Hardened Hearts?

It appears the hearts of those in the media, and many of their true believers, have "hardened hearts" - instead of repenting their evil, we see an increase in hatred and calls for violence (against, of course the people they accuse of being violent haters).

It certainly reminds me of the biblical tale of the Pharaoh. How many more upsets will it take? Will they ever be able to repent?

The downward spiral of the left, and their evil purposes, is of course always death and destruction.

We may pray that many hearts will be woken to the reality of God, and that many may repent his sins.

Good Moments Are Eternal

God is eternal, or outside time, with perfect knowledge.

This concept I think we can not really imagine or conceive, because our lives are lived so differently, but it leads to a beautiful conclusion that affects our every waking moment.

The good we do each day,  and that others do to us, or that somehow effects us - even the most minor acts of love - such as holding my son, or kissing my wife, or helping relieve ones burden, even helping sweep the floor are truly eternal and a manifestation of God, or an aspect of Him, in reality. We may say a "small part" but God really had no boundaries in this way and may even be fully manifest in the smallest particle of the Eucharist.

[I had a beautiful dream of receiving the chalice last night, and wanting to make sure even the smallest drop was drank, and trying to get every last drop but it seemed I could never fully drain it, yet it gave me such great joy and I knew He was in even the smallest drop.]

To us living time-bound each moment seems instantly lost, each good thing always behind us. This may help us in our task of continuing to manifest God, to create beauty, to do good, to share the truth - as each new moment is created. It is like a painters canvas on which we may work.

But God is not time-bound, and he knows all, and he knows this all outside time, that is - in eternity. He knows all things in perfection, so perfect that they truly exist. He knows Himself so that it created the Son, and so loved the Son it manifests the Holy Spirit, and this Trinity bound by love of infinite power and greatness and joy beyond our conception - God loves us with this Love and sustains our very lives each moment with this Love.

So all those good things, all those even seemingly mundane and silly things, like children playing, and singing songs, and hugging are truly eternal as God is - truly existing in the eternity of eternities - world without end - is now and ever shall be.

Because we know too that God is all good, all truth, all beauty, each good moment and thing is also manifesting God in the present, in the now we can feel, and taste, and head, in the very present.

So when we fill our lives with the good we are filling our lives with the things that are eternal, moments that will eternally be really present in God and Heaven, and really bringing God Himself into our lives and others, making Him really present in what seems like "a small part" to us, though He may really and fully be present, though we may not or can not fully perceive it.

(I wrote this quickly after praying to God for an answer on whether these good things and moments were eternal, after hugging my son, because it seemed to me unbearably tragic were they not! So each Christmas the joy we manifest may be in part the same real joy that existed on the actual birth day of Christ so many years ago.)

Primary Motivation in Becoming Christian?

I think the primary motivations in becoming Christian should be:

1. Because it's true.
2. Because it brings great joy.
3. Because it gives our lives meaning.

Perhaps too short, or missing - but, indeed, Christianity is the most joyous religion, with the most good news possible. It is, in the face of a world clearly imperfect and with many suffering people, the happiest, best news we can imagine. 

In fact, we know it is greater than we can imagine - surpassing our best hopes and dreams.

The Saviour commands us to love God with everything, and we start by imagining or understanding God as He is - the most loving, caring Father possible, overflowing with joy and happiness and the infinite beauty of Himself and creation that He desires to share with us.

To participate we, ultimately, only have to let-go of the darkness in our lives, the falsehoods, errors, and flaws that somehow bind us and are destructive to creation and joy. We need to repent those things and seek God, to love Him.

The threat of great suffering is real, as we should know even now from sufferings in-this-life, but the greatest will be the loss of that relationship, and joy with God - He is infinite, and eternal, and the sufferings of that loss from a Heavenly perspective are of a greater pain, a greater loss to God's creation, and so worse than we can possibly imagine now (just as the joys are also beyond our happiest imaginings and dreams).

God Wills That None Are Lost

Some "Internet Catholics" say most are condemned to eternal torment (except, perhaps, readers of the blog?)

https://stevensperay.wordpress.com/the-fewness-of-the-saved-most-christians-go-to-hell/


Yet how can you hold that view without undermining the Mercy and Charity of God - and the efficacy of the Son of God's eternal sacrifice?

2 Peter 3:9New International Version (NIV) 

9 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

1 Timothy 2:3-4New International Version (NIV) 

3 This is good, and pleases God our Savior, 4 who wants all people to be savedand to come to a knowledge of the truth. 

John 3:16-17New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) 

16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. 

17 “Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 

Everyone's a Heretic

My first tongue-in-cheek title.

The real problem I've had in starting out a Catholic is that I find my own beliefs and understandings of Church doctrine are quickly called heretical by other internet Catholics, and that for those who profess that "Church teachings are very clear and consistent" appear to enjoy using that to try and bludgeon others into accepting their system - I think there is great pride for some in being the biggest "I am the most correctist person" and pointing out everyone else's heresies for them.

--

Bonald writes that the Pope's apparently heretical statements have made him doubt the trustworthiness of all the Pope's statements and writings.

David responds that we must be "subject to the Roman Pontiff" or we're going to Hell, presumably because otherwise we're heretics.

George says out the SSPX has left the church because the "Vatican II" council contains statements that or in error, or tending towards heresy, while liberals within the church accuse the SSPX of being schismatic and potentially facing the same punishment as heretics for not being directly obedient to the current Pontiff (and his apparent heretical beliefs?)

David responds that George's understanding of the Vatican II teachings (that non-Catholics belief systems can lead to salvation) are wrong and the teachings are consistent, and that George is preaching heresy by believing his interpretation of those teachings.

Olaus concludes by accusing Bonald of being heretical traditionalist, and furthermore daring to preach the heresy of Fideism.

--

I asked my local conservative Priest (I think the most, or one of the most, conservative in our parish) about what it-all-means. He explained that, indeed, non-Catholics may obtain salvation and that we should hope for it - though the Catholic church is the only true path and church established by God.

The last part sounds about right, but I'm not so sure about the first (though I'd like to believe it). At least he's not quite as heretical as the Pope, but I fear the internet might still condemn him as a heretic for not condemning all non-Catholics to Hell.

It's good to know that we as Catholics can at least figure it all out (?) even when the Pope's statements are especially hard to interpret in light of previous statements - because they're not really heretical or you're a heretic for thinking so. (I'm pretty sure Bonald's commenters have also pointed out that's a heresy too though.)

The Essential Problem of Catholicism

The essential problem of the Catholic church today is a failure to adapt to certain circumstances, and adaption attempts that have lead to more evil than good.

Traditional Catholics recognize the failings of the "Vatican II" adaptations, and would like to simply return to a pre-1960s church. Liberal Catholics want to ignore history and rewrite the doctrine of the church to be largely secular and modern. Conservative Catholics are attempting to make an apparent continuity between the traditional church and the broken and erred modernism introduced into the church with the reforms.

The specific problem is the transition of modern society from hierarchical to its present corrupted democracy. The church for centuries functioned by direct control largely via rulers, and directed a whole Catholic culture and society. It has now for many years been attempting to reassert and prove this authority (e.g. Papal infallibility) in the face of radical changes, yet has continued to fail holding onto a Catholic society and Christian populace as Protestantism fractures into further segments and the rulers and propagated culture of society itself has become anti-Christian.

The church attempted to "adapt" to this, which was an analysis of a legitimate problem, by attempting to adapt secular values - which as mentioned are largely anti-Christian. Yet at the same time the real problem persisted of a completely authoritarian church, used to ruling through secular and political ties to a large extent, completely losing those ties.

The reality is we can no longer rely on the top-down conversion of political rulers, who are in the sway of evil, but must rely on a mass, individual, personal Christianity that is made real and revealed on the individual level. We must return to a more apostolic Christianity which relied on individual conversion and experience of the Holy Spirit - direct insight and individual confirmation of the reality and truth of Jesus and Christianity.

Christ and the Alive World ("Animism")

The World is Alive

"Animism" or the belief that the natural world around us is alive, and has a degree of intelligence or consciousness, appears to be a spontaneous and common belief among peoples across the entire world.

My academic background was the study of religions - and it was an embarrassingly poor education - with nothing at all taught about Christianity. What struck me though was the profound commonality, underneath exterior differences, of this tribalistic, family-oriented, spontaneous religion and belief system that understood creation as having a spirit, or being actually alive. Animals, trees, rivers, lakes, mountains, etc. all have degrees of personality and spirit.

Perhaps one of the most profoundly "unorthodox" element in the works of Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and perhaps also all our most popular children's stories is they capture this worldview. Most often this is simply the expression that some animals can literally talk and think like people do. Even those who don't though have distinct personalities, memories, and even wills - that extends to everything in nature and God's creation.


Child Like Belief

When Christ commands us to have child-like belief, I think this is an element of that instruction. I think we are or should rely on our spontaneous and early understanding of the good, God, and the world to some extent.

One story that I think is worth meditating on is the boy Jesus teaching the wise men in the temple. We should certainly consider this story in light of His command to have child-like belief. Christ, despite being fully man (along with being God), was as a child more learned than the wisest men. Christ is a model of perfect man, and we should learn from this to appreciate that spontaneous, natural worldview and life that God supplies to us - that we are born with.

When he was twelve years old, they went up to the festival, according to the custom... After three days they found him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers.

Lewis captures this in the Narnia tales. There is much of the supernatural world that only children can see, or at least, that only they can see spontaneously. Adults seem to unlearn these things as they grow, or learn to deny or forget them.


Christ and the Living World 

There are several utterances and actions by Our Lord that certainly make sense in this light, the light of a living world of intelligences - if we are willing to not explain-them-away and take them simply.

And they came to him, and awoke him, saying, Master, master, we perish. Then he arose, and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water: and they ceased, and there was a calm.

Who else does Christ rebuke? At times His disciples, or the Jewish leaders in error. The water and wind obey Him as living creatures because He is Lord of creation.

 The next day as they were leaving Bethany, Jesus was hungry. 13 Seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to find out if it had any fruit. When he reached it, he found nothing but leaves, because it was not the season for figs. 14 Then he said to the tree, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard him say it.

Why does Christ rebuke a tree out of season? I've read various explanations, but they don't always seem particularly straightforward - or perhaps explain the passage on a different level. I think Christ commanded the tree to bear fruit, as He has commanded the winds and waters to be calm, but the tree being disobedient (or perhaps inclined towards unfriendliness and evil) was to never bear fruit again as punishment.

The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit. 

Christ matter-of-factly treats the wind as having its own personality and desires. Was He "speaking down" to His listeners in an unscientific fashion, or should we perhaps take Him at face value?

He replied, "Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." 

In context, like with the above passages, having enough faith (following Christ, becoming more Christ-like) means creation will listen to you (because it is alive) - even a mountain can or will move itself. 

He replied, "If they kept quiet, the stones along the road would burst into cheers [cry out]!" 

Another passage that, I think, is more wondrous and makes sense in context taken at face-value (child-like) rather than explained away as a metaphor or exaggeration on Our Lord's part.

In Context of Tolkien 

If we take Tolkien's insights as real and true, than the above passages could easily be read as connected to Middle Earth mindset, because it would be the same with our world. In Tolkien too the at least some of the rocks have memories, mountains are alive, and much more.


Disease and Demons

One frequently difficult area for moderns is the connection between disease and demons. We argue that science proves disease is caused by germs (and not demons) so we tend to forget or feel uncomfortable with these passages.

A possible explanation that probably doesn't cover all these is that some or most diseases are evil in their own right - the actual identification of the disease is with evil, or the destruction of good, and that the disease has, to some degree and like the rests of creation, its own desire and personality (however clouded, confused, sickly/broken, etc.)


God Came into Creation

It may also be interesting to establish Christ's close connection to the natural world, as apart from towns and cities. He frequently visits the towns and cities to preach, but often removes Himself to nature or wild surroundings to rest and pray.

This is mainly in contrast to the modern assumption that we are mostly disconnected from nature and material creation, that is totally distinct and separate from of us (as opposed to also alive, conscious).

1. Jesus was born in a cave (the manger), and reborn in a cave (the tomb).
2. Jesus spent, early in His ministry, 40 days alone in the wilderness.
3. The Holy Spirit descended on Christ after being baptized in the river Jordan (not a bath, or with a small vessel, etc. - suggesting the closer connection to nature). 

We are also taught by scripture that He raised up all of creation by coming into it, not just Human nature, which suggests an even wider significance to the incarnation that the salvation of our souls - I mean that perhaps all of creation can be elevated to some sense (like at the end of Narnia) and that God Himself is deeply connected to all of the natural world - not just mankind - in imbuing it with different hierarchy and degrees of souls (that is, real and true life).