The first of three Rocks in the Path to Heaven

Father Joseph Lucas, in his excellent book Hand in Hand with Our Mother, identifies three major stones that obstruct our path to salvation. 

The first is too much worldly pleasure. He says that there are actually two kinds of pleasure in this life. 

"There is a pure, crystal-clear, innocent pleasure arising from love of God and neighbor, which you may trust because it fills the soul with supernatural strength to face life's battles. But there is another pleasure which draws its nourishment from the swampy soil of inordinate desire for honors, wealth, and sensual gratification."

We can all think of examples of the two kinds of pleasure in our lives, and which one gives us wings to fly to Heaven, and which one drags us down. Singing in our church choirs, sharing the Faith with our children, taking a pilgrimage: these joys give us wings. Visiting sinful places of amusement, neglecting our duties in favor of "goofing off", associating with friends who pull us away from what is important: these pleasures become leaden weights.

Look at this slope in the photo...this is the beginning of the path of pilgrimage up Croagh Patrick, a mountain in Ireland sacred to the memory of St. Patrick. When climbing it, would we rather have leaden weights or wings?