The Pope, the Sinner, and Me

Posted on July 20, 2014 by gpopcak

By: Dr. Greg Bottaro

This is not a response to the media distortions of the recent interview with Pope Francis. I’d rather focus on what Pope Francis actually is saying to me as one of his flock, and admit that maybe there is something here to personally grow from. Second of all, this article is not advocating or in any way considering a “change of church teaching.” If that’s what some readers take away from it, I’d ask them to please read it over.

This has been on my heart to write about for a while, but I must admit, I’ve been a coward. As a Catholic and as a psychologist, I want to add in my two cents to the conversation on homosexuality. This might be one of the single most divisive issues of our immediate time. I have been a coward up until now because this topic is a minefield, and I’m scared of bombs. I say up until now because our Pope has given me an offer I can’t refuse. In his recent interview, Pope Francis gave an example of courage and unyielding tenacity for truth, beauty, and goodness that sparked something in me.

Religion has become for some — myself included — an opportunity for mediocrity in following Jesus. I have a sneaking suspicion that it has been this way for thousands of years. Jesus certainly spoke out pretty vehemently against this sort of mediocrity in his time, and now the Vicar of Jesus is speaking against it now. By mediocrity, I mean to say that religion gives us categories to snugly place ourselves into. It gives us a moral system to fall back on that distinguishes “us” from “them.” Well, for all of us comfortable Christians in the world, Pope Francis just punched us in the gut and knocked the stale air out of our moldy lungs.

“This church with which we should be thinking is the home of all, not a small chapel that can hold only a small group of selected people. We must not reduce the bosom of the universal church to a nest protecting our mediocrity. The church’s pastoral ministry cannot be obsessed with the transmission of a disjointed multitude of doctrines to be imposed insistently.”

Despite some “spiritual” traditions, trends, and movements, the Church is not to be primarily a megaphone on the street corner calling out peoples’ sins. Likewise, members of the Church, the body of Christ, are not to have these megaphones blaring out from our hearts. Mediocrity is a mentality of “us vs. them,” those of us behind the megaphone, and those that are on the other side of it. Pope Francis is telling us that we can’t let church become for us a system of dividing “us” from “them.” What then, is he saying the bosom of the universal church is to be?

“Proclamation in a missionary style focuses on the essentials, on the necessary things: this is also what fascinates and attracts more, what makes the heart burn, as it did for the disciples at Emmaus. We have to find a new balance; otherwise even the moral edifice of the church is likely to fall like a house of cards, losing the freshness and fragrance of the Gospel. The proposal of the Gospel must be more simple, profound, radiant. It is from this proposition that the moral consequences then flow.”

Pope Francis outlines pretty clearly the mission of the Church. We must make a proposition of Jesus to the world. We must propose Love. “From this proposition the moral consequences then flow.”

Pope Francis calls on an image that is extremely important in his interview — the road to Emmaus. What happened at first on the road to Emmaus? The two walking with Jesus did not recognize him. They were the “them.” Did Jesus chastise them, saying, “Idiots, don’t you know who I am?” “Dirty scum, how are you so blind?” No. He walks with them. He speaks with them, as one of them. They don’t feel the need to form coalitions and march in parades to find some form of validation. He validates them. He builds friendship with them and leads them into a true encounter with himself,after which “their hearts burned.”

As a society, we have been so wrong about homosexuals. As a member of the Roman Catholic Church, I can also say that the majority of “faithful” Catholics I have ever known have also been so wrong about homosexuals. I have a question to ask to make my point. As you sit with the discomfort this article may be causing, ask yourself this question:

How does your attitude, belief, and demeanor toward men and women who identify as homosexual compare to your attitude, belief, and demeanor toward men and women who engage in some other mortal sin such as contraception?

How about masturbation?

How about drunkenness?

Let that sink in a bit. How do you treat the person?

I’d especially like to elaborate on this last issue of drunkenness. It astounds me how many Catholic circles consider drunkenness, at least implicitly, as acceptable. Have we not heard Galatians 5:21 before? “Envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” Wow. So it’s ok to get together and drink a few too many with our friends, but being homosexual is the supreme debauchery?

I am not advocating puritanical teetotaling. I enjoy my scotch or wine at the appropriate time. Sometimes it is even me who has too many with my friends and I have to hand the keys over to my wife for the ride home. Yes, I am a sinner. Not in the garment rending, abstract, and safely generalized way, but I commit very specific sins. Somehow there is an appallingly strange mercy for me. If we are to love with the love of Jesus, if we are to be Jesus as members of his body, his Church, we will love men and women who experience, and even act out on, homosexual desires the way we love ourselves or our friends when we know the types of sins we commit.

Now as a follow-up question, if you haven’t thought this already (and kudos if you have), let me ask: Did you realize my first question asked about the sinfulness of those “who identify as homosexual”? Is homosexuality a sin? No, it is not.

First of all, if you do happen to know a person is committing mortal sins such as acting out on their homosexual desires, why in the world is it ok to treat him or her any differently than anyone else you happen to know committing mortal sin, including yourself?

Second of all, homosexuality in itself is not a sin. When you meet someone who is homosexual, you very well might be in the presence of a saint. If someone is living chastely with homosexual desires, he or she is living heroic virtue. Homosexuality is a cross that no heterosexual will ever understand. It is a life called to celibacy without the luxury of discernment. It is potentially the most extreme example of “chastity for the kingdom” that I can imagine. Do you happen to know the interior life of every homosexual?

If they look deep enough, many Catholics might be ashamed of their disposition of heart towards homosexuals. I know I am. Sure, I knew how to say that I “Loved the sinner, hated the sin.” But Pope Francis seems to think such words aren’t enough.

If I’m the only Catholic who had these feelings, so be it. Here I am confessing my sin to the world. As Pope Francis said, “I am a sinner. This is the most accurate definition. It is not a figure of speech, a literary genre. I am a sinner.”

Credit to Dr. Greg Bottaro of CatholicExchange.

Emotional Pornography

Posted on July 20, 2014 by gpopcak

By: Dr. Greg Bottaro

Sex sells. Marketing in our culture is almost exclusively based on sex. We have known this for years, and although we think we are stronger than corporate marketing strategies, we (men) still fall easy prey to GoDaddy super bowl ads and Victoria’s Secret ceiling-high mall pinups. When I say “easy prey,” I don’t mean we all necessarily go home lusting after these pictures and falling into sin, but somehow there is a movement of something in us. That movement of something within us is because we were made by God to be moved! Although the marketing media has no regard for our souls, we have to give them credit at some level for figuring out better than many Christians how to move people. As men though, we have a serious responsibility to learn how to control our desires and direct them in a way that is consistent with what is true, good, and beautiful. This is how we let our God-given desires propel us towards God himself through a life lived virtuously.

Using sex to sell is a form of pornography. Pornography comes from the same word as prostitution, which is the Latin for “price.” Porn uses a person as a marketable good in a transaction. Pornography is evil primarily because it goes against the very nature with which we were created. As John Paul II said, “the person is the kind of good which does not admit of use and cannot be treated as an object of use and as such the means to an end.” There are actually two major problems with pornography. First, as JPII points out, it turns the people involved into objects of use. Second though, pornography presents fantasy as reality. Porn trains its viewers to believe in a version of reality that does not actually exist. Marketers and producers of porn have figured out how to provide instant and exaggerated gratification to the desires of men and women. In reality, true gratification does not come in the same form. This is why pornography is fantasy. In the examples listed above, women are the marketed objects, but men are not the only ones moved by pornography in the media. There are two kinds of pornography rampant in our culture — physical pornography and emotional pornography.

Emotional pornography markets primarily to women and their emotional desires. Music and movies — especially movies — present an idea to a woman that somehow moves something in her. Movies like the Notebook or Twilight resonate with a woman’s desire. The problem with movies like these though is that they present fantasy to woman as reality, very similar to the way physical pornography presents fantasy to a man as reality. You may think you are stronger than corporate marketing strategies, but you still fall easy prey. Somehow there is a movement of something in you. That movement of something within you is because you were made by God to be moved! As women though, you have a serious responsibility to learn how to control your desires and direct them in a way that is consistent with what is true, good, and beautiful.

Women across the board (and yes I am making a huge generalization here) typically feel pretty rotten about physical pornography. Even women who pretend to be ok with it in public because they think that’s what men want still feel deep down that pornography is somehow way off. It presents an unreal version of women, and a type of relationship they would never want to be a part of, because it supports the idea that women exist for men’s physical pleasure.

Men are very often uncomfortable with chick flicks. While it is true thatmany men are just uncomfortable with emotions in general and could learn a lot about them from women, I am going to step out from behind the macho veil and let you women in on a secret. Just as you know that you will never be able to live up to (or down to) the level of those women in porn, we feel deep down that we will never be able to live up to (or down to) the level of those men in the movies you love. These movies present an unreal version of men, and a type of relationship we would never want to be a part of, because they support the idea that men exist for women’s emotional pleasure.

I am not saying Twilight or The Notebook are evil movies in the same way physical pornography is evil. I am simply saying that if you walk away from these movies feeling like your life isn’t that great, your relationship isn’t measuring up, or somehow you won’t be happy until you find a Ryan Gosling character to sweep you off your feet, you might want to consider how chaste you are being. I am also not saying that women are the only ones to fall prey to emotional unchastity (or men to physical unchastity). The physical/emotional distinctions are only concerning the primary ways that sin affects us in our gender differences.

JPII said, “It is the duty of every man to protect the dignity of every woman, and the duty of every woman to protect the dignity of every man.” If a person were being used to create or sustain some emotional pleasure, his or her dignity is not being protected.

Credit to Dr. Greg Bottaro of CatholicExchange.

Scientist Priests & the Thanks the World Owes Them

Posted on July 15, 2014 by gpopcak

By: Fr. George W. Rutler

A rich experience in my life was knowing Father Stanley Jaki, the Benedictine priest and physicist who did much to explain the dependency of modern physical science on Christianity’s perception of the universe. He received the Templeton Prize, a monetary award larger than a Nobel Prize, for explaining how the scientific method issues from the Judeo-Christian concept of a benign and ordered universe.

While priests are dedicated to theology as the “queen of sciences,” some of them have contributed to the material sciences as well. Some days ago Google rightly honored Nicholas Steno whose research in stratigraphy earned him the sobriquet “Father of Geology.” Google did not mention that he was a convert to Catholicism in 1667 and only ceased his research due to pastoral obligations when he became a bishop in 1677. His scientific achievements were not as important as his heroic virtue, for which Pope John Paul II beatified him in 1988.

The scientific lobe of my brain is lax, and buttoning my cassock is a complex challenge, but I enjoy thinking of my fellows in the priestly fraternity who advanced our knowledge of God’s creation. As a student, I practiced the piano on the site where the Franciscan Roger Bacon, Doctor Mirabilis – “Wonderful Teacher,” explored mathematics, optics and astronomy in the thirteenth century. His own teacher is thought to have been Robert Grosseteste, Bishop of Lincoln who gave the basic structure for scientific experimentation. In the sixteenth century, Ignazio Danti, an Italian bishop, made discoveries in engineering, cartography, hydraulics and astronomy. On his heels came a French priest, Marin Mersenne, a friend and fellow student of Descartes. He pioneered attempts at a formula representing all prime numbers and established an international scientific congress. His contemporary, Father Jean-Felix Picard, is known as The Father of Modern Astronomy and was the first to measure accurately the size of our planet.

The nineteenth-century Augustinian abbot Gregor Mendel fathered modern genetics, discovering dominant and recessive genes as a high-school teacher. His contemporary, a missionary priest named Armand David, specialized in zoology, botany, geology and paleontology in China where he discovered, among other things, the Giant Panda. An American son of Belgian immigrants, Father Julius Nieuwland, invented the first synthetic rubber material by first polymerizing acetylene into divinylacetylene. Belgian native Father Georges Lemaitre proposed the Big Bang Theory which he called the First Atomic Moment, and influenced Einstein. Still living is Father Michal Heller of Poland, whose research in general relativity theory and quantum mechanics was recognized, like Father Jaki’s, with a Templeton Prize.

The liturgical season of Ordinary Time witnesses to the creation ordered by our Creator, the Father of all thought: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; and before you came forth out of the womb, I sanctified you” (Jeremiah 1:5).

Credit to Fr. George W. Rutler of CatholicExchange.

Pope John Paul II's Theology of the Body

Posted on July 14, 2014 by gpopcak

By: Anastasia M. Northrop

Freedom, truth, gift, communion, dignity, love, person, meaning: these are all themes which are continually found throughout the writings of Pope John Paul II. They were there even before he became Pope. As Cardinal Karol Wojtyla he was influential in the writing of several documents from Vatican II, not the least of which was Gaudium et Spes – the Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World – from which he never tires of quoting in his many encyclicals and apostolic letters.

“Man is the only creature on earth which God willed for itself, [and he] cannot fully find himself except through a sincere gift of himself.” (Gaudium et Spes 24)

How important it is to live our sexuality in a way which upholds and affirms the other person! Indeed, the true lover will never use another person or treat her as a means to an end.

We must first know the purpose of our existence and what we were created for if we are to live a fully meaningful life. Pope John Paul II explores the purpose of our existence in his Theology of the Body, which consists of 129 general Wednesday audiences delivered by him during the first five years of his pontificate.

Prior to his election as pope, John Paul II wrote a book, Love and Responsibility. In Love and Responsibility Karol Wojty a presents the Catholic Church’s teaching on love and sexuality in a way that makes sense to modern man.

Wojtyla stresses the dignity of the person and shows how important it is to live our sexuality in a way which upholds and affirms the other person. Indeed, the true lover will never use another person or treat her as a means to an end.

In his Theology of the Body John Paul II digs deep into the meaning of being a human person based on Scripture. As a person with a body and soul, made in the image and likeness of God, we find the meaning of life through finding out what it means to image God and what our bodies have to do with it.

The Human Body

What does the human body have to do with all of this? In a world which so often portrays the body as an object for one’s pleasure or as a machine which doesn’t have much to do with our spiritual side, John Paul II again seeks to present the truth as it is found in Scripture.

The body is not some little “add-on” to creation. Rather it is a vital part of who we are as human persons. Why? Because the physical body reveals the spiritual part of the person. For example, you can tell that someone is happy through the smile on his face. Happiness is not a physical, tangible, visible thing, so you need a physical sign to express it.

“Adam and Eve could see…they were called to union and communion”

In the same way, Adam and Eve could see from the difference in their physical bodies (remember that they were naked) that they were called to union and communion — that they were called to LOVE, to give themselves in a total gift to each other, both body and soul, in the most complete way possible for a human being, i.e. sexual union.

This physical union points to and expresses a deeper spiritual union. In the same way that a smile is empty if one is not really happy, sexual union is empty without spiritual union. Not only does their physical communion point to an invisible communion between the man and woman, but it actually shows us that this love, this self-gift, is what we are called to, what we were created for.

John Paul II says that God created our bodies the way He did specifically to show us that we are called to love, that five years of his pontificate. Prior to his election as pope, John Paul II wrote a book, Love and Responsibility. In Love and Responsibility Karol Wojtyla presents the Catholic Church’s teaching on love and sexuality in a way that makes sense to modern man.

This physical union points to and expresses a deeper spiritual union. In the same way that a smile is empty if one is not really happy, sexual union is empty without spiritual union. Not only does their physical communion point to an invisible communion between the man and
woman, but it actually shows us that this love, this self-gift, is what we are called to, what we were created for.

John Paul II says that God created our bodies the way He did specifically to show us that we are called to love, that our reason for existence is to love, to make a gift of ourselves to others. He calls this the “nuptial (or spousal) meaning of the body.” He explains, “The human body includes right from the beginning…the capacity of expressing love, that love in which the person becomes a gift — and by means of this gift — fulfills the meaning of his being and existence.” (TOB Jan 16, 1980) (This pope is not “down on sex”!)

“Through sexual union the body speaks a ‘language’ …this language must be spoken in truth” Perhaps even more surprisingly for some, John Paul II goes on to say that conjugal union itself is meant to be a sign of God’s desire for complete union with us (which is intimate, though not sexual). It is a sign of Christ’s love for his bride the Church.

Living the Theology of the Body

How crucial it is then, that couples live their relationships as they were intended to in order to accurately image to the world God’s eternal plan for mankind. St. Paul instructs, “Husbands, love your wives as Christ loved the Church and gave himself up for her…” He then refers back to the beginning, as Christ does in the Gospels and says, “‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife and the two shall become one flesh.’ This is a great mystery, and I mean in reference to Christ and the Church.” (Eph. 5:25, 31-32)

John Paul II explains that through sexual union the body speaks a “language” and that this language must be spoken in truth. Since the very nature of the conjugal act as designed by God includes both the interpersonal union of the couple as well as the potential for procreation, man and woman cannot contracept their union without violating their dignity as persons and the dignity of the conjugal act itself.

Because of his continual concern for what is truly worthy of man, John Paul II uses the Theology of the Body to further explain the reasons behind Pope Paul VI’s controversial encyclical on contraception, Humanae Vitae: “Man and woman carry on in the language of the body that dialogue which, according to Genesis 2:24,25, had its beginning on the day of creation. This language of the body is something more than mere sexual reaction. As authentic language of the persons, it is subject to the demands of truth, that is, to objective moral norms. Precisely on the level of this language, man and woman reciprocally express themselves in the most profound way possible to them…Man and woman express themselves in the measure of the whole truth of the human person.” (TOB Aug. 22, 1984)

“A Manner Truly Worthy of the Person”

If the procreative aspect of conjugal union is excluded, then that truth of the person and of the act itself is destroyed. On the outside it may look like the man and woman are completely giving themselves to each other, but in reality they are not since they refuse to accept everything about the other, including his or her fertility. On the other hand, exercising self-mastery and promoting respect for each other and the conjugal act, couples are called to practice responsible parenthood and in this way act in a manner truly worthy of the person.

The other way of living out the self-gift to which each and every human person is called is through the vocation of celibacy. The celibate person shows the rest of the world what we are ultimately called to and destined for in heaven: complete union with God. Contrary to what many people think, celibacy is not a repression of one’s sexuality.

Rather, celibate men and women are called to use their sexual energy to make a gift of themselves to others in different ways: in service, in evangelization and spiritual parenthood, to name only a few.

John Paul II knows that living either calling is not easy. It is not even possible without the grace of Christ’s redemption. But, through the power of his death and resurrection, living true purity of heart in relationships is really possible, and not only possible, but necessary!
John Paul II is telling us we cannot let lust weigh us down!

Christ does not condemn us but calls us to purity. “[Man] is called precisely to that supreme value that is love. He is called as a person in the truth of his humanity, therefore also in the truth of his masculinity or femininity, in the truth of his body. He is called in that truth which has been his heritage from the beginning, the heritage of his heart, which is deeper than the sinfulness inherited, deeper than lust… The words of Christ, set in the whole reality of creation and redemption, reactivate that deeper heritage and give it real power in human life.” (TOB Oct. 29, 1980)

Christ appeals to our hearts and calls us to freely choose a life that is in accord with our dignity as persons made in the image and likeness of God! Only in living our true dignity
as men and women created in the image of God will we be truly fulfilled, will we be happy in the deepest possible sense, because this is the life that we were designed and created to live from the beginning.

Credit to Anastasia M. Northrop of MarriageResourceCenter.

God's Favorite Garden

Posted on July 14, 2014 by gpopcak

By: Br. Luke Hoyt, O.P.

Sometimes I wonder: what makes a decorative garden “work”?

Running beneath all the landscaping techniques which escape the average viewer like myself, I think there’s one fundamental feature to aesthetic gardens that succeed: a good garden draws you in. It beckons to you, inviting you to enter.

After all, this is why we make these gardens. Far from serving any utility, we make them for the simple purpose of taking delight in them, for walking through them.

It just so happens that our God seems to be of a similar mind. At the dawn of creation, right after forming man, the first thing he did was make a garden. And then, in between his conversations with man, he strolled about in this garden “in the cool of the day,” delighting in it. (Personally, I always picture God walking through a Japanese garden, along curved bridges over ponds and past lanterns beside rounded bushes….)

But this first garden is not our God’s favorite garden.

His favorite garden is the heart of the Virgin Mary. And as with the first garden, he himself planted this garden of her heart and then walked in its midst. For what is the Immaculate Conception but God’s creation of his finest garden? And what is the Annunciation but God’s coming to stroll in the midst of that garden, finding it even more lovely than the first one?

And he doesn’t stop there. He insists on making each of our hearts fertile places where he can come and labor, sculpting mulch beds, planting tree groves, shaping serpentine ponds — until our hearts are places he can delight in, where he can walk in the cool of the day.

Question, though: is it good news that God chooses to make our hearts fair gardens where he can walk about? Of course it’s good news, but what kind of good news?

It’s the kind of good news that should scare the heck out of us.

I mean, this is the LORD of Hosts. This is the God who, when Moses asked his name, said that he is best named as I AM — pure, unadulterated, unqualified Being. This is the God concerning whom, when the Israelites saw him alighting on Mount Sinai, they told Moses, “You speak to us, and we will hear; but let not God speak to us, lest we die.”

And this Lord wants to sit down and make himself comfortable in us? Can you imagine what this God needs to do to make himself comfortable somewhere? The kinds of gardens that this God fancies are places like the Virgin Mary’s heart — strong and deep enough to take on the suffering and death of the whole world and live to tell about it. The kinds of flowers that this God likes are the kind that have the scent of that love and truth which can demolish kingdoms and push aside oceans. When this God decides he’s made a garden nice enough to take a stroll in, it’s not because it looks like the kind of things we print on our get-well cards — it’s because it has, in an expression of C. S. Lewis, “beauties which pierce like swords or burn like cold iron.”

The degree of change that this demands in each of us is truly terrifying, and many of us are often in the act of running away from this fearsome and glorious Gardener.

But our God likes his gardens. And if only we assent to leaving our gate open (at least a little!), he will come in. And he will get to work. And he will make our heart a garden where he, the LORD of Hosts, can walk in the cool of the day.

Credit to Br. Luke Hoyt, O.P. of CatholicExchange.

Our Simple Mission

Posted on July 14, 2014 by gpopcak

By: Michael Lavigne

With that their eyes were opened and they recognized him, but he vanished from their sight.
Then they said to each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he spoke to us on the way and opened the Scriptures to us?” (Luke 24:31-32)

The Emmaus story is one of my favorite passages from the Gospels and I believe it is one of the more important stories. As with many other passages we can sometimes react to them from an emotive perspective — making our understanding of the passage more about feelings than hearing the lesson that is being presented to us or the challenge that is laid before us to embrace in our lives.

I have often used the Emmaus story to help to teach about the Mass. However, it is also a perfect example of how to live out Jesus’ call for us to “go and make disciples of all nations.(see Matthew 28)” And Jesus, Himself, shows us how to do what He asks of us.

Here is, in simple terms, what he asks of us, in order to share His Good News:

Encounter Others

The first lesson is remembering that this is about encountering people one or two people at a time. Jesus, unrecognized by the disciples, simply begins to walk with them. This is vital in how we are to approach evangelization. Typically we want to wait for people to approach us — to come to the church — to express their interest in becoming Catholic or wanting to go deeper. But this is not reality. It is our responsibility to, with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, join people’s journeys, especially when they are walking in the wrong direction (heard a great point about this during the homily I heard at Mass — the two disciples were walking in the wrong direction, away from Jerusalem, when Jesus joined them). Evangelization requires intentionality — requires a cost — requires us to go out.

Listen

The second lesson is that it is important to listen to the stories of those we do encounter. We have a great story to share with them but in order for us to effectively do so we need to know what their journey has been like. I love how Jesus asks them “What are you talking about?” when he begins to walk with them. They are incredulous at this question — how could you not know what has happened in Jerusalem?!? And, yet, Jesus patiently asks again, “What things?” When you are blessed to have the opportunity to walk with someone you need to love them enough to hear from them before they hear from you.

Share the Good News

The third lesson is be prepared to share the Good News — our story of faith — with them. The emphasis is be prepared! Do you know our story? Do you know the basic Gospel message (kerygma) and are you prepared to share it effectively? Are you capable of offering apologetics (defense) regarding the Church’s teachings in a charitable, yet convincing manner? If not, then you, as a baptized Catholic — as a disciple — have the responsibility to study the faith so that you are ready to teach effectively. Jesus did not hesitate to challenge these two disciples (both of them should have known better after following Him for years…”Oh, how foolish you are!”), but took the time to reteach them all they had already heard through the lens of the victory of Easter. Each person we encounter will have different needs in regards to learning about the faith so be careful to avoid a one size fits all model.

Use Humor

This is a small lesson from the story that I believe often goes unnoticed. “As they approached the village to which they were going, he gave the impression that he was going on farther.” Jesus obviously knew that His teaching, especially in light of His Resurrection, was giving them hope and new life (He is God after all!) and that they would want to spend more time with Him. Yet He makes believe that He is going to keep moving along and they quickly move to invite Him to stay with them (of course as typical men they could not admit the real reason why they wanted Him to stay with them — our hearts our burning within us so please stay with us. Instead they say it is getting dark out — we would hate to see you get hurt or something. Am I the only one who sees this as funny?). Jesus is playing with them and that is a great lesson. We need to be sure not to take ourselves too seriously. Use humor.

The Eucharist

Simple enough — bring people to Jesus’ Real Presence. Just as we, ourselves, need to be anchored in the Eucharist so to do the folks we are walking with need the opportunity to encounter Him at Mass, in Adoration, before the Tabernacle. For every Catholic true conversion will ultimately come about through sacramental grace and especially through falling in love with the Eucharistic Lord. So let Jesus, Himself, do what He promised to do — to be with us always! Invite those you are discipling to join you in attending Mass or spending a few minutes in Adoration. Teach them about this amazing and mysterious gift!

Evangelization, for many, is seen as a daunting task and in many ways it certainly is during these interesting days in our world. However, it is the Church’s mission — it is our mission. And we have a responsibility to answer the call. This is not optional for one who claims to be a disciple of Christ. As always, Christ does not leave us without an answer as to how we can do so. And for all the talks, trainings, books, blogs, etc on the issue of evangelization, it is simpler then we might think — it has been happening for over two thousand years with people from all walks of life. In simple terms: Encounter others; Listen to them; Share the Good News; Use humor; Bring them to Jesus in the Eucharist.

During this beautiful season of Easter I pray that all of us may recommit ourselves to the life-giving work of evangelization — to walking with others and helping them to fall in love with the Savior of the world.

Credit to Michael Lavigne of CatholicExchange.

We Are a Work in Progress

Posted on July 13, 2014 by gpopcak

By: Fr. Ed Broom, OMV

Workshops for teachers, spring training for Baseball players, ongoing courses for professionals, coaching, reviewing, updating, cutting away the dead branches and debris–life demands constant labor to improve, upgrade and perfect. Even more important must be the constant labor at ongoing formation for followers of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. All of us are a work in progress (W.O.P.) an incomplete project, a task that can always be improved.

It is not uncommon for me to meet adults who received a poor catechetical formation at their First Communion, and ever since that day they have had no other spiritual formation until they decided to get married. Upon which they must comply to do a six hour formation class to prepare them for the Sacrament of Marriage, to prepare them to be faithful and loving spouses, to prepare them to be the best of parents. Obviously the church encourages a more complete formation program for its children.

Therefore, here are some practical and concrete steps that we can take to implement an ongoing program of “Permanent Formation”.

1. Spiritual Readings. Good books should be your best friends. They are always available, ready to be opened and read, and when put down they do not get angry, and if not visited for a long period of time they do not become resentful. With the consultation and advice of a good Spiritual Director, formulate a good spiritual reading list. Fr. Thomas Dubay stated that busy people only have time to read the best of books. St Teresa of Avila would not admit women into the Carmelite order who could not read; the reason being, the saint knew how much wonderful and inspiring and educational material could be acquired by good reading! Establish your own library of good catholic books!

2. Spiritual Direction. St. John of the Cross put it bluntly: “He who has himself as a directee has a dummy as a follower.” It is like the blind leading the blind. We all have blind spots that we cannot see, but to others they glare like the noonday sun. Spiritual direction serves to help us to encounter God in our lives, to arrive at self-knowledge, to detect our major spiritual roadblocks, and finally to seek out and find God’s will in our lives. St. Teresa of Avila would have never carried through with the reform of the Carmelites without spiritual direction. St. Faustina Kowalska would have failed miserably to make known the treasures of Divine Mercy without the able assistance of Blessed Michael Sopocko. St. Margaret Mary Alacoque never would have found acceptance of the famous apparitions of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, had it not been for the timely appearance on the scene of the Jesuit, St. Claude de la Colombiere. Divine light often radiates through the human prism of the Spiritual Director!

3. Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius. God raised up St. Ignatius to rescue a world in spiritual decline and spiritual battle. He wrote thousands of letters and anointed with gems of practical counsel and wisdom. The Holy Spirit inspired him to compose the Rules for Spiritual Discernment, the spiritual masterpiece that has proved to be a precious jewel in spirituality to help us to discern the motions or movements of the good spirit and open our hearts to receive and follow them. At the same time, the rules teach us to detect the “Bad vibes” of the enemy so as to reject them quickly, vigorously and constantly so as to arrive at victory and receive one day the crown of glory. Finally, God inspired St. Ignatius to compose the Spiritual Exercises. By doing the Spiritual Exercises and living out this divinely inspired program of spirituality one ascends from a mediocre, confused, apathetic spiritual life, to a vibrant, growing, dynamic relationship with Jesus Christ the King, a life-long pursuit of sanctity of life and an authentic witness to the world of holiness.

4. Sharing the Faith. Personal faith is not lost by sharing it with others. On the contrary, by sharing your faith with others it results in a mutual, double process of enrichment. The one who listens is enlightened and inspired by the spiritual treasure shared and you who give are enriched for giving. Pray for and look for opportunities to share your faith with others. Nobody can give what he does not have! The more spiritual treasures we have, then the more we can give to others.

5. Electronic Media. We live in a world with rapid progress, especially in the realm of the Mass media and the electronic media. The mass media, like any other tool can be used for evil or for good. As for us, we will use it as a means for our own sanctification! When using the internet, find good good Catholic websites–know them, save them and log in to them; this can be a great source of permanent formation! Youtube sermons and other videos–a short spiritual message, maybe only a minute or two–can enlighten us with an insight to console us and shed light on our path the whole day. Podcasts! These can be listened to at home, while cooking or cleaning, on the road on the way to work or in the quiet of one’s room before retiring for the night! Blogs! Tap in to short but “meaty” spiritual topics, which might be on prayer, some virtue you need to practice, some heresy that must be understood and resisted, or some Marian reflection to lift up your mind and heart to “The Mystical Rose” who always points to Jesus as the Way, the Truth and the Life. Her last words recorded were “Do whatever He tells you!”

In conclusion, we are on a spiritual journey to heaven. Ongoing Spiritual formation must be taken seriously. Many distractions can detour us from the purpose of our life, which is to praise God, reverence God, serve God and to save our soul for all eternity!

Jesus was asked what the greatest commandment was and He responded: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your being, with all your strength, and with your entire mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” (Lk. 10: 27).

Credit to Fr. Ed Broom, OMV of CatholicExchange.

On Hearing God Speak

Posted on July 13, 2014 by gpopcak

By: Br. Isaac Augustine Morales, O.P

How do we hear God speak? It’s a common question, especially in the context of discerning one’s vocation. Many people wish God would appear to them in a vision and tell them what to do, or at least send a text message. But while there have been saints who were blessed with such experiences — St. Catherine of Siena, for example, received a vision at an early age, from which point she knew she would consecrate her life to the service of God — for most of us, God speaks in more subtle, mundane ways.

During the novitiate (the first year of Dominican formation), people often asked the novices how we had discerned God’s call to the Dominicans. Often I would use a story to illustrate an important aspect of my discernment (and of discernment in general).

One day a man heard a weather report about a flood that would wipe out his town. Concerned, he got on his knees and began to pray, “Lord, save me from the flood.” A few minutes later, his neighbor drove up in a pickup truck and said, “Bob, get in the truck — the flood’s coming!” But Bob replied, “No, thanks — the Lord is going to save me.”

The waters continued to rise, and Bob moved to the second floor. There he continued to pray, “Lord, save me from the flood.” A rescue boat came by and the men on the boat called out, “Sir, get in the boat, your house is going to be swamped soon.” But Bob replied, “No, thanks — the Lord is going to save me.”

The waters continued to rise, and Bob climbed up on the roof. He was getting nervous now, but unfazed, he continued to entrust himself to the Lord, “Lord, please save me from the flood!” A little later a helicopter came by and they shouted out to Bob, “Get in the helicopter! This is your last chance!” But again Bob said, “No, thanks — the Lord is going to save me.” The helicopter flew away, the waters continued to rise, and Bob, not being a great swimmer, drowned.

When he reached the pearly gates, Bob said to God, “Lord, I asked you over and over again to save me — why didn’t you answer me?” And God replied, “Bob, I sent you a truck, a boat, and a helicopter — what more did you want?”

The point of the story, of course, is that, while God might on occasion speak directly to us, more often He speaks to us through other people. Although for many years I resisted the call to the priesthood, I suspected deep down that this was what God had in store for me, because I would repeatedly get the question, “Are you going to be a priest?” From people who knew me well to complete strangers, everyone seemed to think that I was called to be a priest. Several people even suggested that I look into the Dominicans, sometimes in jest, other times quite seriously.

Gradually I came to realize that if I didn’t at least explore the call, I might one day end up like Bob. In fact, I distinctly recall telling a friend the story and having the sneaking suspicion in the back of my mind that I was, in fact, behaving like Bob. Thankfully, God eventually gave me the grace to overcome my stubbornness, and the rest, as they say, is history.

Though God most often speaks to us through other people, on occasion He can also send us little signs that we’re on the right path. But even these usually come through other people. Early on in my discernment with the Dominicans, I was visiting one of our communities. During the homily the celebrant took the opportunity to talk about discernment, and he used the very same story about the flood to illustrate the importance of relying on others to discern God’s voice.

Although it would be nice to get a message directly from God about what we’re supposed to do, there is a certain fittingness to the way God speaks to us through others. Every vocation has ramifications not only for the person answering the call, but for the community he or she is called to serve, be it the Church in the priesthood and religious life, or a family in the married state. In speaking to us through others – without impinging upon our freedom – God moves us to be instruments of His grace to our brothers and sisters. By daring to answer his summons, united as one in Christ, we grow ever closer to he who is the source of our happiness and joy.

Credit to Br. Isaac Augustine Morales, O.P. of CatholicExchange.

The Great Gift of the Sacraments

Posted on July 11, 2014 by gpopcak

By: Cynthia Trainque

Seven sacraments–seven great gifts of love from God to his Holy Church. Anyone aged 50 and over can easily recall from their Baltimore Catechism: “A sacrament is an outward sign instituted by Christ to impart grace”.

Within the Christian family of believers only Roman Catholics and the various Eastern Orthodox churches have seven sacraments. Most Protestant communities have two – baptism and communion; a few observe only baptism or only communion. While the Latin word for sacrament (Sacramentum) is not in Scripture, its Greek translation is: “Mysterion” (mysteries). They have been entrusted by God to the Church by way of the holy apostles and their successors, the bishops as Paul states in 2 Cor. 4:1 – “Let a man regard us in this manner, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God”. From there, bishops can appoint presbyters (priests) to administer most but not all of the sacraments.

The church groups the seven sacraments into three groups: the Sacraments of Initiation, the Sacraments of Healing and the Sacraments for Ministry. But first, let’s look at the definition of sacraments.

An “outward sign”– physical rites within the Church. Most are imparted by way of the sacred Liturgy. The Sign of the Cross, anointings, blessings and other actions performed by a priest with particular words/prayers.

“Instituted by Christ” – we make the invisible visible by the power of the Holy Spirit.

“To impart grace” – because of the presence of the Holy Spirit in each of the sacraments they do give life-giving grace to those who partake of them.

Here we should carefully note that all sacraments are considered as “Ex Opere Operato” which means that they are efficacious (effective) simply by manner of their being performed and not because of any level of holiness/righteousness by either the priest or by the recipient. A priest who may be only luke-warm hearted in his ministry still administers the sacraments validly because it is God himself who effects the sacraments by means of the priest and does not originate from the priest himself.

The Sacraments of Initiation

Baptism, Eucharist and Confirmation. In Baptism water is poured three times over the head of the candidate. He/she is then anointed with sacred oil and is rendered a member of the “priesthood of all believers” and is thus able to assist in offering the sacred Liturgy with the episcopos/bishop and/or presbyter/priest. Catholics, Eastern Orthodox and many Protestant denominations baptize according to Jesus’ mandate: “In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Mt. 28:19). Some baptize in Jesus’ name only, even while using this same citation of Matthew as well as Acts 19:5.

Baptism leaves an indelible mark upon a person’s soul and can never be undone or repeated. It also forgives sins, according to Acts 2:38, but many Protestant communities reject this even though it is clearly biblical. It also “now saves you” according to the chief apostle himself in 1 Pet. 3:21. In the Catholic Church, in all Eastern Orthodox churches and in most mainline Protestant communities (Anglican, Episcopalian, Lutheran, Methodist, some Presbyterians and Congregationalists) infant baptism is insisted upon unless an adult elects to become a member of that community. Even at that, the various churches accept each other’s baptism if it was according to the Trinitarian formula.

The idea of being baptized as adults (Believers’ Baptism) only came about in the 16th century with the Anabaptists – a term meaning to re-baptize. Amish, Mennonites, the Assembly of God and many others reject infant baptism and thus require adult baptism for all of its members. For their children they use a ceremony called “baby dedication” in imitation of Joseph and Mary bringing Jesus to the temple to dedicate him. Yet, that act was only for first-born sons who opened the womb…not for females or even second, third, fourth-born, etc. sons because the father had to declare “This is my first-born son of this wife” (see Ex. 13:13-16 and Num 3:45-47).

In the Old Testament it was God himself who decreed that all male children be circumcised at the age of eight days old even though clearly they are incapable of choosing it for themselves; it was important, though, for circumcision made one a member of the sacred covenant with God (Note: circumcision does not make a person Jewish…they are born Jewish or convert into the faith). It was unheard of in the days of Jesus and the early Church (and for 1500+ years) for a person to choose his/her own faith because women and children were seen as mere possessions and incapable of deciding when they wanted to be baptized. It is the primary reason entire households were baptized together. Even though Jesus himself was baptized as an adult, he was not baptized into anything. Nor did he need baptism – his holy presence in the water blessed the action of baptism and fulfilled the baptism of John by bringing it to a new level.

Confirmation

This sacrament completes baptism and it is the occasion when the baptized are able to definitively choose the Church for themselves. Like Baptism it also leaves an indelible mark on one’s soul that cannot be undone. The seven-fold gifts of the Holy Spirit are given at Confirmation: fear of the Lord, piety, knowledge, understanding, counsel, wisdom and fortitude. The Bishop confirms each candidate individually with the same nine words “Be sealed with the gifts of the Holy Spirit”. Why is a Bishop the one who confirms? In the early Church the Bishop administered all the sacraments as well as offered the weekly Mass. However, the Church grew very quickly both in size and geographically making it impossible for him to cover everything.

The saying of Mass and administering baptism was given over to the priests who served within the priesthood of each individual Bishop but because Confirmation is the sacrament that completes the initiation of a candidate into the Church it is still reserved to the Bishop. Local pastors may Confirm at the Easter Vigil (again, for sheer numbers) but pastors who receive people into the church outside of the vigil must have the Bishop’s expressed permission. For more on Confirmation go here:http://catholiceducation.org/articles/religion/re0451.html

The Holy Eucharist

Food of all foods, Bread of all breads. I have covered this Holy Sacrament in my second essay of this series here.

The Sacraments of Healing

The Sacrament of Reconciliation (Confession) and the Anointing of the Sick. About Confession the question is often asked, “Why confess your sins to a priest…why not just go to God?” One reason is for humility and not an act of presumption that God has forgiven the sin(s). Many Protestants who go direct to God oftentimes admit to being unsure as to whether God has truly forgiven their sins…or even heard their request for forgiveness. While Jesus did say to the apostles that “Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them” (Jn 20:23) many Protestants seem to be unaware that Jesus also said “whose sins you retain are retained”.

In order for them to be forgiven or retained they must be heard. Thus three things are necessary before the priest can give absolution: true repentance of sin(s), a firm intention to “avoid the near occasion of sin” (Act of Contrition) and a form of penance. The other thing about confessing through a priest is that St. Paul makes clear in 1 Cor. 12:25-26 that “if one part of the body hurts, every other part hurts and is involved in the healing”. This is also true spiritually. Therefore sin not only affects our relationship with God but with others as well.

When Jesus appeared to his apostles and spoke to them about forgiving and retaining sin he first breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit”. Outside of placing the breath of life into mankind (Gen. 2:7), it is the only time that Jesus breathed on the apostles.

And isn’t there really only one kind of sin rather than the idea of mortal sin? Why differentiate? We do so because the apostle John said so: “If anyone sees his brother sinning, if the sin is not deadly, he should pray to God and he will give him life. This is only for those whose sin is not deadly. There is such a thing as deadly sin, about which I do not say that you should pray.All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that is not deadly” (1 Jn 5:16-17). Stealing twenty dollars from someone’s purse cannot be elevated to the level of murder…nor can murder be equated to the level of stealing twenty dollars.

The Sacrament of the Sick

“Is anyone among you suffering? He should pray. Is anyone among you sick? He should summon the presbyters of the church, and they should pray over him and anoint [him] with oil in the name of the Lord,and the prayer of faith will save the sick person, and the Lord will raise him up. If he has committed any sins, he will be forgiven” (James 5:13-15). How good it is that this great sacrament exists. Formerly called Extreme Unction because it was the last of four sacraments that use the oil of anointing (Baptism, Confirmation and Holy Orders are the other three), it is now administered to those who are seriously ill or facing surgery and no longer reserved for a person who is very close to death. Therefore it is possible for a person to receive this anointing more than once in life. Incorporated in this sacrament is the sacrament of reconciliation – therefore it is one of sacraments reserved to the priest. The others are Confirmation (unless it is the Easter Vigil or the priest has special permission from the Bishop), the Sacrament of Reconciliation, and Holy Orders.

Holy Orders are the second level of the three ordained functions within the ministry of Jesus Christ. The first level is ordination to the Diaconate (from Diakonos/Diakonoz), meaning one who serves. Deacons may not hear Confessions nor confect the Holy Eucharist. During the sacred Liturgy his function is as minister of the cup (chalice). Permanent deacons may be married–but the marriage must come first. If his wife dies, he may ask to enter into the priesthood but he must begin anew his seminary training.

The third level of sacred ministry is that of Bishop (from Episkopos/Episkopoz), which loosely means overseer. I say “loosely” because his role is so much more. His is the fullness of the priesthood…he is truly Vicar of Christ according to Lumen Gentium #27. All priests must be ordained by a bishop; all bishops must be ordained by three bishops. For an eye-opening experience on the continuity of the Church in terms of Episcopal lineage/apostolic succession, go to this site, and find your bishop’s name. Read who consecrated him and then follow the line backwards…all the way to the 1500â€²s–likely when formal records were first kept. Even today 95% of priests and bishops (even Pope Francis) trace their apostolic heritage through Cardinal Rebiba. His was a time of great battles amongst the various Italian states so it is no surprise that records prior to him are scant, if any.

The second level of sacred ministry is the priesthood (from Presbyteros/Presbutepoz), meaning elder or priest. Priests are “ordained for sacrifice”–a term all Protestants took out of their ordination rites many years ago because they do not believe that the Eucharist is a sacrifice…they believe it to be symbolic only.

Sacred ordination is one of the three sacraments that leaves an indelible mark on the priest’s soul (the other two are Baptism and Confirmation). He is, according to the rite of ordination a “priest forever”.

When priests are ordained, they marry their cherished spouse the Church in imitation of Jesus Christ who laid down his life for her. Through that marriage they infuse life into the Church which the faithful lovingly receive, nurture within and bring forth to new life among God’s holy people and for the salvation of all the world. It is the reason he remains celibate–his bride is the Holy Catholic Church. In union with Jesus and by the power of the Holy Spirit he makes Jesus truly present–Body, Blood, soul and divinity–at each and every Mass that he says. Jesus himself affirmed celibacy after Peter complained about giving up everything to follow Jesus. Jesus’ reply to Peter was that there was “no man who has left house or wife or brothers or parents or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God” (Lk 18:29) who would go unrewarded. Although Peter clearly was married at the time Jesus called him to follow him, (Jesus had healed Peter’s mother-in-law)…Peter’s mother-in-law would not cease to be his mother-in-law because he did not divorce her–but only set his sights and heart on the kingdom of heaven.

Jesus further affirms celibacy when he tells his apostles that “there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven” (Mt. 19:12) while also stating that “not all men can receive this precept, but only those to whom it is given”. Therefore celibacy is a gift.

Not so long ago my family’s Assembly of God community had five pastors which meant salaries to take care of five wives, many children, five mortgages, cars, college tuitions, etc. When the time came for them to search for a new head pastor it was determined that his family would always come first, so in times of family crisis the pastor would need to break church engagements to take care of a spouse, child, or in-law. His “interests are divided” (1 Cor. 7:32). On the other hand, when a priest in any diocese dies, the bishop is free to quickly send another priest to take his place without it being a cause of concern or hardship for any wife, child(ren) or mortgage.

Some Protestants make the claim that priesthood is no longer necessary but it was never done away with. Paul speaks of his “priestly service of the gospel” in his Letter to the Romans in 15:16. All priests serve in the one priesthood of Jesus Christ and not something outside of it. Valid words as said by Jesus and valid matter–”wheat alone” (Canon Law #924, ¶2) for the hosts and “natural wine”–must be used. Most Protestants use grape juice and one or two faith communities use water. For a priest to use hosts made of rice or other grain/seed is to make communion invalid; indeed nothing at all happens…no transubstantiation. It simply remains as rice and does not become the Precious Body of Jesus.

Holy Matrimony is the sacred act by which one man and one woman enter into a sacred covenant in order to become co-creators with God. They, too, bring forth new life for that is what the relationship is all about. In imitation of God who infuses life into all things and a priest who mystically infuses life into the Church, so it is the male–the father–who implants life into the body of the woman who receives that life, nurtures it within and brings it forth. This is why we address God as “Father” for from him all things have their origin. In human reproduction, too, it is through the male that all of life has its origin. He then is also called “Father”.

The roles of male and female, of course, are different…but complimentary. Two males cannot give life one to another and two women cannot receive life one from another. For there to be new life which springs forth from that deep and intimate union there must be one of each. Jesus himself stated that the two–male and female–become “one flesh”.

Marriage is meant to be for “the good of the spouses and the procreation and education of children” (Canon Law #1055). Marriage is so important that “It is strongly recommended that those to be married approach the sacraments of penance and the Most Holy Eucharist so that they may fruitfully receive the sacrament of marriage” (Canon Law 1065, ¶2). It is only the Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Churches that see marriage as a sacrament. No Protestant community does.

All dioceses have forms they use as part of the interview process/journey with the couple. Two of the most important questions that it asks are these:

“The Catholic church teaches that marriage is a permanent union to be entered without reservation or intention of divorce. Do you intend the marriage to be such a marriage?”

“The Catholic Church teaches that persons entering marriage must mutually exchange the right to have children of this union (italics mine). Do you intend to give your spouse this right?”

Indeed, that second question comes straight from Sacred Scripture: “The husband should fulfill his conjugal duty toward his wife, and likewise the wife toward her husband. A wife does not have authority over her own body, but rather her husband, and similarly a husband does not have authority over his own body, but rather his wife. Do not deprive each other…” (1 Cor. 7:3-4).

All men and women are made in the “image and likeness” (Gen. 1:26) of God; therefore all people are holy. This is why the Church in her great wisdom insists that the sacred covenant of marriage takes place before the procreation of children. It is the same with a priest. He must be validly ordained by a bishop before he is able to say Mass and to make Jesus present in the Eucharist. A couple must be validly married with a solemn blessing by the priest before a sacred act–the pro-creation of children.

Because all sacraments are for the people of God and not just for the ones receiving them (the marriage will be lived out in the community and in the Church and not just in the home) then the wedding must take place in a church and not in Aunt Martha’s rose garden or onboard ship.

In the original Greek, the term for “gift” that Paul uses in speaking of marriage is Charisma/Carisma–making it a spiritual gift of the Holy Spirit, just as priesthood is (see 1 Cor. 7:7) . Therefore both Holy Orders and Holy Matrimony give powerful testimony to our loving God who gives such gifts.

Credit to Cynthia Trainque of CatholicExchange.

Faith in the Cyber Age

Posted on July 11, 2014 by gpopcak

By: Dr. Rocco Leonard Martino

“Laboratories are useful, but reflection for us must always start from experience.”

-Pope Francis I, August, 2013 interview with Civilta Cattolica

This is the Cyber Age. The world population of cell phones, tablets, and laptops exceeds that of people. We can see and be seen, hear and be heard, communicate with anyone anywhere, and all in the flick of an eyebrow. We can span the world in hours, send satellites to the far reaches of the Universe, and challenge the average life span with modern medicine. Humanity reigns supreme in command. The notion of God is not a factor in the daily life of many. Is faith, then, and belief in a deity an anachronistic throwback to the time when humans feared the elements, seeking to appease the unknown with supplication and sacrifice? Is faith necessary in the Cyber Age, or is it a relic of the myths and terrors of the past?

Think for a moment. Do we need faith in anything? Of course we do. We exercise great faith every time we flick an electric light switch, fly in an airplane, cross a bridge, or cross a street on a ‘walk’ signal. Faith is a common commodity as we use the systems created for us and by us in our everyday existence. Faith in such systems us even greater in the Cyber Age as we depend more and more on others for all the things we need to live – shelter, food, heat, light, and on and on. Much if it we cannot understand, or even see. For example, most people use cell phones. Just exactly how do they work? What if they stop working? What could cause that? What can we do about it?

Or consider turning in a light switch. What if it doesn’t work? What if there is no power? We have faith that there will be power, and if not, that it will be fixed. On what basis do we have such faith? Essentially, from our experience in the past, on our understanding of the systems in place to provide power, and on our accumulated knowledge of how to make such systems work. In fact, it isn’t so much faith, as confidence and knowledge that power will be available when we push the “on” switch.

Consider another example. We walk or drive across a bridge. We have faith that the bridge will not collapse. Why? Because we have accumulated knowledge and experience in how to build bridges that stay up and support the loads upon them. Once again it is confidence and knowledge developed over significant periods of time that we know how to build safe bridges.

As a final example, consider the new darling of science and engineering, nano bodies. These are so small it takes an electron microscope to see them. We can make nano bodies that are cubes with a side that opens and closes on a electronic signal. These cubes can be filled with medication, and the nano bodies can be implanted in a specific location of the body, where the gates will open and the medication will be released. None of this can be seen. We can measure the effects, but we must have confidence – or faith – that what we believe is happening in truth does happen.

We can go on and on with countless examples in every walk of life today where we place great faith in the performance of systems that we are confident were properly designed, built, and implemented. In fact, we have such faith in all the products and systems of the Cyber Age.

Now consider the existence of God. We are told there is a God, that that God created the universe, and that we are creatures of that God. Yet that God cannot be seen. But we can see the effects if an unknown and invisible force created the universe. The evidence is all around us if we are open to it.

The universe exists. Where did it come from? When was it formed? These are two simple questions. It’s highly improbable that it all came from nothing. Then where did the mass or material that makes up the universe come from? We know that mass and energy are interchangeable. Einstein’s famous formula says it is so.

E=MC², where C is the speed of light, which we believe is a constant. Even if it is not, there is still the Mass-Energy Relationship. We have many proofs that such a relationship exists. Nuclear energy is the living proof of such a relationship. In that example, a radioactive mass is converted into energy. The same science tells us that energy can create mass. Hence an infinite source of energy could have created all the mass that makes up the universe. That energy source existed before the universe. That energy source is beyond all the natural laws of science as we can logically deduce them. That energy source is beyond natural, or supernatural. We label it God. We can have confidence in this deduction because we can see the universe all about us.

When?

Our scientific and mathematical observations and calculations say billions of years ago. Then the energy force existed before then. Where did it come from? The answer lies outside the realm of our knowledge and experience. It is outside nature. Once again, it is what we would call supernatural. We have called it God!

We don’t know anything about this supernatural force except to logically determine what its attributes are from what we know.

Our scientific findings, and our mathematical logic allow us to see the relationship between mass and energy, and the derivation of one from the other and vice-versa. We can demonstrate that repetitively, as we have and do with nuclear power. We can have confidence, or faith, in that scientific finding. The same principles of observation, mathematical reasoning, and deductive logic have led to the determination of the existence of God before the universe, and before we measure time. We can have confidence, or faith, then, in the existence of God.

This is Faith in the Cyber Age. The scientific process that led to the creation of the Cyber Age can be used to justify our confidence or faith in the tenets and creed of our religious belief. Faith is neither a stranger nor unnecessary in the Cyber Age.

Credit to Dr. Rocco Leonard Martino of CatholicExchange.