I was surprised to find that this universality wasn’t limited to the Church. I found God’s presence in something else: capoeira martial arts. Unfamiliar words I can’t make out fill the church, but I don’t feel out of place. Everyone’s hands go to their foreheads, then their chest, then to each shoulder. I follow the gesture... Read more

Health, Fitness and Religion

2023-09-07T06:27:11-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Confession in Korea: The Universality of the Church

Last updated on: September 7, 2023 at 6:27 am By Mariel Ortega

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“Misa…misa…misa…” I muttered to myself under my breath as I scrolled through a pageful of unfamiliar characters. As someone who travels out-of-state often, I am accustomed to the struggle of deciphering church websites (when there is a website at all). Mass times are hidden on the third or fourth menu option, and often confession times aren’t on the same page at all! Now, imagine all of these problems in a different language…and a different alphabet. This was my experience finding... Read more

2023-07-18T22:43:09-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Pious Daydream: Is it actually pious?

Last updated on: July 18, 2023 at 10:43 pm By Mariel Ortega

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This past Sunday, I was sitting in Mass, daydreaming. The calming music, the repetitive responses, the often boring homilies…it’s natural and human to get distracted. Usually, I dismiss the distractions and direct my attention back to the Mass. This time though, the daydream caught my attention. It caught my attention, because it seemed like a pious daydream. What could be wrong about that? I was daydreaming about martyrdom. Of how my heroic death would lead to the conversion of thousands,... Read more

Home and Religion

Discernment

Virtue

2023-07-06T16:16:58-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

5 Ways to Respond When God Asks us to Do Something we Don’t Want to Do

Last updated on: July 6, 2023 at 4:16 pm By Mariel Ortega

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Recently, I wrote a post on why God might ask us to do something we don’t want to do. After all, our desires are important to God and even play a key role in discernment. But the truth of the matter is that our desires are not the most primordial thing in life and God sometimes asks us to give them. In a society where we are unlikely to be subjected to martyrdom in its strictest sense, giving up your... Read more

History and Religion

2023-06-20T12:08:25-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

3 Everyday Ways to Witness Your Faith Without Preaching at People

Last updated on: June 20, 2023 at 12:08 pm By Mariel Ortega

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Recently, I was at a pool party with several non-Catholic friends. I was having a lot of fun, but needed to leave early to go to Confession. As I left, everyone asked me “where are you going?” And I answered, to meet my sister. Even though these are people I trust and love, the lie slipped out immediately. As I walked to my car, I couldn’t believe myself. After years of working on courage in witnessing my faith, I had... Read more

Education and Religion

2023-06-17T10:29:41-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Top 3 Tips on Maintaining Innocence in a Non-innocent Age

Last updated on: June 17, 2023 at 10:29 am By Mariel Ortega

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The most innocent soul I have ever met. This is what one of my friends said about me at a pool party recently. The most innocent soul I have ever met. It’s one of the best compliments I have ever been given. Especially at a time when I am struggling with a sin that makes me feel decidedly not innocent. But what is innocence exactly? And why is it so good? What is innocence? Innocence is one of those things that... Read more

General Christian

Careers, Workplace and Religion

2023-06-13T15:15:49-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

3 Truths the Little Mermaid Teaches About Desires

Last updated on: June 13, 2023 at 3:15 pm By Mariel Ortega

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The new live-action Little Mermaid is amazing. I’ve slipped back in time to when I was five years old, ejecting the VCR only to rewind it and start the movie all over again. Halle Bailey did such a great job and the entire movie was magical (for my full review of the movie click here). Not only that, but the movie teaches us important truths about our desires! I’ve watched the movie 3 times and the joyful, dance-filled scenes of... Read more

General Christian

Family, Parenting and Religion

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