For me, the Sermon on the Mount assignment was very unique and beneficial. It also was a great learning experience for me. I chose to read the Sermon on the Mount packet in the silence of SLUH's church . I sat on the very far right side of the church, and everytime I looked up I would gaze at the altar and just think. It felt good and refreshing to read the Sermon on the Mount in the church because to me it was a form of prayer. When I was in the church, I felt like Jesus was in the chair right next to me as I read through the packet. Time seemed to fly by very quickly.
After reading the Sermon on the Mount, I responded to the "Remember the last time you.." questions as moral, catholic, and Christian. In many of my responses I found myself being both a moral and Christian person, but in others I was far from being Christlike . I know that next time I am put in a position to make a decision, my answers from the questionaire will be streaming through my head. I also found filling in the answers to the Sermon on the Mount outline to be very beneficial. I liked how some of the answers I knew right off the top of my head, and others I had to page back through the Sermon on the Mount to find the answer. I also think that my outline will be a key tool for helping me study for the upcoming test.
Two Things I Want to Remember:
I think that by far my favorite part of this section has been watching the short clip about Randy Pausch and his extreme love of life. Even though Randy is suffering from cancer in his pancreas , the most difficult form of cancer, he never fails to have a smile on his face. In many of his talks, his outgoing personality beams through to the audience members. He is always jumping around having a good time. As I was watching this clip, I looked around the room and saw that everyone's eyes were glued to the projector screen and I thought that was really cool. The main point I took from Randy was to "tell the truth," and to do even better "all the time." The thing that saddened me the most was when Randy said he was saddened that his kids would soon not have their father to love and take care of them. I liked how he said his cancer was unlucky but not unfair, it was a way that seemed to keep his spirits up. I was moved when he said the fact that his children wouldn't have him around was unfair. This video clip made me put my life in perspective and want to get the best out of my life.
Another thing that I really enjoyed this section was listening to Dr. King's last speech in Memphis on Storycorps. First of all, I think that the whole concept of storycorps is awesome because you can basically listen to an archive of stories whenever you want. I really enjoyed listening to Dr. King's speech because of the deep emotion present in his voice. I could tell that he truly believed in what he was saying and he strongly wanted others to hear it. Even the enthusiasm of the crowd was noticeable as you could hear shouts of joy and agreement in the background. While listening to the speech, I tried to place myself in the church where the speech was taking place. I tried to imagine what I would have thought, felt, smelled, and heard. We also listened to a first person account of a man that was present at the time of the speech. I compared what I imagined I would have felt to what the man said he actually felt. The thing I was most amazed at was when Dr. King finally finished his speech and he had tears streaming down his face. Dr. King had such a strong belief in what he was saying that he could not help but be overcome with emotion. I really hope we listen to stories from STORYCORPS in future lessons because to me it was a great learning experience.
A Question to Think About:
How can I live a life filled with the 10 Commandments and how can I ever know if I am truly carrying out the Commandments God wants me to follow?
For me, carrying out the 10 Commandments is not always easy because of my hectic lifestyle. For example, often times I fail to attend mass on Sunday because I have other activities that I feel like I can't miss. Yes, I know that attending mass should be a prioritized activity but there are so many other things going on in my life I find it hard to make it to mass. I think for me, the best way to live a life filled with the 10 Commandments would be to take it one step at a time. I need to realize that I am not going to radically change over night and need to be pleased with step by step progress. I can focus on a set number of Commandments I try extremely hard to carry them out to others. I also need to not be afraid to pray to God for help and even ask others for help. I am surrounded by a loving family and a great SLUH community and I know that people will be willing to help me out. I just need to be open to people's suggestions.
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