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Sunday, July 7, 2024

Sunday Meditation! Love the Truth!


Father's homily this morning was well worth meditating on. It stimulated my own thoughts. I don't want to distort anything he said, so consider this my interpretation of what was a really excellent homily. 

What do you think the devil's greatest deception is? What pleases him the most? 

Tempting us to give in to our sinful desires of the flesh? 

No!

Encouraging us to speak ill of our family and friends? 

No!

Then what?

Jesus called the devil the "Father of Lies." He said that Satan was a "murderer and liar from the beginning."

Satan is happy to attack and deceive us through our lower faculties, our concupiscent desires: our lust, our greed, our gluttony. But his greatest success is to attack and deceive us in our higher faculties, our intelligence and reason. He wants to muddle and confuse us to the point we don't know the truth and cannot see God's holy will. That is his greatest deception!

Did you ever hear anyone say this when they wanted to choose the lie? "I don't know what's true any more." I have. That's not what I'm talking about, because generally those people do know what's true; they just want to hide it from themselves so they can do what they want to do. "I have a right to be happy," they'll say, and then choose a lie that ends up making them miserable. Do you know anyone like that?

But then there are the truly confused which I would say is the state of many today even Catholics who love the faith and desire to do God's will. Here are some questions that Catholics are asking and about which people disagree. The comment section of this blog illustrates it.

  • Do I have to believe everything the pope says?
  • Do I have to obey everything the pope says?
  • Is the situation in the Church so bad today that the Vatican is an "ape Church" and no longer the Church founded by Christ? If so, where is the true Church?
  • Is the pope a heretic who should be deposed by the bishops?
  • Do the bishops have the authority under canon law to depose a pope elected in a conclave?
  • Are the sedevacantists right? Is Peter's seat empty since 1958? Is it empty since Pope Benedict the XVI died?
  • Should Vatican II be totally repudiated?
  • Are those who go to the Traditional Latin Mass and want the traditional sacraments rebels who should be excommunicated?
  • Was the Vatican correct in excommunicating Archbishop Vigano?
No doubt you can think of lots of other questions. The smoke of Satan certainly has entered the Church, and it's a sign of demonic activity for sure. And what does smoke do? It makes it hard to see. Is it any wonder that confusion reigns?

So how can we blow away the smoke and see clearly? 

Father gave a simple solution.

STUDY THE FAITH AS TAUGHT FOR TWO MILLENNIA. KNOW WHAT DOCTRINE AND SACRED TRADITION TEACH! STUDY THE FATHERS OF THE CHURCH!

Father talked about the obligation of Catholics to study the faith. If your faith is firmly attached to the rock of doctrine and sacred tradition and not the sands of modernism, you will be able to know the truth. You may still face confusion about some of the questions above, but you don't have to answer them all. In fact, maybe some of those questions belong to the admonitions of psalm 131:
Lord, my heart is not exalted: nor are my eyes lofty. Neither have I walked in great matters, nor in wonderful things above me.
2{130:2}If I was not humbly minded, but exalted my soul: As a child that is weaned is towards his mother, so reward in my soul.
3{130:3}Let Israel hope in the Lord, from henceforth now and for ever.

Is there not an element of pride for a layman to think he has the answer to some of these difficult questions? I know I don't have the answers to many! So I prefer to lower my eyes and study trusted catechisms and the wisdom of the Fathers and Doctors of the Church and focus on myself and my own need for repentance. My main goal is to cooperate with the grace of God for my own salvation. 

I know how much God loves humility and the humble of heart. Mary was not out challenging the pharisees. She was silently pondering things in her heart. And so, I will follow her example praying, "O Jesus, meek and humble of heart, make my heart like unto Thine."

To sum up, I will try to perform the duties of my state in life to the best of my ability, love my husband and family, pray and sacrifice for them all, go to Mass and Confession often and do the best I can to obey God's laws and strive to be a "burning furnace of charity." I don't think any more is expected of me. As a dear priest once told me, "If you want to be used by God, by God you'll be used." God does not hide his will from us. And so let us all seek the truth, because when we seek the truth, we are seeking for Truth Himself, Jesus Christ. If he wants to call us to a great work like St. Joan of Arc, St. Catherine of Siena, the holy martyrs, St. Padre Pio, the mystics....He will do it and we will recognize the call. Most of us will not be called to "great matters" and "wonderful things" above us. We will be called to the "little way" described by St. Therese -- to pick up a pin for the sake of Christ. That's my calling. May I be faithful in doing it.

Most Precious Blood of Jesus, save us.

11 comments:

  1. Our sermon today (SSPX) was similar, presenting “curiosity” as a vice, (an actual vice!) as opposed to its opposing virtue, “studiosity” (the Priest’s word) rightly ordered pursuit of knowledge for righteous ends- from St Thomas Aquinas. We naturally let our minds drift to the useless and vain, at the expense of the necessary and righteous.

    From an article on the topic by Catholic Review. https://catholicreview.org/the-unknown-vice-of-curiosity/

    - quote -

    “The vice of curiositas is knowledge pursued poorly.

    The vice of curiosity works with the deadly sin of acedia, often translated as sloth. Acedia is a reluctance to engage in spiritual activities. If you have a free hour in the evening, acedia is the negative influence to not pray or read a spiritual book. The vice of curiosity then steps in and pushes you to see what is on social media or tune into the next television episode.

    The church gives as a virtue in opposition to curiosity: studiousness. It sounds a little nerdy but it is knowledge pursued well. You have the right motivation, right method and right content. It is eating a healthy meal for your mind.

    Studiousness is intentional instead of aimless, seeks deep learning instead of surface level, has a purpose instead of being useless and elevates your mind bringing it closer to God instead of distracting you from God and bringing your mind down.“

    - end quote -

    The main point of both sermons, from different perspectives (imo): it is easier to dissipate our lives in sloth toward ends far away in the lives of others that will never touch our own, judging and correcting others far away, than it is to do the heavy lifting within our own souls, family, community, with true repentance, Charity and meaningful acts toward those near to us.

    Christian Charity is practiced by the unclean Samaritan who actually gave of his time and substance in love and remedy for the suffering of another, not by those who remained “pure”, “undefiled” and passed his putrid, unclean and suffering body on the way to more important things. Charity is nitty and gritty and intensely personal. And upon that will we be judged one day. Not (just) what we know, but what we do with what we know - (Matthew 7:21-23; Matthew 25: 31-46 … *doers, not just hearers and sayers* … the words of our righteous judge Himself).

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  2. I'm thinking along the same lines. I have enough to do in my place in life! And believe me I fail often. I do think if the good Lord wants me to step into the arena beyond what I perceive as my calling he'll make that clear! I do see some suggesting that if one doesn't make a decision on these questions one is failing Christ and his Church and even sinning.

    My prayer is that I stay with his Church and not be tricked into leaving it. I think your suggestion of doing one's duty of state with faithful and careful prayer and study will go along way towards that.

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  3. Here’s one for you and your SSPX priest to explain how are you supposedly holding on to the true faith, traditional church teaching when they operate without the consent of the local ordinary? Appealing to supplies or universal jurisdiction doesn’t count. Here are the words of St Ignatius of Antioch: “ Let nothing be done without the bishop

    See that you all follow the bishop, even as Jesus Christ does the Father, and the presbytery as you would the apostles; and reverence the deacons, as being the institution of God. Let no man do anything connected with the Church without the bishop. Let that be deemed a proper Eucharist, which is [administered] either by the bishop, or by one to whom he has entrusted it. Wherever the bishop shall appear, there let the multitude [of the people] also be; even as, wherever Jesus Christ is, there is the Catholic Church. It is not lawful without the bishop either to baptize or to celebrate a love-feast; but whatsoever he shall approve of, that is also pleasing to God, so that everything that is done may be secure and valid.”

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    1. After you explain how all the Catholics of the 4th century were required to obey the Arian bishops and were required to disobey St. Athanasius.

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    2. The influence to obey Arain bishops came from the emperors.im not sure what you mean by obeying Athanasius as he was defending the Church and Nicene Councils condemnation of Arianism. The quote I provided is rooted in the churches understanding of Eucharist and Communion. You can’t have a proper communion without the bishop. It doesn’t matter what you think about him. I think Trent speaks to the effects of the sacraments have nothing to do with the worthiness of the minister. The fact is that your appeal to “tradition” ignores the very thing you claim to believe. Tradition holds that anyone who rejected the Church and her authority were deemed heretics and schismatics.

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    3. Athanasius was condemning the Arian bishops. Was that rejecting the Church and her authority? And what makes you think I do? Because I won't embrace errors spewed out by false shepherds? Do you? The pope himself gave the SSPX the authority to witness marriages and hear confessions. Do you dispute his decision and his authority to do so?

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  4. I just finished Restless Flame (Louis de Wohl), biographic novel of St Augustine. His entire life was spent either led astray himself by heretical Catholic branches (early life), or refuting them (the rest of his life).

    Trent, mentioned by anonymous, was also called to refute heresy. Catholic history, replete with many battles for the Faith fought over decades and centuries and ultimately won - in Catholic time.

    The devil attacks the Faith. The Church responds in Catholic time, God raises up heroes if the Faith … in Catholic time. The Church always prevails in the end, guaranteed by God. Our duty - remain faithful and true *within our lane; our state in life*.

    Patience, perseverance, faith are called for now, as always.

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    1. One other thing stands out, after my reading about this unlikely (at first) hero of the Faith: St Augustine, “restless flame”, was consumed even before his conversion in the pursuit of God; consumed even before he knew God. His life’s theological and philosophical pursuits were toward that one end - to unite with the “fire whose light and perfection is beyond all human comprehension” (paraphrase). He briefly saw God (actually saw Him) in a vision just prior to his conversion which overthrew all his prior prejudices, and gave rise to his famous aphorism: “Thou movest us to delight in praising Thee; for Thou hast formed us for Thyself, and our hearts are restless till they find rest in Thee.”

      https://www.vatican.va/spirit/documents/spirit_20020821_agostino_en.html

      My prayer and hope is that order will be restored in the Catholic Church in my lifetime such that from the Pope down to the lowliest layman in the very last row of the most remote chapel on earth God is honored as Lord of all, Christ as King of Kings, and unity in praise consumes the faithful now no less than the fortunate, holy St Augustine, convert, defender, lover of God.

      May we all be consumed with a love of God in unity with each other where it may be found. No matter the controversy of the day, which will always be, God avails Himself … generously.

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  5. If I had to choose between “Francis is pope, dammit!” and Vatican I, II (hermeneutic of continuity), every council convoked by a legitimate pope in the past, Peter being the rock whom Jesus prayed would never lose faith, building His house on a rock, renaming Simon with a name that means rock, believing that until George showed up no pope has ever been a formal (willful) heretic, I would personally choose the latter. To choose the former you would have to believe that the Church erred in an ecumenical council in the past, like at Vatican I.

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    1. This comment has been removed by the author.

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    2. Not sure what you say is accurate. I've read the documents of Vatican I and some of the documents from other earlier councils (Trent, Chalcedon). That's part of the problem. I don't think God expects people in the pew to become theologians and canon lawyers to live the faith. He does expect us to obey Doctrine and Sacred Tradition. To do that, we need to study the faith. I think that is more tha enough. In the pastwhen there was more than one claimant to the seat of Peter, even some saints disagreed about who was the legitimate pope. I'm not interested in arguing the case because, frankly, I don't know.

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