God Became Man

Christianity has the most wonderful faith in the world. No other faith teaches that, "God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son" (John 3:16). No other faith has dared to presume such a thing. Yet, this is not a presumption of Christianity, but rather God revealed His true power in His love for us. It is not by Man's will, but His heavenly will. He does not shrink back from us because of our sins, but rather He has overcome our sins! Because of this, we do not have to shrink back from Him. Rather, He has made Himself "Love" for us. Worship is no longer a burden, but becomes an opportunity for adoration. We get to be in the relationship of (adoring) love with God! When loved by God, we are strengthened to be witnesses for Christ and live the Christian virtues. We become an opportunity of faith, hope and love for others. We have an opportunity to be the person we want to be; to become saints. Not destined to be ok, or to slide through heavens gate just in time. No. With the help and love of God, we are destined for greatness! Thank God He took the time to think of us in kindness! Thank God the "Word became flesh"! (John 1:14)

Atheism Abandoning Logic

The period of the "Enlightenment" and atheism promised to show how faith, particularly faith in Jesus the Christ is illogical. They proposed to do this by clear objective scientific proof and good logic in coming to a clear conclusion that there is no God. I like a good debate and a challenge toward truth. If God exists, then he exists and I would be a fool not to accept this if it is true. In the same way, if God does not exist and I turn a blind eye to something that is obviously not true, I would be a fool. A scientist is not being forceful just because he states his findings that water freezes at 32 degrees. He may think one is a fool for saying it is not true simply because I choose not to believe it, and the scientist would be right. However, the enlightenment has had two hundred years to prove their point and they have failed. After such a time and finding that their logic has failed, they have come to a different tactic; emotions. All truth is no longer based on objective truths found in concrete science, but rather in fleeting emotions. "Quick! cover your eyes, maybe nobody will see!" I am not trying to force somebody to believe, I just think it is foolish to deny logic, just because the outcome is not to ones liking. True clear and critical thinking demands that one look at truths we do not like. That is how civilization grows. So what happens when a society rejects this logic and replaces it with of all things, mere emotions?

The Hypocrisy of Atheism and Non-Believers

So may times I have come across somebody of another faith and they challenge me with, "If you Catholics lived what you tell me what you believe, then I will convert". Or I will get, "If God is really love, why is there so much evil in the world?!" In summary "It's all God's fault that there is evil in the world" As a Catholic, I understand where these people are coming from; but at the same token, how is it that one can blame God for the evil in the world when that person is an agent of evil in the world themselves. How can you expect a religion to be perfect when you yourself are not perfect. Just because we believe in Jesus Christ and come short of living what He preached does not mean that we are being hypocrites, it just means that we struggle. Struggling means that we are being more real about our faith as opposed to when we just give up, or blame somebody else for the evil we see. You do not have to be perfect to be a believer or to admit you have faith, you just have to try to "trudge [your] way to happy destiny" (Big Book of AA). Keep it real.

Jesus is Real!

As Christians, we take for granted our faith. As people, when we take something for granted, we fail to appreciate the reality and effects of that thing. One example is when we get so accustomed to the drive to work, we forget about all the different places we may pass by. Somebody else may remind us of the existence of these places. "Oh yea, that store is there, it exists." When we say the creed, we may also get so used to saying the same words every week that we forget what the words are if we try to consciously think about it. Just try it. "How does that go now?" We also may forget that when we recite the creed, we are saying that these things are facts, not opinions. One particular fact is that Jesus really came down from heaven to offer himself as a sacrifice for our salvation. It is simply a fact. As proof of this, we can go to Jerusalem and be at the places where Jesus was born, lived, taught, suffered, died, rose from the dead and ascended into heaven. Our faith is built upon the fact that "God has so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son" (Jn. 3:16) A reality we should never take for granted.

Priestly Celibacy

Todays reading from Matthew 19:3-12 challenges those who reject celibacy for priests. "Not all can accept this word [not to be married], but only those to whom it is granted....some, [never marry] because they have renounced marriage for the sake of the kingdom of heaven." It seems here that Jesus knows and even expects people to renounce marriage for His kingdom. Furthurmore, He does not reject it, but rather encourages it with finishing off this reading with, "Whoever can accept this ought to accept it." This "ought" is a teaser. It is almost as if He is saying that there is something good in celibacy. But not everybody can understand. "Oh, but that is not natural" some may say. I agree, it is not natural, it is ordered to the life of grace. And A life of grace, it is!

Sins of Priests

I have herd many stories about evil priests who have done others wrong. It would always outrage me as a priest. Over time, I started to realize that many times when a person is hurt by a priest, it is usually a misunderstanding or a lack of prudence. However, there are times when a priest really has done wrong. If anybody has been hurt by a priest, I sincerely apologize for the wound given. I would also make an invitation to those who have left the church because of an act by a priest. If a priest sins, or any so called "devout catholic" sins against you, why should you punish yourself by taking yourself away from the love of God? Isn't the sinner supposed to be punished? Then why deny yourself the grace of the sacraments? Is Christ to blame when someone is not Christ like? How often do we not follow the good example of our parents? Jesus knows the pain in your heart. Let Him heal that pain so you can live in peace.

God's Will, Not My Will

Have you ever noticed that when ever we focus on our own will, we always end up in a bad mood? We want what we want the way we want it. But it rarely even happens, let alone the way we want it. So we get frustrated when it does not happen. But when we do God's will, we have a peace that we can get nowhere else. So the question of the day is; "Do I want to do my own will and have a bad day, or do God's will, and experience the joy that comes from God?"

What is Love?

We have grown up in a society where love is thought of as an emotion. Our heart pounds faster when we are first infatuated with somebody and the emotions go up and we think we are in love because of that experience. Maybe we even end up marrying that person. It is true that emotions are an important part of love, but we cannot reduce love to merely an emotion. It is primarily a commitment. That is why marriage is a commitment. But a commitment to what? It is a commitment to love, honor, respect; to be there in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health. That commitment requires living out the seed of love in the heart. Love must be acted out in order for it to be fulfilled, and grow, and flourish. Without the act, love dies. Imagine a marriage where the spouses never express their love for one another. It cannot stand. This is exactly what Jesus did for us. He died for us! It was the greatest act of love He could ever have done for us. In Jesus' own words, "It is finished." He fulfilled His love for us by giving His life up for us! Love must come to fulfillment. So what must we do in order to respond to the love He has given us?

The Relationship Between State and Religion

The motto today is, "Keep your religion out of the state!" To a certain degree this should be true. However, this has been lately understood that all religion having anything to do with a government body is a necessary evil. Simply put, to utterly separate religion and state is impossible. As soon as a religion exists in a state, there is necessarily a relationship between the two. The state has an obligation to protect the rights of religion and the religion has a duty to respect the authority of a given state. This was witnessed by the early christian martyrs and giving "to Cezar what belongs to Cezar" (MT 22:21). A given state or country has an obligation to allow commerce, protect its citizens and their properties. This duty involves morals. It is religion that serve the people in this capacity. The religion of our leaders is what governs them and guides them in making the laws that govern the morals of the state. If there is no religion in the state or it's leaders, what will govern them? Will other people? But who would watch the ones who watch them? Only a final judge who see's all things and knows all things and whom every person is accountable to at their last breath can keep our leaders accountable, even behind closed doors. Coming to this conclusion, religion is necessary, so long as it is truly guided by God.

Emotions are not the Reality Itself.

I was talking one day to a man who believed that emotions were the foundation to all reality. He also said that the truly intelligent person can reconcile contradictions. They can handle it. My view on this is that this is simply a form of denial to justify morally the alternative lifestyle he was living. It is obvious that science could never advance if emotions determined the truth. My emotions cannot make water freeze at 50 degrees. In the moral realm, If homosexuality is OK today, maybe it will not be tomorrow. If a terrorist feels it is good to terrorize, what is to stop him? If a rapist wants to rape, what is to stop him? If a homosexual hates me and wants to put me in jail, what is there to stop him?

Not a Person?

When talking to a representative of Illinois Senator Richard Durban, a group of teenagers and I asked why he felt abortion was acceptable. The reply was interesting. It goes back to the decision of Roe V. Wade. The court decision said that they did not know if it was a human person. Back then, we did not have sonograms, but now we do. We also know about DNA. Science proves today that the "thing" in the womb is a human being. So the question again is wheather or not the human being is a human person. In other words; "Is it sub-human?" Interesting.

Why talk to the Saints or Mary?

Some people may argue that as Catholics, we worship the saints and Mary because we pray to them. As a Catholic, this makes no sense because we have never been told to worship anybody but the Divine Trinity; Father, Son and Holy Spirit. It is not part of our experience. However, we do honor them, just like we would honor any of our family members who have gone before us.

What is important here to notice is how the accusers seem to think that we are talking to the dead. However, as Catholics, we actually believe in the eternal life that Jesus promises us with. Therefore we can act on that certainty. These saints are not dead, they are truly alive. This turns the question around. If you do not have the faith to believe that these people are in fact alive in Jesus Christ and act on this reality; can such faith save you?

Why Pray?

I have been asked; why pray? What are you actually accomplishing in praying? The question seems to focus on what physically happens and forgets the spiritual things. Praying puts us in union with God. It develops our relationship with Him. We can know a lot about God by reading scripture, but to know Him takes a relationship with Him. To have a relationship with anybody, we need to communicate. To communicate means that we have to talk with and listen to that person. We do that with God by praying. So in order to develop a relationship with God, we need to pray. In developing this relationship we are strengthened and many other benefits may occur. The most important thing that happens is that we come to know the one who is Love. It is where we fall in love with God.

God Is Not As Subjective As We Think

“The world is changing.” “Everything changes.” “Nothing ever stays the same.” These are all things that are said to prove how the world and truth are subjective (perpetually changing) and therefore all aspects in life are always changing, including morals. It is followed up by, “what you believe is what you believe and what I believe is what I believe and it really does not matter. Ultimately, we all believe in the same god.” There seems to be a separation between faith and reality. “You can believe what you want and I can believe what I want.” But when we look at reality (aka: truth be it a truth in physical sciences or religious science), a scientist does not ask you to believe that water freezes at 32 degrees.

You have a free will and can believe whatever you want in this matter. If you choose to believe that water freezes at 50 degrees, that is your business, but that does not mean you are right, or that you are sane for that matter. For the person who believes that water freezes at 50 degrees, when they act on that belief, they may be disappointed. They cannot obtain the benefits of ice (ie: a cold drink). In order to obtain that cold drink, we must obey the consistent laws of nature and freeze the water at the proper temperature. This first hint here is that the world is not changing as much as we think it is. The advancement in technology we have seen in recent years is based on science and research. Without the unchanging principals of science, we could not learn anything. There would be no advancement at all. The world would be unstable, not just politically, but the law of gravity would not be consistent. It would be chaos. So the world really is objective (concrete, stable, and predictable). It is easy to admit these things are stable and unchanging because we see them and can even measure them.

The confusion comes when we do not see things; we tend to think they are changing. However, if we cannot see it, does that necessarily mean that it is changing? When a scientist first studies a matter at hand, there is some confusion. He may not see in his mind what everything is all about in the matter. Some things may even seem to change. But once some discoveries are found, the principles can be applied and the reality of the matter at hand can be fully explained. Even the exceptions are explained so that the exceptions are consistent. An example of this would be antifreeze. Water freezes at 32 degrees. But when antifreeze is put in, the temperature in which it freezes changes. In fact, those changes are consistent. If you mix the same amount of antifreeze which have the same ingredients every time with the same amount of water; that total mixture will freeze at about the same temperature every time. So even in the exceptions, there is consistency.

So the principles of Science are unchanging, but there is a simple reason that just because you cannot see it does not mean that it changes. If I were to stick a sign on your back that read, “Kick Me”, and you did not realize it and could not feel it: does that mean that it does not exist? You bet it exists because you will feel its effects! Consistently! So it is with the spiritual life. If I do not pray, I cannot get to know God. This is simply a principle in the nature of relationships. If I do not communicate with a person, it will be hard to maintain a relationship with that person. Imagine a marriage where the spouses do not communicate at all. Obviously, the marriage would not last long. Relationships require communication. Prayer is communication with God. It follows then that in order to build a relationship with God, we must pray. This is one objective truth about relationships, faith and religion.

In Christianity, we are confronted with this person Jesus. We know he really existed. People of other faiths (Documents of pagan Rome and Josephus, a Jewish historian for examples) wrote about Him and we can go to the places He was born, lived, died and buried. He is a person in history that has an objective reality. What do I mean by that? When it comes to people, they either exist or not. If a person were to come up to me and say that they did not believe that you exist, I would be obliged to say they were wrong. Your existence is not dependent on whether or not somebody else acknowledges your existence. You simply existed, exist and continue to exist without billions of people knowing you. It is the same with Jesus. He existed whether we realize or accept that truth or not.

This Jesus also claimed to be divine in nature; God. The Gospel of John’s main focus in writing his letter is to prove Jesus’ divinity. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” (Jn 1:1) Jesus is the Word, with a capitol ‘W’ signifying a name. He is God “from the beginning”, reminding us of creation. Jesus was there at creation. Jesus has power to forgive sins in Matthew 9:1-8, Mark 2:10 and Luke 7:48-50. He even went so far as to say, “Amen Amen, I say to you, before Abraham came to be, ‘I AM’”, and used the name God gave to Moses on Mount Sinai in the Book of Exodus in Chapter 3:14. (Jn 8:58) The list could go on and on in the documents of scripture, other documents and is even expressed in the traditions of the Church. So Jesus is really God, or He is crazy!

Some people claim that it was in retrospect that “The Church” has inserted in the faith that Jesus is God. They may say that Jesus was just a man and that the Church high jacked the faith to control other people and the world. It is a claim of the Far East that the Church is a hoax because the apostles did not die out of Love for Jesus, but because they got a reward of some sort and that is why they were willing to die. So the question is, why would the leaders of the Church voluntarily suffer martyrdom for the name of Jesus? So they could go down in history? What guarantee is there of that? How many sects of Judaism passed before them and are not known today? Furthermore: if they supposedly knew that Jesus was not the One, then Jesus could not fulfill the promise, and there would not have been a reward in the afterlife. In fact, the apostles would have not expected it. However, they did expect the promise to be fulfilled. They believed. They gave their life for Jesus.

Do you still not believe? Let us apply this to real life. Let us put ourselves in the shoes of the Apostles. You have a dilemma; you can denounce this Jesus Christ, your preaching and a couple letters, or be crucified. Another scenario, you could deny Jesus, take back the words you said about Him and renounce the two books and three letters you wrote, or be deep fried in a cauldron alive. What do you choose? If Jesus is not God, it is a no brainer. Even if He is God, it is not such an easy decision. Better hope you are right. How would you know for sure you can take the risk of going through a very painful death?

OK, maybe Jesus and the Apostles were insane. But how can we explain the saints? People like Mother Teresa, Padre Pio, Maximillian Kolbe, Cecilia, Francis of Assisi and the like. They lived Holy lives and claimed to live them for Jesus alone. They came from all walks of life. Many kings and queens gave up castles and homes to care for the poor. Some chose to live a life of extreme poverty. Some were peasants by birth. One minute a person complains that religious people are just some oppressive rich people, and then claim that they are just a bunch of ignorant people who couldn’t tie their own shoes. The saints were ordinary people who loved in an extraordinary way.

The evidence that Jesus is God is piling up. Some people want conclusive evidence or proven fact derived out of Science. But the subject is not something science is competent to handle. Nonetheless, there is evidence that leads to certitude. In the court of law, we can put criminals in jail for evidence presented “beyond a reasonable doubt”. If that is good enough to put a person in jail, then it should be enough to be reasonably certain God exists and Jesus is The One.
For atheists, this is a good opportunity to look up the proofs of the existence of God. That may be a time for another discussion. I am attempting to keep this a short as possible. However, there comes a time when a person has to allow faith to enter in and say, “Ok, I see the evidence and it looks reasonable”. If it is reasonable that God exists, then God is a reality that exists, just like you and me. This Jesus has likes and dislikes, just like you and me. There are things that He appreciates and is hurt by, just like you and me. We can no longer put God in the box of our own understanding. We need to listen to what He says, just like others ought to listen to you and me so we can tell them what we are like.

The principles of science do not change and are not subjective, and neither is God. Some people argue that I or the Church should be more open to what other faiths have to say. The Church does in fact listen and respect other beliefs. In fact, there are certain truths that all religions have right; God exists. However, they do not have the. fullness of truth about God. As a Catholic, I can say I know the fullness of what God has revealed about Himself because He freely chose to. It is not something that was merited. When God reveals Himself, we have to trust that He would not lie. So if I have already discovered that water freezes at 32 degrees, I do not have to listen to somebody when they claim water freezes at 50 degrees. In the same way, if I have discovered Jesus and have even experienced a relationship with Him, I do not have to listen to somebody else who does not even know Jesus so that they can tell me about Him. That is like going to somebody who read a book about my father to learn about him. Ultimately, we need to humble ourselves enough to accept this reality and should be excited to let others know of His mercy and love. Is that a reality to complain about?

Why would Jesus want me to go to Confession?

Many of my brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ ask me if I have a personal relationship my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Because of the sacraments of the Eucharist and Confession, I can say "No". I do not have a personal relationship with Jesus, I have an intimate relationship with Him!

Many people ask why I need to go to confession. Putting all human, psychological or any other reason aside, the real reason to go to confession is to have a relationship with Jesus. And what a relationship Jesus offers! Many of us do not like confession because we reflect on our sins by which we have offended Him. However, we must keep in mind what is the goal; reconciliation and peace. I remember when I was young, if I did something wrong to somebody, I avoided that person like a plague. I did not want to be around them because I knew my guilt. In a certain sense, I put myself outside of a relationship with that person. Then I would finally come to my senses and ask for forgiveness and we would be reconciled.

It always feels good to be in relationship again. We do the same thing to God. We realize our offenses and ask Him for forgiveness. When we go to our friends to ask forgiveness, we do not just go over to their house and ask them interiorly, without saying a word and ask for forgiveness that way. We have to say it out loud. Saying your sorry in silence is nice, but it is not enough. If we do not, we can only come so close. Our relationship can only go so far without knowing for certain He truly has forgiven us. The question in the back of our minds will always be there and we cannot run away from it.

Maybe you think a personal relationship is good enough. But if you think having a personal relationship is great, think of the intimacy with Jesus that you are missing! But why go to a Catholic Priest? Because Jesus gave the authority to forgive sins to the Apostles. In Scripture, you can read MT. 16:18&19, MT 18:18, Jn. 20:22&23, 2Cor. 5:18 and James 5:14&15 for those who like scripture. Nobody else has this authority. Nobody else dare to claim that authority. Anybody who claims such authority and does not have it, God help them! Indeed, there would be a very special place for them reserved! For this reason, the Church takes this very seriously. It would not be worth jeopardizing ones eternity for what some claim to be a manipulation of people.

When we go to a priest, we are ensured that the Holy Spirit is working through him. Therefore it is really God speaking to us in the sacrament. Find this hard to believe? God made sure that the apostles could write the words He wanted on the sacred scrolls; why can't God have the power to ensure we get the right message in confession? Can the sins of a priest conquer the grace He wants to give us? Certainly not. He has overcome all sins. Thanks be to God! (Rom. 7:25) It is true! Confession works. To top all this off, when He frees us form our sins, through the power of His cross, the Eternal Judge makes Himself the Eternal Bridegroom! The One we would need to fear becomes the one we adore with all our heart. Hence, love drives out fear. (1 Jn. 4:18) But if we never give our sins to Him, how could we ever discover this great truth. Come, discover the love of God, discover the joy of Confession!

Why would I want to go to Confession?

Many people will ask why they need to go to confession. In asking this question, as is the case for asking most questions, there are usually many facets to answer the question, depending on the experience and understanding of the person asking the question. At the human level, it is good to know that Jesus truly does forgive us by hearing the words of absolution from Him through the priest. The words the priest says is not just his own, they are the words of God. He commissioned the apostles to go and give his mercy to all.

Jesus knows we are human, and that we need to hear the words, not just hope it is true. When we teach our children, we have them sing songs and even act them out. maybe we even have them spell it our with their bodies. Most teachers acknowledge that this is the best and most integrated way to learn. In the same way, when we physically go confession, God is teaching us about His love and mercy. It builds our faith in Him. The fruit of this is that we no longer have to have that white knuckle faith. If we believe that we are saved by faith without works, then we must hold on to that faith with all our might. We may say to ourselves, "I believe in Jesus, I believe in Jesus, I believe in Jesus" over and over in order to psyche ourselves into belief so we can feel we are saved. But this is not faith. Faith is lived freely. There is joy in it. So when I hear the words of love from God Himself, I can let go of all the garbage I have been holding on to and be the saint I am called to be. That is why faith leads to justification. In short, confession is a faith builder.

Yet another human aspect is that it keeps us on task. It convicts us. We do not like to confess our sins to others. Not only that, but saying them out loud so we can hear ourselves makes it real. There is no more hiding or denial. We must accept this truth that we are sinners. This is something nobody likes to look at, but it is the truth. If we do not accept this truth, we will be locked in denial and never be able to come to true freedom.

It is part of the graces that Jesus uses to transform our lives. It is not until we go to confession that we know that we are still loved despite our offenses. In other words, we are still lovable because God who is all good still loves us. An example of this is how we go about our lives pretending everything is fine and that we are in good with God on the exterior, but we get this huge God complex where we think God is just waiting there to condemn us. So we walk around thinking evil about ourselves, but we never really know why. We can't think of any wrong we have done because we are good at denying it. If we go to confession, we know and acknowledge our offenses, but we are able to put them behind us and be the people we are called to be and want to be.

So the question is no longer, "Why do I have to go to confession?", but becomes an exclamation, "I get to go to confession!" This just explains the human aspects of confessions. For scriptural support of Confessions, you can look up Mt 16:18 & 19, Mt 18:18 and James 5:14-16 for starters. Implicit in the question of confession is also the authority of the Church which answers the question why we must go to a priest.

God is Knowable

I recently had an interesting conversation with a young woman who thought the Church was too restricting on how she defines god. She has a philosophy of the far east, where god is spirit, and therefore could not be defined at all. She thought it presumptuous of christians to claim to know God. I find the opposite to be true.

We, as christians humble ourselves enough to listen to God when He reveals Himself to us. We listen to Him, and do not demand that He fit in a box that we expect Him to fit in. Or maybe anything is fine except what we do not want Him to be and confine Him that way. We cannot put stipulations on God and how He chooses to reveal Himself. God is so great, He is not demeaned by coming in our likeness, in human form. God is bigger than that. He chose to reveal Himself to us. He revealed and reveals Himself in Sacred Scripture. Many people think of God as some nebulus thing out there. Maybe we acknowledge some sort of person out there. As if God is subjective. He is whatever we want him to be. What you beleive is what you believe and what I believe is what I believe and it does not really matter. What it comes down to is that God is not a reality; the "belief" that he exists is just there to make me feel good. Religion and reality become opposites.

However, when push comes to shove, what will happen when I meet troubled times? If God really is not there anyways, how can that help me or anybody? The subjective god will eventually lead to despair and hopelessness. But thanks be to God, He does exist.
He did come among us as a man and truly died on the cross for us. With a subjective god, he does not have a face you can count on. But in Christianity He does have a face, and you can get to know Him, not just about Him. Just like you and I, He has likes and dislikes.
There are things that He is pleased with and things that offend HIm. If you hate Johnny Cash and I go about proclaiming that you think Johnny Cash is the best vocalist ever, you are probibly going to be offended. Why? Bacause it is not the truth about you. Just as you have an objective reality about your person, so does God have an objective reality about His three persons; Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

If we want to get to know Him, we have to know Him as He truly is, not a false notion of Him. No relationship can last that way. Though coming to this reality for many can be a scary thing, you will be surprised of how wonderful Jesus really is.