Catholicism Is a Way of Life.
To be Catholic is a way of life. It is a constant uphill journey, guided by the Bride of Christ towards Christian perfection. That Christian perfection that is sought is sainthood; we are all called to be saints, but in order for this to be accomplished, we must embrace the sweet yoke of Christ and struggle forward.
In this age, we are all too often faced with those who proclaim themselves Catholic, yet disregard the Church’s teachings on morality, ethics and on sin. They believe that they themselves have some divine privilege to alter these unchanging teachings because society has shunned God, because they believe that “they are the Church”, but if this were true, they could do the Sacraments without a priest. Doesn’t quite work now, does it? With their belief, they negatively comment on the Pope, the magisterium, and the teachings of Christ. They adhere to modernist principles, disregarding the writings and warnings of the popes and saints, and put their trust in man. Yet, what they fail to realize is that Catholicism is about submission and humility to the will of God and faith in His Holy Church. Either one believes the holy truths of the Catholic Church or they do not, but there are no ways around this. A person cannot pick and choose what teachings are applicable to them and which are not.
In the wake of the recent charges against the Sovereign Pontiff, every kind of foul excrement has spilled forth from the mouths of people, even people who call themselves Catholic, and with these putrid comments have comments again risen about the Church’s teachings on celibacy, ordination of women, and even in the United States comments about the bishops not being in touch with people and praising dissident nuns. However, the fact remains that these things will not change because these are fundamental truths of the Church. The bishops will stand up against legislation which will cause the death of the innocent, women will not be ordained because it is in scripture and part of our sacred tradition, and priests will remain celibate as this is also founded in scripture and tradition. The bottom line is that these institutions which I have mentioned have not failed us in close to 2,000 years, and society has not changed so much that these things are so irrelevant; rather, it is that people are quick to cast God their sight and use religion as only a means to an end. God has become a means by which to gain things and once something is acquired He is forgotten about if He is even remembered at all to begin with. People are idolizing their possessions, their careers, their goals and concupiscence and will manipulate their interpretation of God to fit their wants and needs, instead of the other way around. As a result, they are casting off the sweet yoke of Christ to serve a different master.
A person cannot serve two masters. You cannot serve mammon and God; one of them must go. There are a great number of people who are saying yes I serve you Lord with their lips, but their actions say no Lord, I will not serve Thee. The Lord is served by following His precepts, His laws, His gospel, and all of which are dispensed by Bride of Christ, Holy Mother Church; therefore, a Catholic ought to submit to the teaching authority of the Church. To attack Holy Mother Church is to attack God, and often the reason that a person will attack God is that they are prideful. They wish their will to be done and not His. They desire something which is forbidden to them and the only way they can see fit to get it is to make others partake in their sinful behaviour.
Again, we mustn’t forget that we are all called to be saints, and saints submit to the will of God. They mortify themselves, deny themselves and in this they reach holiness. They did not berate the teachings of the Church nor did they defame the Papacy. Pride and arrogance do nothing but hinder this process and lead one down the path which Lucifer took. Therefore, those Catholic who openly defame Catholic teachings and traditions are reminded to look at the blessed saints who existed before you as an example, and to recall that the Church is the deposit of faith handed by Jesus Christ and we are called to live a holy and honourable life.
We are all called to love and serve the Church, but when you transgress against her teachings and against the moral codes of God, defying them and redefining them, you put yourself in the position as a heretic. As a Catholic, either you believe all the sacred truths of the Church, or you do not. There is no half way, but for goodness sake if you are Catholic start living the faith and stop criticizing the Church. If you want to help the church, pray for its priests and religious. Pray for your fellow brethren and pray especially for the Pope. Have faith in God and in His Church. Be Catholic in thought, word and deed. Embrace the sweet yoke of Christ once again; stop making excuses to thrust it off from your neck.
Pax tecum
In this age, we are all too often faced with those who proclaim themselves Catholic, yet disregard the Church’s teachings on morality, ethics and on sin. They believe that they themselves have some divine privilege to alter these unchanging teachings because society has shunned God, because they believe that “they are the Church”, but if this were true, they could do the Sacraments without a priest. Doesn’t quite work now, does it? With their belief, they negatively comment on the Pope, the magisterium, and the teachings of Christ. They adhere to modernist principles, disregarding the writings and warnings of the popes and saints, and put their trust in man. Yet, what they fail to realize is that Catholicism is about submission and humility to the will of God and faith in His Holy Church. Either one believes the holy truths of the Catholic Church or they do not, but there are no ways around this. A person cannot pick and choose what teachings are applicable to them and which are not.
In the wake of the recent charges against the Sovereign Pontiff, every kind of foul excrement has spilled forth from the mouths of people, even people who call themselves Catholic, and with these putrid comments have comments again risen about the Church’s teachings on celibacy, ordination of women, and even in the United States comments about the bishops not being in touch with people and praising dissident nuns. However, the fact remains that these things will not change because these are fundamental truths of the Church. The bishops will stand up against legislation which will cause the death of the innocent, women will not be ordained because it is in scripture and part of our sacred tradition, and priests will remain celibate as this is also founded in scripture and tradition. The bottom line is that these institutions which I have mentioned have not failed us in close to 2,000 years, and society has not changed so much that these things are so irrelevant; rather, it is that people are quick to cast God their sight and use religion as only a means to an end. God has become a means by which to gain things and once something is acquired He is forgotten about if He is even remembered at all to begin with. People are idolizing their possessions, their careers, their goals and concupiscence and will manipulate their interpretation of God to fit their wants and needs, instead of the other way around. As a result, they are casting off the sweet yoke of Christ to serve a different master.
A person cannot serve two masters. You cannot serve mammon and God; one of them must go. There are a great number of people who are saying yes I serve you Lord with their lips, but their actions say no Lord, I will not serve Thee. The Lord is served by following His precepts, His laws, His gospel, and all of which are dispensed by Bride of Christ, Holy Mother Church; therefore, a Catholic ought to submit to the teaching authority of the Church. To attack Holy Mother Church is to attack God, and often the reason that a person will attack God is that they are prideful. They wish their will to be done and not His. They desire something which is forbidden to them and the only way they can see fit to get it is to make others partake in their sinful behaviour.
Again, we mustn’t forget that we are all called to be saints, and saints submit to the will of God. They mortify themselves, deny themselves and in this they reach holiness. They did not berate the teachings of the Church nor did they defame the Papacy. Pride and arrogance do nothing but hinder this process and lead one down the path which Lucifer took. Therefore, those Catholic who openly defame Catholic teachings and traditions are reminded to look at the blessed saints who existed before you as an example, and to recall that the Church is the deposit of faith handed by Jesus Christ and we are called to live a holy and honourable life.
We are all called to love and serve the Church, but when you transgress against her teachings and against the moral codes of God, defying them and redefining them, you put yourself in the position as a heretic. As a Catholic, either you believe all the sacred truths of the Church, or you do not. There is no half way, but for goodness sake if you are Catholic start living the faith and stop criticizing the Church. If you want to help the church, pray for its priests and religious. Pray for your fellow brethren and pray especially for the Pope. Have faith in God and in His Church. Be Catholic in thought, word and deed. Embrace the sweet yoke of Christ once again; stop making excuses to thrust it off from your neck.
Pax tecum
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