We are all called to grieve over our sins. Our sins are acts of rebellion against God who is very good. If we recognize what it is that we are really doing when we sin, than repenting and grieving are much easier. For me that is the key that needs to be there--the recognition of what my sins are and what they have done.
The Catholic Church teaches that there are two parts to sin. There is the sin against God that separates us from Him. And there is the effects of sin that have an impact far beyond what we often consider. These effects compound over time unless something is done about them because the habit of the sin begins to impact who I am.
In confession, we have the opportunity to be absolved of our sins through the infinite mercy of God. Also, through confession, we can begin to work on the temporal effects due to our sins. We open ourselves up to have our wounds examined by Christ. We allow Him to pour grace into those areas that are so wounded we do not even feel the pain from them directly anymore. Instead, we experience some things indirectly because we have buried the scars so deep.
Today is the feast of St. John Fisher, a martyr for the faith. He once wrote, in
From Expositions of the Seven Penitential Psalms:
Would God every one of us willingly remembered the trouble of his own soul, what the inward conscience suffers, so that we might all say with the prophet what follows, anxiatus est super me spiritus meus, I know indeed by the search made in my conscience how grievously I have trespassed against my Lord God, and with this my soul is deeply grieved.
This is the attitude that our Lord wants us to foster. We are called to grieve over our sins recognizing the evil we have done in order that we might allow our Lord to raise us to new life.
From my religious background prior to converting to Catholicism, I received a sense of easy forgiveness of sins. Sin was a big deal until you prayed a prayer that marked your conversion. After that, sin was not so important because the one-time event had taken care of my sins. The Catholic Church teaches that sin is really important. It exists and it must be dealt with constantly. In my struggle to fully integrate this truth into my life, I find that words from others such as St. John Fisher are very helpful. They point to the message of our Lord who took sin very seriously.
Even in today's Gospel, Jesus teaches that the way to follow Him has a narrow gate. It is not easy to get into the city of God. The crowds might be pouring through the wide entrance, but our Lord's call is to exert serious effort to make into His Kingdom. Grieving over my sin is one of those areas where I need to follow the Church's teaching ever so closely because it will lead to true conversion as St. John Fisher writes:
This remembrance doubtless is the beginning of the sinner's true conversion to almighty God. For the truth is, when he calls to mind (as we have declared) his miserable errors in which he has been wrapped by his continuance in them for a long time, and when he keeps that remembrance continually in mind, he cannot but greatly repent his own foolishness, particularly if he remembers whom he has forsaken and into whose clutches he has fallen, also if he calls to mind how great his loss is and how unprofitable his winning is.
Posted by David at
7:14 AM
|
Comments (0)
|
Our Lord is always looking for fruit from our lives. He wants to see what we are doing with what He has given us. The parable of the master who give his servants money before he leaves for a distant country (Luke 19:11-27) is an example of our Lord's warning us to do well with the gifts He has given us.
We are also reminded of the need to bear fruit in St. Luke's Gospel through the ministry of St. John the Baptist who preached that we "bear fruits that befit repentance" (Luke 3:8). John added that, "every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire" (3:9). This is not an easy message to receive, but John only preached what Jesus later fleshed out in His parables as He headed to Jerusalem right before His Passion.
In fact, as Jesus approached Jerusalem he told the parable of the fig tree (Luke 13:6-9) which seems to be a fulfillment of St. John's warning. In this parable the owner of the vineyard has sought fruit from the fig tree for three years, but he has not found any. He tells the vinedresser to have the tree cut down because "why should it use up ground" (13:7). However, the vinedresser asks that the tree be fertilized and given another year to bear fruit. "If it bears fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down" (13:9). Many commentators note that Israel is considered a fig tree (Hosea 9:10, Jeremiah 8:13), and the Lord is pronouncing a judgment upon Israel's lack of fruit. The Lord has come to Jerusalem three times in his public ministry, and He has not found fruits of repentance and an acceptance of Him as the Messiah. The result is judgment. First, Jesus takes the judgment upon Himself at Calvary, and then Jerusalem is judged in its destruction by the Romans in 70 AD.
When I reflect on this, I think that the additional year which has been given to the fig tree to bear fruit. The Lord, in His mercy, extends the time to for us to bear fruit. Our lives are our opportunity to bear fruits that befit repentance. Every time I fail, I should remember His mercy that He longs for me to repent and bear fruit that indicates my gratitude for His forgiveness.
Finally, we want to know what it is that the Lord would have us to do. St. John the Baptist was asked the same question by the people who came to him and heard that they must bear fruit befitting repentance. He urged them to be generous with what they have, be fair and honest in their work, treat others with respect, and accept their wages without complaint (3:10-14). In other words, he calls them to social justice, integrity, and kindness. Each of us have the opportunity to perform those works each day. We, too, have been given a period of mercy in which we can do works for our Lord that indicate our true repentance. May God grant us the grace to perform them while we have this period of mercy.
Posted by David at
8:29 AM
|
Comments (0)
|
In Fr. Frank Pavone's most recent bi-weekly column, he makes an important argument regarding protecting children in reference to the recent statements by pro-abortion "Catholic" politicians that the Church should not get involved in politics:
Prominent pro-abortion politicians have recently been heard repeating the message, "I don't tell Church leaders what to do, and Church leaders shouldn't tell public officials what to do." This is their considered summary of the "separation of Church and state."
Yet it seems that public officials have indeed told Church leaders what to do as the problems related to child sexual abuse by clergy have been addressed in the last couple of years. And in the course of addressing this problem, public officials are carrying out their duty. After all, they have to protect children, no matter who the abusers are.
The public officials addressing this problem are not telling the Church what to believe, what sacraments to administer, or what prayers and readings belong in the Sunday Mass. All these things and more are left to the proper Church authorities to administer, in a legitimate autonomy and "division of labor."
Yet obviously if Church leaders fail in the protection of innocent life, the state has the right and duty to step in. The state cannot pretend that it is free to ignore these abuses because of "separation of Church and state." Human suffering cannot be buried in abstractions.
The shoe also fits the other foot. While the Church does not make rules for mail delivery, or the delineation of county lines, or the administration of the army, the Church nevertheless does have some business telling the state a thing or two. This is especially true when the state is failing in its duty toward innocent children -- or anyone else -- in the matter of their fundamental human rights. Again, human suffering cannot be buried in abstractions about "separation of Church and state". Both Church and state have the duty to defend human beings, and unless they uphold each other in that common task, neither can properly fulfill it.
People should always have freedom of belief. The truth that the Church proclaims has its own power to attract people to embrace it. Belief is not something to be imposed by law. Yet law must limit what the believer can do. What should we say about someone who kills you because he "doesn't believe" your life is valuable? It is not his
belief that violated the law, but rather his action against you. Wouldn't public officials have to take a stand against
that action, even while upholding the criminal's freedom of belief?
The killing of the unborn by abortion, because some don't believe that life is as valuable as yours or mine, is the most obvious battleground on this point.
A public official recently said that this is not "the Catholic Republic of America." I heartily agree. This is America, proud of its freedom of religion, and equally proud of its protection of human rights. The two can go together, as long as we realize that "separation of Church and state" can never mean that either one looks the other way when
human rights are being violated.
Fr. Pavone exposes the disingenuousness of those who do not want to be told that their personal view is in opposition to the teaching of the Church. These are often the same folks who want to meddle in Church affairs. Indeed, for the pro-abortion "Catholics", they are already interfering in Church affairs by trying to muddy the waters of the clear and consistent teaching of the Church that abortion is immoral. It is the responsibility of the Church to propose the Truth even to those who are obstinate in their opposition to it. It is her responsibility because the Church constantly is called to draw all of us into the fullness of the Truth. May we all have ears to hear.
Click
here for more information about how to receive Fr. Pavone's bi-weekly column.
Posted by David at
7:08 PM
|
Comments (0)
|
