Author: Msgr. Charles Pope

In the month of November, we remember the souls of the faithful departed and our obligation to pray for them. November and into the early part of Advent is also a part of the Church year during which we begin to ponder the last things: death, judgment, Heaven, and Hell. In the northern hemisphere, the days grow shorter. In regions farther north, the once green trees and fields shed their lively green, and after the brief, golden gown of autumn, a kind of death overtakes the landscape. Life changes; we grow older, and one day we will die.

It is fitting at this time that we ponder the passing glory of things and set our gaze on Heaven, where joys will never end. There is a beautiful prayer in the Roman Missal that captures this disposition:

Deus, qui fidelium mentes unius efficis voluntatis, da populis tuis id amare quod praecipis, id disiderare quod promittis, ut, inter mundanas varietates, ibi nostra fixa sint corda, ubi vera sunt gaudia.

O God, who makes the minds of the faithful to be of one accord, grant to your people to love what you command and to desire what you promise, that, among the changes of this world, our hearts may there be fixed where true joys are (21st Sunday of the year).

So here we are, well into November. Summer has passed and winter beckons. Ponder with me the fact that this world is passing. And I have a question to ask you:

How do you see death? Do you long to one day depart this life and go home to God? St. Paul wrote to the Philippians of his longing to leave this world and go to God. He was not suicidal; he just wanted to be with God:

Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me life is Christ, and death is gain. If I go on living in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. And I do not know which I shall choose. I am caught between the two. I long to depart this life and be with Christ, for that is far better. Yet that I remain in the flesh is more necessary for your benefit (Phil 1:20-23).

These days I am struck by the fact that almost no one speaks publicly of their longing to depart this life and be with God. I suspect it is because we live very comfortably, at least in the affluent West. Many of the daily hardships with which even our most recent ancestors struggled have been minimized or even eliminated. I suppose that when the struggles of this life are minimized, fewer people long to leave it and go to Heaven. They set their sights, hopes, and prayers on having things be better HERE. “O God, please give me better health, a better marriage, a financial blessing, a promotion at work, … ” In other words, “Make this world an even better place for me and I’ll be content to stay here, rather than longing to go to Heaven.”

Longing to be with God was more evident in the older prayers, many of which were written just a few generations ago. Consider, for example, the well known Salve Regina and note (especially in the words I have highlighted in bold) the longing to leave this world and be with God:

Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy, our Life, our Sweetness, and our Hope. To Thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve. To Thee do we send up our sighs, mourning, and weeping in this valley of tears. Turn then, most gracious Advocate, Thine Eyes of Mercy towards us, and after this our exile, show us the Blessed Fruit of thy Womb, Jesus. O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary.

The prayer acknowledges in a very realistic and sober way that life here can be very difficult. Rather than ask for deliverance from all of it, for this world is an exile after all, the prayer simply expresses a longing to go to Heaven and be worthy to see Jesus. It is this longing that I sense is somewhat absent in our modern world, even among regular Churchgoers.

When was the last time you meditated on Heaven? When was the last time you heard a sermon on Heaven? I understand that we all have a natural fear and aversion to dying. But for a Christian, there should be a deepening thirst for God that begins to erode the fear and aversion to death. St. Francis praised God for Sister bodily death which no one can escape (Canticum Fratris Solis). And why not praise God for it? It is what ultimately brings us home.

As for me, I will say it: I long to leave this world one day and go home and be with God. I am not suicidal and I love what I do here. But I can’t wait to be with God. I don’t mind getting older because it means I’m closer to home. Another day’s journey and I’m so glad because I’m one day closer to home! In our youth-centered culture, people (especially women) are encouraged to be anxious about getting older. As for me, when I hit forty, I said, “Hallelujah, I’m halfway home (err … as far as I know)!” Now at 53, I rejoice even more. I’m glad to be getting older. God has made me wiser and He is preparing me to meet Him. I can’t wait!

Story – A couple of years ago a woman here in the parish walked into a meeting a few minutes late. It was obvious that she had been rushing to get there, and she entered quite out-of-breath. No sooner had she entered, than she fell headlong on the ground. She had died instantly of a heart attack. She was dead before she hit the ground. We rushed to revive her, but to no avail. God had called Wynette unto Himself. I remember saying at her funeral, “For us it was one of the worst days of our life, but for Wynette it was the greatest day of her life.” God, for whom she longed, had drawn her to Himself. She had died hurrying to God’s house and you know I just had to quote the old spiritual that says, O Lord, I done what you told me to do … unto that morning when the Lord said, “Hurry!”

Even a necessary stopover in Purgatory cannot eclipse the joy of the day we die. There will surely be the suffering that precedes our death. But deep in our hearts, if we are believers, must ring forth the word, “Soon!” An old spiritual says, “Soon I will be done with the troubles of this world, going home to live with God.”

So I ask you again, do you long for heaven? Do you long to depart this world and be with God? You say, “Yes, but first let me raise my kids!” I know, but do you rejoice as the years tick by and the goal becomes closer? Do you long to be with God?

I close with the words of Psalm 27:

One thing I ask from the LORD, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the LORD … My heart says of you, “Seek his face!” Your face, LORD, I will seek. Do not hide your face from me.

As you listen to this Spiritual, consider the harsh conditions endured by the slaves who wrote:

Are we in the “Last Days”? Generally it would seem not, though there are sobering indicators that the outer bands of a coming storm are overhead.

The sum total teaching of eschatology would seem to indicate that a number of things must first happen before the end: a comprehensive completion of the going out of the Gospel to all the nations, widespread acceptance by Israel that Christ is in fact the Messiah, the emergence of an antichrist figure who will deceive the nations, a final, intensive and unprecedented unleashing of evil, etc. (For more on this and for biblical references, see what I have written here: Some basics of eschatology.) And while some claim that many of these have already been accomplished, we do well to heed the caution of St. Paul, who says,

Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our assembling to meet him, we beg you, brethren, not to be quickly shaken in mind or excited, either by spirit or by word, or by letter purporting to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord is come. Let no one deceive you in any way; for that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God (2 Thess 2:1-4).

So, using the Spirit’s caution through St. Paul, we do well not to conclude too quickly that the end is close at hand, though Christ can surely come anyway “on a sudden.”

However, the same text from St. Paul does describe certain things that precede the end—things that are more clearly in place today.

For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work … in those who are to perish, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. Therefore God sends upon them a strong delusion, to make them believe what is false, so that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness (2 Thess 2:10-12).

Now we are clearly living in an age when strong delusion has come upon many. Indeed many seem deeply and profoundly confused as to the basic concepts of human sexuality, the existence of God, and the dignity of human life. Strong delusion is required for the human person to justify the killing of innocent children in the womb. Strong delusion is required for a human person to think that homosexual acts are natural, when any look at the design of the body profoundly indicates otherwise.  Strong delusion is required for a human person to think that suicide is to be praised and is even “courageous.” Strong delusion is required for a person to look at a world that is so clearly designed and governed, and ascribe it all to mindless, blind, totally random mutation.

Indeed a strong delusion is upon many today. Elsewhere, St. Paul also says of those deluded in this way (especially in matters of homosexuality),

But they became vain in their thinking and their foolish minds were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools… Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error (Rom 1:21,26-27).

So it is clear today that the initial requirements for the coming of the lawless one are increasingly in place. A strong delusion has come upon many that will usher in a rebellion and cause the lawless one to be widely accepted. For again, as St. Paul said above,  for that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first.

And the text speaks of the cause for this delusion. On a human level, the delusion and rebellion result from that fact that, as St. Paul says, they refused to love the truth and so be saved … [they] did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.

So, yielding to their passions (pleasures), and preferring unrighteousness, they refused to love the truth. And do not be mistaken that this refusal is rooted merely in ignorance. No, God has written His truth in the heart of every human person; His voice echoes in the conscience of every human person. God has also written His truth in the book of creation. Therefore, St. Paul says elsewhere,

What may be known about God is plain to all, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that such people are without excuse (Rom 1:19-20).

Thus we are not typically dealing with ignorance. Rather, we are dealing with resistance and rejection. The delusion and rebellion of our times is the result of a preference for sinful pleasures and an active resistance to the truth written on the human heart and in creation. Many, many prefer the darkness of delusion to the light of truth.

Where are we now in an eschatological sense?  It is arguable that we are in the midst of the rebellion and that in fact a strong delusion has come upon many, many people. It is this delusion and rebellion that foreshadows what will happen next: and the man of lawlessness will be revealed.

This does not mean that the lawless one or the antichrist will come next year. Some may argue that times of darkness have come and gone before. However, both the rapidity of the rebellion and the steep decline into deepening darkness present a strong argument for the fact that we, through human sinfulness, are laying the groundwork for the coming of the lawless one, whose unreasonable demands will only make “sense” to a people who have abandoned reason and the clarity of the true faith.

And what of the part of the text that says, “God sends upon them a strong delusion, to make them believe what is false”? Texts like this point to God’s permitting of such things due to his respect for our freedom. God is the primary cause of everything, in that He holds all things in existence and “facilitates” all that happens. The Bible and the ancient world were more comfortable in speaking to this reality of God’s primary causality. A text like this does not mean that God wishes or delights in delusion or rebellion. It means only that He does not withdraw existence from those who do what He detests, and as such He indirectly facilitates it. He does this for the sake of a greater good: our freedom, which is necessary for our love and faith.

So here we are in the midst of a time of rebellion and deep delusion, one that may be serious enough to usher in the final stages. Stay sober, my friends. I do not usually predict the end, but when I do, I look to texts like these, which show the outer bands of a coming storm.

There are times in the Church when we want to define something rather easily and simply so as to make it memorable and easy to grasp. But in so doing, we run the risk of doing harm to its deeper, richer, and more accurate meaning.

I wonder if we have not done this with the word “gospel.” Most of us have been trained to define the word “gospel” as “good news.” Clearly there is good news in the Gospels and, by extension, the whole of the New Testament. However, as we shall see, “good news” as a definition falls short of what the term actually means.

Further, in our current cultural setting, the way in which many hear the phrase “good news”  also creates, I would argue, a false impression that all Scriptures are pleasant, happy, cheerful, consoling, and so forth. But the Scriptures are not all in this mode of “good.” Many of the Scriptures challenge, provoke, and even trouble and strike fear.

Yet, because “good news” has become an interpretive key of sorts, many thus filter what they see, hear, and preach of the Scriptures. If something does not come across as good news, does not fit into the template of being cheerful and consoling, it is either recast with a twisted interpretation, or it is sometimes wholly set aside.  For example, the Lord Jesus often issues fierce messages against sin and unbelief, warns about judgment and Hell, and insists that we follow Him unreservedly, even if this means accepting the Cross, the hatred of the world, or the loss of relationship with certain family members. But because such logia of Jesus Himself do not fit the modern concept of “good news,” such strong statements are too easily set aside by many as not sounding like “the Jesus they know.”

Thus, the common definition of gospel as “good news” tends to be a poor template by which to understand the words and teachings of Jesus Christ.  It makes people averse to the harder sayings of Jesus, even dismissive of them. A woman once remarked to a priest I know who had preached on a difficult topic, “Now, Father, I come to Church expecting to hear something uplifting and encouragement from you. But I did not hear that today from you.”

What then is the fuller and richer understanding of the word “gospel”? Pope Benedict addressed this topic well in Volume I of Jesus of Nazareth:

“The Evangelists designate Jesus’ preaching with the Greek term Evangelion. But what does this term actually mean? The term has recently been translated as ‘good news.’ That sounds attractive, but it falls far short of the order of magnitude of what is actually meant by the word evangelion. This term figures in the vocabulary of the Roman emperors, who understood themselves as lords, saviors, and redeemers of the world.  The messages issued by the emperor were called in Latin evangelium   regardless of whether or not their content was particularly cheerful or pleasant . The idea was that what comes from the emperor is a saving message, that it is not just a piece of news, but a changing of the world for the better. “When the Evangelists adopt this word, and it thereby becomes the generic name for their writings, what they mean to tell us is this: What the emperors, who pretend to be gods, illegitimately claim, really occurs here – a message endowed with plenary authority, a message that is not just talk but reality…. the Gospel is not just informative speech, but performative speech – not just the imparting of information, but action, efficacious power that enters into the world to save and transform. Mark speaks of the ‘Gospel of God,’ the point being that it is not the emperors who can save the world, but God. And it is here that God’s word, which is at once word and deed, appears; it is here that what the emperors merely assert, but cannot actually perform, truly takes place. For here it is the real Lord of the world – the Living God – who goes into action (Jesus of Nazareth Vol 1 pp. 46-47).

Therefore note some qualities of the term “gospel” and of the nature of God’s Word:

1. The term is not necessarily indicative of something pleasant or happy. It originally referred to the utterance of an emperor, even if the content was not particularly pleasant. For example an “evangelion” might announce an increase in taxes or the summoning of an army. In God’s Word, the Gospel might include promises of salvation, offers of forgiveness, and blessings. But it might also include the teachings on the need for repentance, on the requirement to take up a cross, on accepting that we may well be hated, and on the fact that judgment is looming.

2. The emphasis of the word “evangelion” was that it had authority behind it, authority capable of changing your life. Thus if the emperor announced that he was paving a nearby road, or raising taxes, or summoning men to arms, or declaring a holiday—whatever the message contained, you knew your life was going to change, perhaps dramatically, due to the emperor’s authority. With the Word of God, too, there is declared in the term “gospel,” the truth that when God speaks, His Word has the power to change your life, either by conferring great blessings, or by announcing more challenging things (such as the fact that the day of judgment is looming for us all, or that certain of our behaviors are not acceptable for membership in the Kingdom).

3. The Gospel is not merely noetic (informative); it is dynamic (transformative). God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. Thus when God says “Be holy,” His words contain the actual power to effect what they announce, provided we receive them in faith.

4. The Gospel is no mere written word. The Gospel is Jesus Christ, the Word made Flesh. Therefore the Gospel saves all who receive it (Him) with faith and heed its warnings and teachings with the obedience of faith.

Thus, the term “gospel” means more than “good news.” And given our cultural setting and its presuppositions related to the word “good,” the notion that “gospel = good news” can be downright misleading. It is better and richer to understand the term “gospel” to refer to the life-changing and transformative utterance of God, which is able to save us if we obey its demands in faith. It is in fact Jesus Himself who is the Word made Flesh. Perhaps this is less memorable, but it is more true and less misleading.

In November, Catholics are encouraged to meditate on the “Last Things.” As you know, I write quite often on Hell. But I have written on Heaven, too. In this post I propose simply to set forth how much of our liturgy is a kind of dress rehearsal for Heaven.

Indeed, Catholics are often unaware just how biblical the Sacred Liturgy is. The design of our traditional churches; the use of candles, incense, and golden vessels; the postures of standing and kneeling; the altar; the singing of hymns; priests wearing albs and so forth are all depicted in the Scriptures. Some of these details were features of the ancient Jewish Temple, but most are reiterated in the Book of Revelation, which describes the liturgy of Heaven.

The liturgy here on earth is modeled after the liturgy in Heaven; that is why it is so serious to tamper with it. The Book of  Revelation describes the heavenly liturgy and focuses on a scroll or book  that contains the meaning of life and the answers to all we seek. It also focuses on the Lamb of God, standing but with the marks of slaughter upon it. Does this not sound familiar? It is the Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist.

We do well to be aware of the biblical roots of the Sacred Liturgy, not only for our own edification but also as an answer to those Protestant Christians who have largely set aside these rituals and criticize our use of them. Many people consider our rituals to be empty and vain, “smells and bells.” Some consider austere liturgical environments devoid of much ritual to be “purer” and closer to the worship in “spirit and in truth” that Jesus spoke of in John 4.

To such criticisms we must insist that these rituals, properly understood, are mystical and deeply biblical. Further, they are elements of the heavenly liturgy since almost all of them are mentioned as aspects of the worship or liturgy that takes place in Heaven. In this light, it is a serious mistake to set them aside or have a dismissive attitude toward them.

With that in mind we ought to consider the biblical references to the most common elements of Catholic and Orthodox liturgies. I have added my own occasional note in red.

 Candles  –

• Rev 1:12-13 Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking to me, and on turning I saw seven golden lampstands, and in the midst of the lampstands one like a son of man. In traditional catholic parishes, there are six candles on the high altar and a seventh candle is brought out when the bishop is present.
• Rev 4:6 Seven flaming torches burned in front of the throne.

Altar –

• Rev 9:13 The sixth angel sounded his trumpet, and I heard a voice coming from the horns of the golden altar that is before God.
• Rev 8:3 Another angel, who had a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense to offer, with the prayers of all the saints, on the golden altar before the throne.

Chair –

• Rev 4:1 and lo, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne! And he who sat there appeared like jasper and carnelian, and round the throne was a rainbow that looked like an emerald …
• Daniel 7:9  As I looked,  thrones were placed and one that was ancient of days took his seat; … In the Sacred Liturgy, the chair of the priest is prominent. But, as he takes his seat, we are invited to see not Father Jones, but rather the Lord Himself presiding in our midst.

Priests (elders) in Albs –

• Rev 4:4 the elders sat, dressed in white garments …

Bishop’s miter, priest’s biretta –

• Rev 4:4, 10 With golden crowns on their heads … they cast down their crowns before the throne … In the Liturgy, the Bishop may only wear his miter at prescribed times. But when he goes to the altar he must cast aside his miter. The priest who wears the biretta in the Old Mass is instructed to tip his biretta at the mention of the Holy Name and to lay it aside entirely when he goes to the altar.  

Focus on a scroll (book), The Liturgy of the Word –

• Rev 5: 1 And I saw in the right hand of him who was seated on the throne a scroll written within and on the back, sealed with seven seals; and I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and break its seals?” And no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or to look into it, and I wept much that no one was found worthy to open the scroll or to look into it. Then one of the elders said to me, “Weep not; lo, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals.” In the ancient world, books as we know them now had not been invented. Texts were written on long scrolls and rolled up.

Incense, Intercessory prayer –

• Rev 8:3 another angel came and stood at the altar with a golden censer; and he was given much incense to mingle with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar before the throne; and the smoke of the incense rose with the prayers of the saints from the hand of the angel before God …
• Rev 5:7 and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and with golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints;

Hymns – 

• Rev 5:8 And they sang a new hymn: Worthy are you O Lord to receive the scroll and break open its seals. For you were slain and with your blood  you purchase for God men of every race and tongue, and those of every nation.
• Rev 14:1 Then I looked, and lo, on Mount Zion stood the Lamb, and with him a hundred and forty-four thousand who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads … and they sing a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and before the elders. No one could learn that song except the hundred and forty-four thousand who had been redeemed from the earth.
• Rev 15:3 And they (the multitude no one could count) sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, “Great and wonderful are thy deeds, O Lord God the Almighty! Just and true are thy ways, O King of the ages!  Who shall not fear and glorify thy name, O Lord? For thou alone art holy. All nations shall come and worship thee,  for thy judgments have been revealed.”

Holy, Holy, Holy –

• Rev 4:8 and day and night they never cease to sing, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty,

Prostration (Kneeling) –

• Rev 4:10 the twenty-four elders fall down before him who is seated on the throne and worship him who lives for ever and ever; they cast their crowns before the throne …
• Rev 5:14 and the elders fell down and worshiped  In today’s setting, there is seldom room for everyone to lie prostrate, flat on the ground. Kneeling developed as a practical solution to the lack of space, but it amounts to the same demeanor of humble adoration.

Lamb of God –

• Rev 5:6 And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders, I saw a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain …

Acclamations –

• Rev 5:11  Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!”

Amen! –

• Rev 5:14 And the four living creatures said, “Amen!”

Silence – 

• Rev 8:1 When the Lamb opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour. (And you thought your priest paused too long after communion?)

Mary –

• Rev 12:1 And a great portent appeared in heaven, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars; 2she was with child and she cried out in her pangs of birth, in anguish for delivery.

Happy are those called to His “supper” –

• Revelation 19:6 Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the sound of many waters and like the sound of mighty thunder peals, crying,  “Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns.  Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready; … And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.”

Golden vessels, vestments  –

• Rev 1:12 And when I turned I saw seven golden lampstands,
• Rev 1:13 and among the lampstands was someone “like a son of man,” dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet and with a golden sash around his chest
• Rev 5:8 the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense
• Rev 8:3 Another angel, who had a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense to offer, with the prayers of all the saints, at the golden altar before the throne.
• Rev 15:16 The angels were dressed in clean, shining linen and wore golden sashes around their chests.
• Rev 15:17 seven golden bowls

Stained Glass –

• Rev 21:10 [The heavenly city] had a great, high wall, with twelve gates, … The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with every jewel; the first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst. (The image of stained glass in our Church walls is hinted at here.)

Here is but a partial list, drawn only from the Book of Revelation. I invite you to add to it.  You might also read The Lamb’s Supper, by Scott Hahn, and The Mass: A Biblical Prayer, by Fr. Peter Stravinskas.

Today is the Feast of St. John Lateran in Rome. This is the Pope’s true Cathedral (not St. Peters). And thus, in celebrating this Feast, we celebrate the unity of the Church. The Pope’s work is to unite and strengthen the members of the Church, whom the devil would like to sift (divide) like wheat (see Lk 22:31ff). On this feast, we do well to examine a few teachings about the Church from today’s readings.

I. The Shock of the Church – One of the more puzzling aspects of God’s approach to reaching us is his subtlety. Considering that God could thunder from the heavens and visibly, forcefully interject Himself into the doings of this world, His quiet and more subtle methods surprise and even shock us. In terms of entrusting His message to the world, His methods seem even stranger to us. Jesus never wrote a book or left anything physical behind that related to His person. Instead, He taught disciples and entrusted His teachings specifically to twelve rather ordinary men, telling them to go out into the whole world! So much of the Lord’s plan seems to depend upon weak human beings. Scripture says,

For, “every one who calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved.”But how are men to call upon him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without a preacher? And how can men preach unless they are sent? … So faith comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes by the preaching of Christ (Rom 10:13,14).

But what if preachers are unholy or lazy? What if they are weak or ineffective? Are you shocked that God would make your faith depend on the preaching of the Church? Are you shocked and scared? Or do you trust that God can work even through weak, sinful, inconsistent human agents to accomplish His mission?

We might speculate that the Lord chooses not to overwhelm us (as Satan does) since His call is one of love. He seeks sons and daughters who love Him, not slaves who cower in fear and say “yes” more to escape His wrath than to enjoy His love. Perhaps He uses this quieter and less overwhelming way to propose rather than impose. The Feast of St. John Lateran commemorates the Pope’s Cathedral in Rome and is a symbol of the endurance of this unlikely system. During the age of the Church, nations have risen and fallen, and empires have come and gone, yet here we still are. The Psalm today says, The LORD of hosts is with us; our stronghold is the God of Jacob (Ps 46:8).

Many today also express shock and horror at sin and weakness within the Church. And it is a disgrace when the charges are accurate. But remember, Jesus was found in some pretty strange company as He walked this earth. He dined with sinners and spoke the truth to them. He compared Himself to a doctor caring for sick people. No surprise then that the Church, a hospital really, would have some sick sinners in her care.

Whatever His reasons, the Lord does not follow the usual “marketing” plan of the world, what with all its loud and intrusive methods. He did not write a book, but rather founded a community, the Church, which is His body. It is quite a shocking departure form worldly ways and expectations. It requires a lot of trust to understand how such an unlikely method could win the day. And that leads us to the next point.

II. The Surety of the Church – Another shocking truth that we express every Sunday in the Creed is that the Church is an object of faith. We say, “I Believe in one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church.” Many today will quickly announce that they have faith in God not in man. And yet every Sunday, there it is: I believe in the Church. How and why can we say this? Because the Church is not merely a human institution; the Church is also divine. The Church is the Body of Christ; He is the head of the Body, the Church, and the Holy Spirit indwells it.

Someone else may say, “I don’t believe in the Church, I believe in the Bible.” But of course we would not have a Bible without the Church. Scripture itself speaks of the Church, not the Bible, as the pillar of the truth. St Paul wrote, If I am delayed, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and bulwark of the truth (1 Tim 3:15).

So again the Church is an object of faith. But how can we trust the Church, the apostles, and their successors? Here too Scripture is replete with teachings showing that the Lord will guide His Church and preserve her from error:

• John 14:26 “But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.”
• John 16:13 “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.”
• Luke 10:16 “He who hears you hears me, and he who rejects you rejects me, and he who rejects me rejects him who sent me.”
• Mat 16:17 “And Jesus answered him, ‘Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jona! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the powers of death shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.'”
• Luke 22:31 “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail; and when you have turned again, strengthen your brethren.”
• Mat 28:19 “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age.”

So here is a call to faith. Do you believe that Christ speaks through His Church? Works through His Church? Teaches through His Church? If not, you are an orphan; you don’t even have Scriptures, since the Scriptures derive their origin and delineation from God, but through the Church.

Stand with Jesus today and say of the Church, “Zeal for your house will consume me.”

III. The Sanctification of the Church – The Gospel today clearly shows that the Church, like any group that includes human beings, is always in need of cleansing and purification. Ecclesia semper reformanda. (The Church is always in need of reform.) At one level we can become too worldly, too entangled with the world. At another level we can allow sins in our own members and clergy to go unaddressed. At yet another level we can become timid and fearful and not live the radical call to the Gospel or no longer proclaim it to others.

Frankly, Jesus needs to “rough us up” at times. He needs to enter and unsettle a few tables, and even scatter a few “sacred cows.”

It is hard to know exactly the origin of our current struggles. Some of us who are older remember the times of packed churches, schools with waiting lists, and filled convents and seminaries. Some blame Vatican II; others think we would be worse off without it. Whatever the case, the robust Church of 1950s and ’60s collapsed quickly and seemed ill-prepared for the cultural tsunami that hit in multiple waves. The Church did not have the loyalty of the faithful, who largely departed to the ranks of the revolutionaries.

Today, a painful purification is going on, and all the answers as to why and how much longer are not clear. But in my own life I can say that the persecution has sharpened my faith and forced me to be clearer about what I believe and why. I know many others who have the same experience.

But just as on the day that Jesus threw over the tables, the purification is painful and unsettling. Let Him do his work. Stay faithful and do not lose heart. Some, indeed many, have departed. But as for you, stay faithful; stay in the conversation with Jesus and His Church.

IV. The Situation of the Church – Where is the Church to be found? Jesus was once asked  this same sort of question by the Pharisees. The Scripture records, Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God was coming, he answered them, “The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed; nor will they say, ‘Lo, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you” (Lk 17:20-22). And in today’s second reading, St Paul says, You are God’s building … Do you not know that you are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? (1 Cor 3:16)

Therefore, one need not get on a plane to find the Church. It is as near as our very self. As we shall see, that is not ALL that the Church is, but remembering that the Church does not start and end in some distant land, or reside merely among the clergy, is an important summons to responsibility.  Sometimes we let the concept of the Church become abstract or institutional. But in a very real way, you and I are the Church.

And how have you done? Have you proclaimed the faith to your children and grandchildren? Your spouse? Have you been a good influence on friends and co-workers? Have you done these things or do you think that is that the job of the clergy?

But note, too, St. Paul warns that our membership in Christ and His Body the Church is not an individualistic notion. Thus he says, But each one must be careful how he builds upon it, for no one can lay a foundation other than the one that is there, namely, Jesus Christ (1 Cor 3:11). In other words, as members of Christ’s Body, we must function under the authority of the Head of the Body, Jesus. We are not to be among those who simply cast aside what He has taught.

This is especially important today because many demand that the Church reflect the views of its members. Some will, with great indignation, cite polls that x% of Catholics do not agree with this or that teaching. But such polls are irrelevant in determining what the Church should teach. The job of the Church is not to reflect the views of its members. The job of the Church is to reflect the views of its head and founder, Jesus Christ.

Consider that in a natural body if the members were not following the directives of the head, we would rightly assume that the body was sick with epilepsy or some neuromuscular disease. And thus it is with the Church. An individual or group within the Church cannot really say “I/we are the Church” unless, as St. Paul says, they are building on the foundation of Christ, unless they are following the directives of the head of the Body, Christ.

These are four basic teachings on the Church. I pray you, do not consider such things as merely esoteric. So many problems today center on questions of ecclesiology. What is the Church? What is her nature and purpose? Who has authority to teach and speak in Jesus’ name? How do we sort out the competing claims of some groups to be or speak for the Church or Christ? What are the different gifts and roles in the Church? These are just a few teachings to help us reflect more accurately on the Church.

I know that the Church is not buildings, but we do have some very nice ones. Enjoy!

The commercial in the video below pokes fun at the horror move genre, saying, “When you’re in a horror movie you make poor decisions … it’s what you do.” And as I watched it, it occurred to me that this is a pattern we also follow too easily.

The Christian version of the saying might go something like this: “When you’re living in a fallen world, have a fallen nature, and are governed by a fallen angel, you make poor decisions … it’s what you do.”

Of course the insurance company that put this clever ad together wants you to stop making bad decisions by buying their product. Fair enough.

But the Church, too, wants us to do the same. We have to be sober about the fact that our human nature and our hearts are wounded. Living in the “horror movie” of this fallen world, we also tend to make bad decisions. Our hearts are wounded, our desires are out-of-balance and unruly, and our minds are easily darkened. Thus we need to seek the balm of prayer, the salve of God’s Word, the medicine of the Sacred Liturgy and the Sacraments, and be careful to keep holy and helpful fellowship.

Don’t make poor decisions. Be sober about your tendencies to do so … and take your medicine!

For ongoing education and spiritual growth, I am always reading. One of the books I am currently reading is Peter Kreeft’s Angels and Demons. As most of you know, I have often expressed concern that angels have been sentimentalized and even trivialized. Most people’s conception of angels is far from what the Bible describes! If you have read Peter Kreeft, you know that very few people can express things as well as he does. Thus I would like to give you a quote from his book wherein he masterfully and succinctly describes the tendency to eviscerate Holy Fear from “modern religion.” I will comment a little bit at the end.

All the current angel books seem to assume the angels are comforting. Yet almost every time a real angel appears in the Bible, he has to say “Fear not!” …

Religious fear, or awe, is an  essential ingredient of all true religion, yet it has been systematically exiled from modern, “psychologically correct” religion … The thing the Bible calls “the beginning of wisdom” (Ps 111:10; Prov 1:7, 4:7, 9:10; Wis 6:17; Sirach 1:14)  is the experience modern religious educators and liturgists deliberately remove or try to remove from our souls: fear and trembling, adoration and worship, the bending of the knee, the prone heart. The modern God is “something I can feel comfortable with.” The God of the Bible, in contrast, is “a consuming fire” (Psalm 104:4; Hebrews 12:29).

Angels are closer to God, and something of his fiery fearsomeness rubs off on them. Rabbi Abraham Heschel, when told by a student that it must be gratifying to spend his life amid “the comforts of religion” replied, “God is not an uncle. God is not nice. God is an earthquake.” The same applies to God’s angels.

Of course God and his angels are good.  But “good”  does not mean “comfortable.” … And of course fear does not mean craven fear or fear of an evil tyrant. It means awe …

Angels always do us good. They warn, rescue, guide, and enlighten. So the end result is indeed comforting. But not at first. True religion never begins in comfort. It begins in repentance and humility and fear (Peter Kreeft, Angels and Demons pp 33-34).

This quote is a keeper. And on a personal note, I want to add that God has been good and merciful to me. Yet he has not always “comforted” me, since that was sometimes not what I needed.

In recent years I have begun to experience deeper and deeper contemplative prayer. But I know well that it took a lot of purgation by God to bring me to such a place, and that purgation was neither easy nor comforting. Indeed, my first experiences with deep prayer came in the midst of one of the greatest crisises of my life, during my mid-thirties. Thus Dr. Kreeft’s final point that the result is comforting, but not at first, has surely been true for me and for most people I know who have made a true spiritual journey.

Please beware of the false repackaging of true faith, the kind that Dr. Kreeft rebukes here. Reverence God and His angels. Know that they do us good and bring us comfort, but not always on our terms or schedule. Let God be God. A fake, modernized god cannot save. Only the True God, the God who reveals Himself in Scripture, on His terms (whether we like them or not) can save us.

Let God be true though every man be false! (Romans 3:4)

Earlier this week we read the magnificent hymn from Philippians, which sings of the Humility of Jesus:

Have among yourselves the same attitude 
that is also yours in Christ Jesus,
Who, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God
something to be grasped.
Rather, he emptied himself,
taking the form of a slave,
coming in human likeness;
and, found human in appearance,
he humbled himself,
becoming obedient to death,
even death on a cross (Phil 2:5-8).

Why this incredible humility? The Christ, the Second Person of the Trinity, had always enjoyed His Father’s love and been praised gloriously by rank upon rank of angels. He had know all glory and all beatitude in the grand perichoresis (the divine dance of love and relationship in the Trinity). The angels, too, in their nine ranks (or choirs) also danced and moved about in astonishing praise.

But now he walked our dusty roads and was perceived to be merely a man from the lowly hick town of Galilee. He who is God (yet seen now only as a man) was loved by some but scorned and mocked by many. “What good can possibly come from Nazareth?” (Jn 1:46) And when His hour came He submitted himself to a shameful death. He who was without sin was identified with the worst of sinners as He hung upon the Cross. Humiliavit semetipsum. (He humbled His very self.)

Why? Why such humility? If I were God (and aren’t you glad I am not), I would probably “solve” the problem of Satan and humanity’s sin by riding down on a lightning bolt, giving Satan the boot, and striking a deep fear within everyone that would command their obedience. We humans would crush power with greater power and combat egotism with a bigger ego. But God humbles himself even unto death, death on the Cross.

Why?

Perhaps an analogy will help: Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that. Hatred cannot drive out hatred, only love can do that. And pride cannot drive out pride, only humility can do that.

Pride is the worse sin and the root of every other sin. It was through pride that Lucifer said “I will not serve.” It was in pride that Adam and Eve believed the lie “You will be gods!”

Pride, colossal pride. How to conquer it? … Humility! Evil is conquered by its opposite, not by becoming the very evil we seek to conquer. If only we could learn this lesson. Instead we who think in human terms often seek to fight what and whom we oppose simply by becoming a bigger and more fearsome example of what we fight.

But the Lord broke the cycle of pride by humility. He broke the cycle of vengeance by accepting the blow without retaliation and with forgiveness. He absorbed hatred but did not return it. He did not beat Satan at Satan’s own game (for in so doing He would lose). He beat Satan by being God, rich in mercy. He did not make light of sin but accepted its full fury and showed us its awful reality.

And in conquering pride by humility He offers mercy to those who will accept it. For even having won, still He does not force His way on us and require us to accept mercy or Heaven. He simply offers them anew and awaits our sovereign answer. Even as the victor His stance is humble (for our pride still needs the remedy of humility, not of overpowering). His hand is extended in mercy. He seeks your reply to His offer of mercy, grace, and truth.

How will you answer Him? Humbly, He awaits your answer.