Friday, May 15, 2009
To Bear Witness To the Truth: An Unequivocal Moral Obligation for All Christians
by Rev. John Corapi, SOLT, STD
Every Catholic and, indeed, every Christian faithful to the Gospel, has the moral obligation to bear witness to the truth, “in season and out of season, convenient or inconvenient,” accepted or rejected. This mandate is nothing new, of course. It’s as old as the Old Testament, and as new as the New Testament. Nonetheless, I’m afraid that it has become more necessary than ever to remind ourselves of it.
The Magisterium formally teaches in the Catechism of the Catholic Church #2471, quoting Sacred Scripture, “Before [Pontius] Pilate, Christ proclaimed the He has ‘come into the world to bear witness to the truth’ (Jn 18:37). The Christian is not to be ‘ashamed then of testifying to our Lord’ (2 Tm 1:8). In situations that require witness to the faith, the Christian must profess it without equivocation, after the example of St. Paul before his judges. We must keep ‘a clear conscience toward God and toward men’” (Acts 24:16).
Let me give you one definition of equivocation: “A statement that is not literally false but that cleverly avoids an unpleasant truth; intentionally vague or ambiguous.” How about this for an example: “A woman has the right to choose.” Choose what? A less vague, ambiguous, and equivocal statement would be, “A woman (or man) has the right to choose to perpetrate homicide. Or, “A nation has the right to facilitate, enable, or legislate genocide.”
Oh, excuse me, that would be an unpleasant truth, or maybe an “inconvenient truth,” as the inventor of the internet, Al Gore, might say.
The Catholic Church unambiguously and formally teaches:
The duty of Christians to take part in the life of the Church impels them [IMPELS THEM] to act as witnesses of the Gospel and the obligations that flow from it. This witness is a transmission of the faith in words and deeds. WITNESS IS AN ACT OF JUSTICE THAT ESTABLISHES THE TRUTH OR MAKES IT KNOWN (see Matthew 18:16).
The recent travesty involving the University of Notre Dame’s invitation to the President of the United States to give the commencement address and receive an honorary doctor of laws degree is the antithesis of Catholic and Christian witness to the truth. A lawyer who vigorously, publicly, and consistently support an anti-life and anti-family litany of evils will now receive an honorary doctor of laws degree from what is arguably the most prestigious Catholic University in America.
A picture is worth a thousand words. Indeed, what thousand words will be conveyed by the picture(s) of Mr. Obama receiving his honorary doctorate and sending off the graduating class at Notre Dame University?
This will be a dark day indeed for the University of Notre Dame and the Catholic Church that permitted it to happen. In the end, the bishops have the right and the duty to decide if the University of Notre Dame can any longer claim “Catholic” credentials.
Meanwhile, the obligation to bear witness to the truth weighs more heavily than ever on each one of us. We have rapidly entered into a new era of persecution of the Church and the truth that she professes and teaches, reminding us again,
"The disciple of Christ must not only keep faith and live on it, but also profess it, confidently bear witness to it, and spread it: All however must be prepared to confess Christ before men and to follow him along the way of the Cross, amidst the persecutions which the Church never lacks.” (Lumen gentius 42; Dignitatis Humanae 14).
Service of and witness to the faith are necessary for salvation: “So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven; but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven” (Mt 10:32-33).
God Bless You,
Fr. John Corapi
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B-Team Amateur Catholic Blogroll
"I Am Personally Responsible for over 75,000 Abortions"
*This video was made during the campaign to ban abortion in South Dakota. Bernard Nathanson repented of his ways and has became Catholic.*
Catholic Colleges & Universities Loyal to the Magisterium of the Catholic Church
- Aquinas College (TN)
- Ave Maria (FL)
- Belmont Abbey College (NC)
- Benedictan College (KS)
- Campion College (Sydney, Australia)
- Catholic Distance University
- Christendom College (VA)
- College of Our Lady of Corpus Christi (TX)
- College of St. Thomas More (TX)
- Dominican House of Studies (Washington, D.C.)
- Franciscan University of Steubenville (OH)
- Holy Apostles Seminary and College (CT)
- John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family (Washington, D.C.)
- Magdalen College (NH)
- Notre Dame Graduate School of Christendom College (VA)
- Saint Joseph's College of Maine (ME)
- Southern Catholic College (GA)
- St. Augustine Institute (CO)
- St. Gregory's University (OK)
- Thomas Aquinas College (CA)
- Thomas More College of Liberal Arts (LA)
- University of Sacramento (CA)
- Wyoming Catholic College (WY)
Randall Terry, founder Operation Rescue, addresses the assassination of George Tiller. Mr. Terry urges the pro-life movement to not surrender words and actions under the heavy opposition from child killers and the Obama administration.
Catholic Home-Schooling
Pro-Family links
- Women for Faith and Family
- One More Soul ~ Spreading the Truth about the Blessings of Children & the Harms of Contraception
- Pope Paul VI Institute ~ Authentically Catholic Medical Institute for Fertility Problems
- The Alexander House ~ For Rebuilding & Strengthening Marriages
- Edith Stein Foundation ~ Medical Information on Contraception & Fertility Issues
- Retrouvaille ~ For Troubled Marriages
- Couple to Couple League ~ Natural Family Planning
- Pope Paul VI: Humane Vitae
Abortion ~ Facts and Information
- http://www.AbortionChangesYou.com/
- Rachel's Vineyard is a safe place to renew, rebuild and redeem hearts broken by abortion. Weekend retreats offer you a supportive, confidential and non-judgmental environment where women and men can express, release and reconcile painful post-abortive emotions to begin the process of restoration, renewal and healing. It is therapy for the soul.
- Hope After Abortion ~ The Catholic Church's post-abortion ministry
- Silent No More Awareness ~ An effort to make the public aware of the devastation abortion brings to women, men, and families
- Feminists For Life
- Abortion Facts
- Overpopulation Myths
- Abortion and the Black Community: BlackGenocide.org
- Second Look Project ~ Encourages those who are "pro-choice" to take a second look at their position on abortion
- The Elliot Institute ~ The leader in research regarding the after effects of abortion on women and men
- Priests For Life
Pregnancy Help & Hotlines
Help for Addictions
Take Action!
- Government, Law, & Political Responsibility. Click HERE to contact White House, U.S. Senate, House of Reps, Supreme Court, etc. See also Suggestions for Effective Letter Writing
- FOCA FACT Sheet & In-Depth Info to help EDUCATE those around you about this radical law that will increase the number of abortions and make it even more UNSAFE for WOMEN.
- Federal Legislative Action Center: Contact your STATE Reps. HERE. ~ Plus much MORE to help INFORM us in this VITAL fight against FOCA ~ We must ACT NOW!!!
- Spiritually Adopt a Pre-born Baby Today! Click HERE to learn more.
- Begin Planned Parenthood Fraud Investigation in Your State! Click HERE for Details.
Go On Retreat!
- Casa Maria Convent & Retreat House ~ Located 1 mile from EWTN, The Sisters of the Eternal Word's apostolate is prayer, catechesis, and retreats. They invite zealous and excellent retreat masters to share with you their experience and knowledge of our holy Catholic Faith. Casa Maria is blessed with devout priests who celebrate the Liturgy with great reverence. They encourage devotion to the Blessed Sacrament and love of our Blessed Mother, and they draw upon the rich musical heritage of the Church.
- Sisters for Life ~ Villa Maria Guadalupe ~ The retreat house hosts Evenings of Recollection, educational seminars on life issues and retreats for everyone (themes include Theology of the Body, Young Adult Retreats, Post-Abortion Healing, and retreats on the Dignity and Vocation of Women).
Books for Children
- Horton Hears a Who, by Dr. Seuss
- The Weight of a Mass: A Tale of Faith, by Josephine Nobisso
- The Princess and the Kiss, by Jennie Bishop
- Angel in the Waters, by Regina Doman
More Recommended Reading
- Abortion: Yes or No? by John L. Grady, M.D.
- Changed ~ Making Sense of Your Own or a Loved One's Abortion Experience, by Michaelene Fredenburg
- Ending Abortion Not Just Fighting It, by Fr. Frank A. Pavone, M.E.V.
- Evangelium Vitae (The Gospel of Life), by Pope John Paul II
- God Is Love, An Encyclical Letter of Pope Benedict XVI
- Humane Vitae: A Challenge to Love, by Pope Paul VI
- Is the Fetus Human? by Eric Pastuszek
- Led by Faith, by Immaculee Ilibigiza
- Left to Tell, by Immaculee Ilibigiza
- Living the Gospel of Life ~ the pastoral statement issued by U.S. Catholic Bishops
- Noise, by Teresa Tomeo
- Our Lady of Guadalupe, Hope for the World by Dan Lynch
- Render Unto Caesar, by Charles J. Chaput
- The Way to Love, by Anthony De Mello
- Won By Love, by Norma McCorvey
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