Catholic Church

Humane Vitae and the Value of Self-Discipline

If you’ve done any type of sports or exercise, you probably know the term no pain, no gain. All athletes must push themselves hard to obtain victory. Muscles only grow when they are challenged. Your heart needs a little bit of stress from cardiovascular activity to function its best. It’s just the way our bodies are designed to function — you need to periodically exert yourself to stay healthy.

Much like how we have to exercise our muscles, we also have to exercise our souls. Here’s another slogan you’ve probably heard — use it or lose it. But what does it mean to exercise and use your soul? Using your soul means feeding yourself with grace by practicing virtue. Is that easy? No, of course not. But much like how our bodies are designed to function best by stressing it a bit with exercise, our souls are at their best when we challenge ourselves by practicing virtues and avoiding temptations. Sounds hard right? The good news is that we’re not alone in this challenge.

The Catholic Church is a great spiritual fitness instructor. She has challenged people to work harder at developing their spiritual muscles. We may often want to quit when life gets challenging and temptations mount. But the Church is like that coach telling you, “you can do this!” Or, “just one more set!” The Church has never allowed people to cheat and take an easy way out of a difficult situation if doing so ultimately harms their spiritual state. There’s no, “you’ve gone to enough Masses” or “sure, commit a little sin; you’ve earned it.” The Church sets a high bar for our spiritual health understanding that it will be challenging. But it doesn’t veer away from teaching what is right just because many people find that path difficult and fail to live up to God’s expectations. The Church knows that it’s within everyone’s ability to lead a spiritually healthy lifestyle. You just have to make the effort.

Humanae Vitae

This Church’s mindset of uncompromising spiritual living is seen in the 1968 encyclical, Humanae Vitae, which we celebrated its 50th anniversary this past July. Many people, when they hear about Humanae Vitae, they immediately think, “Oh, that’s that document that is against artificial contraception.” But that’s like saying football is that sport where everyone just lines up and falls down. Sure, the Church’s position against artificial contraception is a core teaching of that document. But there’s so much more to it.

Humanae Vitae puts a challenge before all of us. It asks us to put the needs of our soul first in our lives even when recent inventions and social conventions make it seem like we don’t have to. Just because the birth control pill exists, abortion is legal in many countries, and pornography is readily available doesn’t make them good or healthy. Humanae Vitae wants us to realize that a life of immediate gratification is not necessarily happier because we don’t grow spiritually in accordance with God’s design. God’s design requires us to challenge ourselves to stay spiritually healthy. Consider this excerpt from Humanae Vitae about self-discipline and how it leads to “spiritual blessings.”

Self-discipline of this kind is a shining witness to the chastity of husband and wife and, far from being a hindrance to their love of one another, transforms it by giving it a more truly human character. And if this self-discipline does demand that they persevere in their purpose and efforts, it has at the same time the salutary effect of enabling husband and wife to develop to their personalities and to be enriched with spiritual blessings.
From Humanae Vitae, Section 21

The Rosary Connection

The whole Rosary is an exercise in practicing virtue and growing spiritually by challenging yourself. It’s not an easy prayer. It’s relatively long and repetitive. It’s tiring to say it every day, especially when it’s done in a meditative manner. But, the Rosary is a great prayer to tell God that you want to spend time with Him despite your access to various forms of entertainment. We tell Mary that we’ll pray Her Rosary because we believe that it’s one of the best ways to build grace.

There are so many Rosary mysteries that center around the theme of self-discipline. The one I’ll choose to mention is the Second Joyful Mystery, The Visitation. You really have to give Mary credit for traveling and helping Her cousin Elizabeth when She was pregnant. No one would have faulted Mary for cloistering Herself during Her pregnancy given Her circumstances. But She knew that was not what God was calling Her to do. And that is the core of many Church teachings — true happiness comes when we do God’s Will even when it is difficult or inconvenient. That is how we grow and stay spiritually fit.

Mary had a choice — does She try to bend God’s Will around Her desires or challenge Herself to follow the path as God designed? She’s our Heavenly Queen for a reason — She uncompromisingly chose to obey God’s Will in Her life. How about you? Are you growing spiritually by challenging yourself to follow God’s plan or are you feeding yourself spiritual junk food through sin and vice?

Coping with the Church Scandal One Rosary Bead at a Time

Have you read the book or seen the movie, The Martian? It’s a story that takes place in the future where a man is stranded on Mars after his crew leaves believing he is dead. In this story, the stranded scientist, Mark Watney, overcomes all sorts of challenges to stay alive. It’s one of those stories where everything that can go wrong does go wrong — storms, failed equipment, communication issues, etc. But he just works each problem as it came along to survive just one more day.

I think the Church is in a similar situation — everything that seems like it can go wrong is going wrong regarding the abuse scandal and accusations of coverups going up to the pope himself. The Church is in uncharted territory right now. We have a retired pope who may have known something about the Cardinals’ abuses who is silent on the matter. We have a sitting pope who is remaining silent. We have all sorts of insider leaks pointing to spiritual rot at high levels. It’s enough to make the strongest of us doubt that the Church will come out of this in a better state.

As individuals, we can’t do much regarding the Church scandals inside the Vatican. But like Mark Watney facing countless setbacks trying to survive on Mars, we will also face setbacks in the coming months as more news comes out. The key is not to get overwhelmed and abandon those who need our prayers the most. We can’t make this a “Vatican-only” issue. It’s a problem that all the faithful need to do our part. We just need to take each day in turn and live the best Christian example we can.

Charlie Johnston puts it well in his blog, A Sign of Hope, when he talked about the need to deal with reality before us, not how we want or expect it to be:

You are going to fail at some things, you are going to be wrong about some things, some of your cherished certainties are going to fall. Your faith is dependent on none of these things and your duty is not suspended because of your errors. If your faith is dependent on your certainty that you have it all figured out, it is just a subtle form of pride – and you know what pride goeth before. Follow the example of King David who, after he sinned grievously of his own fault, got up again at the behest of the prophet and lived his duty, even so. You will fail, you will err, you will sin of your own fault. God knows all of this. He waits to see whether, after each failure, you will get up and start again, humbly living your duty with steadfast resolve even though your fault is ever before you – thus trusting to Him, and not to your own virtue.

Charlie’s words remind me of the Fourth Sorrowful Mystery of the Rosary, Jesus Carries His Cross. Jesus fell multiple times under the cross. Each time He resolved to get back up again and do God’s Will. He fell under the weight of sin too, our sins. But Jesus found the strength to not get discouraged about the seemingly hopeless situation He was in and did not give up. His will to follow through with God’s plan was greater than the pain He felt. Jesus got back up and completed God’s work one painful step at a time.

And so we too, are called to keep going and live our Catholic faith. It will be difficult at times when we hear about what is happening inside the Vatican. But, like I said in my previous article, our faith isn’t dependent on the virtue of men. It lies on the power and virtue of God Himself. Pray the Rosary and imagine each bead being one slow (sometimes painful) step out of the darkness and into God’s grace.

The Archbishop of San Francisco wrote a letter about the Church scandal. In it, he outlines a 3-step plan to keep us moving forward and repair the damage caused by the Church hierarchy. He asks for:

Praying the rosary daily – and for families, to pray the rosary as a family at least once a week;
Practicing Friday penance by abstaining from eating meat and one other additional act of fasting (e.g., another form of food or drink, or skipping a meal);
Spending one hour of adoration before the Blessed Sacrament at least once a week

The Pope’s August 2018 Intention — The Treasure of Families

Take a look at the news and ask yourself, do politicians generally support laws that promote or limit family freedoms? What importance do current laws and legal rulings place on traditional family structures? Think about rulings trying to redefine marriage, the limiting of rights parents have over how to best raise their kids, and just the overall societal devaluing of marriage’s role in promoting a stable, peaceful, and strong society.

In that light, here is Pope Francis’ intention for August 2018:

Universal – The Treasure of Families

That any far-reaching decisions of economists and politicians may protect the family as one of the treasures of humanity.

I think it’s obvious that governments in general, and individual politicians specifically, are acting increasingly more hostile to the traditional family ideal. Much of it comes from politicians knowing that people need to be part of a close-knit unit. But unfortunately for politicians, the original close-knit unit, the family, acts as a political ideological wall. It acts like a wall because parents can act as a political filter and are usually a much closer role model for their kids. But if politicians can chip away or tear down that wall, they know that people will seek the guidance from another community, one where the politicians wield more control — the government.

Politicians are human and have human weaknesses. Many are greedy and seek increases in political power. When they obtain that power, they want to keep it and grow it. That endeavor becomes easier when they have more control over the population. One such lever to increase control is to reduce the influence of a mom and dad. In other words, as the independence of the family goes down, the influence of the government increases because it fills that decision-making, rule-enforcing vacuum.

Once again, we have the Catholic faith taking the now counter-cultural view of promoting the value of the traditional family. In a world where there is a separation of church and state or an open hostility towards religion, then where else but the family will people learn and love God? When Pope Francis asks us to pray for the protection of the family, he does so to our benefit and ultimate happiness. It’s through the family that parents pass their love of God and the importance of faith to their children. It’s that love of God and reliance on Him and His grace that people find strength and motivation to not only endure life’s challenges but prosper and find a meaningful peace.

The Rosary Connection

The Fourth Joyful Mystery, The Presentation in the Temple, is a wonderful Rosary mystery to reflect on the value of family. In this mystery, Mary and Joseph impress the importance and value of living their faith and passing on those traditions to Jesus. I find it interesting that of all the events in the Gospel, this one made the cut of being worthy of a Rosary mystery. Our Mother Mary obviously wants us to understand the importance of family and sharing in God’s love with one another. Following the pope’s intention, let’s remember to pray for politicians, economists, and employers as well in respecting the importance of family.

Remember, the pope is asking us to pray for a group of people (politicians) that are currently skewing in an anti-family direction. We are essentially praying for a change of hardened hearts. Pray for the people in power when you pray the Third Luminous Mystery of the Rosary, Jesus’ Proclamation of the Kingdom of Heaven and the Call to Conversion. Remember that Jesus’ message wasn’t always well received, especially by the authorities in the Sanhedrin because it challenged their power. So too, does a free and independent family challenge modern politicians’ power. After Jesus’ resurrection, the apostles also encountered a lot of hostility establishing the early Christian Church. Saint Stephen was even martyred on the order of Jewish officials (Saul, later Saint Paul, being one of them). We too are called to the same mission as the apostles — spreading Jesus’ teachings to everyone, especially the powerful who may be hostile towards them.

How God Enables Greatness in Us All

When Jesus ascended into Heaven, the apostles must have felt incredibly scared. This wasn’t the fear they felt when Jesus was arrested and crucified. That fear had passed since experiencing the truth and glory of His resurrection. But they must have been scared knowing that the Church was now in their hands. The apostles were no longer followers, but leaders. They were commissioned to go out and spread Jesus’ teachings to the whole world. But there was a hitch — they weren’t Jesus! They were fishermen, tradesmen, and even a tax collector. They only had two years of on-the-job training with Jesus and they were confused most of the time. How were they going to lead God’s Church as effectively as Jesus?

That’s where the decent of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost comes into play. On Pentecost, we see God’s plan coming together for the post Jesus-as-human world. The apostles weren’t left to their own devices but had the Holy Spirit to guide them. I’ve often talked about how one of the greatest gifts of the Holy Spirit is courage. I’m now realizing that part of that boost in courage must come from the reduction in anxiety. When the Holy Spirit came and the apostles were able to speak in any language, that must have been a great confidence builder for them. At Pentecost, the apostles must have realized that it was possible for them to go out and do the seemingly impossible — spread Jesus’ teachings.

Icon of the Pentecost (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

What about us? Are we any different from the apostles? They were common people who were able to do uncommon things because they allowed the Holy Spirit to guide them. They weren’t Pharisees, scribes, or other learned people. We, the laity, aren’t priests. But Jesus does not want us to be passive consumers of the Catholic faith and leave the heavy lifting to the priests and nuns. We are called to the same service as the apostles and we have the exact same strength and courage through the Holy Spirit as they had. In other words, we are just as capable of leading God’s Church as the original apostles.

We have to remember that compared to the power of God, all humans are roughly the same. Comparing the greatest saint to the lowest sinner and then comparing them to God is like asking what grain of sand is mightier compared to a mountain. The original apostles did great things, but not because they were superhuman. They would have failed if they were left solely to their own abilities. The apostles succeeded because they had the help of the Holy Spirit. They contributed all their power and ability, and God provided them with the rest (which was probably 99.9% of the overall power needed to spread His Word).

Pope Francis’ May intention is all the more relevant in the light of Pentecost. He asks that the lay faithful may fulfill their specific mission, by responding with creativity to the challenges that face the world today. The pope echoes what Jesus asked of His apostles in the Ascension — do not be passive consumers of the faith. Do not hoard your faith by not sharing it with others. We each have a mission which requires active participation. Be champions of the faith. Embrace it. Listen to the Holy Spirit, and don’t be afraid to follow Him.

Better Serve God by Avoiding “Media Morality”

As many of my regular visitors know, I try not to bring up fleeting political topics in my writing. The way I see it, when we get into the outrage of the day type of politics, we become like the scribes and Pharisees that Jesus warned us about. We can get self-righteous about the details of an individual’s actions or some political decision and we start seeing those who disagree with us as our enemies, not our fellow brothers and sisters. We get so wrapped up in being right (or convincing others that they are wrong) we forget about Jesus’ call for us to live in loving service of one another.

I see this quite often from those who consume the 24/7 news cycle whether it be MSNBC, CNN, or Fox News. Once someone establishes an opinion on a particular political or social topic, validating the correctness and righteousness of that position becomes their priority at any cost. Gone are the days where people could respectfully disagree. Now it’s an attitude of “if you’re not with me, you’re against me.” This thinking throws up walls between us as we cut people out of our lives because we see them only as the sum total of their political opinions. Many of us choose to be miserable by dwelling and even hating those who hold different views.

Is this really how you want to spend your life?

It doesn’t help that we find ourselves in a world the promotes relative morality. When we throw out the teachings and logic of theologians and philosophers we are left with moral confusion and chaos because there is no doctrine or logic backing up someone’s view. I see this all the time in the news where someone is wrong, bad, and even evil for no other reason than having a different perspective. As a society, we’ve moved away from the idea that there are moral truths. Has pretending that those truths don’t exist made us any happier?

I think the Fourth Glorious mystery of the Rosary, Mary‘s Assumption, is a good place to reflect on how we treat others. Think about Mary’s mission since her Assumption into Heaven. She wants nothing more than for us to follow Jesus’ teachings and imitate His actions. She asks us to pray and read the Bible and really understand how Jesus wants us to live. She wants us to know the moral truths behind the Church’s teachings so that we can live free instead of falling victim to the unhappiness moral chaos brings.

Jesus, while perfect, didn’t cut people off because they were imperfect. He didn’t look down on the tax collectors, the poor, and the sick like the Pharisees. Quite the opposite, Jesus reached out and helped them. Mary calls on us to pray and help those who are particularly struggling to know Her son, Jesus Christ. Pope Francis’ May intention of the lay faithful promoting the faith echoes Mary’s mission. We all should be helping those who have cut themselves off from God‘s grace and embraced a morality that is only as valid as the media or politicians deem it valid.

It’s important to understand that while Jesus didn’t cut off sinners He also didn’t give people an excuse to continue to sin. He still maintained and reinforced God’s laws. We aren’t called to be pushovers either. But to help those who may have swerved from God’s path, we need to understand God’s truths through the lens of prayer and scripture. Prayer gives us the perspective to focus on the big challenges that are important to God and not on the day-to-day controversies whipped up by the media. So for your spiritual health and sanity, turn off the TV and pick up that rosary!

How the Rosary Helps Us Understand the Pope’s May Intentions

I had the privilege of attending a First Holy Communion Mass last weekend. The Mass was great; all the children were in their fine attire and super excited, parents and family packed the church, and everyone went home to big parties. I asked my relative who attends the parish how many of those families attend Mass regularly. More specifically, how many of these families will be at Mass next Sunday. He guessed about 20%. I was saddened but not shocked when I heard that low number.

I would think that emphasizing the importance of regular Mass attendance would be a core tenant of preparation for one’s First Communion. We can’t really blame the second graders for not coming to Mass every Sunday. After all, they depend on their parents to take them to church. The responsibility lies almost entirely on the parents to make sure their children attend Mass. If parents do not attend Mass regularly they convey the message that Mass isn’t that important. More broadly, they convey that practicing their faith isn’t all that important. This message creates a cycle where the kids grow up thinking that Mass and receiving the Eucharist is something unimportant and optional which they will pass to the next generation of Catholics.

See the source image — Plenty of first communicants, not many second ones though.

With this scenario in mind, listen to Pope Francis’ intention for the month of May: That the lay faithful may fulfill their specific mission, by responding with creativity to the challenges that face the world today. The pope is asking all Catholics to actively live and promote the Catholic Faith. Promoting the faith cannot fall solely on ordained priests and nuns. They only make up a small fraction of the Catholic Church. For the Church to remain thriving, it requires the active participation of the lay faithful who make up 99% of the Church. Remember, Jesus didn’t select the Pharisees, scribes, and scholars to spread His message. He chose fishermen and a tax collector as His apostles. From the start, the foundation of the Church was the laity.

As the lay faithful, we of course need to set a good example. We need to attend Mass and avoid sin. And that’s a good start because that can help break the cycle of indifference. But God wants more from us than just the bare minimum. He doesn’t want His Church to just survive; He wants it to flourish! God desires all of us to one day join Him in Heaven and so we need to be active promoters of the faith. This doesn’t mean pestering and annoying people into conversion. As the pope says in his May intention, we need to be creative in our approach.

The Rosary Connection

As you pray the Rosary in May (Mary’s month), remember the pope’s intention. Think about how you can be a more active champion of the Catholic Faith and lead others to realize the peace that comes from God’s grace. Here are how some of the mysteries relate to the pope’s call for greater laity involvement in the Church.

The Visitation (2nd Joyful Mystery) — This account immediately follows the Annunciation in the Bible. Note that God did not direct Mary to go visit her cousin Elizabeth. Mary went on her own accord to help someone who needed it. This should remind us all that upon receiving God’s grace we should all be moved to use that grace in helping others in whatever creative way God calls us.

English: Statue of the Visitation in the Churc... — English: Statue of the Visitation in the Church of the Visitation (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Ascension (2nd Glorious Mystery) — This mystery is about Jesus’ final human appearance before going into Heaven. He left behind dedicated disciples to carry on His mission. Today’s lay faithful are descendants of those early disciples. We have just as much of a responsibility for spreading the teachings of Jesus Christ as those disciples. Ironically, we find ourselves in a similar world; one that does not know Jesus. We need to be the ones showing others that our desire for true happiness only comes through Jesus, not by fulfilling all our worldly desires.

The Assumption (4th Glorious Mystery) — Mary is our guide who desires nothing more than for us to know Jesus’ love for us. We can call on Her when we have a particularly difficult time living and spreading the faith. Mary will help us and intercede for us if we ask. God isn’t asking the lay faithful to spread His Word alone. We can always rely on Mary to assist us.

I hope you have a joyful and glorious month of May. Honor Mary by praying the Rosary and contemplating the pope’s intention.

How the Rosary Increases Our Patience with God and Others

The Rosary is a prayer that requires an above-average level of patience. It’s long, repetitive, and doesn’t have a narrative like reading Bible passages. Admit it, you’ve zoned out more than a few times praying the Rosary haven’t you? I know I certainly have. The motivation for the RosaryMeds website and my books is to make the Rosary a more engaging and less monotonous prayer. But when it comes down to it, you just have to work up the motivation and put effort into praying it effectively. No amount of websites, books, and videos can substitute for the will to pray the Rosary and the patience to allow it to transform you.

In this post, I want to focus on the value of patience and how it relates to the Rosary. There are two ways the Rosary helps us grow in patience. First, there are many Rosary mysteries that teach patience as a core value. When you meditate on these mysteries, ask Mary to help you grow in patience.

First Joyful Mystery: Saint Joseph‘s patience with God’s plan for his wife, our mother, Mary. Imagine learning that God has a completely different life prepared for you that will be much more difficult and confusing. It takes a lot of patience to accept God’s Will when it conflicts with your desires or expectations.
Fourth Joyful Mystery: Saint Simeon‘s patience with God’s promise that he would one day see the Chosen One. He did, but only at the end of his life. Talk about needing patience for God’s plan to come to fruition.
Second and Fifth Sorrowful Mysteries: Jesus enduring the scourging and insults during His Passion and Crucifixion. He kept silent while soldiers beat Him and the authorities interrogated Him because He knew it had to be done to bring about our redemption and salvation. He was patient onto death because it was God’s Will.

The second way the Rosary helps us grow in patience is the act of praying the Rosary itself. It’s not an easy prayer and takes time and energy to pray correctly. But that focus and perseverance you practice in Rosary prayer translate into increased focus and perseverance in other aspects of your life. It is practice for dealing with annoying coworkers, parents, or uncooperative children (parents, you know what I’m talking about right?).

But what’s so important about patience? Patience is often referred to as a virtue. But why? In other words, what’s so bad about impatience? Why is it bad if you have a low tolerance for people making mistakes or not giving everything their 100% best effort? This Catholic Exchange article frames patience as a reflection of our relationship with Jesus:

Simply by reminding ourselves that we’re being patient not primarily for the sake of the person who is irritating us, but as an expression of our love for Jesus. Following Him often means putting up with people, events, and situations we’d prefer to avoid entirely. This effort is very valuable, for, as St. Katherine Drexel noted, “The patient endurance of the Cross — whatever nature it may be — is the highest work we have to do.”

Patience is tied to humility. What is impatience but a lack of humility for God’s plan and our desire to change our circumstances immediately? Patience is admitting that we cannot change everything to suit our desires but instead we must let God’s plan for us and others play out. Patience means telling God, “I may not like this situation but I will put forth the effort to endure it because it is Your Will.” Patience is an admission that our lives and circumstances are in God’s hands. Instead of wishing that they be different, it is our opportunity to respond to our circumstances as Jesus taught us.

The next time you feel like putting down the Rosary because you feel like you aren’t getting anything out of it, take a small pause and tell Mary you will be patient with Her and her gift and then continue praying the Rosary. She promises miraculous things through the Rosary which we often lose sight of in our impatience of repeating Hail Marys and Our Fathers. Don’t let impatience prevent you from obtaining all that God desires for you.

Learning the Power of Charity from the Early Christian Church

In this article, I’m going to focus on last Sunday’s first reading from the Acts of the Apostles. It’s a short passage describing early Christian life.

The community of believers was of one heart and mind,
and no one claimed that any of his possessions was his own,
but they had everything in common.
With great power the apostles bore witness
to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus,
and great favor was accorded them all.
There was no needy person among them,
for those who owned property or houses would sell them,
bring the proceeds of the sale,
and put them at the feet of the apostles,
and they were distributed to each according to need.

This is the type of passage from the Bible people love to use when claiming the Catholic Church endorses socialism. After all, it talks about everyone selling their personal property and putting the proceeds into the hands of a select few to be distributed to those with the most need. Were Jesus and His apostles promoting socialism thousands of years before Karl Marx? And are those of us who own property living in sin because we aren’t selling it all and giving it to charity?

English: Statue of Marx and Engels. A part of ... — English: Statue of Marx and Engels. Did they plagiarize their ideas from the Acts of the Apostles?

I think the main difference between what the early Christians did and socialism is that there aren’t signs that the apostles were forcing anyone to sell their property and give it to them. The early Church leaders weren’t trying to set up a new economic or political model. They were simply facilitating a process where those with more could help those with less. The passage provides no sense of coercion but instead says that early Christians were of one heart and mind by wanting to help each other any way they could.

To me, the take away from this passage from the Acts of the Apostles is that if we truly want to follow Jesus then we should use our resources and talents to help the needy. Jesus calls us to perform acts of charity, not greed. He wants us to put a high importance on others’ needs instead of our personal desires. The Church asks us to make this act of faith; that when we choose to help those in need we will be aided in our needs in return. That is a scary idea and many of us come up short (I know I do). Like other aspects of our faith, it’s a process that we continually refine throughout our lives. Maybe it starts with donating more to charity or spending more time doing charitable acts. It may mean looking beyond your concerns and thinking about the needs of those around you. It’s even just helping someone who needs it rather than ignoring them and going about your business.

Your Rosary Meds

When you pray the Fourth Sorrowful Mystery of the Rosary, think about Saint Veronica who wiped Jesus’ face as He carried His cross. It was a simple act that in the events of that day didn’t change anything. Jesus still suffered and died on the cross. But the Church recognized Saint Veronica’s small act of kindness by beatifying her. She saw Christ suffering and she did whatever she could to ease that suffering. She could have stood still out of a sense of fear or hopelessness. But she didn’t. She showed that even small acts of kindness are saintly actions.

Like Saint Veronica, we too should recognize those who are in need and help them however we can. That’s what the early Christian Church did. That’s what Saint Veronica did. That’s the model we must follow. The Church entrusts each of us to do our small part in helping those in need. When we all do our part, each small act adds up to huge changes. When you pray ask yourself, are you doing your part?

What Jesus’ Arrest Tells us About Those Critical of the Church

One of the aspects of the Passion narrative that initially confused me was Judas’ betrayal with a kiss. Why was the kiss to identify Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane necessary? Wouldn’t the soldiers sent to arrest Jesus know what he looks like? After all, they arrested Jesus because of the threat He supposed posed. This was the man who had been preaching and healing throughout the region and the authorities had wanted to arrest for some time. Jesus was basically public enemy #1 on the Pharisees‘ “most wanted” list. Why then, did the Jewish authorities need Judas to pick him out in the small group gathered in the garden?

To me, the answer to this question is yet another question — did the Pharisees really know Jesus? The Pharisees knew that there was this person traveling around the region criticizing their authority. He was a person the people loved despite not following the Mosaic law. And that’s all the Pharisees bothered to learn about Jesus. Did they actually listen to His teachings and think about what He was saying? It looks like the Pharasis dismissed Jesus’ teachings outright without even thinking about them.

Since the Pharisees and their followers never took the time to really understand Jesus, they didn’t know who to look for to arrest. To them, Jesus was a faceless agitator. Those who arrested and ultimately crucified Jesus didn’t really know Him and that is why they needed one of His disciples to identify Him.

When we read about Jesus’ arrest or meditate on His agony in the garden when we pray the First Sorrowful Mystery of the Rosary, we should ask ourselves whether we are making the time to try to understand Jesus. Are we praying daily and trying to know His Will and ask for the strength to follow His teachings? Or are we like the Pharisees and see Jesus’ teachings as an impediment or inconvenience in our lives? Do we dismiss Jesus because we aren’t taking the time to understand what He is trying to teach us?

When I read articles that are critical of the Catholic Church or make fun of Her teachings, I think about the Pharisees that Jesus encountered. Popular media criticizes the Church because they do not understand the Church nor do they want to make an effort to learn. In their minds, the Church is some arbitrary and controlling patriarchy telling people what they can and cannot do. They don’t see the centuries of reason and logic that go all the way back to Jesus who taught what He taught out of love.

The Pharisees and the Herodians Conspire Again... — The Pharisees and the Herodians Conspire Against Jesus (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

In addition to the First Sorrowful Mystery of the Rosary, the Joyful Mysteries also have a lot to say about not dismissing God’s Church without understanding Her. Like Mary and Joseph in the Annunciation, we need to have a willingness to trust God’s plan even when it runs contrary to our plans. Or jump to the Fourth Joyful Mystery and look at Saint Simeon and his devotion to God. When we pray the Rosary, remember to pray for those who act like the Pharisees — those who criticize the Church without the desire to understand Her. I honestly believe that with enough prayer, the most critical of the Church can become Her most fervent supporter. Don’t believe me? Look up “Blessed Bartolo Longo.”

Human Life is Sacred Because We are an Ark of God’s Laws

Many of the religious apps and websites I use provide commentary and meditations on the day’s Gospel reading. And they are great and worth reading. However, I too often skip or race through the readings from the Old and New Testaments usually because I don’t understand them and many sites don’t explain them to the degree they explain the Gospel. This is especially true of the Old Testament readings that often use different prose that can be difficult to parse. I want to try to start focusing more on the non-Gospel readings and tie them to the various mysteries of the Rosary.

Last Sunday’s Old Testament reading came from the Book of the Prophet Jeremiah (unless you were using the Year A readings).

The days are coming, says the LORD,
when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel
and the house of Judah.
It will not be like the covenant I made with their fathers
the day I took them by the hand
to lead them forth from the land of Egypt;
for they broke my covenant,
and I had to show myself their master, says the LORD.
But this is the covenant that I will make
with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD.
I will place my law within them and write it upon their hearts;
I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
No longer will they have need to teach their friends and relatives
how to know the LORD.
All, from least to greatest, shall know me, says the LORD,
for I will forgive their evildoing and remember their sin no more.

As you know, the law God gave the Israelites was the stone tablets containing the 10 Commandments. They stored them in the Ark of the Covenant. The Israelites carried the Ark through their wandering in the desert and set up a sacred tent and later a temple to house them. And while sacred, the law was something physically inscribed on stone tablets and regarded as external constraints imposed by a distant God. You see this throughout the Old Testament through the Israelites disobeying God. In fact, by the time Moses came to deliver the 10 Commandments, the Israelites had already broken God’s law by worshiping a golden calf idol. Worshiping the God that brought them out of slavery in Egypt didn’t come naturally to them and they had to be explicitly told to follow God as one of the commandments.

English: The Ark of God Carried into the Templ... — English: The Ark of God Carried into the Temple Español: El Arca introduciéndose en el Templo (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The prophet Jeremiah provides a preview of what is to come through Jesus Christ when he talks about the new law being written in people’s hearts, not on stone tablets. This connects Jesus’ teaching that He came to fulfill the law, not abolish it. Jesus did not invent a new law but reminded everyone of the law that was always there inside of us. And since God’s law is imprinted on our hearts, that makes each of us a sacred ark similar to how the Ark of the Covenant was sacred because it contained the 10 Commandments. That is just one more reason why Catholics consider human life sacred and fight so hard to protect it.

Since God’s law is imprinted on all our hearts, Jesus calls everyone to be His disciple. This means that God’s law transcends religions, nationalities, genders, and customs even if some people don’t know it by the name “Christianity.” This is known as the natural law that God calls everyone to follow. It is the law that theologians and philosophers have teased out over the centuries to arrive at fundamental moral truths that belong to all of us, not a specific group. This law binds us all together and that is why all people are brothers and sisters in Christ.

The Rosary Connection

Baptism of Christ. Jesus is baptized in the Jo... — Baptism of Christ. Jesus is baptized in the Jordan River by John. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

When we pray the First Luminous Mystery of the Rosary, Jesus’ baptism in the Jordan River should remind us of our baptismal vows. These vows are a verbal acknowledgment of the law that God has imprinted on all our hearts and by which we should live. And while this law applies to the baptized and the unbaptized alike, it’s good that we understand them so that we can always try to live by them. When you pray the First Luminous Mystery of the Rosary, I suggest that you recall your baptismal vows and examine your conscience. Are you living up to the promises you made at your baptism and renew periodically during Mass?

Do you renounce sin, so as to live in the freedom of the children of God?
Do you renounce the lure of evil, so that sin may have no mastery over you
Do you renounce Satan, the author and prince of sin?
Do you believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth?
Do you believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was born of the Virgin Mary, suffered death and was buried, rose again from the dead and is seated at the right hand of the Father?
Do you believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Catholic church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting?
And may almighty God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has given us new birth by water and the Holy Spirit and bestowed on us forgiveness of our sins, keep us by his grace, in Christ Jesus our Lord, for eternal life.

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