Catholic Church Teaching - Still Roman Catholic After All These Years

IN THE IMAGE AND LIKENESS OF GOD IMAGO DEI

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WHO SEES ME SEES GOD

Jesus is not made in image and likeness of God. Jesus is God! “Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, consubstantialof one Being with the Father.” (Nicene Creed)

“God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them” Genesis 1:27 The image of God (Latin: imago dei) refers to the immaterial part of humanity. It sets human beings apart from the animal world, fits them for the dominion God intended them to have over the earth (Genesis 1:28), and enables them to commune with their Maker.

Adam was like God not in his outward appearance but internally. We must remember that God is spirit (John 4:24). Adam was made “in” the image of God. We are like God in many ways, but we are not God in any way. This is only true of Jesus.

It is the spiritual qualities of God that we humans image. We reflect God’s intellect and free will. Anytime someone invents a machine, writes a book, paints a landscape, or names a pet, he or she is proclaiming the fact that we are made in God’s image.

Socially, humanity was created for fellowship, God made the first woman because “it is not good for the man to be alone” (Genesis 2:18). Fellowship is a reflection of God’s triune nature in relationship with the Son (the beloved) and the Holy Spirit (the love between them.) Every time someone marries, makes a friend, or hugs a child, he or she is demonstrating the fact that we are made in the likeness of God. made for relationships.

Part of being made in God’s image is that Adam had the capacity to make free choices. Adam and Eve made an evil choice to rebel against their Creator. In so doing, they marred the image of God within themselves, and passed that damaged likeness on to all of their descendants, a clouding of the intellect and weakness of the will. “Therefore, just as through one person sin entered the world, and through sin, death, and thus death came to all” (Romans 5:12).

Today, we still bear the image of God James 3:9, but we also bear the scars of sin. Mentally, morally, socially, and physically, we show the effects of sin.

But God was not going to abandon His work that He declared was good. He sent us a most Holy Redeemer, His only begotten Son, Jesus, who begins to restore God’s image as willed by God in the first place. “Through Christ, we are made new creations in the likeness of God”2 Corinthians 5:17

“We have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator.” Now with our redemption in Christ, we have put on the new man. We have put on Christ, and this now becomes a process of shaping us, making us again into the image of our Creator.” Colossians 3:10

.It is in Christ, Redeemer that the divine image, disfigured in man by the first sin, has been restored to its original beauty and ennobled by the grace of God. CATECHISM OF CATHOLIC CHURCH 1701

REFLECTIONS

Man, enticed by the Evil One, abused his freedom at the very beginning of history. He succumbed to temptation and did what was evil. He is now inclined to evil and subject to error and to an eternal punishment unless he or she repents of his or her sins. His mercy endures forever! Psalm 118

It is true that as we look at humanity today, we see a great difference between the holiness of God’s character and human character. We have distorted the very nature of God’s character in humanity because of our rejection of God’s holiness and rule in our lives. To sin is to reject holiness. God made us to be holy, a people set apart, a witness to all nations, to worship God and reject Satan and all his works.

RITE OF BAPTISM

Here a few questions the celebrant ask the parents/adult at their Baptism:

Celebrant: Do you reject Satan?

Parents/Adults: I do.

Celebrant: And all his works?

Parents/Adult: I do.

Celebrant: Do you reject sin, so as to live in the freedom of God’s children?

Parents/Adult: I do.

Celebrant: Do you reject the glamor of evil, and refuse to be mastered by sin?

Parents/Adult: I do.

Celebrant: Do you reject Satan, father of sin and prince of darkness?

Parents/Adult: I do.

God hates sin. To make infinite reparation for infinite offense of sin, it took a human and divine nature in the person of Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son, consubstantial with the Father to make amends and save us from our sins and eternal death separated from God. Thank our Savior, Jesus Christ every day.

By his reason, man recognizes the voice of God which urges him “to do what is good and avoid what is evil.” Everyone is obliged to follow this law, which makes itself heard in our conscience and is fulfilled in the love of God and of neighbor. Do not repress or ignore our conscience. It is God’s gift to us.

What does being made in image and likeness of God mean to you? What steps are you taking to help Jesus restore that image? In union with his Savior, a disciple, which we are, attains the perfection of charity which is holiness. God is love. As we mature in grace, the moral life blossoms into eternal life in the glory of heaven.

IN THE IMAGE OF GOD HE CREATED HIM;

MALE AND FEMALE HE CREATED THEM” GENESIS 1:27

CALL TO HOLINESS

CATHOLIC CHURCH TEACHING, CATHOLIC COMMENTARY

Thus you are to be Holy to Me, for I the Lord am Holy;
and I have set you apart from the peoples to be Mine.
Leviticus 20:26

VATICAN II

The Second Vatican Council (Vatican II 1962-65) was called to address the Church in the Modern World. Perhaps, it’s largest theme was the Universal Call to Holiness. addressed directly in the document, Lumen Gentium

To quote Lumen Gentium, Every Christian must seek God’s will in all matters and devote themselves to love of God and service to their neighbor by utilizing their own personal gifts in the duties, circumstances and conditions of their life. To be holy, then, is to be about God’s business above all else. In holiness each person comes to realize that one’s life is not about her/his self but about following God’s projects and plans.

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE HOLY AS GOD IS HOLY?

We are people set apart by God. We are not of this world but created in the eternal image of God. We grow in holiness as we grow in our image of the Creator. God did not have to create us. He needs nothing, but He wanted to share with us His divine life, perfect, unsoiled, shining in grandeur of the Almighty. At our Baptisms, we become a new creation, free of original sin and adopted children of God.

We are gods not by nature but by adoption. We begin the Our Father with the first petition, Hallowed be thy name. We call God Our Father with good reason and acknowledge He is holy, above all other gods. For us to be holy is to be like God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, One God, three Persons in relationship of Love. The Lover (Father), the Beloved (Son), and Love itself (Holy Spirit)

Holiness is not a human project but a response to God’s initiative. You are to be holy! Holiness is a separation from the unholy. God’s holiness is sheer goodness and light without any hint of evil or darkness. To confront God’s holiness is also to confront our sin.

Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect. Matthew 5:48 The command “Be ye perfect” is not a command to do the impossible. God does not ask the impossible of us. All things are possible with God. God is going to make good His words, if we let Him. Our free will can stand in the way, though.

We can choose our self or God. Sin can stand in the way and it does have consequences. Just a quick look into the Old Testament from Genesis on…. Exile from Garden of Eden, The Great Flood, Sodom and Gomorrah, Babylonian Exile, Destruction of Jerusalem etc.

Holiness makes it necessary for us to separate from what is not holy. As our Creator, God knows best what is best for His creation. God gives his laws to make his people a people set apart: “You shall keep all my statutes and all my ordinances, and observe them. . . . You shall be holy to me; for I the Lord am holy, and I have separated you from the other peoples to be mine” Leviticus 20:22-26

Jesus assumed our nature in order that by becoming man he might make us gods. Jesus shed his blood for our ransom and purification, so that we might be redeemed from our wretched state of bondage of sin.

The Word became flesh to make us “partakers of the divine nature”: this is why the Word became man…so that man, by entering into communion with the Word and thus receiving divine son-ship, might become a son of God.” Catholic Catechism #460

In the middle of the Mass there is a very significant gesture that summarizes the entire Christian story. After the priest offers the bread upward in preparation for consecration, he next turns to the chalice and after pouring in the wine, he takes the cruet of water and places just a drop, praying, “Through the Mystery of this water and wine, may we come to share in Your Divinity, as you humbled Yourself to participate in our humanity.”

I will conclude with Psalm 23 a prayer I would suggest to say often and reflect at those times we feel the storm is too great, the waves too high, the depths too low and our hearts lashed by every demon we can possibly imagine. Psalm 23 gives me great consolation and encouragement to stay the course as I am reminded that Jesus is my Good Shepherd, seeking me, carrying me home.

PSALM 23

The LORD is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall lack.
In green pastures he makes me lie down; to still waters he leads me;
He restores my soul. He guides me along right paths for the sake of his name.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil,
for you are with me; your rod and your staff comfort me. You set a table before me in front of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil, my cup overflows. indeed, goodness and mercy will pursue me all the days of my life; I will dwell in the house of the LORD for endless days.

WE PREACH CHRIST CRUCIFIED A SIGN OF CONTRADICTION

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CHRIST CRUCIFIED a stumbling block to Jews, foolishness to Greeks 1 CORINTHIANS 1:23

COMMENTARY

We need a Savior and what a great one we have, God himself. God emptied himself even to death, death on the cross that we might have life. Our first parents in Eden were told by God if they chose their will over God’s will, they would surely die, “but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.” Genesis 2:17

The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23 Let us join the prophet Isaiah in proclaiming that Jesus, our Savior and Lord, “was pierced for our offences, crushed for our sins; and upon him was the chastisement that makes us whole. By his stripes we were healed” Isaiah 53:5

St. Paul tells it like it is for us Christians “WE PREACH CHRIST CRUCIFIED” 1 Corinthians 1;23. Paul was bold. Are we bold when it comes to preaching the Good News, Jesus died, was buried, and is risen for our sake.I used to have a problem when gazing upon the cross because like so many, all I saw was suffering and death.

Then my perspective changed The Cross is a sign of contradiction. I saw the love of Christ with His open arms embracing the whole world. For just as through the disobedience of one person the many were made sinners, so through the obedience of one the many will be made righteous. Romans 5:19

God’s love for us is beyond all our understanding. But we believe any how in God’s infinite love for us because God told us who He is to Moses on Mt. Sinai after delivering the tablets, “the LORD passed before Moses and proclaimed: the LORD, a God gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in love and fidelity, continuing his love for a thousand generations, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion, and sin…. Ex. 34:5-7

This is indeed a stiff-necked people; yet pardon our wickedness and sins, and claim us as your own.” Exodus 34:9

We, too, are stiff necked people, stubborn in our ways of looking at things. Some cry out I don’t want any restrictions on my FREEDOM. Hmm, how is that going in your ordinary lives in this world? God is not restricting our freedoms. We are not FREE to sin. Sinning does not make us free but a slave to sin and its consequences, addiction, dysfunctional families, hate envy, greed…”Our hearts are restless until they rest in God. St. Augustine

What Commandments of God take away anything we need? They are not restrictions on our freedom but a self-help list to live our lives to the fullest. A man fully alive is the glory of God. St. Iraenseus. We are made in the image and likeness of God who is all good. “Whoever wants to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.” Matthew 16:25

God gives his laws to make his people a people set apart, a sign to other nations. “You shall keep all my statutes and all my ordinances, and observe them. . . . You shall be holy to me; for I the Lord am holy, and I have separated you from the other peoples to be mine” Leviticus. 20:22, 26 Holiness thus necessitates a separation from that which is unholy.

After giving the Beatitudes, Jesus said to his disciples, “So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect Matthew 5:48 How can that be? For man it is impossible but with God anything is possible.” Matt. 19:26

Holiness is not a human project but a response to God’s initiative, an imitation of who God is. To confront God’s holiness is also to confront our sin. For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, Rom. 3:23

CONCLUSION

We must radiate holiness to renew the church. Men and women saints have always been the instrument and sign of renewal. The answer to a world in need of transformation is for us to be the sign. We must ask the Lord Jesus Christ for the strength and courage to be true disciples and not hearers only.

Is the Cross, a sign of life or of death? Does it speak of sin or forgiveness? Despair or hope? Is it gruesome or consoling? It is all of these, The Cross of Christ, fully embraces every dimension of our lives. But as blood and water gush from Jesus’ side, life prevails over death; mercy over sin; hope over despair; consolation over misery? Thus, we call the Friday on which Christ died “Good Friday.”

The Cross, for believers, is not so much a symbol of pain, but rather of the Love God has for us. Jesus said at the Last Supper, “No one has any greater love than to lay down his life for his friends” and that’s precisely what Jesus, our Good Shepherd did when he gave his own life on the Cross so that we, might live. The Cross is not a symbol, principally, of agonizing suffering, but of the mind-blowing love God has for us.

CHRIST VICTORIOUS

IS GOD’S LAW A BURDEN OR A DELIGHT?

CATHOLIC CHURCH TEACHING, CATHOLIC COMMENTARY

As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and your joy may be complete.

JOHN 15:9-11

INTRODUCTION

According to John 15:9-11,Christ’s joy in us will be complete if we obey the commandments? Wait a minute, how is that possible? Won’t that meaning following rules. That may cause me suffering. What is the cost involved here to have this joy of Christ? Jesus can not tell a lie so it must be true. Whether we follow the Commandments of God or not, we still follow rules, we suffer, and we pay the cost in our every day lives.

So what is this complete joy of Christ. It can’t be filet mignon every night, a Tesla car, and a summer home on the Mediteranean Sea. These things are not available to everyone and God does not discriminate among his children. This joy must be possible to all God’s children. Jesus’ joy was that He and the Father are one. Union with God must be the answer.

When I sin, I separate myself from God. And it is not just separating from God but I mess up my life here on earth with all the consequences of sin. We were created to share in the Divne Life of God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit for all eternity. Perfect union. Perfect Beatitude. How can we begin this eternity while here on earth. Well, God has given us a plan, the best self-help book ever written.

God knows who He has created and what will make us happy and safe on our journey home. Of curse there was a temporaty glich in Adam and Eve our first parents. They messed themselves and us up with Original Sin, darkness of intellect, weakened will, and death. We needed a Savior, a great one in Jesus Christ, Son of God, conceived of the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary.

As God and man, Jesus could atone for the infinite offense against God and as human He could offer sacrifice on the part of our human race. Just as our first parents smeared the image and likeness of God in human nature, Jesus redeemed human nature and made possible union with God once more. He who sees me sees the Father John 12:45

The biblical story of the origin of the Ten Commandments suggests that Moses received them directly from God on Mt. Sinai around 1280 B.C. The Bible offers different accounts of the full text of the Ten Commandments; one in the book of Exodus and the other in Deuteronomy. The Catholic Church ascribes to the version in Deuteronomy and follows the division and enumeration provided in the Septuagint, the Old Testament translated from Hebrew into Greek that the early Christians followed.

“I AM THE LORD THY GOD, THOU SHALT NOT HAVE ANY STRANGE GODS BEFORE ME.”

This commandment forbids idolatry, the worship of false gods and goddesses. It asserts there is only One God. False gods can be anything that man puts before this One True God including people, fame, fortune and material things.

“THOU SHALT NOT TAKE THE NAME OF THE LORD THY GOD IN VAIN.” The faithful are required to honor the name of God. It makes sense that if you’re to love God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, then you’re naturally to respect the name of God with equal passion and vigor. You do not curse someone with the name of God, mock God, or dismiss God as irrelevant.

“REMEMBER TO KEEP HOLY THE SABBATH DAY.”

The Jewish celebration of Sabbath (Shabbat) begins at sundown on Friday evening and lasts until sundown on Saturday. Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox Christians go to church on Sunday, treating it as the Lord’s Day instead of Saturday to honor the day Christ rose from the dead. We take at least one day of the week to give thanks to God who cares for us 24/7. It is not about us it is about paying respect to the God of all. God has given us the means of worship. The Eucharist is the source and summit of Christian life.

One does not exuse themselves lightly from Sunday Mass.

The Sacraments of the Catholic Church, including attendance at Holy Mass as a Sunday Obligation, must be done in person. Watching Holy Mass on television does not fulfill one’s Sunday Obligation. Section # 2180 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church states that the Sunday Obligation is satisfied by “attendance” at Mass.

“HONOR THY FATHER AND MOTHER.”

This commandment obliges the faithful to show respect for their parents. Children must obey their parents, and adults must respect and see to the care of their parents, when they become old and infirm. You do not abandon your parents nor support euthanasia.

“THOU SHALT NOT KILL.”

Killing an innocent person is considered murder. Killing an unjust aggressor to preserve your own life isn’t considered murder or immoral. Abortion is the killing of an innocent child. That child is growing in the womb of the mother but is not the property of the mother any more than the live born child.

“THOU SHALT NOT COMMIT ADULTERY.”

This commandment asks us to honor human sexuality according to natural law and Divine Law. Not only adultery of a married person having relations with someone other than their spouse but includes prohibition of other misuse of our gift of sexuality, fornication which is sex between unmarried people, prostitution, pornography, masturbation, homosexual activity, rape, incest, and pedophilia.

“THOU SHALT NOT STEAL.”

This commandment focuses on respecting and honoring the possessions of others. This commandment forbids the act of taking someone else’s property. The Catholic Church believes this commandment includes cheating people of their money, depriving people of fair wages, tax evasion and damage to other people’s property including random vandalism.

“THOU SHALT NOT BEAR FALSE WITNESS AGAINST THY NEIGHBOR.

The Eighth Commandment condemns lying. Because God is regarded as the author of all truth, the Church believes that humans are obligated to honor the truth. To lie about your neighbor may not be killing his/her body but you are killing their reputation and dignity owe to everyone made in image and likeness of God. As the old saying goes, a like goes around the world before the truth catches it. Before lying, think consequences it may make you bite your tongue.

“THOU SHALT NOT COVET THY NEIGHBOR’S WIFE.”

This Commandment forbids the intentional desire and longing for immoral sexuality. To sin in the heart, Jesus says, is to lust after a woman or a man in your heart with the desire and will to have immoral sex with them. Lusting in the heart is a heartbeat from lustfull immoral actions.

“THOU SHALT NOT COVET THY NEIGHBOR’S GOODS.”

The Tenth Commandment forbids the wanting to or taking someone else’s property. This commandment condemns theft along with feelings of envy, greed, and jealousy in reaction to what other people have.

One can easily assume the consequences of sinning against God’s Commandments, the disastrous results when these commandments are not followed….Abusive relationships, dysfunctional families, the weak and vulnerable oppressed and bullied, no moral compass outside themselves, abandoned, ignored and diminished people who we deem not worthy of our respect and care.

CONCLUSION

The prevalent despair, obsessive behavior, and anxiety in our culture arise not from being moral, but from the abandonment of the moral law. Of course, happiness is mixed with sorrow and the inevitable tragedies of life. There are no perfect families, perfect marriages, perfect parishes—nothing human is perfect. Part of our moral quest and journey home to God and all the saints includes carrying our cross. God’s Laws are a delight!

CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH

1704 The human person participates in the light and power of the divine Spirit. By his reason, he is capable of understanding the order of things established by the Creator. By free will, he is capable of directing himself toward his true good. He finds his perfection “in seeking and loving what is true and good.”

I AM THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD

DEVOTION TO THE MOST HOLY EUCHARIST

CATHOLIC CHURCH TEACHING

O Sacrament Most Holy, O Sacrament Divine, All praise and all thanksgiving be every moment Thine Amen

INTRODUCTION

THE REAL PRESENCE

CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH

1323 At the Last Supper, on the night he was betrayed, our Savior instituted the Eucharistic sacrifice of his Body and Blood. This he did in order to perpetuate the sacrifice of the cross throughout the ages until he should come again, and so to entrust to his beloved Spouse, the Church, a memorial of his death and resurrection: a sacrament of love, a sign of unity, a bond of charity, a Paschal banquet ‘in which Christ is consumed,

1357 We carry out this command of the Lord by celebrating the memorial of his sacrifice. In so doing, we offer to the Father what he has himself given us: the gifts of his creation, bread and wine which, by the power of the Holy Spirit and by the words of Christ, have become the body and blood of Christ. Christ is thus really and mysteriously made present.

1391 Holy Communion augments our union with Christ. The principal fruit of receiving the Eucharist in Holy Communion is an intimate union with Christ Jesus. Indeed, the Lord said: “He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him.” Life in Christ has its foundation in the Eucharistic banquet: “As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so he who eats me will live because of me.” The Eucharist is also an anticipation of the heavenly glory

SCRIPTURE

The word of God is so powerful that whatever he commands is carried out. When he says, “Let there be light” Genesis 1:3, at creation, light suddenly appears. At his word, the sun, moon, and stars are brought into existence. The power of that divine word is also in Jesus.

When Jesus tells a paralyzed man, “Rise, take up your pallet, and walk”, the man is immediately healed and begins to walk John 5:8-9. When Jesus tells the dead Lazarus to come out of the tomb, Lazarus comes out risen from the dead. John 11:43-44.

When Jesus took bread and said, “This is my body”, and took wine and said, “This is my blood” Matthew 26:26-28. These sacred words bring about what he says. Catholics believe that the same divine word in Christ that had the power to heal, raise people from the dead, can change bread and wine into his Body and Blood”.

COMMENTARY

HAPPY EASTER, EVERYONE!

HE IS RISEN! ALLELUIA!

It doesn’t get much better than that but we don’t have to wait until the end of time to unite ourselves with Jesus’ glorious body and blood. At the Last Supper for all time Jesus gave us His greatest gift, His Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity to share at every Mass, every day, everywhere in the world!

The Church has historically encouraged the month of April for increased devotion to Jesus in the Holy Eucharist. “The Church in the course of the centuries has introduced various forms of Eucharistic worship i.e. visits of devotion to the tabernacles; Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament; solemn processions, especially on the Feast Day of Corpus Christi; and adoration of the Blessed Sacrament publicly exposed .

REFLECTIONS

The Celebration of the Eucharist is a memorial, an act of thanksgiving, and a sacrifice; a memorial of the Last Supper , an act of thanksgiving in gratitude for the gift of salvation and we offer ourselves along with Jesus in sacrifice through the un-bloody offering of bread and wine. “Do this in remembrance of me” Luke 22:19

The Lord Jesus, “the way, and the truth, and the life” John 14:6, speaks to our thirsting, pilgrim hearts, our hearts yearning for the source of life, our hearts longing for truth. Jesus Christ is the Truth in person, drawing the world to himself. In the sacrament of the Eucharist, Jesus shows us, in particular, the truth about love which is the very essence of God. It proclaims God’s everlasting love and everlasting presence!

If I look at the Eucharist through the lens of Jesus the Bridegroom Messiah, another meaning comes to light. If Jesus is the Bridegroom and the Church is his bride, the Lord’s Supper is not just a memorial, or a banquet of “thanksgiving,” or a sacrifice; it is also a wedding banquet in which Jesus gives himself entirely to his bride, the Church, the Mystical Body of Christ. This kind of self-gift is only really possible if the Eucharist is not just a symbol of Jesus, but is truly His body and blood, soul and divinity. It is the “marriage supper of the Lamb” Revelation 19:9,

Jesus’ Passion and death is not about pain and suffering but God’s sacrificial gift of love to us that we might live. In this very messy world of incomprehensible death and tragedy, cling to Jesus, run to Him. Hug him, stay close…..He is our only refuge in this spiritual battle between good and evil.

“TO WHOM SHALL WE GO!” JOHN 6:68

HOLY HOUR OF EUCHARISTIC ADORATION

Christ is present in the Most Blessed Sacrament to manifest his great love for us. You may wish to break the hour into 4 fifteen minute sessions. The first 15 minutes we may devote to the real presence of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament…Spend this time in ADORATION. Think of the marvel of this great reality: Christ, the God-Man, is truly present in his divinity as well as his humanity, body and soul before me.

PRAYER OF ADORATION

Lord, thank you for this hour of Eucharistic devotion. I adore you as the infinite and Holy One of God. You and the Father are one and you promised that we will be one in You… May Your Holy Spirit be with us. Send Him constantly to us as You promised. As I look at this mysterious sign, the white host, my eyes tell me nothing of who is there, but faith affirms in my heart that You, my Lord and God, are there. I thank You for this precious gift of faith. Amen.

The next 15 minutes may be devoted to THANKSGIVING. Let words of thanksgiving rise up in your soul, or just simply give thanks to God for his presence here in such a remarkable way. Take time to recall and thank God for other special blessings and wonders of God: your family, vocation, gift of life, opportunity to be in his Presence, special friends, etc. Thank him for his love for you, for his unfailing help in trials and difficulties.

PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING

Thank you, Father, for having created us and given us to each other in the human family. Thank you for being with us in all our joys and sorrows, for your comfort in our sadness, your companionship in our loneliness. Thank you for yesterday, today, tomorrow and for the whole of our lives. Thank you for friends, for health and for grace. May I live this and every day conscious of all that has been given to me…

Dedicate the next 15 minutes to PETITION. First of all, ask Jesus here present in the Holy Eucharist for the grace he wants most for you: the great blessing of redemption and eternal salvation….for you, for each member of your family, your friends, people of you neighborhood and parish, for all mankind. Pray for conversions… Pray for the sick and lonely, the discouraged, our youth, the unborn, our country, its leaders. for our Holy Father, and for all priests and religious ….Pray for vocations to complete the work of Christ.

PRAYER OF PETITION

Give me yourself, O my God, give yourself to me. Behold I love you…if my love is too weak a thing, grant me to love you more strongly. I cannot measure my love, but let my soul hasten to your embrace… This only do I know that it is not good for me when you are not with me, when you are only outside me. I want you in my very self. All the plenty in the world which is not my God, is utter want. Amen.

Dedicate the last 15 minutes of the Holy Hour to ATONEMENT. A look into one’s own conscience first, for where we sin and where we need to ask for pardon and mercy. Oh my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell and lead all souls to heaven, especially those most in need of your mercy! A look into the conscience of the world at large…the demeaning of others, insults and injuries inflicted around the globe, sins against life and the world we live in…are we good stewards…do we welcome the stranger…feed the hungry…care for the sick….. treat others as we wish to be treated….

PRAYER OF CONTRITION

O Lord, forgive me my sins; the sins of my youth, the sins of my age, the sins of my soul, the sins of my body; my idle sins, my serious voluntary sins, the sins that I know, the sins I have concealed so long and which are now hidden from my memory. I am truly sorry for every sin, mortal and venial, for all the sins of my childhood up to the present hour. I know my sins have wounded Thy tender Heart; O my Savior, let me be freed from the bonds of evil through your most bitter passion. O my Jesus, forget and forgive what I have been. Amen.

BEHOLD THE LAMB OF GOD WHO TAKES AWAY THE SINS OF THE WORLD

WELCOME TO THE MARRIAGE FEAST OF THE LAMB

REDEMPTIVE SUFFERING

CATHOLIC CHURCH TEACHING

We live in a world that flees from suffering. We are taught to believe that the less we suffer, the happier we will be. We run away from it every way we can, drugs, alcohol, sex, shopping binges, eating binges and so forth.

The world says, “Pleasure yourself and all will be well.” However, there is still a problem. We are not in control and suffering comes our way whether we like it or not. It might be us that are suffering or someone we love. Suffering need not be something we hate and try our best to avoid. Jesus showed us another way, “not my will but thy will be done” This blog today is about turning our suffering into blessings for ourselves and others.

It was not the original plan of God that suffering and death be a part of human existence. The gift of immunity from suffering and death are not essential to human nature, however, and could be lost. God endowed man with free-will so they may freely choose Him above all things before entering into the beatitude of heaven.

Our first parents, Adam and Eve, rebelled and as a result they lost for themselves and their descendants those gifts that made them immune from suffering and death, the consequences of sin.

Adam and Eve was cast out of the Garden of Paradise to till the ground from which they had come. They were separated from God along with their descendants. God could have left man in this helpless state but in His mercy He chose to send His only begotten Son, Jesus, to become a member of the human race. Because Jesus is God and Man, the reparation Jesus offered was infinite. Divine Justice would be fulfilled.

REDEMPTIVE SUFFERING

“In bringing about the Redemption through suffering, Christ raised human suffering to the level of Redemption. Thus each man, in his sufferings, can also become a sharer in the redemptive suffering of Christ” Saint Pope John Paul II

Redemptive suffering is offering oneself united with Christ’s passion for ourselves and others to obtain heaven. It takes on our sins and the sins of others. St. Paul writes that we are “heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if only we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him.” Romans 8:17

By suffering in His human nature during His Passion, Christ gave to all suffering members of His Mystical Body a redeeming power, when accepted and offered up in union with His Passion. There was no dark place of suffering that Jesus did not redeem and sanctify, make holy and redemptive.

St. Paul was so filled with the idea of the redemptive power of suffering that he exclaimed: “I find joy in the sufferings I endure for you. In my own flesh I fill up what is lacking in the sufferings of Christ for the sake of His Body, the Church.” Colossians 1:24

Just to be clear….There is nothing lacking in Christ’s redemption. When Christ exclaimed: “It is consummated!” Jesus says in effect: All is accomplished that I came to do. There is no grace that comes to any human being that was not merited by Jesus. Jesus’ sacrifice lacked nothing. Jesus had no need of any other in redeeming the human race.

St. Paul, in Colossians, is speaking of the Mystical Body of Christ, made up of Christ, the Head, and all souls who are the members of His Body. It is in the members of His Body that something is lacking.

Jesus willed that the mystery of His Passion continue on in us, so that we may be associated with Him in the work of redemption. In God’s justice He demands the debt of atonement be paid. In His mercy, God allows us to “fill up what is lacking” in another member of the Mystical Body, the Church.

Catechism of the Catholic Church #618

The cross is the unique sacrifice of Christ, the “one mediator between God and men”. But because in his incarnate divine person he has in some way united himself to every man… He calls his disciples to “take up their cross and follow him, for “Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example so that we should follow in his steps.”…and share in the mystery of his redemptive suffering.

REFLECTIONS

Everyone suffers. No need to go in search of a “cross” to bear with Jesus. Most likely you already carry one, especially designed for you. Will you drag it behind in bitterness and stubbornness only making it more unbearable or will you pick it up, stumble forward in hope, of a glorious future one day!

The “cross” can include anything we find hard to bear. It may be physical pain, chronic illness for decades, mental anguish, disappointments, set-backs in business, loneliness, or sadness at death of family member or friend. Or they may be little irritants like a cold, being cut off in traffic, losing a parking place to another, computer problems, or cable television outage.

Though these crosses are beyond our power of control, they are part of God’s providence. God foresees them all and allows them, so He can bring good out of them. There are so many stories in the Old Testament that looked really bad and turned out very good. But here, I will just cite the story of Joseph, sold into slavery by his jealous brothers, who then in the divine providence of God became a powerful ally in Egypt that saved his family from famine in the land of Canaan. Genesis 37-42

By accepting willingly and without complaint our crosses which God in His Providence allows to come our way, we can pay in part the debt that we, or others, have incurred by our sins. Redemptive suffering does not have to take on extreme forms to be effective but rather, any suffering, if offered with love, can be given redemptive value, even something as mundane as a toothache.

It is not easy to accept suffering. Even Jesus in His human nature asked the Father in the Garden of Gethsemane, “if this cup could pass, but not my will thy will be done.” Like Jesus, we too can pray in painful situations, “let this chalice pass from me” as long as we are willing to add “nevertheless, not my will but yours be done”

Christ has raised suffering to level of redemption. We share in that redemptive suffering with Christ. We may never understand suffering just as Job (Book of Job) said to God “I don’t get it “and God replied “I know you don’t understand.”

We don’t understand suffering either. But we know God is all good, only permits suffering if He can draw some greater good out of it.

DIVINE MERCY SUNDAY APRIL 11

JESUS TO SAINT FAUSTINA

“You will save more souls through prayer and suffering than will a missionary through his teachings and sermons alone!

AMAZING GRACE

1 Comment / CATHOLIC CHURCH TEACHING, CATHOLIC COMMENTARY

FALLING INTO SIN

IN THE GARDEN

Adam and Eve before they sinned had special gifts not necessary to human nature. These were called Preternatural gifts and include infused knowledge, integrity, and immortality of the body.

Before original sin, man was in a state of “original justice.” Had Adam and Eve not sinned they would have passed this state of “original justice” down to their descendants. After Adam and Eve committed “original sin,” they lost “original justice” and the preternatural gifts for the entire human race, their descendants.

God gave Adam and Eve the ability to live a life that was more than human, that was divine, with the Spirit of God dwelling in their souls. (Sanctifying Grace) But Adam lost that gift of divine life for himself and all his descendants. We are born physically alive but spiritually dead.

Adam’s fall from grace left all his descendants with a darkened intellect, a weakened will, and disordered affections and appetites. Man’s passions are no longer ruled by right reason We are now inclined towards anything our imagination paints as pleasurable, without regards for what is good for us by God’s design. (Concupiscence) We also inherited from Adam and Eve pain, suffering and death.

Saint Paul states very well the conditions of Concupiscence,” I do not understand. For I do not do what I want, but I do what I hate….now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me….The willing is ready at hand, but doing the good is not….For I do not do the good I want, but I do the evil I do not want….ROMANS 7:15-20

FALLING INTO GRACE

Just as we fell into sin, we fall into Grace. When things are so bad and we are so miserable, frustrated, and desperate and there is no one else to turn to, we fall on the mercy of God and plead with Him to be our Savior and restore us in relationship. Grace is a supernatural gift of God, first infused in us at our Baptism for our eternal salvation.

CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH

CCC 1997 Grace is a participation in the life of God. It introduces us into the intimacy of Trinitarian life By Baptism the Christian participates in the grace of Christ, the Head of his Body. As an “adopted son,” he can call God “Father,” in union with the only Son.

CCC 2000 Sanctifying Grace is a habitual gift and the supernatural state of being infused by God, which permanently inheres in the soul; but may be lost in commission of mortal sin. It is a vital principle of the supernatural life. It is called sanctifying grace because it makes holy those who possess the gift by giving them a participation in the divine life.

There is also a Grace called Actual Grace, a temporary supernatural intervention, that can strengthen our minds and wills to choose the good that will help maintain Sanctifying Grace and lead us to our destiny in Heaven. Actual grace is a transient divine assistance that we can pray for that enables us to obtain, retain, or grow in supernatural grace and the life of God.

The call to salvation depends entirely on God’s gratuitous initiative, for he alone can reveal and give himself. It surpasses the power of human intellect and will. Grace is favor, the free and undeserved help that God gives us to respond to his call to become children of God, adoptive sons and daughters, partakers of the divine nature and of eternal life.

Jesus gave a loud cry and breathed his last. The veil of the sanctuary was torn in two from top to bottom. When the centurion who stood facing him saw how he breathed his last, the centurion said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!” Mark 15:37-39

REFLECTIONS

The mistake many of us make at the beginning of the spiritual life is to try “go it alone”. After falling into sin, sin that has separated us from our God, a darkness we can no longer endure, we reach a point when we can no longer rely on our own resources. So, humbly, we fall back on God’s mercy. We discover again what it means to trust in God, to fall back on the power and love of Christ. My Jesus Mercy!

Adam and Eve were driven out of the Garden, out of Paradise, away from the Tree of Life. But before they were sent forth, God gave them the First Gospel, the first Good News. He promises he will save them. The Second Eve [Mary] will be obedient, undoing Eve’s disobedience; Genesis 3:15 Her seed, Jesus Christ .will crush the head of the serpent. Man will receive a greater Tree of Life from the wood of the Cross with greater gifts flowing from it.

Salvation flows from the New Tree of Life, the Cross! From the new Tree of Life will come the Eucharist, the Eternal Bread from Heaven. Jesus promises, ‘If you eat this Bread and drink my Blood you have Eternal life.’ This is the new spiritual food flowing from Christ’s pierced side, blood and water, great symbols of the Eucharist and Baptism. Eternal life is once again available from the pierced side of Christ.

Baptism restores God’s life to our souls, but it doesn’t take away the tendency to sin. It doesn’t restore to us the clarity of mind, the strength of will, and the rightness of desire that Adam and Eve had in the beginning. The Sacrament of Reconciliation forgives sins committed since Baptism and restores or increases Sanctifying Grace. God has dealt to every man his measure of faith.” Romans 12:3 The grace of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord,” Romans 6:23

“We are not, the sum of our weaknesses and failures; we are the sum of the Father’s love for us, and our real capacity to become the image of his Son.” Saint John Paul II

Our real capacity! What a challenge lies in those few words! St John Paul is clearly implying that, under ordinary grace, each one of us has the capacity to become a saint. That will demand radical change!

The poet W.H. Auden once brilliantly observed: “We would rather be ruined than changed. We would die in our dread than climb the cross of the moment and let our illusions die.”

What truly frightens us is the capacity we have – the remarkable capacity – to become transformed from being poor sinners into radiant, brave and faithful disciples for Christ. The capacity we possess, each one of us, in spite of all our weakness, to become the image of the divine Son.

It is precisely in the discovery and acceptance of the Father’s love for us, in trusting in that love, in falling back on that grace, that our lives begin to be transformed by the power of God. Those of us who felt helplessly weak, now begin to find themselves capable of acts of courage and generosity. Let us all work to fill that capacity up, to live in the image of Jesus, Our Savior, and our destiny.

CONCLUSION

FIRST VERSE OF AMAZING GRACE

Amazing grace, How sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost, but now I am found, Was blind, but now I see.

PRAYER OF FIRST CENTURY MONK

Lord, whether I want it or not, save me because dust and ashes that I am I love sin. But you are God almighty, so stop me yourself. If you have pity on the just, that’s not much, because they are worthy of your mercy. Show the full splendor of your mercy in me. Reveal in me your love for men and women, because this poor man has no other refuge but you.

SIN BLOCKS GRACE

REPENT AND BELIEVE IN THE GOSPEL!

ARE YOU SAVED? WHAT IS SALVATION?

CATHOLIC CHURCH TEACHING, CATHOLIC COMMENTARY

GOD THE CREATOR OF ALL THINGS VISIBLE AND INVISIBLE

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavens, as he chose us in him, before the foundation of the world, to be holy and without blemish before him. In love God destined us for adoption to himself through Jesus Christ, in accord with the favor of his will, for the praise of the glory of his grace that he granted us in the beloved. EPHESIANS 1:3-10

INTRODUCTION

No one saves himself. Only by the mercy of God are we saved. Grace is a gift from God to the sinner and the righteous, earned for us by our Savior, Jesus Christ. “What is impossible for human beings is possible for God.” Luke 18:27

CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH

1989 The first work of the grace of the Holy Spirit is conversion…Moved by grace, man turns toward God and away from sin, thus accepting forgiveness and righteousness from on high.

1996 Grace is favor, the free and undeserved help that God gives us to respond to his call to become children of God, partakers of the divine nature and of eternal life.

Jesus is our Savior, revealed by the Father and foretold by the Prophets. “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” GENESIS 3:15

The Law and Old Testament covenants are specifically fulfilled in Christ, Christ fulfills the law by offering himself in love for us. At his Last Supper, Jesus says, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; even as I have loved you, that you also love one another” John 13:34

While Jesus is Savior of all, does that mean that all will be saved? Of course not! What if I refuse and reject Jesus and His commandments? Many Christians believe that they are saved by making one single act of faith at one single point in time in their lives. Nowhere does Scripture say such a thing. As Catholic Christians, we believe that salvation is a process which begins with our Baptism and continues throughout our lifetimes,

Jesus warns us, “Enter through the narrow gate;^* for the gate is wide and the road broad that leads to destruction, and those who enter through it are many How narrow the gate and constricted the road that leads to life. And those who find it are few.” Matthew 7:13

Jesus is asked directly what one must do to have eternal life. “…young man asked, “Teacher, what good must I do to gain eternal life?” MATTHEW 19:16-17

Did Jesus say, accept me into your heart once and that’s it? No! Jesus said, “If you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments.”

COMMENTARY

For by grace you have been saved through gift of faith; and this is not your own doing, it is the gift of God—not because of works, lest any man should boast. —Ephesians 2:8-9. Since the initiative belongs to God in the order of grace, no one can merit the initial grace of forgiveness and justification.

Sin is a debt. Jesus’s death dissolves the “debt” humanity owed to God. Atonement refers to “delivering a person from death by means of a payment, that is, a ransom.” Hebrews 8:5. Jesus pays the price. Jesus not only frees us from the debt of sin but also its consequences: “slavery to sin” Romans 6:6-7.

Salvation is not simply about being forgiven of our sins or escaping the fires of eternal damnation. It is, also about being united to God. To be saved is to be united to God in Christ and to be “conformed to the image of his Son” Romans 8:29

Salvation involves even more than just communion with God, in Christ. It also means union with all others who are united to Christ. Christ is now acting in the Mystical Body, the Church. What Jesus did in his personal body, he now does in his mystical body. “Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me” Matthew 25:40.

“What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister has nothing to wear and has no food for the day, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, keep warm, and eat well,” but you do not give them the necessities of the body, what good is it? So also faith of itself, if it does not have works, is dead. For, just as a body without a spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.” James 2:14-26

To be in Christ is to be more than “forgiven;” it is to be elevated and transformed. Being saved means not living in sin; it means living as Jesus told us, “be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect” Matthew 5:48.

According to the biblical authors, saving faith also entails participation in Christ’s own suffering. Faith involves submitting to God’s will. Christ himself is the model of this; he was “obedient unto death” (Philippians 2:8).

St. Paul writes, “Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I complete what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church” Colossians 1:24. St. Thomas Aquinas explains, this writing of St. Paul should not be misinterpreted that Christ’s passion was not sufficient for our redemption.

Instead, the passage indicates that Christ’s body, the Church, must participate in the work of her head, Christ himself. What is “lacking” according to Colossians 1:24 is not Christ’s sufferings on the cross, but the Church’s full participation in his redemptive work.

CONCLUSION

Then we will say with St. Paul, “I have competed well; I have finished the race; I have kept the faith. From now on the crown of righteousness awaits me, Which the Lord, the just judge, will award to me on that day And not only to me, but to all who have longed for his appearance. and persevered to the very end” 2 Timothy 4:7-9

KEEP OUR EYES ON THE PRIZE!

JESUS CHRIST!

THOUGT FOR THE DAY

HOW DO WE SPEND ALL ETERNITY FOREVER AND EVER WITH GOD IF WE DON’T SPEND TIME WITH GOD ON EARTH!

HELL EXISTS, THIS I KNOW, BECAUSE THE BIBLE TELLS ME SO

1 Comment / CATHOLIC CHURCH TEACHING

YOUR CHOICE

I did not come to condemn the world but to save the world.

John 12:47

INTRODUCTION

Every Saturday morning a few of my friends meet to pray and talk about God. It is our own small group of faith formation. No one gets to heaven alone. We are made for community, the mystical body of Christ.

One day the subject of hell came up and we all remarked how little we hear about hell in our homilies at Mass. We range in age of 30s, 50s, 70s, and 80s. At any rate, a friend who grew up in the 50s like I did proclaimed how the preaching and teaching about hell by the good sisters kept him on the straight and narrow regards chastity through his teens and dating years.and still today thankful for that guard rail that kept him pure and connected to Jesus. “Blessed are the pure of heart for they shall see God.”

A mortal sin separates us from God and there is nothing worse that can happen to any of us. Just imagine separated from our maker and creator, the one who loved us into existence for all eternity. The pain of permanent estrangement, alone, is worse than any bodily punishment. The thirst of longing for God that is implanted in our hearts never to be satisfied.

At Fatima, the Blessed Virgin Mary reminded the three children that many souls go to hell because they have no one to pray or make sacrifices for them. Sister Lucy later described this vision of hell in her memoirs. “We saw a vast sea of fire. Plunged in this fire, we saw the demons and the souls of the damned. The demons were distinguished from the souls of the damned by their terrifying and repellent likeness to frightful and unknown animals…

Mary told the children of Fatima they must add this prayer to the saying of the rosary for so many souls are in danger of going to hell. These souls must repent and turn their lives around before it is too late.

O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, Save us from the fire of hell. Take all souls to heaven, especially those Who are most in need of thy mercy.

CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH

1033 We cannot be united with God unless we freely choose to love him. We cannot love God if we sin gravely against him, against our neighbor or against ourselves…This state of definitive self-exclusion from communion with God and the blessed is called “hell.”

1035 Immediately after death the souls of those who die in a state of mortal sin descend into hell, where they suffer the punishments of hell, “eternal fire.” The chief punishment of hell is eternal separation from God, in whom alone man can possess the life and happiness for which he was created and for which he longs.

1037 God predestines no one to go to hell…this, is our choice, a willful turning away from God (a mortal sin) is necessary, and persistence in it until the end.

SACRED HEART OF JESUS HAVE MERCY ON ME

WHAT SCRIPTURE HAS TO SAY ABOUT HELL

OLD TESTAMENT

The doctrine of hell is suggested in the Old Testament, but it is much more clearly revealed in the New Testament. Hell is not specifically stated in Old Testament but Judgment certainly is.

They shall go out and see the corpses of the people who rebelled against me; For there worm shall not die, their fire shall not be extinguished; and they shall be an abhorrence to all flesh. Isaiah 66:24

Many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground will awake, these to everlasting life, but the others to disgrace and everlasting contempt. Daniel 12:2

NEW TESTAMENT

Our Lord Jesus Christ made frequent references to the activity and influence of Satan throughout His ministry, Jesus, himself, underwent the temptations and wiles of the devil in the desert after His Baptism in the Jordon.

Jesus says it is a place of eternal torment Luke 16:23, of unquenchable fire Mark 9:43, where the worm does not die Mark 9:48, where people will gnash their teeth in anguish and regret Matthew 13:42 and from which there is no return, even to warn loved ones Luke 16:19–31.

Matthew 7:13

Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it.

John 15:6

If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.

CONCLUSION

God gave us free will but that does not mean we are free to sin. While human freedom is a good, human freedom is not in itself an absolute. We are not free to do evil. “The more one does what is good, the freer one becomes. There is no true freedom except in the service of what is good and just. The choice to disobey and do evil is an abuse of freedom and leads to “the slavery of sin.” (CCC 1733)

Deny the Devil and Hell at your own risk! The devil loves denial of his existence. A vast majority of Catholics in America reject the Church teaching on the devil and hell. This is just fine with the devil! If the devil is rejected then it is easy to reject Jesus, our Savior, as well and His Father! Who needs a Savior or the Father who sent Him? If no Satan, who needs God! Let’s call a spade a spade, stop calling darkness light. “The devil is a liar and father of all lies.” John 8:44

If you feel that things are spinning out of control in our world and in our Church today, you’re right. Be assured, we have not arrived at this place in history by accident. There is an intelligent evil being behind all of this work. He is sometimes called Satan, bent on our destruction and the destruction of Jesus’ Church, the Mystical Body of Christ.

This evil has gone unchecked by faithful Catholics as well as the Church’s hierarchy for too long. When was the last time you heard a homily on Satan or hell? Why have most parishes dropped the prayer to St. Michael at the end of Mass as we prayed in the 50s and 60s? Are we not in danger anymore? Satan is laughing his fool head off at our stupidity. What a great con job. Are we suckers too?

We need to get on our knees and beg God to deliver us from the sinful evil of this current generation, and protect the Church Jesus founded, from infiltration of the devil! As Catholic Christians who are blessed with faith, sacraments, and Church teaching, we must lead the way by bearing witness to the truth every day, every place. “Much will be required of the person entrusted with much, and still more will be demanded of the person entrusted with more.” Luke 12:47-48

“Stay sober and alert. Your opponent the devil is prowling like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Resist him, solid in your faith.” 1 Peter 5:8

Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle, Be our defense against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him we humbly pray, And do thou, O heavenly hosts, By the power of God, Thrust into hell Satan and all the evil spirits Who prowl about the world for the ruin of souls. Amen.

FAITH IS FREE GIFT FROM GOD PRAY FOR IT! ACCEPT IT! PROTECT IT!

CATHOLIC CHURCH TEACHING

“O YOU OF LITTLE FAITH, WHY DID YOU DOUBT?” MATTHEW 14:31

INTRODUCTION

Peter and the other disciples were in the boat when they saw Jesus walking on water. They were terrified even though they had seen many miraculous things He had done. They thought it was a ghost and we know how superstitious fishermen are. Peter cries out, if it is you Lord, tell me to come on the water. Jesus says, “Come!” Jesus confirms for Peter; He, indeed is the Lord!

Peter began to fear outside the boat and cries out, “Lord Save Me!” Jesus reaches out and takes him by the hand. “You of little faith why did you doubt?” I begin this blog with this Scripture story because it contains many of the points I want to call attention to.

There are different kinds of “faith” There is an everyday kind where you believe when you get out of bed you won’t fall down, your breakfast won’t make you sick, and you will safely drive to work. and you won’t catch Covid 19 today.

There is another kind of FAITH that is related to a heavenly Father that wants a relationship with us and provide for our physical and spiritual well-being. I will be talking about the Theological virtue of FAITH in today’s blog. Faith is a gift of the Father. We need to pray for it. We can lose it altogether or it can become weak and leads to falling and stumbling, and sometimes even separation from our Father in heaven.

The Disciples became afraid seeing Jesus walking on water and lost sight of who Jesus was, who He said He was, and the many proofs He was who He says He is.

Peter plays the game of testing God, okay Lord I am testing you if you are Lord tell me to come to you. It is sort of what Satan did in temptations of Jesus in desert. “If you are the Son of God, turn these stones into bread.” Maybe we play that game too, God if you do this, I will believe, Hmmm, how does that work out for us?

BACKGROUND

WHAT THE CHURCH TEACHES

CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH

CCC 814 Faith is the theological virtue by which we believe in God and believe all that he has said and revealed to us… By faith “man freely commits his entire self to God.”^…

CCC 1816 The disciple of Christ must not only keep the faith and live it, but also profess it, confidently bear witness to it, and spread it: “All must be prepared to confess Christ before men and to follow him amidst the persecutions which the Church never lacks.

CCC 154-155 Faith is human. Believing is possible only by grace and the interior helps of the Holy Spirit….”In faith, the human intellect and will co-operate with divine grace: Believing is an act of the intellect assenting to the divine truth by command of the will moved by God through grace.

CCC 160 Faith is an act of freedom. To be human, man’s response to God by faith must be free and… therefore nobody is to be forced to embrace the faith against his will. The act of faith is of its very nature a free act. God calls men to serve him in spirit and in truth… but not coerced…”

SCRIPTURE

THE POWER OF FAITH

Mark 9:23– And Jesus said to him, “‘If you can! All things are possible for one who believes.”

Matthew 21:21– And Jesus answered, “Truly, I say to you, if you have FAITH and do not doubt and say to this mountain, “Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ it will happen..” ‘

Matthew 8:10 A Roman centurion, a pagan and Gentile, approached Jesus and told him his servant was paralyzed at home in great pain and Jesus agreed to come heal him.

The Centurion replied, “Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed…Jesus responded; “I tell you the truth, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith.’” Jesus said to the centurion, “You may go; as you have believed, let it be done for you.” And at that very hour [his] servant was healed.

Matthew 15:22 One more story of incredible faith outside the chosen people, A Canaanite woman, a pagan also, begged Jesus to cure her demon-possessed daughter. At first Jesus rebuffs her, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel but the woman persisted in her faith in Jesus. Jesus was moved by that faith and said to her, “O woman, your faith is great; it shall be done for you as you wish.” And her daughter was healed at once.

SEE WHAT GREAT FAITH THIS WOMAN WHO PERSEVERES

COMMENTARY

In the letter to the Hebrews, chapter 11, we find this definition of faith given by St. Paul, “Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”

Faith is a gift from God, animated by the Holy Spirit, who creates in our hearts a desire for God. God never ceases to draw us to Himself. Although we can forget God or reject God, God never ceases to call everyone to seek Him and to find eternal life.

The Holy Spirit animates our minds and hearts so that we may recognize Jesus for who He is. “For no one can say Jesus is Lord except the Holy Spirit and who He has revealed him.”

I Cor. 12:13

There are many ways to know or approach God. Beginning with Creation, its beauty, and order, we can come to the knowledge of an intelligent First Cause. The world and the human person both attest to the fact that they are not their own origins. Our holy Mother the Church holds and teaches us that God is the first principle and last end of all things and can be known with certainty from the created world by the natural light of human reason. The human person’s faculties, mind, intellect, and memory, welcome the revelation of a personal God.

Faith is a dialogue of love with God. In His revelation, God says, “I love you.” In Faith we say, “We gratefully accept your love and return it to you, Father.” I Corinthians 3:11 It is not so much about our love for God that is so very crucial in the beginning but an acknowledgement and an acceptance of God’s love for us.

By the gift of faith, the Holy Spirit enables us to enter into relationship with God. After death we call that relationship, eternal life. But right now, this life in Jesus begins through the “obedience of faith.” With his whole being man gives his assent to God the revealer.

This obedience of faith can most perfectly be seen in the exemplar of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God. By faith Mary welcomes the tidings and promise brought by the angel Gabriel, believing that “with God nothing will be impossible.” Mary is the Mother of God and our Mother too. Mary will always lead us to her son, Jesus.

CONCLUSION

Faith is an entirely free gift that God makes to man. We must pray steadfastly for this gift. Faith is a priceless gift, a pearl of great price. To love, grow, and persevere in our Faith, we must nourish it with the Word of God and practice it through works of charity. We must persevere in faith until we enter eternal life.

We must pray never to lose FAITH and ask the Holy Spirit for His guidance and protection against onslaughts and attacks by a faithless world. Paul said to his disciple, Timothy, “By rejecting conscience, certain persons have made a shipwreck of their Faith.” I Tim.1:18-19

Faith makes us taste in advance the light of the beatific vision. “Then we shall see God, face to face, as He is.”

I Cor. 13:12 The Theological virtue of Faith right now, is the beginning of eternal life. Pray that the Holy Spirit inspires our minds and hearts and strengthens our wills to say YES to God as Mother Mary did.

PRAYER

Heavenly Father, you have in your love given us your precious gift of faith. May all you wished to reveal to us be opened in our hearts. Send your Spirit to protect and guide this most precious gift. Thank you for loving us and revealing that love in your only-begotten Son, Jesus, through the inspiration of the Most Holy Spirit. Amen.