Editor's note: Fr. Sobus didn't choose the title for this post. I did. He is, indeed, a man of courage. May God give us many more such priests. Remember, you fathers out there, one of the most important things you can do for your children is to give them an example of courage. It isn't easy standing up to a corrupt bishop or a corrupt culture, but like the early Christian martyrs, we face murderous tyrants. Teach your children to be martyrs. It may come to that. Fathers' Day Post by Fr. James Sobus
One of the most powerful scenes in that great classic movie, The Wizard of Oz, was the castle scene. Do you remember that one? Dorothy and her friends were trapped inside the castle of the Wicked Witch of the West and being chased by her furry castle guards and the flying monkeys. Then the grande encounter occurs: It’s Dorothy and her companions face to face against the Witch and her minions. It seemed the odds were completely against them. The scarecrow’s arm is set on fire by the Witch and Dorothy, in an attempt to save him grabs a bucket of water and tosses it at the burning arm but inadvertently splashes water on the Witch melting her to death. Then comes the moment of truth: what will the Witches’ minions do to Dorothy and her friends for having killed their leader??? To their shock and amazement, the soldiers bow down proclaiming, “Hail to Dorothy, the Wicked Witch is dead!”
I recently read a book about the martyrs of Mexico. It would not surprise me to see Jesus doing miracles in this land of so many martyrs of the Eucharist. And it's a sobering thought to think of the possibility of history repeating itself when a government is an enemy of Christianity as ours is increasingly becoming. Read about Mexico's history of religious persecution and ask yourself why it couldn't happen here?
Fulton Sheen once said that those who have problems with faith almost always have a problem with the Eucharist. The center of our Catholic faith is Jesus Christ really present in the tabernacles of the world under the appearances of bread and wine. Jesus walked the earth (past tense), but He continues to live among us on the earth (present tense) through His divine presence. That belief is the fundamental reality of our faith
But God never asks for blind or mindless faith. When He walked with the apostles He gave testimony to Himself through His miracles. And throughout the centuries He has continued to do that even down to the present day.
So if you have doubts about the faith, study the Eucharistic miracles. If you have trouble believing that Christ is really present in the host, study the Eucharistic miracles. Look into the eyes of Christ and hear him say, as He did to Thomas, "Do not persist in your unbelief, but believe." What other response can one have to Jesus, but "My Lord and my God!"
