I know this is a question I hear from my kids all the time. They want to think heaven is that beautiful spot in the clouds where the streams of sunlight originate as they shine through the clouds :). Here’s a great explanation from the YouCat (Youth Catechism):

If the Father is “in heaven”, where is that heaven?

Heaven is wherever God is. The word “heaven” does not designate a place but, rather, indicates God’s presence, which is not bound by space and time.

We should not look for heaven above the clouds. Wherever we turn to God in his glory and to our neighbor in his need; wherever we experience the joys of love; whenever we convert and allow ourselves to be reconciled with God, heaven opens there. “Not that God is where heaven is, but rather heaven is where God is” (Gerhard Ebeling). (YOUCAT question 518)

Traveling to the Holy Land has never really been on my dream to-do list. My grandparents were blessed to go there before they passed on and had a wonderful time and my dad was even recently talking about a trip, but it’s never held much appeal for me. I think of it as a dry, barren place with much conflict, and while I wouldn’t mind seeing the places where Jesus walked, there were just too many other beautiful places I’d rather go.

Recently, I was asked to review a new book entitled “The Holy Land: An Armchair Pilgrimage” by one of my favorite priests, Father Mitch Pacwa, S.J. Father has led almost 60 trips to Israel and is an expert on the Holy Land and its Catholic significance. I love to listen to him on Catholic Answers radio, because he is such a humble guy and he is wonderful at explaining the complexities of the Catholic faith in terms that make sense to me. So I was delighted to take a look!

As soon as I opened this book, I was entranced! It’s a lovely hardcover book full of heavenly photography that gives you a wonderful sense of place. It didn’t take too many pages before I realized why I should care about visiting the Holy Land: You can’t truly understand the Bible without an understanding of the context in which it’s written.

Don’t you gloss over all the names of towns and mentions of geographical places and details when reading the Bible? I do! I thought, “Eh, that’s not important, it’s WHAT Jesus is saying that is important.” But after reading Fr. Mitch’s book, I realized I was missing a giant component that could greatly help my comprehension of the scriptures.

Let me give you an example. In the Bible when “The Visitation” is described, it says “Mary arose in those days and went into the hill country with haste, to a city of Judea.” As we meditate on this mystery during the rosary, we should consider how Mary felt as she made this journey. You can only truly do this with a knowledge of the time and place where this occurred.

In Fr. Mitch’s book, he takes you to the actual “hill country” that is referenced and explains how “hilly” it really is. Says Fr. Mitch in his book, “The climb up the driveway [to Elizabeth and Zechariah’s property] is a bit strenuous, causing one woman on a pilgrimage to say, ‘You mean she came up here pregnant?'” Can you imagine Mary pregnant, riding a donkey and climbing up a hill — in haste no less? How’s that for food for thought?

In his book “The Holy Land: An Armchair Pilgrimage,” Fr. Mitch leads you step by step through each geographic region of the Holy Land, taking you to all the key landmarks. In his wonderfully conversational writing, he explains the importance of each location, takes you on a verbal tour of the area and offers a prayer or bit of scripture for reflection. Each section is also accompanied by beautiful photography so you can imagine what it’s truly like to be there.

In  many places, Father cleared up some facet of Catholicism I didn’t understand or revealed to me some obvious connection I’d never made by explaining the geographical importance. But he’s just good at that :).

This book is the next best thing to actually traveling to the Holy Land, because let’s face it, for many of us, budgets just don’t allow for it. Maybe someday… but this is as good a start as any. It would also make a great companion if you really are traveling to the Holy Land. You could read the scriptures at each place, learn about the location, reflect on his words and pray the prayers Father has composed.

Guess what? Now, I’m dying to travel to the Holy Land! Thanks Father Mitch :).

See more travel articles on my FamiliesTravelFree.com website.

Good evening! This is my first blog post as part of a group of bloggers who gather weekly to share their best posts with one another in a series called Sunday Snippets. The idea is to give a brief overview of the week on your blog with summaries of key blog posts, as well as answering the Question of the Week.

Let me start by saying today was a terrible day of weather here in Indiana and our neighbors in Illinois. Please keep those affected by the tornadoes and storms in your prayers as there was a lot of damage in so many places in our state. I live near Indianapolis in Zionsville and we were lucky enough to have the storm systems go on either side of us and stay in the clear.

I was scheduled as a reader tonight for mass right in the middle of all the chaos, and as a Catholic newbie, I wondered if mass would be cancelled or if it’s ever even cancelled. Since I didn’t receive any emails or phone calls, I decided to head on over. I found an entire church full of people just as if nothing was going on. As I sat in mass with a view out a window just behind the Blessed Sacrament, I watched the trees and a flag wave furiously while everything inside was calm. It made me realize how Jesus is just that for us. He gives us peace and calm when all else in our lives is chaos and that’s why everyone was at mass :).

Now, to answer the question of the week: What religious artifacts (statues, pictures, icons, altars, etc) would I find in your home if I stopped in for a visit?

Since I’m new to Catholicism, you’ll find a small but growing collection in my house. I have built a small altar area where I have a crucifix, a lovely image of Mary I found at Good Will of all places (so glad I saved her!), a rose candle for St. Therese (my confirmation saint), an angel statue for my mother-in-law who passed a year ago, a statue of Mary and St. Benedict, a rosary and various prayer cards for my favorite saints. I cherish my little area :).

My blog round-up for the week:

This week I shared how I made the Switch to Christian Radio and challenged others to do so, too. Do you listen to Christian radio? I also discussed how I am doing in checking off No. 1 on “God’s Bucket List,” the new book by “Catholic Connection” radio show hos Teresa Tomeo. The book asks you to put down your own bucket list and consider what God might have in store for you instead. No. 1 on her list? Be still. How are you at being still?

Next week I plan to review “The Holy Land: An Armchair Pilgrimage”  by Father Mitch Pacwa, S.J., one of the best around at explaining the Catholic church simply and clearly!

Even just six short months ago, I would have seen the title to this blog and probably run screaming :). I distinctly remember laughing and rolling my eyes about a ride in the car with someone who listened to “Jesus music” even after I had begun my entrance into the Catholic church. My how we should never say never! I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve had to eat my words and ended up doing things I never could have imagined.

So what caused me to take an interest in Christian music? A book I was reading, “Ordinary Lives, Extraordinary Mission,” a guide to becoming the saint you were meant to be, introduced the idea of being aware of what we surround ourselves with. What TV shows do we watch? What music do we listen to? Who are our friends? All of these choices can help us or harm us. The author, John Wood, shared how he switched to Christian radio, specifically K-LOVE, which is available in most major markets, for his family. That stuck in my mind for some reason because it was such a specific suggestion.

Doesn’t every one feel like if they hear the same song on the radio ONE more time, they just can’t stand it? I was having moments like that where I was sick of all the overplayed songs and ready for something new. Plus, I was becoming more aware of some of the lyrics and how I did not want my young boys to hear inappropriate language and innuendos, which are so common in Top 40 music.

I’d already started listening to Catholic Radio (talk radio), but I found that playing it with my boys in the car was sometimes challenging. Abortion is mentioned quite often, and it’s not a topic I’ve figured out how to address with them yet. Sometimes the conversations even get graphic and I just don’t want them exposed to that. Plus, they find it quite boring 🙂 and I’d rather they have something pleasant to fill their ears and make them happy.

SO, I thought… maybe I’ll give this K-LOVE a try… I scanned the radio and found what I thought was it and decided just to listen to the music for a bit and see what I thought. I’d listen for 5-10 minutes here and 5-10 minutes there until I started to get to know the songs. I found I REALLY liked them. It didn’t take me more than a week or two before I knew enough of the songs that it felt familiar and comfortable. Well, I’ve never really turned it off, except to switch back and forth to Catholic Radio.

The songs and the conversations are so uplifting and inspiring and truly give you a boost if you’re having a challenging morning. When you listen to the lyrics, just like when reading scripture or Catholic books, you’ll find messages that you need to hear RIGHT THEN. Plus, there are NO commercials, which is so lovely. Occasionally, I will switch over to Radio Disney, because I feel like they are the least likely to have offensive lyrics, but I’m still hearing the songs I was sick of several months ago and switch back pretty quickly.

I never even mentioned this switch to my kids and they’ve never made any comment or acted like they noticed. Suddenly their lives are just filled with positive songs, and a couple of times, they’ve even said “I like this song!”

Here are my tips for making the switch:

1) Just try it.

2) Promise yourself to listen just for 5 minutes a day for the next week.

3) At the end of the week, if you haven’t found a song or two you like, I’ll be very surprised! The music is really good and reminds me of singer-songwriter type music, which is very soulful, pure and lets the singer’s voice truly shine.

Take the Christian Radio challenge and tweet about it using hashtag: #SwitchtoChristianRadio. I can’t wait to hear what you think! Anyone else made the switch? How has it changed your life?

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