Nick’s Testimony
A Messy Environment: Top-40 and Dr. Demento
There’s a Loony Toons episode where Bugs Bunny asks a down-on-his-luck gambler, “When was ya born?” “I don’t know,” came the hesitant reply. “I was kinda young then.” I was born the second of eight children in a Catholic family. My baptism was celebrated 11 days later. The post-sacramental party, preserved on home video, was held in the tidy wood-paneled basement of our childhood home. Our dad, God rest him, later struggled with anger and depression, and was often under-employed. Our overwhelmed mother took up the slack the best she could. As a teen, I made my bedroom in the by-then dank, musty, and junk-strewn basement, wall panels warped and falling-down. I had become accustomed to that messy environment, and my young-adulthood reflected it. Though generally polite and obedient, I was free to roam the neighborhood with other relatively good but equally lost boys. Our antics were usually harmless, but veered on occasion toward self-destructive and even criminal.
I found solace in broadcast radio. From the pocket transistor with the mono earphone jack to the 80’s boombox to the Sony Walkman AM/FM Radio-Cassette, I seldom went anywhere without a portable radio. I loved Top-40 music, and would stay up late at night listening to music, CBS Radio Mystery Theater, Dr. Demento, and baseball play-by-play from faraway cities. I skipped school a lot, and did not graduate with my high school class. I worked part time while taking a few classes at the local college. Looking for focus and discipline I enlisted in the Navy, and among my greatest worries during basic training and aboard ship was what hit songs I was missing out on.
Faith Requires a Response: Christian Radio
I met a good and faithful friend on active duty, and through him heard the gospel proclaimed in a way I had not been open to before. I spent a lot of time with Tom, and his preferred Christian music started infiltrating my Top 40 regimen. “Faith comes by hearing,” scripture tells us (Romans 10:17) and continues, “Did they not hear? Why don’t they understand?” Certainly I heard, with 12 years of Catholic schooling and (fairly) regular attendance at Sunday Mass. I believed in God, but that belief had limited influence on my day-to-day life. I had instead been paying more heed to the mixed-message love songs on the radio (and to their supporting commercial sponsors, each promising happiness if I bought their product) than to the true love message I heard each Sunday. I didn’t realize then that faith is not a one-way gift. It requires a response. Like any gift we can either open and embrace it or freely reject it. I chose to ignore it.
After my discharge, I met and married a nice Catholic girl, these many years later a truly good and supportive woman. Jean and I began attending a parish bible study, which whet my appetite to learn more about the faith. A Christian co-worker later asked, “Do you ever listen to the radio?” I had to laugh. He recommended a local Christian talk station that broadcast supportive family programs and a handful of Protestant Bible teachers. These godly men instilled in me such a love for Jesus and his Word that I felt compelled to pass that love on.
To Echo Down: Catholic Radio and Podcasts
Jean and I volunteered as youth catechists for 18 years, and I now help coordinate adult catechesis. Catechesis – meaning “to echo down” – honors the scriptural adage that “faith comes by hearing.” Generation builds upon generation, echoing down the love of Jesus and the truths of the faith to the next. Weekly lesson preparation included scripture and catechism reading and reflection, and listening to faithful teachers on local Catholic radio, later in downloaded podcasts and in online videos. To learn more about theology, philosophy, liturgy, literature, and more, some 10 years ago I began taking Catholic catechism courses from wise and inspiring teachers. I have completed about three dozen, in each learning more beauty, truth, and nuances that I could then echo down to my own students.
To Whom are You Listening?
“If you don’t know the bad news, the good news is no news at all.”
Every car comes with an owner’s manual, in which the manufacturer outlines safe driving habits, sets recommended intervals for scheduled maintenance, and specifies the replacement parts, fluids, and fuel that will allow that vehicle to perform most efficiently. In the same way, our Creator God gives us Scripture, our owner’s manual for living a happy life. When God says, “Don’t do this,” what He is really saying is, “I love you. Don’t hurt yourself.” As a car owner, I am free to ignore the or reject the manufacturer’s recommendations, and, for example, fill the gas tank with Kool-Aid or the crank case with tomato soup. In an eternally more important way, the Gospel requires a response. We can either accept it (follow His commands for a living a happy life), neglect it (allow God’s voice to be drowned out), or reject it.
To whom are you listening? The muddled love messages of Top-40 radio? The “you can have it all” message of the consumer culture (in which faith plays a minimal role)? The divisive message of political parties?
A professor once shared, “If you don’t know the bad news, the good news is no news.” The Good News is that God loves you, has a beautiful plan for your earthly life, and wants to spend eternity with you. So what’s the bad news? Sin can hinder or even destroy God’s beautiful plan, and sin separates us from God’s love. If sin remains unrepented, it results in the eternal separation of Hell. What is sin? It is rejecting God for passing pleasure, or as a mentor puts it, to say, “God, I know what you want. But I want what I want.” Re-read and reflect on that. Does that describe an aspect of your life?
For I am the least of the apostles, not fit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me has not been ineffective.
1 Corinthians 15:9-10
Through it all, God has been using radio and other media to work in me, to help me discard sinful and addictive habits, while giving me a measure of peace in my continued weaknesses and anxieties. I have become more prayerful, grown closer to God, and become more engaged with my fellow parishioners and in the sacramental and liturgical life of the Church. I’m not who God wants me to be, but I’m also not what I used to be. Please God, may the one who has begin a good work in me and you continue to complete it until the day of Christ Jesus (Philippians 1:6).
What’s Next?
If you’ve not been baptized, reach out to your local parish, or reach out to me. I’d love to speak with you. I was kinda young then, but on the day of my baptism I know that God claimed me as His own, just as you were claimed at yours. He never gave up on me. God is still speaking. Are you listening? Make time for silent prayer. At least ten minutes a day, starting today. Return to church if it’s been a while. Open your bible. Go to Confession, and receive Jesus in the Eucharist regularly. Don’t miss out! The Sacraments are God’s way of filling us with his grace and strength to get through the joys and difficulties of our earthly pilgrimage. It is preparation for the ultimate post-Sacramental party, where we will love as we are truly loved, and enjoy forever the beauty and goodness that this life only hints at. Please God, I’ll join you there.
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