Layers - in the knowledge of God and the path to holiness
Learning about God is like unwrapping a head of lettuce, pealing back one leaf at a time. Always there is another leaf below. We will eventually reach the center of the head of lettuce; but we will never unwrap everthing there is to know about God.
The path to holiness is like pealing an onion. God shows us what is sinful and convicts us that we have sinned. No matter how sweet the onion, there are always tears in the peeling. No matter how sweet the grace of repentence, there are always the pain of letting go of the sin. As the peeling of the onion reveals another layer, so God shows us what we lack in holiness, drawing us ever closer to "be(ing) perfect even just as your heavenly Father is perfect." Matthew 5:48
What I Believe
Why I am and always will be a Catholic. "So Jesus said to them, 'Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you; he who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is real food, and my blood is drink indeed. He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him. Tthe living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so he who eats me will live because of me. This is the bread which came down from heaven, not such as the fathers ate and died; he who eats this bread will live forever." John 6:53-58 The words and actions of man cannot sanctify. Only the priest, empowered by his ordination, can invoke the Holy Spirit to transform the bread and wine into Jesus so we can receive Him - Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity into our bodies and souls. This is the core of the Catholic Church; without this there is no purpose or meaning to the Catholic Church. There are other ways to holiness, to grow in grace; there is no better way than union with Jesus Christ in the Holy Eucharist.
Relationship with God
If you knew someone, a friend you thought, who avoided
talking to you, calling you, not even waving at you on the street, then one day showed up at your place with a
friendly ‘hi, I’m here, entertain me and make me dinner.’; what would you think
of that person? If you busted your butt
and did what that person wanted, would it make any difference in you
relationship? Just what am I getting
at? How about God, Church, confession,
Mass, Jesus in Holy Communion. Just
think about it, ok? That ‘friend’ wouldn’t
enjoy your meal as much as if you were really friends. Yes, God is merciful, and He will forgive us
for neglecting our relationship with Him.
However, on our part, it is harder for us to feel close to someone who
we don’t spend time with in some way.
So, when we really need to feel closer to God, it may seem as if He isn’t
there for us, because we, on our part, are just acquaintances.
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