Day 9: The Fullness of Revelation

Ok, so after an unexpected week off, I've resumed doing this program on the Catechism. I had fun on Independence Day and this is Summer Break for me, so... At any rate, back to it!

In giving us his Son, his only Word (for he possesses no other), he spoke everything to us at once in this sole Word - and he has no more to say. . . because what he spoke before to the prophets in parts, he has now spoken all at once by giving us the All Who is His Son. Any person questioning God or desiring some vision or revelation would be guilty not only of foolish behavior but also of offending him, by not fixing his eyes entirely upon Christ and by living with the desire for some other novelty. (St. John of the Cross quoted in CCC 65)

 

I'm reminded of Jesus' answer to Satan when tempted in the desert, "You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test" (Matthew 4:7). I've had those crises in life where I seriously questioned God's existence or his love, even desiring something more explicit to clear up all the misunderstandings and divisions that Christians have. In the end, though, he has revealed enough of himself that he does indeed love us (1 John 4:7-21) and through Nature itself to help us believe (Psalm 19:1-4; Rom 1:20). Being a mere mortal, this all can be extremely difficult to remember though at times. Something else St. John of the Cross' quote makes clear though, is that the "revelations" from later sects are clearly false. From Marcionism, Manicheanism, Islam, to Mormonism, and others, they all hold to peculiar "revelations" that attempt to falsify or even nullify the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Catechism makes clear that 

God has revealed himself fully by sending his own Son, in whom he has established his covenant forever. the Son is his Father's definitive Word; so there will be no further Revelation after him. CCC 73

The one item that has made me uncomfortable at times is some of the Marian revelations. I'm not talking about dogma. I firmly hold to Theotokos, Immaculate Conception, and the Assumption, all of which make good historical and theological sense to me. No, I'm talking about Lourdes, Fatima, Medjugorje, etc., and the devotion some Catholics express for these. No doubt my years of being in Protestantism still have some impact. Nevertheless, I'm comforted by this part in the Catechism, which eases my mind:

Throughout the ages, there have been so-called "private" revelations, some of which have been recognized by the authority of the Church. They do not belong, however, to the deposit of faith. It is not their role to improve or complete Christ's definitive Revelation, but to help live more fully by it in a certain period of history. Guided by the Magisterium of the Church, the sensus fidelium knows how to discern and welcome in these revelations whatever constitutes an authentic call of Christ or his saints to the Church. CCC 67

Fr. Mike has some good commentary in today's podcast, but this particular line really stuck out to me:

We are not really a religion of the book, we are a religion of the Word. 

In other words, the Logos, Jesus Christ. Amen.