Don't Be Stupid

Whenever I am on a long bus ride or need to zone out from the world for a bit, I usually put on my headphones and listen to a podcast.  I honestly am so glad that I've discovered podcasts  a couple years ago, because it gives me some time to myself without thinking about what is going on around me.  I just have to listen to the people talking in my ears and enjoy what they're saying.  One of my favorite podcasts is The Catholic Guy Podcast (TCGP).  It's a bunch of clips from The Catholic Guy Show on the Sirius XM's Catholic Channel.  It's hosted by a guy named Lino Rulli, who is a Catholic Badass.  He talks with guests, cracks jokes with his co-hosts and brings together faith, learning and modern day life in a beautiful way.  He's kinda like the Howard Stern of Catholic radio and I totally recommend you check him out.

Currently, I'm working my way through TCGP where Lino was in New Orleans for Mardi Gras and Ash Wednesday.  One of his co-hosts for the day was a priest named Fr. Tony Ricard, who is a priest for the Archdiocese of New Orleans.  The main topic that they talked about was a phrase that Fr. Tony's mother taught him, and that he's shared with hundred's of people around the world; Don't Be Stupid.

What?

That's what I thought to myself when I heard him say that phrase.  Fr. Tony explained though.  He said that when he left home for college, his mother told him two things; "Remember who you came from" and "Don't be stupid."  Now, the answer to the first phrase is God, remember you came from God.  The second part, according to Fr. Tony, means don't do something that you know is wrong.

As I began to think about that phrase a bit more, it made sense.  If someone does something that is wrong, but they don't know any better, they are dumb, according to Fr. Tony, but if you do something wrong and you know it is wrong, but you do it anyway, you are stupid.

So, don't be stupid.

I had to laugh at this because I never thought of it like that.  It's such a simply phrase, but there is so much meaning behind it.  As children of God, we are called to holiness by Him.  We are called to set a certain standard for ourselves and try to live up to that standard everyday of our lives.  When we don't live up to that standard, it usually isn't because we are dumb, it is because we are stupid.

This is an issue for me, because there will be times where I will have complete knowledge of what I'm doing and know that it is wrong, but I go ahead and do it anyway.  Why?  Because we are weak and we are stupid.  We put ourselves into situations where we will end up doing something stupid, and then of course we end up doing it.  It's like in Rebel Without A Cause, where the teens try to see how close to the edge of the cliff they could drive their cars before stopping; unless you stop early, there is no going back and there's a good chance you'll end up going over the edge.

That was pretty stupid.

Now, as I said, I get into a lot of stupid situations, but how do I stop myself from getting into these situations?  It isn't like I've tried.  Going back to Rebel, its like I want to stop the car, but my brakes won't work, so I end up rolling over the cliff anyway.  I don't want to be stupid, and I bet that there are a lot of other people who don't want to be stupid either.  Unfortunately, the only answer that Fr. Tony has is......... you guess it, DON'T BE STUPID.

If you know something is wrong, then don't even put yourself in that situation.  Don't even go to the cliff that night.  Try to avoid it altogether.  Most importantly, turn everything to God.  Don't just think about God as you're going over the cliff, think about him as your starting the race.  He is the emergency brake that will save your life.

The main point of this post is that I've failed, and you probably have too at one point or another.  That doesn't mean that God will turn His back on us.  He loves us, and wants to help us not be stupid.  We came from Him and just like any good parent, God will continue to teach us right from wrong.  He is the only way. So stick with God and don't be stupid.

If you'd like to learn more about Fr. Tony or check out some of his awesome merch, see this link here!  http://www.fathertony.com/

Peace and Love