CNMC

Tears as Gift

August 9, 2010 By Sarah Reinhard 7 Comments

I hate crying. As a certified (and probably certifiable) ENTJ, I hate the fact that I have this tendency to…cry. I don’t mind it in others; I can even see it as a beautiful expression of the moving of that person’s heart. I don’t mind sentimentality so much in other people. In myself, though…well, I don’t like it. At all.

Especially in Mass. Or when a priest talks. (Seriously. Priests touch my heart. It is beautiful…and embarrassing.)

In the last nine years since becoming Catholic, I have cried more than I ever cried before. The tears just seem to slip out, to slide down my face. Then my nose gets in on the action and, well, it only gets worse.

I was complaining about mentioning this on Twitter and Facebook before Friday night’s Meet-n-Greet (which was part of the Catholic New Media Celebration). My five-year-old daughter, who had been crying when I left her at the airport, was expecting to talk to me via the uStream. I was thinking of singing her a lullaby, except that the thought that I might get choked up. I knew, in fact, that I would get choked up.

One of my dear friends (who’s been wise in this space before) made a comment I’ve been thinking of ever since:

Smiling that you said crying is private. God created us to cry publicly, right on our faces. Maybe He had a good idea. Besides, just do a disclaimer at the beginning about tears being possible. Everyone loves you and knows how deeply you feel about things. That’s part of why we love you. [Emphasis mine.]

I thought of that when I was sitting at the CNMC during Fr. Roderick’s opening prayer. I thought of it when I used the last of my napkins during Fr. Reed’s keynote address. I thought of it when I was praying in the Adoration chap el (and missing most of Cardinal Sean O’Malley’s remarks).

I thought of it at Mass yesterday, holding my husband’s hand, feeling the joy of the Eucharist, reveling in both the experience of the weekend and the comfort of being home.

I was crying at each of those times. Tears came: unbidden, unwanted, unexpected.

Mark Shea commented, when I was moaning talking about my propensity toward tears before dinner Saturday night, that I should be thankful for them.

And, even though I know that tears are a gift, I can’t seem to believe it when I’m in the middle of crying and snotting at Mass. Even though I know they’re coming, even though it’s almost like watching the radar and predicting a big storm in two hours, I never fail to be both surprised and dismayed by their appearance.

Some people maintain there’s a strength in crying. I can tell you that, when I cry, I do not feel strong. I do not feel anything except small, humble, open. When I think of that cocktail of experience, I realize that there’s a cleansing in the crying that I will continue to need until I beat down the ego that keeps me from receiving God and His grace.

Tears are powerful…and they are uncomfortable. Even though I’m a frequent cry-er, I’m never at ease with my wet face and dripping nose.

This is yet another chance for me to turn to Mary. She’s invoked as Our Lady of Tears, and maybe there’s a reason that the rosary of Our Lady of Tears came into my life.

Maybe, when I’m sniffling and snuffling at Mass and trying to find a way to remember to keep tissues in my purse, I can think of Mary, tears sliding down her face as she watches her children on earth stumble and struggle with daily life. Maybe, when I’m wishing I didn’t have to hide in the restroom to get a hold of myself, I can say a prayer for the mother who buried a child, for the wife facing her husband’s daily health struggle, for the daughter seeking her father. Maybe, when I’m most resentful of the tears that accost me unawares, I can give them to Mary, so that she can wash her Son’s feet and turn my pitiful disconsonance into something beautiful for Him.

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Related posts and columns:

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Filed Under: Inspired by the Virgin Mary, Mary Moment Mondays Tagged With: CNMC, crying, Faith, gift of tears, Mark Szewczak, Mary Moment Monday, Motherhood, SQPN, Virgin Mary

The Best Part of CNMC MMX

August 8, 2010 By Sarah Reinhard 8 Comments

It was the end of the day, though it hadn’t felt like a long day until the silence surrounded me.

I knelt, I genuflected, I prayed. I sat in the chapel, and I realized that I was in the best part of my day.

The Catholic New Media Celebration was fantastic. I met Facebook friends and blogging buddies. I networked and talked and yakked and laughed. I embarrassed myself (but hopefully not anyone else) and I shared.

But during those moments in the Adoration chapel, I was struck by what evangelization truly means, by the One I serve, the Light I follow.

The best part of the day, by far, was being able to take a few moments, however brief, and share them with Jesus. It was the tangible reminder of Who it is guiding the star of the New Evangelization.

A special thanks to the wonderful people who joined me during my talk on blogging content and catechesis. I collected their names and websites/blogs and will post that list in the next day or two.

Filed Under: blogging, Faith, speaking Tagged With: CNMC, Faith, speaking, SQPN

Looking for Me?

August 6, 2010 By Sarah Reinhard Leave a Comment

You won’t find me HERE this weekend…because I’m at the Catholic New Media Celebration in Boston! Yay!

If you’re interested in my talk about blogging content and catechesis, it will be live on uStream at 11:35 AM EST on Saturday, August 7. (I’m not sure if it will be saved for later viewing or not. If so, I’ll link to it.)

Here’s the CNMC uStream schedule, and here’s the direct link to SQPN Live, where you’ll find the action.

Filed Under: blogging, speaking Tagged With: blogging, CNMC, speaking, SQPN

Seven Takes on the CNMC

June 25, 2010 By Sarah Reinhard Leave a Comment

1. No experience necessary (but still welcome).

The Catholic New Media Celebration is for newbies and veterans alike. We want people from many dioceses to come and learn the potential here. No experience necessary. Come, watch, and learn.

On the other hand, this is a chance to share your experience if you have it (and let’s face it, we all have experience of some sort!).

2. Put faces with names.

Meet the SQPN line-up in person! Meet a cardinal who blogs! Meet bloggers (like me!) who are changing the world one keystroke at time!

The Meet & Greet on Friday, August 6 is held at the historic Omni Parker House Hotel, where Boston Cream pie and Parker House rolls were invented. For those of you who care about politics and recent history, this is where JFK proposed to Jackie and later announced his candidacy for public office.

But, really, this is where virtual becomes real, where reality gets grounded, where dreams become possible. Three years ago, when I went to my first CNMC (what a road trip that was!), I was only sort of hoping to be a writer when I grew up. I credit that trip, and the people I got to know better because of it, for giving me the confidence I needed to jump in the waters.

3. Enjoy a weekend away.

Enjoy a weekend in New England. Boston is close to shoreline, and has just the right mix of great seafood, great sports, and great colleges for those who are looking! Though the Red Sox are away that weekend, there’s no shortage of things to do, even if you just cozy up in a hotel room or by that shoreline with your favorite book.

4. Revel at the mecca of shopping.

Boston is a shopping mecca: Newbury Street, Prudential Center, and Copley Place for starters. Then there’s the North End, Boston’s “Little Italy,” for great Italian food and Boston memorabilia.

(A note to my husband: No worries, honey, as long as I don’t find any quaint little bookstores…)

5. Immerse yourself in history all around.

Walk the famous “Freedom Trail.” See Paul Revere’s house, the Old North Church (“one if by land, two if by sea…”), the Boston Common, the Old State House (the site of the Boston Massacre), and Bunker Hill. You’ll have a chance to see “Old Ironsides” and the Old Granary burial ground where John Hancock and others are buried.

Oh, and there’s more. So much more.

6. Can you say “family friendly”?

This year’s CNMC is featuring, for the first time, a children’s track. You’ll also want to check out the Boston Public Gardens where you can ride on the famous Swan Boats, and see the “Make Way for Ducklings” sculpture from the classic book of the same name. Plus there is the New England Aquarium, the Children’s Museum, and the wonderful Museum of Science with its Omni Theatre and Planetarium. Oh, and you can tour Fenway Park, home of the Red Sox, during the day too.

7. Better than candid!

Get on camera, whether on the SQPN UStream feed or interviewed by new media folks with microphones (or notebooks, in the case of those of us who aren’t podcasters)!

So…what are you waiting for? Get registered while there’s still time!

Thanks to Pat Gohn for her help compiling this list. Thanks, too, to Jen from Conversion Diary for hosting Quick Takes each week. Be sure to check out this week’s round-up.

Filed Under: Quick Takes Tagged With: Boston, CNMC, Quick Takes, SQPN

Need a Video?

June 24, 2010 By Sarah Reinhard Leave a Comment

Sure you do.

And, because I’m all for sharing what’s on my mind this week, here’s a bonus (which has nothing to do with the presentation I’m going to give…or does it?):

(Well, I can promise not to sing. And this has more to do with the writing I’m doing this week than my CNMC presentation. I promise.)

So…you comin’ to Boston? Huh? Are ya?

Filed Under: in the world Tagged With: CNMC, SQPN

Wordless Wednesday: the Fun in Boston

June 23, 2010 By Sarah Reinhard 1 Comment

Fr. Roderick Vonhögen

Lino Rulli

Lisa Hendey, Pat Gohn, Danielle Bean

Cardinal Sean O'Malley

Will I see you there?

Filed Under: in the world Tagged With: CNMC, pictures, SQPN

On Google, God, and New Media, by Pat Gohn

June 22, 2010 By Sarah Reinhard 1 Comment

Today, media maven Pat Gohn has graciously offered her talents here. If that sounds like a familiar name, that’s because I rave quite regularly about her Among Women podcast and its accompanying blog. Pat’s also a regular contributor at CatholicMom.com, Faith & Family Live, and Today’s Catholic Woman. Thanks, Pat, for joining us today!

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Why would a middle-aged mother like myself groove on new media? And dare to become a podcaster, a blogger, and use social networks like Facebook and Twitter? There are several reasons, but none more important than this one: the internet is like a second home to my three young adult children. Having raised a family in the digital age, I have one observation: nowadays the search for meaning often begins with Google. Or Bing. Or Yahoo.

That’s not a joke, that’s a reality. In the web-surfing world of key word searches and tags, you never know where that search will land.

That’s why I want to see the worldwide web flooded with people who love God and aren’t afraid to show it… Especially, passionate Catholic content-providers, media-makers and social networkers. I want to make sure those searches yield websites and entertainment that effectively communicate Christian values, teaching, and wholesome entertainment that integrates faith and life.

What’s more, I long to see the incredible treasure that is the Catholic Church as a fixture in cyberspace… A vibrant bastion of truth, beauty, and goodness in the virtual world.

Let’s face it: The explosion of new media technologies is changing the way we live and work. It is changing the way Catholics grow and learn about their faith, as many turn to the internet daily for information and entertainment.

Pope Benedict XVI recently compared the web to a digital sea, asking Catholics to utilize it for the sake of the gospel. Benedict calls us to engage in the new evangelization, as did John Paul II, of happy memory. The Holy Father had this to say in a recent address at a Congress called “Digital Witnesses” in Rome:

Let us set sail on the digital sea fearlessly, confronting open navigation with the same enthusiasm that has steered the Barque of the Church for 2,000 years. Rather than for technical resources, although these are necessary, let us also qualify ourselves by dwelling in this world with a believing heart that helps to give a soul to the ceaseless flow of communications that makes up the web.

This is our mission, the inalienable mission of the Church. [Emphasis mine.]

Responding to the call for this new evangelization, the Catholic New Media Celebration, sponsored by SQPN, and hosted by the Archdiocese of Boston, takes place August 6-7, 2010. Attendees will learn how to evangelize using digital media, with special emphasis given to podcasting and blogging. “Newbies” will learn alongside “veterans” in sharing ways to use new media effectively, within an atmosphere of Christian community.

The goal of the Catholic New Media Celebration is to inspire and develop new individuals and groups to use new media: to effectively create and share powerful, unique content for the benefit of the universal Catholic Church.

“This year’s CNMC will focus particularly on three things,” says Fr. Roderick Vonhögen, host of “The Break” and CEO of SQPN. “We will be exploring the best practices for creating quality content; how authentic catechesis and spirituality are incorporated; and, how a true sense of mission is instilled in those who consume this media and become a part of our online communities,” he says.

Fr Vonhögen will lead of team of SQPN podcasters in a podcasting track. The blogging track will feature presentations by bloggers Thomas Peters of American Papist, Sarah Reinhard of Just Another Day of Catholic Pondering, and Rachel Balducci of Testosterhome and Faith and Family Live. Finally, there is a children’s track led my Allyson Sweeney of The Catholic Family Podcast and Lisa Mladnich of Amazing Catechists.