Krakow: The Pope and the Holocaust; I Am Proudly & Humbly Connected to Both*
IT MAKES SENSE TO ME
The deepest and most profound mystery of our faith is that of the Blessed Trinity. This states that there is only ONE God consisting of three separate persons, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Simply put, there are Three individual Persons in ONE God. This is a mystery that cannot be understood. We believe it because of a gift instilled in us at Baptism. This gift is called faith.
A bit over a month ago, on June 19, the second annual March for Marriage took place in Washington D.C. Times have changed, they surely have. Why was it necessary to have such a March in the first place? It was necessary because traditional marriage, marriage between a man and a woman, has been hijacked. It has been hijacked by those who insist that marriage between same sex couples is no different than marriage between a man and a woman. Please understand, the Catholic Church does NOT condemn anyone who is a homosexual. Those persons can live in full communion with the Church. However, the Church has always taught that sexual acts outside of marriage, whether living together or not, are sinful. This applies to a man and a woman, as well as same sex couples.
We live in the Age of Relativism or, as I like to call it, the Meistic Age or the Age of Me. This Meistic Age has spawned many who now are afflicted with a self-centered mutated sense of Natural Law. This mutation causes the disease of Meism. Meism goes something like this: if a person likes something or wants to do something, no matter what that might be, and if it makes him or her feel good, and has nothing to do with you personally, there is nothing wrong with it. This includes marriage. If a man wants to marry another man, that should be fine. If a woman wants to marry another woman, that should be fine also. Who should dare have the right or the audacity to deny those folks their happiness? Meism does not allow discussion, debate, opinion or any other kind of anti-meistic thoughts into the equation. It is like the old cliche, "My Way or the Highway".
According to the LGBTQ and many of their supporters, anyone who opposes this type of "marriage" is guilty of homophobia and hate crimes, and needs retraining to continue living in our sophisticated, Meistic society. Simply disagreeing with the concept of gender neutral marriage or same sex marriage can get a person into a heap of trouble. Take Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco. Appointed by Pope Benedict XVI in July of 2012 to head up the San Francisco Diocese, the traditionally minded priest is also one of the prime supporters of the March for Marriage. As such, he had incurred the wrath of that renowned "theologian" and politician, Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi.
The former House Speaker, apparently a wannabe Catholic theologian, is truly one of the most prominent Meistics of our time. She demanded that Archbishop Cordileone NOT participate in this March because, as she saw it, the March for Marriage was all about "hate". She told the Archbishop that the March is "venom masquerading as virtue" and "it shows disdain and hate toward LGBT persons". Then she quoted (out of context) the words of Pope Francis, who had said, "If someone is gay and is searching for the Lord and has good will, then who am I to judge him."
She missed the point. The Pope does not know what is in their hearts. They could be quite willing to lead a celibate life as does a priest. You can live with another person and NOT have sex with them. Same sex marriage wants a sexual lifestyle included in the union. The Catholic Church has NEVER approved of this kind of behavior, even among heterosexual couples who are not married. (By the way, Archbishop Cordileone rejected her demand and was in the forefront of the parade. Click on name to link to his speech)
As previously mentioned, the Holy Trinity is the mystery that there are Three Persons in one God. The Father is all knowing and this total knowledge of all that is, begets the Son, sometimes called the Word. The bond between the two is so profound that it is the ultimate expression of Love. This bond of pure LOVE is known as the Holy Spirit. We cannot understand this, but our faith leads us to believe it. It follows that the Trinity is reflected ( as I see it) in the union between a man and woman in the following manner:
The Love of God the Father and God the Son culminates in the perfect Love called the Holy Spirit. A man and a woman, in love and united in the Sacrament of Matrimony, share their love for each other in such a way as to bring forth a third person, a child. That child now completes an earthly trinity which is the result of God's creations uniting under the Natural Law, and being sealed with the Sacrament of Matrimony. It is truly a beautiful thing when the newly married couple embraces the sacrament and uses it throughout their lives.
Matrimony (Marriage) in the Catholic Church is one of the seven sacraments. It is spiritual and NOT secular. A sacrament can never be compromised. If you are having difficulty with this issue, talk to a priest and seek the compassion and understanding that the church can offer. We must breathe and eat and sleep and relieve ourselves and swallow etc. to live. We do not have to have sex to live. Many people have chosen to live celibate lives. Marriage will always be the union between a man and a woman, no matter what anyone says. Personally, I am in favor of legal civil-unions if necessary. But the beacon that is the Catholic Church, which guides us toward our eternal reward, cannot detour for those that want it strictly their way.
P.S. I am not a priest or a theologian. I am just a Catholic man trying to defend my faith and Church against so many unwarranted, uninformed and vitriolic attacks against it. This is the Church that was founded by Christ Himself more than 2000 years ago. It is ready and willing to give all people a sanctuary and safe place that they can call home. But, like it or not, as in any home, there are rules that must be followed.