Posts Tagged ‘religion’

This is how the holy spirit works

Posted: February 27, 2011 by datechguy in catholic, personal
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As anyone in business can tell you one of the things you notice in hard times is that the bills you owe always tend to come on time but the checks that you have coming tend to lag a bit.

When your business is your primary source of income the cash flow issue is a source of a lot of worry and tension, particularly with a new business. It can eat you alive.

This morning when I got up more snow was falling, I just got a big batch of bills and was feeling very low. I headed to mass with my son to church and almost got stuck going up the hill. When we got to Mass today’s Gospel Was Matthew 6:24-34 where Jesus says:

No one can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat (or drink), or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?

Look at the birds in the sky; they do not sow or reap, they gather nothing into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are not you more important than they? Can any of you by worrying add a single moment ton? Why are you anxious about clothes? Learn from the way the wild flowers grow. They do not work or spin. But I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was clothed like one of them. If God so clothes the grass of the field, which grows today and is thrown into the oven tomorrow, will he not much more provide for you, O you of little faith?

So do not worry and say, ‘What are we to eat?’ or ‘What are we to drink?’ or ‘What are we to wear?’ All these things the pagans seek. Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom (of God) and his righteousness, and all these things will be given you besides. Do not worry about tomorrow; tomorrow will take care of itself. Sufficient for a day is its own evil.

During his sermon after the Gospel Fr. Bob pointed out that this doesn’t mean do NOTHING, it means do instead of worrying when you can and when you can’t, put it in Christ’s hands. As he said in the Bulletin:

Worry is like a rocking chair–you pass the time but you don’t go anywhere. That was one of my grandmother’s favorite sayings. Those old folks had a lot of wisdom, you know.

Whenever we are faced with a dilemma and we find ourselves worrying, that’s the time to step back from the situation and ask ourselves: “Is there anything I can do about it right now?” If there is , do it. You’ll feel better. If there is nothing you can do, then what good will worrying do? Nothing at all.

“But I have to do something! I’m a nervous wreck!” So, that’s when we pray for serenity and peace. As Jesus taught, “Seek, first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you besides.” If our prayer life is in order, everything else will follow as God directs. “Do not worry about tomorrow; tomorrow will take are of itself.”

It’s quite a coincidence that this would be the Gospel today when I was even talking to my oldest about the family financial issues and wondering if the my own set of bills were going to be paid on time. Then again I would suggest it isn’t a coincidence. The Holy Spirit knows what you need and tends to put you in the right place at the right time, if we only have eyes to see it.

I’m sure these stories are totally unconnected

Posted: February 25, 2011 by datechguy in internet/free speech, opinion/news
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Following up on my previous post on Islam uncoverage.net finds an interesting story on at Gates of Vienna,

When civil order vanished from Egypt a few weeks ago, the Copts appealed to the army for protection. They were told that the military could not protect them, that they must protect themselves. And so they did, building protective fences around the monastery.

Unfortunately, it seems the army prefers that the monasteries remain unprotected: on Sunday soldiers with bulldozers arrived and began destroying the fences. Any Copts who attempted to interfere are being shot at by troops.

Apparently it’s not only the government that in Egypt that came down. It’s the facade that Egyptians are Egyptians first. As Assyrian International agency reported:

Father Hemanot Ava Bishoy said the army fired live ammunition and RPGs continuously for 30 minutes, which hit part of the ancient fence inside the monastery. “The army was shocked to see the monks standing there praying ‘Lord have mercy’ without running away. This is what really upset them,” he said. “As the soldiers were demolishing the gate and the fence they were chanting ‘Allahu Akbar’ and ‘Victory, Victory’.”

He also added that the army prevented the monastery’s car from taking the injured to hospital.

The army also attacked the Monastery of St. Makarios of Alexandria in Wady el-Rayan, Fayoum, 100 km from Cairo. It stormed the monastery and fired live ammunition on the monks. Father Mina said that one monk was shot and more than ten have injuries caused by being beaten with batons. The army demolished the newly erected fence and one room from the actual monastery and confiscated building materials. The monastery had also built a fence to protect itself after January 25 and after being attacked by armed Arabs and robbers leading to the injury of six monks, including one monk in critical condition who is still hospitalized.

And its spreading:
Thousands of demonstrators protested in the city of Assiut following the murder of Father Daoud Boutros. The priest was stabbed several times by Islamists who shouted “Allahu Akbar” as they fled from the scene.

Nope nothing to worry about, nothing to see here.

Wishful thinking from the Ahmadiyya Muslims

Posted: February 7, 2011 by datechguy in internet/free speech, opinion/news
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I’ve mentioned the Ahmadiyya Muslims on my blog before, they have a mosque on main street Fitchburg and march regularly in our 4th of July parade. They are good people and they certainly mean well with this effort:

“Our hope is to emphasize to our fellow Americans,” Sayed said, “that it is the religious duty of a Muslim to be loyal to the country where he resides…Number two that there are negative influences being exerted — upon especially the Muslim youth in the United States — by people like al Awlaki on the Internet and third the press pays attention to violent acts that people commit in the name of Islam….If we just sit by, more and more these extremists will take hold the banner of Islam and say this is what Islam is.”

I’m torn by this. It’s a worthy effort and a necessary one, and Islam needs reforms from within. Unfortunately many Muslims consider the Ahmadiyya’s a breakaway sect, they have been targets of terror and murder for their peaceful views. I don’t know if western support would simply marginalize them further within greater Islam.

So as I applaud their efforts I don’t have a lot of hope that we will see more of their point of view and less of this:

An Afghan physiotherapist will be executed within three days for converting to Christianity.

Said Musa, 45, has been held for eight months in a Kabul prison

and remember this is not Pakistan, this is Afghanistan!

He claims he was visited by a judge who told him he would be hanged within days unless he converted back to Islam.

But he remains defiant and said he would be willing to die for his faith.

He told the Sunday Times: ‘My body is theirs to do what they want with.

‘Only God can decide if my spirit goes to hell.’

Defence lawyers have refused to represent him, while others have dropped the case after receiving death threats.

As long as Islam is generating these headlines it will be a tough sell.

A post and an answer

Posted: January 23, 2011 by datechguy in catholic
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In response to my post concerning my neighbor the Jehovah’s Witness Lisa Graas wrote an interesting post:

For two millenia, the Catholic Church has named countless saints. These are people we know to be in Heaven. It is important to note, though, that the Church has never once named any individual to be in Hell. There is a reason for that. God saves whom He will.

The saints are people who lived lives of heroic virtue. DaTechGuy’s neighbor demonstrated an act of virtue. He did something that was ‘saintly’. Is he going to Hell because he is a Jehovah Witness? I have no idea. Having said that, I also don’t know if Attila the Hun is in Hell. I do know that St. Augustine is in Heaven. I know that St. Ambrose is in Heaven. I know that St. Jerome is in Heaven. St. Maria Goretti, the Martyrs of Cordoba, St. Joan of Arc, and St. Gemma Galgani are all in heaven ….and so on, and so on, and so on. They were all Catholic. Even Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha was Catholic.

That’s what we know for sure.

That is certainly true, it is also true by definition a Saint is a person who is in fact in heaven. There are a large amount of saints that we have never heard of or may never hear of.

She is also quite correct in the doctrinal errors of the Witnesses. I have regularly debated these errors with them when they come to the door and I let them in as I do with all the Millerite religions.

One must remember however that one of the requirement for Mortal Sin is an understanding of the sin, there is a difference between not knowing the truth and denying it. There is also the question of Baptism of intent as I wrote before:

The final method of baptism is called Baptism of desire and is explained here:

1260 “Since Christ died for all, and since all men are in fact called to one and the same destiny, which is divine, we must hold that the Holy Spirit offers to all the possibility of being made partakers, in a way known to God, of the Paschal mystery.”62 Every man who is ignorant of the Gospel of Christ and of his Church, but seeks the truth and does the will of God in accordance with his understanding of it, can be saved. It may be supposed that such persons would have desired Baptism explicitly if they had known its necessity. emphasis mine

Thus a Muslim, a Hindu a Jew or a person of any denomination who does not know the Gospel of Christ or a native of Tahiti before the time of Captain Cook would all qualify assuming that they, seek the truth and does the will of God in accordance with his understanding of it so in the eyes of the Catholic church anyone who does this IS a considered a baptized member of the church (although not in full communion with the Catholic Church).

Many non Catholics and non Christians are offended by this (as are some Catholics) then again some are offended by the teachings on adultery or on celibacy or holy communion or whatever. The church doesn’t change its doctrine based on feelings or polling..

Thus my friend across the street (assuming his Baptism is not considered valid) may in fact qualify as Baptized via this method.

All of this doesn’t change what I have said over and over: There is only one reason to be a Christian in general and/or a Catholic in particular. Because it is true and on that note there is no compromise, there is no equivocation.

This is an excellent opportunity to bring up my pastor’s excellent message from the Jan 16th bulletin on the subject:

Dear Friends,
John the Baptist makes a claim about Jesus which every Christian must affirm: “Now I have seen and testified that He is the Son of God.” Jesus is categorically different from any other great religious teacher because He claims for Himself Divinity, to be the fully divine incarnation of God on earth. Either He is delusional or we have to take Him at His word.

There is no middle ground. We cannot say He was mistaken in His core beliefs about who He was while at the same time assert that He is a great teacher. You can’t have it both ways.

There is a very important difference between saying all religions should be respected and all religions are the same. As Catholic Christians, we insist on complete freedom of conscience and religious freedom for all. That is not the same thing as saying all religion is the same. All religions have the same rights, but as Christians, we must assert that Jesus Christ is the unique Savior of the entire human race. In a world of intellectual relativity, where nothing is fact and all is opinion, that seems to be the height of arrogance. But there is also such a thing as Truth. Truth cannot be imposed or forced on anyone. We are called to be witnesses to the truth with love. We are called to affirm our faith in Jesus Christ and to make Him known.

It is the duty of every Catholic in particular and every Christian in general to proclaim the gospel of Christ. As St. Francis of Assisi said:

Preach the Gospel at all times and when necessary use words

Works for me.

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