Search Page

Most Catholics have heard the phrase, "The Real Presence"; but few have thought it through. Those who do so are aware the Almighty God, the Son of God, chooses to be Really Present in a special, sacramental way, in each of our Catholic churches! Those who know this kneel, bow, and adore Christ. Those who don't know, or don't care, chat and laugh as if in a pub or a cafe.

We should work and pray for the Gospel to be spread. It is plain to see, if we look across the world, that a Catholic who has his sins forgiven, and approaches death in the grace of God, with the hope of Heaven, can be at peace, whereas someone not knowing about our loving Creator or His wonderful Son, and expecting to be returned to earth in some other body, to endure further trials on earth, is unlikely to be joyful, and perhaps is terrified.

In the Father's sight, it is tragic that many Christians refuse to honour the Virgin Mother of their Saviour. How can they imagine that the perfect son of a perfect mother does not love her, does not honour her, and does not want all His friends to honour her, too? These Christians find out the truth when they die, and lament their previous blindness.

Since they are often ignorant of Christian history, some groups of puzzled reporters or politicians who regard the Church as irrelevant and a Bishop as a nuisance have no idea of the truth about his office. They do not realise that God the Son, in coming to earth, founded a Church with Divine authority, sent out chosen leaders to preach the truth in every place, about sin and salvation; and that the current Bishop is the particular ambassador or representative of almighty God in this place on earth!

The prayers of St. Joseph are badly-needed today: the one whom Christ looks on with love, grateful for that care by 'the chaste spouse of Our Lady' for both the Christ-child and His Virgin Mother. This is a time of moral decay, when even many Catholics are ignorant of the Church's moral teachings, or dispute them, or disobey them for a life-time whilst telling themselves that God 'doesn't mind'!

Christ saw with dismay that many Catholics, after the last Council, were not content to be lowly, in church. Even at a time when these were forbidden, some insisted on presenting girls as altar-servers, or receiving Communion in the hand. Others wanted to preach the homily, or to introduce unauthorised dramas or prayers, or even dance troupes during the Mass, and some refused to kneel at the Consecration, and in other ways showed not education but pride.

There exists in the Church widespread ignorance about reverence. It is a cause for sadness when a woman appears in church for the Sacred Liturgy whilst bare-shouldered, and showing no concern for the people who will be distracted by her appearance. She might not be entirely to blame; but in her immodesty she shows little respect for her all-holy Creator to Whom all worship is directed.

No matter how detailed an edict or constitution, it cannot foster true happiness or wisdom in a country or continent if there is no mention in it of God, or God's love. To fail to mention God is not to leave aside the question of belief, but to show that faith is irrelevant to those involved; and it demonstrates their ignorance of the importance of Christian history not only locally but also throughout the world.

In having a 'clouded' understanding of the Mass, many Catholics feel themselves to be far from God. Many of these people are not content to develop a quiet interior life, in union with Jesus. They want drama, spiritual excitement, grand projects, and praise from others for their good works.

God is not far away from us; however, a person who trusts in the Son of God, and tries to lead a good life, knows that only a veil separates people on earth from God and the Saints in Heaven. A person who lives for selfish aims, feels as if God is far away - if that person believes in God - and that between God and himself there is an impenetrable wall. This false impression is caused by his sins.

Christ's own people found it difficult to recognise, in a Person suffering pain and humiliation, the King or warrior they awaited as a Saviour. But in His Resurrection Christ performed a marvel greater than any achieved in a throne-room or a battlefield. Truly, He and God the Father are One, as Christ said.

There are people who repeat the truth about mortal sin, insisting that it is only mortal if it was committed with full knowledge and content. But this is not to say that people are blameless for their ignorance about certain sins, for example. In unclear cases, it's as if people have been saved from spiritual death but are still in need of help if they are to lead holy lives, close to Christ. It's as if they hold onto tree-roots, above the Abyss.

Through faith in Christ, the Baptised person can call out to the Father, confident that her prayers are heard and answered. Because of her obedience to Christ, the Son of God, Who intercedes for her, it's as if she is held in Christ's arms, as Christ vouches for her, before Heaven, because she is a 'child of God' - unlike people who don't know Him, or who have refused to believe in Him.

Whether we are Christian or non-Christian, we cannot be saved if we are guilty of grave sin and refuse to repent. God gives constant helps to human beings, including those who do not know His Son Jesus, to help them to do good. Though minds have been darkened by original sin, all people can realise, through reflection, and use of their conscience, if they are willing, that certain things are wrong: stealing, murder, rape, slander, betrayal, and much more.

Christ came to earth, true God and true man, to dispel the clouds of ignorance of misunderstanding that clouded human minds on the subject of the Godhead. He came here, as a tiny child in the womb of the Virgin Mary, in order to Sacrifice His Life, out of love for us, to save sinners from Hell.

Long ago, the new rite of the Mass was very hurriedly introduced. Through long-standing, tragic ignorance of the Traditional Mass, many people have lost the sense of ascending, together, to Calvary, to offer the Holy Sacrifice. The Traditional rite seemed to be put aside, and the Novus Ordo was in place. But now (in 2010) Christ is encouraging, through the Papacy, a growth in understanding, at last, of the beauty and antiquity of the Traditional Mass, and of its reverent phrasing, and its silences.

Some Catholics foolishly ignore the evidence; that the evil one has been especially active in the Church for four decades, determined to strike at Christ and Catholics by striking at the Mass. The evil one uses all sorts of people and methods to increase ignorance of the Real Presence, to confuse the laity, to discourage priests, to bring about a distorted or truncated presentation of the Faith in catechesis. It's as if he is lurking beneath a procession of the Blessed Sacrament, planning how to lessen our love for Christ and to diminish our fervour.

All who do the Will of God will act justly. His Will has been made known fully through Jesus Christ Who was sent to us from Heaven. If we disobey the laws of God and the will of Christ in attempts to promote what we call 'justice' we in fact promote things that are unwise or unjust, even if doing so through ignorance or fear, for example, trying to cure poverty by offering abortions.

It is important that we persevere in our intercessions for the needy. There are many people who have not yet accepted the truth about God's love for them, His desire to free them from their sins, and the need for repentance and prayer, so that they can share God's life, through Christ, and follow the sure Way to holiness and Heaven. Without the life of grace, within them, people are trapped in sin and ignorance, as if in semi-darkness, in an area of chaos and hopelessness, beneath a shining highway.

Only the holy can share God's holiness in Heaven, in perfect joy and peace. There are people who say - 'I'm not a bad person. I try to be good, but I don't need all that advice about prayer and Church-going'. They reveal the depth of their ignorance by such words, and on their state of soul. It's as if, within them, is a labyrinth of blocked passages and alley-ways: of unchristian attitudes, prejudices, unused spiritual faculties, a dark conscience locked in a cul-de-sac, and the gloom caused by Original Sin.