We
have been hearing readings from the 1st and 2nd book of
Kings these past couple of weeks of ordinary time. Today, we hear of how God’s people had strayed from him; as a result, they
were invaded by Assyria, with many of them sent into exile. The
Lord says in this reading that again and again, he sent prophets to bring his
message to the people, but they ignored it, following their own ways
instead. Our
US Catholic Bishops have declared a Fortnight for Freedom this summer – this is the third
year that they have declared this a time where we look at the importance of
religious liberty in our society. The
theme of this year's Fortnight for Freedom focuses on the freedom to serve the
poor and vulnerable in accord with human dignity and the Church's teaching. The
Fortnight for Freedom always begins on June 21, with the Vigil mass of St
Thomas More and St John Fisher, two men who lost their lives for defending
their Catholic Faith during the reign of Henry VIII in England in the 16th century. The
Fortnight for Freedom ends on July 4, our country’s Independence Day. The
feast days of other great martyrs in the Church also fall under this time
frame: the Nativity of John the Baptist and Saints Peter and Paul. I
think that it is easy for us to be indifferent or complacent in the ways we look at our faith in the context of our society, to think that our
religious freedom is not really under attack. However, if we look at our values of faith, there are many conflicts between the values of our faith compared with the values of our modern world, in how many in our world today see the values of
our faith as irrelevant. For example, in
recent years, we have heard a lot about how recreational drug use is now seen as
acceptable by many in our society and in our countries throughout the world. However, just last week, Pope Francis declared that even limited attempts to
legalize recreational drugs “are not only highly questionable from a
legislative standpoint, but they fail to produce the desired effects.” He noted that he has often met with addicts
as a Bishop and as Pope, and has seen the devastating affects that can
occur from recreational drug us. It
is important for us to speak out for the values of our faith, to try to live
those values in our lives. That is why we need to always be learning and growing in our faith – there are so many
other messages we are being bombarded with in our world today. Let
us not be like the people of Samaria who embraced the ways of the world and
left behind the values of their faith.
No comments:
Post a Comment