Council 112 This is the Faith September 2006

Tony Marino is an Air Force veteran who later received a degree in English Literature at Long Island University. For more than 30 years, he was an insurance agent for Aetna before eventually becoming a private insurance consultant. Since his retirement in 2003, he has devoted himself to the service of St. Peter's Parish in Concord and the Right to Life movement in New Hampshire. Tony has been married to his wife, Annette for more than 40 years. They have ten children and 22 grandchildren.

I. “YOU SHALL WORSHIP THE LORD YOUR GOD AND HIM ONLY SHALL YOU SERVE.”

The Lenten booklet, Lenten Light, asks the question, “Is Your God an Idol?” Our answer should be the same as that summed up by Jesus, when he said, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.” We should not, and must not pay lip service to this divine command. God makes himself known to us, through this First Commandment, and as the Catechism states, “When we say God, we confess a constant, unchangeable being, always the same, faithful and just, without any evil.” This Commandment embraces the concept of Faith: we have complete faith in God, and we acknowledge His authority; it also embraces the concept of Hope: God is almighty, merciful and infinitely beneficent; and the concept of Charity: we cannot deny His love, when we think about the love and goodness He has poured out upon us. Whether our God is an idol depends upon how we approach the things of this world, in relationship to God. It is axiomatic, that if we treat the things of this world with greater importance than our devotion to God, than we have placed those things above God, and our God becomes an idol.

The catechism tells us that, “The first commandment requires us to nourish and protect our faith”, have a “confident expectation of divine blessing and the beatific vision of God”, and finally, “to love God above everything”. We must pray that we avoid the sins that separate us from the concepts contained within God’s First Commandment: Voluntary Doubt – disregard or refuse to hold true what God has revealed, and what the Church proposes for belief. Involuntary Doubt – hesitation in believing, or difficulty in overcoming objections connected with faith. Incredulity – neglect revealed truth or willfully refuse to assent to it. Despair – cease to hope for personal salvation or the forgiveness of sins. Presumption – presume to be able to save yourself, without God, or presume upon God’s power or mercy without trying to obtain His forgiveness. Indifference – neglects or refuses to reflect on divine charity. Ingratitude – fails or refuses to acknowledge divine charity and return love for love. Lukewarmness – hesitation or negligence in responding to divine love. Acedia – spiritual sloth which goes so far as to refuse the joy that comes from God, and to be repelled by divine goodness. Hatred of God – pride which is contrary to the love of God, whose goodness it denies, and from whom it presumes to curse as the one who forbids sins and inflicts punishment.

May God preserve us from these sins, and all sins, through Jesus Christ our Lord, now and forever.

Please see the Catechism of the Catholic Church, Second Edition, pages 505 through 508, paragraphs 2083 through 2094.

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