Words matter and so does obedience

Today at Holy Mass in the Gospel of St Matthew Jesus once again tells the people something that may seem strange….He tells them that he has not come to abolish the law, but at the same time, Jesus was very critical of the teachers of the law…..Some may find this confusing….Jesus did not have a problem necessarily about what the teachers of the law were teaching, he did however have a problem with their internal disposition, which lacked love…..We can say “everything right” and still be wrong in the eyes of God if we do come from a place of love….”Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter will pass from the law, until all things have taken place. Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do so will be called least in the Kingdom of heaven. But whoever obeys and teaches these commandments will be called greatest in the Kingdom of heaven”…….Sadly, segments of the Catholic Church, as well as Protestants in America try to manipulate this Gospel…..There really is no wiggle room!…..The words of Jesus are very clear and if we are to follow him, me must take his words very seriously - Do we?…..Some try to separate Jesus from the Church he founded….”I do not have to listen to Church teaching - All I have to do is believe in Jesus”…..Well - That is incorrect! - One cannot separate “the head from the body” just as one cannot separate Christ from the one Church he founded…..The teachings of the Catholic Church are an extension of Christ - And when we live our lives through the lens of these teachings, we will grow closer to God - But the teachings themselves can become an idol, and if we are not careful - That can happen - And this is what happened to the Pharisees in Jesus day - As Catholics the dogmas and teachings of Mother Church are simply “tools” which point our life to God - They keep us in the state of grace as well as keep us safe…….However, if we focus too much on them, we can easy forget why we follow these teachings and in turn forget about God in the process - This is what the Pharisees did…St Paul reminds us of this “trap” set by the devil…..”If I speak in human and angelic tongues but do not have love, I am a resounding gong or a clashing cymbal. And if I have the gift of prophecy and comprehend all mysteries and all knowledge; if I have all faith so as to move mountains but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give away everything I own, and if I hand my body over so that I may boast but do not have love, I gain nothing”…..The law of God is important, we as Catholics must follow it, but we are not saved by the law, we are saved by a person - Jesus Christ

“Teach me your paths, my God, and guide me in your truth”

In the Catholic Church in America “tribes” have been established - “I am an a conservative Catholic” - “I am a progressive Catholic” - I am a Novus Ordo Catholic” - I am a Traditional Catholic…What is all that!?!…..There are no tribes in the Catholic Church! - This is all created by man and St Paul warns us about this as well……”What is Apollos, after all, and what is Paul? Ministers through whom you became believers, just as the Lord assigned each one. I planted, Apollos watered, but God caused the growth. Therefore, neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who causes the growth. The one who plants and the one who waters are equal, and each will receive wages in proportion to his labor”……In my view, the problem with all these “camps” and “tribes” within the Church today is - We do not want to be told what to do! - At the root of this problem, there is a lack of obedience and a lack of recognition of true authority, which rests with the Pope - Everything that the Catholic Church teaches is written down in the catechism - Just read it!…And when the pope says something - Do not just “dismiss it” - Obey it!…Why? - Because God gave him authority and trust me - If the pope speaks from a personal prospective and is wrong, God himself in time will correct the mistake…In the mean time, we should be obedient to the Pope’s authority and Trust in God’s providence……Obedience is a virtue that seems to be forgotten these days…Our Lady and St Joseph could teach us a great deal about what it means to be obedient when we see nothing but darkness and confusion in front of our eyes!….Mary and Joseph trusted God - Even when the requests seemed to “not make sense” - And guess what? - In time, everything God asked of them not only “made sense” but changed the course of history!….So STOP creating “tribes” and “camps” within the walls of the Catholic Church!…There is only “one camp” - Only one Church - And only one God…..I am not a “conservative” Catholic or a “progressive” Catholic or a “traditional” catholic or a “Novus Ordo” Catholic…I am simply Catholic

“You will show me the path to life, fullness of joys in your presence, the delights at your right hand forever”

Today in the Gospel, Jesus “throws a curve ball” at us….By the way - Jesus does this often - “Throw curve balls” - Do we pay attention when that happens?….Jesus tells us that we CANNOT ignore the law - Some people will say - ”I just need to believe in Jesus” - But when one looks objectively closer at that “camp”, their life choices seem to contradict that statement of “belief”, due to the fact they do not live through the lens of the perennial teachings of the Catholic Church…..How can we say we “believe” in God - If we do not listen to what God taught us through his Church?…..Jesus is NOT looking for people to just “believe in him” - Jesus is looking for people to FOLLOW him! - There is a big difference between the two “camps”……It all comes down to obedience - Have we surrendered our will to God? - Have we bent our knee fully to the Lord?…..When we pray the Lords Prayer - The one and only prayer in the entire Bible that Jesus taught us - When we say that prayer - Do we listen to the words that come out of our own mouth?…..”Thy will be done”…..RIGHT?!? - Jesus DID NOT say - “Our will be done”.....Words matter and so does obedience……..JMJ