When Godly People Do Ungodly Things

2/27/2013

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if the time is right?

It's not that we mustn't do anything at all; we have a duty to work for justice. But in working for justice, we must be very careful that we follow the structure and method God has laid out.

"Take heed to yourselves what you intend to do regarding these men...keep away from them and let them alone; for if this plan or work is of men, it will come to nothing; but if it is of God, you cannot overthrow it--lest you be found to fight against God" (Acts 5:35-39).

"We are now facing the final confrontation between the Church and the anti-Church, of the Gospel versus the anti-Gospel, between Christ and Antichrist. The confrontation lies within the plans of Divine Providence.It is therefore, in God's Plan, and it must be a trial which the Church must take up, and face courageously" (On the Present Age, John Paul II).

In the meantime, there are many radiantly faithful clergy, and a glorious batch of faithful seminarians in the works; we must pray them through the danger they will surely one day encounter.

But most of us are laity, and in the shadow of this time of widespread, fading clerical influence, John Paul II prophetically said, "...the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council marked a decisive turning-point. With the Council the hour of the laity truly struck, and many lay faithful, men and women, more clearly understood their Christian vocation, which by its very nature is a vocation to the apostolate" (Jubliee of the Apostolate of the Laity).

We are called, within our sphere of influence and the bounds of authority, to work in apostolate for justice, and it has never been more important that we do so:

"The soiled garments and face of your Church throw us into confusion. Yet it is we ourselves who have soiled them! It is we who betray you time and time again, after all our lofty words and grand gestures. Have mercy on your Church; within her too, Adam continues to fall. When we fall, we drag you down to earth, and Satan laughs, for he hopes that you will not be able to rise from that fall; he hopes that being dragged down in the fall of your Church, you will remain prostrate and overpowered. But you will rise again. You stood up, you arose and you can also raise us up. Save and sanctify your Church. Save and sanctify us all" (Cardinal Ratzinger's Meditations for the Stations of the Cross, Prayer at Ninth Station).

This is our Church, and come sin and hell and scandal, anti-pope, antichrist, or personal faults and failings, "the gates of hell will not prevail against her." THANKS BE TO GOD!
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Sonja Corbitt is a Catholic speaker, Scriptural evangelist, and a contributing writer for Catholic Online. Visit pursuingthesummit.com to book Sonja for your next great event, or to order her CDs or 10-week, DVD-driven Bible study Soul of the World on the Old Testament tabernacle as prototype of the soul and Church.
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Pope Benedict XVI's Prayer Intentions for January 2013
General Intention: The Faith of Christians. That in this Year of Faith Christians may deepen their knowledge of the mystery of Christ and witness joyfully to the gift of faith in him.
Missionary Intention: Middle Eastern Christians. That the Christian communities of the Middle East, often discriminated against, may receive from the Holy Spirit the strength of fidelity and perseverance.

Keywords: faith, clergy, scandal, misconduct, authority, obedience, justice, Sonja Corbitt

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1 - 10 of 11 Comments

Yvonne
3 months ago
Thank you for this article. Reading this article this morning is just another example to me as to how Great our God is!! In the past several days, I have seen answers to several prayers, this is just another one. 30 minutes ago, I was just having a discussion with my neighbor regarding those in the church who have fallen and why some question whether or not we should continue to follow the church with fallen leaders. But truth be told, we have all fallen, it just so happens, that many of us are not in the public eye and it's not broadcast throughout the media and cyberspace. While the Pope is infallible in certain cases, he is still human, as are our priests, bishops, and cardinals. I once read where the Pope, I believe it was Blessed Pope John Paul II, received reconciliation every few days. The Church is where we look to for guidance for that is it's job, to lead us. Not to say that it is perfect, it is not, it is run by humans. However, the existence of the church is to preach Christ's message and to help us along on our journey of Faith to our ultimate goal, living an eternal life in Heaven with our Lord. Thank you again for granting me some hope when I was feeling a bit defeated, God Bless.
ana
3 months ago
woah - John speaks that, " if a man say he sinneth not, he is a liar," - all men sin ; he then differentiates venial sin versus mortal sin. We are made new in Baptism and grace but we still have the effects of original sin and may sin in small ways ; and this is not to justify sin, however, these kind of inadequate comments and Scripture quotes taken out of context, before this comment of mine, can lead people to despair and/or question forgiveness and grace and how the Trinity loves them. Holiness is an ongoing, lifelong process.
abey
3 months ago
Them born off the Spirit cannot sin, the state of Godliness which is called Holiness, unto God, but to know that greater than being called the sons & daughters is the "Inheritance of God", the eternal word.
Stephen
3 months ago
.........then they are no longer Godly people until they sincerely repent, are forgiven, and vow to "go and sin no more."
Erin Pascal
3 months ago
May we all remember that no one is perfect except Jesus Christ. Hence, our faith should be founded on Him alone. As it says in Hebrews 12:2: "Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."
kathy
3 months ago
Its sad, when I talk with the elderly, who have been devout their whole lives, and are questioning their faith. This is a wonderful article. I am sure all of us at one time or another have questioned the church and or our faith. We must stay strong, and must pray for each other. Pray the Rosary daily. THAT WILL BE OUR WEAPON AGAINST EVIL. God bless all.
james in colorado
3 months ago
Sonja, you are a Blessing to have in our Catholic Church. As a revert, I can attest to the power of the sacred scriptures being proclaimed and expounded upon with accuracy and exhuberance. You are called (and i'm sure many others will follow) at such a time as this to help feed the sheep, so that they will not perish for a lack of knowledge. Our Bishops and even our Pope have lamented over losing so many Catholics who have left the Church for the Evangelical "experience" (my daughter being one) and the reason is because they find "the Word of god being broke open so that they can understand it". Keep up this good work and may Our Lord Jesus abundly bless and multiply your efforts so that all may be drawn to His one, holy catholic Church.
joselyn
3 months ago
Actually Dennis, Matthew wasn't written for "just Jews" it was written for all of God's people and the Sermon on the Mount and the all rest are for us. What you are doing is calling "dispensationalism" it's a heresy where you chop up the bible to make excuses for not following Jesus's/Paul's commands by claiming "that wasn't for us". The "elect" those verses in Matthew is the same elect throughout the NT...for those that believe and follow Jesus Christ.
Dennis McLelland
3 months ago
Informative article. However, "deceive even the elect" (Matt. 24:24) is misplaced. The "elect" of Matthew is Israel, not Christians. See Isaiah 42:1, 45:4, 65:9, 65:22.

Christians are found elect in Titus 1:1 and 1 Peter 1:2.

Two separate definitions of the word elect. It would be wise to differentiate this term "elect" for your readers so as not to cause confusion. Matthew is written for the nation of Israel. Jesus is speaking to his disciples - not the Church.
Cheryl Melody
3 months ago
We need the Church and the Church needs us more than ever.

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