Day 26: Communion of Believers

The first "profession of faith" is made during Baptism. the symbol of faith is first and foremost the baptismal creed. Since Baptism is given "in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit". The truths of faith professed during Baptism are articulated in terms of their reference to the three persons of the Holy Trinity. CCC 189

In today's reading, we are given the first part of an intro to the Creeds which bind us together in faith as believers. The Nicene Creed adopted by the First Ecumenical Council in 325 A.D. & amended at Constantinople in 381, is particularly important in how the Catechism is structured moving forward. I like how the Creeds are called "symbols of faith" and the Catechism goes on to relate:

The Greek word symbolon meant half of a broken object, for example, a seal presented as a token of recognition. the broken parts were placed together to verify the bearer's identity. the symbol of faith, then, is a sign of recognition and communion between believers. Symbolon also means a gathering, collection or summary. A symbol of faith is a summary of the principal truths of the faith and therefore serves as the first and fundamental point of reference for catechesis.

So the Creeds are the foundation of sorts that the catechumen rests their faith upon in entering the Church. They are also the glue one could say which bind us all together into a communion of believers.  

Day 25: Summary of Faith

Faith is necessary for salvation. the Lord himself affirms: "He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned" (Mk 16:16). "Faith is a foretaste of the knowledge that will make us blessed in the life to come" (St. Thomas Aquinas). CCC 183-184

Today's reading is another "In Brief" summarizing what I've gone through over the past few days. It's not a bad summation, covering such important topics as faith, trusting in & submitting our will to God, the role of the Church in this, etc. We are fallible, mortal creatures, incapable of fully comprehending the Divine and entirely reliant upon the graces He gives us, but not by ourselves. We have Christ's Church, that "pillar and foundation of truth" (1 Tim 3:15), a heavenly "cloud of witnesses" (Heb 12:1), and in this life our fellow believers to help us persevere in the faith. I've said it before, but it bears repeating: the "just me, Jesus, and the Bible" is ironically antithetical to Scripture and something I always found off-putting from some Protestants. It's not what I believe God wants or what Christ instituted. I like this from the Catechism Companion, Vol I (p. 54): 

Our response to God's Revelation is faith. Faith means we do not just say yes intellectually but we give our whole allegiance to God. This is a personal relationship, but at the same time it is communal; we do not come to the Lord in isolation.

Amen.

Day 24: Unity of Faith

Through the centuries, in so many languages, cultures, peoples and nations, the Church has constantly confessed this one faith, received from the one Lord, transmitted by one Baptism, and grounded in the conviction that all people have only one God and Father. CCC 172

In today's reading, we find the unity of our faith as seen in a diversity of languages, cultures, races, etc., all expressing that "the same way of salvation appears throughout the whole world," as St. Irenaeus of Lyons says. This is part of the beauty of Catholicism. It's not really the "bells and smells", but the unity across the world that Christ's Church brings. I can go to any Catholic Rite or Church, and find "the content of the Tradition is one and the same." The Mass is the same, whether in Latin, the vernacular, or any Divine Liturgy of the Eastern Catholic Churches. Our expressions of the faith differ, and even our language & customs, but the fullness of it still shines through. We see a fulfillment of Malachi 1:11:

Incense offerings are made to my name everywhere, and a pure offering; 

For my name is great among the nations, says the Lord of hosts.

We also see a brief intro into what St. John Henry Newman called the "development of doctrine". The Catechism Companion, Vol I (p. 53) puts it like this:

[T]he saving truth of the Faith does not change, but it must be understood and manifested in all ages and cultures. A development in understanding of a particular teaching does not involve an overturning or rejection of what went before. It involves making explicit something that is implicit, unpacking the gift we have been given.

Now that's a book I'll have to read again someday: An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine! 

Day 23: We Believe

Salvation comes from God alone; but because we receive the life of faith through the Church, she is our mother: "We believe the Church as the mother of our new birth, and not in the Church as if she were the author of our salvation." Because she is our mother, she is also our teacher in the faith. CCC 169

Today's reading was interesting in showing "I believe" and "We believe" together in faith. I like the quote from Heb 12:1-2 in CCC 165:

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us rid ourselves of every burden and sin that clings to us and persevere in running the race that lies before us while keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, the leader and perfecter of faith.

Christ didn't just leave us alone to walk with Him in faith and persevere till the end. No, he left us a "cloud of witnesses" that preceded us in the struggle, as well as our brothers and sisters in this life within Christ's Church. 

I also like how the Catechism Companion, Vol I (p. 50) states:

We have what we long for in faith. We possess our Lord, and he possesses us.

We are on this journey of life with faith, but we are not alone. Christ is with us. By His grace, so are our Christian brothers & sisters. 

Day 22: Wrestling with Faith

Faith is an entirely free gift that God makes to man. We can lose this priceless gift, as St. Paul indicated to St. Timothy: "Wage the good warfare, holding faith and a good conscience. By rejecting conscience, certain persons have made shipwreck of their faith." To live, grow and persevere in the faith until the end we must nourish it with the word of God; we must beg the Lord to increase our faith; it must be "working through charity," abounding in hope, and rooted in the faith of the Church. CCC 156

Perseverance. That is the main theme, along with faith, in today's reading. Scripture teaches us that "without faith it is impossible to please [God]" (Heb 11:6) and through His grace "the one who perseveres to the end will be saved" (Matt 24:13). Rather a daunting task, perseverance. We are such frail and fickle creatures sometimes, and that's why we need God's grace to "endure the unendurable and bear the unbearable", as Japanese Emperor Hirohito once told his people upon surrender. Faith is not easy at times and like that emperor's words at the end of probably the worst war in human history, we too must surrender not to a coalition of Allies, but to God. It is acceptance of His free gift of faith, trusting in Him, and perseverance till the end of our lives, despite the many trials we face, to which we are called. 

There was also a section that stated "there is no dichotomy between faith and science [because] truths do not contradict each other" (Catechism Companion, Vol 1, p. 48).

I really liked this image that is found in the Companion book (p. 49), with the caption:

In the person of Jacob, picture here wrestling with the angel of the Lord, we can see ourselves and our own honest struggles with the faith (see CCC 157). Despite his own "wrestling" Jacob never lost faith in God and his promises.

Painting by Alexandre-Louis Leloir, 1865

I think it's fair to say that there's a bit of Jacob in all of us in this regard.

Day 21: Believing God

In faith, the human intellect and will co-operate with divine grace: "Believing is an act of the intellect assenting to the divine truth by command of the will moved by God through grace." CCC 155

Today's reading was a bit short but meaty. It is about faith, believing in God, and giving our "free assent to the whole truth that God has revealed". Faith is a "gift from God" that is "possible only by grace and the interior helps of the Holy Spirit" who is God. Believing and trusting in God is also an "authentically human act". As someone who was born & raised an American citizen, the Catechism also reminds us that trusting in God is not contrary to freedom or our human reason. In this modern age, we tend to view "freedom" as the right to do as we please, as long as we don't harm or violate the rights of others and truth can only be found through "reason". I like how the Catechism Companion, Vol I puts it in response to this:

Obeying God does not strip us of freedom; rather it is an exercise of our freedom. Freedom is not the ability to do whatever we want. It is the power to do what we ought. If God exists and is good, then I ought to have faith in him and choose to follow him. 

Day 20: Stepping in Faith

By his Revelation, "the invisible God, from the fullness of his love, addresses men as his friends, and moves among them, in order to invite and receive them into his own company." The adequate response to this invitation is faith. By faith, man completely submits his intellect and his will to God. With his whole being man gives his assent to God the revealer. Sacred Scripture calls this human response to God, the author of revelation, "the obedience of faith". CCC 142-143

Today's reading is about our response to God in faith. In some ways, it can be easy to believe that God exists and has revealed Himself. The really difficult thing to do, and something I constantly struggle with, is believing God by submitting our will to Him. Nevertheless, we are called to do so, to "take up [our] cross and follow [Christ]." (Matt 16:24) Still, a constant struggle.

I like that the Catechism gives us two models of faith and obedience to God's will: Abraham & Mary. Abraham didn't have any Scripture, no cultural connection to the faith, yet listened to the voice of the Almighty, an unknown god to him. By leaving the only home he knew at such an advanced age to wander in strange lands because of the promises of an unknown god (that is, God), must have seemed like madness. Compound this with the near-sacrifice of his son Isaac and Abraham showed a strong faith and obedience to the will of God. By this faith, Abraham is "the father of all of us" (Rom 4:16) and is known to us today as a  "model of... obedience".

It is with the Virgin Mary, however, that we find a model that "most perfectly embodies the obedience of faith". I've always been struck by what she faced and did. An angel tells her that the Holy Spirit will impregnate her with the Son of God. She is young, betrothed, and has never had sex. This was uber-scandalous and could have placed her life in danger as an adulteress (Deut 22:21-23), as well as being thought mad for visions. Even though her husband Joseph came to accept this after a dream (Matt 1:18-24), the knowledge that this child was the Son of God must have been terrifying. It's bad enough when parents make mistakes with their own human child, but to do so with the Son of God?!? Yet "Mary's faith never wavered. She never ceased to believe in the fulfillment of God's word." It is little wonder that this shows Theotokos to be the "purest realization of faith" and why the Church venerates her as such.

Day 19: Summary of Sacred Scripture

"All Sacred Scripture is but one book, and that one book is Christ, because all divine Scripture speaks of Christ, and all divine Scripture is fulfilled in Christ" (Hugh of St. Victor...) CCC 134

Today's reading was short, another "In Brief" section summing up what I read over the last few days. Hugh of St. Victor's words, quoted in the Catechism and above, sums up our view of Scripture as Catholics. I also like this reminder in the Catechism Companion, Vol. I (p.42):

There are human authors, but there is also a divine author of Scripture. That is not a contradiction; it is a mystery.

Scripture for Christians is not like the Qur'an is for Muslims. The authors were divinely inspired in their writing, and the Scriptures are therefore inerrant, but they are not a word-for-word dictation from above. That to me is the chief difference between the two, the other of course being that Christ of the Qur'an completely contradicts Christ of the New Testament. Take an example from St. Paul's Epistle to the Galatians. In speaking about the Judaizers troubling the faithful, the Apostle says in verse 5:12:

Would that those who are upsetting you might also castrate themselves!

Was this snark? Anger? Meant as a joke? I don't know, but it does show the humanity of the author in writing what would become divinely inspired Scripture.

That's Day 19 done!

Day 18: The Unity of the Testaments

The Church, as early as apostolic times, and then constantly in her Tradition, has illuminated the unity of the divine plan in the two Testaments through typology, which discerns in God's works of the Old Covenant prefigurations of what he accomplished in the fullness of time in the person of his incarnate Son. Christians therefore read the Old Testament in the light of Christ crucified and risen. CCC 128-129

Interesting reading today about the unity of the Old & New Testaments, typology, and the exhortation for the clerics & all the faithful to read Scripture frequently. On the first, this makes perfect sense from a Christian perspective. Of course Christ is found in the Old Testament otherwise, this would neuter much of the New. By reading the Old "in the light of the Christ crucified and risen" typologically in this manner "discloses the inexhaustible content of the Old Testament". The Catechism Companion, Volume I elaborates on this:

An example of typology is the Ark of the Covenant. Inside the Ark was the manna from the desert, the Ten Commandments, and Aaron's staff. Those three things symbolize the bread come down from heaven, the Word of God, and the priesthood. (p. 40)

A related example would be the Blessed Virgin Mary being named the "Ark of the New Covenant" or "Ark of the Bread of Life" as the Theotokos or Mater Dei.

As the Catechism tells us, the Old Testament retains its importance as divine revelation. The early Church valued this earlier Revelation and "made constant use of the Old Testament" in catechesis. I've heard this before and rather like the old saying quoted that "the New Testament lies hidden in the Old and Old Testament is unveiled in the New".

Finally, today's reading highlights the Church's call to the faithful "to learn the surpassing knowledge of Jesus Christ, by frequent reading of the divine Scriptures. Closing with this quote from St. Jerome was apropos: "Ignorance of the Scriptures is ignorance of Christ."

Amen.

Day 17: The Canon of Scripture

It was by the apostolic Tradition that the Church discerned which writings are to be included in the list of the sacred books. This complete list is called the canon of Scripture. It includes 46 books for the Old Testament (45 if we count Jeremiah and Lamentations as one) and 27 for the New... The fourfold Gospel holds a unique place in the Church, as is evident both in the veneration which the liturgy accords it and in the surpassing attraction it has exercised on the saints at all times. CCC 120 & 127

Today's reading is about the recognized, divinely inspired books comprising the Canon of Scripture. The Church proclaims that the books of the Old Testament are an "indispensable part of Sacred Scripture" contra Marcion, who wrongly sought "under the pretext that the New has rendered it void" to cast them out of the Canon. We see the New in the Old Testament, which "prepare[d] for and declare[d] in prophecy the coming of Christ, redeemer of all men". Chief of all these books are the Gospels, which "are the heart of all the Scriptures 'because they are our principal source for the life and teaching of the Incarnate Word, our Saviour'". The Catechism in CCC 120 also gives us a list of all the books of the Canon.

I could spend hours talking about the Canon of Scripture, especially its complex formation history. For whatever reason, this has fascinated me for years. I would totally geek out discussing this ad nauseum with modern folks like Gary Michuta, William Albrecht, Fr. Kappes, Lee Martin McDonald, David A. DeSilva, John Bergsma, Brant Pitre, and many, many others whose works I've enjoyed over the years. Alas, such is not really possible. So instead, I'll point interested readers to some of the sources I've found most helpful in exploring this complex but fascinating topic: Holy Scripture & Sacred Tradition.

It would have been nice to have more in today's reading, but of course, I'd say that given my odd obsession with the Canon. Besides, there is only so much one could put in the Catechism on all the topics so it would fit into one book. That's what additional books are for! That's Day 17.

Day 16: Senses of Scripture

According to an ancient tradition, one can distinguish between two senses of Scripture: the literal and the spiritual, the latter being subdivided into the allegorical, moral and anagogical senses. the profound concordance of the four senses guarantees all its richness to the living reading of Scripture in the Church. CCC 115-119

Today's reading is about the senses of Scripture exegetes use in helping give the Church "a better understanding and explanation of the meaning" (CCC 119) of the written Word. It also provides an explanation of these senses. Pretty cursory, but I do remember a helpful book I read years ago by Mark Shea on this topic, Making Senses Out of Scripture. From what I recall, Shea does a good job in explaining all about these senses in terms your average layperson can follow. It's been a while since I've read this though, so perhaps I should add it to the list to read once more.

So the basics on interpreting Scripture have been laid out, next up is, for whatever odd reason, perhaps one of my favorites: the Canon of Scripture!

Day 15: Interpreting Scripture

In Sacred Scripture, God speaks to man in a human way. To interpret Scripture correctly, the reader must be attentive to what the human authors truly wanted to affirm, and to what God wanted to reveal to us by their words. In order to discover the sacred authors' intention, the reader must take into account the conditions of their time and culture, the literary genres in use at that time, and the modes of feeling, speaking and narrating then current. "For the fact is that truth is differently presented and expressed in the various types of historical writing, in prophetical and poetical texts, and in other forms of literary expression." CCC 109-110

Today's reading is on the interpretation of Scripture within the Church. We find the basic principles by which this is done: 

• Interpret with "the content and unity of the whole Scripture" (Christ being the "center and heart") in mind; 
• do so with "the living Tradition of the whole Church"; 
• and "be attentive to the analogy of faith." 

These are all good principles to keep in mind. We know from Scripture in places like Matthew 4:1-11 & James 2:19 that even the fallen angels know and quote the Bible, perverted to their own selfish needs of course. I like how the Catechism lays out these principles as guideposts for approaching the written Word of God in our walk with His Logos. I know from my study of history and learning Spanish, for example, that caution is always warranted. For the former, history can be an alien world to us at times. There are customs, behaviors, manners of speech, etc. that are not as familiar today. The Scriptures, Old & New Testaments, were written over a 1,200 year period incorporating all the changes within that time, which in itself was nearly 2,000 years ago for us. When you consider language differences too (Hebrew, Greek, Aramaic), there is much to give us caution in interpreting them correctly, always keeping the Logos in mind.  I know that Spanish idioms differ from English for instance. How much greater do they differ in the case of Scripture, especially as interpreted into English? It's a challenge I'm sure for those gifted to do so.

All in all an interesting reading to ponder today. Tomorrow this will be expanded with the senses of Scripture!

Day 14: The Eternal Word of God

Through all the words of Sacred Scripture, God speaks only one single Word, his one Utterance in whom he expresses himself completely... For this reason, the Church has always venerated the Scriptures as she venerates the Lord's Body. She never ceases to present to the faithful the bread of life, taken from the one table of God's Word and Christ's Body. In Sacred Scripture, the Church constantly finds her nourishment and her strength, for she welcomes it not as a human word, "but as what it really is, the word of God". "In the sacred books, the Father who is in heaven comes lovingly to meet his children, and talks with them." CCC 102-104

Today's reading is about the divine inspiration and sanctity of Sacred Scripture. Catholics and other Christians would affirm how much we receive in the Faith from the Scriptures given to us by God. We don't necessarily agree on what texts belong in Scripture, but do cherish what we've been given. It does reflect a humanness of sorts in the mix of types in Scripture: poetry, narratives, letters, etc. but the overall truth these texts contain nourishes us in our walk with Christ. Yet, not a nourishment in isolation from our brothers and sisters in Christ within the Church. Not a "just me, Jesus, and the Bible" approach, for this almost makes an idol of the Scriptures. We need the Church to help us with Scripture and to know that these texts alone are insufficient without Christ. I rather like how the Catechism puts it:

[T]he Christian faith is not a "religion of the book". Christianity is the religion of the "Word" of God, "not a written and mute word, but incarnate and living". If the Scriptures are not to remain a dead letter, Christ, the eternal Word of the living God, must, through the Holy Spirit, "open (our) minds to understand the Scriptures." CCC 108

A nice summation of what Christianity has taught about the Scriptures in today's reading. Everyone has their favorite parts of Scripture and one of mine is an amazing prophecy of Christ's Passion found in Wisdom 2:12-20:

“Let us lie in wait for the righteous man,

because he is inconvenient to us and opposes our actions;

he reproaches us for sins against the law,

and accuses us of sins against our training. 

He professes to have knowledge of God,

and calls himself a child of the Lord.

He became to us a reproof of our thoughts;

the very sight of him is a burden to us,

because his manner of life is unlike that of others,

and his ways are strange.

We are considered by him as something base,

and he avoids our ways as unclean;

he calls the last end of the righteous happy,

and boasts that God is his father.

Let us see if his words are true,

and let us test what will happen at the end of his life;

for if the righteous man is God’s child, he will help him,

and will deliver him from the hand of his adversaries.

Let us test him with insult and torture,

so that we may find out how gentle he is,

and make trial of his forbearance.

Let us condemn him to a shameful death,

for, according to what he says, he will be protected.”

Day 13: The Single Deposit of Faith

The Catholic Church was founded by Christ, who endowed his apostles with authority to teach in his name. The Church, then, is the defender of the Gospel of Christ, and his infallible witness to the world. That said, the Church is made up of sinful human beings, with popes and bishops in its history who lived sinful lives. Even today, the Church's leaders are not perfect, so how can we trust what they say? Quite simply, we can trust the Magisterium because Jesus assures us that we can. (Catechism in a Year Companion I, p. 31)

Today's reading in CCC 96-100 was an "In Brief" one, which is something that summed up the section in about 5 sentences. Not a bad summary. I liked how the Companion book puts it above, especially when considering the Church's history. Yes, we've had saints and men of mostly goodwill, but we've also had some real stinkers too. Non-Catholics usually like to focus on Medieval bad boy popes, which I'm very familiar with. I'll give perhaps one of the most despicable, dishonorable, and scandalous episodes in Church history: the Cadaver Synod. I believe I can safely surmise that God was not pleased with that one. So given the sin of popes, bishops, priests, nuns & monks, as well as the laity down through the centuries, how can I still believe in the Church? Simple. I see the story of humanity in all it's glory, wickedness, and mediocrity. You name it, humans have done it and will do it again if given the chance. I see it in the Apostles, all of whom the Gospels record as abandoning Him in his hour of need, with scandalous episodes in their own lives. From Matthew being a tax collector (uber-scandalous back then) to Peter being called a devil by Christ and denying him three times. All of them He still loved and helped raise up to do great things in his name, which began the early Church. I'm not trying to preach or engage in apologetics here, this is just how I see it.

All in all, a good summation provided in the Catechism for this section. Tomorrow: Day 14!

Day 12: Receiving Dogmas

 

There is an organic connection between our spiritual life and the dogmas. Dogmas are lights along the path of faith; they illuminate it and make it secure. Conversely, if our life is upright, our intellect and heart will be open to welcome the light shed by the dogmas of faith... "It is clear therefore that, in the supremely wise arrangement of God, sacred Tradition, Sacred Scripture and the Magisterium of the Church are so connected and associated that one of them cannot stand without the others. Working together, each in its own way, under the action of the one Holy Spirit, they all contribute effectively to the salvation of souls." CCC 89 & 95

Today's section briefly covers dogmas and their relation to Scripture, Tradition, & the Magisterium. I like how the Catechism refers to them as "lights along the path" or as the Catechism in a Year Vol I companion book puts it, "dogmas are especially bright lights that keep us from stumbling along the journey of faith" (p. 29). For me, I'm thinking of the Christological dogmas that tore the early Church apart in several heresies, along with justification that made the Protestants bolt. With the former, we see a brilliant man like William Lane Craig fall into the ancient heresy of Monothelitism through his reading of Scripture and his own reasoning. I freely admit that my own far less brilliant thinking in this area isn't very deep and I accept much on faith where my reasoning fails to fully understand. I'm reminded of the story of St. Augustine and the boy (angel) on the beach. The boy when asked what he was doing, said that he was trying to fit the ocean into a tiny hole on the beach. An absurdity of course, which the good saint essentially told the boy. His reply is pretty much how I view many of the Christological & Trinitarian dogmas: “And you could never possibly understand the Holy Trinity.” These are things I should look into more to develop a deeper understanding, but their mystery isn't a barrier to my faith. Indeed, they help me appreciate the truth found in the Church.

Day 11: Sources of Divine Revelation

 "Sacred Tradition and Sacred Scripture, then, are bound closely together, and communicate one with the other. For both of them, flowing out from the same divine well-spring, come together in some fashion to form one thing, and move towards the same goal." Each of them makes present and fruitful in the Church the mystery of Christ, who promised to remain with his own "always, to the close of the age". CCC 80

Both Scripture & Tradition come from the same One Source. For me, this makes perfect sense, especially when you look at the history of the early Church and the Canon of Scripture. I've enjoyed studying about both of these over the years. As I have had sola Scriptura explained to me in various ways, even when I was a Lutheran, it makes no sense that Jesus intended to leave us a manual of sorts and that's it. It took centuries to work out the Canon, especially the Old Testament given the Septuagint and what came to be known as the Hebrew Canon. All that aside, it's clear that from the earliest days, there was a Magisterium in the Church, with bishops given authority by Christ to safeguard and pass on the Deposit of Faith. I like how the Catechism puts it, that the Magisterium is "not superior to the Word of God, but is its servant" (CCC 86). It reminds me of how Pope St. John Paul II, I believe, revived the use of "Servant of the Servants of God" as a papal title. Both were unfortunately forgotten at times, much to the detriment of the faithful, but it's good to see them back. 

I've been away for a while due to health reasons and the end of Summer vacation, but it's nice to get back with this. That is Day 11 in a nutshell you could say.