Christians

The Convenant with Noah Today

As we focus on baptism, we remember the covenant God made with Noah – a covenant that God continues in the voice of conscience.

Today we celebrate the First Sunday of Lent. It is significant that in the opening reading we hear about the covenant that God made with Noah. Our Jewish brothers and sisters refer to this as the Noahide Covenant. This covenant does not just apply to Jews, but to the whole human race. You will remember that in the Bible Noah and his family were the sole survivors of the great flood.

According to Jewish scholars, the Noahide Covenant has seven pillars. They include the prohibition of idolatry, murder, theft, sexual immorality and blasphemy. This applies to us today. Sometimes people ask if there are moral rules that all humans must follow. We have an answer in the Noahide Covenant: It is wrong to kill, to take innocent human life. It is wrong to steal – to do violence to another human being by robbing his possessions. It is wrong to engage in sexual immorality. Do I need to go into details? These teachings are not… Continue reading »

The Rapture

When the trumpet sounds, those “left behind,” that is, those still alive will have no advantage over those who have died. We will be raptured: taken up and transformed. At that moment, what matters is that the Lord’s fire burns within us. By prayer and Holy Communion we have our lamps filled and burning when the Lord returns.
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“Just follow your conscience.”

Misleading Slogan #3 “Just follow your conscience.” The Catholic Church has always recognized the supremacy of the conscience (even if like many others we have not consistently respected that principle). Jesus says: “Render to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.” Of course, our conscience, that intimate center of our … Continue reading »

“Dogma divides.”

Misleading Slogan #5 “Dogma divides.” Recently I picked up a liberal Catholic magazine which featured an interview with Bishop Gaillot of France. As you might remember he was the French bishop who was asked to step down from his diocese because of certain doctrinal deviations. In the interview the bishop spoke about his hopes for … Continue reading »