Impossible: Why I hate religion, but love Jesus!

21 JANUARY 2012. Today religion and religious freedom are continually under attack. I say "today" as if this is a new development, but it is not. The term "today," instead, focuses the attention to the real and present problem that confronts all the faithful. While not new, nor novel, the attack on the Church, the faithful, and the credo are here--today--in our midst.

Recently, a video has swept the web, with more than 15 million views. It is titled: Why I hate religion, but love Jesus. The lyrical presentation and choreography are produced with a high enough quality, blended with background music to create at atmosphere of something prophetic, to give the video an overall persuasive feel. But the truth, is not present in what you see.

The premise of the video is that Jesus came to destroy religion, a merely human contraption of rules, hypocrisy, and, ultimately, contradiction to true faith. By his death on the cross and resurrection from the dead, Jesus has set all the world free from sin and death, making the human convention of religion unnecessary: all that is necessary, so the video unwinds, is faith in Christ.

Our Dominican brethren at Godzdogz have posted the video and several responsive videos that rightly point out the several flaws in the Jesus-is-opposed-to-religion argument (including a particularly good video from Fr. Pontifex, of phatmass.com).

However, what strikes me is the tenor of the position laid out by the video, now viral, is that each of us is sovereign of our faith, with nothing else necessary--so gently goes the closing lines of the video: "Jesus said, 'It is finished.' And, I believe Him."

Holiness--a call given to each of us by Christ Himself--is hard. Hardest thing I have every striven to achieve. And I, not unlike the great mass of faithful, both achieve holiness and fail miserably in that pursuit each day. Failing more often and frequently than the conversion. But, that does not mean that the rules that define holiness are somehow inapplicable if I love Christ and believe in Him.

Spirituality without religion is nothing more than self-affirmation wrapped up in a search, genuine or merely imagined, for something greater than ourselves. There is no spirituality without religion. Jesus did not leave the world after His resurrection with a message to passively await His return. Nor did he say, "each of you decide for yourselves the best way to find Me."

He said, "do this in memory of me." Lk 22:19. He said, "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." Mt 28:19-20. He said, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." Mk 12:31.These are the commands that Christ gave to His faithful, the Church; commands that we still are called to carry out today.

Religion is not contrary to Jesus, and Jesus is not contrary to religion. More than human invention, religion is ordained by God for humanity. God knows the failures of men, religious and otherwise, and the many evils that have been carried out in the name of religion. But, these faults--brought about by sin--are not what define religion. God's love defines religion. And it is necessary for true Christian faith.

Is religion perfect? No. Is the Catholic Church perfect? No. Do we strive for holiness? Yes. Do we strive to carry out Jesus' commands? Yes. Could the Church do better? We pray each day for the continued assistance of the Holy Spirit to do just that.

In a recent address to seminary professors and seminarians, the Holy Father pointed out the root of the priest's mission as shepherd of the faithful: "Priestly life requires an ever-increasing thirst for sanctity..." This call to holiness, to true devotion to God, and true sacrifice of self in the image of Christ is the heart and spirit of religious effort.

Jesus has given humanity religion; religion is absolutely dependent on Jesus. We need Christ. We need religion.

Loving Jesus, but hating religion splits the commands of Christ from the person and divinity of Christ and puts the individual in charge of faith. Worship of self, especially in the guise of Christianity, is no faith at all. We are called, rightly, to empty ourselves for Christ: to love Him as he loved us, with our all. To hate religion: the community of believers, the Church, the fellowship of the faithful in the name of loving Jesus, is a reach to the absurd.

Pray for all to return and be nurtured in the one and true faith as commanded by Christ Jesus and carried out by His bride the Church.

NOVUS: In all things there must be charity. Christ came to save the sinner and during His life he surrounded himself with the lowly and the outcast and the broken. If this post spurs your thoughts or touches you, put it into action in your life, but always exercise charity.

TWENT-NINTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

18 OCTOBER 2009. Today the Church celebrates the Twenty-Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time. Today's readings are found here.

The second reading for today's mass struck me. It gives recognition to Christ as the great high priest, and reminds us that Our Lord Jesus knew all the temptations that we know, indeed He suffered those same temptations, but remained sinless. Therefore, Christ is the mediator that brings the abundance of God's love, through His priestly ministry, to us.

The text of the Epistle (Hebrews 4:14-16) is as follows:

Brothers and sisters:
Since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens,
Jesus, the Son of God,
let us hold fast to our confession.
For we do not have a high priest
who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses,
but one who has similarly been tested in every way,
yet without sin.
So let us confidently approach the throne of grace
to receive mercy and to find grace for timely help.

The reading begins with a call to the faithful to hold fast to "our confession" which was set out in verse one of the previous chapter: "Therefore, holy 'brothers,' sharing in a heavenly calling, reflect on Jesus, the apostle and high priest of our confession . . . ." (Heb 3:1) The believers confess that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, the great high priest--"who has passed through the heavens"--and who is above all the high priests of the temple.

Given that Christ is the great high priest from heaven, one might be led to think that Christ cannot relate to us and our failures, but the author sets the minds of the faithful at ease. We hear that, like us, Christ has been tested by the temptations and weaknesses that each of us suffers from, but is "yet without sin."

We have a great high priest in Christ Jesus that is approachable. He knows and loves us, despite our weaknesses which He himself has also felt. Therefore we can approach the "throne of grace"--that is, the throne of God the Father--with confidence that Christ, through His priestly ministry, has prepared the way for us, all sinners, to receive from God Our Father "mercy and to find grace for timely help."

Two aspects of this reading touched me particularly. First, no matter what sin or temptation plagues us, we can rely on the love of Christ to be an approachable and faithful love. Christ Himself has felt the same temptations, yet He persevered through them without Sin. To be Christian, then, I need to also persevere through the temptations and low points of life too without sin. But, the immediate question arises: I am not Christ, how can I live up to this ideal? How can I live in a manner that avoids sin despite the world around me? The Epistle also answers these questions.

The second point that touched me is that Christ was, indeed, a priest--a minister to the people: to me--who by his life, passion, death, and resurrection has made all the necessary assistance available to me to live a truly Christian life. The answer to my questions is right there: because of Christ, I can confidently approach God the Father and receive the grace for timely help. And, when I fail in Christian living, which will certainly occur, I can turn to God the Father for His mercy. All of this is made possible by and through Christ, the great high priest.

Praise Our Lord Jesus Christ!

THIRTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

28 JUNE 2009. Today the Church celebrates Sunday of the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time.

Entrance Antiphon.--
(Ps 46: 2)
Omnes gentes, plaudite manibus, iubilate. Deo in voce exsultationis.
All nations, clap your hands. Shout with a voice of joy to God.

Opening Prayer.--
Father,
you call your children
to walk in the light of Christ.
Free us from darkness
and keep us in the radiance of your truth.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

First Reading.--
(Wis 1: 13-15; 2: 23-24)
A reading from the Book of Wisdom
God did not make death, nor does he rejoice in the destruction of the living. For he fashioned all things that they might have being; and the creatures of the world are wholesome, and there is not a destructive drug among them nor any domain of the netherworld on earth, for justice is undying. For God formed man to be imperishable; the image of his own nature he made him. But by the envy of the devil, death entered the world, and they who belong to his company experience it.

Second Reading.--
(2 Cor 8: 7, 9, 13-15)
A reading from the second Letter of Saint Paul to the Corinthians
Brothers and Sisters: As you excel in every respect, in faith, discourse, knowledge, all earnestness, and in the love we have for you, may you excel in this gracious act also.

For you know the gracious act of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, for your sake he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich. Not that others should have relief while you are burdened, but that as a matter of equality your abundance at the present time should supply their needs, so that their abundance may also supply your needs, that there may be equality. As it is written: Whoever had much did not have more, and whoever had little did not have less.

Gospel.--
(Mk 5: 21-43)
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark
When Jesus had crossed again in the boat to the other side, a large crowd gathered around him, and he stayed close to the sea. One of the synagogue officials, named Jairus, came forward. Seeing him he fell at his feet and pleaded earnestly with him, saying, "My Daughter is at the point of death. Please, come lay your hands on her that she may get well and live." He went off with him, and a large crowd followed him and pressed upon him.

There was a woman afflicted with hemorrhages for twelve years. She had suffered greatly at the hands of many doctors and had spent all she had. Yet she was not helped but only grew worse. She had heard about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak. She said, "If I but touch his clothes, I shall be cured." Immediately her flow of blood dried up. She felt in her body that she was healed of her affliction. Jesus, aware at once that power had gone out from him, turned around in the crowd and asked, "Who has touched my clothes?" But his disciples said to Jesus, "You see how the crowd is pressing upon you, and yet you ask, 'Who touched me?'" And he looked around to see who had done it. The woman, realizing what had happened to her, approached in fear and trembling. She fell down before Jesus and told him the whole truth. He said to her, "Daughter, your faith has saved you. Go in peace and be cured of your affliction."

While he was still speaking, people from the synagogue official's house arrived and said, "Your daughter has died; why trouble the teacher any longer?" Disregarding the message that was reported, Jesus said the synagogue official, "Do not be afraid; just have faith." He did not allow anyone to accompany him inside except Peter, James, and John, the brother of James. When they arrived at the house of the synagogue official, he caught sight of a commotion, people weeping and wailing loudly. So he went in and said to them, "Why this commotion and weeping? The child is not dead but asleep." And they ridiculed him. Then he put them all out. He took along the child's father and mother and those who were with him and entered the room where the child was. He took the child by the hand and said to her, Talitha koum, which means, "Little girl, I say to you, arise!" The girl, a child of twelve, arose immediately and walked around. At that they were utterly astounded. He gave strict orders that no one should know this and said that she should be given something to eat.

Communion Antiphon.-- (Ps 102: 1)
Benedic, anima mea, Domino, et ea quae intra me sunt nomini sancto.
O, bless the Lord, my soul, and all that is within me bless his holy name.