Sliney Central

Fr. Michael Sliney, LC

Inspirational thoughts

Live well!

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Thy Kingdom Come!

Dear Friends, in Christ,

     “To write well and speak well is mere vanity if one does not live well.” St. Bridget of Sweden

   Since I have had the privilege of being on television and radio programs, younger seminarians have asked me the secret to being a good public speaker.  My answer is: “Be holy, live your convictions, do it all for God’s glory, and this will naturally come out in your presentation.”  (I need to remind myself of this often!!)

God bless,

Fr. Michael Sliney, LC

Sincerity with God

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Thy Kingdom Come!

Dear Friends, in Christ,

     “We must lay before him what is in us, not what ought to be in us.” C.S. Lewis

   Sometimes our prayer demands total sincerity and honesty with God concerning our weaknesses and deficiencies.  It is from this place of sincerity that God can answer our petition for help…

God bless,

Fr. Michael Sliney, LC

Grandparents

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Thy Kingdom Come!

Dear Friends, in Christ,

     “But let me ask you: Do you listen to your grandparents? Do you open your hearts to the memories that your grandparents pass on? Grandparents are like the wisdom of the family, they are the wisdom of a people.” Pope Francis

     I learned so much from my Grandmother about love, life and the Catholic Faith.  She attended daily Mass, she had a deep love for Jesus, and her words on Thanksgiving day of my Sophomore year at Michigan State still ring in my ears.  My older brother Tom had just announced that he was getting engaged, and granny leaned over and said, “Michael, you will never make that announcement.  You will be a priest!” Thanks Granny, for being so close and for being so holy!

God bless,

Fr. Michael Sliney, LC

Consult not your fears…

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Thy Kingdom Come!

Dear Friends, in Christ,

     “Consult not your fears but your hopes and dreams. Think not about your frustrations, but about your unfulfilled potential. Concern yourself not with what you tried and failed in, but with what is still possible for you to do.” Blessed John XXIII

    Even the best golf professionals miss short putts and occasionally they have really bad holes…but they leave it behind them and focus on their next shot.  There is always time to recover!

God bless,

Fr. Michael Sliney, LC

True Joy

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Thy Kingdom Come!

Dear Friends, in Christ,

     “People are made for happiness. Rightly, then, you thirst for happiness. Christ has the answer to this desire of yours. But he asks you to trust him. True joy is a victory, something which cannot be obtained without a long and difficult struggle. Christ holds the secret of this victory.” St. John Paul II

    Nothing in the world, and no human being will ever be able to fully satisfy the needs of your heart.  Lean into Jesus, focus on fulfilling his will WITH LOVE, and he will bless you with his peace and joy.

God bless,

Fr. Michael Sliney, LC

Be proud to be Catholic!

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Thy Kingdom Come!

Dear Friends, in Christ,

     “You doubt your value. Don’t run from who you are.” CS Lewis

    Jesus Christ, God himself, founded our Catholic Church over 2000 years ago.  Christ instituted all 7 Sacraments and left us a deposit of Faith and a hierarchical system that remains intact today.  The holiness of the sacraments (the effectiveness of the grace) does not depend on the holiness of the priests, and in spite of recent scandals and human shortcomings, we have a long history of extremely saintly men and women who have gone before us.  Be proud to be Catholic!

God bless,

Fr. Michael Sliney, LC

Self-absorption

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Thy Kingdom Come!

Dear Friends, in Christ,

     “Once a man ceases to be of service to his neighbor, he begins to be a burden to him.” Venerable Fulton J. Sheen

  There is always a risk of getting too self-absorbed…getting so caught up in your own problems and worries, that you forget or simply become insensitive to the real needs of those around you.  Prayer creates an awareness and an availability to get out of your shell and truly want to serve the needs of those around you.

God bless,

Fr. Michael Sliney, LC

Don’t worry about others!

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Thy Kingdom Come!

Dear Friends, in Christ,

     “God leads every soul by a separate path.” St. John of the Cross

    It’s so easy to judge others negatively, especially when they are doing what we would like to do, but our conscience will not allow it.  Let God worry about them!  You follow what Jesus wants from you!

God bless,

Fr. Michael Sliney, LC

Charity is our “calling card”

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Thy Kingdom Come!

Dear Friends, in Christ,

     “I wish not merely to be called Christian, but also to be Christian.” — St. Ignatius of Antioch

    I like to ask my NYC business leaders, “How many people in your office would guess you are Catholic by how you act?  Do they notice that you love “better”?  This should be the “calling card” of every Christian!

God bless,

Fr. Michael Sliney, LC

Tips for men on how to be great dads

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Tips for men on how to be great dads (Thanks to Matt Williams who helped collaborate on this effort)
 
The Dad is a child’s first experience of God’s love. A dad needs to be a protector, provider, and to be present in his kids’ lives. A dad should imitate God’s love which is never changing and constant, providing what is good for his family unconditionally (“What father among you, if his son asks for bread, would give him a stone.” Luke 11:11). This entails providing what they need, not necessarily what they want and protecting them from what is harmful. Additionally, a dad cannot model God’s love if he is not present in his children’s lives as God is constantly present in all of ours. With these thoughts in mind, here is a list of practical tips for being a great dad.
 
Be Faithful to Your Spouse: The best gift you can give your kids is to have a great marriage.
– Love your wife unconditionally, openly and affectionately in front of your children. They will learn from this example!!
– Support her decisions and never openly undermine, criticize, or ridicule any discipline decision given by her in front of your children.
– Be a unified front with her ensuring that she is always on the same page in any decision involving the kids.
– Treat a child’s disrespect of their mother as a serious offense
Be the Spiritual Head of the Family: A family’s faith has to come primarily from the dad. No matter how holy their mother is, it will be to no avail if you are not strong as well.
– Live your faith openly in front of your children and teach/encourage them to do the same. Personally share how much you value your faith with your children individually!
– Offer daily prayers and sacrifices for your children
– Set spiritual goals for each of your children (reinforce a particular virtue)
– Go to church and pray with your family (even if you are not Catholic)
– Read scripture to learn about God the Father so as to echo his paternal qualities
 
Separate Work from Family Life: There is always more work to do. When you come home from work, you should separate from that world as much as possible.
– Make an effort to come home at a reasonable hour and have a family dinner
– Shut down email and cell phones from Friday through Sunday or while at sporting events, school plays, etc. (be engaged in what they are doing)
– Be willing to spend significant time with your kids at night
Be the Guardian of Your Daughter’s Virtue: Daughters will often marry someone like their dad. How you treat your daughter, encourage her to dress, etc. is often the measure of her virtue until her adolescence. She will gain confidence from her father and learn how guys are supposed to treat them. Read “Strong Father’s Strong daughters” by Dr. Meg Meeker
– Go on Father/Daughter date nights (do what they like doing)
– Leave girl things to girls: let your wife give her advice on girlfriends, gossip, cliques, and other feminine topic
– Give as much attention to your daughters as to your sons: this will directly impact her purity down the road (i.e., no attention from her father will leave a girl looking for it from other men)
 
Be an Example for Your Children: No matter how much you tell your children what to do, it will have no effect unless you practice what you preach. What you do is carefully analyzed and assimilated.
a. Live by the standards you set for your children (especially as far as books, movies, and other media)
b. Be careful who you spend time with: your friends’ behavior will influence them as well (a side note: develop friendships with other dads to share experiences)
c. Avoid excess: Drinking, TV, computer, etc.
d. Be an example of chivalry, ethics, honor, good language, and table manners
Be Your Children’s Best Friend and Advisor: As a dad you should be approachable, someone your kids turn to for whatever they need.
– Be interested in what your kids are doing and even get to know their friends. Reach them where they are so as to help them
– Get your kids involved in work (lawn, cleaning car…) using it as an opportunity for formation
– Your advice really matters to your kids (take the time to explain key moral principles to your kids)
-Seek to understand your kids and later to be understood by them (silence and listening are an important part of fatherhood)
Set clear expectations for your children
– Don’t treat every child the same (be sensitive to their differences)
– Be generous in expressing pride and approval to your children (we love you, we’re proud of you, etc.)
– Don’t make promises you cannot keep
– Give equal affection to all your children especially your sons (If a guy gets plenty of affection from his father, he will grow up to be an affectionate and compassionate man)
Be Present in Kids Live: You cannot achieve any of this if you are not spending quantity time and quality time with your family.
– Give them your undivided attention and avoid multitasking: if you are going to talk to you kids or do something with them focus completely on that
– Spend one-on-one time with each of your children: don’t have favorites (spend equal time & effort on each kid)
– Try to take vacations that allow you to spend lots of time together: long road trips, camping, etc.