My Church is full of sinners. Not only that, it's also full of amazing people going to Heaven (and some who may not). Jesus wasn't sacrificed on the cross for perfect people, although His mother would be the closest, and who wouldn't sacrifice themselves for their child or parent? (when you find a perfect person, let me know); He died for you, me and every person in the world; after all, each of us has sinned and fallen short of the Glory of God. That means me, you, your pastor, my priest, Mother Teresa, Pope John Paul II, Pope Francis, Sts. Peter and Paul.
Just as the ER is not for people in perfect physical condition with no ailments (oh, to dream!!), the Church is not the place for perfect, sinless people. We welcome EVERYONE to our Faith. Everyone? I mean....what about the sinners among us who have sex outside of marriage (adulterers, fornicators, homosexual sex, etc)? Or those that have stolen, cheated, killed, were rude to us before Mass, cut us off in the line for doughnuts, didn't give us the job we deserved, or fired us for unjust reasons.... them too? Yeppers. Now, that doesn't mean that we can continue to disobey the laws of Faith, the words of Jesus. We should strive each day, each moment to be a better follower of Christ, a better example to those we come in contact with.
It's hard to admit when we've made mistakes. It doesn't always work out very well when we tell a loved one or a supervisor that we messed up. The repercussions may be very hard, and we may be met with a lecture, or tears, and never receive forgiveness. But we must admit our mistakes to Christ. He already knows. He knows EVERY SINGLE thing we've ever done: good, bad or ugly. Is He waiting for us with a whip or planning His speech to make us feel even worse, and then banish us from his sight? No. He is waiting to give us LOVE, of all things. Complete, 100% love. Shouldn't we be ready to die a little bit inside, swallow our pride, ask for His forgiveness, and then do better? He suffered and died so deeply as a man on earth; this seemingly small thing of asking for His forgiveness is but a small repayment of thanks for His sacrifice. If we don't ask forgiveness, if we don't admit our mistakes, we really are fooling one person: ourselves.
It may not be easy. But the reward, even the immediate one, is beyond any words I can say.
Lord, have Mercy on me, a sinner.
Even though I'm Orthodox, not Catholic, I thought the interview was really well done and fascinating. I believe that Pope Francis is an amazing, humble man who truly lives the Gospel and shines the love of Christ. The viewpoint of what the church is is shared between our faiths, and I thought he articulated it well.
ReplyDeleteHis words about Confession (the confessional is not a torture chamber but a place of healing) were so correct and true, I wrote them down.
The confessional used to be scary when I was a child and even a younger (!) adult. But it is so healing!! Thanks for sharing your thoughts with me, my friend. :) Pope Francis is a blessing.
DeleteThank you for sharing. Some related verses:
ReplyDeleteRomans 8:38-39
New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)
38 For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
However, we can choose to separate ourselves from His Love. He stands at the door and knocks. Rev. 3:20. We have to choose to open the door.
I pray that Anonymous will open that door.