Year 1 in Review

Our hearts are restless, until they rest in you… The rational human soul is always reaching for the transcendent. We are all looking for God, and we are empty until we find Him. (Psalm 42:1-2; CCC 27-28) The kerygma, or core message of Christianity, answers our heart’s deepest longing as well as our most fundamental questions about life: “What is the meaning of life, and what comes after death?” In response to this, the Savior always offers a simple invitation: “Come and see.” He is the answer. (CCC 158)

Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you… The Scriptures tell a story from the creation of the world and the sin of our first parents, to the incarnation, earthly ministry, and redemptive death and resurrection of Christ; to the coming of the Holy Spirit and the ongoing life of the Church. That is our story. Jesus is the fullest revelation of God, who introduces us to the idea that God is Love (1 John 4:8). God is a communion of Persons: an eternal exchange of love. Each of us is made in God’s image; that is, we are made for love (CCC 221, 358)

Those who seek Me diligently, find Me… God is known through both reason and faith. We have these capacities because God wants to be known. He makes Himself known through the order and diversity of nature, as perceived by human reason. (CCC 50, 54) God reveals Himself through both Scripture and Tradition, culminating in the person and work of Christ (CCC 53, 80-82).

I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life… It is not possible that Jesus was just a good person. He claimed to be the divine Son of the Father. This leaves only three possibilities: He made it up (liar), He was crazy (lunatic), or He really is God (Lord). We are compelled to make a decision. Jesus came to earth 1) to remove sin and reconcile us to God, 2) to show us just how much God loves us, 3) to show us how to live, and 4) to fill us with His divine life (CCC 456-460).

On this rock I will build My church… The Catholic Church is not just one among many “churches” to choose from. Jesus founded a structured and organized Church with leaders (the Apostles/bishops) and direction (“Make disciples of all nations”) (Matthew 28:19-20, CCC 767, 849). The four marks of the Church are: one, holy, catholic, and apostolic. Despite the imperfection of its members, Christ promised to be with us until the end of time (Matthew 28:20).

May the souls of the faithful departed… Eschatology is the aspect of theology concerned with the last four things: death, judgment, heaven, and hell. Every human being who has ever lived will stand before God. When Christ returns, he will establish a new heaven and a new earth, where there will be perfect love, peace, justice, and freedom from all death and pain. God does not force Himself on anyone. We are free to choose. Those who willingly reject Him will get what they choose: eternal separation from God (CCC 1033).

I can do all things in Him who strengthens me… God created us to share in His divine life, and gave us the Sacraments to impart that grace to us (Philippians 4:13, CCC 1131, 1992). “The Sacraments are efficacious signs of grace, instituted by Christ and entrusted to the Church, by which divine life is dispensed to us” (CCC 1131).

Create in me a clean heart, O God… Water appears again and again in every salvation story. Baptism is necessary for salvation, and makes an indelible mark on the soul that makes this Sacrament unrepeatable (CCC 1279-1280). We are obliged to follow God’s plan for us to be baptized, but we also recognize that God may save people through means unknown to us (CCC 1257-1261). The signs of Baptism include water, candles, oil, garments, and the Trinitarian formula (CCC 1234-1245). The fruits of Baptism are the washing away of sins and being raised up to new life in the Holy Spirit.

With my whole heart I seek You… Deliberately choosing to turn away from God and disobey His laws is sin (CCC 1849-1855). Though laws are often seen as limitations on our freedom, God’s laws are the guidelines for our freedom. Sins, whether great or small, have both a personal and corporate nature. The essential acts of the penitent are contrition, confession, and making satisfaction (also known as doing penance).

Let not your hearts be troubled… Man suffers whenever he experiences any kind of evil. In allowing free will, God allows the possibility, and therefore the existence, of suffering. Jesus knows suffering and is with us; Emmanuel means God is with us. Anointing of the Sick is depicted throughout the Scriptures and in the ministry of Jesus. It confers a special grace on those who receive it, especially those in danger of death due to serious illness of any kind.

Advice for the Summer Don’t get rid of your textbooks! Keep going to Mass. Be at rest. 