Thanks Jamie!So for whatever reason, I have been really wanting to go visit a Catholic Church for a while. I have a pretty strong prayer and meditation practice, but for whatever reason, have really been thinking about Catholic Church. I talked to a couple of women in my life that I really look up to (both of them Catholic) & they recommended a church in Greenville, St Anthony's of Padua.
sourceWhat better time to visit a church than during Easter!!! It was so awesome!! Turns out, this is the first African American Catholic Church in Greenville. The priest, Father Pat, is a wonderful man. He has taken a vow of pverty and has done extensive work with the homeless. In the last year, he has raised $4.2 million dollars for their catholic school. What makes this so important is that in the area of the Greenville the school is located has a graduation rate (elementary) in the 30 percentile. But St Anthony's school's graduation rate is in the 90 percentile! What a wonderful opportunity for children in an area where school doesn't seem as important!!
Also, the had a gospel choir that was amazing. The church just felt so alive and I really actually felt like I was home even though 1) I'm not catholic and 2) I've never been there. I DEFINITELY want to go back (maybe this weekend).
As we left, there was a little booklet that we grabbed that has a daily prayer for 30 days after Easter. I have been reading it daily and it's been really interesting. It tells of stories of the disciples and Mary Magdalene, etc. In the reading today, it was talking about the invisible disciple and that the invisible disciple's greatest asset was how much he loved Jesus. Then it said that we don't have to have faith, but if we just love God as much as we can, the faith will come. That really made an impression on me! And of course, it said it more eloquently than I'm saying it.
Anyways, that's what I'm loving today!!!
What about you??
