How could this be? The mystery of assumption.

        "My soul glorifies the Lord, my spirit rejoices in God my Savior." As I heard this words by Mary to her cousin Elizabeth this morning at mass, I couldn't help but feel a great joy in my heart. Having gotten up early and gone to mass with my family to celebrate the assumption of Mary into Heaven today was obviously rewarded throughtout the mass, but these words especially moved me. I know this may sound foreign to many and even many good Christians, but for us Catholics, this tradition and belief that the mother of Jesus was assumed into heaven bodily shortly after her death is something that has been celebrated for centuries going back to the early Church. Tradition has it that "Mary died in the presence of all the Apostles, but that her tomb, when opened, upon the request of St. Thomas, was found empty; wherefrom the Apostles concluded that the body was taken up to heaven."  This truth has been contemplated by faithful Christians and saints through out the centuries and guided by the Holy Spirit have all come to the same conclusion; that it was fitting for the mother of God to follow her Son into His heavenly throne body and spirit.
   While the incarnation of Christ moves my mind to an awe filled state whenever I contemplate the fact that God became man, His ascension into Heaven doesn't seem at all strange to me and it is not one that I struggle believing for it was fitting that the Son of God go back to His home. However, when I meditate upon the assumption of Mary, I am awefilled. The assumption of Mary is one of the mysteries of the life of Jesus and Mary that brings me great awe but also great hope. Jesus' ressurection and ascension breathes assurance of our final destiny with him in heaven, but Mary's assumption breathes great hope of the fulfilment of this promise. God can surely ressurect and ascend into heaven, no problem! but Mary is a creature and her assumption speaks of the great generosity of God to his children. I guess I think that if He can do it for Mary, there is hope for us. Not that we are as holy as she was, but that we are all creatures and rest our hope in God. This is why those words by her makes my heart so merry and like Mary "my soul glorifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my savior."  Yes indeed we have reasons to rejoice with Mary.  Just like the angels rejoiced and were filled with awe when they saw the Woman who had been chosen to become the mother of God come to heaven, so will they rejoice when we are brought into Heaven following the fulfilment of Our Lord that "if we love him and keep his commandments, where he is, there shall we also be."  I pray that this mystery of the great generosity of God brings all the joy and graces to you that it brings me. 
Lord Jesus, come in glory.
Mary our Mother, pray for us. 

Morality; the greatest obstacle to Christianity

      Lately, I've been thinking about what it is that keep most people from embracing Christianity, and I've finally come to my own conclusions. Without philosophizing too much, I wish to share a  few of my observations.
  I remember a few years ago when I was in my late teens, I struggled with a constant restlessness that I couldn't shake off. I gave myself all the excuses and tried to find an escape, but eventually I realized that it was my straying away from God that was causing this. My reversion to my faith was peppered with moments of great joy, and periods that God would enlighten my soul about truths that up to now only seemed like abstract mysteries that were reserved only for the holiest. One problem which I thought was peculiar only to me was the struggle of abandoning some of the bad habits I had picked up.  In the beginning of my conversion, God's presence seemed to overshadow these weaknesses, but as time went by, I started to notice them. My conscience called me to account but I tried to reason myself out of it. I remember perusing the bible to find out where it said exactly I couldn't do this or that thing. Obviously the more I read the scriptures, the more I found out that I couldn't live as I wished without at the same time contradicting God's law. This many years later, I still struggle but by God's grace, I know the choice to strive to live according to God's will is the right choice.
   Now coming back to my question on what keeps most people from embracing Christianity, I had to ask myself the same question. After honestly probing my heart, the answer remains what I believe is the elephant in the room for most people who have heard the Christian message but rejected it. For me, morality tops all the other obstacles.  I like to call myself a reasonable guy and from this perspective, I have tried to ask myself why any reasonable person would shy away from a belief system that calls us to love, and peace and harmony, unity, mercy, goodness, gentleness and forgiveness. One whose story is based on a God who loves us so much that He left all the glory due to Deity and emptied himself of all that to come and walk where we walk and die for us so as to gain for us eternal life where every suffering and every tear shall be wiped away. Even from a selfish perspective, one would only need to hear the promises that God makes to those who believe in Christ to immediately embrace Him and follow Him. So my question remains, why do so many people choose not to believe and embrace being a Christian. 
   The answer is simple; MORALITY.   With all the promises that God gives us, He also demands that we live in a manner that is conformed to Himself. Since God is all good and holy, Jesus goes so far as to ask us to be "perfect as His Heavenly Father is perfect."  This happen to be the one thing that keep most of us from embracing the only thing that can make us happy, namely; God. The internal struggle that attracts us to sin often blinds us so much so that it eventually condemns us to a life of turmoil.  The momentary pleasure that we get from sin becomes the foundation on which we stand tall to reject the saving message of God.  Otherwise, it defies reason that one should reject the very thing that will make him happy.  Left to ourselves we can't do it, but God gives us the grace not only to believe in Him, but also to follow his will. It is when we choose ourselves instead of God that we start reasoning ourselves out of what is true and good.
  Lately, the persecution of Christians has become so rampant that from the business world to political realms,  the Christian message is viewed as an archaic message that may have worked centuries ago but one that is outdated and need not be tolerated. However, when we come down to it, It is exactly embracing the Christian message that has led to the greatest inventions whose fruits we enjoy.When we love and serve God, our creative genius comes alive and we achieve great things in all areas of life. But with great comforts, there comes complacency and apathy which is the seedbed of evil desires and when matured leads to the rejection of God in search of a pseudo freedom that enslaves us to sin and eventually leads to our demise. A good example is the modern culture where abortion, homosexuality and the entire culture of death is viewed as a human right. When we accept evil as a good, we must at the same time get rid of the idea of God. This is the reason why atheism is growing in our modern world. For many, instead of entertaining the idea that they are wrong and sinful, they'd rather get rid of an absolute good and make their own morality. Many end up rejecting God instead of accepting that their lifestyle is immoral. They convince themselves that they are the masters of their own destinies and they get to define what is right and wrong. The obvious fruits of this type of thinking is emptiness, for peace cannot reign where God doesn't reign.
     Like St. Peter, it makes me ask; "who then can be saved." The answer is simply those who are like little children. Those who having seen their limitations call upon God and believe in the plan that He has for all his children; namely to save them from their sins and welcome them into the eternal beatitude with Him in heaven.  Yes, we often reject God because we would like to maintain our immoral and sinful ways without being accountable, but as often as we ask God's grace, he is merciful to hear us and heal us. We must often meditate upon those comforting words of Our Savior Jesus Christ the Son of God, that "His yoke is sweet and his burden light and he will give rest to all those who come to him."
    Oh how much we need the Lord to deliver us from the three stumbling blocks that are so prevalent in our age, namely; "the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh and the pride of life."  Oh how much our world needs the Lord.
 Lord, deliver us from our sins and lead us to eternal life.
Amen.

Abortion: Madness or ignorance

Yesterday marked the 39^th anniversary of Roe v Wade, a landmark supreme-court decision that not only legalized abortion on demand but also started a culture war that has become a defining issue of our times.  To think four decades ago, 8 people with the stroke of a pen made a decision that has translated to be a death sentence to 50 million babies being killed in their mother’s womb is something that makes my stomach churn.  Since then, this issue has become something that people find themselves being confronted with either personally or through the fabric of human relationships that we all belong to.  Such was my fate a few years ago when what had seemed a distance issue that some people have to deal with came so close to me that I had to confront it.

  I can remember like it was yesterday one day six years ago when a friend of mine approached me and told me she was pregnant. It shocked me, but not as much as what followed as the conversation continued. Up until this time in my life, the unwed pregnant girls were always someone else’s friend, someone else’s sister but never my friend or my sister.   This however was not the case this time around and what I had deemed “others” problem was so close to me now that I truly didn’t know what to think about it.  The “others” problem was now my problem.  After the initial shock, I pulled myself together and I started using the usual statements I’d heard growing up from my parents and the people I knew when it came to describing pregnancies. I was repeating the usual; “it’s a blessing and I am happy for you,” while at the same time trying to withhold my judgmental attitudes.  I was surprised at how quick I had changed from thinking ‘I can’t believe people get pregnant so recklessly’ to thinking ‘I guess everyone makes mistakes.’  When it came to people I didn’t know, my verdict was reached without any consideration to human weakness, but when it came to my friend, I was less objective.  I still thought it was wrong, but I trended so carefully to maintain my friendship.  But obviously, that was not the whole story and now to go back, what followed next caught me so off guard that was it a punch, it would have knocked me out in one blow.

My friend proceeded to tell me that she had made an appointment for an abortion.  All the problems she was having from betrayal by her boyfriend who was the child’s father to the rejection by her family had brought her to this point.  I really hadn’t contemplated the whole debate about abortion, but without any hesitation I told my friend that that would be the wrong path to take.  I knew in my heart of hearts that it was fundamentally wrong to end a human life even at its earliest developmental stages.  At 19yrs, my simplicity had not been clouded by the culture and my arguments were pretty simple. I simply asked her how old her mum was when she had her, and it turned out that she was 19.  At this point, I proceeded to ask her what if her mum aborted her and since she was also 19yrs I considered my case closed.  Now, this argument doesn’t always work especially when people are in distress and not thinking clearly, but grace from God coupled with proper disposition of heart can get people over the edge. After a long talk of me trying to reassure my friend of the goodness of God and inject some hope in her seemingly hopeless situation, we parted.  I left with an ache in my heart convinced that she would go ahead with her appointment the next day.

               Fast forward six months later and I got a call from her having lost contact since that night.  She went ahead to tell me that she had just given birth to a beautiful baby girl and proceeded to tell me how her family and boyfriend had turned around and that they were back together and even thinking about marriage.  She revealed to me that the night we talked, she was not only about to get an abortion, but that she was also contemplating suicide, and our conversation helped her to decide against both.  I rejoiced in the fact that reason had trumped distress and grace had conquered death and affirmed life; both of the mother and the baby.  This experience gave me a whole new perspective about life and abortion

               The abortion issue is no longer a distance problem that other people can deal with.  It became a personal issue for me since every time I look at my friend’s daughter and think about how close she came to having her life ended before birth, it gives me a new courage to combat this unfortunate evil that we have become accustomed to in our society.   

Now to bring into perspective the question of whether proponents of abortion are subject to madness or are simply ignorant, I dare to propose that it’s both and. With the many arguments used to justify abortion, any logical and reasonable person can see right through them and only come to a conclusion that to be able to attend to such an act, one has to be out of the realm of reason, be extremely ignorant or have a heart that has been so hardened by sin that all light is extinguished from it.  I tend to be of the mind that the latter is where most people fall.  When you look at what brings people to the doors of abortion, you can trace a line of violations to the moral law which we also call sin that have been committed.  Like St. Augustine put it “sin darkens the intellect.”  In this line, their intellects are so darkened that sound reason is deemed mute. 

A good example would be a pregnant mother who has an accident going to the hospital to have an abortion and the baby in her womb is killed. The person who caused the accident can be convicted of man slaughter for the baby’s death while only a few minutes later if the accident didn’t happen, an abortionist and the mother can participate in the killing of the same baby and there are no consequences to their actions. Logic tells you that something is wrong in this case, and the double standard applied here goes to show you the injustice of such a law.  When the idea of choice is brought forward, we can answer with the fact that the baby doesn’t choose to be killed.  To quote Ronald Reagan, “is it not funny that all those who support abortion have all been born?”  The answer is yes.  But now what do we do.

As a society, we should protect these most vulnerable among us without leaving their fate to the unscrupulous minds that would see to their extermination, forgetting that their position was once theirs.  This brings me back to the events that took place on the eve and the 39^th anniversary of Roe v Wade decision, where thousands of people took part in the march for life rally trying to bring about respect for life back to its proper place and hopefully bring about justice.  As individuals, it’s usually simple to remain indifferent to abortion and say that it is no concern of ours, but we do it at the risk of our own detriment since life is the foundation on which stands the fate of humanity and to ignore its violation is like ignoring a crack in a building that grows big enough to bring the whole house crashing upon our head.  This is the immensity of this issue and we should all work together to bring about the only change which will see to its end; that is the change of peoples hearts. May God grant us the courage to do so and have mercy upon us for the sin of abortion and all other sins that violate human dignity.

A Christmas Grace and the age of persecution

 

    Is it just me or does it seem like the Spirit of Christmas is going under if not all together becoming extinguished?  This Christmas more than ever, I seem to notice how much The Savior's birthday has come under attack. Maybe I am not paying attention but the enthusiasm about Christmas of past seems to have been eroded  by a nonsensical political correctness or may I say atheistic bullying that has become rampant. The default "Merry Christmas" phrase has been replaced with "happy holidays," and anybody who dares to differ with the so called "culture" and use the earlier instead of the later is accused of not being inclusive and forcing their religion on others as if religion is a poison that should be avoided at all cost. Should I continue about all the headlines I've been reading about countless cases of people complaining and suing left and right to remove a simple nativity scene from a public park, a courthouse, or even a neighborhood entrance with the claims that they are offended by the Christian message. Or maybe is the parent who sues the school because their child was in a school assembly and someone sang a Christmas song. I can continue but I wish not to share the headache that I get from seeing such hatred being directed to Godly things that if embraced would bring great joy to any person with an open heart.
    The reality is that even 20 centuries later, the prophecy remains true that God "came to his own but his own people accepted him not." (John 1:11) But why so much hatred? If those who do not believe in God are as free as they claim to be, why do they feel the need to persecute and trash those who do. Will not the truly free man enjoy his freedom in security? the fact of the matter is that no one is free apart from God, and should one claim to be free apart from the one who is the Truth, the only freedom they have is that of deceiving themselves. Obviously, without passing any judgment upon those who've acted so, it's their lack of peace in a despairing position that defies God that leads them to act in a manner that wishes to bring everyone down with them to the pits of unbelief and hatred of all that is good. To this, may God help them to know Him and love Him.
       Having concluded so however, my fear is not this type which is already cold, rather its in the interior lukewarmness that we all may be tempted to fall into.  Many Christians have allowed the worldly distractions to settle in their hearts and replace the joyful anticipation of the birth of Christ.  Many have become trepid giving in to the intimidation and the pressures of the world.  Now I must confess that were it not for God's grace, I could have despaired and asked like St. Peter "who could be saved," but the Lord has brought me to an epiphany that has made this Christmas a great grace for me.So what is this?
    This epiphany is a simple phrase that a friend of mine said to me a couple of years ago straight from the book of Zechariah 13:9 "I will test them as gold is tested, they shall call my name and I will hear them." This phrase is a great example of what we are going through. In the recent attacks on Christmas and those of us who desire to celebrate it, the purity of our intention is tested and purified. It's in this crucible of suffering and persecution that God purifies our hearts so that we can accept and love him with a greater purity. Even in a natural sense, it's always simple to love others when things are great between us but when things get difficult, our love is tested and if it's found wanting, we abandon those relationships and deem them unworthy.  This is the same case under the current persecution.  Our hearts are purified so that we can Love God for who He Is, instead of loving him for any other selfish reason.
    I remember like it was yesterday when a couple of years ago I was so afraid of simply making a sign of the cross which is deemed a classic Catholic practice that if I had to say grace in a restaurant, I would near go under the table in fear of others seeing me make the sign of the cross. I now laugh at such timidity ,but eventually God started speaking to my conscious by reminding me of those words by Christ that "those who acknowledge me before others, I will acknowledge them before my Father in heaven and those who deny me before men, I will also deny them before my Father."  In the light of these words and by God's grace, I started realizing that by crossing myself and invoking the Holy Trinity even in public was a way of sharing my faith, and God gave me the courage to do so. The next time I was in the middle of a coliseum with non-Catholics and being the lone person crossing myself.  Now, may it be in public or private, I do it for pure love of God and when eyes turn on me with a look of disapproval, I rejoice in the fact that God has given me the opportunity to die to myself so that I can live for Him.

   Coming back to my Christmas observation, we should also take heart to stand with Christ and joyfully proclaim and celebrate His birth and whether we are accepted or rejected, we should be encouraged by his promise from the beatitudes where he stated that "happy are you when they persecute you for my sake, rejoice, for great is your reward in heaven." Again, we should know that God uses the fire of persecution and suffering to purify us just "like gold is purified through fire." Therefore, we should stand firm and receive our newborn King the very Son of God our Lord Jesus Christ with great anticipation and joy. I  joyfully wish all of you a MERRY CHRISTMAS and a Happy New Year. May the blessings of Our Lord reign upon our lives now and forever more.