Our Relationship With God

In the last post we read father Blasick’s homily for the beginning of Lent that speaks of our relationship with God on a personal level. Many of us today (not all), although we believe we're faithful to the teachings of our Christian faith choose what teachings we are willing to follow. We often see the church as an institution that is nothing more than an organization created by man. Some believe that it is not necessary to follow all of the guidance of the church in matters of faith and morality. There are even others who separate from the church and follow their own way of believing what God will be satisfied with assuming what is pleasing to them will be acceptable to God. They fail to realize that the church was in fact founded by Jesus Christ. He Himself empowered it with the authority to teach what He taught and for His church to guide His faithful. Yes, the Catholic Church presents to His faithful followers the teachings of Jesus Christ and not just some general rules a group of man made up on a whim.

As Jesus stated in Revelations,…

Lent–The Spiritual Preparation by The Faithful For The Resurrection of Christ

A homily written and presented during mass on ASH WEDNESDAY February 18th, 2015 by Fr. George Blasick, C.Ss.R.

Father Blasick is an ordained Catholic priest of the order of the “Congregation Of The Most Holy Redeemer”, better known today as the “Redemptorist Fathers” founded by St. Alphonsus Liguori .

"Take care you are not like the hypocrites who come to church a few times per year, making the ashen cross (upon the forehead) more valuable than a good confession of sins and the reception of My Body and Blood; otherwise, you will have no recompense from your heavenly Father. Do not do this so that others will see you and call you My disciple. Amen, I say to you, for those who value much the little things and neglect the larger ones, they have already received their reward. But to those who use this day as a beginning -- to give alms in secret, to pray often, to fast with hidden appearance, and to celebrate My Sacraments worthily - these my Father who sees in secret will repay you."
 

Could these be words which Christ directs toward us? I believe so, even if some might say that they sound judgmental. However, keep this in mind: Christ was making a judgment of character in today's gospel, while speaking to His disciples. There are sinners, there are saints-in-the-making, and then there are the hypocrites who place themselves comfortably in the middle. Where are we?
 

In the book of Revelation, our Lord says to the Church in Laodicea:
 

"I know your works; I know that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either cold or hot. So, because you are lukewarm, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth" (Rev 3: 15-16).
 

We have no problem whatsoever with Jesus saying this stuff about "those people" centuries ago, about those in 1st Century Palestine and to the seven churches in first three chapter of Revelation. However, let no one dare say that about us, in any fashion! After all, what we want and need, more than anything else, is a Jesus of love and mercy!
 

Yet, we must not kid ourselves: we are just as sinful in this age as they were then. We can easily turn a blind eye by saying, "What is most important is that I have a relationship with Jesus!" Really? I ask this in reply to such simplistic thinking: what KIND of relationship? The devil has a relationship with Jesus, and it is a very bad one! So does every angel, good and fallen, and so does every human being as well. What is the DESCRIPTION of your relationship? Is it Scriptural or subjective? Holy or sinful? Good or bad? Real or imaginary? Sacrificial or self-deceptive?
 

Another protest might be, "But I'm a good person!" Perhaps, by human standards you are, but Ash Wednesday and Lent are about assessing ourselves by DIVINE standards. Are you a HOLY person? Are you striving to become a saint? Or do you still allow for spiritual mediocrity in your life--a mediocrity that will get you nowhere fast, which never really challenges you toward conversion (of life), and which allows for complacency and sloth?
 

Yes, we are called to relationship with Jesus, but that relationship needs to be a RIGHT relationship, a holy relationship+ as Jesus teaches us in the gospels, thru His Apostolic Church. That is the real challenge of this day, that symbol, this Lenten season: to allow Christ to transform EVERYTHING in our lives. "Behold, now is a very acceptable time; behold now is the day of salvation." May we all hear His voice today and harden not our lukewarm hearts.

A Tale of Two Churches

The following article was published by Zenit.org and is the exclusive property thereof, but we at Seeking Divine Mercy felt this article more than worthy to be presented here with credit given according to the author and publisher. For additional articles of interest, please visit Zenit.org

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American Law Is Officially Telling Its Citizens What Values to Hold and How to Think, Warns Cardinal George

By Francis Cardinal George

CHICAGO, September 16, 2014 (Zenit.org) - Once upon a time there was a church founded on God’s entering into human history in order to give humanity a path to eternal life and happiness with him. The Savior that God sent, his only-begotten Son, did not write a book but founded a community, a church, upon the witness and ministry of twelve apostles. He sent this church the gift of the Holy Spirit, the spirit of love between Father and Son, the Spirit of the truth that God had revealed about himself and humanity by breaking into the history of human sinfulness.

This Church, a hierarchical communion, continued through history, living among different peoples and cultures, filled with sinners, but always guided in the essentials of her life and teaching by the Holy Spirit. She called herself “Catholic” because her purpose was to preach a universal faith and a universal morality, encompassing all peoples and cultures. This claim often invited conflict with the ruling classes of many countries. About 1,800 years into her often stormy history, this church found herself as a very small group in a new country in Eastern North America that promised to respect all religions because the State would not be confessional; it would not try to play the role of a religion.

This Church knew that it was far from socially acceptable in this new country. One of the reasons the country was established was to protest the king of England’s permitting the public celebration of the Catholic Mass on the soil of the British Empire in the newly conquered Catholic territories of Canada. He had betrayed his coronation oath to combat Catholicism, defined as “America’s greatest enemy,” and protect Protestantism, bringing the pure religion of the colonists into danger and giving them the moral right to revolt and reject his rule.

Nonetheless, many Catholics in the American colonies thought their life might be better in the new country than under a regime whose ruling class had penalized and persecuted them since the mid-16th century. They made this new country their own and served her loyally. The social history was often contentious, but the State basically kept its promise to protect all religions and not become a rival to them, a fake church. Until recent years.

There was always a quasi-religious element in the public creed of the country. It lived off the myth of human progress, which had little place for dependence on divine providence. It tended to exploit the religiosity of the ordinary people by using religious language to co-opt them into the purposes of the ruling class. Forms of anti-Catholicism were part of its social DNA. It had encouraged its citizens to think of themselves as the creators of world history and the managers of nature, so that no source of truth outside of themselves needed to be consulted to check their collective purposes and desires. But it had never explicitly taken upon itself the mantle of a religion and officially told its citizens what they must personally think or what “values” they must personalize in order to deserve to be part of the country. Until recent years.

In recent years, society has brought social and legislative approval to all types of sexual relationships that used to be considered “sinful.” Since the biblical vision of what it means to be human tells us that not every friendship or love can be expressed in sexual relations, the Church’s teaching on these issues is now evidence of intolerance for what the civil law upholds and even imposes. What was once a request to live and let live has now become a demand for approval. The “ruling class,” those who shape public opinion in politics, in education, in communications, in entertainment, is using the civil law to impose its own form of morality on everyone. We are told that, even in marriage itself, there is no difference between men and women, although nature and our very bodies clearly evidence that men and women are not interchangeable at will in forming a family. Nevertheless, those who do not conform to the official religion, we are warned, place their citizenship in danger.

When the recent case about religious objection to one provision of the Health Care Act was decided against the State religion, the Huffington Post (June 30, 2014) raised “concerns about the compatibility between being a Catholic and being a good citizen.” This is not the voice of the nativists who first fought against Catholic immigration in the 1830s. Nor is it the voice of those who burned convents and churches in Boston and Philadelphia a decade later. Neither is it the voice of the Know-Nothing Party of the 1840s and 1850s, nor of the Ku Klux Klan, which burned crosses before Catholic churches in the Midwest after the civil war. It is a voice more sophisticated than that of the American Protective Association, whose members promised never to vote for a Catholic for public office. This is, rather, the self-righteous voice of some members of the American establishment today who regard themselves as “progressive” and “enlightened.”

The inevitable result is a crisis of belief for many Catholics. Throughout history, when Catholics and other believers in revealed religion have been forced to choose between being taught by God or instructed by politicians, professors, editors of major newspapers and entertainers, many have opted to go along with the powers that be. This reduces a great tension in their lives, although it also brings with it the worship of a false god. It takes no moral courage to conform to government and social pressure. It takes a deep faith to “swim against the tide,” as Pope Francis recently encouraged young people to do at last summer’s World Youth Day.

Swimming against the tide means limiting one’s access to positions of prestige and power in society. It means that those who choose to live by the Catholic faith will not be welcomed as political candidates to national office, will not sit on editorial boards of major newspapers, will not be at home on most university faculties, will not have successful careers as actors and entertainers. Nor will their children, who will also be suspect. Since all public institutions, no matter who owns or operates them, will be agents of the government and conform their activities to the demands of the official religion, the practice of medicine and law will become more difficult for faithful Catholics. It already means in some States that those who run businesses must conform their activities to the official religion or be fined, as Christians and Jews are fined for their religion in countries governed by Sharia law.

A reader of the tale of two churches, an outside observer, might note that American civil law has done much to weaken and destroy what is the basic unit of every human society, the family. With the weakening of the internal restraints that healthy family life teaches, the State will need to impose more and more external restraints on everyone’s activities. An outside observer might also note that the official religion’s imposing whatever its proponents currently desire on all citizens and even on the world at large inevitably generates resentment. An outside observer might point out that class plays a large role in determining the tenets of the official State religion. “Same-sex marriage,” as a case in point, is not an issue for the poor or those on the margins of society.

How does the tale end? We don’t know. The actual situation is, of course, far more complex than a story plot, and there are many actors and characters, even among the ruling class, who do not want their beloved country to transform itself into a fake church. It would be wrong to lose hope, since there are so many good and faithful people.

Catholics do know, with the certainty of faith, that, when Christ returns in glory to judge the living and the dead, the Church, in some recognizable shape or form that is both Catholic and Apostolic, will be there to meet him. There is no such divine guarantee for any country, culture or society of this or any age.

Cardinal Francis George is the Archbishop of Chicago.

As a closing note by the producers of this website, Seeking Divine Mercy, No doubt as unwavering as the Words of Jesus Christ are; as unwavering as is the Covenant Jesus made with His Church, She WILL be here to meet with Him “until the end of days”. No other source can sustain over her. SeekingDivineMercy.org

Catholicism – What is “the Fullness of Christianity"?

 

Many non-Catholic Christians have at times asked what is meant when one speaks of the fullness of Christian teachings in Catholicism and how can the Catholic faith claim to possess this fullness. For those who know the history and lineage of the Holy Bible, it is recognized the Bible’s origin is the Catholic Church. The many versions today and the alterations that are contained in those versions range from a subtle difference to a major redefining of what was intended in the original volumes dependant on the founder of the particular system of beliefs that took it for his or her own use while promoting their own assumptions of what it teaches. But the common factor among the majority of protestant denominations is the assumption that any person can read verses from scripture and determine what it means to them personally. Those verses that conflict with either the individual’s personal interpretation or the system of beliefs of their denomination are routinely disregarded as though holding no significance and this is a common practice.

 

The reason the Catholic faith is referred to as the fullness of the teachings of Christ or of Christianity is because in Catholicism, no verse is disregarded. The bible can, when kept in its entirety offer its own confirmation as to the accurate interpretation from one verse as compared to another. No verse in scripture is to be considered insignificant or to be disregarded, but all to be recognized as the “Inspired Word of God”. The practice of reading one verse or passage and self interpreting it while disregarding other verses or passages that conflict with ones self interpretation is misguided as scripture does not conflict with itself. When a person concludes through their own interpretation that a particular verse means one thing but opposes or conflicts with something else in scripture, it is a flawed interpretation. This is not to say there are parts of scripture that can speak to us personally but scripture in its entirety brings forth the intended teachings of Christ, not the intended opinions or desired wishes of others. By discovering we have interpreted a verse that does conflict with another verse, we should immediately go back and reconsider what the first verse is intending to tell us.

 

In Catholicism, all scripture is valid and to selectively choose to interpret some verses to support what seems more flexible or suitable to us and disregard those that conflict with our opinions, is to diminish the very intent and validity of all scripture, as there is nothing to validate our own choice in passages or verses with our personal interpretations as more valid than that of the verses we disregard.

 

An example of the many losses Christians suffer due to the disregard of parts of scripture in Protestantism as apposed to the true relationship one can embrace in understanding Christ's teachings in their fullness, one can reflect on the existence today of over thirty thousand non-Catholic denominations, all teaching or proclaiming various differences in their systems of belief. Yet according to scripture we are told; “God is faithful: by whom you are called unto the fellowship (solidarity) of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing and that there be no schisms among you; but that you be perfect in the same mind, and in the same judgment.” (1 Corinthians CH1: vs9-10). As the source of the Holy Bible and the one Church founded by Christ to teach and guide the faithful until the consumation of the world, it stands to reason that the fullness of Christianity can be found within her.

 

Let us consider the totality of scripture and its origin that we may be guided by the Holy Spirit in truth and not misled by false direction.

 

American Secularism

“For what can be known about God is evident to them (His people), because God made it evident to them. Ever since the creation of the world, his invisible attributes of eternal power and divinity have been able to be understood and perceived in what he has made. As a result, they have no excuse; for although they knew God they did not accord him glory as God or give him thanks. Instead, they became vain in their reasoning, and their senseless minds were darkened.

While claiming to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for the likeness of an image of mortal man or of birds or of four-legged animals or of snakes. Therefore, God handed them over to impurity through the lusts of their hearts for the mutual degradation of their bodies. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie and revered and worshiped the creature rather than the creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. Therefore, God handed them over to degrading passions. Their females exchanged natural relations for unnatural, and the males likewise gave up natural relations with females and burned with lust for one another. Males did shameful things with males and thus received in their own persons the due penalty for their perversity. And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God handed them over to their undiscerning mind to do what is improper. They are filled with every form of wickedness, evil, greed, and malice; full of envy, murder, rivalry, treachery, and spite. They are gossips and scandalmongers and they hate God. They are insolent, haughty, boastful, ingenious in their wickedness, and rebellious toward their parents. They are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Although they know the just decree of God that all who practice such things deserve death, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.” (Romans CH1: vs19-32)


Our nation clearly suffers the effects of our own abandonment of God and morality as it was first established according to the principles of faith of our forefathers. These are the motivating forces that lead us to the founding of our country. We can not be so foolish to believe we are in a relationship with God if we live opposing His teachings or kiss Him on the cheek while betraying His passion on the cross. But we can turn our country around and return to those principles by rediscovering our faith and begin living it once again while teaching our children of God and morality, but only by such a revitalization of faith will we recover. It takes only recognition of what we have become as a people over the last 50 years; what we have abandoned, to realize why we suffer today and the responsibility we have to out children in providing them the knowledge to live a life in a relationship with God rather than the meaningless pursuit of what will never fulfill or give purpose without Him.

 

Ending The Mass Slaughter of The Innocent

If we are to seek a relationship with our children by shielding them from the need to make an effort or the reality of failure to believe there is only success; or we believe we can establish a relationship with them mainly by taking them to a firing range to teach them how to shoot a firearm, or misguide them into believing everything they do is praiseworthy with nothing to be considered improper or lacking or insufficient, they will be greatly disappointed, aggravated and even subject to hostile actions once having entered the real world. They will find their efforts will at times be judged and they will be found lacking when compared to others; they will loose in competition; their belief they are entitled to equal shares in life’s rewards is false and they are not due what is not earned, and few people show respect for those who have no respect for themselves.

 

Do we hide the score so no team looses or do we teach them winning and loosing is the result of training and effort. Do we have the mindset to take our children to the firing range or some other misguided form of activity to build a relationship with them or do we take them to Sunday services and teach them of God, love and respect for self and for others including human life?

If we want to ever see an end to these mass slaughters of innocent people including our children in their class rooms, we must first accept the rise of such events comes from a lack of parental guidance in teaching faith morality and the love of God to our children. We live with a social mentality of irrational permissiveness supportive of unbridled abortions to the millions. We support same sex marriages against what is proper by science, nature and God in a nation with man made or no moral values. A nation that supports the taking of human life as deemed convenient most commonly to eliminate the responsibility of raising an unplanned child conceived in the casual and often careless acts we choose to amuse ourselves by.

The answer to these mass murders is not in gun control laws that only serve to restrict the law abiding. We must turn back to Christ, teaching our children faith and love of God; teaching them respect for self and respect for others and respect for human life as created by God. None of those who committed such horrendous acts of mass violence were raised in a family living their faith and attending worship services. None were raised living with God in their lives and none had self respect let alone respect for others. But most if not all found themselves alone and unfamiliar with God and often it seems they believed they were denied something they believed they were entitled to but did not receive yet had not been earned.

Euthanasia and Catholicism

What Is the Church's Teaching on Euthanasia?

 

by Fr. William Saunders

An article appearing in CatholicCulture.org

Pope Pius XII, who witnessed and condemned the eugenics and euthanasia programs of the Nazis, was the first to explicate clearly this moral problem and provide guidance. In 1980, the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith released its Declaration on Euthanasia which further clarified this guidance especially in light of the increasing complexity of life-support systems and the promotion of euthanasia as a valid means of ending life. The new Catechism (No. 2276-2279) provides a succinct explanation of our Catholic teaching on this subject.

Euthanasia

2276 Those whose lives are diminished or weakened deserve special respect. Sick or handicapped persons should be helped to lead lives as normal as possible.
 

2277 Whatever its motives and means, direct euthanasia consists in putting an end to the lives of handicapped, sick, or dying persons. It is morally unacceptable.
 

Thus an act or omission which, of itself or by intention, causes death in order to eliminate suffering constitutes a murder gravely contrary to the dignity of the human person and to the respect due to the living God, his Creator. The error of judgment into which one can fall in good faith does not change the nature of this murderous act, which must always be forbidden and excluded.
 

2278 Discontinuing medical procedures that are burdensome, dangerous, extraordinary, or disproportionate to the expected outcome can be legitimate; it is the refusal of "over-zealous" treatment. Here one does not will to cause death; one's inability to impede it is merely accepted. The decisions should be made by the patient if he is competent and able or, if not, by those legally entitled to act for the patient, whose reasonable will and legitimate interests must always be respected.
 

2279 Even if death is thought imminent, the ordinary care owed to a sick person cannot be legitimately interrupted. The use of painkillers to alleviate the sufferings of the dying, even at the risk of shortening their days, can be morally in conformity with human dignity if death is not willed as either an end or a means, but only foreseen and tolerated as inevitable Palliative care is a special form of disinterested charity. As such it should be encouraged.

Before addressing the issue of euthanasia, we must first remember that the Catholic Church holds as sacred both the dignity of each individual person and the gift of life. Therefore,

In response to Jennifer's comments in the previous post...

Thank you, Jennifer, for your thoughtful insight. I agree totally with your opinion. I also believe there are two issues expressed in the views you have revealed here.

One; that in an effort to understand why men commit evil, rape or any other crime of violence in our society, we through our so determined professionals in their various fields of psychology have too often taken these theories (which is what they are) and turned them into excuses for such violent acts. In my opinion, this is inexcusable.

It may be a benefit to understand why a person commits such acts but in most cases it does not excuse the act itself as there are many people who suffered comparable past conditions in their lifetimes but did not resort to such violent acts and even some who because of their past similar experiences became more guarded against such acts.

Secondly, I believe those people including juveniles who are prone to the thoughts of committing rape and other violent acts have in recent years become increasingly more influenced to go through with those acts because of the abandonment of morality and permissiveness in our society today.
Since the era of the sexual revolution of the 1960s and 1970s, those now of the age group in their 50s and 60s can recall the general bonding within families and the union that existed in the family practice of faith and morality. For most, that bonding no longer exists – there is a void. Many born during subsequent generations, those children of more recent years have experienced the increased separation and lack of family bonding by the abandonment of parental teaching in faith and morality and many carried it further with their own children. Due to the many from that era who became parents during those earlier years after separating from the practice of faith and the subsequent failure of parents to teach their children faith and morality, there grew an increase in sexual relations outside of marriage and promiscuity, a lack of value in the commitment in relationships, unwanted pregnancies, abortions, and continues now as shown by the disregard for the true understanding of the value of marriage as we attempt to redefine it to suit same sex relationships - something defined as distorted in its essence by nature, science and faith.

It is clear to those who once knew the union and bonding of families through the practice of faith and morality that the abandonment of that family teaching and practice has led many of today’s younger women and men to a complete lack of recognition of self-respect as well as respect toward others which leads to one person’s infringement upon another and in some cases in extreme and vile ways. This in turn leads to diminished respect for life itself, hence the popularity today for unrestricted abortion rights.

Without appearing to place blame on one gender or the other, it is fact that it has always been the female who has had the greatest influence in society in the practice of moral virtues and the male who has had the responsibility to see to honor and protect the virtues of the female. In today’s society, both sides are responsible for the results of the lack of respect to self and others in this regard. Both sides have suffered loss.

It is rational to recognize the more freely open a woman is in the engagement of sexual relationships separate of true commitment, the less her virtues and his respect becomes an influence. Many men today do not see women as they once have; that is to say, due respect for moral virtues. Men certainly suffer their own lack of respect and moral virtues as a result of their lack of the same practice of faith and morality as once taught in the family setting. Many of these men have little to no self respect or respect toward others or even life itself in extreme cases because they themselves knew no true faith in God or moral teaching.

As a result of all of this, we see a society on the verge of financial collapse due to mankind’s extreme greed and carelessness at the highest levels of the corporate ladder and witness a society suffering a rapidly growing number of personal assaults as well as both juveniles and adults committing murder against their domestic partners, parents, strangers and even children in mass crimes. Our society has abandoned God and morality and in its place attempts to manufacture its own form of moral code calling it “political correctness”, which is a failed attempt to recognize human rights as something created by man rather than as that which is written in every man’s heart by our Creator and can not be rewritten. 

Do not be shocked to see the increase in these mass crimes when there is no expression of respect for self or others practiced in our society. But pray that those who do practice good will toward others will pursue the source of that good will and return to faith and morality realizing without God in our culture, we can not be the nation we once were.

A Merry and Blessed Christmas to All

Within a couple of days we will once again celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. After 25 years living a very worldly and secular life, and having been blessed to awaken to the reality of Him, I can say in all honesty I no longer have cares for anything more than to see even one person who has been separated from Christ as I was find their way back to Him. I can loudly say, I love Jesus Christ above all else and through that love have found the fulfillment I never found in any other person or achievement in life, and I wish you and everyone the openness of heart to one day understand this joyful gift of fulfillment as I have come to know.

A very Merry and Blessed Christmas to everyone and may the light of Christ lead us all.

A Society Gone Wrong? Romans CH1

"For although they knew God they did not accord him glory as God or give him thanks. Instead, they became vain in their reasoning, and their senseless minds were darkened While claiming to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for the likeness of an image of mortal man or of birds or of four-legged animals or of snakes. Therefore, God handed them over to impurity through the lusts of their hearts for the mutual degradation of their bodies. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie and revered and worshiped the creature rather than the creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. Therefore, God handed them over to degrading passions. Their females exchanged natural relations for unnatural, and the males likewise gave up natural relations with females and burned with lust for one another. Males did shameful things with males and thus received in their own persons the due penalty for their perversity. And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God handed them over to their undiscerning mind to do what is improper. They are filled with every form of wickedness, evil, greed, and malice; full of envy, murder, rivalry, treachery, and spite. They are gossips and scandalmongers and they hate God. They are insolent, haughty, boastful, ingenious in their wickedness, and rebellious toward their parents. They are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Although they know the just decree of God that all who practice such things deserve death, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.” (Romans CH1: vs21-32

Lord, Bless Our Children and save them from the affects of our society's ignorance.

"Closed Communion" - Why?

“Closed Communion”

Why the Catholic Church does not offer the Eucharist unconditionally

 

"Closed Communion" is a general term more commonly used by many Protestant born faiths describing the position of the Catholic Church in regard to the dispensation of the consecrated Eucharist. In recognition of the true presence of Jesus Christ, the safeguarding of the consecrated Eucharist is and has always been of paramount importance not directed against any particular non-Catholic faith. It certainly should not be taken as limited toward Protestant Christians alone by any means.  In the sense that some non-Catholics consider themselves baptized Christians in faith and readily provide their version of communion to anyone openly regardless of faith beliefs, they do not comprehend why they are not considered entitled to receive communion within the Catholic faith. However, It should also be said the vast majority of Protestant denominations do not believe in the real presence of Jesus Christ in any communion as Jesus declared in scripture. Here we offer insight into the relationship between the Eucharist and the Catholic faithful as it has always existed.

 

Neither the Church during any period in history nor scripture supports the dispensation of the consecrated Eucharist openly without regard as to the faith-beliefs of those who may receive Him. In reading the ancient texts of the “apostolic fathers” the Eucharist has always been available only to those confirmed in their faith and in acceptance of the proclamations of Christ as the apostles themselves accepted and taught. Anyone who did not accept the consecrated bread and wine as the Body and Blood of Christ was not confirmed in their faith. In fact for a person to reject acceptance of His presence was considered heretical according to the ancient Christian texts. Such faith must include the unquestioning trust in the word of Christ. To “believe in” or “accept” Jesus Christ means to accept and obey His teachings and to live accordingly (Hebrews CH5: v9). Therefore it is only rational that the Catholic Church would maintain its position for all time and not begin openly offering the Eucharist to those who chose to depart from such serious elements of faith, let alone those who would deny the essence of the Eucharist. These circumstances would be considered more grave than dispensing the Body and Blood of Christ to those who had never been educated in the faith at all.

 

The significance of the protection provided the consecrated Eucharist in Catholicism can only be understood by those who recognize its “Sacramental nature”1 as was discussed in the previous chapter. As the Catholic Church bears the responsibility through the commission of Christ to preach His word and provide the means that all men may attain salvation in obedience [(Matthew CH28: vs18-20), (Hebrews CH13: v17), (James CH3: v1), (Luke CH10: v16)] and providing them His sacramental gifts, it also remains sincerely concerned for those who deny the transubstantiation of the bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ. It further seeks to enlighten those who through lack of teaching do not know the severity of receiving the Body and Blood of Christ unworthily (1 Corinthians Chapter 11; v23-29).

 

One Nation Under God?

"One Nation Under God", but are we still?

Our nation is formed upon the principles of God and Christianity and we as a people claim to be predominantly Christian. Our constitution was formed to protect all religions and especially the faith of our people; the Christian faith. If you doubt it look at the murals in the capitol building and see the depictions including the cross of Christ in them. When our constitution is used by the faithless to infringe on our practice of faith, it is due to our silence to that abuse and our separation from God that allows it to be used in such a manner and it is only by our returning to God that will save this country from the eminent collapse we are facing if we remain absent of his word and morality. For those who spoof this and believe God is only loving and does not demand we live a code of charity and love without infringing on the faith and God given rights of others, they will not change or return to Him until they personally suffer the great losses a life without true faith spawns.... or the loss of the greatest country known to the world now weakened and cripple both morally, financially and in exceptionalism as it was born and previously flourished. One day their children will ask their parents, "what happened that we do not have the same freedom and opportunities that you had?" What will we tell them? We wanted free things in stead of freedom and voted for those who would give to us in exchange for the opportunity to prosper to our greatest desires and potentials?

Does God's Love Embrace Sinfulness?

2000 years ago Our Father in heaven gave to us His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to serve as our Messiah, providing each one of us who would accept His love and guidance in every generation hence forth the means to personally reconcile and reunite with Him. The indescribable degradation against God’s will committed in mankind’s betrayal and sinfulness was so great that the only sacrifice deemed adequate to offer the Father on behalf of mankind that could overcome our sinfulness was the sacrifice of His own life purely out of love and selflessness for man; His mortal life sacrificed for man’s eternal life. Jesus sacrificed Himself by submitting Himself to the most horrid of torments, tortures, humiliations, degradations and the most agonizing of deaths man could conceive of, to be performed by the hands of the worst of mankind for the salvation of the reverent of mankind. And all any person would have to do to accept this forgiveness and salvation is to freely accept God in the love of Christ and live by the calling Jesus taught us.  

As vast numbers of Catholic and non-Catholic Christians in other countries today are being shot to death for remaining devout to their faith while attending Mass in their churches, many American Catholics are embracing their own adaptation of Catholicism. Yes, many of us who are free to worship Christ faithfully do so casually

Who's Instigating Hatred?

A Christian organization known as the "Family Research Council" or FNC located in Washington D.C. was targeted August 15th, 2012, by a single gunman who allegedly resented their ideologies and non-acceptance of same-sex marriage because they promote the biblical principles of family and mirriage. The gunman had fifteen Chick-Fil-A sandwiches in a carry bag which also contained additional fully loaded clips or magazines to reload his gun should he get that far along in his intended shooting spree. By the grace of God, he was however, intercepted by the building manager who after being shot in the arm was still able to disarm and subdue the gunman until the police arrived. The FNC organization is a Christian non-profit group that supports family life and values and the biblical and historical definition of marriage as it has always been defined; that is as a union sealed by God between one man and one woman only throughout man's recorded history and in scripture.

Only a couple of weeks ago in a seemingly unrelated incident, 

Catholic - Abusing the Term

“Woe to those who tug at guilt with cords of perversity, and at sin as if with cart ropes! …Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil, who change darkness into light, and light into darkness, who change bitter into sweet, and sweet into bitter! Woe to those who are wise in their own sight, and prudent in their own esteem!” (Isaiah CH5: v18, and vs20-21)

Recently I have been made aware of public comments made from independent groups that designate themselves as “Catholic” in their organization’s name but oppose Catholic principles or legal actions filed by the Catholic Church in defense of our constitutional rights under the first amendment. Usually I disregard such groups because they are obviously looking for recognition by showing their diversion against the Church. But this time I feel the obvious should be pointed out to show the absurdity in groups such as these.

Groups who promote themselves as Catholic such as “Catholics for Choice” for instance, a pro-choice organization (in favor of abortion or the murder of innocent preborn human beings usually performed by physically shredding them apart) prove themselves by the abuse of the reference “Catholic” to be hypocrites at best who obviously have no valid knowledge of scripture, Catholicism or man’s relationship with God. Yes, this is what they express of themselves by relating their organization’s mission to Catholicism. In fact, their referring themselves as promoters of the right to kill preborn human beings while referring to themselves as being of the Catholic Faith is misleading to non-Catholics and demeaning against faithful Catholic Christians who believe and strive to live in accordance with the calling of Christian life. As such they should be recognized for the hypocrisy expressed by their adopted title and the reflection of their ignorance in their knowledge of the faith they claim to belong. The promoting of abortion results in self-excommunication. What they do represent is dissention from faith, not the faith.

Another group, “Catholics United” has expressed their own ignorance by suggesting the Catholic Church must have some “secret agenda” for filing the law suits it has recently filed in seeking defense under the first amendment rights of religious freedom. Let me initially respond by pointing out that numerous religious groups, Christian and non-Christian alike are uniting in their opposition against the HHS mandate which is the primary element of this issue. I would be more inclined to believe it is “Catholics United” who may have their own personal agenda for opposing the lawsuits rather than the Catholic Church filing for surreptitious reasons.

Suggesting this legal defense filed by the Catholic Church under the constitution in some way opposes charitable acts is a perverted play on conscience. The Catholic Church provides charitable services throughout the world including all over the United States. These services include providing food to the hungry, shelters for the homeless, schools for the unfortunate, medical services to the ill, the suffering and the dying, and no one in need is denied regardless of their religious beliefs. That is Charity. The Obama administration by their own law insists the Catholic Church NOT provide these services to anyone other than Catholics and not hire anyone except Catholics if the Catholic Church wants to stay in conformity to its religious principles.  In other words, Obama would have all those who are hungry, homeless, uneducated in poverty, ill, suffering, and dying be turned away from the charitable works of mercy offered by Catholicism, AND all those who are currently employed by Catholic institutions be removed from their jobs and replaced by Catholics only. Now who is it that is denying charity to the needy?

According to the Obama administration, the forced HHS mandate was to serve as a protective measure under commerce to relieve the financial stress and availability of health care but wouldn't that be more relative to say, capping or attempting to control the high cost of gas due to its influence on the economy? Funny that was never mentioned...

These legal actions are a forced response seeking defense and relief from the willful disregard and attempted fragmentation by this President and his administration against the religious rights protected under the constitution; these are the foundation of this country. Failure to protect and defend any constitutional rights once violated can then result in the systematic dissolution of principles previously protected under any article of the constitution. Once a process of diminishing principles of rights under the constitution has been proven effective, groups such as “Catholics United” and others may one day find themselves without a right to free speech, or to assemble at all which incidentally has come under attack in recent years as well.

A Catholic Response to the Anti-Catholic Website of the Church of Christ

Recently by way of a dear friend, I became aware of an anti-Catholic website presented by a congregation who claim the name “Church of Christ”, one of a number of faith groups originating from a movement during the early 1900s. At the top of the website they display the deceptive headline, “Roman Catholic Faith Examined!” in large red letters. It is obvious from their accusations that they have no knowledge of the Catholic Faith nor can they claim they examined the Catholic faith as is evidenced by the reference sources they list at the bottom of their web page. In order to examine the Catholic faith they would have had to research, above all, the Catechism of the Catholic Church and its supporting resources to claim any justification or credibility. Therefore their claims are deceptive. They have no credibility. This COC (Church of Christ) goes on to make the following allegations:

Organized Religion - Is it necessary?

In today’s society there is a growing opinion that organized religion is unnecessary. Such people suggest one can follow Jesus using scripture alone and they do not need anyone telling them how to live their faith. does that sound familiar? For some, organized religion is flat out objectionable. People have developed various excuses to justify their personal position to disregard the validity of organized religion but the most common underlying factor is clear. A vast number of people today prefer to do things their own way with a disdain for being told what they should or should not do or how they should do it. They would prefer to live as they "think" with their minds closed and would rather not know the facts or truths to be able to compare and make a knowledgeable choice. After a great deal of discussions and debates, the same can be said for their political and religious position as well.

Consider the opinions of those previously labeled as liberals but who have gone so far beyond liberalism to become permissives. If one were to put aside pride long enough to look into their reasons for being so permissive in their social views they would realize it is not a trait that expresses a respectful “live and let live” attitude as much as it is a “let me live as I want” attitude. But in expressing an excessively permissive position in support of others to the degree of opposing what is by God, nature and science natural to life and purpose, they feel more justified when they can say, “I supported you to do whatever makes you feel good, so you should let me do the same.”

Some who object to the need for organized religion claim to support their opinion by pointing out the number of Christian faiths that exist today suggesting this is their proof that organized religion is nothing more than a means for some to promote their own agenda. The fact is, the massive number of  Christian faiths that exist today is due to those who separated from the one and only organized Christian faith, the Catholic Church, with the opinion they didn't need the organized Church to teach them their faith, they could figure it out themselves. Ironic, isn't it?

What the liberals and permissives haven’t realized yet is that at some point after their permissiveness has taken hold in society it evolves into entitlement, which is now flourishing in our culture. In time, entitlement will circle around and eventually become an infringement on those very people who have been promoting it through their own permissiveness. Once that happens there will no longer be a reasonable argument against that infringement because it was after all “permitted”. Those who were supported by such distorted freedoms through permissiveness will eventually take directly from the resources of the permissives and everyone else. The more permissive one is the closer he or she is to becoming a victim them self. Just as civil laws were established by man in an attempt to protect each person’s individual social rights (also done under the recognition of God), organized religion teaches the spiritual values of morality to protect and preserve our own self respect as well as respect toward others as we would have others respect us.

In a very short period of time, America has achieved greatness as a country founded upon the rights bestowed upon us by God as first attested to in the Declaration of Independence. Rights considered to be unalienable, founded in moral virtues written on the hearts of man by our Creator. Through the efforts and achievements of individual men and women, this country grew strong and became influential in the struggle for freedom throughout the entire world. Organized religion was the governing body of our moral code just as civil rights were advanced in the name of God. These principles enabled each individual the freedom to seek their own financial success. But we are beyond that now. In today’s society Martin Luther King would have been more likely to be scorned and mocked for being Christian or mentioning God than having been successful in the advancement of civil rights. 

We’ve abandoned God, self respect, respect for others and respect for life. We support the unbridled self indulgences of others with absolute indifference in order to justify our own flexibility of options until our excessive permissiveness becomes surrender to social corruption, chaos, and the inevitable collapse of our society. It was our departure from organized religion that led to the vast number of independent Christian religions that exist today and our abandonment of morality over the last fifty years that led to our liberal and permissive mind set today. It would seem more likely at this point that we as a self proclaimed intelligent society should now recognize what our abandonment of God has led us to and ask ourselves when we may return to our organized religion rather than suggesting it unnecessary.

A Lesson in Patience

When the Holy Spirit put it on my heart to transition back into the Catholic faith a year ago, I knew this journey would be one of extreme discomfort for not only me but those around me. I knew the journey would be a very painful one but never did I think for a moment this pain would continue to follow me even after I became once again fully Catholic. I was naïve enough to think there would be the strong possibility of my family embracing the faith as well or at the very least be understanding of my transition. Once I could show what a rich and full life the church could provide, others would follow.  But this was not to be and as others before me have experienced, I am convinced it will take an extreme amount of patience on my part for some time to come to be accepting of that realization.

We have all experienced those moments when we run out of patience and someone says “Patience is a Virtue”. According to Wikipedia: The seven heavenly virtues were derived from the Psychomachia ("Contest of the Soul"), an epic poem written by Aurelius Clemens Prudentius (c. AD 410) entailing the battle of virtues and evil. The intense popularity of this work in the Middle Ages helped to spread the concept of "Holy Virtue" throughout Europe. Practicing these virtues is considered to protect one against temptation from the seven deadly sins, with each one having its counterpart. Due to this they are sometimes referred to as the contrary virtues. Each of the seven heavenly virtues matches a corresponding deadly sin.”

I heard a marvelous sermon not too long ago at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York by Archbishop Timothy Dolan on patience. He spoke of patience with ourselves, others and God. He mentioned patience with God is a difficult one as most of us when we pray want God to answer our prayers immediately and he likened it to us putting our request into the microwave oven and “zap” it is answered when in reality God puts it in a crockpot and lets it simmer a bit. My request for family to embrace the faith is in the crockpot and will probably simmer until there is no liquid left and the ingredients burn up!

Patience as defined in the dictionary says:

A Lesson in Humility

Written by a follower of SDM

It has occurred to me within the last week, the very thing causing me to anguish over loss of previous church relationships of another denomination, abundant blessings from ministries in that denomination and recognition for those ministries, is the virtue of humility. This very virtue if not recognized, can cause prideful feelings to creep into the soul which in turn can keep one from intimacy with Christ.

I recently was privileged to attend Vespers with the Conferral of Pontifical Honors at the Cathedral of St. Patrick’s in downtown Ft. Worth, Texas. A new Catholic friend of mine and future spiritual advisor was receiving the Benemerenti Medal for her work within the diocese in forming the Permanent Deacon program. This medal was created by Pope Pius VI in the late 1700’s in recognition of those individuals who have exemplified service in the Church. Following this service all were invited to attend a reception in a very large and new parish hall adjacent to the Cathedral. It was an enormous hall with many faces, none of whom I knew. Fifteen individuals received the various medals and of course many families and friends from local parishes were in attendance.

As I made my way around the room with a friend from St. Andrew’s, which is now my parish, I came to the realization this was the first very large reception I was attending at a Catholic function in which I knew no one. Having lived in Ft. Worth for the past 30+ years, been active in the Methodist community and a part of the pastoral family of ministers, this was an eye opening experience and very humbling for me. Had it been at a Methodist gathering, I would have known many of the pastors and laity and felt very much at home. Here I was just another Catholic in a sea of faces unknown to them and likewise they were unknown to me.

The Bible Alone

Does the student know better than the teacher?

Catholic or?

Like many other Catholics in recent times who selectively dismiss the teaching authority of the Church, I know first hand this mindset and its common root. Although now reconfirmed in my faith, for many years I was a Catholic with “Protestant” ideologies, distant from the authority of the Church. Not a Protestant in the communal sense as formally belonging to or attending an established congregation; I was baptized and raised Catholic and didn’t know much about Protestantism back then other than some fundamental disbelief's they possessed. I was Protestant in the sense that Protestantism was conceived. As scripture tells us; “For the time will come when people will not tolerate sound doctrine but, following their own desires and insatiable curiosity, will accumulate teachers and will stop listening to the truth and will be diverted to myths.” (2 Timothy CH4; v3-4)

Each Catholic who selectively chooses what doctrines he or she will and will not abide by possesses that seed that sprouted into Protestantism four centuries ago and its subsequent thousands upon thousands of splintered systems of beliefs today.