Defending the Faith - Part 2

Defending the Faith – Part 2

Submitted by Thomas Stidl

In my last article, I detailed how to thwart an Islamic elder's sermon which reviled our Catholic faith. A second incident occurred while I was at that same Firestone Service Center at a different time. Another Islamic elder was trying to preach his version of Catholicism to a elderly Catholic priest. This set my blood boiling. I am now reminded of the biblical passage which says that “zeal for my Father's house consumed me.” I once again defended our Catholic faith along with the Catholic priest. That defense sent the Islamic elder on his way along with the fact that his auto repair was complete.

I do not know if any of our readers have ever thought about our priests and other clergy being in the line of fire by Islamic ministers. What does a priest accomplish by his service to God and the Church? He becomes a mediator between God and us. He supplies us with the power of absolution in the sacrament of Penance or Reconciliation. The graces from that sacrament supply a shield of grace to keep us from sinning which should be the goal of all humankind. The priest humbly presides at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass where he preaches the Word of God in the daily readings of Scripture along with a thoughtful sermon as to how to put the Word of God in action in our daily lives.

After he preaches and exhorts us to follow Jesus Christ more closely, he then consecrates bread and wine into the body and the blood of Jesus Christ commingling a piece of the consecrated host with the consecrated blood before our reception of Holy Communion. The Consecration helps us to recall the death of our Savior; the commingling helps to recall the Resurrection of Jesus. So when we receive Holy Communion at Mass either under one specie or both species, we are receiving the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ. This is why it is extremely important for the laity to protect all priests and clerics from any undo Islamic influence. The priest is our lifeline to the Heaven. He also brings us the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick for both spiritual and physical healing and the Last Anointing before we pass from this life. The Last Anointing brings us the complete forgiveness of our sins and the plenary indulgence to remove the punishment for our sins. If any priest or cleric has hurt us in this life, please forgive them. After all, he is human like all of us, and although he is a priest, he is still prone to sin and greater attacks from Satan than you and I by his state in life. The lesson here is the same lesson from the Lord's prayer. We must forgive our debtors so that the Father can forgive our debts or sins. The priest will also answer to a higher authority at his passing. Please continue to protect and pray for priests always.

Until next time, Laus Tibi, Christe. Laus Deo. Deo Gratias. See you in Paradise. Amen.