I am Catholic!

I AM A CATHOLIC ... Because the founder of the Catholic Church is the God-Man Jesus Christ, Who was foretold by the prophets, and Who proved the divine character of His mission and teaching by wonderful miracles, especially by His Own Resurrection from the dead; Because Christ established upon Peter and the Apostles the Church, one, holy, universal, apostolic, with which He declared He would remain all days to the consummation of the world, and against which the gates of Hell would not prevail; Because Christ gave this society certain well defined doctrines which all men everywhere must believe under pain of damnation, to which they may not add or from which they may not subtract; Because Christ the Author of all holiness, promised to guard this society from error and preserve it until the end of time; Because the Catholic Church possesses all marks of this Church established by Christ: The Catholic Church is ONE because she everywhere professes the same faith, has the same sacrifice and sacraments, and is governed by one and the same visible head, the Pope. All non-Catholic sects lack unity. Because of the principles of private judgment they are conditionally splitting and subdividing. They have no central authority to hold them together. Their doctrines and practices are changing from day to day. The Catholic Church is HOLY because its Founder, Jesus Christ, is all-holy; because its doctrines are holy; because its means of sanctification, the sacraments, are holy; because it produces holy, saintly men and women. The Catholic Church is UNIVERSAL because it subsists throughout the ages, teaches all nations, and maintains all the truths given to it by Christ. The sects are not spread over the whole world but rather localized, nor do they they teach everything that Our Lord taught the Apostles. The Catholic Church is APOSTOLIC because it was founded on Christ's Apostles, because it is governed by their doctrines through their lawful successors, and because it never ceases to teach their doctrine. The sects cannot trace their origin to Christ or to the Apostles. I am a Catholic, finally, because God Who is Supreme Truth and Holiness could not possibly be the Author of the countless sects with their mutually destructive and contradictory teachings and practices.

Saturday, June 1, 2013

Setting Priorities

I don't have a huge amount of friends of Facebook- less than 300- but it occurred to me that many of my posts may irritate some people. I can imagine some of the thoughts- "is that all she ever posts about?"- "another post about religion"- "she has a holier-than-thou attitude." I admit, most of my posts focus on one thing. But we all post about what is important to us, and a relationship with God is at the top of my list. I do not claim to have the life of a saint! Far from it! But every day I cannot help but focus on that truth. It just is part of me, and comes to my mind constantly. It hasn't always been that way- something changed in me about 10 years ago. Before then, my life didn't include God much. I didn't particularly care about going to weekly mass. Outside of mass I never gave a thought to God. He was there, but in the background. I figured I could put Him off and concentrate on the "important" things. So what is important? Our family, friends, homes, jobs, health, wealth? Yes, to a degree! But our priorities need to look beyond and see the ONLY thing that truly matters! I recently saw a post about Joel Osteen, a wealthy television evangelist who preaches that God wants us to be wealthy. That may be true, but He expects us to use that wealth in ways other than buying multiple homes, private jets, and living like a king. If you are blessed with excess money, share it with those in need. If you don't have a lot of excess money, share as much as you can. I certainly am not rich, but I can look around and see excess in my life. What do I really need in this life? I need a relationship with the God who created me, because in the end, as Mother Teresa once said, it isn't about you and them, it's about you and God. Yes, I am Catholic and firmly believe in our faith. I depend on the sacramental gifts received there, especially the Eucharist. I wish all protestants knew of the joy and strength it provides! If you cannot accept those beliefs and choose to ignore the greatest gift given to us, so be it. I am quite well aware that there are many with a true love of the Lord in other denominations. But all need to have a relationship with God! Get out of the rut that keeps you from knowing Him. Everything you have is a temporary gift which will not last. Our lives are so short and can end at any time. I may have 30 years left, and I may have 30 days. God, help me to see past the clutter I have piled around myself, which blocks my view of You!
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