Our “itchy” ears are easily deceived - Don’t be deceived

Today at Holy Mass, the Gospel of John is read to the faithful. This particular text is one of the most familiar passages in the entire New Testament….John 3:16………”God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life…Its clearly a “feel good” passage…..And it’s a passage that gives people hope!…..But have we ever really thought about this famous statement deeply?…….Here are some thoughts to consider - What is love? - Do we have a clue about the kind of love God has for us, never mind the love we should aspire to have as human beings for each other? - Have you ever stopped and thought how much of a sacrifice it was God to give up is PERFECT son for an IMPERFECT world!? - Would you do such a thing,  give up your son for sinners? - I surely would not! - What does God mean by believing in his son? - Does this “belief” imply we do anything?…..These are some of the questions and thoughts we can reflect upon when we meditate on this passage that is used by many both inside the Catholic Church and outside its walls as well…….St John in his Gospel goes on…..”For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him will not be condemned, but whoever does not believe has already been condemned, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God”…Like any good father, God wants what is BEST for his children and WE ALL are God’s children…That means God wishes us to live in the state of grace - When we sin, which we ALL do, we NEED to reconcile our sin - God wants us to communion with him daily, which we do through prayer and receiving the Blessed Sacrament at Mass….Why would God want this? - The answer - Because its what is BEST for us!……..Interestingly enough, St John also implies an alternative to NOT believing in his son - What is that “alternative? - St John describes it as “condemning the world” - That means if we do not spend eternity with God in heaven - There is “another” place we will go - That “other place” is hell - Yes - Hell is real and Jesus spoke clearly about it often in the Bible…No one likes to think about “hell” these days but the reality is every human being we know will spend eternity in one of two places…Heaven or Hell - The entire world will be divided into two camps - And the only way to stay our of hell - As St John tells us today - Is to believe in God’s son……Seems pretty clear - RIGHT?!?

“Mend your ways, encourage one another, agree with one another, live in peace, and the God of love and peace will be with you”

American Protestants have interpreted the words of Christ and somehow made avoiding hell and entering heaven as easy as saying a few words….”I accept Jesus Christ as my personal Savior”….That is wonderful - But when one comes to this decision in life - What then does such a statement imply? - Do we have to live a certain way? - And if we fail at living as God commanded - Then what?…..The Catholic Church offers an alternative to the Protestant mindset - And that alternative is Sacramental living….Jesus did not write a book, he founded a Church - Why? - Because we need it!…The Church gives us the Sacraments and its the Sacraments that give us the grace to live the Gospel….If you “think” you can do as Jesus commanded without Sacramental Grace - You are deluding yourself! - Its simply impossible!….This is a driving reason why Jesus created a Church and gave us the Sacraments - Jesus understands human nature and knew we would need divine assistance to live out the Gospel……Somehow the Gospel has been “sanitized” - We have made it “palatable” for “polite society”…..How can this be when the words of Jesus are so very clear…St Paul tells us how - “We hear what our itchy ears want to hear”……The words of God are not for us to manipulate - God is very clear and He points the way forward - Its then up to us to go where he tell us to go………….Go to the Catholic Church!!!!!…….. Ultimately, all of us will end up in one of two places based upon the lives we lead, not simply by the words we speak…….Its “Upstairs or Downstairs” - Choose well

“This is indeed a stiff-necked people; yet pardon our wickedness and sins, and receive us as your own."

Today at Mass we hear a Gospel that is very familiar to us all….But did we stop and think about the words? - Its very easy to just hear them and make a superficial interpretation, taking the very words of Good for granted…..The Catholic Church’s teachings are very clear - So are the words in the Bible - Its all crystal clear!….With that said - How do so many people hear these words and come away believing something completely different? - The answer - PRIDE - We do not want to bend our will and change our life…..God is our father and he meets us as we are! - But when we meet him - God then asks us to CHANGE…If we begin the process of transformation - We grow in our faith - But if we refuse to change - Our faith regresses backwards and we simply “fool” ourself……In the final analysis - Its not enough to say - ”I accept Jesus Christ as my personal Savior” - Once we make that statement - We then have to LIVE like we mean it! - And the only way to do that is to live Sacramentally........Our fallen human nature will not permit us to do what cannot be done without Divine Grace given to us by the Sacraments………Walking the “narrow road” that leads to heaven is not accomplished by saying a few simple words……“Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light”……….Our “itchy” ears are easily deceived - Don’t be deceived……..JMJ