CASTIMONIA

Sexual Purity Support & Recovery Group

Emotions

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Object of Their Affections

5798_fdfePeople develop addictions to shield themselves from intolerably painful feelings. An addiction always creates harmful, often ignored consequences. Only when the addiction becomes unmanageable will people do something about it. Love addicts spend much time, effort on a person to whom they are addicted. Love addicts value this person above themselves, and their focus on the beloved other often is obsessive. This behavior results in love addicts neglecting to care for themselves in a variety of ways, in essence abandoning important aspects of their lives and well-being to stay connected to the object of their affections. Love addiction doesn’t necessarily pertain only to romantic or sexual relationships. It is possible for a person to relate as a love addict with their friends, children, sponsor, guru or religious figure, or even with a movie star, whom they have never met. A love addict’s core fantasy is the expectation that someone else can solve their problems, provide unconditional positive regard at all times, and take care of them. When this unrealistic need isn’t met, love addicts may find themselves feeling resentful, and may create conflict in their relationships with others. Some love addicts find that when not involved in a love-addicted relationship, they are able to care for themselves quite adequately. However, when they become involved, the love addict quickly finds that their self-care capacity steadily declines. From “What is Love Addiction?” By Alexandra Katehakis, MFT, CST, CSAT
http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2013/05/26/what-is-love-addiction/

“My fear of abandonment is exceeded only by my terror of intimacy.” – Ethlie Ann Vare

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United We Stand – VIDEO

One of the things I have appreciated in my recovery is the ability to spot recovery-related items in Hollywood movies.  In the movie Gladiator, there is a scene where the gladiators must fight in the Colosseum in Rome replaying the Battle of Carthage.  Out numbered and overpowered by chariots, the gladiators, led by the outcast General Maximus Decimus Meridius, are commanded to “stay together” to survive.  As men in recovery, we have learned that we need to stay together, as part of the group, in order to battle the addiction.  For me, this translates to, making phone calls, attending meetings, sponsoring others, and reaching out to those that still struggle.  As always, take what you like and leave the rest.

FAIR USE NOTICE: This video may contain copyrighted material. Such material is made available for purposes such as criticism, comment, teaching, & education, etc. This constitutes a ’fair use’ of any such copyrighted material as provided for in Title 17 U.S.C. section 107 of the US Copyright Law NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT INTENDED! All trademarks and copyrights remain the property of their owners.

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New Castimonia Meeting in Northwest Houston

I am humbled to announce that we will officially be starting a new Castimonia meeting on Monday nights at Lifepath Church in the Northwest Houston area on June 2nd!  Location information is written below.
Beginning June 2, 2014
Monday Nights
 Time: 7:00PM – 8:30PM
Location: Lifepath Church – Room 108
17703 W Little York Rd
Houston, TX 77084
281.855.0222
NEWLocationMap
This meeting should help alleviate the Monday night meeting in Katy and allow for more attendees from Northwest and North Houston to attend a Castimonia meeting.  We are currently working on a meeting in La Porte, TX as well.
Praise be to God, the father of our Lord Jesus Christ, for all He has done to grow His ministry!

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Roger’s Story (Video)

Roger’s journey of recovery has allowed him to face the pain of his childhood sexual abuse and to see how much of his acting out was an attempt to prove that he had what it took to be a man.

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Addiction Parallels in The Lord of the Rings Trilogy – VIDEO

One of the gifts of recovery I have noticed is being able to recognize recovery-related themes in movies.  When I first watched The Lord of the Rings trilogy I was still in my addiction and was blind to the relationship between the One Ring and that of an Addiction.  However, having recently watched the trilogy, various aspects of the movie, in my opinion, directly relate to an addict’s fight against an addiction.

This 38 minute video consists of scenes from The Lord of the Rings trilogy as filmed by Peter Jackson and originally written in the 1950s by J.R.R. Tolkien.  The Lord of the Rings is an epic high fantasy novel written by English author J. R. R. Tolkien. The story began as a sequel to Tolkien’s 1937 children’s fantasy novel The Hobbit, but eventually developed into a much larger work.  The book consists of three volumes, The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and The Return of the King.  

J. R. R. Tolkien once described The Lord of the Rings as “a fundamentally religious and Catholic work” he wrote to his friend, the English Jesuit Father Robert Murray, “unconsciously so at first, but consciously in the revision.“(The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien, 142). There are many theological themes underlying the narrative, the battle of good versus evil, the triumph of humility over pride, the activity of grace, Death and Immortality, Resurrection, Salvation, Repentance, Self-Sacrifice, Free Will, Humility, Justice, Fellowship, Authority and Healing. In it the great virtues of Mercy and Pity (shown by Bilbo and Frodo towards Gollum) win the day and the message from the Lord’s Prayer “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil” was very much on Tolkien’s mind as Frodo struggled against the power of the One Ring (Letters, 181 and 191). I hope you enjoy watching this video as much as I enjoyed editing it.  As always, take what you like and leave the rest! (from http://tolkiengateway.net)

FAIR USE NOTICE: This video may contain copyrighted material. Such material is made available for purposes such as criticism, comment, teaching, & education, etc. This constitutes a ’fair use’ of any such copyrighted material as provided for in Title 17 U.S.C. section 107 of the US Copyright Law NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT INTENDED! All trademarks and copyrights remain the property of their owners.