If no one tells them clearly - Guess what? - They won’t know!

Today at Holy Mass in the first read St Paul calls out the Galatians…..Many Protestants hear this reading and misunderstand it - They seem to think Paul is “throwing out the law”…..The point Paul is trying to make is - We must do all things in and through the Will of God, acting in the state of grace - Grace propels us to live and act in the Holy Spirit…St Paul tells the Galatians - Your works mean very little if they are done outside the Will of God….Think about it - How many man-made things last? - Say more then one hundred years - How about more then two hundred years?…..Think now about the Church - Its 2000 years later since we killed Jesus Christ! - And the Church is still going strong - We are all over the world!…Why?…Because the Church is divine - Its Divine!!!!!…….And if we live and build our life on the “bedrock” foundation of God and the only Church he founded…What we build will last and IF we choose NOT too - Well - It won’t…..

“Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. But it did not collapse; it had been set solidly on rock. And everyone who listens to these words of mine but does not act on them will be like a fool who built his house on sand. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. And it collapsed and was completely ruined.”

There is no such thing as “cheap grace” - We cannot “self-manufacture” grace…..And this is where the Protestants go wrong…In order to live in the state of grace - “The law” applies to us - All of it - Everything the Church teachings noted in the Catechism applies to us!!!!……

“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. I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter into the kingdom of heaven”

While we all “fall short” - I sure do! - And when we do - The Church tells us when that happens - We MUST confess our sins Sacramentally….At the minimum once a year…But the saints (Pope John Paul II; Padre Pio & Fulton Sheen) recommend going to confession once a month…We cannot save ourself - We DO NOT enter heaven on our own terms - And the “law” applies to us whether we ignore it or not!…..St Paul today in the first reading used some strong language - ”O stupid Galatians! Who has bewitched you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified?”……Yes - Look it up - That is what St Paul said to the letter today at Mass!….Pretty direct - Right?!?….Maybe it’s time we are a little more direct too - You think?!?….

“Son of man, I have appointed you a sentinel for the house of Israel. When you hear a word from my mouth, you shall warn them for me. If I say to the wicked, You shall surely die—and you do not warn them or speak out to dissuade the wicked from their evil conduct in order to save their lives—then they shall die for their sin, but I will hold you responsible for their blood. If, however, you warn the wicked and they still do not turn from their wickedness and evil conduct, they shall die for their sin, but you shall save your life. But if the just turn away from their right conduct and do evil when I place a stumbling block before them, then they shall die. Since you did not warn them about their sin, they shall still die, and the just deeds that they performed will not be remembered on their behalf. I will, however, hold you responsible for their blood. If, on the other hand, you warn the just to avoid sin, and they do not sin, they will surely live because of the warning, and you in turn shall save your own life”

Our people only know what they know and if no one tells them clearly - Guess what? - They won’t know!…….JMJ