Being a "Good" Catholic.

     There is a term out there that I'm sure everyone has heard of before. The term is "good Catholic." We've all used it ourselves or heard someone using the term when talking about something they shouldn't be doing. In terms of being a good Catholic that is. So what does it mean to be a good Catholic, and should there be any other kind?
     Today is Friday, and for those of you that know what's up it means Catholics can't eat mean today. It's Lent and during Lent, Catholics are not supposed to eat meat on Fridays. That's one of the rules of Lent anyway. All Catholics are supposed to give up something they eat/drink/do often for the duration of Lent  as well, which is 40 days. It starts on Ash Wednesday, the 7th Wednesday before Easter, and goes for 40 days. Now some of you might be saying, well that puts us about a week short of Easter. Sundays aren't counted in the 40 days so count again! The purpose of Lent is for Catholics to mimic Jesus' withdrawal into the wilderness for 40 days. So to give up something important to them and not eat meat on Fridays is the way it's supposed to go.
     So have you been a "good Catholic"? What other ways are people wondering if they are being "good" or not. Let's start with the meat on Friday thing. I have been messing that up for the past couple weeks leaving me to ask that question. Today almost got me again. I got to the BoltBus stop a little early and wanted to grab a quick bite before the 4 and 1/2 hours to NYC. I stroll into Quiznos and check out their menu. Staring me right in the face is an advertisement for their new Chicken Bacon Dipper! Yes Please! I'll take one of those sir. Now I don't know if someone outside was saying something, or it was someone in the restaurant that mentioned it, I'm not even ruling out the possibility of it being Jesus himself. But someone whispered "Friday" in my ear. At least that's what it seemed like. "Wait wait wait, sir do you have some kinda veggie sandwich?" Phhheewwww, I almost blew it again! So I get my veggie sandwich and realize I did blow it! I forgot to say no olives! Gross! At least on this Friday I can say I was a good Catholic!
     How else can I be good? Go to church? Yea, probably, I mean it couldn't hurt. I'm not really in agreement with the whole church part of religion but that's a different story! So what are some of the other occasions in our everyday life where us Catholics find ourselves questioning how good we are? Swearing? Guilty. Pre-marital sex? Guilty, sorry Mom. Masturbating? . . . . guilty. Drinking in excess and blacking out, then only God knows what? Guilty. I'm sure there are more, and I'm sure I'd be saying guilty to most of those as well. Does that mean I'm a bad Catholic and am doomed to Hell?? I sure hope not. What about you? Even if you're not religious or a Catholic you know what I'm talking about. So you could ask yourself the same questions and see where you stand.
      For now I'm going to concentrate on the meat on Friday deal. Maybe even go a couple weeks after Easter to make up for my previous slip-ups. Is it all for nothing? Maybe it is, maybe it's not. I should be able to at least follow it for 40 days though. Maybe a little sacrifice would be good for everyone. A lot of things are taken for granted these days. Try taking something you do everyday and giving it up for period of time. Like a week! Just to experience that for a short period of time will make you appreciate the ability to have it everyday. So suck on that for a while and tell me what you think.
      I've made it to the pit stop on my bus trip. A small rest stop between DC and NYC. Is that what I think it is? Yes it is, good thing I've got a Ham Sandwich! I couldn't eat it, I hope this guy isn't a Catholic. Either way . . . Zip!