We Need to Keep What is True, True.

The world, as I know it, is falling into ruin and most of us are just sitting here watching it happen. Sorry for the Debbie-downer intro but it’s really true. Our world has become so secularized, and unfortunately with the advent of the internet, propaganda can be spread instantly and the “truth” twisted to fit an agenda, if it’s the truth at all.

There is a global tendency to accept anything and everything; if it makes the person happy, it’s all good. From the 60’s where peace, love and harmony was the mantra, our culture twisted what is the essential goodness from God ( TRUE peace, love and harmony) into a perversion. Indifferentism is now the norm, and is defined as the belief that differences of religious beliefs are of no importance. Society tells us to believe whatever you want to believe because, it really doesn’t matter what religion you belong to they are all equally true, as long as you believe in a god and are a good person. We are told that our sincerity of heart is most important and whatever means we use to help us get closer our god is right. Unfortunately, there is no clear definition of what is “good” or is my God the same as yours. These ethical dilemmas make this theory preposterous. The Catholic Church brings up a good point when considering indifferentism. If these “irreconcilable beliefs are equally pleasing to God, it is to say that God has no preference for truth and denies reason.” If all religions are basically the same, it would be like building a house with no experience, using only certain materials or tools and expecting the house to turn out just fine because it doesn’t really matter what I use or don’t use. It just doesn’t make any sense!

Relativism is another truly evil perversion that has permeated our societies and is indoctrinating our children with the beliefs that knowledge, truth, and morality exist in relation to culture, society, or historical context, and are not absolutes. Our culture is slowly but surely eliminating the moral truths instituted by God by insisting that in order for something to be true, it has to be related to the here and now ( as if we are the ultimate decision-maker about what is true!) If truths, which have existed since the beginning of time, can now be re-defined, what will our world look like in the near future?

Those who hold the beliefs of indifferentism and relativism are slowly taking over positions of power in our society. Media, Corporations, Government, and even some “Religious institutions” are propagating their agendas through as many sources as they can. For instance, elected school board members and state legislators have now mandated schools to educate our children in all forms of what they call “Normal” sexual preferences ie: homosexual, transgender, pangender and other names that will make up the new gender “norms” because of relativistic beliefs that gender can change. They are using the tactic of preventing bullying of children who are different ( which is a good in itself) and twisting it into the education of children to accept this “difference” as a norm and not someone who needs mental help. Phycologists have even gone so far as to remove the term “Gender Dysphoria” as a mental disorder from their texts! Back in the day, children were taught they can be whatever they wanted to be when they grew up. Well ladies and gentlemen, today, those children will be taught they can become whatever they want to become. Little Johnny can now turn into little Jenny if he want to and no one, NOT EVEN HIS PARENTS can prevent him from doing so in certain states. God has to be so disappointed in our world.

We’ve stopped listening to the truth that He supplied us with at the very beginning of creation. We decided we wanted to know it all and through Adam and Eve lost the graces we had in abundance. Our families have turned their backs on God. No longer do parents consider Sundays a day for the Lord. No longer do families attend Mass, pray and commit themselves to learning more about their faith and instructing their children. Today’s youth are more than just troubled, they are IN TROUBLE. The millennial generation have the highest percentage of perfectionists, depression, and suicide than all other generations. The development of constant communication and connection with “friends” via the internet, have these children posting perfect life scenarios, perfect appearances, perfect amount of friends or “likes” and because they have little to no TRUE social skills, they become affected by the responses they get to their postings. Depression now can be caused by a random reaction to something they said online, it’s unfathomable for those of us who grew up without the internet to think a typed response, on some computer or gadget, could throw someone into a fit or sink them into a pit of despair.

We, as a society, are at a precipice. We MUST act against the evil which is taking over the world at a rapid pace or we will fall. We must turn back to the family unit that God established as the way to combat evil. Parents must give the Scriptures priority in the home because God’s Word is the necessary foundation. Satan has done a masterful job at keeping families so busy that they have little time to read the Bible, pray the Rosary, or attend religious education classes or small group study at Church. Spending time in God’s Word, both individually and as a family is essential. If Satan can keep families too busy for the Scriptures, they will lose their joy, strength, and effectiveness in this world. Satan, using busyness as his tool, has robbed many families of the time God wants them to spend with each other. This results in a lack of both closeness and enjoyment in each other. Husbands and wives need time together to nurture their relationship. They need time with their children if they are going to fulfill the Scriptural mandate of training up a child in the way he should go (Prov 22:6). This training takes time and focus, both of which are lost when lives become frantically busy and stressed. Ironically, the less time we give to God, the more anxious, depressed, or overwhelmed we become. The family needs time when the earplugs are out, Internet is closed down, and televisions are off, and when the needs of family members are lovingly met. Time must be taken for reading and praying together and for eating and playing together. As families live out God’s plan for them, God will be glorified, families blessed and society will benefit. We can’t pervert the family, instituted by God, by claiming that it is anything other than a Father, Mother and children. This is they way God intended a family unit to be. We aren’t saying there aren’t circumstances outside the man, woman, child unit; however, that wasn’t God’s plan for the family.

We have to remember those who struggle with situations outside the truth of God’s plan, should still be loved as a child of God. We cannot shun, bully or insult those who are different from us; however, while not judging their souls, we are allowed to speak the truth to them in love. Jesus actually wants us to speak the truth to people who are doing wrong. He wants all God’s children to believe in Him so they may be with Him in eternity. We must start speaking up. We need to brace ourselves against those who will call us intolerant, or judging. Those are the people who have been lied to by the father of lies as he knows the words of Jesus better than we do. He will use Our Lords words in ways that “appear” good ( we have no right to judge others lest we be judged); however, Jesus commands us to speak the truth in all things.

Truth is good, right and just; evil is bad, wrong and unjust. We must not allow this to change.

When Virtues All But Disappear

I’ve been wanting to write for a while now; however, within the last month, I’ve witnessed such a gamut of hate, rejection, accusations, and bullying within my State and Country, I’ve just been at a loss for words. I’ve prayed for and sought guidance to understand what is happening to our society and it was finally revealed to me: we have lost or rejected God’s virtues.

So many people in our society “claim” to be Christian. As a matter of fact, in a 2017 Pew Research report, “80% of Americans say they believe in God or some higher force, while 99% of Christians say they believe in the God of the Bible.” Interestingly, the same study shows that only, “49% of those under the age of 50, and 43% of those under 30 believe in God.” This is a startling fact, especially when you consider our Country was based on the freedom to express our religious beliefs in God. Now, basically, half of our children do not believe in God and they are raising their children without any sort of belief in God, and we wonder what is happening to our Country.

So many of our separated brothers and sisters ( those who do not believe in the Catholic faith) believe they are “saved” by “Faith Alone.” For them, reciting the “Sinner’s Prayer” and accepting Jesus as their Lord and Savior will “Guarantee” their salvation, no matter what they do with the rest of their life. It seems so un-fulfilling to me, that someone who makes this claim, will have nothing to work toward, other than a sort of “pyramid scheme,” of making sure they get another soul to pray the “Sinner’s Prayer” and on and on it goes. According to Dr. David Anders, ” Life is a rich, textured, many faceted thing with enormous beauty, pain, horror and amazing panoply of experiences. What meaning and value are these, if the only thing that I can do of eternal value, is to convert another soul or myself to be converted? Faith alone falls apart because it doesn’t take into account the essentials to living out our faith through Virtues.”

We are so fortunate, as our Catholic faith explains, to have the 7 Virtues which affect human beings in the material and spiritual aspects of life. All human beings can acquire the 4 Cardinal Virtues of Prudence, Justice, Fortitude and Temperance. With these 4 Cardinal Virtues, humans can use their intellect and free will to live a moral life. This opens the door to accepting God’s love; thus, receiving the Theological Virtues which helps to prepare us to live as children of God and prepare us for eternal life.

The first Cardinal Virtue of Prudence gives people the ability of reason to see what is good and evil. In today’s world, we are definitely seeing a lack of prudence due to the lack of moral choices. The Virtue of Justice allows humans to respect others rights, equality and to serve the common good. This has been twisted and perverted in our society, so much so, that if you don’t agree with a side purporting someone’s “rights” you are called evil, close-minded, and hateful.

We are called to use the Virtue of Fortitude almost on a daily basis as we need courage to stand-up for what is right and good. Often we find ourselves confronted by those who have been deceived by the evil one, thinking they are standing up for what they consider to be right – oftentimes, what is left out of their consciousness is the fact “It Is Not Good.”

The last Cardinal Virtue is Temperance. Our culture, especially in America, is a “more, more, more,” society. No longer do we moderate our desires for goods or pleasures. “If it feels good, do it” was a slogan that infiltrated past generations and has become “my right”, or “the norm,” in today’s world. Temperance is something we all need to start implementing and we can do so in our lives by doing such simple things as, decreasing our need for shopping, watching how we speak to others or holding our tongue when we really want to speak out. Skipping a favorite snack or dessert and/or denying ourselves a certain pleasure, every now and then, can be a small way we show our children and Our Lord how much we love Him for all the sacrifices He made for us.

I have often wondered how people can be so heartless, cruel, ruthless or just plain evil. The lack of Theological Virtues, especially Charity, explains this well.

When the Theological virtues are bestowed upon people, they will be drawn toward God. The first Theological Virtue of Faith allows people to commit themselves entirely to God and live out the Christian values and works He expects of us; however, without the gift of Charity (Love), the believer cannot increase in the Virtue of Faith and draw himself completely to Christ. I have personally experienced this. When you have hate in your soul, you are kind of spiritually “blocked” from drawing closer to The Lord. Think about it, if God IS love, why would He want someone who has hate in their heart to be near Him? Once the hate in my heart was gone, through the Sacrament of Reconciliation, prayer, forgiveness, and a miraculous blessing, I finally felt the burden of hate lifted from me and a peace filled my heart and soul and I was more able to receive the Theological Virtues.

The Theological Virtue of Hope is the trusting that Heaven is real, desiring eternal life with God, as well as, trusting in love that the promises of Christ are true and we will have eternal happiness with Him. Imagine, so many people have no Hope. They cannot trust or love because they have not been able to experience the Virtue of Hope. God designed us to progress through the Cardinal Virtues and develop those habits in order to open our hearts to the gifts of the Theological Virtues, through the most important Virtue which unites them all, Charity.

God IS love and the Theological Virtue of Charity is what gives all the other Virtues life! When we have the Virtue of Charity (Love) we Christians are able to experience the love for God and the love for others. Saint Paul teaches us that the greatest of the Virtues is Love. When we are applying Charity to the fullest in our lives, we are able to experience true joy, peace and mercy, as we start to see things through the eyes/perspective of God.

It is interesting how this has manifested in my life. All my life, I have been one who has to be constantly “moving” a part of my body in one way or another. Even as an infant, I rocked my crib so hard it moved it across the wooden floor of my bedroom. I often remember sitting quietly and having to move my leg or foot for some strange reason. Before going to sleep, I’d have to “wiggle” my leg or foot in order to put myself to sleep, to the unfortunate displeasure of my husband who would often ask me to stop moving. I never considered it to be an “issue;” however, when I received the gift of charity and the profound peace that entered my soul, I noticed the “moving” I’ve done my whole life, quite literally stopped. I often wondered if I had some interior anxiety that I was repressing but expressing with my movements. All I know is that now, I rarely “wiggle” unless I’m engrossed in a knuckle-biting sporting event, and for that, I’m thankful.

Humanity was designed by our Creator to incorporate the 7 Virtues of the Catholic faith; unfortunately, we are witnessing, at this very moment, a culture devoid of Virtues.

Regrettably, the badly Catechized lay Catholics have reproduced and ignored their faith and responsibility to grow/learn and teach the faith to themselves and their children. No longer do we see Churches filled, Parochial schools with waiting lists, or parents taking on their roles as primary educators of the faith to their children.

If we want Society to make an about-face rather quickly, we must instill Cardinal Virtues and call upon the Holy Spirit to infuse within us and our children, the Theological Virtues we receive by being true followers of Christ and the Holy Catholic Church that He founded. We know that we, and those who are in positions of leadership, are not perfect – just as Saint Peter was not perfect; however, he was chosen by Jesus to lead his sheep. Through the Graces we receive in the Sacraments of the Catholic Church, we can strive to be like Jesus in all we do, with love for Him and our neighbor.

Don’t Waste Another Advent

This time of year is one of my favorites. I love seeing the Christmas decorations on people’s homes, pulling out old, handmade items my children made in years past, and finding some new ornament for Grandchildren. The time leading up to Christmas used to be frantic, with activities atschool, parties to attend, and figuring out family gathering schedules, just to name a few. In those days, even when I attended Mass all during Advent, the candles which were lit each week, were a sign of how far behind I was in my preparation and caused a bit of panic to ensue. Oh what a waste of so many Advent seasons did I experience by not knowing the TRUE meaning of Advent.

As a Catholic, I’ve learned that the Season of Advent allows us to prepare for the coming of Christ in the human form, as well as, preparing our hearts for the second coming of Jesus. Interestingly, the 40 days of Advent, as well as, the number 40 being referenced in many other areas of the Bible, refer to the 40 weeks of gestation of a human child. It takes the symbolic number 40 and associates it with formation, preparation and expected arrival of a notable person or event. When you really think about it, the God of the Universe, the one who made ALL, who is and always will be, comes to us at Christmas in the innocent, humble, dependent form of an infant and allows himself to be taken care of. How much does our God love us to come to us like this? In 1 John 4: 9-11, it says, ” In this way the love of God was revealed to us: God sent his only Son into the world so that we might have life through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son as expiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also must love one another.”

In the second half of the meaning of Advent, which I feel is sometimes not emphasized enough, is the second coming of Jesus. The Advent Wreath is a circle, which has no beginning or end: So we call to mind how our lives, here and now, participate in the eternity of Gods plan of salvation and how we hope to share eternal life in the Kingdom of Heaven. The wreath is made of fresh plant material, because Christ came to give us new life through His passion, death, and resurrection. Preparing ourselves during Advent is similar to the way we prepare ourselves during Lent. We are to offer prayers, penance, and sacrifice in order to be fully ready to receive our Lord at Christmas and to be prepared for His second coming. The candles within the Advent Wreath represent to us the symbols of Penance, Preparation/Prayers and Sacrifice; the pink candle symbolizes the same but highlights the third Sunday of Advent as Gaudete Sunday, when we rejoice because we are now half-way finished with our preparations. As we light the candles, the fire that burns represents the light of Jesus, which can never be extinguished and lights our path to righteousness. Each lit candle shows us the progression of our preparedness and readiness for receiving Our Lord and guides us along our journey of Advent. During the Season of Advent, we have the wonderful feast of the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception. This is sometimes confused by people who think this is about Our Lord (probably because we are concentrating on the season of Christ’s coming); however, this is the feast of the conception of Our Blessed Mother. Mary, who was conceived without sin, in order to bear within her womb, the Savior of the World. Since God has no time constraints, He is able to use the merits of the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus to allow Mary to be conceived without original sin. It only makes sense that the Mother of Our Lord had to be without sin in order to bear the Son of God. We read in the Old Testament, Moses built the Tabernacle to house the Holy of Holies ( or God’s Presence) within the Ark of the Covenant. The cloud of the Lord covered the Tabernacle, just as Holy Spirit came upon Mary and the power of the Most High overshadowed her and she would conceive a child. She was the Tabernacle of Our Lord Jesus and had to be without sin to do so. We celebrate this, as well as, her atoning for the sin of Eve, who was looking to become like God by doing what she willed. Mary, on the other hand, accepted the will of God and let it be done unto her. During our Advent preparations we should do well to copy the actions of Mary and allow God to do as He wills in our lives. She is the perfect model of Holiness and we should take the time in our reflections and prayer to ask Her for her intercession in helping us to be more Holy.

As we remember the symbols of Hope, Peace, Joy and Love this Advent and Christmas Season, may you always remember to put Jesus first, others second, and yourselves third, as we turn our lives, worries, anxieties, and hopes over to God and let Him rule this new year of our lives.

Dialoging with God

I don’t know about you but for me, praying was very difficult. Sure, I’d mutter little prayers now and then during the day; however, rarely did I make prayer something I committed to and never did I volunteer to pray in front of people, heaven forbid!

To tell you the truth, I didn’t really know how to pray. At Mass, we have many prayers and at home we have our prayers before meals, maybe before bedtime, and we might fit in a rosary or an Our Father, here and there, but typically you’d catch me falling asleep before I remembered to pray, or I’d get sidetracked when I intended to say the Rosary. I never really committed to a certain time, place or type of prayer, it was something I knew I should do, I knew it was good for me; yet, I felt like it was a duty and never really got anything out of it. The habit of prayer reminded me of my dental patients who would complain how hard it was to get into the habit of flossing every day. They knew flossing was good for them, it wasn’t hard to do, and they were glad they did it after they finished; however, it was just something that took a little extra effort to get established into their daily routine. Sounds very similar to establishing a pattern of daily prayer.

I learned there are 3 expressions of prayer: Vocal, Meditative and Contemplative. Vocal prayer is anything we express out loud and can be something simple as, “Thank you God for the rain,” to a prayer we recite out loud at Mass. Sometimes, we can be sort of disengaged if we pray a prayer we’ve said numerous times so, it is important to re-focus our minds on what we are saying. Meditative prayer is a wonderful way to place ourselves into the prayer we are reciting or if we are reading the sacred scriptures, writings of the Church Fathers, or other spiritual writings, it is a way we allow the Holy Spirit to bring to life the words that are before us. Finally, contemplative prayer allows us to be silent and let the Holy Spirit work within us and unite ourselves with God. This is a time to be still and just let God come into us so we may be joined more fully to Him.

I’ve heard so many people complain or question if God really hears our prayers and if so, why doesn’t he answer them. I used to have those same questions until one day I either heard or read that God hears and answers all our prayers in one of three ways: yes, not yet, or I have a better plan. I learned that most of the time God had a better plan that I hadn’t even considered (imagine that) and it was far superior to what I was asking for at the time.

God wants us to encounter Him and have a relationship with Him. God is love and if you love, you should seek God through prayer. Prayer is always initiated by God. We need to listen first because God speaks to us through His word. Trying to pray without the word of God is much more difficult because we aren’t listening. Prayer can be hard because we start at the wrong step in the process of praying. When we feel that our praying is boring, tedious, one-sided, it is basically a monologue because we aren’t listening. When we listen, talk, listen again with God, a relationship develops and we have a dynamic dialog within our prayer.

There is an ancient method of praying called Lectio Divina. While this may sound like something only priests and religious do, it is something very simple and profound. Lectio Divina means Divine Reading or Praying with Scripture. Using this method of prayer allows us to begin to have a dialog with God. Saint Augustine said, “When you read the Bible, God speaks to you; when you pray, you speak to God.” We must first listen to the word of God. “The secret of the saints is that they hear the word of God afresh and how they apply it to themselves now. The saints hear the word spoken to them.” Dr Tim Grey

Praying the Lectio Divina method might sound kind of daunting; however, the steps are quite simple. First you read scripture in a particular way, not just zooming over a passage just to finish a verse or chapter. You will read a short passage, think about it, pray about it, meditate on it through out the day and let it penetrate your heart/life. When you are praying about it, you are speaking to God after He has spoken to you through His word. This conversation will help you begin the dialog with him, allow you to meditate on the word and allow the Holy Spirit to speak to you through your silent contemplation.

Now sometimes you may not hear, feel, or sense anything and that is okay; however, as you grow closer to God through this form of prayer, you will get those soft whispers of Gods voice answering you. Sometimes, actually, many times, he uses other people to answer your prayers. God doesn’t just speak words to us, he give us the word in flesh through His son Jesus. We, as Catholics are blessed as, “the wonder of prayer is revealed beside the well where we come seeking water; there, Christ comes to meet every human being. It is He who first seeks us and asks us for a drink. Jesus thirsts; his asking arises from the depths of God’s desire for us.” Catechism of the Catholic Church 2560

I love knowing that Jesus meets us where we are and seeks us out. Like most people, I’ve had my share of hard times and prayers of petition were all I could think to do and other times where prayers of thankfulness just rolled off my tongue. I’ve been ever so aware of the blessings I’ve received by listening first and having to place all my trust in God. At times, I would say I trusted in God, but deep down, if I had any way of having an impact on an outcome, I’d rely on myself. Of course, that is when the outcome of a certain petition was not answered in a way I thought I wanted. When I truly came to trust in God, He answered my prayers in ways that always blew my mind. Now, when I say I trust in God, I had it over to Him, totally. Praying is no longer a chore, or a relief when I can get it out-of-the-way. I find I am building my relationship and working toward a fuller union with God as I listen to His word and incorporate it into my day through meditation and contemplation. God is love and I love seeking Him.

Good or Virtuous, That is the Question

Lately, I’ve been trying to read something about the “Saint of the Day,” or a particular Saint that pops into my head when I wonder how on earth someone could be “saintly” when they dealt with war, poverty, or death of family members. Usually, or rather, in every case, I read that they were virtuous or was raised by a person of virtue. I made the general assumption that “virtue” was another word for “good.” Little did I know there was a lot more to it than just being good.

According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, “A virtue is an habitual and firm disposition to do the good. It allows the person not only the ability to perform good acts, but to give the best of himself.” (CCC 1803) I can’t remember the last time I truly gave the best of myself to something. If the saints are virtuous people, that means they are giving the best of themselves ALL THE TIME. Boy, do I have a long way to go; but I guess that is the goal, to lead a virtuous life so, we can become saints and be more like God.

The Catholic Church says we have basically three types of virtues: Human, Cardinal and Theological. All of these Virtues have Gifts and Fruits – things we receive from them and things we see working through us, as a result of attaining these virtues. Within the Human Virtues, we have Moral Virtues and these are basically achieved when one does morally good acts and allows us human beings to use all our skills and senses to be in communion with divine love; after all, God is the moral law giver. Our human effort is required to obtain these moral virtues, and anyone can do so. It makes you wonder why Atheists are moral, if the creator of Moral Virtues/Law is God, and they have no belief in such a being; but then again, we call ourselves Catholic Christians and sit in churches all the while lacking in Moral Virtues and steeped in sin. But I digress, all I know is that morality exists outside of humanity and it was created by God who wants us to be more like Him in all things.

Cardinal Virtues are virtues all other virtues are grouped around. There are 4 Cardinal Virtues which are: Prudence, Justice, Fortitude and Temperance. In layman’s terms I’ll attempt to define them.

Prudence is allowing our reason to discern true good in every situation and to choose the right way of achieving it. Basically, using our conscience to guide us in moral principles and others virtues by setting up rules and guidelines which will help us avoid evil.

Justice is a moral virtue that requires a man to respect the rights of others and to treat each other justly and fairly. Also, to “Give God justice through the ‘Virtue of Religion.'” (CCC 1807)

Fortitude can also be described as courage and it requires one to have a firm resolve during difficulties in the pursuit of good. It helps us in the big and small trials of life and allows us to resist temptations, overcome fear, face persecution and even death in defense of a just cause.

Temperance allows us the ability to resist desires of pleasure and to moderate our appetites and maintain levels that are good and honorable.

The more we practice virtues, the more we are purified and elevated by God’s divine grace. “The virtuous man is happy to practice them.” (CCC 1810) We receive God’s grace by Christ’s gift of salvation. We should ask for this grace to be able to be more virtuous and if we are more virtuous, the more graces we shall be granted! I can attest to this. Once I started practicing ( often getting back up and trying again) to be more virtuous, I noticed the “fruits” of the gifts of virtues being given to me.

The last of the virtues are Theological Virtues which are Faith, Hope and Charity. Those of us Catholics recognize these three words as we pray for an increase of these virtues every time we recite the Holy Rosary. We find the very foundation of a Christian’s moral life must begin with these virtues because they directly relate to God. One cannot claim to be a Christian without believing in God, believing all He has said, and doing His will through the virtues of Faith, Hope and Charity.

We have to remember that being a member of a “Religion” which only believes in one of these Theological Virtues, or separates the virtues into individual categories without the need of uniting them, is a false religion. You cannot have faith alone or hope alone or charity/love alone – they must be intertwined.

To clarify, the Catechism of the Catholic Church states that “If faith is deprived of hope and love, faith does not fully unite the believer to Christ and does not make him a living member of his Body.” (1815) For “By Faith, man freely commits his entire self to God.” (CCC 1814) “Service and witness to the faith are necessary for salvation.” (CCC 1816) You might recognize this as the beginning of the Faith and Works disagreement we have with our separated brothers in Christ. They often are taught that Faith alone is sufficient for salvation and are diminishing the necessity of the virtues of Hope and Charity.

The virtue of Hope is when we desire eternal life in the kingdom of heaven and place all our trust in Christ’ promises. We cannot rely on our own strength to achieve hope eternal and that is why Jesus sent us the Holy Spirit, to strengthen us. Through the graces given to us by the Holy Spirit, we aspire to happiness through the virtue of Hope and can have faith in Jesus’ preaching, promises and love for us. We nourish our hope through a relationship with Our Lord through prayer, charity and doing his will.

Charity is “The virtue by which we love God above all things for His own sake and our neighbor as ourselves, for the love of God.” (CCC 1822) The Apostle Paul often spoke of the virtue of Charity and said, “Out of the virtues of Faith, Hope and Charity, the greatest of these is Charity.” ( 1 Cor 13:13) “Charity binds everything all together in perfect harmony.” (Col 3:14) Charity helps us to love one another as God loves us. It is the command that Jesus gave to us when He implored us to love our enemies rather than just those who love us in return. “We experience a purifying of our human ability to love and raise it to the supernatural perfection of Divine love” (CCC 1827) when we reach this goal of Christian life.

We are so lucky that our Catholic Faith teaches us these concepts of virtue and how they should be woven into our daily thoughts, feelings and actions. I feel that those outside our faith aren’t told about the necessity of infusing the virtues of Faith, Hope and Charity/Love together into their lives. For those who are taught that all they need for salvation is Faith alone, they aren’t able to rely on the Spiritual freedom we receive from God when we practice these virtues so, they often use the Calvinist theory of being hidden (from the wrath of God) by the blood of Christ in order to be “saved.”

“If we turn away from evil out of the fear of punishment, we are in the position of slaves. If we measure the enticement of wages, we resemble mercenaries. Finally, if we obey for the sake of the good itself and out of love for him who commands it, we are in the position of children.” (St. Basil) “If children, then heirs, heirs of God, and fellow heirs with Christ.” (Rom 8:14, 17) Thus, there is no need to be hidden in the sight of God. God is love itself. St. Augustine once said, “We enjoy the “fruits” of Charity which are joy, peace and mercy. Love is itself fulfilled in all our works. There is the goal; that is why we (Catholics) run toward it, and once we reach it, in it we shall find rest.”

Saints really get it. Often, they have gone through both physical and spiritual trials and without the Holy Spirit to strengthen them, they might not have made sainthood. We are given the “Gifts of the Holy Spirit” to help us complete and perfect the virtues of those who receive them. Those “gifts” are: wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety and fear of the Lord. “When we receive these gifts, we can achieve perfections which the Holy Spirit from in us through ‘fruits.’ These ‘fruits’ are charity, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, modesty, self-control and chastity.” (CCC 1832)

As we practice the virtues of a moral life, we may begin to notice the “gifts and fruits” of the Holy Spirit and grow in holiness. For some of us, it may take longer than others; however, if we persevere, we shall surely be rewarded when we stand before our Loving Father and hear the words we long to hear, “Well done good and faithful servant.” (Matt 25:23)

This Bread is Our Life

I used to consider going to Mass an obligation that took an hour ( if I had a short-winded priest) of my Sunday or Saturday evening. I wouldn’t put it past me to miss Mass if something better came up or if I had stayed out too late the night before, and just couldn’t rouse myself in time for even the latest Mass of the morning. I know that sounds horrible and, at the time, I didn’t even know that knowingly missing Mass was a sin and yet, my life was a mess. I was stressed, anxious and depressed and looking back, it’s not hard to see why.

We have Seven Sacraments of the Catholic Church and these Sacraments are seven special means, instituted by Jesus Christ by which God reaches down to us and shares His Divine Life with us through Baptism, Confirmation, The Eucharist, Penance, The Anointing of the Sick, Holy Orders and Matrimony. They help us in our journey through life and give us special graces to handle the stressors, worries, and anxieties of living and the more we participate, the more graces we receive. Needless to say, I didn’t participate much and the graces were lacking.

The one Sacrament we have the ability to participate in almost daily is the Eucharist. It is the one Sacrament that all others are oriented. The Catechism of the Catholic Church states, ” The Eucharist is the source and summit of Christian life by the invocation of the Holy Spirit and with bread and wine and the very words of Christ repeated by an ordained priest, become Christ’s own body, blood, soul and divinity.” CCC 1324 In other words, Christ is fully present through a process called Transubstantiation. If you break down that word, Trans means “to change,” and Substance means “the very essence of a thing.” Even though the outward appearances still resemble ordinary bread and wine, through the words given to the apostles by Jesus to ” Do this in memory of me,” transubstantiation changes the essence.

Both Scripture and Tradition tell us this is Christ fully present with us. God of the Universe can do what we can’t comprehend; yet, he doesn’t want to overwhelm our measly, little brains by coming to us in all his omnipotence and power. In the Bible, He appears to men in ways they could handle; like a burning bush, a cloud, or a still small voice. He was often called upon by the Israelites when they cried out to him when they feared they would starve. He sent Manna (which in Aramaic means, “what is it”) to them from Heaven to be gathered and eaten. The Jews ancestors were nourished by this “bread” while on their journey out of Egypt; however, they ultimately died. Jesus was sent by God to become the living bread, and whoever ate this bread would never die. But, why bread?

Bread is found throughout the Old Testament and, in many cultures today, it is a staple of one’s diet. We even have popularized terms like, “breaking bread,” for anything having to do with gathering to eat or, “gonna go make some bread,” for acquiring money to live. Isn’t it interesting that to live and eat are often associated with the word bread?

When poorly Catechized Catholics or non-Catholics attend Holy Mass and look at the bread and wine, I’m sure they ask themselves, “What is it?” and don’t fully understand their question should be “Who is it?” because the God of the Universe chose to appear to us in the form of bread and wine.

I’m sure you are still saying, “It still looks the same,” or, “I don’t see any changes in its appearance,” and that is because the outward appearance is still the same chemical make-up of bread and wine. What is really taking place during transubstantiation is underneath the outward appearances of the consecrated host; we believe Jesus is truly present by changing into the body, blood, soul and divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ. Our Lord told us at the last supper when, “He took bread, said the blessing, broke it and gave it to his disciples saying, this is my body which will be given up for you, do this in memory of me.” Luke 22:19

Dr. Sean Innest says, ” All the Sacraments are all profound mysteries and their outward signs, their appearances, are usually very humble.” They are signs – visible realities which point to the invisible, to a divine grace. For instance, when water is poured over someone during Baptism, it represents cleansing of ones soul, and in Confirmation, when we profess our beliefs in the Catholic Churches teachings and promise to live them out, we are anointed with oil to make us witnesses for our beliefs. When we participate in the Mass and receive the Eucharist, we eat bread that is sustenance for us, both physically and spiritually. These are natural things pointing to the supernatural.

When we share in the Eucharist during the celebration of Holy Mass, we are in effect sharing a table. We can find the importance of sharing a table (meal) in Biblical times, as well as, our own special holiday celebrations where those closest to us, come to celebrate a meal and bond with one another. God wants an intimate, profound union with us and has since He originally created us. The Eucharist is the uniting of Our Lord’s body, blood, soul and divinity with us, and in us. How awesome is that?

The Father’s of the Church said that the Son of God became the Son of Man so that the sons of men become the sons of God. This is the ultimate goal of God; He loves us so much He wants to be with us in all aspects of our life. He is just waiting for us to come to Him through the Sacrament of the Holy Mass and the source and summit of our faith- The Holy Eucharist.

Why not make a visit to Our Lord, today?

Knowing What You’re Yearning For

Things of this world don’t seem to satisfy us for very long. Everyone is always looking for more, striving for something better, or having more meaning; yet, we never seem to satiate those deep hungers our hearts are yearning for. Many people have often sought out material dreams or passing relationships, when what they are really looking for is peace and contentment; which, only God can provide.

Often, people who are both religious and non-religious complain of not “feeling God” in their lives when they are living as “good people,” or attend church regularly. They often question their continuing practice of praise and worship or even believing in a god that doesn’t seem to “show Himself” or have influence in their life. They believe that their lives are what they make of it, their rules are determined by a moral relativism that is different for everyone and no one should be intolerant to another or another’s viewpoint. This relativistic theory and belief of those living this way, doesn’t allow for truth of the moral laws instituted by God.

Tolerance was a Christian invention. I bet that would surprise many people, but I digress. Christians taught that we needed to be tolerant of those who differ both legally and socially. Governments cannot legally force certain religious beliefs on their citizens and we as Catholic Christians must continue to defend the rights of people to practice their religious beliefs no matter if their beliefs are the truth or not. However, it is our duty to proclaim Christ’s truth, in love, to them. Social tolerance is an ancient practice that Jesus instituted by calling on us to love our neighbors as ourselves, and that includes our enemies and those who are of a different religion, ethnicity, race and moral beliefs. We are always called to pray for those who haven’t come to the fullness of truth into the Catholic Church and while we can be tolerant of others viewpoints and beliefs, we don’t have to agree with them. Also, we often hear the saying, “I don’t judge.” Judging the actions of others that go against the moral law is righteous; however, judging the state of one’s soul ( “he’s going to hell”) is unrighteous, as we never truly know the state of a person’s soul in the last minutes of their life.

God’s law is like an instruction manual for human beings. Knowing that our human nature would run amok without rules for living, we are given the moral laws and if we break God’s laws, we will experience brokenness and consequences for our actions. Just like a loving parent institutes rules for their children, God laws are meant to help his people avoid mistakes that lead to brokenness and sin, not just to restrict them and cause punishment. Unfortunately, many people see these laws as not pertaining to today’s culture and are too restrictive to apply to daily lives; so, those same people, when experiencing hardship or trauma, cry out and curse God because He doesn’t seem to be there for them, in their times of need. How can we push God and his moral laws out of our lives one minute and blame Him for not being there in the next?

When Adam and Eve said no to God’s laws, sin was introduced into the world; however, God didn’t give up on us. “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world but that the world might be saved through Him. John 3:17 God is love and he loves us unconditionally. We can only love if we are free and God gave us the ability to say yes or no to Him and His laws. The freedom of our wills to love is the essence of our purpose in life and eternity. God wants to have a relationship of love with us so we may have eternal life with Him, through our belief in His only Son, Jesus Christ.

Faith is a personal gift from God. Believing what He has revealed in our hearts through the Holy Spirit and to love, trust and have confidence in Him during all the times in our life, whether we can “feel” His presence or not. “Faith seeks understanding: It is intrinsic to faith that a believer desires to know better the One in whom he has put his faith and to understand better what He has ‘revealed’, a more penetrating knowledge will in turn call forth a greater faith, increasingly set afire by love” CCC no.158

So, let us yearn for God’s love and unending mercy for us sinners. We can never be perfect; however, we can continue to grow in holiness by following the moral laws, learning more about our faith, and continuing to build a relationship with Our Lord through the Church that Jesus Christ founded.