What is Hard to Understand "Most of us understand anger more readily than mercy, judgment more readily than compassion, and fear more readily than trust. The journey of faith is the gradual movement from what comes naturally to what comes supernaturally. We spend our lives learning to believe that God's love is more real than our fears. Every act of trust, no matter how small, enlarges the heart and leads us toward the freedom of the children of God." The freest people are often not those who have mastered life, but those who have learned to trust Love.-Br.MD
Proverbs 9:10 10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. I don't know. My take on the Church in general at the moment is that it is being buried under a False, Presumptious sense of the Mercy of God. A False Mercy that does not take into account the Justice of God. A False Mercy that denies the reality of Sin and Hell. People have totally lost the Fear of God and of Hell. The attack on Catholics who still hold to the Faith, the Faithful Remnant is precisely that they are rigid, Judgemental and Pharisees. The worst loss of Freedom is to loose the sense of God's Justice because it leaves us wandering in the desert of our own sins with no idea how to escape. People who are told that their sins do not matter before God have no idea how to escape the consequences of their own sins. Everlasting Fire. There is a kind of urban myth that the Church has been too harsh, rigid and judgemental and needs to stop it. My own experience has been quite the reverse. In my own lifetime the Church has more and more abandoned all discipline and sense of Justice. As to individuals . The strong impression I get is that people no longer believe in Hell and Sin and can do whatever suits them. https://www.catholic.com/qa/what-is-the-sin-of-presumption 'This is how the old Catholic Encyclopedia defines the sin of presumption: It may be defined as the condition of a soul that, because of a badly regulated reliance on God’s mercy and power, hopes for salvation without doing anything to deserve it, or for pardon of his sins without repenting of them.' Psalm 85:10 Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other.
This brought to mind the words which Bl. Alexandrina wished to have inscribed on her tomb, as her final plea to sinners to repent. "On her tomb are these words, as she requested: “Sinners, if the ashes of my body can be useful to save you, come, pass over them, trample them until they disappear. But sin no more: do not offend our Beloved Lord any longer. Repent. Do not risk losing Jesus for all Eternity. He is so good!”
Padraig, I also hope that those of us who make regular posts on MOG grasp the important distinction you make above in post 2! If it were not true, the final judgment scene in Matthew 25 would have to be reduced to a mere coming home party. But this must only urge us to set good example, to share the Good News with others, and, of course, to practice the spiritual Work of Mercy, admonish the sinner. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, be merciful to me a sinner! To encounter God is the first step to embracing His Mercy. May I better point the way each day by word and example!
Future Saint Bishop Sheen spoke so often of false compassion and as I read your words, I couldn't help thinking of him. No one wants to hurt feelings, or rumple any feathers it seems. Everything is fine. Look this way, ignore that. But it's pretty bad and people have no idea how bad it can get. Fear of the Lord seems nonexistent right now. After losing so many loved ones to accidental deaths, I know that anything.can happen in this world. It keeps me on my toes prayer wise and trust wise, when it comes to our Dear Lord and Savior. May our Lord and Blessed Mother watch over us all and our loved ones today and everyday
