{"id":34861,"date":"2018-10-11T16:10:40","date_gmt":"2018-10-11T22:10:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.markmallett.com\/blog\/?p=34861"},"modified":"2018-10-13T10:49:56","modified_gmt":"2018-10-13T16:49:56","slug":"surviving-our-toxic-culture","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.markmallett.com\/blog\/surviving-our-toxic-culture\/","title":{"rendered":"Surviving Our Toxic Culture","gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"text"}]},"content":{"rendered":"

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SINCE\u00a0<\/strong>the election of two men to the most influential offices on the planet\u2014Donald Trump to the Presidency of the United States and Pope Francis to the Chair of St. Peter\u2014there has been a marked shift in public discourse within the culture and the Church itself. Whether they intended it or not, these men have become agitators of the status quo. All at once, the political and religious landscape has suddenly changed. What was hidden in the darkness is coming to light. What could have been predicted yesterday is no longer the case today. The old order is collapsing. It is the beginning of a Great Shaking<\/em><\/a> that is sparking a worldwide fulfillment of Christ’s words:<\/p>\n

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From now on a household of five will be divided, three against two and two against three; a father will be divided against his son and a son against his father, a mother against her daughter and a daughter against her mother, a mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. (Luke 12:52-53)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The discourse in our times has not only become toxic, but dangerous. What has happened in the U.S. in the last nine days since I felt moved to republish\u00a0The Growing Mob<\/em><\/a> is astonishing. As I have been saying for years now, revolution<\/a>\u00a0<\/em>has been bubbling beneath the surface; that\u00a0the time would come when events would begin to move so rapidly, we would not be able to humanly keep up. That time has now begun.<\/p>\n

The point of today’s meditation, then, is not to dwell on the growing Storm surge and increasingly dangerous winds of this present spiritual hurricane, but to help you remain joyful and, therefore, focused on the only thing that matters: God’s will.<\/p>\n

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CHANGE YOUR MIND<\/p>\n

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The discourse on cable news, social media, late night talk shows and chat forums has become so toxic that it is dragging people into depression, anxiety, and provoking passionate and hurtful responses. So, I want to turn to St. Paul again, for here was a man who lived amidst greater threats, division, and danger than most of us will ever encounter. But first, a bit of science.\u00a0<\/p>\n

We are what we think.<\/em> That sounds like a clich\u00e9, but it’s true. How we think affects our mental, emotional, and even physical health. In fascinating new research on the human brain, Dr. Caroline Leaf explains how our brains\u00a0are not “fixed” as once thought. Rather, our\u00a0thoughts\u00a0<\/em>can and do change us physically.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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As you think, you choose, and as you choose, you cause genetic expression to happen in your brain. This means you make proteins, and these proteins form your thoughts. Thoughts are real, physical things that occupy mental real estate<\/strong>. \u2014Switch On Your Brain,\u00a0<\/em>Dr. Caroline Leaf, BakerBooks, p 32<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Research, she notes, shows that 75 to 95 percent of mental, physical, and behavioral illness comes from one’s thought life. Thus, detoxifying one’s thoughts can have a dramatic impact on one’s health, even diminishing the effects of autism, dementia, and other diseases.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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We cannot control the events and circumstances of life, but we can control our reactions… You are free to make choices about how you focus your attention, and this affects how the chemicals and proteins and wiring of your brain change and functions.<\/strong> \u2014cf. p. 33<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

So, how do you look at life? Do you wake up grumpy? Does your conversation naturally gravitate to the negative? Is the cup half full or half empty?<\/p>\n

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BE TRANSFORMED<\/p>\n

Remarkably, what science is now discovering, St. Paul confirmed two thousand years ago.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. (Romans 12:2)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The way we think\u00a0literally\u00a0<\/em>transforms us. However, in order to be positively transformed, St. Paul stresses that our thinking\"\"\u00a0must be conformed, not to the world, but to the will of God.\u00a0Therein lies the key to authentic joy\u2014total abandonment to the Divine Will.[1]<\/sup><\/a>cf. Matt 7:21<\/span><\/span>