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Some Important Reminders

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Some Important Reminders

Each year prior to the beginning of a new season in a particular sport, there is a period of training, or, for some, retraining. This training period consists of exercises and activities that remind the players of the important, even vital, techniques that they must incorporate into their skillset for regular use. Without having this skillset well established into their makeup, the players would be at a serious disadvantage against their opponents.  What is true in sports is equally true in business and education; training is vital for success in any endeavor. Witness the extensive training and retraining that an airline pilot must incorporate into his regimen. Training and review of the fundamentals of an activity are mandatory in nearly all professions and activities of life. Would a professional athlete or a leading executive of a successful organization remain competitive and successful in his profession if he practiced his craft or studied important trends only once a week?  Of course not! Such an individual would rapidly tumble to the bottom of his profession.

What is true for a person’s daily secular life is equally true for one’s spiritual life. Listed below are just a few reminders of the “fundamentals” of the Catholic faith that a person needs to regularly review and contemplate.

  • The world was created; it had a starting point and….eventually will have an end point. Every created thing has a creator; God is the creator of all things.
  • God is a personal, loving, omnipotent being who loves mankind and wishes man to be united with Him in heaven. Man by his own actions chooses whether he will join God in heaven or not.
  • Jesus Christ, the Son of God, entered the world to save man from his sins, providing man a way to salvation. Jesus also taught man about God’s nature (Trinitarian – The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit) and God‘s love for man.
  • All three persons in the Trinity continue to provide man with assistance in man’s journey to eternity.
  • The Ten Commandments were given to man for his benefit and guidance. They must be reviewed regularly and applied to one’s daily life.
  • The Catholic Church is the only Church founded and preserved in its teachings on faith and morals by Jesus Christ – God.
  • God is man’s best friend; cultivate His friendship through frequent prayer.

If man ignores God, He will ignore man. Practice and train daily with God.

 

The Bridge

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The Bridge

The three hikers, heavily laden with large backpacks, were exhausted and hungry after having walked through dense woods, thick sharp brush, and tundra-like conditions for days.  Worst of all, they were LOST! Their very survival depended upon quickly finding food and water, neither of which appeared to be in sight. As they sat down for a brief rest, one member of the group thought that he heard the sound of rushing water and decided, despite his fatigue, to trudge up a nearby slope to see if he could find any water. When he reached the top of the slope, tired and depressed, he gazed down the slope and immediately began to jump with joy….there was a river only a couple miles down the of slope. He shouted the good news to his colleagues and they eagerly stumbled up the slope to join him.

The sight of the running water in the river was a wonderful and encouraging sight to all of them. However, the journey to the river would be difficult as their way to the river was full of thick woods and brush filled terrain, which could house bears and other predators. Nonetheless, it was journey whose challenges they knew that they must face if they were to survive. Hoping to avoid any sight or contact with a bear, they peered watchfully to their left and right as they trudged and navigated their way to the river. Finally, the backpackers reached the river and eagerly drank its refreshing water. Now the challenge was to find food and help.

As they looked up and down the river for signs of human life, one of the backpackers recalled seeing a map which noted a bridge that led to a settlement a few miles on the other side of the river. Could safety be just a short distance on the other side of the river? Hoping to discover the bridge, one person walked down the river, while another trudged up the river; both hoping to find the bridge. The third person, ill and exhausted stayed in the middle, resting and watching over the group’s gear. An hour later, the one who gone up the river came running back, screaming joyously, “ I have found it! I have found the bridge!” When they all gathered together, he told them the bridge was only a mile or so beyond the bend in the river.

When they arrived at the bridge, they noticed that it was old, though the infrastructure appeared sound.  One hiker decided to test the bridge by carefully walking on it.  After crossing the river on the bridge and returning to his companions, he reported that the bridge was structurally very sound and had obviously been maintained over the years. However, there were a few planks in the bridge that required replacement and must be avoided if one was not to fall into the river with its fast flowing waters. They all knew that safety was indeed on the other side of the river and the bridge was their connection to safety, but care and attention were required to avoid the loose and ill-fitting planks in the bridge.

They carefully crossed the bridge, being alert for the loose planks, and made it to safety. Not long after crossing the bridge they found a village where they received food and transportation. The long difficult journey would end happily….at home among relatives and friends.

All of humanity seeks safety and security even as it occasionally seeks or thirsts for adventure; it is normal for mankind to seek a safe haven.  Home, family, and friends frequently engender feelings of safety and security that lead to happiness. Yet they cannot be the ultimate sources of safety and happiness. Only God can provide eternal safety and happiness. Just as the pack-packers, migrating their way through difficult terrain filled with predators, sought the bridge that would lead them to safety so also must mankind seek the spiritual bridge that provides the connection to God, the ultimate source of security and happiness.  Jesus Christ built the bridge that leads to man’s union with God. That bridge, constructed on the solid planks of His teachings and His promise to be with it until the end of time, is the Catholic faith. Yes , although the Catholic Church, similar to the bridge that the hikers had to cross to reach safety, also has internal planks that often can lead people astray into secular trends, other failings, and ultimately away from God , it remains the Church instituted by Jesus Christ with His assurance that He will be with it to the end of time. It is the Church which leads man to the ultimate truth – God.

The Catholic Church, despite its human failings, is Jesus Christ’s bridge to union with God – true safety and security – and the fullness of happiness.