Let Us Return to the Sacraments

 

Let me preface this post by admitting that although I was raised in the Catholic faith and attended Catholic school from grades K -8, I knew very little about the benefits of receiving the sacraments until I began studying about them at the graduate level at the age of 52. Therefore, I would be extremely overjoyed if this post sheds some light for those much younger on just how fortunate we are as Catholics to have the sacraments at our disposal.

We are privileged because Jesus instituted the sacraments for us during his earthly ministry intending them to be conduits of sanctifying grace. Sanctifying grace is what helps us to be holy. It is that marvelous, supernatural sharing-in-God’s-own-life.

It is disturbing to see friends and family members who have wandered from the practice of their Catholic Faith, who no longer baptize their children, reconcile their relationships with God by seeking His mercy, forgiveness, and peace through the Sacrament of Reconciliation/Confession,  or get married in the Church and receive the grace conferred through the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony, which when cooperated with helps married couples live in accordance with God’s will.

Similar to my own past experience, I believe many Catholics, including fallen away Catholics, no longer practice their Faith, including attendance and participation at Mass and the reception of the sacraments, because they no little about the richness of these awesome gifts given to us by Christ. Perhaps they were never properly taught about the Faith during the formative years, or later in life never bothered to invest the time and effort to learn more about our Catholic Faith. 

The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and the grace conferred through the reception of the sacraments have not come to us without an enormous price. These gifts were earned by the merits of our Savior, Jesus Christ, through his life, passion, death, and resurrection, which is the reason why they must never be taken for granted. Think about the period during which we could not attend Mass during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.

It is important  also to remember that we must be properly disposed to receive the sacraments and willing to cooperate with the grace conferred. Taking time to learn about the sacraments and the ways in which we can cooperate with the grace they confer is a great way to start.

Believe me, we have God’s riches at our disposal within the Sacraments of the Catholic Church. In these turbulent times, the sacraments are gifts we should receive and cherish often.

Learn a little more about the sacraments by following the two links below:

USCCB / Sacraments

EWTN / The Seven Sacraments

Great Presentation on the Real Presence by Fr. Mike Schmitz!

I don't need to say anything. Fr. Mike Schmitz says it best in this video. It is powerful and moving! Enjoy, and please share!

Far From Boring!

Have you ever heard someone say, "Mass is boring?" I hear this often and watch as even my own teenagers begrudgingly attend Mass. I confess that I felt the same way at one time.

But Mass is in reality is anything but boring when you think about what takes place at Mass! The God who created everything in our vast universe, the ends of which science will most likely never discover, and maintains it all in perfect order, DESIRES to be with us; to give himself to us whole and entirely; Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity; and does so by humbling himself and making himself available to us under the appearance of bread and wine. This folks is far from BORING! It is in fact AWESOME and MIRACULOUS once we wrap our minds around what occurs at every Mass!

The next time the priest places his hands over the gifts during the Epiclesis as shown in the photo and asks the Father to send the Holy Spirit in order to sanctify the offerings of bread and wine so that they may become the Body and Blood of Jesus, think about how privileged we are to be present there and have the opportunity to become so intimately close to the One who created us and loves us so much unconditionally!

Real Presence: How Do You Show Reverence?

Recently, I heard a story about Fr. Benedict Groeschel, CFR. He was traveling with a Protestant minister in a car and, when they passed a Catholic Church, Fr. Benedict made the Sign of the Cross. The minister asked him why he did this. Fr. ...Benedict explained that it was out of reverence for Jesus in the Most Blessed Sacrament. The minister told him, if I believed what you believe, I would get out of the car, run inside the church, fall on my knees and never get up again.

With regard to having faith in the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist, I found the story interesting and thought provoking. I am sure Fr. Benedict Groeshel believes in the Real Presence!

Our Value in the Eyes of God!

 

Our value is not determined by anything worldly, that is, by how we look, what we own, our educations, our salaries, our jobs, our talents. God, our Creator, loves every person equally and unconditionally. God, Creator of all things visible and invisible, became man, and through His passion, death, and resurrection, gives Himself to us eternally so that we may have eternal life in the perfect happiness of His presence! We can’t get any more valuable than that!



 

Father Robert Barron Talks About the Real Presence; John 6

Here is a very short talk by Father Robert Barron on Jesus' Bread od Life discourse from the 6th chapter of the gospel of John.

Prayer After Receiving Our Lord in the Eucharist

Lord Jesus, thank you for giving Yourself to me under the appearance of this bread and this wine; thank you for making Your Whole Self available to me, just one of the over 7 billion human beings whom You have brought into existence, temporarily residing on this small planet within the vast universe You created! How awesome, loving, and merciful You are to give Your entire Self to me; Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity, a Gift that will nourish me and provide me with the grace to be able to one day see Your precious face, and experience the joy of being in Your presence for eternity! This is life’s greatest Gift - You in the Eucharist! There is no more valuable Gift we will ever be privileged to receive on this journey back to You! Lord, as I receive You in this Eucharist, I ask, that in Your unending mercy, You extend the grace I receive today to all those, whom for whatever reason, will not, or cannot partake in this precious Gift today! Please help me to go beyond mere words in expressing my thanks to You! Let me draw upon the grace you provide to act in a way that expresses my love and appreciation. Make my heart like yours, and help me to become worthy to be used as an instrument through which You draw others to Your Way, Truth, and Life! Thank You, Lord, for giving Yourself to me!  



 



Mass: Is It Appreciated and Understood As It Should Be?

Relative to the vastness of the universe we are nothing, but to Him we are everything!

First, let me start off by counting myself guilty during my lifetime of both misunderstanding the Mass, and being unappreciative of this most precious gift. In fact, I remained pretty distant from my Catholic Faith for about twenty-two years, between the ages of eighteen and forty. I am now 57. Twenty two years is a long time to be away from home. Prior to the age of eighteen, I attended Catholic school, grades K-8, and served as an "altar boy" for several years during that time. Looking back, even during those times when I was privileged to be serving at Mass, I did not fully appreciate the miraculous gift Christ has prepared for us. 

I am writing this post with great humility and charity, aware that my present knowledge and appreciation for what takes place at Mass is possible only through God's grace. I felt compelled to write this after observing how my own children approach the Mass. My children are 11 and 12 years of age and have attended Catholic school from kindergarten. They have also been altar servers for the past two years, and are raised in a home where our Faith is practiced.

One would think after attending Catholic school since kindergarten, and serving at the altar during Mass, children would remember, and have enough knowledge and reverence for Christ's presence in the Eucharist, to genuflect before entering the pew without being reminded to do so. Sometimes I have to remind my ten year old son, to prayerfully prepare to "participate" in the Mass and receive our Lord in the Eucharist while waiting for Mass to begin. And during Mass, I cannot help but notice that my son is sometimes only present in body, his mind and heart are somewhere far from the liturgy. I am not judging his disposition during Mass, but am only pointing out the need for a different approach to catechesis concerning the importance of Mass, the very summit of our Christian Faith. 

As a CCD teacher, parent, and lover of evangelization and apologetics, I see this as a most serious problem concerning the practice of our Faith. I feel more emphasis should be given to education concerning the precious gift Christ has given us in the Mass. Appreciating Mass begins with the infusion of God's precious grace at baptism, but as we grow we must cooperate with that grace by combining our God given ability to reason with the gifts of faith, hope and charity.

The Mass must be presented in a thought provoking manner appropriate for the audience, from toddler to 100. Growing up and being educated in the Catholic Faith by Sisters of the Felician Order, I recall being told that Mass was an obligation, and that Hell awaited those who chose not to attend. Notice the word "attend," as opposed to "participate." I don't say this to denigrate the great work these wonderful Sisters accomplished in their vocations as teachers and servants of God. My point is that the magnitude of this most wonderful gift needs to be presented and taught differently, and from a very early age.

Reflecting on Who it is who longs to give himself to us at Mass, how privileged we are to be in His presence, and the importance of participating in God's greatest Gift to us, are things our minds must become focused upon and deeply contemplate. These things will help lead us to a new appreciation and zeal for Mass! Instilling these thoughts should begin at the earliest of ages and continue throughout our lives. Even toddlers, made in the image and likeness of God, have been created with the ability to understand God's awesome majesty!

The following are the things I would like to see emphasized in catechesis, and which we must all continually remind ourselves of, contemplate, and meditate upon concerning the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass:

1) Although Mass "attendance" is an obligation, it should never be looked upon as merely an obligation. The Church makes it an obligation because she knows it is for our greatest good! Once we understand what Mass truly is, we will long to be there, and eagerly await each time we will participate in future Masses.

2) The Mass is God's greatest gift to us because it is where He gives Himself to us, Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity. It is the closest, personal relationship we can ever attain with Jesus, if, and only if we approach the Mass with the proper disposition!

3) Most importantly, prayerfully consider this: Christ, who longs to give himself to us at Mass, who longs for the most personal relationship with us, is the One who created the entire, vast, universe. Remember how small we are relative to the created universe, the ends of which have not been determined by science. To put things in perspective, we live on tiny planet Earth, situated in our solar system within the Milky Way galaxy. Our galaxy is just one of approximately 300 billion galaxies beyond our galaxy. Each of these galaxies contain billions and billions of stars and other celestial bodies. As BIG as the universe is, it is with each of us, that the Creator of it all longs, that's right LONGS, with perfect love to give His entire self to us at each Mass. How could anyone reject such an offer from such a GREAT and LOVING God? Relative to the vastness of the universe we are nothing, but to Him we are everything!

4) Our awesome Creator humbles Himself by making Himself substantially present in the forms of bread and wine so that we can be nourished and strengthened on our journeys back to Him. Let us begin to contemplate the magnitude of this gift and give it the respect and priority it deserves! 


 

Let us all more fully and attentatively participate in the Mass by carefully listening to every word prayed throughout the liturgy. The words of the Eucharistic prayers are so beautiful, and reveal God's awesome love for us!

I would like to present these words in several blog posts for readers to reflect upon their beauty. I pray that Catholics throughthe world will become more focused at Mass, freed from the distractions of the world, to reflect on what God continues to give us through His Son, Jesus Christ, in union with the Holy Spirit, the Eucharist! Let us look at the preface to Eucharistic Prayer II, the one which we hear most often at Sunday Mass.

 

Reflect on the fact that during Mass, time stands still, and we enter into and become present with all the angels and saints and the Church throughout the world at the eternal sacrifice of our Lord's passion, death and resurrection, together!

 

" It is truly right and just, our duty and salvation, always and everywhere to give you thanks, Father most holy, through your beloved Son, Jesus Christ, your Word through whom you made all things, whom you sent as our Savior and Redeemer, incarnate by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin. Fulfilling your will and gaining for you a holy people, he stretched out his hands as he endured his Passion, so as to break the bonds of death and manifest the resurrection. And so, with the Angels and all the Saints we declare your glory, as with one voice we acclaim:"

Time for Catechesis

Catechesis should be of primary concern to the Roman Catholic Church when Catholics provide answers such as these when asked whether or not they regularly attend Mass, and if so, why?
‘I don’t go to Mass because it’s not a sin anymore.’
‘I think you don’t have to go.’
‘ I have to because I go to boarding school. I do it to keep my parents happy.’
‘I go every Sunday because my grandmother and my family go, but if I were on my own I would not go.’
‘I go because my parents go, but I don’t really know any other reasons for going.’
‘I’m just not interested.’
‘It’s boring. I used to go with my grandmother because it made her feel good.’
‘I don’t have to go to church to pray. I can pray at home.’

The aforementioned answers were given to Michael Voris of RealCatholicTV.com as he randomly interviewed Irish Catholics on the streets of Dublin on June 29, 2011. What makes these answers so alarming is the fact that Ireland, where 84.7% of the population is Catholic, has been a bastion of the Catholic Faith for nearly 1500 years. What has existed in Ireland for 1500 years has been nearly totally destroyed in less than 40 years. But this attitude toward Mass is not unique to Ireland!

The bottom line is that Catholics need to be informed of the reasons for attending and participating in the Mass, the most important of which is the fact that Jesus is present at Mass and longs to give himself to us in the Eucharist! For this reason alone Catholics should be knocking down the doors to churches to get in!

Priests should take every opportunity to reinforce the importance of the gift God has given us through the sacraments, especially Holy Eucharist at Mass! The importance and the reasons for participating in the Mass should be taught and reinforced at every level of catechesis.

I cannot imagine the faithful thinking that Mass is “boring” if they truly knew what happens at each Mass. It is far from boring when the Creator of all that is “seen and unseen”, humbles Himself to become truly present under the appearance of bread and wine in order to give Himself to us, so that we may experience Him through all our senses and share in His Divinity! That is exciting and AWESOME, not boring!

Let us pray that others will come to know what the Mass is all about! Let us take every opportunity to share what we know about the awesome treasure that we call Mass!

Solomon Asked for Wisdom - So Should We!

In his homily this past Sunday, our pastor, Father Wilson, illustrated how we can all experience the Kingdom of Heaven here on earth through the practice of our Faith. But he went on to say that it requires more than just routine attendance at Mass and simply going through the motions of receiving Holy Communion. Father Wilson warned that those of us who simply go through the motions each week at Mass should not be surprised when our lives are unaffected by this so called practice of our Faith.

In the gospel reading this past Sunday (July 24th), Jesus explains that “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure buried in a field, which a person finds and hides again, and out of joy goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant searching for fine pearls. When he finds a pearl of great price, he goes and sells all that he has and buys it.” The point Jesus makes in this parable is that the things found, i.e., the treasure in the field and the pearl of great price, were being earnestly searched for with great effort. Picture one man digging up a field in search of a treasure, the other toiling and searching through oysters for that one great pearl. And so in the practice of our Faith we must put forth effort to seek the treasure of the Kingdom of Heaven, the Truth, who is Jesus. Do we earnestly seek the Truth? How much effort do we expend seeking and understand His Truth? Do we pray for more faith? Jesus is the Truth! He is the “way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6)! If we don’t participate in Mass and truly believe that Jesus is really present under the appearance of bread and wine in the Eucharist, we gain NOTHING from it (John 6:48-58)! NOTHING! This is the reason so many Catholics have left the Church. It is also the reason why Mass attendance has declined. It is the reason many Catholics will say, ‘I get nothing out of it!’ Multitudes should be crashing the doors to go to Mass if there was a true belief in Christ’s real presence in the Eucharist!

I strayed from the practice of my Catholic Faith for a lengthy period of time in my life. So for years I missed out on so much grace! Without verbalizing it, I too was among those Catholics who doubted Christ’s real presence in the Eucharist. This had to be the case; otherwise I would have put Jesus first in my life and greatly anticipated each and every reception of his very body, blood, soul, and divinity in Holy Communion! We Catholics should long to go to Mass and be healed and nourished through the grace of the sacraments. For me it was a lack of knowing the truth. It was my neglect in seeking the truth. I think that is the case for most Catholics.

As Father Wilson said in his homily, and continues to incorporate into many of his homilies, ‘there is no greater gift we can receive on earth; there is nothing more important in our lives than strengthening our relationship with Christ in the Eucharist and receiving his grace through the sacraments; these are the ways to true and lasting joy!’

My prayer is that Catholics with a lack of knowledge or doubts about their Faith will pray for understanding; will seek the truth through the Magisterial teachings of the Church; and worthily receive Jesus in the Eucharist after returning Home through the healing portal of the sacrament of Reconciliation!

May 21st Rapture

I write today to the followers of Harold Camping and all the precious souls throughout the world who love Jesus and want to experience His eternal and awesome love! I humbly ask in a most charitable way that you consider looking no further then your local Catholic church for a truly life-changing and transforming experience!

Jesus is there, truly present in every tabernacle, in every Catholic church, under the appearance of bread. In the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist, Jesus longs to give Himself to us and to become united with us, Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity. If you have the faith to truly believe that God is the Creator of the universe, all that is seen and unseen, then it should not be hard to believe that He can also make Himself truly present in the Eucharist!

Please spend time in prayer over what I have written to you, and invest some time in seeking the truth concerning Christ’s Real Presence in the Eucharist!

Reference sources for the Eucharist:

John 6
http://www.catholicscomehome.org/answers-eucharist.php

Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1322 - 1419 http://www.scborromeo.org/ccc/index/e.htm

Real Presence Website
http://www.therealpresence.org/eucharst/a.html

Divine Treasure!

The earth is a mere pinpoint in this immense universe, the ends of which remain unknown to man! It never ceases to amaze me that its Creator longs for a close relationship with its human inhabitants, so much so that He humbles Himself and makes Himself available veiled under the appearance of bread and wine to those who will receive Him! Always be mindful of Christ’s Real Presence in the Eucharist! Thank you Lord for the wonderful gift of your Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity, the Nourishment that sustains us on this journey!

Power of the Eucharist

To be the men and women God intended us to be in our roles as priests, religious, fathers, mothers, sons, daughters, husbands, wives and friends; children of God made in His image; to love with the love of Christ; to offer ourselves as holy and living sacrifices; to have faith and hope, and to increase in every other virtue; is possible only through the grace that comes through frequent reception of the sacraments of Reconciliation and the Eucharist.

It is impossible to fulfill our purpose in this life without the Eucharist! Amen!

Go to confession and attend Mass often, daily if possible! It will change your life!

Unfathomable Love! - Awesome Privilege!

It has been discovered that an ordinary, 8oz. drinking glass can hold approximately 2 million grains of sand.

The photographs and data scientists have gathered through the use of the Hubble telescope indicate the majesty and incomprehensible size of the universe that exists beyond our planet. It is estimated that there are more stars in the heavens than there are grains of sand on all the beaches of the world.

Consider the world unseen by the naked eye and all of its wonder. The complex structure and life-sustaining automated functions of just the trillions of cells in the human body alone.

Contemplate the fact that all of creation is maintained in a perfect, life-sustaining balance, i.e., the perfect mixture of gases in the air we breath, precise distances of the sun and the moon from our earth, which are necessary to sustain life on earth.

Think of the marvelous, awesome complexity of the vast variety of insects and birds, and the variety of life existing beneath the ocean waves!

I don’t about you, but whenever I’m in our Lord’s presence in the Blessed Sacrament, or at Mass during transubstantiation as the priest says the words, “This is My Body”, my mind is immediately aware of the fact that the awesome Creator of our vast universe is not only present, but desires to be with us!

It is truly a humbling experience, and an inexpressible privilege, not only to be in the presence of the Creator, but to be able to receive His Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity as spiritual and physical nourishment for our journey.

Armed with the knowledge that God, the Creator of the universe, longs to give Himself to us fully, and makes Himself available to us daily under the appearance of bread and wine, ONE SHOULD NEVER AGAIN HAVE A REASON TO FEEL UNLOVED! For this is the perfect love! Out of love, God gives Himself to us, and accepting His Gift assists us in passing the love of God on to others. This is how love remains eternal. St. Paul illustrates the permanence of love in his first letter to the Corinthians when he says, “love never fails”. St. Paul emphasizes the fact that love remains long after prophesy, knowledge, and tongues pass away.

The next time you receive Christ in the Eucharist, or are privileged to spend time with Him at adoration, ponder the magnificence of the love our awesome Creator has for us!

Our Best Defense!

We proceed on this journey stalked constantly by a vicious and cruel enemy, an enemy who hates us simply because we are created and loved by God! This enemy is cunning, calculating, and constantly scheming to launch attacks against us, which if successful, can result not only in the death of our body, but the eternal death of our soul! The enemy is Satan and his minions.

The good news is that God has provided the ammunition necessary to defend ourselves against these attacks! Without it we are as weak and defenseless as newborn babes! That ammunition is God’s grace!

Now most Christians, including myself will agree that one way to receive God’s grace is by earnestly asking for it in prayer! Now God is capable of all things and no man should presume to understand the mind of God, so we can probably all agree that God can bestow His grace upon anyone He wishes in any manner He deems fit!

From a Catholic perspective, the ammunition or grace of which I speak is the grace which is made available to us in the very Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ as He gives Himself to us in the Eucharist! However, to receive the fullness of the grace made available to us in the Blessed Sacrament, we must be properly prepared and disposed to do so!

What do we mean by properly disposed and prepared to receive our Lord?

First, we must firmly believe without a doubt in the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist! We must then very humbly and thankfully acknowledge the greatness of the One whom we are about to receive into our bodies and souls!

Reflect if you will on this fact: the God who gives Himself to us in the Eucharist is the same God who created the incomprehensible vastness, complexity, and beauty of the entire universe, from the immeasurable magnitude of the cosmos to the awesome design and workings of the sub-atomic world! He is also the One who keeps it all in perfect balance in the palm of His Mighty Hand! This is the God for whom we must be properly prepared to receive, truly present in the communion wafer that is placed on our tongue or in the palm of our hand at Mass!

Our preparation to receive our Lord in the Eucharist begins in the sacrament of Reconciliation. This is how we make clean and presentable the house into which we are inviting our Lord! The grace that is conferred upon us in the sacrament of Reconciliation requires true contrition for our sins! True contrition is demonstrated by a firm resolve to avoid future sin! Although we are absolved of our sins in the sacrament of Reconciliation, our tendency toward sin remains. So, once again, we need God’s grace to continue to fight off future temptation when the enemy has us in his sights!

The next step in receiving our Lord in the Eucharist is to truly desire to receive Him, and welcome Him warmly into our hearts and surrender ourselves totally to Him. In this way we become the instruments through which others will come to know Him! We are reminded of this when we hear the priest speak these words at Mass, “The Mass is ended, now go in peace to love and serve the Lord!”

Receiving Christ in the Eucharist gives us tremendous power against the temptations of sin and is the Source and Summit of our Faith!

A Tale Of A Good Shepherd And A Lost Sheep

Recently, Congressman Patrick Kennedy of Rhode Island has clashed with the Catholic Church and Bishop Thomas Tobin of the Diocese of Providence regarding the congressman’s public support of a health care reform bill which supports public funding for abortions.

Congressman Kennedy’s public support for the right to choose abortion and his criticism of the Catholic Church’s opposition to the current health care reform bill is in clear contradiction to his claim that he is a practicing Catholic. At this juncture, the bishop would be negligent in not responding to, and caring for a sheep that has wandered from the flock into dangerous surroundings!

All of this has now made national news. Congressman Kennedy claimed in an interview dated November 22, 2009, that Bishop Tobin has forbid him to receive Holy Communion. You may read Bishop Tobin’s response to Kennedy’s claims here.

Catholics should be concerned not so much with the their ability to receive the sacraments, but with whether or not they are properly disposed to receive them. Christ’s sanctifying and saving grace is conferred through the sacraments when the recipient is properly disposed to receive that grace, i.e., receiving the Eucharist in the state of mortal is not the proper disposition toward receiving the Sacrament. The same goes for the sacrament of Confession (Penance, Reconciliation). The recipient asking to be absolved is not properly disposed to the sacrament if he or she is not sincerely contrite, and willing to repent and make every effort to avoid sin in the future.

Discussions on local radio talk shows has served to reveal that many professed Catholics, at least in and around the Diocese of Providence have much to learn about the Faith they claim to be practicing. A professed Catholic is not at liberty to pick and choose which Church doctrine he or she believes and follows, and what he or she does not believe, and thus does not follow. The Church has one teaching authority, the Magisterium, whose teachings are the true teachings received from Jesus Christ and passed on through apostolic succession over the centuries up to the present day.

We cannot profess the Catholic Faith and then do what we want concerning abortion, contraception, and reception of the sacraments etc.!

As Catholics, and I include myself, we need to spend much more time learning about and practicing our Faith, then on doing things that do little to enhance the quality of our life here on earth, much less our eternal life!

This is a wake up call for the Catholic Church. We are in dire need of better ways in which to educate the faithful and evangelize the truth. We need to pray more often and more fervently, not only for ourselves, but for our Holy Father, our bishops and priests and all the clergy and religious, all catechists, all political leaders, and everyone throughout the world who does not know Christ, or does not think that Christ is essential in their lives!

Let us pray for Bishop Tobin, that he remain close to our Lord, and continue to courageously and boldly proclaim and stand by the truth as he shepherds his flock! And let us pray for Congressman Kennedy, and all Catholics, whom have strayed and are wandering, that they may safely return home!

How Do We Reject Christ?

I preface the following post by saying that I offer it in the spirit of love, and by no means out of a sense of self-righteousness! I have certainly been guilty of countless instances in which I traded Christ’s offer of an intimate relationship for the things of this world and my own selfish desires!

There is no doubt Christ experienced tremendous physical pain and suffering as he went to the cross for us, but was his physical suffering the thing that caused him the most anguish?

I thought of this during Mass today. I thought of all the times I chose to satisfy my physical needs and desires by making and taking the time to do so, rather than making the time to do the things that would help build my relationship with the God of the universe, the God who longs to be a close friend to this lowly sinner! In other words, I REJECTED HIM! I rejected him no less than those who cried out, “CRUCIFY HIM”!

We must ask ourselves, is it the rejection of Christ’s unending and extreme love for us that caused him the most intense anguish and pain as he prepared for the cross at Gethsemane? How do we feel when we are rejected by those we love? Magnify that feeling trillions of times over and we would only be able to begin to imagine what Christ must have felt and still feels today as we reject his love and invitation to share in his divinity!

We always seem to be able to make time for everything else but for the one who really matters, Jesus Christ!

Jesus strongly desires to be with us! Do we strongly desire to be with him? How painful it must have been for our Lord to know that so many would never respond to, or even give a second thought to what he was about to do out of love for us and a desire to be with us for eternity!

Jesus gives himself to us daily in the Eucharist – please consider preparing yourself through the sacrament of Reconciliation to receive him into your heart with all of the praise and worship he deserves, and then welcome him eagerly under your roof by receiving him in the Eucharist!

Reflections on the Eucharist

Lord, I am eager to participate in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass as often as I am able! It is there that you give me yourself in the Eucharist! And when I am properly prepared and disposed to receive you, the grace that you offer is astounding!

It is equally awesome to think, that the Creator of the vast universe in which we live, the designer of the complexities of it all, and the one who keeps it all in perfect balance, even as we fail to take proper care of what you have given us, humbles himself to become truly present in the form of bread and wine in order that I may be nourished for my journey back to you, Lord! How can I thank you, Lord, other than to say, “I am yours, I want to do your will, use me for the purpose for which you created me!” Amen!

Battle Over the Doctrine of Salvation

The Battle continues to wage over doctrine concerning salvation. Well meaning non-Catholic brothers and sisters in Christ vehemently argue that we Catholics are wrong to believe that works are an important aspect of salvation. In doing so they usually site a passage from St. Paul’s letter to the Church in Ephesus in which he says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not from you; it is the gift of God; it is not from works, so no one may boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9 NAB).

These admonishments seem to imply that we Catholics believe that our salvation is determined solely by our works, and are therefore ignorant concerning the true Source of our salvation, and thus are not truly saved. Nothing could be further from the truth. If our brothers and sisters in Christ would just take the time to study carefully and prayerfully the teachings of the Catholic Church, they would soon learn of their gross misunderstanding, and perhaps even consider entering into the fullness of the Church! For it is there that Christ, the God of the universe and all its splendor and awesome wonder, humbles Himself out of love for each one of us, and makes Himself present in the sacrament of the Eucharist, giving Himself to us in a form we can understand and experience with all of our senses. What an awesome God to offer nourishment for our bodies and souls daily as we make our journey back to Him! Thank You Lord!!!

I can assure you that nowhere in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, or in any other Magisterial teaching of the Catholic Church will one find anything that remotely implies that we Catholics are to believe that we are saved solely by our works, or that our salvation is contingent solely upon how good we tried to be in this lifetime! Catholics believe that we are saved by the grace which God makes available to us through our Lord Jesus Christ, which was gained for us through His passion, death and resurrection. It is a free gift to those who will accept it by faith!

We are free to accept or reject this gift, but if we make the freewill choice to accept it, we must continuously ask for God’s grace in order to meet the demands of daily Christian existence! As fallen creatures, this takes WORK! Jesus tells us in Luke 9:23-24, “If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily 11 and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.” This means we must begin to deny ourselves in order to love and serve others, and we must live our lives in a manner that is indicative of our gratitude for God’s saving grace!

The words, ‘I am saved by grace alone’ seem to imply that once the free gift of salvation is accepted we need do nothing more then wait for God to carry us off to Heaven! Consider the following. The words, ‘I love you’ are meaningless without action, or, if you will, WORKS! Can we tell our wives, husbands, children, or anyone else for that matter that we love them and never give of ourselves to show it! Can one truly and sincerely accept God’s saving grace by merely speaking the words? I think we can all agree that the answer is no!

St. James talks about the necessity of both faith and works when he says the following, “What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister has nothing to wear and has no food for the day, and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, keep warm, and eat well," but you do not give them the necessities of the body, what good is it? So also faith of itself, if it does not have works, is dead. Indeed someone might say, "You have faith and I have works." Demonstrate your faith to me without works, and I will demonstrate my faith to you from my works. You believe that God is one. You do well. Even the demons believe that and tremble. Do you want proof, you ignoramus, that faith without works is useless? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered his son Isaac upon the altar? You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by the works. Thus the scripture was fulfilled that says, "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness," and he was called "the friend of God." See how a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. And in the same way, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she welcomed the messengers and sent them out by a different route? For just as a body without a spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead. (James 2:14-26 NAB)

PLEASE, I appreciate the zeal expressed by my non-Catholic brothers and sisters in Christ, and the concern that they should have for my salvation, but I ask humbly and charitably to PLEASE look up and prayerfully read for yourself all that the Catechism of the Catholic Church has to say about SALVATION. Remember also that there is ONE TEACHING AUTHORITY for the Catholic Church, the Magisterium, which has been around for 2000 years, and will continue to exist until Christ returns.

Jesus Himself said, “And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, 13 and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.” (Matt 16:18 NAB) THE Church will remain despite the attacks of Satan, all human frailty and weakness, and all persecution, until Jesus returns! Jesus said it, so you can BELIEVE it!

It is with charity and not pride that I ask that you to accept the Magisterial teachings of the Catholic Church as truth, for the sin of pride leads to death rather than life, and our Lord Jesus Christ is the Way, Truth, and the Life. There is no better way to intimately know and receive Jesus than in the Sacrament of the Eucharist, which He, Himself instituted at the Last Supper as a way to remain with us until His return!

Approximately 1500 years after Christ founded His Church, a Catholic priest by the name of Martin Luther, publicly protested (the word from which the word Protestant is derived) against several practices of the Catholic Church. Satan saw this as a golden opportunity and an open door to conduct a clever attack, which for a relatively short period of time (500 years) has resulted in an extremely rapid increase in dissension and division among Christians, to the extent that there are now literally tens of thousands of Christian churches and denominations that continue to divide over doctrinal issues.

Contained in the Liturgy of the Catholic Mass, as part of the Eucharistic Prayer II are the very beautiful words, “Lord, remember your Church throughout the world; make us grow in love, together with Benedict XVI, our Pope . . .” Let us all ask the Holy Spirit for the wisdom to recognize the truth, and to protect us from all deception that hinders us from experiencing the closest relationship we can possibly have with our Savior, which is in the Eucharist!