Experiencing the Mystical Body of Christ

The doors of the Church that I knocked on 43 years ago are opening up to an abyss of mysteries far deeper than any human mind can fathom!

It’s hard to believe, but it’s been 43 years since I was baptized and received into the Catholic Church! In my 3rd year as a university student, I had completed enough courses required by my Accounting major to allow me to test my feet in the deep waters of Philosophy, which was never as clear-cut as the debits and credits of accounting journal entries. For whatever reason, the gods of Philosophy had always occupied the upper echelons of my youthful heart and captured my imagination of intellectual excellence. As soon as my accounting business was more or less dealt with, I couldn’t wait to take a few courses in Philosophy and dive right into the ancient world of the Greek philosophers and medieval thinkers. 

The connection shared by many of these early thinkers to the Judeo-Christian culture soon took me further back in history to one man who somehow seemed to me, a beginner learning to polish his tools of rational thinking, to be both the beginning and the end of all philosophical explorations - a Jewish sage named Jesus Christ. Looking back, it was no coincidence that I would join the Chinese Catholic Community on campus and, through them, the RCIA of the Assumption campus community. The Philosophy courses simply were insufficient to quench my thirst to learn more about this man. On this Feast day of All Saints, as I reflect on the Mass readings, I can see how the journey that first began when it took me to the doorsteps of the Catholic Church 43 years ago has given me much more than what I was bargaining for. 

The man who had aroused so much interest in me turned out to be more than just a man, he is both human and divine! He is the Word of God, “the Alpha and the Omega” that all wisdoms of this world come from and must return to, including the wisdom of every single philosopher that I’ve studied (Jn 1:1, Rev 21:6)! He came so that the world “might have life and have it more abundantly” (Jn 10:10). “See what love the Father has bestowed on us that we may be called the children of God. Yet so we are”, John marvels in the 2nd reading (1 Jn 3:1).

The doors of the Church that I knocked on 43 years ago, looking for answers to my quest for the true meaning of life, are opening up to an abyss of mysteries far deeper than any human mind can fathom! As I walk inside and look around with reverence and awe, I find myself standing on holy ground. I can relate to how Moses must have felt when he stood on Mt. Horeb in front of the burning bush (cf. Ex 3:1-5). When I look further, I realize I’m not alone. I see, as John does in this Sunday’s first reading, “a vision of a great multitude” – hundreds of thousands of people “from every nation, race, people, and tongue”, wearing white robes made “white in the Blood of the Lamb” (Rev 7:9, 14). These are the martyrs of the universal Church! They are chanting, “Glory and holiness and praise!” together with the angels, who are countless in number. 

Tiptoeing further along with my heart in my throat, I see many renowned figures that I’ve come to know through the writings of the Church Fathers. There’s St. Irenaeus of Lyons, waving at me and holding a book in his hand – his famous apologetic work, Against Heresies, in which he defends the Christian faith against heretical doctrines and traditions. Over there, on the other side of this heavenly place, stands St. Justin Martyr, wearing a bright and cheerful smile in spite of his horrific death. How can we thank him enough for testifying bravely to the Roman emperor of his days on how the Church worshiped (cf. CCC 1345)? And who is this medieval scholar who looks a little overweight? O, my Lord! Could this be St. Thomas Aquinas? He’s still working on Summa Theologica, the uncompleted work he left behind when he died in 1274. This is a little overwhelming! Where am I? Why am I in the midst of all these martyrs and saints?

Like all children of God, the Mystical Body of Christ is my true dwelling place day in and day out. We receive spiritual nourishments and graces lavishly and unceasingly from the Head of the Body – Christ himself (cf. Eph 5:23). We are drawn closer to Christ in the unity of this holy communion by the intercessory prayers of the saints (CCC 956-7). As a resident in Canada, we must observe the law of the country. Similarly, to be worthy of the privilege of the children of God, we must follow Jesus’ teaching. The Beatitudes in this Sunday’s gospel are in many ways “the new Torah brought by Jesus” that requires our close adherence (Jesus of Nazareth I, p.68). I will certainly do my best to follow his teaching and make sure I remain in his Mystical Body. Hopefully in my next Mystical Body experience, I’d be able to bump upon St. Augustine! Oh, I wouldn't mind seeing St. John Paul II too!

Did Pope Francis' Film Interview Change the Church's Teaching on Marriage?

CNA article

To follow up on my previous post, I'd like to refer my fellow-bloggers to the CNA article above. It said exactly what I was trying to say, only better - much better - and more comprehensive in its coverage of the issue; breaking it down piece by piece and offering the right answer for each. Great article. 

I heard the Pope's film interview had triggered heated arguments among Catholics. The CNA article proves that if you understand the issue properly and think it through based on proper theological understanding, there should be no argument. The whole issue is crystal clear: 

The Pope has always supported and maintained the Church's infallible teaching on marriage; his endorsement of legal protection of SS civil unions - if that's indeed what he said in the interview - is not infallible teaching; as such the Catholic faithful's obedience of faith is not mandatory or even expected. 

A Pope's casual opinion in a film interview cannot change the Church's long-standing and infallible teaching on marriage, nor was it his intention to change it. 

His position or alleged position of endorsing legal protection for SS civil unions differs from his immediate predecessors, JPII and BXVI, who were also HIS POPES, to whom he owes allegiance and religious obedience. His suggestion or alleged suggestion could be a bad application of the Church's teaching on marriage, but the Church's position against homosexuality and SSM still stands.

Pope Francis endorses same-sex civil unions

https://www.ncregister.com/news/pope-francis-calls-for-civil-union-law-for-same-sex-couples-in-shift-from-vatican-stance

As Catholics, we should be startled by this morning’s news headline: Pope Francis endorses same-sex civil unions. But don’t jump to the conclusion just because of this headline that the Pope has done a complete 180 on a 2000-year old Church doctrine about marriage. The doctrine still stands and will continue to stand. It’s the Church’s infallible teaching; it cannot be changed by an interview in a film, even if the person expressing the view was the successor of Peter. 

We should be startled by the Pope’s view because, as pointed out in the NCR report, it’s a departure from the position of his predecessors, including St. JPII and Benedict XVI. It goes against the Church’s official direction as given by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith under St. Pope JPII in 2003. The CDF opposed “legal recognition of homosexual unions” and saw homosexuality as a “deviant behavior”.  To the CDF, such laws would endanger “common good” and fail to “promote and protect marriage”.

The Church Militant is constantly at war with “the principalities, with the powers, with the world rulers of this present darkness, with the evil spirits in the heavens” (Ephesus 6:12). Defending the Church’s infallible doctrine of marriage is the main battlefront that will determine whether the Church wins or loses this war. “The history of mankind, the history of salvation, passes by way of the family” (Letter to Families, 23). Yes, marriage and family is that important. 

Because it’s so important, it’s also the battlefield where the forces of darkness amass their fighters and armory; it’s where they launch most of their attacks. As a result, the Church will suffer many setbacks on the issue of marriage and family. It’s not unexpected.

Endorsing same-sex civil unions under the false pretense of inclusiveness is a setback. As the above-mentioned CDC position suggested, this is simply against common good and will put the institution of marriage further at risk. But has the Church “lost the battle”? No. If the Church changed its infallible teaching on marriage – I can assure you this will never happen – then, and only then, would the whole battle be lost. What will constitute a “change” in the Church’s infallible teaching on marriage? Just to give you some idea, one example is when the Church allows same-sex couples to receive the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony; or when people practicing homosexuality are allowed to receive the Sacrament of Holy Orders.

Let's continue to fight in the Church Militant using our most fervent prayers....

聖經就是天主的婚宴請柬

 婚姻與家庭這主題，縱橫交錯且美妙地貫連著聖經的第一章至最後一章。

若果說有一個主題能夠涵蓋到聖經傳達的所有信息，那就是婚姻與家庭。

聖若望保祿二世直言不諱地指出婚姻與家庭是天主救世計劃的中心：「人類的歷史，人類的救恩史，都因著家庭而展開」(致家庭書, 23)

婚姻與家庭這主題，縱橫交錯且美妙地貫連著聖經的第一章至最後一章。這主題在聖經的首尾兩端，開始於《創世紀》裏亞當和厄娃的破碎婚姻及家庭，完結於《默示錄》裏基督和教會在羔羊婚宴中完美的結合。

因原祖父母的原罪，婚姻制度在亞當和厄娃內失去了原來的光澤，但在基督與教會一體的結合內，婚姻制度重拾其卓越的聖潔無瑕—從外看，這結合表現於聖體聖事的標記；從內看，則表現於基督妙身形而上的本體與生命性。

基督徒的婚姻及聖體給我們指向一個更偉大的事情。這日子將要來到，那時候全人類—古、今和未來；無論種族、文化及語言—會被邀請與天主及天上眾天使、諸聖人一同慶祝一個永恆、喜樂、和天上的婚宴；簡而言之，這便是我們所稱的「天堂」或「天主的國」；進一步闡述，那裡要被正義與和平所統治，再沒有眼淚與悲傷(依 25:8, 默 21:4)。天主這計劃一定終會實現。故此，整部聖經應被視為天主獻給每一個人，參加祂天上的婚宴的邀請。這是天父給祂在塵世的迷惘中，長期寄居的子女的歸家呼喚。「被召赴羔羊婚宴的人，是有福的」(默 19:9)。

天主邀請我們參加這震撼性的寰宇婚宴，在聖經內用了多種不同的形式來表達。例如：《箴言》表達為「智慧」派遣她的童女去邀請那些「單純的」和「無知的」，「來，吃我的食糧，飲我配製的酒」(9:4-5)。《依撒意亞先知書》則以輕鬆有趣的態度描寫婚宴是天主招徠貧窮及飢渴的人—在患難中及被剝削財富的人—到祂那裏白白地、好好地吃喝:

「凡口渴的，請到水泉來！那沒有錢的，也請來罷！請來買不花錢，不索值的酒和奶吃！你們為什麼為那些不能充食的東西花錢，為那些不足果腹的東西浪費薪金呢？你們若細心聽我，你們就能吃豐美的食物，你們的心靈必因脂膏而喜悅」(依 55:1-2)。

本主日的第一篇讀經，同樣也是來自《依撒意亞先知書》，強而有力地把同一個邀請表達為一個滿是福祉的婚宴：

·       婚宴會場—「這座山上」(25:6)。這是指耶路撒冷聖殿所在的摩黎雅山；這也是亞巴郎祭獻他由撒辣所生的獨生子—依撒格—的地方；又是天父犧牲祂唯一聖子—耶穌—的地方。這些聖經的記載，把我們指向天上的耶路撒冷聖殿，即羔羊婚宴的場地 (參閱希8:1-5)。

• 誰「要為萬民擺設」這超凡卓越的寰宇婚宴 (25:6)？—天主，正如依撒格問亞巴郎同樣 問題時，亞巴郎所預言的一般(參照 創22:14)。\ 菜單是甚麼？—「肥甘的盛宴，美酒的盛宴」，正如教會在慶祝聖體聖事盛宴中已經預象的(25:6)。
•  盛宴的主人，新郎，在婚宴中會做甚麼？—「祂要撤除那封在萬民上的封面」，猶如新郎在婚禮中揭開新娘的面紗(25:7)。這也是為甚麽耶穌死時，「聖所的帳幔，從上到下分裂為二」(瑪 27:51)。因為把天主和人分隔開的，必須被耶穌的救贖恩典徹底摧毀。
•  新郎還會做甚麼？—「他要永遠取消死亡... 從人人的臉上拭去淚痕，要由整個地面除去自己民族的恥辱」(25:8)。可記得聖保祿如何面對死亡而毫不戰慄？「死亡！你的勝利在那裡？死亡！你的刺在那裡？」(格前15:55)。我們現在明白，他為何不害怕。
•  當我們接到羔羊婚宴的請柬時，我們該做甚麽？—「我們要因他的救援鼓舞喜樂！」（25:9）亞孟！如聖保祿所言「在主內應當常常喜樂」(斐 4:4）。

 鑑於《依撒意亞先知書》讀經中談及的婚宴主題是如此豐富，難怪教會選用耶穌「婚宴的比喻」作為本主日的福音讀經來配合 (參照 瑪 22:1-14)。耶穌告誡我們要做好準備。祂告訴我們，那些「不穿婚宴禮服」的，會被「丟在外面的黑暗中：在那裡要有哀號和切齒」(瑪22:13)。既然婚宴禮服「代表聖徒們的義行」，衣著不當的人要承擔可怕的後果，也相當合理吧 (默19:8)！

The Bible is in a Nutshell Just God’s Wedding Invitation

 If there is one theme that captures all messages that the Bible was written to convey, it’s marriage and family. 

St. John Paul II minces no words in pointing out the centrality of marriage and family in God’s plan of salvation: “The history of mankind, the history of salvation, passes by way of the family” (Letter to Families, 23).

The theme of marriage and family runs through the Bible like a thread, weaving its way intricately and skillfully from the first chapter to the last. It bookends the whole Bible, starting from the broken marriage and family of Adam and Eve in Genesis, ending with the perfect union of Christ and the Church in the wedding feast of the Lamb in Revelation. As if to punctuate its significance, Jesus' first miracle also happened in a wedding feast - the wedding at Cana.

Having lost its original luster in Adam and Eve due to the first parents’ original sin, the institution of marriage regains the preeminence of its immaculate state in the one-flesh unity of Christ and his Church – a unity manifested outwardly as a sign in the Sacrament of the Eucharist, and inwardly as an ontological reality and organic whole in the Body of Christ.

Both Christian marriage and the Eucharist are pointing us to something much bigger. The day will come when all of humanity - ancient, contemporary, and future; regardless of race, culture, and language - is invited to celebrate together with God and all the angels and saints above in an eternal, joyful, and heavenly wedding feast; which, to put simply, is what we call “heaven” or “the kingdom of God”; where, to elaborate further, justice and peace will reign and tears will be no more (Is 25:8, Rev 21:4). As a result of this divine plan, which must and will come to pass, the whole Bible should really be understood as an invitation from God for everyone to attend His heavenly wedding feast. It’s the heavenly Father’s call for His waylaid children to come home after a prolonged sojourn here on earth. “Blessed are those who have been called to the wedding feast of the Lamb” (Rev 19:9).

God’s invitation for us to attend this cosmic wedding feast has been expressed in many different forms scripturally. For example, in Proverbs, it’s expressed as “Wisdom” sending out her maidens to invite those who are “simple” and “lacking in understanding” to “Come, eat of my food, and drink of the wine I have mixed” (9:4-5). In Isaiah, it’s expressed playfully as God touting those who are thirsty and poor - people in need and deprived of real wealth - to drink and eat well from Him for free:

“All you who are thirsty, come to the water! You who have no money, come, receive grain and eat; come, without paying and without cost, drink wine and milk! Why spend your money for what is not bread; your wages for what fails to satisfy? Heed me, and you shall eat well, you shall delight in rich fare” (Is 55:1-2).

In this Sunday’s 1st reading, also from Isaiah, the same invitation is expressed powerfully as a cocktail of wedding goodies: 

• Venue of the wedding feast – “On this mountain” (25:6). In other words, Mount Moriah where the Jerusalem temple was situated; it’s also where Abraham sacrificed his only son from Sarah, Isaac; and where God, the Father, sacrificed His only Son, Jesus. These biblical events are pointing us to the heavenly Temple of Jerusalem where the wedding feast of the Lamb is to take place (cf. Heb 8:1-5).

• Who “will provide for all peoples” in this extraordinary cosmic event (25:6)? – God, just as Abraham had prophesized when he was asked a similar question by Isaac (cf. Gen 22:14).

• What’s the menu? - “juicy, rich food and pure, choice wines”, as is already prefigured in the eucharistic feast the Church celebrates (25:6).

• What will the host of the feast, the Groom, do in this wedding feast? – “he will destroy the veil that veils all peoples”, the way the groom unveils his bride during a wedding (25:7). This is also why when Jesus died, “the veil of the sanctuary was torn in two from top to bottom” (Mt 27:51). For what separates God and man must be completely destroyed by Jesus’ redemptive grace.

• What more will the Groom do? – “he will destroy death forever...wipe away the tears from all faces; the reproach of his people he will remove from the whole earth” (25:8). Remember St. Paul’s defiance in confronting death? “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” (1 Cor 15:55). Now we know why he was defiant.

• What should we do on receiving the invitation to the wedding feast of the Lamb? – “let us rejoice and be glad that he has saved us!" (25:9) Amen! As St. Paul says, “Rejoice in the Lord always” (Phil 4:4).

Small wonder, given the riches of the theme of the wedding feast in the Isaiah reading, Jesus’ parable of the wedding feast is chosen by the Church as this Sunday’s gospel reading (cf. Mt 22:1-14). Jesus warns us to come prepared. We are told that those who are “not dressed in a wedding garment” will be cast “into the darkness outside, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth” (Mt 22:13). Since the wedding garment “represents the righteous deeds of the holy ones”, the terrifying consequence for those experiencing wardrobe malfunction does make a lot of sense (Rev 19:8)!

Finding Yourself Requires a Sincere Gift of Self

Jesus’ stern rebuke of Peter in this Sunday’s gospel - “Get behind me, Satan! You are an obstacle to me” (Mt 16:23) – is quite remarkable, considering that he has just given Peter the keys to the kingdom of heaven and the power to bind and loose only a few verses earlier (cf. Mt 16:19). 

What is the reason for Jesus’ strong words against Peter whose comment many will consider perfectly innocent and harmless? After all, his beloved teacher and leader has just revealed that he’s heading to Jerusalem to get killed! 

Here’s the problem. Peter’s reaction to Jesus’ shocking revelation, while well-intended, reflects a fundamental flaw in human thinking that doesn’t jive well with the Father’s divine will and Jesus’ way of confronting tribulations. Aversion to suffering is in the human instinct. Peter, like everyone of us, sees it as an undesirable thing that must be avoided at all costs. It is unpleasant, painful, and, in Jesus’ case, life-threatening. It even goes straight against our human pride, inflicting on us a sense of being overpowered and a feeling that we are losing control. Suffering, affliction, humiliation, death, and a whole host of other traumatic experiences are probably some of the things that race through Peter’s head to cause him to blurt out his unsolicited and unwelcomed advice to Jesus. 

People also see suffering as an affront to a person’s or institution’s power and authority. Why should Jesus allow himself to be overpowered by the Sanhedrin and the Roman authority if he is truly divine and almighty? Similarly, how can the Church suffer from scandal after scandal if it truly has God’s special protection against evils (cf. Mt 16:18)? 

That’s how Peter and many people in general see suffering. But God has a very different perspective. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the LORD. As high as the heavens are above the earth, so high are my ways above your ways and my thoughts above your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:8-9). 

Like a good teacher, Jesus rebukes Peter, his student, and then explains his rebuttal with a clarity that leaves no room for bewilderment: “Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it” (Mt 16:24-25). Deny yourself; take up your cross and follow me; and your reward will be me – the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6). Lose your life because of me, and you will save it.

The paradox presented by Jesus above is further explained by the Church this way: “Man cannot fully find himself except through a sincere gift of self” (Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World, n. 24). The more willing we are in giving ourselves away, the more successful we will be in affirming or establishing our true selves. For a person who gives is a person who loves. And the more we love, the better we resemble God, the perfect and infinite Lover (1 John 4:7-8). 

In the second reading, St. Paul’s appeal for us “to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God” is seen by Pope Benedict XVI as “the existential aspect of the new concept of worship and sacrifice” (Rom 12:1; cf. Jesus of Nazareth II, p.236). St. Paul shows us how to give ourselves away, and what it means to take up our crosses and follow Jesus. We should offer our bodies –everything we have – “as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God”. In doing so – in excising our priestly duty in Christ to give away everything we have as a sacrifice to God, including our lives if necessary – we will end up gaining everything. For we will “have life and have it more abundantly” (John 10:10)! 

A few decades after the above-mentioned gospel episode, Peter, who had once coached Jesus to avoid suffering, would find himself willingly embrace martyrdom in Rome during the reign of Emperor Nero. His death brought fulfillment to Jesus’ prediction about him in the gospel of John: “When you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go" (John 21:18). Peter would literally “take up his cross” and follow Jesus, offering his body – upside down on the cross according to Christian tradition, because he felt unworthy of sharing the same posture as his Savior - “as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God”. In giving up his life, Peter found true life – everlasting and abundant. Through a sincere gift of self, he found his true self – vibrant, saintly and fully grown in Christ, “without spot or wrinkle or any such thing” (Eph 5:27).

How Good It Is to be Able to Repent!

Blessed Are They Who Repent, for They Shall Be Forgiven

From God’s “lenience” towards those who repent in the first reading to praising God for He is “good and forgiving” in the Responsorial Psalm; from the Holy Spirit’s intercession for us “with inexpressible groanings” in the second reading to the apocalyptic image of all evildoers who persist in their evil way being thrown into “the fiery furnace” in the gospel; repentance as a theme navigates its way masterfully through this Sunday’s readings with persuasiveness and coherence (Wis 12:18, Ps 86:5, Rm 8:26, Mt 13:42).

Everywhere we turn in the Bible, we hear good news. No wonder St. Paul wants us to “rejoice in the Lord always” (Phil 4:4). Not feeling well today? Rejoice! Hurt by people’s harsh and unfair criticism? Rejoice! Covid-19 pandemic? Rejoice! No matter what injustices, miseries, and misfortunes “the principalities…the powers…the world rulers of this present darkness” manage to pull out of their sleeves to throw at us, we must not stop rejoicing. For the battle against them has already been won (cf. 1 Cor 15:57, Rev 20:9-10)! God is firmly in control and will always be, even if this world of injustices and tribulations sometimes may suggest otherwise. The Bible is full of good news that work either individually, or collectively, or interchangeably to enable those whose hearts are filled with the Holy Spirit – the author of the Bible – to embrace without wavering this important understanding. And if they are truly able to do that, how can they not rejoice in the Lord always?

So, what is the good news this Sunday? First and foremost, the good news is that we are able to repent; and the Lord, who is “good and forgiving, abounding in kindness to all”, will forgive our sins because of Christ (Ps 86:5).

Wait! Isn’t repentance an option available to us always? Why has it become good news all of a sudden?

True, we have always been able to repent if and when we choose to do so. But before the coming of Christ, repentance alone, no matter how genuine, was insufficient to garner forgiveness for our sins. Christ’s saving grace, accomplished through his passion, death, and resurrection, has completely changed the whole cosmic picture. It is truly an unprecedented and monumental accomplishment. Its completion is a watershed moment, if you will, that has altered the whole order of creation through and through, including the very act of repentance. Before, repentance was just that – a human sentiment, even if good and righteous. After, if we repent, our sins will be forgiven. And Jesus is the sole reason for the difference. He is the only Mediator between God and men, as prefigured by Jacob’s vision of the stairway connecting heavens and earth (1 Tim 2:5, Genesis 28:12, John 1:51). He is, in his own words, “the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6).

For repentance to be acceptable to God, it needs to come straight from the heart. “A heart contrite and humbled, O God, you will not spurn” (Ps 51:19). But since human hearts are often bursting with pride, we need the Spirit to “come to the aid of our weakness” (Rom 8:26). He knows our every weakness and searches for our every sin - even the most elusive ones hiding either knowingly or unknowingly in the darkest corners of our hearts. He “intercedes with inexpressible groanings”, transforming our hearts and moving us to repent and confess (Rom 8:26, CCC 2739).

The theme of repentance culminates in Jesus’ apocalyptic message for “all who cause others to sin and all evildoers” (Mt. 13:41). They are the stiff-necked people who fail to repent, the “weeds” that grow together with the wheat in the field until harvest (c.f. Mt. 13:24-30). Their fate is to be tied up by the harvesters “in bundles for burning” in “the fiery furnace” (Mt. 13:30, 42).

The realization that God will forgive if we repent fills our hearts with hope and thankfulness. Jesus’ stern warning of the end-of-the-age judgement and the apocalyptic image of “the fiery furnace” where the evildoers “will be wailing and grinding of teeth”, on the other hand, shake us to the core of our being (Mt. 13:42). We must seriously re-examine how we live.