"And now, O Israel, hear the commandments and judgments which I teach thee: that doing them, thou mayst live, and entering in mayst possess the land which the Lord the God of your fathers will give you." --Book of Deuteronomy IV, 1
The Lord has given us His Law so that we may live, and to live with God means to be filled with Sanctifying Grace and do things that are pleasing to Him. If we keep His Commandments, we will live (as opposed to being dead in sin) and eventually go to Heaven, the land which the Lord the God of our fathers will give us.
Jesus Christ teaches us in the Holy Gospel of today that He came to fulfill the Law and not to abolish it as our Protestant brethren claim. But it gets tricky talking about the Law because it has multiple meanings, but we can be assured that the Law being referred to here is concerning that of Faith and Christian conduct. The admonition to observe the whole Law (as best as we can) and avoiding causing scandal is something we should think about today. It seems like people are full of excuses and reasons why we're either exceptions to the rule or why things are more or less important. I know I struggle with that...
Hopefully our Quadragesimal fasts will help us to joyfully submit to the Law of God so that we may have life and possess the Kingdom of God. This is His promise after all, but all relationships are multiple-sided and we need to do our parts as well.
Another thing I did today was read the biography of St. Thomas More, the patron of my parish here in college. He is an example of upholding God's Law even in the face of adversity and being in the minority. King Henri VIII wanted to claim himself head of the Church in England and St. Thomas More knew that this was a direct assault on the First Commandment and to the authority of St. Peter: There is no other head of the Christ's Church on Earth besides the Holy Father. Also, St. Thomas More rightfully would not acknowledge the adulterous remarriage of the king and these things ultimately led to his martyrdom.
I want to look to him as an example of believing the unpopular Laws of God that are rejected by the masses, and that life in the spiritual and true sense is much more important. I'm not in any way a perfect follower of God's Law, but I hope to be and I ask for your prayers that I stand firm in my convictions so that I as well may possess the Land.
It's good that I read about St. Thomas More today because last night I read about Republican candidate and former PA governor (woot woot!!!) Rick Santorum's position on gay rights and "marriage" and initially was offended until I stopped and thought a moment to myself, "Why should I be offended when he is stating clearly what any Catholic should believe in terms of homosexual activity?" Technically, he was not bashing homosexuals (although that is not to say that perhaps he does not like us in fact, but he is entitled to that), and nothing he said was attacking anyone's dignity. Yes, his words could be perceived as harsh, and I do not agree with his plans to reinstate DADT (and of course I do not agree with prejudice towards people for their choices or things about them).
I admit that I struggle with whether anti-sodomy laws should be in place. I guess, it depends on what is defined as legal sodomy, and also, would fornication be considered criminal? What about infidelity and adultery? I wouldn't be against anti-sodomy laws if sins against chastity were generally considered temporally criminal across the board as well.
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