Faith and Hope

 

Faith, Hope and Charity are the tree theological virtues,

they are the foundation of the entire Christian life.

They do not directly concern morality, as morality 

has to do with behaviour.

Theological virtues means that they have God as object.

The object of a theological virtue is God, and God alone.

The moral virtues has to do with our own actions.

The theological virtues has to do with being connected 

to God.

The word religion means to be reconnected.

Faith is a purely supernatural virtue and it is 

fundamental for a Christian life.

Whereas the moral virtues can be both natural and 

supernatural in character, 

e.g. prudence can be natural;

I take care when I cross the street in order to not be 

run over by a car, but it is supernatural when I take 

care to live in God's grace in order to save my soul.

With the 3 theological virtues of Faith, Hope and 

Charity it is not a question of natural or supernatural, 

they are always purely supernatural; 

they exceed the force of nature. 

And why so?

Because God is only accessible as a free gift from

Him. It is He that grants the ability to come to

Him, it is not something that can be earned.

We can arrive at the certainty that God exists, 

we can gain the knowledge that He exists through 

philosophical studies, but that is not what we call

Faith in the theological sense. What we are talking

about is handing ourselves over to God, to throw 

ourselves into His arms with every aspect of our lives,

to trust in Him. That is Faith.

"I have been crucified with Christ, it is no longer I who 

live, but Christ lives in me, and the life which I now live 

in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved 

me and gave Himself up for me."

Galatians 2:20

We could say that we do not believe in God 

when we have faith in the existence of God, we do 

no longer believe, because we know. 

It is not the same thing.

These virtues can be lost, due to our own negligence,

or by turning our back to Him, but if we keep them, 

they will continue to grow, because when God gives 

a gift He never takes it back.

"For God's gifts and his call can never be withdrawn."

Romans11:29

The virtue of Faith is located in the Intelligence, 

whereas Hope and Charity are located in the Will.

The seat of Faith is Intelligence, because it is a 

knowledge of God and God's mysteries. 

And for humans, the capacity for knowledge is in 

the Intelligence. 

Faith is an accession to a truth: the truth of God and 

the truths that God makes known, it is therefore the 

Intelligence that has the faith.

Hope is in the Will, because to hope is wanting to hope: 

it is a decision.

Faith is a supernatural virtue by which we firmly believe 

all the truths that God has revealed and which the Church 

teaches. We believe in revealed truths. All the revealed 

truths, and nothing else.

 

We do not believe by Faith in what our intelligence 

is capable of guessing, to know e.g. that God exists,

we do not need Faith to know that, we can arrive at that

by intellectual and philosophical work.

We believe in the things that God has revealed, and 

which the Church teaches. 

By ourselves it would be impossible 

know that there is 3 Persons in God, 

that God sent His Son, 

that His death on the Cross has redeemed

us from our sins, 

that He resuccitated from death and that 

He ascended up to Heaven where He is seated 

at the right hand side of Divine Majesty.

All those things has been revealed.

We believe in what God has revealed, 

the role of the Church 

is only to certify to us what God has revealed.

We do not believe in what the Church teaches, 

we believe in what has been revealed by God which 

is what the Church teaches.

The Church teaches, passes on, truths revealed by God, 

by her Magisterium, similarly to a schoolteacher who 

shows the teachings on the board to his students, it is thus 

all about what is shown on the board, and it is not really 

about the teacher at all. 

However we do believe in what the Church teaches, 

but only because that what she teaches are the things 

that God has revealed. They are the same thing.

But fundamentally and ultimately it isn't even the truths 

that God has revealed that we believe, it is God we believe.

We believe that Jesus is present in the Eucharist; Body,

Blood, Soul and Divinity; because the Church teaches it, 

but ultimately it is God's authority we believe. 

It is God we believe.

It is the same faith regardless of how much knowledge

we have of it, because the level of knowledge is very

variable. We are however bound to cultivate and deepen 

our faith.

Faith is in the Intelligence, it makes us know.

The fuel of human intelligence is evidence.

As we do not start off equipped with evidence, the 

role of the Will comes into play. 

The Will, by a supernatural grace, pushes the human 

intelligence to accept truths which are not evident to 

start off with.

The good Will wants to be fair and just and adhere to

God from whom all good comes. 

We believe God.

That means that we are responsible ourselves if we do 

not have Faith.

We believe because we want to believe, but that does 

not mean that it is self- hypnosis, it is a grace that

comes from God, a divine intervention, that gives us 

this grace in the Will .

Likewise the so-called atheisme is also in the Will.

As it is so obvious that God exists, the ones who say 

that they are atheists, say it from their ill-will.

To not believe God is a sin, a sin that God will condemn.

"Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but 

whoever does not believe will be condemned." 

Mark 16:16

Sins against the Faith: 

Doubt, Heresies and Apostasy.

Doubt: we are not talking about trouble or difficulty 

in understanding some aspect or another of the Faith

that we are trying to understand.

We are talking about doubting a revealed truth; e.g.

Jesus is Really Present in the Eucharist, or that 

Jesus Christ is fully God and fully human.

Those that doubt this, have lost the Faith.

Heresy; this word means choice in greek.

It concerns persons who claim that they have Faith,

but who rejects one or several truths.

In fact, that person have not got the Faith,

he has lost the Faith.

Since I could not possibly imagine or guess myself 

the mysteries of the revealed truths of the Faith; 

e.g. the Incarnation, The Trinity, The Eucharist, The 

Redemption, they are the truths that we are obliged

to believe. 

 

We cannot see them directly, only through and with

God can we see them, by entrusting ourself to God

through the grace of supernatural Faith, we

can see for ourselves that they are true. 

Faith: trusting completely in God, living in His presence,

comes first, the evidence follows.

And it is not my own little reflections and reasoning

that gets me there.

Then you have the person who says; well, please don't 

exagerate, I'm unable to believe in the existence of Hell, 

God is too good for that, etc, etc, and also that the Eucharist 

is the Real Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Our Lord Jesus 

Christ, well sorry, I just don't believe it, etc, that person has 

simply lost his/her faith altogether, (even though he might 

consider himself to be a believer), because he contests the

authority of God, who revealed these truths.

Apostasy is more coherent; everything is rejected.

The Faith is like water to the fish, we live in it.

What is a "just" man ?

 

Is it somebody who is fair, 

gives back what he owes, shares equally and is nice to 

everybody?

No, a just person is somebody who lives at this level of 

God, at the tuning fork of God, in and of the truth of God.

That is what makes him just. 

It is the entry to the Kingdom of God.

Hope:

A supernatural vertu that makes us expect from God the 

supernatural blessings in this world, and in the next world; 

Glory.

Once we have Faith, and in the Faith, we understand straight 

away that to join God is something that completly exceeds

human power, we see our incapacities and impotence in regard

to God, like a bird without wings.

We understand straight away that without God, we cannot join 

God. So we must expect God of God. 

It is from God that we must expect God. We don't just expect 

graces from God, we expect God Himself,  it is God that we 

want to join, God that we seek, God who is the object of our search. 

We understand that we are incapable to join God by our own 

forces, so we hope it from God, 

we have a disposition that makes us expect God from God, 

and this disposition is Hope. 

It is a theological virtue; it is God we hope for.

It is God that is going to give it to us, there is nothing 

we can do to obtain God.

"But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who 

comes to God must believe that He exists, and that He is a 

rewarder of those who diligently seek Him".

Hebrews 11:6

God gives us the means to go to Him. 

And from whom do we expect the means?

From God.

 

Just to be clear: the Hope we are talking about 

here is not the hoping for good news, good weather, 

good food etc, 

we are talking about the quest for God.

Hope is in the Will, which says; you are 

capable by God to obtain God.

It is a will to conquer God, 

while as Faith is seeing the truth in God, and 

also seeing that it is impossible for us to obtain

God by our own means, thus Hope.

Hope is the dynamism of all supernatural life, 

it transforms Faith; knowledge, into Charity.

Hope is the necessary motor in order to go 

from faith to charity.

Sins against Hope:

Presumption ("I'm sure I'll get there") because it means I

am depending on my own strenght.

Despair (I can't do it without God's help, but God is not 

going to give me the help I need, He has forgotten about me)

Both of those sins cuts the person off from God, which is 

catastrophic. 

God says:

"I am the vine; you are the branches.If you remain in me and I in 

you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing."

John 15:5

It is Hope that gives wings towards God, with the Holy Spirit

in the loving fear of God.  

 

The hidden treasure

 

The Novus Ordo created a new religion; they removed 

the supernatural, the divine, and left us with a church 

"of the world", deformed and protestant,

a banal and impoverished one.

But Jesus said that His Kingdom was not of this world. 

He spoke in parables; using worldly concepts and things 

to explain spiritual realities and the truth of the Infinite 

Power and Love of God.

He was talking about a world that is not directly visible to 

the naked eye, and so the people had great difficulty in 

grasping what He was saying. 

The people He was talking to were not academics or 

philosophers, they were fishermen, farmers, tax collectors.

The were not able to understand Him when they were with 

Him, only until after His Death and Resurrection, and Pentecost.

From then on The Catholic Church went on to produce Martyrs 

and Saints on a massive scale.

As I, like so many others, am obliged to sometimes go 

to the N.O.  as the Latin Mass is not a local one for me,

I was listening to the homily of the Parish priest on the 

Gospel of the buried treasure in the field, and of the pearl 

of great price. 

Jesus compared them to the Kingdom of Heaven and in 

both instances the person that finds them goes away and 

sells everything that he owns, and buys "the field with the 

treasure", likewise  "the pearl".

I knew a man from Cork; Finbar O'Leary, a wealthy and 

successful business man, with many enterprises.  

He had a sudden conversion, an instant internal change, 

he had a personal encounter with God; "the hidden treasure", 

"the pearl of great price".  He was a changed man.

He sold his businesses and dedicated the rest of his life to 

the Church by his prayer groups and pilgrimages.

He was a literal example of somebody that I knew

personally, of this particular Gospel.

My own conversion is more of the common type, progressive 

but steady, and I know that the more I grow in God's presence, 

the more I want to get rid of material possessions.

So what did the parish priest make of this gospel?

He said for him it was comparable to when he is looking to buy a 

new car, of just finding the right one, or when single people are 

looking for a spouse; finally finds the right one for them. 

An example of emptying a deeply spiritual reality of it's meaning,

making it banal, a platitude. The Church of the world.

But God's Kingdom is NOT OF THIS WORLD. 

The Catholic Faith is supernatural;

natural human nature superimposed by Godly nature, this is what 

produces Holy Saints, living life in the divine while still in this 

low dimension of ours. 

 

God is still in charge

 

The devil is well pleased when he can spread ambiguity, confusion, 

misunderstanding or downright lies. 

The authentic Catholic faith is clear but nuanced, 

in it's codification of dogmas. 

It has but one goal; to sanctify us; to reconcile 

us to God, while we are still here in this dimension. 

Since Vatican 2 this doctrine has been undermined by the spirit 

of the world, where things are relative and subjective, where we

can interpret according to our own opinions, and it is still "true".

In most Novus Ordo Masses there is an absence of the sense of

the supernatural and mystical; the flatness 

of it in comparison to the Tridentine Mass, where one can enter

deeply into the absolute miracle that is taking place on the Altar.

The modern Mass: the N.O., has it's focus on human dignity, it 

honours earthly fruits rather than spiritual fruits, 

it puts man, rather than God, at the centre.

Proof: Pope Leo XIV first Encyclical Magnifica Humanitas 

(Magnificent Humanity).

Having said that, sometimes at the new Mass, largely 

depending on the priest who celebrates the Mass, but 

also depending on our own internal disposition, a sense of

the sacred, a moment where we can unite ourselves with 

Jesus's sacrifice for us by giving ourselves entirely to Him;

can be experienced.

It is a valid Mass, it is the Real Presence in the Eucharist. 

How often do we hear when trying to encourage people to 

come to church,

they say "you can make friends, have a social life, keep busy", 

etc,

not even knowing that the sole reason for the existence of the 

Catholic Church, that God Himself established,  is to draw us 

up to Him, to make us holy, restore us to His 

friendship, it has 

nothing to do with being a social past time.

Neither is the Church a political movement; although 

she does have a social doctrine,

but to see today that our current Pope is using his 

position in a political way, to push for unlimited illegal 

immigration by going to Lampedusa, disregarding the 

terrible effects upon Christian nations, is sad, to say 

the least. 

Having said that; I like the Pope in many ways; he seems

to have many great human qualities, and he comes across 

as a sensitive and intelligent man. 

 

One of the consequences of the degradation or bastardisation

of the catholic religion is; 

"people don't come to Church anymore, 

oh what can we do to attract people to come?"

which seems to mean that they believe that the 

Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is a human effort endeavour. 

It was God who instituted the Mass, and it is still God 

who is Really and Truly present during each valid Mass. 

God is the Father of our soul. 

By Baptism we become His true children.

By Confirmation we receive The Holy Spirit; 

His indwelling Presence.

By the use of our willpower; by making conscious 

choices with our minds, 

we have the possibility of nurturing the growth of 

our soul. 

But this can not happen if we neglect it, if we have 

no interest, because without our participation nothing 

will grow. 

"And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead 

is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will 

also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit 

who lives in you."

Romans 8:11

Believing and practising Catholics make up 

the Mystical Body of The Church of which 

Our Lord Jesus Christ is the Head. 

The Pope is the head of the visible Church.

Unfortunately there are many Catholics who 

believe that the Pope is the head of the Mystical Body, 

and not Jesus Christ, 

which means that they believe that the Pope is divine 

and perfect in everything he says and does.

This is a serious mistake.

The Pope's authority resides in the revealed truths of God,

they do not change, and no pope can invent new revelations. 

If Popes, who are human beings and therefore sinners, 

goes off the rails and diverge into other things, then it 

is the obligation of the faithful flock to resist him. 

We are obliged, by God, to always engage our brains. 

That is why God gave them to us. 

By refusing to do that, by thinking we are "obedient" 

following blindly, without thinking, we do great harm, 

not only to ourselves, but to the Church.

 

With the implementation of Vatican 2 itself, not only did

proper catechism cease to be widely available, but also it 

discouraged Catholics from educating themselves in the faith.

I spoke to a French woman who became very interested in

learning the faith, she contacted her parish, who told her

that "that was no longer necessary or done."

Of course people would be disoriented and confused.

We have people active in parishes who have precious little 

knowledge of the faith, and who tells themselves that it is all 

so mysterious and complicated that they can't even try. 

("Sure, I wouldn't understand!....")

The infallibility of the Pope is only as regards 

Ex Cathedra;

In the official capacity as the supreme shepherd, on a subject 

concerning faith or morals, intended to bind the entire RCC 

and it must be made clear to be binding, but he also can not 

invent new ideas, or doctrines, it is only as a means of 

clarification of existing truths of divine revelation.

His own personal opinions are just that; his own opinions. 

But if we believe the Pope is divine, then we are going to 

be heavily influenced by his private opinions too.

So, 

The Vatican has "excommunicated" the FSSPX.

(Again....)

The FSSPX asked for bread (of the doctrine) 

they asked for the water (of the sacraments), 

they asked for the wine of the the Holy Mass.

There is no basis for these "excommunications" 

in Canon Law,  all FSSPX want is to be Catholic 

and to continue to transmit the unmodified 

doctrine to future generations.

It is their refusal to accept Vatican 2 which is the 

reason they were refused the mandate.

They received correspondence the day after 

consecrating the new bishops, laying out that

if they signed on the dotted line accepting Vatican 2,

the "excommunication" would be lifted immediately.

 

This part of the story goes back to 1988, but it stems

from the Vatican 2 council, where a fundamental change 

took place in the Church. 

I have read the detailed events of this drama from start 

to finish, written by the clergy who were the main 

characters in it. 

I have been at a silent Saint Ignatius retreat in France

(Thiviers)

where some of them ended up, forming  l'Institut

du Bon Pasteur, ( Institute of the Good Shepherd),

Traditional Priests who are in full Communion with 

the Church. 

While in the past, a Catholic would be 

excommunicated for not adhering to 

the laws of the Church, we have now

the inverse, if you are "too" catholic you 

are "excommunicated".

The fullness of the perennial Catholic faith, 

fully integrated, this seems to be the threat.

Integrated human beings used to be a goal to

aim for, but today the word intégriste is a 

pejorative and an insult in France.

Thanks to the immense sacrifice of  

Monseigneur Marcel Lefebvre, with 

or without the Vatican mandate, 

Tradition continues to flourish, and 

even if it has to go underground,

back into the catacombs, it will 

continue still.

There is no schism;

The Catholic Church is still united in Jesus

Christ and she is One, Holy Catholic and Apostolic.

 

 "And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I 

will build my Church, and the gates of hell shall 

not prevail against it."

Matthew 16:18

 

Faithfulness in the "small things"

"Whoever can be trusted with small things can also be trusted 

with big things. 

Whoever is dishonest in little things will be dishonest in big 

things too."

Luke 16:10 

Saint Thérèse of Lisieux was made a Doctor of the Church 

due to her developing the "The Little Way"; to do everything, 

any little daily habitual action, with the utmost perfection,

"down to a tee", as we would say; something that is done with

absolute exactness.

To be aware of our daily behaviour and interactions, to be

awake, all the time, every "little" thing we do, reveals the 

disposition of our heart, if we disregard fundamental rules

that may appear insignificant ( "small") we will apply the same

attitude to things on a larger scale. 

The two are in principle the same thing.

It is about the integrity, or the lack thereof, of a person. 

"Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day

 your Lord will come."

Matthew 24:42

In any society there are rules and regulations.

In the Legion of Mary, an apostolat of the Catholic Church,

thus supernatural in nature,

the order of the meetings is of utmost importance, and must 

be strictly adhered to.  

The object of the Legion is the glory of God through the 

sanctification of it's members, and thus unlike

any other worldly organisation, (which exists for the leisure

and pleasure of convenience for it's members).

One of the most basic principles of the discipline is 

punctuality and faithful participation of meetings.

Of course, sometimes one is prevented from attending, due

to absence from home or illness, but when attending,

it is required to be on time for the meeting; concretely that 

means arriving at least a few minutes before the start, so 

that one has the time to say hello and to settle into one's seat.

Despite this, there are a few, always the same ones, who 

habitually arrives after the prayers have started, and

even after the prayers have finished!, even during the reading

of the Handbook, even during the Allocutio by the Priest; the 

Spiritual Director. 

What is more, upon arriving, as the meeting

continues, they talk (loud whisper) to others, disturbing 

everybody, and making it all about themselves.

Then, when they get a chance, they will interrupt the 

proceedings by offering "heartfelt" apologies for them 

being late, and to top it all off, more often than not, that

is met with profuse expressions of gratitude for 

"having showed up at all"!

The very evening when the obligatory reading from the 

Handbook was concerning the importance of timekeeping; 

arriving on time and staying until the very end, and what 

was required if that was not adhered to by a member, the 

usual ones breezed in long time after the meeting had started, 

and what was more, "needed to leave early", before the end.

When somebody referred to the reading that had 

just been read earlier,

there was much heartfelt laughter and a total dismissal of it's 

content.

Needless to say, the Priest was not present that day.

Where is the respect for Our Lady, for Frank Duff, for Saint

Louis-Marie de Montfort, for the Holy Catholic Church?

( They pray with their lips, but not with their heart)

Are they serving the Church or is the Church there to serve 

them?

Pride is often said to be the deadliest of all sins.

If we are habitually late for the meeting that requires as a 

fundamental principle to be on time, if we are habitually late 

for Mass, which requires that we be there before it starts, it 

shows that we put ourselves above God, it is arrogant, we are 

so important so we are our own law. 

It goes without saying that they will also be late for everybody 

else as well, there is spiritual disrespect and dismissal of others 

as being less important than themselves.

 

And why is it that it is always the same ones who are 

always on time? They also have other things to do, but they 

arrange their day, they prioritise what is most important, they 

show respect. 

Yes, but they might say; "we do so much for the Church, we 

bring Holy Communion to the old and the sick, and 

we go to Mass every day." (We are important, the Church 

depends on us)

They have the same attitude to the Mass; they arrive

after the Mass has begun, and they always have 

their phone at hand, in case they "have to take a call during 

Mass".

It is actually scandalous, to always hear somebody's phone 

ringing or bleeping during Mass, during the consecration, 

even in front of the Priest to receive Holy Communion, and 

they STILL do not turn it off for the duration of the Mass.

Do they really think that they are so important that they can 

not leave their phone behind during Mass, or at least turn on 

the silent mode? 

Are they all on Stand-By A&E doctors and nurses?

Are they really at Mass?

Do they believe in the Real Presence?

If they did, would they always be late for Mass 

and  would they be "Eucharistic ministers"?

(an abomination and an affront to 

The Body of Jesus Christ).

If they knew that it IS the Real Body of Christ 

they would not, (nobody would have!), put 

themselves forward to distribute it.

"The extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion" 

was a proposal brought in to help the priest

"to save time", supposedly only for "extraordinary" 

circumstances, like very large gatherings.

 

Is Mass something to be rushed, to 

get over with as soon as possible?

Or is it to enter into the Real Presence of God?

The only person who should handle the Host, 

is the Priest.

How come that a truly "extraordinary" large gatherings, 

like the Traditional Latin Mass's annual pilgrimage to 

Chartres, with over 20 000 faithful, manages without 

them?  

This practice, has in my opinion, hugely contributed to 

the loss of belief in the Real Presence among church goers, 

subsequently it has had a massive negative impact on the 

priesthood itself, thus the Church.

The attention to all things, first of all the "small" ones, 

is crucial, because everything leaves a mark, it affects

others, good or bad. 

Forgiving sins

 Jesus said:  

"Peace be with you! 

After He said this, He showed them his hands 

and side. 

The disciples were overjoyed when they saw 

the Lord. 

Again Jesus said:" 

"Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, 

I am sending you."

And with that He breathed on them and said; 

"receive the Holy Spirit. 

If you forgive anyone's sins, their sins are forgiven;

if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven."

(John 20-23)

Jesus thus instituted the Sacrament of Confession, 

the authority to forgive sins.

This authority accorded to the priests, does not

have it's source in the human person of the priest, 

who is of course himself a sinner,

it is Jesus, in the power 

of the Holy Spirit, in the priest, who forgives.

The priest can also withold absolution, if there is an 

absence of resolve to re-offend. 

We belong to God, who has authority over us.

The authority is retained in the Church He Himself 

established; The Catholic Church.

 

Protestants claim that they live by 

following the Bible.

However they say that they confess their sins 

directly to God, that they do not need to confess 

them to a priest, but this is in direct contradiction 

to the word of Jesus in the Bible, which they claim 

to adhere to.

Adam and Eve; the first humans, lived in perfect 

harmony with God, God who had created them in 

His own image, man broke this harmony 

when he wanted himself to be God, to be 

"independent". Man revolted against God.

God took on human form in Jesus Christ 2026 years

ago, and from this event, His Church was founded.

After 1500 years there was again revolt against 

God; from within the Church He had established.

 

Martin Luther broke away and made up his own

church, fashioned in his own image and according

to his own desires. Under the pretext of corruption

in the Church.

(This does not mean that there was no corruption 

in the Church! There was, and there still is.)

Henry the 8th, a great Catholic, also broke away, 

to establish a church in his own image, then

there was Calvin and others.

Each of these denominations have continued ever 

since to branch off into other new denominations, 

there are now well over 40 000 different ones, 

each one creating their own subjective version of 

"the truth",  

proof of the diabolical power of human pride and 

division. 

Pride separates us from God, and true humility 

brings us close.

Examining our conscience, seeing our errors and 

our sins, taking responsibility for them,

regretting them, and confessing them to a priest

is a humbling experience, an exercise in humility 

and truth. 

Which is a solid reason why the Sacrament 

of Confession is necessary to be a good Christian.

 

The change that happens in our souls

when the priest gives us absolution, the literal 

disappearance of our guilt, has profound healing

power. 

Regularly making use of the Sacrament of Confession 

has an enormous positive effect on mental health, as 

many mental health issues have their roots in sin.

The truth is neither relative nor subjective.

It is objective, it cannot change, nor be modified. 

It can be hard to face the truth, we have a human 

resistance to the truth, we speak often about people 

"living in denial", guarding their illusions, as if their 

life depends on it.

However the truth sets us free.

When we die to ourselves, like Jesus spoke about

in John 12:24: 

"Truly, truly, I tell you, unless a kernel 

of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only 

a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds." 

Humans are comparable to grains of wheat. 

In order to have New life, Real life, God's life,

God's power, sprout and grow within us, we need

to die to ourselves, empty ourselves of ourselves,

to make room. 

Because God does not impose Himself, 

He proposes Himself.

He needs our co-operation. 

 

Jesus Christ is the Only Son of God, meaning 

that there are no other ways to God other than 

through Him.

Jesus is the Way, The Truth and The Life.

  

 

The virtue of Justice regarding the Body

Man's body does not belong to him.

If it did, we could do whatever we 

wanted with it, like we do with our possessions.

However, it is not the case, because 

in order to have a right of ownership 

2 things are needed:

a subject who owns; the owner,

and the thing that is owned,

the 2 things must be distinct 

from each other.

Which is not the case with man.

Man is a substantiel whole, 

composed metaphysically 

of a body and a soul.

How many beings are there 

between the body and the soul?

There is only one; 

Only one substance.

The body and soul are the 

principles of the being.

Am I my body?

No.

Am I my soul?

No.

I am my body and soul, 

both of them

together, substantially united. 

Since there is only one being 

in me, there cannot be a right 

of ownership of one over the 

other.

The French philosopher Descartes 

came up with the idea that the 

soul was the master of the body. 

He compared it to the captain of a 

ship in the relation to his ship.

 

The problem with this analogy is 

that the captain can anchor his 

ship and get off, and on again, 

when he wants, 

whereas we cannot take our soul 

in and out of our bodies.

 

We are body and soul in one.

So who does our body belong to?

It belongs to God. 

God has universal ownership 

on all things,

He has ownership of us, 

He is the Creator and the Master, 

we are His things. 

We also own things, things that 

are ours.

For example you are the full owner 

of your car, and also the owner of the utilisation of your car. 

But when you rent a car then 

you are only the owner of the

right to utilise the car, you will

have to give it back.

Man has the ownership of the 

utilisation of the body; the totality 

of the being which is the body and

the soul, 

and in this sense there is a right of ownership because now there is 

2 elements present:

1. The subject who possesses; man,

2. The right to utilisation of the body.

God gave us the right to the utilisation 

of our body.

So does that mean that we can do 

whatever we like with the body?

No, because we are not the owner 

of it,

but we are meant to use it. 

That's why we have morals to guide 

our actions.

An action is deemed to be good 

when it respects and is in accordance 

with the purpose of the action.

E.g. I eat because I want to nourish 

the body, it gives me strength to do 

what I need to do, but I don't eat 

only for the pleasure of eating.

Thus the purpose of the action is 

respected.

Short resumé of Catholic teaching concerning the body:

1. Man is not the proprietor of his body

2. Man has the right of usage of his body.

Man should use the body in accordance 

with the purpose of his actions.

This is the basis for the entire Catholic 

morality: to respect the purpose of our

actions. 

So God has ownership of us, but He 

gives to man's spirit the governance

of his own actions.

Ecclesiasticus ( Sirach) 15:14:

" It was He who created humankind

in the beginning, and He left them

in the power of their own free choice".

To this end He equipped us with 

intelligence.

5th commandment:

Thou shall not kill.

Suicide:

When a person takes away his

life by his own authority he 

destroys something that belongs

to someone else.

God created us, our existence,

and He remains our Master and 

Lord.

Suicide is a sin against God, against 

oneself and against society.

The person takes the place of God

in his decision.

There is also what is called indirect 

suicide, when the person knows 

that his action is likely to kill him,

however it is not the purpose or

intention of his actions. E.g: the 

doctor or priest who enters a 

leprosy colony to help know that 

they are likely to catch it themselves,

the priest who goes into a battlefield 

to give the Sacraments to injured or 

dying soldiers, does so knowing that

he is putting his own life on the line.

These cases are not regarded in the  

same way as direct suicide, even 

though the person knows that his 

own life might be taken as a result 

of his actions, because it lacks 

the expressed intent.

Suicide is a grave sin, but let it

be clear that in stating this, there

is no judgement or condamnation,

because only God can judge, and we

know that the suffering endured can

sometimes be so intense, that it can

be a case of reduced responsibility.

Objectively suicide is a grave offence

towards God.

Also; any bodily mutilation is a sin.

With the obvious exceptions of 

removing sick body parts in order to 

preserve life, in cases of cancer or

gangrene for example, what we see

today in the big business of surgically 

removing healthy breasts and healthy 

sexual organs of vulnerable and 

confused young people, is a grave sin,

against God and against oneself.

In regard to our body, we have an 

obligation to take care of it, in a 

normal way; in order to preserve 

life. 

Homicide: to cause the death of 

another person by one's own 

authority. 

Whether the person being killed is

guilty of something or not, is not 

the issue, the issue is that it is 

forbidden, we do not have, as 

individuals,  the authority to 

take anyone's life, only God has

that authority.

However the society do have the 

right, the government can decide to 

eliminate a member, in the interest 

of the good of society as a whole,

similarly to cutting off a sick part

of the body in order to preserve it's

life. 

The taking of life, killing, is the 

greatest injustice in the natural 

order, between human beings, 

it does not apply to animals or 

plants or other things.

However killing in self defence 

is allowed, when there are no 

other possible way to prevent 

an aggressor who attacks us; who

tries to maim, rape or kill us.

If he can be neutralized in some

other way we are obliged to do

that instead, the taking of life is

always the last resort, when there

are no other options to stop 

the person. 

It has to be in the actual situations 

as they are taking place, it does

not apply to revenge killings for 

past events, no matter how justified 

we feel we are.

And it applies to situations where

we are unjustly attacked, not for

example if we have provoked a 

situation ourselves.

 

The virtue of Justice

 

The basic principle of Justice is to give to each 

person what is owed to them.

Justice is the big chunk of Catholic morality.

Morality : Justice.

The virtue of Prudence helps to find the 

middle ground in adjusting our actions, 

the virtues of temperance and fortitude 

helps to control our passions, 

and the supernatural virtue of Justice can 

be summed up by saying that it 

is about giving each person what is due 

to them. 

The virtue of justice comes from our willpower, 

we are just because we want to be.

And if we really give to each person what we owe 

them; we are definitely heading in the right direction.

What we owe to God, our parents, our teachers, our 

children, our boss, our sisters and brothers, friends, 

etc.

In Holy Scripture the word Just is practically 

synonymous with Holy.

The object of Justice is the right.

A worker who has carried out work for someone, 

has the right to be paid. He is owed it.

Justice is an expression of order, a just order.

In a functioning society there is order;

employees are subordinate to the boss, a child is 

subordinate to his parents/guardiens, etc.

Each one has belongings that belongs to him

personally. This order is objective, whether it 

is being respected or not.

Human rights are true rights, but they are in relation 

to other humans, in the order of things.

A father has the right to be respected by his child, 

for example, because it falls within the natural order

of the relationship father/son.

 

But we know that rights that we had, can be lost.

A person who has tortured or murdered someone 

for example, looses his rights, including maybe 

his right to live.

So we see that a man's rights are not something 

that exists by itself from the mere fact that he is a 

human, it is related to the other members of society.

So in giving to each one what we owe them, we 

practice justice.

However, the one who does it, but against his

will, e.g. because he has no other choice, is still not

a just man, because he does not want to do it, it 

doesn't stem from his willpower.

Likewise a man who wants to give to each one what 

is due to them, but is physically prevented from 

doing so, remains a just man.

Justice means that there is equality between what is 

due and what is rendered.

 We owe a person 100 euros, we give him back the 100 euros.

So it is obvious that the justice we owe God, who has 

given us everything, 

poses a problem, because we realise straight away that 

we are totally unable to pay this debt.

That is why we do not use the term justice when we

talk about God, even if it is a sort of justice, but we 

prefer to use use the term religion. 

The word religion comes from the French relier, 

d'être relié à Dieu  means being connected to God.

That is all we can do in relation to God, we can never 

pay back what we owe Him.

Not only did He give us life, and everything we have 

in the natural order of things, He gave us His Son, 

He gave us His Church, He gave us the Sacraments for 

our sanctification, He has given us supernatural eternal Life. 

We can never pay this back.

Neither can we pay back our biological parents, who

gave us life, cared for our every need, fed us, clothed us,

educated us, kept us safe. 

So we practise religion.

In so doing we offer to God the worship that is due 

to Him. We honour Him.

We must make the distinction between the Theological virtues of 

Faith, Hope and Charity which has God as the immediate object.

But the direct object of practising religion is not God, it is about 

justice towards God, we owe Him. 

We carry out our obligations towards God, Sunday Mass and all other 

days of obligations, The Sacrament of Confession, doing good works, 

even though we know that we will never be able to pay back what 

we owe Him, in the way we give back what we owe to people.

It will always be an uneven relationship, we will always be indebted 

to God, unable to pay Him His dues, it is a way of being as least  

unjust as possible towards God.

Acknowledging Him; recognising that God is God.

Adoring Him, recognising His Infinite Power, that 

He is the Creator and Master of everything and everybody.

Giving thanks, the sheer gratitude that raise up from our heart 

when we realise how He has always provided for us, given us 

everything we ever needed, down to the most minute details.

 

Supplication; I am a beggar, I ask God to help me with the things 

that I am incapable to do.

Asking forgiveness for my sins.

The practise of religion is for God, and for God only.

That is why it is totally irrelevant whether I "enjoy" it

or not, or as some say; "whether I feel that I get something out of it".

It is not about me, it is about God.

We honour Our Lady, we honour the Saints, we honour everything

that is consecrated to God. We honour priests and bishops for the 

same reason; because they are consecrated to God.

So what are the practices contrary to religion?

They are divided into 4 main groups.

 

Idolatry: 

Ignorante paganism: adoring something other than God, planets, etc

Formal idolatry; judaisme, the golden calf, consciously turning one's 

back to God. 

Simulated idolatry; pretending to believe in idols as a way of self 

perserverance.

Superstition:

Believing that some evil will befall one if walking under ladders, 

Friday the 13th, being 13 persons at table, black cats across the street, 

knocking over the salt shaker, amulettes, rabbit's foot, etc 

By believing in the power of these things, we do not honour God as 

master of all things, they are deviations. 

Making money from peoples gullibility and naivety makes things

worse. 

Divination:

To discover things that are secret, hidden things.

Or the future.

At the very least it is a matter of wasting time and 

a deviation from God, but if it happens that somethin 

is discovered this way, then it could be extremely dangerous; 

it could be a contact with demonic forces. 

And they do not just let you go afterwards. 

The devil is real.

In the "lucky" cases it is straight forward charlatans who blatantly 

use psychology and who can spot an easily manipulated person

from a distance; the methods are varied:

palm reading, summoning the dead, tarot cards, ouija boards, 

but this is not something that we play with, it is too risky.

In what we call Magic, we need to differentiate between 

white magic and black magic; pulling birds out of a hat is not 

harmful, while black magic is very dangerous.

The devil is real and he is known to grant perverted prayers. 

 

The lack of respect for God manifested by not practising religion 

extends into a lack of respect for man. 

Godlessness is resorting to the devil. 

 

The Virtue of Fortitude

 

Fortitude is necessary when being confronted 

with the Passions of the Irascible:

hope, despair, courage, fear, anger.

 

Passions are the human reactions, emotions and 

mental states that we all have in common.

Out of the 4 above mentioned, fear is the one 

that stands out the most. 

Because instead of being moved and motivated 

by love in this life, we often act out 

of fear;

we flee something or other because of fear, 

we practise avoidance faced with difficulties,

fear of not having enough money, fear of not 

being liked, fear of making fools of ourselves, 

fear of not succeeding, fear of not being loved, 

fear of what people think about us, fear of being 

slandered, etc. 

Some people live in a permanent state of fear

and anxiety. 

As for anger, it is very often a cover for fear, 

motivated by fear.

So what is fortitude?

It is doing the opposite of fleeing or avoiding; it is 

the power to decide to not flee, to not give in to fear. 

To stay with it.

 

The strength we are talking about is the strength to 

overcome oneself, and not the "traditional" idea of 

"strength" meaning to defeat others, to be victorious

over others.

But what if the situation, feeling or difficulty 

might last for an unknown period of time, what then?

The same; we are asked to stay present with it, even 

though we do not know the duration nor the outcome.

Ok, if we can do something to resolve the difficulty,

we will do that, but in any case, we practice resisting

the tendency to flee or avoid when we feel fear 

by staying present.

The Catholic Faith implies giving everything,

all our willpower, our life and our death.

There is nothing more radical that our faith.

In regard to fear; in human terms what is the ultimate

fearful thing to us? It is death. 

Yet the history of the Catholic Church is full of martyrs 

for the faith, they preferred death rather than renouncing 

the truth.

We are asked to do the same; to go all the way,

to be martyrs if need be.

Our faith is not one of comfort!!

There is also a great deal of fear in despair, we have to 

combat it no matter what.

 

The goal of the Catholic Faith is to be holy; 

to overcome our human weaknesses. To be strong

and steadfast.

We can never be strong as long as we are afraid.

Fear is the fuel of the devil, in order to make us weak.