JESUS IS OUR TRUTH

 

“I am the way, and the truth, and the life, no one comes to the Father but through me.”                                                                               John 14:6

 

In seeking a relationship of love with God through wisdom and faith, we begin to look for the truth of what all this means to us now and for the future.  As we search, we are provided with numerous paths that take us in multiple directions; many away from God and His ways.  Often, this will confuse us because what we are learning is that there are many truths that can provide us with positive outcomes with or without God.  It is then that we need to focus on the path which directly connects us with God, avoiding any and all distractions which can lead us toward a life of purpose and meaning.   

FAITH TO BELIEVE

 

“Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”                                                                                                                                                       Hebrews 11:1

 

Of all the topics indexed in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, Faith has the most references to provide the clearest picture of all aspects of our theology.  For purposes of this blog, I will refer to Paragraphs 26 (Profession of Faith) and 150 (Belief in God).

WISDOM to UNDERSTAND

 

For those who want a relationship of love with God, it requires wisdom to understand what is required to follow His ways.  The Book of Proverbs, in its introduction tells us it is a book of an anthology of didactic poetry, and has as its primary purpose to teach wisdom.  The book covers a wide field of human and divine activity, ranging from matters purely secular to most lofty moral and religious truths beginning with “fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge.”                                                   Proverbs 1:7.

RELATIONSHIP OF LOVE

 

Belief in a Supreme Being such as God is based on one’s acceptance that such an entity has one’s best interest in mind. This God, therefore, would have the ability to provide one with a life of peace and joy on earth and eternal happiness after death if he or she follows His ways provided in a plan with parameters for that purpose.

Updates to the Blog for 2024

 

Dear Subscribers –

Beginning with the first Sunday of 2024, my blog, entitled “A Catholic Deacon’s Perspective,” will now look into the areas of Commentaries, Scripture and Theology.  Similar to the last three years in which Gospels and Readings from the New American Bible were used to offer a perspective on what their messages might mean to you personally, these blogs will offer an additional aspect in which you as the reader can comment on by offering your own take if you choose to do so.  In doing so, all of us will be able to see various insights based on where we are at in our life.

My theme is the same as in the past in that I am looking at God’s purpose for creating us.  We are tasked to discover what that reason is based on the gifts we are graced with by Him and then using that answer to serve all that God has created.  Though many responses will be similar, each and every one of us has a story to tell that is unique unto ourselves.  It is my hope that by sharing different perspectives, we will begin to understand our relationship with God and come to realize how oneness with our Lord is truly what makes life work no matter what the situation.

In these new blog presentations, there will be general and specific questions that pertain to the subject matter at hand.  Their purpose is to provide you with insights into yourself that may create additional ideas you would like to explore.  Based upon your need to receive a response from the blog or others is when you are asked to offer comments at the end of each blog.  You and responders can be completely anonymous with what you or they write.  My answers will include my name.  In all cases I ask that you remember this is a Christian blog and what you write needs to be approached in that manner as it regards verbiage used.

It is my hope that you will see this as something of value to help you grow closer to the Lord.  If not, I would appreciate your feedback to improve it or, if necessary, allow me to use a different format for furtherance of the relationship theme.

Thank you for you openness to this.  I look forward to your comments for all of us to grow into a deeper relationship with the Lord.

   

Deacon Jim Merle

Dear Subscribers

Please accept my apologies for not receiving the last two blogs of 2023 from “A Catholic Deacon’s Perspective” for the 33^rd Week in Ordinary Time and Jesus Christ, King of the Universe in a timely manner.  We have taken measures to rectify the system problems and hope future blogs will be uninterrupted and received on time.  Any prayer you want to insure that would be greatly appreciated.

Kingship or Kinship?

Father Greg Boyle, SJ, founder of Homeboy Industries, the largest gang intervention, rehab and re-entry program in the world, wrote a reflection in “Naked, and You Clothed Me: Homilies & Reflections for Cycle A” in which he refutes the title of Christ the King for a title he believes is more in keeping with what the feast day celebrates:

“What’s in Your Bag of Gifts”?

There was a time early in our marriage with four young children that I was out of work for nearly three years save a few odd jobs here and there, receiving unemployment income, welfare and miscellaneous gifts from friends to survive.  It was one of those gifts that changed my wife’s and my life due to the way in which it was given.

Procrastination! A Disastrous Decision!

Be honest!  We have at times in our life waited too long to take action on something that needed to be done and suffered a consequence for it.

For me it came early in my life.  I had decided to do something else with the thought I would still have enough time to get home to join other altar boys picked up by Father Michael Dempsey from my parish to see the Harlem Globetrotters play.  I missed them by just minutes and had to wait another 40 plus years before going to see the “show,” as it was called.

God Calls All He Created to Humbly Practice What They Preach About His Teachings!

Though the Gospel and first reading from the 31^st Sunday in Ordinary Time specifically address how badly the priesthood from the Old and New Testaments treated the chosen people of God, it also intentionally mentions how all of us are called to be models of the faith in which we believe.  This is especially true of us baptized into the Catholic faith as priest, prophet and king who promise to follow the ways of Christ.