An 11th Sunday after Pentecost Thought to Start the Week Off Right
It's the 11th Sunday after Pentecost in Holy Mother Church's traditional calendar. The new calendar designates today the Twenty-First Sunday of Ordinary Time. Take your pick. Whichever you choose, you'll still be Catholic, right?
At least we hope we're Catholics. With all that swirls around us these days, it's not hard to be distracted, pushed, and pulled away from the doctrines of our Holy Faith. We're assaulted with all sorts of behavior, digital messages, news and entertainment that contradicts, makes fun or, openly despises, even hates, our Holy Religion.
I was going to say we're in the cross-hairs of enemies who want us gone, and that may be true. Worse, though, is the fact that so many of our brothers and sisters have effectively abandoned the practice of their Faith. So many who call themselves Catholic have no real knowledge and understanding of the true doctrines of our Faith. And while some simply don't take an interest, far too many were never taught properly. Catechesis has been for the birds for decades. And now we're seeing the results of that negligence.
So maybe those who would take aim at us, desire to rid the world of our Faith, have no real reason to do so. Why bother? We're either killing ourselves, or slowly dying out.
A recent Pew poll claims fewer than 40% of us believe we receive the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ in Holy Communion. That means over 60% of Catholics think the Holy Eucharist is just some sort of symbol, a shared meal - a nice social thing to do on a Sunday.
It wasn't always like this. There have been times when Catholics faithfully practiced their religion. The Church once stood as a bastion against the temptations and machinations of the world, the flesh and the devil. For example, growing up, I considered myself part of the Communion of Saints: specifically, a member of the Church Militant, who aspired to become one of the Church Triumphant. I understood that could happen either immediately at death, or at some future point after spending time as one of the Church Suffering. How many Catholics today would even understand these terms?
How many of us Catholics take our Sunday Mass obligation seriously? Do we know that the Mass - even the "new" form (Novus Ordo), remains, at heart, a sacrifice - the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass - and not some Sunday "get-together" with our family and friends.
We could go on, but you've either gotten the point here or not. If you haven't, then those of us who have will pray for you. We'll pray that some day your Catholic Faith fills your mind, heart, and soul in the manner we find today in the entry for the 11th Sunday after Pentecost in The Inner Life of the Soul.
After giving us examples of the deep personal devotion of various saints from the ranks of the religious, and the courageous devotion of martyrs like St. Agatha and St. Agnes, the entry concludes:
"Sometimes we think upon these things, beholding from our place of safety in the one true Church of the one true God, her wonderful identity of type and her amazing variety of gifts and graces, we are tempted to judge sharply those who, standing without, misrepresent and insult her, and alas! seeing see not, and hearing hear not..."
That place of safety provides some respite for us weary souls trapped in an age where "tolerance" of every sort of sin and depravity is preached even by many of our own shepherds. But let's not fall into a prideful or judgmental trap. Those outside the Church, or those inside who don't practice our Holy Religion faithfully, need our prayers. In praying, let us recall how Our Lord opened the ears of a deaf man.
"...how He put His fingers into his ears, and touched his tongue, and looking up to heaven, groaned, and said to him, Ephphata, Be opened..."
And so we pray that, even if it takes a miracle, the Church in the fullness of its glory may someday find that those who would disparage, reject, hate, or simply ignore her have come to their senses. Meanwhile, let's be sure we ourselves remain faithful and never become discouraged as we do our best to remain true Catholics.
"If it seems to us to require a like miracle to make many a man about us acknowledge the Church of God, let us remember that our God is the God of miracles, and let us pray unfalteringly, and hope tirelesssly, till He shall say to these also Ephphata, and shall be seen by these also, and until His grace in them shall not be void."
At least we hope we're Catholics. With all that swirls around us these days, it's not hard to be distracted, pushed, and pulled away from the doctrines of our Holy Faith. We're assaulted with all sorts of behavior, digital messages, news and entertainment that contradicts, makes fun or, openly despises, even hates, our Holy Religion.
I was going to say we're in the cross-hairs of enemies who want us gone, and that may be true. Worse, though, is the fact that so many of our brothers and sisters have effectively abandoned the practice of their Faith. So many who call themselves Catholic have no real knowledge and understanding of the true doctrines of our Faith. And while some simply don't take an interest, far too many were never taught properly. Catechesis has been for the birds for decades. And now we're seeing the results of that negligence.
So maybe those who would take aim at us, desire to rid the world of our Faith, have no real reason to do so. Why bother? We're either killing ourselves, or slowly dying out.
A recent Pew poll claims fewer than 40% of us believe we receive the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ in Holy Communion. That means over 60% of Catholics think the Holy Eucharist is just some sort of symbol, a shared meal - a nice social thing to do on a Sunday.
It wasn't always like this. There have been times when Catholics faithfully practiced their religion. The Church once stood as a bastion against the temptations and machinations of the world, the flesh and the devil. For example, growing up, I considered myself part of the Communion of Saints: specifically, a member of the Church Militant, who aspired to become one of the Church Triumphant. I understood that could happen either immediately at death, or at some future point after spending time as one of the Church Suffering. How many Catholics today would even understand these terms?
How many of us Catholics take our Sunday Mass obligation seriously? Do we know that the Mass - even the "new" form (Novus Ordo), remains, at heart, a sacrifice - the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass - and not some Sunday "get-together" with our family and friends.
We could go on, but you've either gotten the point here or not. If you haven't, then those of us who have will pray for you. We'll pray that some day your Catholic Faith fills your mind, heart, and soul in the manner we find today in the entry for the 11th Sunday after Pentecost in The Inner Life of the Soul.
After giving us examples of the deep personal devotion of various saints from the ranks of the religious, and the courageous devotion of martyrs like St. Agatha and St. Agnes, the entry concludes:
"Sometimes we think upon these things, beholding from our place of safety in the one true Church of the one true God, her wonderful identity of type and her amazing variety of gifts and graces, we are tempted to judge sharply those who, standing without, misrepresent and insult her, and alas! seeing see not, and hearing hear not..."
That place of safety provides some respite for us weary souls trapped in an age where "tolerance" of every sort of sin and depravity is preached even by many of our own shepherds. But let's not fall into a prideful or judgmental trap. Those outside the Church, or those inside who don't practice our Holy Religion faithfully, need our prayers. In praying, let us recall how Our Lord opened the ears of a deaf man.
"...how He put His fingers into his ears, and touched his tongue, and looking up to heaven, groaned, and said to him, Ephphata, Be opened..."
And so we pray that, even if it takes a miracle, the Church in the fullness of its glory may someday find that those who would disparage, reject, hate, or simply ignore her have come to their senses. Meanwhile, let's be sure we ourselves remain faithful and never become discouraged as we do our best to remain true Catholics.
"If it seems to us to require a like miracle to make many a man about us acknowledge the Church of God, let us remember that our God is the God of miracles, and let us pray unfalteringly, and hope tirelesssly, till He shall say to these also Ephphata, and shall be seen by these also, and until His grace in them shall not be void."
Happy Sunday!
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