As A Catholic, Am I Fully Catholic?

Am I fully alive in the Catholic faith?

Not too long ago, I was on vacation in the beautiful country of Canada and where I was in Brampton, there were a number of religions that have settled in that area. Most appear to be Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs, with large temples and businesses. It is amazing to see them congregate in the parks and on the street corners. I was also pleasantly  surprised that among all the houses that I have passed in that area, there is one that stood out because there is at the front door a crucifix large enough to be seen from across the street.

I would like to share with you another image that I saw while in Canada. We were at Canada Wonderland, a large amusement park and there were lots of people there. There were also a lot of Muslims there. But one of them stood out. It was a Muslim girl who set herself apart from the rest of her group and went to an open area of the park, knelt down with her forehead to the ground, was doing her prayers.

In the instances described above, the Muslim girl was not afraid or ashamed to demonstrate her faith, neither was the household that had the large crucifix on their front door – I assume to be Catholic. Neither were afraid to make bold statements of their faith. The question is what about you as a Catholic. Are you afraid of demonstrating your faith in public? Are you ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ? Are you ashamed of being known as a Catholic? Are you ashamed of being readily identified as a Catholic by the things you do? If the opportunity presented itself to pray with someone at work or in a public place, would you cower away from it?  If the answer to these questions is ‘yes’ or even ‘maybe’, then you have work to do. The good news though, is that the work is no where as difficult as the ‘world’ would have you believe it is.

One of the things that I have grown very much accustomed to doing is thanking God for my meals. So I would always pray ‘Grace before meals’, starting and ending by making the sign of the cross. I do it all the time at work. I remember as well a few years ago, the group that I am a member of in Trinidad – Grace Music Ministry – went out to have pizza. We out-numbered the other people who were at that pizza shop. When the pizza was served, we all stood up, formed a large Circle, and prayed the Grace Before Meals. I remember the stillness that filled the air as the others looked on at us.

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You may be wondering why is this important, right. ‘I go to Mass on weekends. Isn’t that enough?’  Jesus’s command to go make disciples of all nations is not meant for Pope Francis, the Bishops, and priest only. It is the responsibility of every baptized Catholic to live out the teachings of the Catholic faith without fear or favor and to be the Light of Christ in a world that has become so filled with darkness. At the end of every celebration of Holy Mass, the priest gives the command to “go glorifying the Lord by your lives!” To which we reply, “Thanks be to God!” So we should, and must, through the rest of the week, be glorifying God by the way we live. By the Christian love we have for all, it should be abundantly clear that we are soooo much more than ‘Sunday Catholics’.   However, for some reason many of us are fearful of this. Most of you who reading this post live in countries where religious freedom is still very much enjoyed. Yet we are afraid to let the world know who we are, whose we are and what our faith teaches us. Being Disciples of Jesus Christ is not a choice, neither is it optional. It is the responsibility of every baptized Catholic. When out time on this earth is over, we will have to account for how our time was spent. The Word of God tells us, and this is Jesus speaking, if you are ashamed of me then I will disown you (Matthew 10:33).

So we cannot live this life being ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, being ashamed to bear witness to the truth and yet look forward to eternal life with Christ. It does not work that way. We all must be like St. Paul who proclaimed, “I am not ashamed of the Gospel.  It is the Power of God leading everyone who believes in it to salvation” (Romans 1:16).  The Catholic Church has the peace that our world desperately needs. The Catholic Church has the love that so many long for. The Catholic Church has the hope that our world is in dire need of. Amidst all the half truths and outright lies and fake news, the Catholic Church has the Truth that the world needs to hear – and that Truth is so much more than the written Word; it is JESUS CHRIST.  HE is the Word that existed  in the beginning!  HE is the Word that was with GOD!  HE is the Word that IS GOD!! (John 1:1).  That being said, the truth, the hope, the love, the peace, the faith of the Catholic Church should be trumpeted from mountain tops by the way we live our lives completely unashamed and devoted to our Lord JESUS CHRIST, for all to see and hear.

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So how can I as a Catholic live the faith and share what the Church teaches? Well for starters, make regular use of the sacraments. Go to mass regularly. Go to the sacrament of reconciliation regularly. Read your Bible regularly. Avoid sin at all cost!  Sin is your number one enemy! It comes disguised as the pleasures of this world! Sin is what displeases God! It is what separates us from God and therefore from Eternal Life! Sin is deceptive!  It is the reason that Jesus Christ came and lay down His life! Run far away from it!! I say again – run far away from sin!! Run into the arm of Jesus Christ and stay there!  We have all the time in the world to do so many things of the world. We have time to go to the movies. We have time to hang out with her friends. We have time to watch television. We have time for everything but that which is life-giving. Make time for Jesus. Get a Catholic Bible and read it every day.  Make Jesus Christ your number one priority!  What I am sharing with you here is summed up beautifully in a country and western classic entitled “Take time out for Jesus”. This is an old classic by Charlie Pride, and in it he says,

He took the time to die on the cross
So that our souls wouldn’t be lost
So when you find yourself slipping the thing to do
Take time out for Jesus
He took time for you.