Basic Doctrines

What Commandment Is Most Needed In Today’s Apostasy?

Posted on by Catholic Candle

It is the Third Commandment.

What is the Third Commandment?  Remember thou keep holy the Lord’s Day.

But what does that mean specifically?  It means that we are commanded to worship God in a special way on Sunday and to exclude (unnecessary) servile and commercial work.

And why is Sunday considered the Lord’s Day?  Because on Sunday Christ rose from the dead and on Sunday the Holy Ghost descended upon the Apostles.

Let us look more closely at what the Third Commandment requires of us. 

First, we must “keep Sunday holy,” and the Church commands that we do this by assisting at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass – when available without compromise.  Although we all grew up knowing that we had to go to Mass every Sunday, most of us had no idea that the day would come when, sadly, there was not a Mass to attend.

The Third Commandment is binding on all Catholics who have reached the age of reason, including children who are usually at the age of reason at least by seven years old.  (The conciliar church, as a practical matter, supposedly “exempts” a person from attending mass if he doesn’t have time, is too tired, or if it’s “not meaningful” to him anymore.) 

Traditionally, the Catholic Church has excused those who are too old or too infirm to attend Mass or whose necessary and unavoidable work prevents them from going to Mass.  Also, others who are not obliged to attend Mass are those who live too far away, or have no car, or because very bad weather makes it impossible to attend.

Second, not to hear Sunday Mass, or to miss a notable part of it, is a mortal sin.  To come a little late and not make up for it in another Mass, is a venial sin.[1]

Third, Mass is not our only obligation on Sunday.  Rather, God commands us to sanctify the whole day, and not only a part of it.[2]

It should be clear that “sanctifying the day” does not mean cutting the grass or washing the car, etc.  Inexcusably, many Catholics “think nothing of” doing such servile work.  Let’s review exactly what constitutes servile work. 


What is Servile Work?

It is work that befits a slave.  A slave’s work is for the sake of his master.  A slave’s work is not for the purpose of benefiting himself.

Usually, servile work is work of the body, such as cooking meals, cleaning the gutters of a house, repairing a faucet, digging a hole, weeding a garden, etc.  If a person were to claim that a particular slavish task was “purely for enjoyment” and thus, for him, not slavish but recreational, he should remember two things:

Ø  He is bound to avoid giving scandal.  If he performed this type of activity where anyone else could see him doing so, he would usually commit the sin of scandal through giving the appearance of performing servile work on Sunday.
 

Ø  Also, the person should examine his own motives.  If it is really true that he is doing work such as weeding the garden purely as enjoyable recreation and not to accomplish the servile task, then he would be perfectly happy to do this task where he gets no benefit from the work, such as, hypothetically, at the house of a stranger or in an abandoned lot.

A person could say: “but making Sunday dinner cannot be servile because otherwise we would starve.”  Rather, cooking is an example of necessary work and so it is allowed on that basis, even though it is servile. 

Work of daily necessity such as cooking the day’s meals, cleaning up after those meals, tending to the sick, unavoidable buying and selling of necessary food may be performed even on Sunday.  Servile work is permitted on Sunday to prevent serious financial loss, e.g., farmers who must harvest their crops before a coming hailstorm, etc. 

The necessity of performing emergency servile work on Sunday for one’s financial support can apply until the person is able to arrange his schedule so he has a different job or has another way to avoid such servile work on Sunday by better planning, etc. 

Also, those who work performing essential, unavoidable services can do so on Sundays, e.g., employees of public utilities, policemen, firemen, emergency room nurses and doctors, etc.[3]                                                                      

But not all physical work is slavish.  For example, it is not slavish for a man to go jogging and to do pushups to promote his own health.  It is not slavish for a person to practice a musical instrument to perfect his talent and his mastery of the art of music. 

Whereas most (but not all) physical labor is servile work, most (but not all) intellectual work is not slavish, e.g., reading, writing, teaching, drawing, and studying are not servile, and are not forbidden.  They are not the work of a slave but are undertaken to perfect the person engaging in the activity.

But some intellectual activities are servile.  The practice of the professions, e.g., medicine, law, accounting, pharmacology, and architecture, are slavish pursuits even though they are primarily intellectual.  We see that medicine and pharmacology are slavish pursuits by the fact that, in ancient times, rich Roman families would buy slaves who were physicians and pharmacists to provide for those families’ health.  Likewise, a lawyer does not practice law principally for enjoyment or self-improvement but rather to benefit his client (who is his “master” for that task). 

If anyone claims that such tasks are not slavish but “purely for his enjoyment”, he should remember the two things mentioned above (regarding weeding the garden as a supposed leisure activity).

One corollary to the above analysis is that employers who force their employees to do unnecessary servile work are violating the Third Commandment.

A second corollary is that parents, especially fathers, must guide their families and prevent the profaning of Sunday through servile work which is committed by those under their charge.

A third corollary is that we must do only the minimum necessary servile work on Sunday and not rationalize doing more than that.  For example, if a person were to hypothetically have a necessary and unavoidable reason to buy some food item on Sunday, he should not turn this trip to the store into an opportunity to perform his weekly grocery shopping.  That is wrong!  It is both a sin, of committing servile work on Sunday and also the sin of causing scandal.  This is true even if “everybody does it”.

A fourth corollary is that our focus should be to avoid all unnecessary servile work on Sunday.  Some people have a misguided and carnal approach through permitting themselves various types of servile work provided the work does not take very long (e.g., more than a certain number of minutes, which they “scrupulously” count).  Rather, the focus should be simply on avoiding all servile work as much as is reasonably possible.

The good Lord knows what is necessary to keep His day holy.  This is a serious obligation and we must both be strict with ourselves and also take the approach that is reasonable. 

The good Lord rewards generously those who put Him first by sanctifying the Sunday well. 


[1]           My Catholic Faith, Bishop Morrow, My Mission House, Kenosha, WI, ©1943, ch.100, p. 203.

[2]           My Catholic Faith, Bishop Morrow, My Mission House, Kenosha, WI, ©1943, ch.100, p. 203.

[3]           My Catholic Faith, Bishop Morrow, My Mission House, Kenosha, WI, ©1943, ch.101, p. 203.

Do You Want to Be Happy and Live Without Worry or Stress?

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I’m sure you do.  We all do.  But most people don’t want to live in the way through which they will achieve that goal – which is to live a life solely for the greater honor and glory of God.  Instead, they want to live a life of pleasure and to be well-liked and popular.  Here is some of what it takes to achieve that happy life:

He who attributes any good to himself hinders God’s grace from coming into his heart, for the grace of the Holy Ghost seeks always the humble heart.[1]

We must live our life as God wants us to live, not as we want.  Of course, the life God wants for us begins with a regular prayer life.  We must pray much – (St. Paul instructs us to “Pray without ceasing”.  1 Thessalonians, 5:17.

Next, we must study Christ and His teachings from the many traditional Catholic books, such as The Imitation of Christ, Catechism of the Council of Trent, St. Alphonsus de Liguori’s Books on Our Lord’s Incarnation and His Passion and Death.  Our Lord tells us the disposition we must have for that study:

I am He Who in one moment so enlightens the humble mind that it comprehends more of eternal truth than could be learned by ten years in the schools.  I teach without noise of words or clash of opinions, without ambition for honor or confusion of argument.[2]

Under these conditions, we will find our study of Christ so rewarding because to know God is to love God.  We will discuss things with Him often, and as our Good Friend.  He will always respond with the correct answer.  We will understand that God is all-knowing, generous, and wants us to be happy on earth, and later, much happier, with Him in heaven.   He will do only what is best for us.  We will learn to love Him as a trusted Friend, living the life that God wants for us – a happy one without stress or worry.

So, e.g., if we were interviewing for a desirable job, we should respond during the interview as if God were questioning us.  Or, when speaking during an important company meeting, speak as God wants us to.  Speaking and living as God wants — what could be better for you?  We can have real confidence that it will ensure a happy, worry-free life, and that God will do the best for us.  But if something unusual happens, we won’t worry because we know it is in our best interests.

However, as stated above, we must thoroughly study Christ’s life on earth.  His Life shows us everything we need to know – how to live, and to speak, and to pray.  This life – our “new” life – is ready for us.  Let’s start today!  God will bless our efforts, and remember: we must be saints to get into heaven.


[1]           Imitation of Christ, Thomas A Kempis, Bruce Publishing Co., 1962, Book III, Ch. 43, p.164.

[2]              Imitation of Christ, Thomas A Kempis, Bruce Publishing Co., 1962, Book III, Ch. 43, p.165.

 

The Modern “Lifestyle” = Rejection of the Principle & Foundation

Posted on by Catholic Candle

Examples of modern diversions:

·         Smart phones (gadgets);

·         Television/movies;

·         Travelling;

·         Health “focus on me” foods, an excessive concern with specialty foods, e.g., foods certified organic or “fairtrade”, or gourmet foods;

·         Exercise;

·         Sports; and

·         Some secondary “causes” or “crusades” on which a person focuses his life, e.g., saving the whales, the environment, ozone depletion, glacier melting, celebrity fan clubs, eliminating wasteful government spending, preserving historical landmarks, ancestral family trees, etc.

All of these are pulling man away from God as the central focus of his life.  The Conciliar Church is wrapped up in the world and, therefore, also is wrapped up in these diversions from the purpose of man’s existence – by contrast, these churchmen are supposed to be teachers who guide souls to be detached from the world, as Our Lord commanded.

Modern man is sensing his lack of a real purpose in his life and is searching for some relief for his aching and empty heart.  There is much discussion of stress and how modern man is being overstressed.  Of course, a person causes havoc in his body when he tries to live without his true focus (viz., God), too, and this is because we are body and soul. 

Many try to immerse themselves in their diversions (creatures) – see the list of diversions, “causes”, and “crusades”.  Many evil men (and the devils, too) are taking advantage of the modern man’s hapless, haphazard, wandering and his going from one so-called “solution” to another.  Hence, modern man searches in vain because he lacks the one purpose of his life and happiness, namely, God.  In other words, the Principle and Foundation is missing.

Many people find little bits and pieces of the Principle and Foundation.  In fact, they may find some huge chunks or inspirations of the concept of the Principle and Foundation.  However, because they do not have the true Faith, they do not find the satisfaction they seek.  The Principle and Foundation is the rudder of the spiritual life, and the better it is kept in mind, the happier we are. 

The Principle and Foundation is based on our proper use of our reason, and the more we use our highest faculty (our reason), the closer we get to God.  God calls us all to be contemplative, that is, to practice contemplation.[1]  

Those who practice contemplation use this faculty the best.  So, it is easy to see how far off the poor modern world is from the Catholic knowledge of God and from the service we owe to Him.

Let us use the Principle and Foundation to begin a new, better, more reasonable, more faithful way of living!


[1] See Mary’s School of Sanctity Lesson #3 on Contemplation and the Objective Truth Series  reflection # 24 Spiritual Nuptials

Let us Detach Ourselves from the World and Focus on our Eternal Goal

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Let us Detach Ourselves from the World and Focus on our Eternal Goal

One key element of the work of salvation is to rid ourselves of a false notion of self-importance and instead to foster a true self-forgetfulness and a focus on the things of God.  Here is a poetic way in which Professor Smith observed the importance of this truth in a speech at the University of Chicago, in 1902:

We proud men pompously compete for nameless graves while some starveling of fate forgets his way into Immortality.

The Father’s Love for Man + The Son’s Love for the Father = Salvation for Man

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 He who is not ready to suffer all things and stand resigned to the will of the Beloved is not worthy to be called a lover.[1]

God so loved man that He sent His only Son to suffer and die as a fitting sacrifice in satisfaction for the sins of man, and to regain for mankind the gift of being children of God and heirs of heaven. 

Sin offends an infinite God, and therefore, would need infinite satisfaction.  Thus, Someone Infinite, Jesus Christ, had to offer that satisfaction.  Only the Blood of God Himself could accomplish this.

We can never repay Him in this life or the next.  The only way we can show our appreciation is to live according to His will.  Here is how My Catholic Faith explains this truth:

Our Lord looked forward to His agony, saying to His Apostles, “That the world may know that I love the Father, and that I do as the Father has commanded Me.  Arise, let us go from here.”  (St. John’s Gospel, 14:31).  In the garden, Jesus felt so sad at the sins of men and at what would befall Him that He said, “My soul is sad even unto death” (Matt. 26:38). 

To His Father, He cried out in pain: “Father if Thou art willing, remove this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Thine, be done.”  (Luke 22:42).

Jesus pleaded three times this same prayer.  In His agony, “His sweat became as drops of blood, running down upon the ground.”  (Luke, 22:44).[2]

Jesus Christ suffered and died as Man; as God He could neither suffer nor die.  He suffered excruciatingly in order to make full reparation for sin.  Even only one sin is so abominable to God that not all the deluges and fires can wipe away the stain.  Only the blood of God Himself can do so. “The Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all.”  (Is. 55:6).[3]

 

From the Passion of Christ, we learn the evil that sin is, and the hatred that God has for it.  Here is how My Catholic Faith explains this truth:

St. Augustine says that on the cross Our Lord bent His Head to kiss us, extended His Arms to embrace us, and opened His Heart to love us.  How thankful we should be to Christ for His love!  “He humbled Himself, becoming obedient to death, even to death on a cross” (Phil. 2:8).[4]

It was not necessary for Jesus to suffer so intensely in order to redeem all men.  As His merits are infinite, He could have wiped away the sins of a thousand worlds by shedding one drop of His blood.  But He chose to suffer agonies because He loves us.[5]

The sufferings of Christ, in addition, serve as an example for us, to strengthen us under trials.  Christ gave us an example of patience and strength.  If we receive trials, we should accept them with resignation, in imitation of Our Lord, Who suffered so willingly for our sake.  We can never have as much suffering as He did.[6]


[1]           Imitation of Christ, Thomas a Kempis, Book 3, Chapter 5.

[2]           My Catholic Faith, Bishop Louis Morrow, My Mission House, Kenosha, WI, ©1949, Lesson 34, page 69.

[3]           Id.

[4]           My Catholic Faith, Bishop Louis Morrow, My Mission House, Kenosha, WI, ©1949, Lesson 35, page 71.

[5]           Id.

[6]           Id.

Does the end ever justify the means?

Posted on by Catholic Candle

We live in a time of great pressure and growing distress.  Here are two examples:

  1. People are pressured to accept the COVID “vaccine”[1] in order to keep their jobs (or to avoid fines, or be able to obtain food, etc.) because of “vaccine” mandates imposed by the government or by their employers.[2]
  2. People are pressured to attend the Masses[3] of (or go to Confession to)[4] a compromise group or priest in order to get the sacraments or to avoid being without a parish to which to belong.

When people yield to pressures such as these, they say they were “forced” to receive the COVID “vaccine”, or they say they “had no choice” except to attend the Masses of a compromise group or priest.  

But did they really have no choice?  Of course, they had a choice!  They merely did not like the alternative.  They could refuse the COVID “vaccine” even if they were fired from their jobs (or even if they had no way to obtain food, or whatever).  Or (in the other example), those people could sanctify the Sundays at home, rather than support a compromise group and receive its sacraments.  

When these people say they were “forced” to commit the sin, they really mean that they chose to do the evil deed rather than to accept the crosses and sufferings sent to them by God.  

The Church’s martyrs often were given a way to avoid being killed.  For example, many Roman martyrs were told they could avoid being killed if they simply burned a tiny amount of incense to a false god.  Instead of their glorious martyrdoms and eternal salvation, those people could have excused themselves by saying they were “forced” to burn incense to the false gods.  Plainly such an excuse would have been sinful.   Their duty was to avoid such sin even though their steadfastness in the Faith would result in their martyrdom.

But suppose the sin which is “forced” upon the person is “only” a small sin and the results from committing the sin are very great goods?  This outlook (viz., that a sin is “only” a venial sin), is a temptation from the devil!  It is always wrong to commit even the “smallest” sin in order that good can come from it.  

All sins are infinite offenses against God in three ways (and mortal sins are infinite offenses against God in a fourth way too).[5]  We should never “slap God in the Face” in order that good might come from it.  In other words: the end does not justify the means.  

St. Paul shows this truth when he writes that some enemies of Christ spread the lie that Catholics hold that the end justifies the means.  Here are his words:

We are slandered, and as some affirm that we say: let us do evil, that there may come good.[6]

What does the word “justify” mean?

  • to provide or be a good reason for (something): to prove or show (something) to be just, right, or reasonable;
  • to provide a good reason for the actions of (someone).[7]

Under these broad definitions, it would seem that the end can be thought to justify the means in some circumstances.  For example: an employee is late for work and he justifies his delay, i.e., provides a good reason, when he explains that a car accident shut down the road on which he was traveling to work.

However, this is not what it means for the “end to justify the means”.  When it is claimed that the end justifies the means, this means that an outcome is so desirable that even sinful conduct is acceptable to achieve it.[8] 

In this sense, the end never justifies the means.  In other words, we cannot truly justify committing a sin.  As St. Paul teaches this truth, we cannot “do evil that there may come good”.


Conclusion

We are soldiers of Christ!  We must be friends of God!  Let us never commit a sin (such as to receive the COVID vaccine or attend a compromise Mass) in order that good can come of it!  Properly understood, the end never justifies the means.

[1]          The Covid “vaccine” is not really a vaccine.  It is gene therapy.  It is called a vaccine in order to deceive people into accepting it.  Here is how the U.S. Food and Drug Administration defined “gene therapy” in 2018:

Human gene therapy seeks to modify or manipulate the expression of a gene or to alter the biological properties of living cells for therapeutic use.

Gene therapy is a technique that modifies a person’s genes to treat or cure disease. Gene therapies can work by several mechanisms:

  • Replacing a disease-causing gene with a healthy copy of the gene
  • Inactivating a disease-causing gene that is not functioning properly
  • Introducing a new or modified gene into the body to help treat a disease.

Quoted from: https://www.fda.gov/vaccines-blood-biologics/cellular-gene-therapy-products/what-gene-therapy

This 2018 FDA definition fits the COVID Pfizer and Moderna “vaccines” perfectly.

However, that was before the leftists needed mRNA treatments to qualify as “vaccines”.  Now the leftist “fact checkers” solemnly tell you that COVID mRNA treatments are not gene therapy.  See, e.g., https://news.yahoo.com/fact-check-covid-19-vaccines-140024936.html

[2]          For an explanation of why the COVID “vaccines” (from Pfizer, Moderna, Astra Zeneca and Johnson & Johnson) are always mortally sinful to receive, read this article: https://catholiccandle.org/2021/01/01/reject-the-covid-vaccines/

[3]
        To read about the importance of completely avoiding all compromise groups and priests, read this article: https://catholiccandle.neocities.org/faith/why-do-traditional-catholics-stay-in-a-compromise-group.html

[4]
        To read about the importance of never going to confession to a compromise group or priest, read this article: https://catholiccandle.org/2020/09/01/excuses-for-compromise-confessions/

[5]          For an explanation of these truths, read this article: https://catholiccandle.neocities.org/faith/the-infinite-evil-of-sin.html

[6]
         Here is the longer quote:

For if the truth of God hath more abounded through my lie, unto his glory, why am I also yet judged as a sinner?  And not rather (as we are slandered, and as some affirm that we say) let us do evil, that there may come good?  whose damnation is just.  What then?  Do we excel them?  No, not so.  For we have charged both Jews, and Greeks, that they are all under sin.

Romans, 3:7-9 (emphasis added).

[8]          Webster’s definition of the end justifying the means:

used to say that a desired result is so good or important that any method, even a morally bad one, may be used to achieve it.

[Example of using the phrase in a sentence:] They believe that the end justifies the means and will do anything to get their candidate elected.

https://www.merriam- webster.com/dictionary/the%20end%20justifies%20the%20means

Sanctifying Grace – the Perfection of Free Will and Principle of Merit

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Catholic Candle note:  Occasionally, we analyze the liberal statements of Bishop Richard N. Williamson.  Yet, someone could wonder:

Why mention Bishop Williamson any longer, since he is unimportant as merely one of very many compromising bishops and priests? 

It is true that a priest (or group) is of small importance when he (or the group) is merely one of the countless compromisers.  By contrast, an uncompromising and faithful priest or bishop is of great importance, even though he is only one.

However, we sometimes mention Bishop Williamson in particular for at least these five reasons, motivated by charity:

1.    New Catholic Candle readers might not be sufficiently informed of Bishop Williamson’s liberalism in order to avoid him.  Out of charity for them we occasionally provide these warnings to help those new readers appreciate the danger of the errors he spreads.

2.    Some longtime Catholic Candle readers might forget Bishop Williamson’s poison or vacillate in their resolution to stay away from him, if they never received a reminder warning about the danger inherent in his teachings.  This is like the fact that all it takes for many people to become conciliar is to never be reminded about the errors of Vatican II and the conciliar church.  Out of charity for these readers we occasionally provide these reminders lest readers “forget” to continue to avoid Bishop Williamson and his group.

3.    Bishop Williamson serves as an important study case to examine how leaving the truth often happens.  It is a warning to us all about a very common way to depart from the truth and become unfaithful.  Out of charity for ourselves, we occasionally provide these insights about becoming unfaithful by taking this common road of compromise that Bishop Williamson is taking.

4.    Over time, Bishop Williamson has provided us with a large catalogue of liberal errors.  Studying his compromises and errors along with the contrasting Traditional Catholic truth is a helpful means of studying our Faith and guarding ourselves against the principal errors of our time.  This helps us to fulfill our duty of continually studying the doctrines of our Faith.  Out of charity for ourselves, we use the occasion of Bishop Williamson’s liberalism to study our Traditional Catholic Faith better, in contrast to Bishop Williamson’s corresponding liberalism.

 

5.    Most so-called “bishops”, whether liberal/conciliar or sedevacantist, have doubtful consecrations and must be treated as invalid.[1]  By contrast, Bishop Williamson’s consecration is not doubtful.  Thus, if he ever were to return from his heresies, he could once again do important work for the Catholic Church, as he did years ago.

Finally, for those readers who are already resolute in their determination to completely avoid Bishop Williamson and his compromise group, they can receive just as much of the substance of this Catholic Candle article, if they substitute the phrase “a liberal could say” anytime they read “that Bishop Williamson teaches”.


Sanctifying Grace – the Perfection of our Free Will and the Principle of Merit

Defending the Catholic Faith and Our Lady’s Perfection

Against Bishop Williamson’s Confusion and Heresies[2]


In a recent letter to his followers, Bishop Richard Williamson showed his confusion about the spiritual life when he taught that if God were to bestow grace in great enough abundance, it would:

1.    Take away a person’s free will; and

2.    Destroy the merit of prayers, virtuous acts, and good works.

These two conclusions are heresies. But this confused bishop also adds a third error:

3.    Because God wanted His elect to be able to merit, He could not avoid the world being a place where most people go to hell.

Below, we will examine each of these three errors.

1.   Bishop Williamson falsely claims that grace can take away a person’s free will.

Bishop Williamson (falsely) teaches that God would take away a person’s free will by giving that person grace in sufficiently great abundance.  Bishop Williamson says that, if God gave grace in such abundance, then “He [viz., God] would in effect be stopping human beings from exercising their free-will”.[3]

In other words, Bishop Williamson is falsely asserting that if grace is abundant enough, it takes away free will.  That is false and is heresy!

The truth is that grace always makes our will freer and less under the dominion of the wounds of original sin.  Man is not free to choose his goal (i.e., his end).  It is fixed by the nature God gave to him.  Man always seeks happiness as his end.  Man’s will is only free to choose the means to this end.  All of this is explained beautifully in Pope Leo XIII’s encyclical Libertas.

 

God can save the most hardened sinner by enlightening his mind and strengthening his will, so that the man sees more plainly the true means to obtain his happiness. When God gives this extra light and strength, any man freely chooses these means which God clearly shows him, and thus he attains happiness (especially heaven), which is the end which God fixed for him to seek.

 

Thus, the souls of the saints are most-free, because they follow God and reason in all of the various aspects of their lives. They are freest from the slavery to vices, such as pride and gluttony.[4]

The consequences of Bishop Williamson’s error are especially striking because of how his error insults the Blessed Virgin Mary.  If he were correct, then Mary would be the least free of all humans, since she has the greatest grace of any human person, as shown below.[5]


Mary has the greatest grace of any human person.

Mary is full of grace, as the Archangel Gabriel proclaimed: “Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.”  St. Luke, 1:28. 

St. Thomas Aquinas, greatest Doctor of the Church, teaches the same truth:

So full of grace was the Blessed Virgin, that it overflows onto all mankind.  It is, indeed, a great thing that any one saint has so much grace that it is conducive to the salvation of many; but it is most wondrous to have so much grace as to suffice for the salvation of all mankind. Thus, it is in Christ and in the Blessed Virgin.[6]

Indeed, St. Alphonsus de Liguori, Doctor of the Church, teaches that Mary has more grace than all of the other saints together.  Here are his words:

Let us conclude that our heavenly child [Mary], because she was appointed mediatrix of the world, as also because she was destined to be the Mother of the Redeemer, received, at the very beginning of her existence, grace exceeding in greatness that of all the saints together.[7]

So, we see that Our Lady has the greatest grace of any human person – i.e., more than any person except Our Lord Jesus Christ.

Does this grace impede the Blessed Virgin Mary from exercising her free-will, as Bishop Williamson teaches?  Absolutely not!

Anyone who receives grace becomes freer because of the grace.  With the greatest abundance of grace, Our Lady is the freest of all.  This truth is the opposite of Bishop Williamson’s distortion of the spiritual life and his erroneous and confused teaching about grace and free will.

2.   Bishop Williamson falsely claims that abundant grace can take away a person’s opportunity to merit.

Bishop Williamson (falsely) teaches that a person’s ability to merit would be taken away if God gave him grace in sufficiently great abundance.  Bishop Williamson says that, if God gave very abundant grace, then “He [viz., God] would in effect be stopping human beings … from meriting for Heaven”.[8]

In other words, Bishop Williamson is falsely asserting that if grace is abundant enough, then a person cannot merit.  That is false and is heresy!  If he were correct, then Mary would be most greatly prevented from meriting since she has the greatest grace of any human person.  However, she has the greatest merit, as shown below.

Our Lady’s merit is greatest among all of the saints

The Blessed Virgin Mary is not only full of grace but this is the reason for the great merit she earned by every thought, word and deed.

St. Alphonsus beautifully explains this truth in these words:

If Mary, as the already destined Mother of our common Redeemer, received from the very beginning the office of mediatrix of all men, and consequently even of the saints, it was also requisite from the very beginning [that] she should have a grace exceeding that of all the saints for whom she was to intercede.  I will explain myself more clearly. If, by the means of Mary, all men were to render themselves dear to God, necessarily Mary was more holy and dearer to Him than all men together.  Otherwise, how could she have interceded for all others?  That an intercessor may obtain the favor of a prince for all his vassals, it is absolutely necessary that he should be dearer to his prince than all the other vassals.  And therefore St. Anselm concludes that Mary deserved to be made the worthy repairer of the lost world, because she was the purest of all creatures. ‘The pure sanctity of her heart, surpassing the purity and sanctity of all other creatures, merited for her that she should be made the repairer of the lost world.’[9]

St. Alphonsus further teaches:

Let us conclude that our heavenly child [Mary], because she was appointed mediatrix of the world, as also because she was destined to be the Mother of the Redeemer, received, at the very beginning of her existence, grace exceeding in greatness that of all the saints together.  Hence, how delightful a sight must the beautiful soul of this happy child have been to heaven and earth, although still enclosed in her mother’s womb!  She was the most amiable creature in the eyes of God, because she was already loaded with grace and merit. …  And she was at the same time the creature above all others that had ever appeared in the world up to that moment, who loved God the most; so much so, that had Mary been born immediately after her most pure conception, she would have come into the world richer in merits, and more holy, than all the saints united.[10]

With the most abundant grace, Our Lady also had the most abundant merits.  Contrary to Bishop Williamson’s heresy, a greater abundance of grace does not impede merit, but rather causes it.

3.   Bishop Williamson falsely claims the world is not the most perfect world but is the best world God was able to create and still have heaven be a great place.

Bishop Williamson not only shows his confusion about grace, free will, and merit (as shown above), but also, he asserts that God did not make earth a better place than He did, because that would have made heaven a worse place.  Bishop Williamson (falsely) teaches that if God had not made a world where most people go to hell, then heaven would be worse.  This is false and is heresy.  Here are Bishop Williamson’s words:

[A]n unmerited Heaven could not have the quality of a merited Heaven, which is why we live in this “vale of tears” – God created us only for the best, even if it necessitated the “collateral damage” of a “vale of tears” in which a majority of all souls created would choose Hell.[11]

In other words, Bishop Williamson falsely asserts God made a world where most men go to hell because otherwise, He could not have made heaven as great.

The truth is that the world that God made is the best of all possible worlds.[12]  God allows evil for His greater glory and in order to bring about greater good.[13]  God allows some people to (voluntarily) sin and to damn themselves because their damnation manifests God’s Justice more clearly than if damnation had been something which never occurred but which we understood only as something that could have – but didn’t – ever happen.

Similarly, God’s Mercy and Goodness in saving the elect is more manifest in contrast to the actual damnation of other souls, since the damned very evidently manifest what could have happened to the elect, had God not chosen to save them because of His Mercy and Goodness.

 

Although sin itself is evil, this world which God made, in which He allows sin and damnation, is better as a whole because it manifests God’s Mercy, Goodness, and Justice better than if there had been no sin.  By better manifesting God’s perfections, the universe gives greater Glory to God.[14]  For God’s only end is His Own Glory, that is, Himself.  Any other end (less than God) is unworthy of God.[15]

 

Thus, we see that, for His own Glory and to manifest His perfections, God saves some persons and gives them happiness.  Likewise, for His own Glory and to manifest His perfections, God allows some persons to damn themselves and be unhappy.[16]

Thus, Bishop Williamson errs that God made the earth imperfect because, if He had made the earth better, it would have made heaven worse.  The truth is that God could have made a world where everyone received superabundant grace and where everyone went to the perfect heaven which He made.  But this would have been a less-perfect world.

 

Similarly, God could have made a world where everyone received superabundant grace and there were no tears and no suffering, and everyone loved Him greatly.  However, such a world would have been less perfect because it would have failed to manifest His Honor and Glory as perfectly as the world He actually made. 

 

 

Conclusion

 

We must be vigilant to guard against Bishop Williamson’s fundamental errors concerning the spiritual life.  In contrast to his errors, the truth is that:

 

v  Grace always makes a man’s will freer. 

 

v  Grace always increases the merits of his actions. 

 

v  The heaven and earth that God made are the most perfect ones possible, although most men choose sin and choose to damn themselves.


[1]           For further information about the doubtfulness of the conciliar “consecration” rite, read this analysis: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B49oPuI54eEGZVF5cmFvMGdZM0U/view?resourcekey=0-d98Ksw0xkbtafE2fYSTq8A

 

[2]           Heresy is an error about the Catholic Faith.  Here is how St. Thomas Aquinas explains this truth:

 

We are speaking of heresy now as denoting a corruption of the Christian Faith.  Now it does not imply a corruption of the Christian faith, if a man has a false opinion in matters that are not of faith, for instance, in questions of geometry and so forth, which cannot belong to the faith by any means; but only when a person has a false opinion about things belonging to the faith.

 

Now a thing may be of the faith in two ways, as stated above, in one way, directly and principally, e.g., the articles of faith; in another way, indirectly and secondarily, e.g., those matters, the denial of which leads to the corruption of some article of faith; and there may be heresy in either way, even as there can be faith.

 

Summa, IIa IIae, Q.11, a.2, respondeo.

[3]           Here is the longer quote:

God is absolute Goodness because He is absolute Being, only a lack of being can be evil. It is absolutely impossible for God to cause directly moral evil. What He can do is cause it indirectly by not giving the grace or graces which would have prevented that moral evil from happening. In that case He is not acting positively, He is refraining from acting, or acting negatively, to allow the evil to happen. Those graces that would have prevented the evil, He is entirely free to give or not give, and if He always gave them, He would in effect be stopping human beings from exercising their free-will and from meriting for Heaven. But an unmerited Heaven could not have the quality of a merited Heaven, which is why we live in this “vale of tears” – God created us only for the best, even if it necessitated the “collateral damage” of a “vale of tears” in which a majority of all souls created would choose Hell (Mt. VII, 13–14).

Eleison Comments by Mgr. Williamson – Issue DCCXXXII (732) (underline emphasis in original; bold and italic emphasis added).

 

[5]           We must defend Our Lady against such insults to her prerogatives.  As St. Louis de Montfort teaches in his book, True Devotion to Mary, ¶265:

Finally, we must do everything for Mary.  Since we have given ourselves completely to her service, it is only right that we should do everything for her as if we were her personal servant and slave.  This does not mean that we take her for the ultimate end of our service, for Jesus alone is our ultimate end.  But we take Mary for our proximate end, our mysterious intermediary and the easiest way of reaching Him.

Like every good servant and slave, we must not remain idle, but, relying on her protection, we should undertake and carry out great things for our noble Queen.  We must defend her privileges when they are questioned and uphold her good name when it is under attack.

[6]           St. Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on the Angelic Salutation.

 

[7]           St. Alphonsus de Liguori, The Glories of Mary — discourse #2 the birth of Mary (emphasis added).

 

[8]           Here is the longer quote:

God is absolute Goodness because He is absolute Being, only a lack of being can be evil. It is absolutely impossible for God to cause directly moral evil. What He can do is cause it indirectly by not giving the grace or graces which would have prevented that moral evil from happening. In that case He is not acting positively, He is refraining from acting, or acting negatively, to allow the evil to happen. Those graces that would have prevented the evil, He is entirely free to give or not give, and if He always gave them, He would in effect be stopping human beings from exercising their free-will and from meriting for Heaven. But an unmerited Heaven could not have the quality of a merited Heaven, which is why we live in this “vale of tears” – God created us only for the best, even if it necessitated the “collateral damage” of a “vale of tears” in which a majority of all souls created would choose Hell (Mt. VII, 13–14).

Eleison Comments by Mgr. Williamson – Issue DCCXXXII (732) (underline emphasis in original; bold and italic emphasis added).

 

[9]           St. Alphonsus de Liguori, The Glories of Mary – discourse #2 the birth of Mary

 

[10]         St. Alphonsus de Liguori, The Glories of Mary — discourse #2 the birth of Mary (emphasis added).

 

[11]         Here is the longer quote:

God is absolute Goodness because He is absolute Being, only a lack of being can be evil. It is absolutely impossible for God to cause directly moral evil. What He can do is cause it indirectly by not giving the grace or graces which would have prevented that moral evil from happening. In that case He is not acting positively, He is refraining from acting, or acting negatively, to allow the evil to happen. Those graces that would have prevented the evil, He is entirely free to give or not give, and if He always gave them, He would in effect be stopping human beings from exercising their free-will and from meriting for Heaven.  But an unmerited Heaven could not have the quality of a merited Heaven, which is why we live in this “vale of tears” – God created us only for the best, even if it necessitated the “collateral damage” of a “vale of tears” in which a majority of all souls created would choose Hell (Mt. VII, 13–14).

Eleison Comments by Mgr. Williamson – Issue DCCXXXII (732) (underline emphasis in original; bold and italic emphasis added).

 

[13]         Here is how St. Thomas Aquinas (the Greatest Doctor of the Catholic Church) explains this truth, quoting St. Augustine, Doctor of the Church:

 

As Augustine says (Enchiridion xi): “Since God is the highest good, He would not allow any evil to exist in His works, unless His omnipotence and goodness were such as to bring good even out of evil.”  This is part of the infinite goodness of God, that He should allow evil to exist, and out of it produce good.

 

Summa, Ia, Q.2 a.3, ad 1 (emphasis added).


[14]         Here is St. Thomas’ fuller explanation of this truth:

 

It is the part of the best agent to produce an effect which is best in its entirety; but this does not mean that He makes every part of the whole the best absolutely, but in proportion to the whole; in the case of an animal, for instance, its goodness would be taken away if every part of it had the dignity of an eye. Thus, therefore, God also made the universe to be best as a whole, according to the mode of a creature; whereas He did not make each single creature best, but one better than another.  And therefore, we find it said of each creature, “God saw the light, that it was good” (Genesis 1:4); and in like manner of each one of the rest.  But of all together it is said, “God saw all the things that He had made, and they were very good” (Genesis 1:31).

 

Summa, Ia, Q.47, a.2, ad 1 (emphasis added).


[15]         Here is how St. Thomas explains this truth: 

 

[E]ach and every creature exists for the perfection of the entire universe.  Furthermore, the entire universe, with all its parts, is ordained towards God as its end, inasmuch as it imitates, as it were, and shows forth the Divine goodness, to the glory of God.

 

Summa, Ia, Q.65., a2, respondeo (emphasis added).

 

God loves mankind and the rest of creation because they are His work and He gave them whatever goodness they have.  But they are finite goods which God loves finitely as part of His infinite love for Himself.  For a fuller explanation of this truth, read this article: https://catholiccandle.neocities.org/faith/god-does-not-infinitely-love-any-creature.html


[16]         Here is how St. Thomas Aquinas (quoting St. Paul) explains this Truth of the Catholic Faith:

 

Let us then consider the whole of the human race, as we consider the whole universe.  God Wills to manifest His goodness in men; in respect to those whom He predestines, by means of His mercy, as sparing them; and in respect of others, whom he reprobates, by means of His justice, in punishing them.

 

This is the reason why God elects some and rejects others.  To this, the Apostle refers, saying (Romans 9:22-23):

 

What if God, willing to show His wrath [that is, the vengeance of His justice], and to make His power known, endured [that is, permitted] with much patience vessels of wrath, fitted for destruction; that He might show the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He hath prepared unto glory;

 

and (2 Timothy 2:20):

 

But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver; but also, of wood and of earth; and some, indeed, unto honor, but some unto dishonor.

 

Summa, Ia Q. 23 a.5, ad 3 (emphasis added).  The bracketed words (in the quotes from St. Paul) are contained in the Summa.

 

Our Life is a Personal Gift from God

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A gift-giver has the moral right to expect the gift to be spent, used, or lived as intended by the giver.  If you inherited a large sum of money from your (traditional Catholic) parents that they worked hard all their lives to accumulate, they’d have a right to expect you to use it wisely, and above all, not to use it in an evil way, putting your salvation in greater doubt.

Most people take their gift of life for granted and live it as they see fit, without considering restrictions from God or anyone else.  WRONG!  Your life is a magnificent gift from God, and in justice, ought to be lived as He requires.  The Catholic Encyclopedia has this to say about supernatural gifts:

A supernatural gift may be defined as something conferred on nature that is above all the powers of created nature.  When God created man, He was not content with bestowing upon him the essential endowments required by man’s nature.  He raised him to a higher state, adding certain gifts to which his nature had no claim.[1]

***

The absolutely supernatural gifts, which alone are the supernatural properly so called, are summed up in the Divine adoption of man to be the son and heir of God.  This expression, and the explanations given of it by the sacred writers, make it evident that the sonship is something far more than a relation founded upon the absence of sin; it is of a thoroughly intimate character, raising the creature from its naturally humble estate, and making it the object of a peculiar benevolence and complaisance on God’s part, admitting it to filial love, and enabling it to become God’s heir, i.e., a partaker of God’s own beatitude.  “God sent His Son…that He might redeem them who were under the law: that we might receive the adoption of sons.  And because you are sons, God hath sent the spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying: Abba. Father. Therefore, now he is not a servant, but a son.  And if a son, an heir also through God.”[2]

In the present world, life is not valued as the precious gift that it is.  Therefore, it is easy for people to think they have the right to use it in any way they want – ignoring God’s Ten Commandments, one (or all), and thinking they are living a fuller, more enjoyable, and happy life.

But in reality, it is a most unfulfilled life, filled with drugs and alcohol, pleasure-seeking, futilely chasing after money, success, satisfaction, and happiness. It is like one of God’s fish trying to live out of water.

Real happiness in life is based on understanding and real appreciation of God’s gift of your life, and living it according to the Giver’s intention and plan.

God picked you to receive His gift of life.  He could have chosen not to create you and to create someone else instead.

Show your appreciation by living a holy life to please Him.  This has the (intended) consequence of bringing you untold happiness.  You were created to be happy on earth and then to be perfectly happy with God forever in heaven.

When it comes to generosity, God is never outdone.  In reality, you take far more than you give, whereas God gives and gives, wants your love, and waits for you to love Him in return.

So, realize Who is the Giver, and who is the one always taking.  Your life will be happier if you make a real effort to live your gift of life by standing up for Him in this sea of evil called “the civilized world”.

Don’t worry.  He knows of your love and appreciation of His gifts. He can read your heart.  Oh, what a gift!

 

          


[1]           The Catholic Encyclopedia, 1909, Vol. 6, Page 553, article: Gifts, Supernatural.


[2]           The Catholic Encyclopedia, 1909, Vol. 6, Page 553, article: Gifts, Supernatural.

Sanctifying Grace – the “Companion” of Charity

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Catholic Candle note: We should study the Catholic Faith our whole life.  Part of this duty is to understand more fully the truths of the Faith we already learned as children.  Thus, for example, concerning the question “Who is God?”, we know from our First Communion Catechism that “God is the Supreme Being Who made all things.”  During our life, we should learn more about God, as best we can, little-by-little, using the opportunities we have.

The article below is an aid to help us “peering a little more deeply” into a few related truths of the Faith which we already learned in our catechism as children.  The article below is merely one more step in the journey of learning our Faith better.


What is Charity, and How does it relate to Sanctifying Grace?

Charity is friendship with God.[1] 

Without charity, a man is an enemy of God, since every man is at enmity with God through Original Sin[2] (and mortal sin), unless (and until) he becomes His friend through the friendship of charity[3], which is only acquired with Sanctifying Grace.[4] 

Sanctifying Grace is God’s Life within us[5] and makes us holy and pleasing to God.[6]

Let us summarize what we covered so far:  God’s life is to know and love Himself, and that life is pure and perfect bliss; He is the only worthy object of His love and knowledge.[7]

Yet the astounding fact is this:  When we possess charity and Sanctifying Grace, we also participate in that very life of God – His love and knowledge for Himself!  We know and love God in a way similar to the way that He Himself knows and love Himself.  Note that we said “in a way similar to how He knows and loves Himself” – but not to the same extent. 

This qualification of “in a way similar to” is very important.  Perhaps an example might help: let us suppose a very bright philosopher who knows and can prove many truths about God, yet who lacks Sanctifying Grace.  This man might be able to explain many natural truths about God (truths knowable by the human intellect without Revelation) which many or even most Catholics cannot prove because of a lack of education.  Yet this bright man is not able to know God in the way that the simplest peasant can know Him when he has Sanctifying Grace. 

What is the way the bright man knows God?   He can prove things about God from a distant and cold perspective, in a dry, academic way.  For example, he can prove there must be a God, because of such-and-such human reasoning.  He can prove that this God must be eternal, and can prove many other truths.  This is all good, but yet it is a “far cry” from what Sanctifying Grace does for the soul. 

Let us now contrast:  What can the peasant in the state of grace do which the bright philosopher in the state of mortal sin cannot do?  The peasant is able to know God as a loving Father – a personal God Who cares about each of us deeply, Who was born and died for us, Who is always looking out for us, guiding us, showering us with gifts, and Who longs to have us with Him forever in heavenly bliss.  But love requires knowledge of the thing loved.  Thus, because the peasant is able to know God in this way, he is also able to love God in a way that bright philosopher is simply not able to.

The “Companionship” of Sanctifying Grace and Charity: Sanctifying Grace and Charity always come into a soul together[8] and increase together (and they leave together, in any soul that has the great tragedy of committing a mortal sin).[9]

Thus, we can see that Sanctifying Grace and charity are inseparable “companions” in the supernatural life.  Here is how God’s Life and His Love for Himself are reflected in our possessing Sanctifying Grace and charity:

➢  God is His Own Divine Life; Sanctifying Grace is God’s Life in us by participation.

 

➢  God has one act, which is to love Himself.[10]  By charity, we love God in a similar way.


Without Charity and Sanctifying Grace, we cannot merit.

What is merit?

To “merit” means “to be worthy of or entitled or liable to earn”.[11]

Merit is a right to a reward.   For example, let us suppose a man who is in mortal sin discovers a plot to kill and overthrow the king.  The man informs the king.  This deed deserves praise and reward, because perhaps it not only saved the king himself, but also the whole kingdom.  Thus, the king – if he is a just man – might say to the man, “Well done!  You have merited a reward and my gratitude.”  In that case, the man merited a natural reward from a mere man. 


Merit can be natural or supernatural.

But what if the man did the same thing, but this time possessed Sanctifying Grace and charity?   When in the state of grace, the motive behind our actions can be that of love of God, and thus take on a supernatural dimension.   In such case, not only would the man gain natural merit from the human king, but also supernatural merit.  God, Who is Justice itself, might well give him natural gifts (e.g., good health, success), but also supernatural gifts (e.g., a right to a higher place in heaven, an increase of virtue and grace).

But without Sanctifying Grace, we cannot merit anything from God.[12]

This is not surprising, since those without Sanctifying Grace are God’s enemies.[13]  How could God’s enemies ever merit from Him while remaining His enemies and remaining in mortal sin – with their wills turned against Him?[14]

Let us “unpack” the consequences a little further, of the truth that without Sanctifying Grace, a person can merit absolutely nothing from God.  This means that:

➢  A man in the state of mortal sin who builds orphanages, schools, or monasteries (which are good works) does not merit even the slightest thing from God, by doing so.[15]

➢  A man in the state of mortal sin who teaches the Catholic Faith, does not merit even the slightest thing from God, by doing so. [16]

 

➢  A man in the state of mortal sin who dedicates his life to fighting communism or disease, or who dies trying to rescue a child in a burning building, does not earn anything at all from God, by doing so.[17]

This is true even if the man’s work was an instrument to save many other souls and brought about much good in other ways.  Persons without Sanctifying Grace never merit from God by the good works they do.  On the other hand, though, those persons are able to commit further evil.  By choosing to commit more sins, they offend God further and deserve further punishment.

This does not mean that a man in mortal sin never does anything good and that he cannot have any natural virtues.  When the man teaches the truth or constructs a building, those are truly natural good works and this fact is not “taken away” by the man’s inability to merit from God for those works.[18]  Again, a man might merit natural rewards, such as from the human king, as explained in the above example.

Natural virtue is not a source of supernatural merit, when a man is in mortal sin.[19]  For example, a Satanist (or other enemy of God) could possibly have the habit of being patient with his neighbor or be habitually generous to a crippled child.  These habits (patience and generosity) would be natural virtues.  What is impossible is for such a man to merit supernaturally from God, by his (natural) good acts and virtues.

We ordinary Catholics, who are unaccustomed to the ways of God, might tend to falsify the truths (above) by supposing that there is a way “through the back door” for a man in mortal sin to merit in some way.  For example, although we know that a man in mortal sin cannot merit from God, we might suppose that, when God sees the man’s (human) good works or (natural) virtues, God might decide to give that man grace on that basis, i.e., for this reason.  But our supposition (viz., that God might act this way) would contradict the truth that a man in mortal sin never merits from God by anything he does.  In other words:

Nothing done by a person without Sanctifying Grace inclines God to give him any blessing or good.

Remember the explanation above: to “merit” is to be a cause of good or to earn good in some way.  If a man in mortal sin were to influence God favorably toward him in any way, through the good works that man did, so that God gave him something which the man would not have otherwise received, then that man has merited while in mortal sin.  In other words, that man’s good works would have been a cause of the good he received from God.  This is impossible.[20]  Thus, God never gives any good to a man because of that man’s good works while he is in mortal sin, because that man cannot merit anything by his works.

However, this truth certainly does not mean that God could never (or would never) give grace to a man in mortal sin.  Rather, the Sanctifying Grace and other good things which God gives to a man in mortal sin are in no way merited by him.  They are given as a free, undeserved gift of God, not based on anything he did.

In a future article, we will look at how someone can merit supernatural good in some way (called “condignly”), when he is already in the state of Sanctifying Grace.


Conclusion

A man in mortal sin cannot merit Sanctifying Grace or any other good from God, by the (human) good works he does or by the (natural) virtues he has.  Sanctifying Grace is a free gift of God, not merited in any way by the man in mortal sin.


[1]           Here is how St. Thomas Aquinas, greatest Doctor of the Church, explains this truth:

It is written (John 15:15): “I will not now call you servants . . . but My friends.”  Now this was said to them by reason of nothing else than charity. Therefore, charity is friendship.  …

According to the Philosopher (Ethic. viii, 2,3) not every love has the character of friendship, but that love which is together with benevolence, when, to wit, we love someone so as to wish good to him.  If, however, we do not wish good to what we love, but wish its good for ourselves, (thus we are said to love wine, or a horse, or the like), it is love not of friendship, but of a kind of concupiscence. For it would be absurd to speak of having friendship for wine or for a horse.

Yet neither does well-wishing suffice for friendship, for a certain mutual love is requisite, since friendship is between friend and friend: and this well-wishing is founded on some kind of communication.

Accordingly, since there is a communication between man and God, inasmuch as He communicates His happiness to us, some kind of friendship must needs be based on this same communication, of which it is written (1 Corinthians 1:9): “God is faithful: by Whom you are called unto the fellowship of His Son."  The love which is based on this communication, is charity: wherefore it is evident that charity is the friendship of man for God.

Summa, IIa IIae, Q.23, a.1, sed contra and respondeo (emphasis added).

[2]           As the psalmist teaches, concerning everyone being born with Original Sin: “I was conceived in iniquities; and in sins did my mother conceive me.”  Psalm, 50:7.  St. Paul teaches that, because of Original Sin, we are all “by nature children of wrath”.  Ephesians, 2:3. 

[3]           Here is how St. Thomas Aquinas teaches this truth, following and quoting St. Augustine: “whosoever has not charity is wicked, because ‘this gift alone of the Holy Ghost distinguishes the children of the kingdom from the children of perdition’”.  Summa, IIa IIae, Q.178, a.2, sed contra, quoting St. Augustine’s treatise on the Blessed Trinity, De Trinitate, bk.15, ch.18.

St. Paul teaches: “the charity of God is poured forth in our hearts, by the Holy Ghost, who is given to us.”  Romans, 5:5.

[4]           Here is how St. Thomas Aquinas teaches this truth, quoting St. Augustine:

Sanctifying Grace is given chiefly in order that man’s soul may be united to God by charity.  Wherefore Augustine says (De Trin. xv, 18): “A man is not transferred from the left side to the right, unless he receives the Holy Ghost, by Whom he is made a lover of God and of his neighbor.”

Summa, IIa IIae, Q.172, a.4, respondeo.

[5]           Here is how St. Thomas Aquinas teaches this truth:

[T]he light of grace which is a participation of the Divine Nature is something besides the infused virtues which are derived from and are ordained to this light ….

Summa, Ia IIae, Q.110, a.3, respondeo. 

See also, St. John of the Cross, the Mystical Doctor of the Church, where he teaches the same truth: Spiritual Canticle, Stanza 38, §4.

St. Peter refers to Sanctifying Grace as making us “partakers of the Divine Nature”.  2 Peter, 1:4.

[6]           Here is how St. Thomas Aquinas teaches this truth:

Even as when a man is said to be in another’s good graces, it is understood that there is something in him pleasing to the other; so also, when anyone is said to have God’s grace – with this difference, that what is pleasing to a man in another is presupposed to his love, but whatever is pleasing to God in a man is caused by the Divine love, as was said above.

Summa, Ia IIae, Q.110, a.1, ad 1.

A little below these words of St. Thomas, he says “we speak of grace inasmuch as it makes man pleasing to God”.

Summa, Ia IIae, Q.110, a.3, respondeo (emphasis added).

Here is how the Baltimore Catechism #3 explains this truth:

Q. 461. What is sanctifying grace?

A. Sanctifying grace is that grace which makes the soul holy and pleasing to God.

[7]               The only way God knows creatures is through knowing Himself and knowing us as His works.  Summa, Ia, Q.14, a.7, respondeo; Ia, Q.16, a.7, respondeo.  The reason why God loves us creatures is because we are His works and He loves His works and the good He put into us.  Summa, Ia, Q.14, a.5; Ia, Q.20, a.2.

[8]           Here is how St. Thomas Aquinas teaches this truth:

Sanctifying Grace is given chiefly in order that man’s soul may be united to God by charity.

Summa, IIa IIae, Q.172, a.4, respondeo.

[9]           Mortal sin deprives a man of sanctifying grace.  Summa, Ia IIae, Q.109, a.7, respondeo.  Mortal sin deprives a man of charity.  Summa, Ia IIae, Q.88, a.1, respondeo.

[10]         This same one act of loving Himself is also an act of knowing Himself.  It is hard for us to understand this, but God is wholly simple and has only one act, which is to know and to love Himself.  Summa, Ia, Q.3; Ia, Q.16, a.5, ad 1.

[11]         https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/merit (definition of the transitive verb, “merit”).

 

[12]         Here is how St. Thomas Aquinas teaches this truth, referring to Sanctifying Grace using its other name, i.e., “habitual grace”, since Sanctifying Grace remains in (inhabits) those in the state of grace:

The preparation of the human will for good is twofold: the first, whereby it is prepared to operate rightly and to enjoy God; and this preparation of the will cannot take place without the habitual gift of grace, which is the principle of meritorious works ….

Summa, Ia IIae, Q.109, a.6, respondeo (emphasis added).

Here is how the Catechism of St. Pius X teaches this truth:

5 Q. Why do not those who are in mortal sin participate in these goods [shared in the Communion of Saints]?

A. Because that which unites the faithful with God, and with Jesus Christ as His living members, rendering them capable of performing meritorious works for life eternal, is the grace of God which is the supernatural life of the soul; and hence as those who are in mortal sin are without the grace of God, they are excluded from perfect communion in spiritual goods, nor can they accomplish works meritorious towards life eternal.

Catechism of St. Pius X, section, Ninth Article of the Creed, subsection, Communion of Saints (bracketed words added to the question, to show the context).

Here is how the Baltimore Catechism #3 teaches this truth:

Q. 141. Why then do we say a soul is dead while in a state of mortal sin?

A. We say a soul is dead while in a state of mortal sin, because in that state it is as helpless as a dead body, and can merit nothing for itself.

[13]         Here is how St. Thomas Aquinas teaches this truth, following and quoting St. Augustine: “whosoever has not charity is wicked, because ‘this gift alone of the Holy Ghost distinguishes the children of the kingdom from the children of perdition’”.  Summa, IIa IIae, Q.178, a.2, Sed contra, quoting St. Augustine’s treatise, De Trinitate, bk.15, ch.18.

As the psalmist teaches: “I was conceived in iniquities; and in sins did my mother conceive me.”  Psalm, 50:7.  St. Paul teaches that, because of Original Sin, we are all “by nature children of wrath”.  Ephesians, 2:3. 

[14]         Concerning three ways that all sin is an infinite offense against Almighty God and concerning a fourth way in which mortal sin is an infinite offense against God, read this article: https://catholiccandle.neocities.org/faith/the-infinite-evil-of-sin.html

[15]         We already implicitly know this truth, since we know what St. Paul teaches regarding the importance of Charity, which is the inseparable “companion” of Sanctifying Grace:

And if I should distribute all my goods to feed the poor, … and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.     

1 Corinthians, 13:3.

[16]         We already implicitly know this truth, since we know what St. Paul teaches regarding the importance of Charity, which is the inseparable “companion” of Sanctifying Grace:

If I speak with the tongues of men, and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.  …  And if I should have prophecy and should know all mysteries, and all knowledge, and if I should have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.

1 Corinthians, 13:1-2.

[17]         We already implicitly know this truth, since we know what St. Paul teaches regarding the importance of Charity, which is the inseparable “companion” of Sanctifying Grace:

If I should deliver my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.

1 Corinthians, 13:3.

[18]         Here is one way St. Thomas Aquinas teaches this truth:

Yet because human nature is not altogether corrupted by sin, so as to be shorn of every natural good, even in the state of corrupted nature it can, by virtue of its natural endowments, work some particular good, as to build dwellings, plant vineyards, and the like ….

Summa, Ia IIae, Q. 109, a.2, respondeo.

[19]         Here is one way St. Thomas Aquinas teaches this truth:

[W]ithout grace man cannot merit everlasting life; yet he can perform works conducing to a good which is natural to man, as "to toil in the fields, to drink, to eat, or to have friends," and the like, as Augustine says.  …

Summa, Ia IIae, Q. 109, a.5, respondeo.

[20]         St. Thomas teaches that: “Man by himself can no wise rise from sin without the help of grace.”  Summa, Ia IIae, Q.109, a.7, respondeo.

St. Thomas teaches that a man in mortal sin is as unable to merit return to grace, as a dead man is unable to cause his soul to return to his body.  Here are St. Thomas’s words:

[M]an cannot be restored by himself; but he requires the light of grace to be poured upon him anew, as if the soul were infused into a dead body for its resurrection.

Summa, Ia IIae, Q.109, a.7, ad 2.

Here is how the Catechism of St. Pius X teaches this truth:

5 Q. Why do not those who are in mortal sin participate in these goods?

A. Because that which unites the faithful with God, and with Jesus Christ as His living members, rendering them capable of performing meritorious works for life eternal, is the grace of God which is the supernatural life of the soul; and hence as those who are in mortal sin are without the grace of God, they are excluded from perfect communion in spiritual goods, nor can they accomplish works meritorious towards life eternal.


Catechism of St. Pius X, section, Ninth Article of the Creed, subsection, Communion of Saints.

 

No Salvation outside the Catholic Church

Posted on by Catholic Candle

Catholic Candle note:

If people are only warned once against the principal errors of our Time, most of them will not keep the Faith.  They must be reminded periodically about each of these errors and the opposing Catholic Truth.  They will appreciate these reminders if they love the Faith, just like a man loves hearing people mention his spouse, if he loves her.  

People are continually bombarded with liberalism from all sides.  They will gradually and imperceptibly succumb to liberalism if they simply are not regularly warned and reminded about these errors which are foisted upon them from all sides.  

We see this happening now among the N-SSPX’s followers because that group has largely stopped preaching regularly against Vatican II[1] (as the SSPX used to do).  The article below reviews a crucial Catholic dogma and the N-SSPX’s recent public doubting of this dogma.

        

There is No Salvation outside the Catholic Church

The Catholic Faith infallibly teaches that only Catholics go to heaven, because there is No Salvation outside the Catholic Church.

The Council of Florence and Pope Eugene IV infallibly declare:

The most Holy Roman Church firmly believes, professes and preaches that none of those existing outside the Catholic Church, not only pagans, but also Jews and heretics and schismatics, can have a share in life eternal; but that they will go into the ‘eternal fire which was prepared for the devil and his angels’ (Matthew 25:41), unless before death they are joined with Her”.

Session 11.

Pope Boniface VIII infallibly declares:

With Faith urging us, we are forced to believe and to hold the one, holy, Catholic Church and that, apostolic, and we firmly believe and simply confess this (Church) outside which there is neither salvation, nor remission of sin”.

Unam Sanctam, 1302, Denz. 468.

Pope Sylvester II infallibly declares:

I believe that in Baptism all sins are forgiven, that one which was committed originally as much as those which are voluntarily committed, and I profess that outside the Catholic Church no one is saved.

Pope Sylvester II’s Profession of Faith, 991 AD.

Pope Innocent III infallibly declares:

By the heart, we believe and by the mouth we confess the one Church, not of heretics but the Holy Roman, Catholic and Apostolic Church, outside which we believe that no one is saved.  

Fitts exemplo, 1208, Denz. 423.

St. Thomas Aquinas, Greatest Doctor of the Church, declares:

[T]here is but one Church in which men find salvation, just as outside the Ark of Noah it was not possible for anyone to be saved.  

Commentary on the Apostles’ Creed, at the article “The Holy Catholic Church”.

Saint Augustine, Doctor of the Church, declares:

He who is separated from the body of the Catholic Church, however laudable his conduct may otherwise seem, will never enjoy eternal life, and the anger of God remains on him by reason of the crime of which he is guilty in living separated from Christ.  

St. Augustine’s Epistle 141.

Pope St. Gregory the Great, Doctor of the Church, declares:

The Holy Catholic Church teaches that … all those who are separated from Her will not be saved.  

De Moralis, bk.14, §5.

Pope Pius IX declares:

There is only one true, holy, Catholic Church, which is the Apostolic Roman Church.  There is only one See founded in Peter by the word of the Lord, outside of which we cannot find either true faith or eternal salvation.  He who does not have the Church for a mother cannot have God for a father, and whoever abandons the See of Peter on which the Church is established trusts falsely that he is in the Church.

Singulari Quidem, §4.

Pope Pius XI declares:

The Catholic Church alone is keeping the true worship.  This is the font of truth, this is the house of faith, this is the temple of God; if any man enters not here, or if any man goes forth from it, he is a stranger to the hope of life and salvation.

Mortalium Animos, §11.

Saint Cyprian of Carthage, a Father of the Church, in writing against the heretics of his time who denied the “faith and truth of the Catholic Church”, declared that “there is no salvation out of the Church”.  3rd Century, Letter LXXII, To Jubaianus, Concerning the Baptism of Heretics, ¶¶ 20 & 21.

The Conciliar Church, the N-SSPX, and Bishop Williamson All Publicly Doubt the Dogma

The conciliar church promotes the idea of holiness and salvation outside the Catholic Church.  For example, Vatican II declares that the Jews who have not converted to the Catholic Faith “remain most dear to God”.[2]  Likewise, Pope John Paul II declared that Buddhists and other non-Catholics (as well as Catholics), are part of the “Church of the Living God”.[3]

As the “new” SSPX and Bishop Williamson are becoming more liberal, they are adopting more conciliar errors.[4]  For example, Bishop Williamson doubts the dogma that there is No Salvation outside the Catholic Church.[5] 

Recently, the N-SSPX’s superior general, Fr. Davide Pagliarani, doubted this same dogma.  Here are his words:

If a soul can be saved outside the Catholic Church, it is despite the error in which it finds itself, and not thanks to it, and in any case, it is saved by Jesus Christ alone.[6]

Fr. Pagliarani here asserts the possibility that someone can be saved outside the Catholic Church.  When Fr. Pagliarani says:

if a soul can be saved outside the Catholic Church … it is saved by Jesus

Christ

this is a shocking and Faith-destroying statement which suggests the impossible might be possible, leading many souls into liberalism.  

Moreover, Fr Pagliarani contradicts himself.  Jesus Christ saves souls by incorporating them into Himself.  That is the only reason why God’s elect have their sins forgiven.  The Body of Christ is the same thing as the Catholic Church. This is why Pius XI (above) described the Church as the temple of God, which was the way Jesus referred to His Body.  St Paul uses both expressions to refer to his early converts and explain to them how Christ was atoning for their sin by incorporating them into Himself.  See 1 Cor. 3:16-17; 1 Cor. 12:13, 27; Col. 2:11-14; John 2:19-22.

Faithful and informed Catholics would never entertain Fr. Pagliarani’s Faith-denying doubt that there might be salvation outside the Catholic Church even on the condition that salvation outside the Church was still through Jesus Christ.  The statement is similar to:

if the devil can go to heaven, he is saved by Jesus Christ.

Faithful and informed Catholics would never say this about the devil even on condition!  Yet the devil has as much chance of gaining heaven as does someone who dies outside the Catholic Church – that is, no chance!

Faithful and informed Catholics affirm the dogma that outside the Catholic Church “no one is saved.”  Quoted from Fitts exemplo, 1208, Denz. 423 (emphasis added).  

Fr. Pagliarani proves in other ways too, that he is a coward and a doctrinal weakling.  In this same interview, he is directly asked if Jews must become Catholic.  Here is the interviewer’s question:

Do the Jews also have to convert to the Catholic Church, as you say for Protestants?[7]

Weak Fr. Pagliarani does not answer that question which a faithful and informed Catholic could easily answer.  Instead, he gives the non-answer that: 1) priests used to take the anti-modernist oath; and 2) Jews who wished to join the Catholic Church are allowed to enter.  Here is his full answer to the interviewer’s question whether “the Jews also have to convert to the Catholic Church”:

Modernism is one of the most dangerous errors. Until the Second Vatican Council, the Church asked all priests to take the anti-modernist oath, which I have also taken.  As for Judaism, it would be an unforgivable sin to exclude the Jewish people from the assets and the treasures of the Catholic Church.  The salvific mission of the Church is universal, and she cannot leave out any people.[8]

Fr. Pagliarani and the “new” SSPX betray the Catholic Faith!  They neither speak the truth freely nor defend it boldly.  Thus, they betray God and the Catholic Faith.  Here is how St. Thomas declares this truth:

He who does not speak the truth freely also betrays it, for it must be freely spoken; also, he who does not defend it boldly, betrays it, for it must be boldly defended.[9]

Conclusion

The conciliar church leaders betray the Faith.  Beware: the traitors who are leading the N-SSPX and the Williamson group are leading their followers along the same conciliar path of modernism!

[1]          For example, Fr. Daniel Cooper, SSPX, wrote regarding people who want the SSPX “to be attacking Vatican II from the pulpit. Very rarely is there a good reason to do this.”  Read the longer quote here: https://catholiccandle.neocities.org/priests/sspx-cooper-silent-vatican-ii.html

Fr. Cooper followed the liberal new direction of the SSPX.  He has since died.  The N-SSPX declared he entered heaven on the date he died.  Read the quote here, taken from the SSPX’s own source: https://catholiccandle.neocities.org/priests/sspx-travels-the-conciliar-path-toward-promoting-universal-salvation.html

 

Please pray for the repose of Fr. Cooper’s soul.

[2]          Vatican II, Lumen Gentium, §16.

[3]          Here is the longer quote from Pope John Paul II (before he became pope):

O God of infinite majesty!  The Trappist or the Carthusian confesses this God by a whole life of silence.  The Bedouin wandering in the desert turns toward him when the hour of prayer approaches.  And this Buddhist monk absorbed in contemplation, who purifies his spirit in turning it towards Nirvana: but is it only towards Nirvana?  …  The Church of the Living God unites in her precisely these peoples who in some manner participate to [sic] this admirable and fundamental transcendence of the human spirit, because she knows that no one can appease the most profound aspirations of this spirit but He alone, the God of infinite majesty.

Karol Cardinal Wojtyla, The Sign of Contradiction, Ed. Fayard, 1979, pp. 31-32.

[4]            Bishop Williamson rarely or never publicly condemns the N-SSPX’s liberalism and in fact, agrees with much of it.  His only frequent criticism of the N-SSPX is its seeking a deal with modernist Rome.  While such a deal will hasten the N-SSPX’s descent into ever-greater liberalism, the N-SSPX is continually becoming more liberal now.

[5]          Read Bishop Williamson’s own words about non-Catholics going to heaven, quoted from his own source, in this article:  https://catholiccandle.neocities.org/priests/williamson-bishop-williamson-promotes-vatican-ii-heresy-that-people-can-be-saved-outside-the-catholic-church.html

[6]          Words of Father Davide Pagliarani, Superior General of the Society of Saint Pius X, quoted from the interview he gave to the Austrian daily newspaper the Salzburger Nachrichten, and published on December 15, 2018.  This interview can be found here:  https://fsspx.news/en/news-events/news/it-inconceivable-church-was-mistaken-two-millennia-43158?utm_source=Society+of+Saint+Pius+X+%7C+Newsletter&utm_campaign=fb5d776750-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_12_15_11_06&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_8c13eb2341-fb5d776750-203947293

 (emphasis added).

[8]          Words of Father Davide Pagliarani, Superior General of the Society of Saint Pius X, quoted from the interview he gave to the Austrian daily newspaper the Salzburger Nachrichten, and published on December 15, 2018.  This interview can be found here:  https://fsspx.news/en/news-events/news/it-inconceivable-church-was-mistaken-two-millennia-43158?utm_source=Society+of+Saint+Pius+X+%7C+Newsletter&utm_campaign=fb5d776750-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_12_15_11_06&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_8c13eb2341-fb5d776750-203947293

 (emphasis added).

[9]
         St. Thomas Aquinas, The Ways of God for Meditation and Prayer, Ignatius Press, San Francisco, ©2007, p.97.

What Gift do most People Appreciate Least, but is Worth more than a King’s Ransom?

Posted on by Catholic Candle

Catholic Candle note: The article below was written by a man who has always been Traditional Catholic and who has been continually fighting liberalism since before Vatican II.

The answer to this riddle is: the gift of a Supernatural Faith.

The definition of a Supernatural Faith is:

The act of the intellect assenting to a Divine truth owing to the movement of the will, which is itself moved by the grace of God.[1]

The Catholic Encyclopedia explains further:

And just as the light of Faith is a supernatural gift bestowed upon the understanding, so also this Divine grace moving the will is, as its name implies, an equally supernatural and absolutely gratuitous gift.  Neither gift is due to previous study; neither of them can be acquired by human efforts, but ….  “Ask and ye shall receive.”[2] 

Most receive this gift from God through their parents, at Baptism, without effort or request.  It usually happens at a time when we give it little or no value.  Many people gain little appreciation for this gift over the years and many people discard it without any regret.  Those who keep and nurture this gift gain in virtue and understanding of what is at stake regarding earthly and eternal happiness.

The gift of Faith must be protected by an informed conscience, study, prayer, and courage to stand up against liberalism and modernism, and to stand up for Christ the King.

Two big helps to nurture your gift of Faith are humility and prayer.  Humility is the first virtue, inasmuch as it removes the obstacles to Faith.  Prayer inspires devotion and love for the Gift Giver.

The worst thing you can do with your precious gift of Faith is to put it in the hands of a liberal priest, or to be a follower of a liberal organization like the N-SSPX.  This foolish and misplaced trust does not relieve you of the responsibility for your own salvation.  I believe many follow a misguided path to salvation because they are lazy and/or cowardly; thus, they take the easy way out.  St. Paul in Romans states: “You have to work out your salvation in fear and trembling.”

Your actions demonstrate what value you place on your gift of Faith.  Below is a to-do list, with numbers for a grade.  This will help you determine what value you place on your gift of Faith.  100 points is your goal; less than that, there is work to do.

  1. You set aside a regular time for a daily Holy Hour of prayer and spiritual reading.  20 points

  1. You go out of your way to receive the traditional sacraments and attend Mass, when available.  10 points

  1. You fearlessly stand up for Christ the King no matter the criticism or loss of friendship or family.  10 points

  1. You set a good example at all times for others to follow.  10 points

  1. The traditional Catholic Faith is your whole life, every day, from the morning’s first moment through the night’s last moment.  20 points

  1. You never compromise with liberalism, no matter how slight.  10 Points

  1. You join the real resistance of informed and uncompromising Catholics.  10 points

  1. You leave or disassociate from any compromised group or priest without hesitation.  10 points

The above should confirm and defend your decision to leave the liberal N-SSPX, if you or others previously had any doubt about this.  The above points should also give you the courage to leave the liberal N-SSPX if you have failed to do so before now.

Let’s further take stock of the value you place on your gift of Faith, compared to your gift of Life from God.  The gift of Life has a built-in incentive to preserve it and nurture it.  Many spend much time and treasure to improve their health, no matter what the cost or distance.  But few people make equal efforts and have equal enthusiasm for the gift of Faith, that they have for this gift of Life.

Many protect and nurture their gift of Life to excess, which is a sin against temperance and a distraction from their effort to nurture and protect the gift of Faith.  We all have a duty to nourish and safeguard our health, but not to excess.  Everything in moderation except love for God.

So, let’s all dedicate ourselves to the eight steps listed above to nurture our gift of Divine Supernatural Faith.  You couldn’t make a better or more worthwhile decision.

 

[1]          Catholic Encyclopedia, 1911, Vol. V, page 756, quoting St. Thomas Aquinas, Summa, IIa IIae, Q.4, a.2.

[2]          Catholic Encyclopedia, 1911, Vol. V, page 756.

God Came to Earth to Redeem Man but Also for an additional reason

Posted on by Catholic Candle

Catholic Candle note: The article below was written by a man who has always been Traditional Catholic and who has been continually fighting liberalism since before Vatican II.

After God had freely determined to save the human race, He might have done so by pardoning man’s sins without having recourse to the Incarnation of the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity.  However, the Incarnation of the Word was the most fitting means for the salvation of man, and was even necessary should God claim full satisfaction for the injury done Him by sin.[1]  He took upon Himself not only the nature of man – a nature capable of suffering and sickness and death – but also He became like man in every respect except sin.[2]

Now, another reason God came to earth as a man is so He could teach us for 33 years – day after day, year after year – how one must live in order to be happy on earth and in heaven.  Any important and difficult subject to be mastered is best taught by demonstration of a leader.  This is why a new physician does a residency and a new plumber does an apprenticeship.  

Our Lord’s personal demonstration spoke much louder than words alone.  Because of that, we can never say it was easy for Him to suffer this or that, or go without this or that.  No, He suffered and gave up much, offering to be our earthly guide to ensure our happiness on earth and in heaven by following His selfless example.

It was all to help us break the grip the devil has on us because of the sin of our first parents, and our own sins.  Without Him showing us the way for 33 long years, I doubt there would be as many wonderful saints and a history of great religious societies.

Our Catholic Faith gives us many reminders of the importance of following Our Lord’s example.  For example, St. Paul urges us in these words:

Brethren, be imitators of God as very dear children and walk in love.

Epistle for 3rd Sunday of Lent (Ephesians, 5:1).

Below are the three phases of Our Lord’s Life on earth that will demonstrate for us the Way, the Truth, and the Life that we should follow for our salvation.

Phase I – Our Lord’s Hidden Life

His first examples for us started with His birth in a stable, a humble beginning.  He preferred poverty and humility to show Himself a friend of the poor, at the same time showing us the best way to heaven is through humility and detachment from earthly goods.

The Holy Family lived in Nazareth, and every year they went to Jerusalem to worship at the temple.  When Jesus was 12 years old, He went with them, but failed to return home with them.  Instead, He went to the temple to be in the midst of the wise men there.  We all know the familiar story.  After a day’s journey, Mary and Joseph could not locate Jesus in the caravan and returned to Jerusalem.  They found Him in the temple, and Mary said, “Behold thy father and I have been seeking Thee, sorrowing.”  Jesus replied, “How is it that you sought Me?  Did you not know that I must be about My father’s business?”  (Luke, 2:49)

He then meekly followed His parents to Nazareth and was subject to them.  He worked hard as a simple Carpenter, with St. Joseph.

Phase II – Our Lord’s Public Life, beginning at age 30

He started by an act of great humility: being baptized by St. John.  He then went to the desert to fast and pray for 40 days and nights.  This teaches us to do penance and prepare ourselves to fight the devil by mortification and prayer.  Jesus’ public life was to give us an example of how we should live day-to-day until our personal judgment.  Words and example directly from the God-man have a greater effect in preparing souls with instructions and training necessary for salvation.  He spoke in parables to help the less educated to understand.  Another lesson taught many times was empathy for the sick and disabled.

Phase III   Our Lord’s Passion and Death

Here again, He taught humility when He washed the feet of His Apostles at the Last Supper.  After that, He instituted the Blessed Sacrament, using common bread and wine, changing them into His own Divine Body and Blood.  

Jesus suffered and died for us, setting the example that no man has greater love than to give his life for another.  Also, He set us the perfect example how we should endure and persevere.  He suffered bitter agony of blood and sweat.  He was cruelly scourged, crowned with thorns, carried His cross, and suffered the excruciating death on the cross – all in silence.  He could not have set a better example for us to follow.  Jesus said, “I have given you an example, that as I have done to you, so you also should do.”  (John, 13:15)

He taught us to practice humility, penance, mortification, and perseverance before we presume to set an example and lead others.

His life on earth illustrated this.  He established the perfect religion, the Catholic Religion, with none of the worthless trappings and false teachings of man-made religions.

Our Lord’s perfect lessons especially fit our needs, in the true Resistance.  We must be humble and longsuffering.  We must stand firm for principle when others “bend” their principles to obtain the sacraments or find acceptance in a particular “traditional” group.  We must persevere without expecting that people will ever
understand us, or accept our stand for Christ.

[1]          Taken from the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia, article: Salvation, sub-article Salvation of the Human Race, Vol. 13, page 407.

[2]
         Taken from the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia, article, Incarnation, Vol. 7, page 706.

St. Paul taught this same truth in these words:

Having therefore a great high priest that hath passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God:  let us hold fast our confession.  For we have not a high priest, who cannot have compassion on our infirmities: but one tempted in all things like as we are, without sin.

Hebrews, 4:14-15 (emphasis added).

Final Perseverance is the Last Great Battle with The Devil

Posted on by Catholic Candle

Catholic Candle note: The article below was written by a man who has always been Traditional Catholic and who has been continually fighting liberalism since before Vatican II.

Most people put off till later preparing for death and this battle, because it is something they don't want to think about.  That is a mistake.  It will be the biggest and most important and final spiritual combat of your life.  Being that it will be the devil’s last chance to escort your soul to the everlasting fires of hell, he will “pull out all the stops” to ensure his success.  He will come after you in a different or more promising way, something that he has been saving for you in this final battle.

The definition of perseverance is to persist in an undertaking in spite of counter-influences or opposition. This will be your final test, and you must prepare for it.  As a student, you prepared to do your best for the big test at the end of the school year.  It goes without saying that the most significant test of your life – with the results lasting for an eternity – will take your earnest preparation.  When success is important in some endeavor, you certainly should never wait till the last minute to prepare.

How does one prepare for this encounter?  Let me list a few goals:

  1. Conquer pride

  1. Practice humility

  1. Gain complete control of your passions

     4)  Make the uncompromising Catholic Faith your whole life

     5)  Establish a deep love for God with a definite and regular prayer life

     6)  Practice self-denial daily

     7)  Set a good example in this pagan world

     8)  Study the lives of the Saints to see what they did to succeed

     9)  Say little indulgenced prayers regularly and often

    10) Pray (at least) twice daily for final perseverance: first thing in the morning

and last thing at night

In this endeavor, prayer is certainly the most important preparation.  The Saints, filled with the love of God, would gladly pray all night, following Our Lord’s example.[1]  They were talking to the Love of their life.  Most people pray like they are talking to their strict boss at work and can’t end the conversation soon enough.  Learn to love God and pray gladly.

Most people take a chance that they will be strong and able to withstand the onslaught of the devil at the end of life.  That is wishful thinking without the proper preparation.

I know of a situation where a pious and humble, bed-ridden traditional Catholic was in veterans’ hospice care.  On his death bed, he was under attack by the devil to such an extent that fear took over and he was able to get out of bed and run down the hall shouting, “They [viz., the devils] are trying to get me to commit mortal sin!”  And then he dropped dead.

From all appearances, he did what he had to do to win the battle with the devil.  He had prepared himself to do whatever it took to win.

For Satan does not tempt unbelievers and sinners whom he already holds securely, but he does tempt and trouble the faithful servant in many ways.

Quoted from The Imitation of Christ, Book 4, chapter 18.

We will all face death and this final great battle with the devil.  However, there is powerful help available: prayers to St. Joseph, who is the Patron of a Happy Death and also the Terror of Demons.

So prepare yourself for this great battle that will come.  Don’t risk failure by putting off the important and necessary preparation to win that battle.

Catholic Candle note: To learn more about how to prepare well for death, read Preparation for Death, by St. Alphonsus de Liguori, Doctor of the Church.  This book is available for free, here: https://www.goodcatholicbooks.org/alphonsus.html

[1]          Then Jesus “went out into a mountain to pray, and he passed the whole night in the prayer of God.”  St. Luke’s Gospel, ch.6, v.12.

Conscience is a Great Gift from God

Posted on by Catholic Candle

The Catholic Encyclopedia definition of conscience is: “A feeling of pain accompanying and resulting from our non-conformity to principles.”[1]  You have a duty to inform your conscience with the highest principles by consulting great philosophical leaders like St. Thomas and St. Paul.

St. Thomas defines conscience as “The judgment or dictates of the practical intellect which (arguing) from the general principle (of Morals) pronounces that something in particular here and now is to be avoided, inasmuch as it is evil, or to be done, inasmuch as it is good.”[2]

Most people living in our immoral world consider their conscience a problem they are stuck with, that it stands in their way of having fun and really isn’t necessary.  They fail to realize that it is a most important gift to be used throughout the day, to obtain salvation.  Oh, what a gift that actually lets you know if you’re on the correct (narrow) path to a heavenly reward, or on the (wide) road to eternal damnation.  A gift beyond your imagination.

You must avoid going through life with an uninformed conscience or a lax conscience.  It is a “minimizer” if it falsely judges actions to be harmless which are sinful.  God has established an objective moral order and cannot be presumed to be indifferent to its maintenance.[3]  Both passion and ignorance interfere with correct dictates of an informed conscience.

There is such a thing as a scrupulous conscience.  The scrupulous person is the victim of an imaginary spiritual impediment to his free action.  He is tormented in every action by the thought that he may be committing a sin.[4]  A scrupulous conscience is really the work of the devil hoping you will become frustrated and refuse to listen to your conscience in the future.  Such a conscience can be informed and corrected with guidance from an uncompromising confessor.  Before confession, we examine our consciences to ensure a “good” confession.  However, it is best to examine our conscience every night in order to avoid a lax conscience.

Let’s pledge to appreciate our conscience as a generous gift from God, and keep it informed and use it as He intended, cooperating with God to work out our salvation.

[1]          1913-1917 Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol. 4, page 269.

[2]
         Catholic Dictionary and Encyclopedia of Religious Information, Addis & Arnold, Entry: Conscience, page 215

[3]
         Moral and Pastoral Theology, Davis, volume 1, page 78.

[4]
         Moral and Pastoral Theology, Davis, volume 1, page 73.