My little place on the web
School
Away to College
Aug 29th
Howdy All! I am now attending college as the loudest and proudest member of the Fightin’ Texas Aggie class of 2014! AAAAAAA! I will continue to update my blog… probably more so than what I have done in the past, which is saying a lot (well, maybe not) considering I haven’t said much prior to this entry. That was confusing, but it perfectly describes how I feel right now. I have so much going on and so much to get used to before classes begin. I feel just like a fish should: swimming somewhat aimlessly in a big ocean.
Challenges: Defined in (Not so) Plain English
Jan 22nd
I enjoy a good challenge every once in a while. In my case, English class is always a challenge because it is not my best subject. At times, I have the outward appearance that I despise English. To prove my point, I pose the question: Who in their right mind likes to write essays or interpretations? I can understand writing blog entries or writing in a journal every once in a while, but for assignments? Who came up with the idea of essay assignments anyway? And how can I say that I enjoy challenges but despise a challenging English class?
As a faithful Catholic, I do my best and let God handle the rest: We should embrace the challenges we face and use them as opportunities to grow in patience, humility, and faith. I take pleasure in making myself a better person (which, in turn, makes the world a better place) because I know that I am becoming who I was meant to be–the best person I can become. Therefore, I can proudly say that I enjoy English class because I enjoy making myself a better person, challenges give us the ability to better ourselves, and English is challenging to me.
I also like English because I never know what profound sermon Mr. Beeler is going to give.
Movies to Keep Away from Mr. Beeler
Nov 25th
If Mr. Beeler were to see this list, he would surely assign multiple-page essays in response to them.
I recently watched the following two movies and found them quite intriguing:
Both movies are extremely good stories that describe humanity and its tendencies to stray from what God originally intended for Creation and his plans to make good come from the evil that we have twisted. I do not wish to give an in-depth analysis on the four layers of meaning (literal, figurative, tropological, and anagogical), but they are easy to interpret for one’s self.
I must warn you that Knowing offers a very skewed, but thought-provoking, view of the eschaton/apocalypse as foreseen by a young girl in 1959. Recall that Jesus tells us to, “stay awake, for [we] know neither the day nor the hour” (Mt 25:13, NAB). In the movie, a few chosen children are removed from the earth before it is destroyed and are taken to a different planet. This act of “rescue” from the tribulation is commonly referred to as the Rapture. However, the Rapture is never mentioned anywhere in the Bible, nor is it alluded to by any of the prophets, by Jesus, or in the Pauline letters. The answer to why there will not be a Rapture can be found in reason: Human suffering is redemptive by nature if united with the sufferings of Christ as an offering. This is why euthanasia is wrong: it provides an “easy death” (from the Greek eu + thanatos) without any suffering and no chance at redemption. To suffer through the tribulation would be the ultimate sacrifice and the ultimate redemption. Would God really deprive us of that opportunity by taking us from it? The only human person who did not need redemption is Jesus: He came to be our redemption through is life, passion, death, resurrection, and ascension and established His Kingdom on earth to guard the seed of faith and pass it down to all generations. Jesus’ dually human and divine nature (hypostatic union) explains that He was, in fact, God. His name literally means “God saves” and thus he is our savior; he does not need to be saved.
I believe I have written enough to provide plenty of fuel for thought: it seems that I have written an essay while trying to avoid writing an essay. Watch for how grace is at work in the movies, and I hope you will get as much out of them as I did.
BEST Robotics 2009
Oct 24th
I will be participating in the 2009 BEST Robotics Competition today. The SJS Robotics Team has really pulled together this last week to go from a base robot design that barely moves to a fully functional robot. Please come out to Texas A&M Consolidated High School sometime between 8:00 AM and 3:00 PM to show your support.
Please pray that our robot performs to the best of it’s ability (pun not intended).