14 th Sunday after Pentecost (Tithing)

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Bonnie Dawson
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1 14 th Sunday after Pentecost (Tithing) Brethren: Walk in the spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lusts of the flesh No man can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will sustain the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and mammon Seek ye therefore first the Kingdom of God, and His justice; and all these things shall be added unto you. 1. For the 100 th Anniversary of Our Lady of Lourdes, Pope Pius XII promulgated an encyclical letter on Lourdes in In this letter we read: With a mother's compassion she looks upon this world redeemed by her Son's Blood, where sin accomplishes so much ruin daily, and three times makes her urgent appeal: Penance, penance, penance! She even appeals for outward expressions: Go kiss the earth in penance for sinners. And to this gesture must be added a prayer: Pray to God for sinners. As in the days of John the Baptist, as at the start of Jesus' ministry, this command, strong and rigorous, shows men the way which leads back to God: Repent! Who would dare to say that this appeal for the conversion of hearts is untimely today? (nos ). 2. In relation to the Gospel today, Pius continues in this same encyclical so important even now: the world is undergoing a terrible temptation to materialism which has been denounced by Our Predecessors and Ourselves on many occasions It rages in a love of money which creates ever greater havoc as modern enterprises expand, and which, unfortunately, determines many of the decisions which weigh heavy on the life of the people. It finds expression in the cult of the body, in excessive desire for comforts [gadgets, images ], and in flight from all the austerities of life. It encourages scorn for human life, even for life which is destroyed before seeing the light of day. This materialism is present in the unrestrained search for pleasure, which flaunts itself shamelessly and tries, through reading matter and entertainments, to seduce souls which are still pure. It shows itself in lack of interest in one's brother, in selfishness which crushes him, in justice which deprives him of his rights -- in a word, in that concept of life which regulates everything exclusively in terms of material prosperity and earthly satisfactions To a society which in its public life often contests the supreme rights of God, to a society which would gain the whole world at the expense of its own soul

2 and thus hasten to its own destruction, the Virgin Mother has sent a cry of alarm (nos ). 3. At both Lourdes and Fatima, we have been commanded to do Penance! Penance! Penance! In seeking the meaning of this threefold request, Sr. Lucia asked Heaven for help. His Majesty came to Sr. Lucia, saying: the sacrifice required for every person is the fulfillment of his duties in life and the observance of My law. This is the penance that I now seek and require. Many struggle to complete this penance simply because they do not know their duties. So, let s discuss one of the Duties of all Christians today i.e., focusing on our need to assist our Holy Mother the Church. Insofar as our state of life permits and within the sphere of legitimate influence, the faithful assist the Church in the propagation and defense of the one true Faith and all of the Church s venerable and holy Tradition, but also by giving to the Church the help She needs to operate in the world. One element of this material and monetary assistance is often called tithing and is considered by the doctors and saints under the virtue of Justice. This is because tithing is an external act of religion owed to God. Both the old and new code of canon law affirm this: Can The Church has an innate right to require from the Christian faithful those things which are necessary for the purposes proper to it (1983). Can The Christian faithful are obliged to assist with the needs of the Church so that the Church has what is necessary for divine worship, for the works of the apostolate and of charity, and for the decent support of ministers. St. Augustine: it is a duty to pay tithes, and whoever refuses to pay them takes what belongs to another. 4. I am a little intimidated in speaking on this subject not only because there are many issues to consider but also, sad to say, many stereotype the Church in claiming we are all about money and they like to point out all the scandals of recent times. Nevertheless, I find strength to continue speaking and exhorting for a couple of reasons. (i) It is part of my duty to do so so that we all can complete our external worship owed to God. We must never forget that God loves a cheerful giver and will never be outdone in generosity. 5. (ii) I am moved to say something because of the grave messages regarding our times from Our Lady of Good Success to Ven. Mother Mariana of Jesus Torres in the 17 th Century. In the main vision concerning

3 our time, the holy abbess saw the Sanctuary Light extinguished. She was given five reasons for this. The fifth reason given?? the laxity and negligence of those who failed to use piously their wealth to combat and destroy the evil that has come upon the Church during these decades this caused the light to go out. Instead of fighting back with the means entrusted to them they stand by indifferently and witness the Church being oppressed, virtue being persecuted, and the triumph of the devil secured. 6. Think about it. The enemies of our Holy Catholic Faith spare very little in seeking to attack and infiltrate to bring us down or use us to further their evil causes in their own perverse way, they value the Church more than we do! Thus, St. Peter Julian Eymard says, just as the ungodly pool their strength for evil purposes; so too should the good do as much for sacred purposes. And so the same saint exhorts us Just as a child owes assistance to his aging or needy parents, so too the Christian owes assistance to the priest of Jesus Christ, his father in the Faith, and the minister of the Most Holy Eucharist. and all the works of the Holy Catholic Church. 7. The doctors teach us this assistance, this tithing, is a matter of justice. As Our Lord Himself says: for the workman is worthy of his meat (Matt 10:10), and the laborer is worthy of his hire (Luke 10:7). St. Peter Julian notes that the faithful should assist their pastor especially in their works of zeal for the salvation of souls, in what concerns the decorum and dignity of the articles of worship and in the Christ-like care of the sick. 8. Thanks to the help of many good souls we have indeed a refurbished church of rare beauty. The Introit is literally fulfilled in this place: How lovely are Thy Tabernacles, O Lord of hosts! My soul longeth and fainteth for the courts of the Lord. May God reward each and every soul who helped us light the Sanctuary Lamp here and are helping us keep it lit 9. St. Peter Juilan goes on, asking: but to which works should we devote ourselves in preference to others? To Catholic works, to those which have the approval of the Church, and which the priesthood inspires and blesses; for error can easily creep in under cover of pious works, and even disguise itself as piety. When confronted with a work, we must first look into its legitimacy, whether it comes from the Church, whether it is

4 faith-inspired, and whether its end, and the means employed, are truly Christian. A work that is only human or philanthropic, that limits itself to the body, to matters of this world only, is a work for a philosopher or a humanist, but not for a Christian. But among works, we must devote ourselves more to those that give greater glory to God, that have as their direct object the honoring of His divine Persons, the exaltation and recognition of the rights of His kingship. For the divine Head of the Church must have in everything the first-fruits of our service and devotion. 10. (iii) Third of all, I am motivated by what happens to those who do and do not fulfill this duty. In the book of the prophet Jonas, we read how he runs away from completing the duty given him by God. What happens? A huge storm arises and all their worldly goods go into the sea. I wonder if there is not some connection here with all the natural disasters coming upon the world. We want our private goods and end up forgetting God and His Holy Church people neglect the true religion and what is the results? the sea and the fires come to claim them instead. Hmmm. 11. The Prodigal Son took all his inheritance and ran away with it to use on himself and he lost everything. I wonder how close he was to taking his own life? 12. On the other hand, in the life of St. Camillus, the first to put on the Red Cross and help victims of misfortune, we hear how he was saved from a life of habitual gambling because a generous man was building a monastery and put him to work. How many lives has that good man influenced because of that generosity hmmmm. 13. Based on Scripture and Tradition, the practice of tithing calls for the sacrifice of 10% of our earnings (some break this down to be 5% for our parish and 5% for other charities) And St. Thomas explains that these should be given first as the first fruits. Bd. Francis Palau explains in his book on virtues that Tithing covers the tenth part of what one has produced that is offered to God, for the maintenance of the priests, to sustain the worship in the Churches, and to help in the necessities of the poor. But in our times, there is no set amount given by the Canon Law. For the most part it is left to the individual s good will. Yet, St. Thomas taught that those under New Law are also under a greater obligation than the old because the goodness and dignity of the New Law itself and its

5 priests deserve more, pointing to the saying of Our Lord in the Sermon on the Mount: Unless your justice abound more than that of the Scribes and Pharisees, you shall not enter the kingdom of heaven. 14. AT FATIMA, the angel, depicted in the vision part of the Third Secret, repeated the request of Our Lady of Lourdes: Penance! Penance! Penance! With this penance performed, the heavenly Queen is depicted in the same vision as putting out the flames of God s wrath coming upon the world! If faithful Christians do penance according to their duties of state, they will surely be aided by God s grace in all their endeavors and receive the protection of the Sacred and Immaculate Hearts against all dangers, as well as helping Our Lady to fulfill the Fatima promises In the end, My Immaculate Heart with triumph.

3rd Sunday after Pentecost (Making Reparation)

3rd Sunday after Pentecost (Making Reparation) At that time, the publicans and sinners, drew near unto Jesus and the Pharisees and scribes murmured, saying: This man receiveth sinners and eateth with them.