The Traditional Catholic Faith – the Greatest of God’s Gifts



A gift, yes indeed!  But how many appreciate it and thank God daily for this greatest[1] of gifts?  God came to earth, suffered and died to establish the Faith and demonstrate how to live a happy life on earth and to be perfectly happy forever in heaven.  Here are Our Lord’s words, as set forth in the Imitation of Christ, beautifully echoing St. John’s Gospel, 14:6:

          Follow Me.  I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life.  Without the Way,

          there is no going.  Without the Truth, there is no knowing.  Without

          the Life, there is no living.  I am the Way which you must follow, the

          Truth which you must believe, the Life for which you must hope.  I

          am the inviolable Way, the infallible Truth, the unending Life.[2]


This gift of Faith comes with an obligation to do our part and to do our best to keep

liberalism and compromise out!  Here is Thomas à Kempis’ exhortation to us:

          Take courage, brethren, let us go forward together and Jesus will be

          with us.  For Jesus’ sake, let us persevere with it.  He will be our help

          as He is also our leader and guide.  Behold, our King goes before us

          and will fight for us.  Let us follow like men!  Let no man fear any

          terrors![3]

Webster defines compromise as a “process or a result of settlement by arbitration,

or by consent reached by mutual concessions – surrender.  There is no place

for compromise or liberalism in God’s perfect gift of Faith.

 

It is sad to say that, after the Second Vatican Council, the substance of this gift of Faith has been thrown away by 99% of those who describe themselves as Catholics.  This includes the “lukewarms”, and the majority of people who thought of themselves as Catholics but didn’t bother to notice that our leaders in Rome (and in every diocese) are heading in the opposite direction from Our Lord.  With little thought they surrendered various Catholic principles and jumped on the conciliar bandwagon, encouraged by a Rome that has lost the Faith[4] and is the driving force behind the anti-Catholic Conciliar church. 

 

However much this makes life difficult for Traditionalists, who must fight endlessly to preserve the True Mass, valid Sacraments, and cherished traditions, be assured that Our Lord sees all and will reward those who fight the good fight and do not surrender their principles.  Here are Our Lord’s words, as set forth in the Imitation of Christ:

 

          My child, patience and humility in adversity are more pleasing

          to Me than much consolation and devotion when things are

          going well.[5]

 

In order for us Traditional Catholics to avoid all compromise, we must stand our ground and not give in to criticism for the stand we take for Christ the King.  We must be willing to forgo the compromise Sacraments and parish life.  Christ suffered daily for 33 years to establish a perfect Faith.  We can certainly suffer some to do our little part to keep the Faith as pure and holy as He intended. 

 

God knows what we need and is sure to provide the necessary help and strength as required to carry on in the current drive by political forces to stamp out God and traditional Catholicism, e.g.., Latin Mass Catholics (now designated “violent extremists” by the FBI.)[6]

 

 

 



[1]           In one way, Charity is the greatest of God’s gifts and is the greatest of the Theological Virtues.  As St. Paul teaches: “there remain Faith, Hope, and Charity, these three: but the greatest of these is Charity”.  1 Corinthians, 13:13.

 

On the other hand, as St. Paul teaches: “without Faith it is impossible to please God.”  Hebrews, 11:6.  Thus, although Charity is greatest absolutely, Faith is not only very great but is necessary for possessing Charity.  That is, if a person does not have the Catholic Faith, he will not have Charity either.  So, in that sense, Faith is greatest – because it is a necessary condition for possessing Charity.

[2]           Imitation of Christ, Thomas à Kempis; Book III, Ch. 56.

 

[3]           Imitation of Christ, Thomas à Kempis; Book III, Ch. 56.

 

[4]           Our Lady of La Salette predicted in 1846: “Rome will lose the Faith and become the seat of the Antichrist.”

[5]           Imitation of Christ, Thomas à Kempis; Book III, Ch. 57.

 

[6]           https://www.heritage.org/religious-liberty/commentary/the-fbis-targeting-radical-traditional-catholics-bodes-ill