Today I was discussing with a friend an email I received about the quality of hot chocolate. Hot Chocolate is not affected by the cup we drink it from. It remains the same no matter the vessel. As Catholics we attend Mass every Sunday and drink the Holy Blood of our Lord from a cup? If the cup was not lined in gold or silver, would it remain the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Christ? I believe it would.
I recall watching Indiana Jones on his quest for the Holy Grail. Once finding the chamber it was stored in Jones and his adversary chose cups to drink water from. Choosing the wrong cup resulted in certain death. The adversary chose a gold chalice from which to drink proclaiming it as the “cup of a king”. He drank, and promptly died. Indiana Jones however chose the cup of a potter, a simple cup, from the times of Christ. He “chose wisely” exclaimed the Knight called to protect the Grail.
In life we have the same choices. We can choose to purchase the name brand expensive option, or choose to purchase the off brand product of the same quality. Many of the items we buy for our families, such as Motrin, can be purchased in an off brand container for less cost and the same product. We are chained to the brand names not because of quality, but because of pride.
Don’t get me wrong, there are some purchases which necessitate name brands. I leave that up to you for discernment of what is important to your family. For me, I purchase name brand items I expect to last a long time. Other items such as weekly or monthly consumables can be purchased cheaper in an off brand product.
Men, we need to put our pride aside and become Off Brand Dad’s. What is an Off Brand Dad? We are the anti-cultural pro-stewardship response to the lies that name brands are necessary. If Christ can be present in a potters cup, we can drink from one.
Join me in proclaiming proudly that you are an OFF BRAND DAD!
God bless you in your journey.
St. Joseph, pray for us.
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I am in total agreement. Your story reminds me of a wonderful experience I had during the Christmas season.
The weekend before Christmas we gathered at my mothers to celebrate together. All the children had many gifts from grandmother and the aunts and uncles. Our autistic son, Parker, had quite a haul when the opening of gifts was complete. I was watching him as he took inventory and he did something that made me smile. It also made me realize what a blessing it would be to be oblivious to the world as he is. My mother had picked up this neat little Winnie the Pooh pad and pen set for a couple of bucks at the dollar store. As Parker sat among all the toys he recieved it wasn’t the 50 dollar Elmo it was the cheapest thing in the pile that brought him the most joy. The toy was two dollars but the smile it created as pricless. He doesn’t listen to the world tell him what brings happiness so he doesn’t care that the toy cost 2 bucks. He would be just as happy riding around in a Pinto as he would be in a Cadillac when we drove around to see Christmas lights. He would appreciate a homemade taco just as much, if not more, than a taco from Taco Bell. By the way, my teenagers MP3 player has a screen and the same memory as an Ipod that cost 4 times more. You are dead on, it is pride that drives us to buy the brand and not the product. Today I’m proud to be an Off Brand Dad!
Bob. What a man you have become. I am proud to say that I grew up with you and and PROUD to serve the same Savior.
Praise be to God through Jesus Christ Our Lord.
I like this idea. I like that we can chronicle our spiritual walk/growth and encourage each other as we do. Do not forget the Spirit or His work in your life. Continue to look to the author and finisher of our faith.
In Chirst and ONLY because of HIM,
Joshua
I paid $12 for my blue jeans. We buy our kids used cloths on ebay. I don’t plan in prying the name plate off our Honda, but I am with you in this ignorance of brands. By the way…if you want brand ignorance to become easier, try getting rid of the TV, that is one of the most freeing things I’ve ever done…9 years ago and counting.