Empires?

The United States is about to default on its debt. If the political debates between Democrates and Republicans do not resolve within a few weeks, this will be unprecedent not only for the near collapse of the American economy but also for the global economy at large! It is morally unacceptable that discussions between Congressmen of the U.S. and the U.S. government determine the fate of billions of poor people on earth. The IMF which is the largest world bank can do nothing to prevent a return to old empire! Think of the Roman Empire and its decline. But today we have satellites and Internet communications that almost nothing can be hidden. This is a WARNING to the U.S. Wake up! It is also a WARNING to the many governments i.e. people who deal with corruption and accept it. It has become fashionable to eliminate the adversaries by force. More stories of corruption are coming to the news these days about the largest tabloid newspaper in Britain which is now out of print. Investigations have been launched against its billionaire owner by the British authority for immorally tapping into telephones of people. Others are hinting at corruption in the Italian government. But it seems that this is a worldwide phenomenon in spite of the U.N. Declarations about human rights! On top of the list come the dictatorships we know about in the Middle East. But the dictatorship that makes me shudder is that of the mightly dollar! The Capitalist economic system is probably the best system today but there are millions who are still suffering poverty and now is our turn. Nor is Communism a solution! Communism was able to generate corruption and violence in the U.S.S.R. and its satellite countries. Violence is still the norm in Communist China and Cuba on the part of corrupt goverrnments. However, the distribution of wealth must be implemented to reach out to Africa and Asia. Blessed John Paul II frequently warned that Capitalist monopoly is not tenable - He suggested the Third Way! For rich people to accept lowering of their standard of living, it takes more than regulations of the economy. It takes good will on the part of citizens and governments. We must give priority to the needs of others. This is where love shines. This is where Christ shines. It is in the hearts of the faithful that Christ reigns...We must repent! Is not that what Fatima was all about?

Purgatory

Many non-Catholic Christians question the doctrine of purgatory. Although Orthodox Churches pray for their dead, they have no clear answer as to why a dead person needs prayers if he/she is in heaven where he/she already enjoys the blessed life with the holy ones in the presence of God, or if he/she is in hell where the damned do not have hope in the goodness and mercy of God. However an explanation was offered by Pope Shenouda III of the Coptic Orthodox Church as to the reason why the Coptic Orthodox Church offers prayers for their dead. He simply says that Christians who have departed this life go to paradise (not heaven) if they are blessed and wait there in peace for the Day of Judgment. The unrepentent go to Sheol (not hell) where they await their damnation on Judgment Day. As for other Christian souls, they do not rest and so the Church prays for them that they may attain peace in their hope to be among the elect on Judgment Day. In history, however, purgatory was known since the early centuries of Christianity. Purgatory affirms why Catholics pray for the dead in the hope that they died in grace. It can be inferred from the words of Christ himself. In Matthew chapter 12, Christ speaks of the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit as a sin that will not be forgiven "neither in this age nor in the age to come." But what sin Christ cannot forgive? Note that Christ spoke of this sin after he was accused that his healings are performed by the power of Satan, so he immediately relates his power to the Holy Spirit. But why could not he, who has all the power to forgive, forgive this sin? Here we refer to the principle of the cooperation of the sinner with grace. Even though grace is a free gift from the Spirit of God, it must be received by the person. The fathers of the Church, especially St Augustine, interpreted this sin as the total refusal of the person to repent of his/her sins until the last moment of life. Since the Holy Spirit is always urging sinners to repent, this sin is considered a blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, which again is impossible for anyone who repents before death. Now, if Christ mentions that there are sins that are forgiven in the next life, it means that some sins are committed that do not lead immediately to hell where there is no hope, and not to heaven where no one defiled with any slight impurity can see God who is all pure. These sins are known as "venial sins." In purgatory, a state of the saved souls that are yet not able to see God, a purification takes place. The fire of purgatory is the burning desire of wanting to be with God. The soul in purgatory knows that she is saved but longs to be with the beloved One. From Church history, it is known that many saints passed through purgatory before they were to see God "face to face" (Cf. 1 Cor. 13). The elect must "complete what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ for the sake of his body" (Col 1, 24). This means that for us to see God we must die to ourselves even if gradually; for no one can see God and live.

The Divine Heart

Today we celebrate the feast of Divine body of Christ in the Melkite Catholic Church. While violence continues to rage in the Middle East, we need to look beyond the divisions of religions. In the Middle East, factions of the same people are found in war against each other in the name of religion. Christians are scared that Muslim fundamentalism will take over their freedom. Western powers are taking advantage of the largely undemocratic political systems to force their form of democracy and oultaw dictators, but my impression is that it has to do with control of the area economically and politically. Muslims are divided between Shia and Sunni. Christians are divided between Western and Eastern. Let's forget for a moment the schism between factions, cultures, and religions and ask the one God whom we all worship to help us stop the blood shedding in the name of Christ who shed his blood for the reconciliation of all people with his Father. This would be a celebration of the Divine Heart...The heart of Jesus!

Beginning the Consecrated Life

Robert Hanna (now Brother Youhanna) and his son Emile gave a reflection on their experiences that led each of them to a reversal from a worldly life to a life consecrated to God. A married man with two children, he enjoyed the good life as he was rich. His own car dealership in the affluent city of Toronto afforded him a comfortable earning. He felt however that, in spite of his wealth, he was missing happiness in his heart. He said his relationship with his wife and children was getting worse when he suddenly felt the power of darkness surrounding him and showing him the abyss. Realizing the seriousness of his state, Robert begged God to hold him. He was reassured that in spite of evil God loves him. It was not an overnight experience but rather a journey. "I spent many weeks in prayer" Robert said. After you fall you get up in hope and continue, he says. The journey to be in the presence of God takes determination but the joy that God is here and loves you makes up for the suffering. Robert wanted to consecrate the remainder of his life to be for Christ alone. Robert has been assisting in the Mass as well as in services for the youth throughout the past many years since his conversion. In preparation for the consecrated diaconate and priesthood, he followed many studies at theological seminaries in Toronto and Lebanon. Ten years or so after his initial conversion, Robert or Brother Youhanna will be consecrated this year a priest of the Melkite Catholic Church! His son Emile is also following in the footsteps of his dad. Having lived an estranged youthful life from God for 3 years, Emile returned to the Church last year and has been serving in the Mass at Jesus the King church as well as in assisting in the catechism of kids there. Emile says that he cried in his prayer as he felt the loss of his soul and the misery he came to know. He asked God to show him the way and persisted in his prayers. It takes humility to believe that you are not the centre of the world. Realizing that Christ is the centre of my life, I want to consecrate my life to be for him in prayer everyday, Emile said. As Brother Youhanna said, discerning the call for the life you are meant to live is important. Prayer is an important step as it brings us into dialogue with God. The Church guides us through Scriptures, the Mass and other sacraments, prayers, her teachings, and spiritual direction. The objective of our lives is to be holy and have eternal joy in the presence of our loving God. Christ calls us to serve in the way that He finds is best for us. Some are called to live as lay persons with families. Some are called to live a monastic life. What is important is to follow the direction that Christ wishes you to follow. This is the way of holiness!

The Development of the Doctrine of The Trinity in Tradition

A quick look at Biblical theology gives us a very scant picture of the doctrine that is central to Christianity: The Trinity. In the Old Testament we can hardly find any mention to the Trinity. The Trinity is mentioned in Christ's farewell address to his disciples (See Matthew 28: 19). However, Christ did not speak of the Trinity in a very explicit mode. In the Gospel according to John there are many references for the relationship between Christ and the Father. If we follow the timing of writing the New Testament books according to contemporary Biblical scholarship, we note that the divinity of Christ was perceived by the Apostles after his Resurrection - notably in the words of Thomas to the risen Christ "My Lord and My God" (John 20: 28). In the early Christian Church the Apostles continued to preach about Christ in the Temple. However, their understanding of the Divinity of Christ was clear from the confession of Peter that Jesus is the Messiah in Mark to the vision of Stephen about Christ sitting at the right hand of God (See Acts) to the confession of Paul to the Philippians that "Though [Christ] was in the form of God, he did not regard equality with God something to be grasped" (Ph 2: 6-7). This is an early Christological hymn that Christians sang to Christ since Apostolic times according to modern scholarship. In the Letter to the Colossians, Paul again refers to Christ being "the image of the invisible God" (Col. 1: 15-20). There is no way to deny that Christ was worshipped as God since the Apostolic times. By the end of the first century documents by Christian authors attest to the divinity of Christ (Cf. St. Ignatius of Antioch). This continues in the second century with philosophical debates with non-Christians (Cf. Justin Martyr, Origen, St. Ireneaus). It is important to know that the fathers did not write for the sake of writing, but to correct errors of early Christians and non-Christians. Against the Arians in the early 4th century Athanasius championed the philosophical expression "Homoosious" in the First Council of Nicea (325 AD), an expression not used in the New Testament, to emphasize the faith that Christ is consubstantial with the Father and so he is equal to the Father in his divinity. Augustine further explained the Trinity from the New Testament "God is Love." If God is love, who or what does he love? If he is unlimited he could not love the world from eternity because that would make him dependent on creation which, the Bible says, was created by God! If God loved himself from eternity then he would be in love with the self i.e. narcissism. This is the opposite of love! The only logical solution is if he loved another person yet that person is his image (proceeds from him.) But how about the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit, Augustine reasoned, is the binding love between the Father and the Son (Christ). The Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son. Love is the only thing that matters. God is that open fount of love in dynamic inner relationship that Ratzinger dares to call the Trinity a Relatedness of Father, Son and Holy Spirit! How did Ratzinger arrive at this new expression today? By following the Fathers and Doctors of the Church. This is also the thought of the Jesuit Karl Rahner. They take the thread of Tradition, reflect on it and develop it in the Church. More to come!