Month: June 2016

Posted on

The Annunciation: Antithesis to Terrorism and Nihilism

It should be apparent to the world that Islamists like those in ISIS are at war with everyone who does not submit to their prescribed religious tenants. Terrorists are not nihilists. There was an article published about a year ago on how terrorists are nihilists. This is false. The only thing nihilists and terrorists have in common is the use of violence and power to achieve an end. Nihilists believe in nothing. They believe there is no objective truth and that the strong must prevail over the weak. Islamists believe that the world must be brought to Allah through violence and war and that Islam is predicated upon violent domination. There is a great chasm of difference between these two ideologies, but the author is correct in seeing commonalities in violence.

As Catholics we are doing battle with both nihilism and Islamism at the same time because they are both opposed to the Living God. While force is necessary in certain circumstances in response to great evils in the world, we must also remember the spiritual weapons at our disposal. We must remember to turn to Our Heavenly Mother and to show the world God’s love. We must pray, fast, and give alms to those in need.

Mary is the antithesis of both nihilism and Islamism. Both use force, coercion, and violence in order to achieve their goals. The Triune God does not force us to come to Him. This is clearly demonstrated through the power, beauty, and love of the Annunciation.

In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin’s name was Mary. And coming to her, he said, “Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.” But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his Kingdom there will be no end.” But Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?” And the angel said to her in reply, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God. And behold, Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren; for nothing will be impossible for God.” Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.

Luke 1:26-38

Read the rest over at Catholic Exchange.

Posted on

The Lie of Cohabitation

Today I want to write about a topic that is of increasing popularity in our culture: cohabitation. I myself know this topic all too well because I lived it for 2.5 years. Before I met my husband, I lived with a man who was not my husband. In that time period I worked hard to twist and distort a lie into truth. I tried to make an untruth which I knew to be false, into a good. It was a battle I waged and thankfully lost. I lived with this man without the slightest real desire for marriage on either of our parts and when marriage did come up it was only to assuage the ever increasing guilt I felt and to try to right the error of my life. God did not leave me in my sin, thanks to His abundant mercy, and thankfully, God had better plans for both of us.

Our culture has convinced itself that living together outside of marriage is perfectly natural. In reality, it is anything but natural. It causes great separation, division, and harm to the dignity of the parties involved. While parties who cohabitate may love one another on some level, they are inherently in a disordered arrangement that denies the very dignity of the two people involved, the good of the two involved, and violates God’s designs for men and women. Cohabitation by its very nature does not resemble marriage. Cohabitation is to will sin on one another and to remain separated from one another. Here are some reasons why the marriage and cohabitation are not the same thing and why cohabitation is so destructive:

Cohabitation is not a we. It is still two individuals.

Oftentimes, as was my own case, a man and woman in a romantic relationship decide to live together to save money. Other reasons are it is socially acceptable or a trying out period. I will get to the latter in a bit. When two people decide to live together it is not a coming together into a union. Instead much of the time it looks like a roommate situation which also includes fornication and the use of contraception, both of which are gravely sinful and can kill the soul by cutting the two people off from God. Property is still his and hers, money is still divided, and mentally the two people are not one. God is often a distant idea or He is twisted into a “loving” Father who accepts all of our behavior. Cohabitation cannot bring about a union of two people because it lacks the promise and covenantal relationship of the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony. Cohabitation also lacks the central involvement of the Most Holy Trinity within the relationship.

Read the rest over at Catholic Exchange.

Posted on

Hope is Born of Prayer and Purification

There is a reason hope is a supernatural virtue along with charity and faith.We live in a Fallen and broken world. Every single one of us will be hurt, suffer, and face death. There are dark days for each one of us in which hope keeps us on the path and points us to our eschatological home. It doesn’t even take dark days to struggle in hope. We each live our vocations day-in-and-day-out, much of it in perceived monotony. In fact, monotony can seem to rob us of hope more than darkness and suffering at certain times in our lives. We are given vocations in order to sanctify and purify us, and that includes in daily living whether it comes with joy, suffering, or routine. In order to persevere on the path to sainthood, it is essential for us to learn hope. Hope is born of prayer and a much needed purification process. We must all learn to let go of those things which limit the great destiny for which we were made.

Since hope is a supernatural virtue it is a gift from God. This means it must be fostered through Him and our relationship with Him. Hope is strengthened and deepened most readily through regular prayer. It is in prayer that God increases our capacity to be filled up by Him. Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI turns to Saint Augustine as a guide in his encyclical, Spe Salvi:

Man was created for greatness—for God himself; he was created to be filled by God. But his heart is too small for the greatness to which it is destined. It must be stretched. “By delaying [his gift], God strengthens our desire; through desire he enlarges our soul, and by expanding it he increases its capacity [for receiving him]”.

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, Spe Salvi, 33

We battle sin, selfishness, and our own desires. God must empty us, so that we may be filled with hope in Him. We must relinquish the hold we have on the things of this world. We must unclench our fists so that we can be open to Him.

Read the rest over at Catholic Exchange.

Posted on

A Short Introduction to the Cardinal Virtue of Fortitude

Fortitude is the cardinal virtue which aids most in perseverance in daily living. In the Christian life, fortitude is tied to the willingness to be martyred for the Faith. It is not a desire for martyrdom, but rather, a willingness to conform one’s life so closely to goodness and truth that they are willing to die rather than go against truth. The Catechism of the Catholic Church states: “Fortitude is the moral virtue that ensures firmness in difficulties and constancy in the pursuit of good. It strengthens the resolve to resist temptations and to overcome obstacles in the moral life. The virtue of fortitude enables one to conquer fear, even fear of death, and to face trials and persecutions (CCC 1808).” Once again it is clear how the cardinal virtues build upon one another. Prudence guides the individual to a reasoned conformity to truth, justice gives others their due, and fortitude fosters the habit of confronting and persevering in the face of evil and suffering.

Fortitude plays an important role in the moral life. If a person cannot choose to defend and live truth regardless of consequences, then they will fall into error, sin, and vice. Human beings will suffer in this life and fortitude provides the needed habit in overcoming, confronting, and living through periods of trial. In the latter, it may even mean giving up one’s own life. Pieper states, “Fortitude presupposes vulnerability; without vulnerability there is no possibility of fortitude. An angel cannot be brave, because he is not vulnerable. To be brave actually means to be able to suffer injury. Because man is by nature vulnerable, he can be brave.”[1] Fortitude is to accept this vulnerability, but to summon courage despite pain and suffering. Fortitude provides strength in the face of persecution when others may steal one’s property, livelihood, freedom, and very life. It does not mean searching for martyrdom or persecution, but it means being prepared when those moments arise.

[1] Pieper, 1758.