Got Faith?

"I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there', and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." [Matthew 17:20.]

In the year from October 2012, to November 2013 the Catholic Church celebrates the "Year of Faith."

God has in His generosity given us three spiritual virtues: the gift of Hope; the gift of Love; and the gift of Faith.

I find more and more, as I come to understand my Faith in a deeper way, that it is part of the whole of me.

Some may be able to separate out their faith and compartmentalize it into what one does on Sunday morning, IF one happens to attend Mass. Then, as the church door slams shut, one's faith closes down for the coming week.

My Faith is part of my emotional response to the world, as well as my rational analysis of events around me. I cannot separate my Faith from myself. It is not merely a part of me; it IS me.

But there are many myths regarding the Christian Faith. Here are my Top Ten Faith Myths:

1) "Christians are so hopeless, that all they have is God."
   
The Truth:  We pray to God first, foremost and often. God is not our last resort, He is our               first resort. "Be always joyful, pray continuously." [1 Thessalonians 5: 8-18].

2) "Christians believe that God is here to fulfill all of our prayers."

The Truth: We know that God does not always give us what we want; but He is always there to be our strength, even when we face hardships. "The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in Him and I am helped." [Psalm 28: 7].

3) "Christians believe that we need to martyr ourselves, to become a self-sacrifice for others."

The Truth: We are called to give freely of ourselves and our gifts. But, we also need to keep ourselves balanced and whole, in order to be able to give continually. In his book, "The Jesuit Guide To (Almost) Everything", Fr. James Martin speaks of St. Ignatius realizing, in his faith life, that his extreme ascetism was actually preventing him from carrying out his sacred work.

4) "Christians blindly follow the rules and cannot think for themselves."

The Truth:  Jesus said, "I am the Way, the Truth and the Life", [John 14:6]. That is, being a Christian is not a just set of Commandments, it is a Way of life. Of course, we will stumble and fall. We struggle deeply with how to be Christians. We are human.

5) "Christians judge others who are not like them."

The Truth: We are to "judge not." [ Matthew 7:1]. Besides, we are also called to "love our neighbors as ourselves." [Matthew 19:19].

6) "Christians believe that as long as they pray for forgiveness, it does not matter what they do; the prayer will 'cover' the sin." 

The Truth:  What we do, DOES count. "What good does it do if a man claims to have faith,but has no works? Faith by itself, if not accompanied by action, is dead." [James 2: 14-18].

7) "The Eucharist is an empty ritual".

Actually, Catholics believe that in receiving the Eucharist, we are receiving Jesus Himself, and all of His peace, love, mercy, justice etc.

8) "Christians believe that having any money is a sin."

The Truth:  Christians are not to worship money and wealth above all else, or hoard extreme stores of material things.  But God DOES want his children to be provided for. " Look at the birds of the air; they do not store away in barns, and yet our heavenly Father feeds them." [ Matthew 6: 26].

9) " Christians believe that all sex is sinful."

The Truth: God gave us our human sexuality as a gift, to be used responsibly. We dishonor our sexuality, and God's gift, if we regard it as mere recreation.

10) "The majority of Catholic priests are child abusers."

The Truth: Per Sam Miller, prominent Cleveland Jewish businessman, ". . . . 1.7% of Catholic clergy has been found guilty of pedophilia, [but] 10% of Protestant ministers have been found guilty of pedophilia. This is not [only] a Catholic problem."

Faith. . . Got it?

(c) Spiritual Devotional 2012. All Rights Reserved.



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