AMDG
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The First
Confirmation…….the Birthday of the Church.
It’s our turn when we receive the sacrament. |
Where have we seen
“Semper Fidelis” before? You probably
saw the motto of the United States Marines on its flag. It’s Latin for, “Always Faithful”. What’s that got to do with the sacrament of
Confirmation which 20 of our youth will be receiving this Sunday? It’s our largest Confirmation class ever at
St. Louis Church in Gallipolis, Ohio.
Our youth will be anointed as soldiers of Christ and will receive
many graces to combat the forces of evil. Evil affects us as individuals (personal sin) and
as members of a society engulfed in a deadly cultural spiritual war on many
levels over abortion, euthanasia and assisted suicide, promiscuity both
heterosexual and homosexual, gender change, same sex marriage, drugs, corruption,
violence, social injustice, violations of religious freedom, laxity regarding
the faith, etc.
To be an effective
soldier of Christ, one must be first and foremost, faithful. What does that mean? Our Lord founded a Church to guide us to
eternity through teaching us what He taught, passing it down from generation to
generation with the help of parents. The
Church’s mission is to help us to get to Heaven. Christ uses His Church as the primary source of
the graces we need through the sacraments to help us along the way. The Church brings us closer to God through
the sacraments and prayer during the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and
devotions.
Holy Mother the Church
applies the teachings of Jesus Christ to the reality of today’s problems. If we rely on ourselves to determine what is
right or wrong, we can play mind games and talk ourselves into believing that almost
any evil is OK, such as abortion when carrying the baby to term is
inconvenient. Holy Mother the Church
settles theological disputes and moral dilemmas; she establishes certain rules
such as the grave Sunday obligation and Confession at least once a year to keep
us on track to Heaven and closer to God.
Faithful to Church Teaching. When everyone interprets the Bible in his own
way, we have chaos and some 35,000 different Christian religions. The Magisterium of the Church is a tremendous
gift for preserving the unity, consistency, and coherence of the teachings of
Christ over the centuries as our understanding of doctrine develops while theological
disagreements and new problems occur.
The foundation is the Bible and also tradition passed down from the
apostles. The great secular historian, Arnold Toynbee was
amazed by this as unprecedented.
The Pope, the Vicar of Christ
and Successor of St. Peter as a shepherd and teacher, has the last word on
matters of faith and morals after prayer, discussion, and study when he speaks
“ex cathedra” which is rare. We know
that the Holy Spirit is there to guide the Church and keep it from doctrinal
error.
We know that “the gates of hell
shall never prevail (Matthew 16:15-20)” despite the presence of some corrupt
laymen, priests, bishops, and even popes over the centuries. That’s why Pope Pius VI told Napoleon after
arrogantly declaring that he will destroy the Church: “We ourselves tried to destroy the Church and
couldn’t do it; you won’t either”.
Thus a faithful Catholic
will: attend the Holy Sacrifice of
the Mass every single Sunday and worthily receive the Eucharist each time. The faithful Catholic will go to Confession
every few months to assess how he or she is doing, what he has to work on in
the development of virtue, and obtain advice from his confessor. The faithful Catholic will follow Church
teaching as outlined in the Catechism of the Catholic Church. He won’t go off on his own as a “Cafeteria
Catholic” and believe what s/he chooses to believe.
He or she will have a strong prayer
life……..daily Bible reading, daily Mass and Eucharistic Adoration when able. Pray for God’s will in everything you
do. One cannot be a good soldier of
Christ without prayer. A good soldier
needs constant training. That includes
participating in Bible studies, doing spiritual reading, watching EWTN and
DVDs, using CDs, attending conferences, etc.
If one misses Mass when simply tired or for no grave reason,
he or she will start to drift.
Confession disappears from his or her life. That soldier is derelict of duty. Soon s/he goes to Mass only when convenient,
then only Christmas and Easter, finally not at all. That soldier of Christ is no longer a soldier
at all, but a deserter. DON’T BECOME A
DESERTER. ALWAYS REMAIN A FAITHFUL
SOLDIER OF CHRIST TO THE END when our Lord will tell you: “WELL DONE GOOD AND FAITHFUL SERVANT!”
(Matthew 25:23). Win that super bowl
trophy……Heaven!
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The Church is the Mystical Body of Christ as the head and we are the parts
(1 Corinthians Chapter 12).
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For the first apostles,
Confirmation was the beginning, not the end…….the birth of an eternal Church,
the Mystical Body of Christ. The
first apostles were set on fire to go out and spread the Faith, to defend the
Faith, to make any sacrifice, to endure any hardship, to even suffer martyrdom
if necessary. Christ told His apostles
and us too: “Let your light shine before others that they may see your good
deeds and glorify your heavenly Father” (Matthew 5:16). We are not any different from the first
apostles. Confirmation is not the end of the Parish School of Religion (PSR), but the beginning of a lifetime adventure in serving the Lord. DON’T JUST KEEP THE FAITH; SPREAD IT in
little or big ways…….by prayer, your example, your witness, by word, or
deed.
There’s
probably a big mission field right in your own extended family! Every extended family has fallen away
Catholics and non-Catholics. Take
advantage of little opportunities to evangelize with courage by boldly standing
up for the truth, by courageously defending the faith when attacked, by talking
about the Faith when moral or spiritual issues come up in conversation.
Through the graces of Confirmation, Our Lord expects us to be
His witnesses for the truth and in the never ending battles between the forces
of good and evil. Whose side are you
on? God gave each one of us a special
mission in life. Each one of us has a
part in the battle and the graces of Confirmation equip us for the battle. In Confirmation we are anointed for a special
mission with the strength and help to accomplish it, to be witnesses……..SOLDIERS
OF CHRIST!
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| Confirmation increases the gifts of the Holy Spirit in us. Pray that the gifts may grow in you throughout your life. |
What is Confirmation? As in any sacrament, it is Christ who
administers it through His Persona Christi, the priest or bishop. Jesus invokes the Holy Spirit to complete the
sacrament of Baptism and its graces. By
the sacrament of Confirmation, the baptized person is more perfectly bound to
the Church and is enriched with a special strength of the Holy Spirit against sin and evil. He or she is anointed to be a true witness of
Christ, is more strictly obliged to spread and defend the Faith by word and
deed (#1285 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church). In Confirmation we become more firm in the
Faith and are consecrated to the Lord as we receive an outpouring of the Holy
Spirit the same as at the first Pentecost and with the first converts, noted in
the Bible’s New Testament Acts of the Apostles.
Confirmation
makes us better disciples and increases the gifts of the Holy Spirit in us and
unites us more closely to Christ. In
Baptism our godparents professed the faith for us. In Confirmation we individually profess the
faith and become more firm in it. The
seven gifts of the Holy Spirit are: wisdom (to discern what is
important in life as God sees it); understanding (to see how God works in our
lives); counsel (to see what is right and wrong); fortitude (courage to do what
is right despite the consequences); knowledge (the ability to see things from
God’s perspective); piety (faithfulness to God); and fear of the Lord
(reverence and respect for God in awe with fear of offending Him).
When one allows himself to be completely
formed by God, he or she reaps the 12 fruits of the Holy Spirit: charity,
joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness,
modesty, self-control, and chastity (Galatians 5:22-23).
A Closing Short Daily
Prayer:
Dear
Holy Spirit: always tell me what to do, what to say, and what to write. Never let me do or say anything against your
will. Renew in me your seven gifts and
the graces of Confirmation.
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