Ruth: Chapter 4 Searching for Identity
Wow…..What a vision and challenge this chapter offers. Am I different because I AM CATHOLIC?…..I do think that since Vatican 2 we have been looking in all the wrong places for our Catholic identity. In the process of looking we have lost the basis of our faith through lack of catechesis. I see a church stripped of its’ devotionals and sacramentals. I see Catholic people that look more protestant than Catholic almost ashamed to be “Catholic”…apologetic or somewhat embarassed at times for being committed Catholics. The mainstream seems to be cafeteria Catholics picking and choosing what WE want to believe. In some ways I think the liberal “sterile” church has been unable or unwilling to pass on a live, vibrant Catholic faith. ……………..The beginning of the chapter talks about the mission of the church and states that “Christ did not entrust the Church with a political, social, or economic mission, but with a mission that is primarily spiritual”….. I want to jump up and down and say yes…….our social works should be the result of our faith….not replacing it. Our good works have to come from our relationship with our Lord or they are just good works not Christ’s works. This chapter hit a nerve with me……. As chair of our Spiritual Growth Committee I saw on the top of page 38 what our mission as a committee could be: “Christ has commissioned the Church to guide and direct each of us individually along this path.” This refers back to page 37 that states, “It is the task of the Church to introduce us to our destiny by opening to us the mystery of God, who is our ultimate end and our destiny…..becoming the person we were created to be.” …………. Later on it states on p. 39 that for the early Christians, Christianity was a lifestyle and the pinnacle of their common life was the celebrated Eucharist. The closest I have been to this experience is with our TEAMS group which is a small faith sharing group of married couples with our spiritual director (Fr.Dan). We meet monthly to share our joys and sorrows and to challenge each other in our commitment to our vocations and faith journey. When we see each other at Mass on Sunday, worshiping our Lord together, we are truly blessed. We comfort each other in sorrow and help each other when needed. We are blessed to be part of this group but this is what the church is and should be….shared lives and shared Eucharist faith …. I should be so proud of my “Catholic” identity and I am…. But there is always more to it. How do I intergrate my faith into my life decisions and choices? ......I have so much room to grow. .....I look forward to seeing if this chapter was as exciting to others as it was to me. Don't we wish that the last paragraph of this chapter was true. Together we pray that God will transform us all into Catholics of great virtue.
- posted by Ruth @ 11:01 PM