St. John the Baptist: He testified to the Light!

Sermon by Rev. John Paul Shea

Third Sunday of Advent, Dec. 14, 2014

Saints Peter & Paul Parish, Tucson, AZ

St. John the Baptist in the Wilderness by
Bartolome Esteban Murillo

He came to testify to the Light!

"I baptize with water; but there is one among you whom you do not recognize, the one who is coming after me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to untie." (John 1:26-27)

You may recall that last week we heard about St. John the Baptist preparing the way of the Lord from the Gospel of Mark. Today on the 3rd Sunday of Advent, which is also called Gaudete Sunday, we hear a similar message from the Gospel of John 1:6-8, 19-28. However, today’s Gospel gives us different insights into John’s mission. I would like to focus on a particular word that is used to emphasize the role of John and all Christians. This word is “testimony.”

"A man named John was sent from God. He came for testimony, to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but came to testify to the light." (John 1:6-7) 

What does it mean to testify? The words "testimony" and "testify" both have a root in the Latin word, “testis.” In civil law, testimony is defined as something that someone says especially in a court of law while formally promising to tell the truth. So it is a “statement or declaration of a witness under oath.”

Christians in general use the term "testify" or "to give one's testimony" to mean "the story of how one became a Christian or how God has worked in [our] lives.” A Christian may testify to a specific event in which they believe God has done something significant that is worth sharing.

The two Johns in Jesus Life:
St. John the Baptist and St. John the Evangelist,
who also testified to the Light

Then John gave this testimony: “I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. And I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ I have seen and I testify that this is God’s Chosen One.” (John 1: 32-34)

So Christians witness to our encounter with God, which is so profound we publicly testify to this reality. Every time we recite the Creed on Sunday, we are testifying to our belief in the Catholic faith. We are publicly declaring our desire to live and follow the teachings of the Church.

And we testify to our personal conversion. To testify means that our lives have changed. People testify of how God helped them get over a struggle or an addiction. Other testimonies relate God’s radical manifestation in our lives. This is what we see in the lives of many saints such as Saint Paul, Saint Augustine, Saint Teresa of Avila, and many, many others! It is the apostles, saints and all holy people throughout the history of Christianity who give us testimony of the living God! John the Baptist obviously had a life changing experience which led him into the desert to pray in solitude, eat weird food, and proclaim a message of baptism and repentance.

My brothers and sisters, most of us are probably not called to

Fr. John Paul Shea

go out into the desert and live on locusts and honey. And while we are not likely to get up in a congregation like the Protestants do and proclaim that we have been saved, God wants us to live our lives in testimony to Him! He wants us to experience His grace in our lives so that we can testify to His love! He wants us to experience His healing and testify to the power of His mercy!

Yet, we are also reminded that authentic testimony always witnesses to the truth! This is difficult for Christians today, because speaking the truth leads to rejection and persecution. This is why the prophets of the Old Testament did not want to be a prophet. They did not want to go through the agony that comes with proclaiming God’s word. Yet, they did not back down. The prophet Jeremiah declared that he would no longer speak for God because of the derision and reproach he faced. But he could't refuse because the Word of God burned like a fire in his heart (Jeremiah 20:8-9). Even Jonah, who ran away from God, could not escape his mission to go to the people of Nineveh and share God’s prophecy with them.

The prophets, the early Church fathers,  the saints, the martyrs, all these heroes of the Church throughout history were so filled with God that they could not refuse to testify to His truth! No true prophet of God has ever preached a message of tolerance or acceptance of sinful lifestyles in order to make others feel better. 

St. John the Baptist gave testimony
with his very life. He was beheaded
for telling Herod his marriage
was adulterous. Here he is portrayed
in heaven holding his severed head.

No! They proclaimed the truth of God! And this is the way it was for John the Baptist! He testified that people repent of their sins. He rebuked the powerful religious leaders who were phony. He rebuked King Herod for his immorality. In fact, John the Baptist was imprisoned and executed by Herod because he boldly preached against his adulterous marriage.

Let us remember that God calls each one of us to give testimony by our faith by the ways we live our lives. Parents are to testify by teaching the faith to their children. Couples testify to the gift of marriage by keeping their vows. Single persons witness to the world through their holiness of life. Priests are to testify by proclaiming God’s word and by faithfully living our call to celibacy. The pope, bishops and cardinals must testify to the truths of our faith by upholding and protecting Church doctrine.
During these weeks of Advent, the Church focused on the Second Coming of our Lord. Scripture teaches us that when our Lord’s Presence is near, many hearts will grow cold. They  will deny the truths of our faith. Very few will testify for God. We can see many signs of this in our society and world today. This is why there is so much anger, strife, corruption and immorality.  

But God does not want us to fall into this trap of darkness. He does not want our hearts to grow lukewarm. He wants us to deeply experience His conversion so that we can be a living testimony of His truth and joy! May the grace of God be with each one of us.

(John testified concerning him. He cried out, saying, “This is the one I spoke about when I said, ‘He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’ ”) Out of his fullness we have all received grace in place of grace already given. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known. (John 1:15-18).

St. John the Baptist meets Jesus for the first time in the Visitation when Elizabeth greets Mary.
 "Who am I that the Mother of my Lord should come to me?" Elizabeth asked.
And the infant leaped in her womb when Mary spoke. 

Did you enjoy this Advent Sermon? Read another by Fr. John Paul Shea: MAKE CROOKED ROADS STRAIGHT

Rachel Weeps for her Children & Twitter Ignores Pro-Life Trend

by Susan Fox

 “Twitter can block my hashtag, but they cannot block my prayers.” (Esmeralda Kiczek)

Dec. 12, 2014 – Today I am Rachel who weeps for her children and yet they are no more.

Twitter ignored this tragedy, joining the ranks of the worshippers of Moloch, the ancient god of child sacrifice.

Twitter blocked the hashtag #Pray2EndAbortion from trending publicly on its Top Ten Feed. On the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, patroness of the unborn, the hashtag #Pray2EndAbortion snagged 30,078 tweets by midnight Mountain Time, according to Topsy Analytics. It was clearly in the top ten tweets in the U.S.A., but it was virtually invisible on the Twitter Trends feed.

This is ironic as the Twitter co-founder Evan Williams has bragged about Twitter -- the worst performing stock in 2014* – saying, “Twitter is what we wanted it to be. It’s this real time information network where everything in the world that happens on Twitter—important stuff breaks on Twitter and world leaders have conversations on Twitter.”

Yet “important stuff” occurred on Twitter Dec. 12, and the company suppressed the information on its Trends Feed. They blocked some pro-life tweeters from continuing participation in the pro-life Twitter Storm, alleging they had hit their 1,000-tweet limit. 

“Do you believe in free speech or in censorship? Regardless of your opinion on issues, I hope you believe in free speech. I was shut down on Twitter during this event,” one pro-life tweeter, Molly Harrison, fumed on Facebook regarding the 2014 pro-life Twitter Storm.

Dr. Brian and Esmeralda Kiczek, who started The End of Abortion Movement, announced that prolifers united to trend  #Pray2EndAbortion on Dec. 12. Starting at 1 p.m. EST they tweeted the hashtag 13,000 times, but Twitter ignored their achievement. Instead #Rocktalk trended with only 8,000 tweets. I don’t even know what #Rocktalk is about, except that it apparently appears on TV.  This is 2014. Who watches TV anymore? That’s so 1950s.

“Is Twitter blocking hashtags that differ from their views?” the Kiczeks asked. “Even though Twitter claims that their mission is: ‘To give everyone the power to create and share ideas and information instantly without barrier.’ So, the question is why was #Pray2EndAbortion blocked from trending?” 

LifeNews.com, another powerful advocate for human life,  is experiencing the same treatment from Facebook. "Facebook is making groups like LifeNews pay money to reach our own readers. At the same time, it is making it easier for the pro-abortion media to have their news stories show up in your timeline at Facebook," said Steven Ertelt, LifeNews Editor. 

Dr. Brian & Esmeralda Kiczek

The Kiczeks are no stranger to persecution from Twitter. Last year, they organized the successful #PraytoEndAbortion Twitter Storm that trended #1 in the U.S. and #5 in the world. Yet their main accounts, some with as many as 39,000 followers, were blocked from appearing in any hashtag stream, including #PraytoEndAbortion, and they were forced to open new accounts in order to continue to stand up for life.

Actually, this is a very good sign! For a servant is no greater than His Master:  “Remember my word that I said to you: If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you: if they have kept my word, they will keep yours also. (John 15:20)

“Twitter can block my hashtag, but they cannot block my prayers,” Esmeralda Kiczek said in a YouTube video she created with her cell phone. This is Esmerada Kiczek's cell phone video demonstration of #TwitterDiscrimination  Her End of Abortion Movement encourages people to pray the Rosary daily for the intention “the end of abortion, contraception, euthanasia, and for religious freedom for all."

The world hates us and that’s good news! Because “the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.” (Matt.10:22) And despite difficulty the Kiczeks and numerous other pro-life Tweeters, whose accounts were also blocked last year, are standing firm to the end, patiently opening new accounts when the old ones are rendered useless. “It’s important for me to stand up for life. Children are worth fighting for. Raise your voice against #TwitterDiscrimination,” Mrs Kiczek said.

Oh, but it would be so nice if the world agreed with us. But the persecution of the #Pray2EndAbortion hashtag, the Kiczeks, the pro-life tweeters and and really all who witness for the pro-life movement began long ago in the history of ideas.

Poor aching modern man has completely lost his identity. He is like Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz, standing there in bright ruby red shoes, unaware that all he needs to do is click his heels and he’ll be home.

Pre-Socratic philosopher Parmenides, who witnessed and participated in the beginning of Western thought, said, “Being is, non-being is not.” So entered the concept of reality onto the stage of man’s thought about 500 B.C.

And such thinking found a home in Christianity, which did a Vulcan mind meld with Greek philosophy culminating in the brilliant and rational thinking of St. Thomas Aquinas. Aquinas blessedly assumes that reality exists and can be perceived through the senses. Later philosophers like Rene DesCartes will spend nauseating hours worrying about proving the existence of reality, something Parmenides took for granted. “I think therefore I am” was DesCartes best attempt to prove he existed. That’s something that I simply take for granted.

But prior to the Reformation, three ideas entered the thought of man – univocalism, voluntarism and nominalism. The people who run Twitter are nominalists. They don’t recognize reality. They believe they can make reality whatever they want.

Univocalism blurred the distinctions between God and man. While Parmenides saw the reality of existence, God told Moses, “I AM WHO AM.” God is Being In Himself. Man is created and owes his being to God.

But univocalism remade God in man’s image. Modern Twitter Atheists totally get this. They created a god that is a vile parody of themselves. Then they reject him and their own self-created form of Christianity. I reject this imaginary form of Christianity as well. Twitter Atheists and I are on the same page on this one, except they don’t realize they are rejecting their own distorted view of themselves.

Voluntarism asks, "Is God bound by anything?" Answer according to voluntarists, “No.” This form of thinking arose out of Islam, and found a home in Lutheranism and Calvinism. But thanks to a courageous 13^th century Franciscan, Blessed Duns Scotus, the Catholic Church taught that God cannot will that which is contrary to His Nature, His own goodness.  

Hence right is right and wrong is wrong. It doesn't change. The Calvinistic images in early American sermons of God holding a hapless sinner over the fires of hell and deciding willy nilly to fling him in there or not are false. The same thinking permeates Islam. Even Mohammed did not know if he was going to enjoy 72 virgins (his version of heaven) or suffer in hell for all eternity. In Islam, only those “martyrs” who kill non-Muslims are assured of heaven. This, of course, means the “blessed” suicide bombers of 9/11/2001.

Voluntarism establishes an ethic rooted solely in the will of man. And with nominalism, the individual no longer needs a church, a tradition or an authority to be sanctified and come to knowledge of the truth. Ever hear anyone tell you “I read the Bible. I pray in the woods. I don’t need a Church, a building, an institution.” They have reduced the Living Church Christ founded on the rock of Peter to a cold lifeless building or a walk in the woods!

Nominalists believe that knowledge of things resides solely in the mind of man, and not in the thing itself. So you might wonder, if I look at my computer and see a mouse, is my computer a mouse? No that’s not how it works. But if I look at my unborn child and see a blob of cells? Well that is nominalism.

 

A newly "married" couple
after a same-sex "marriage" ceremony
with adopted daughter

Man cannot even recognize his own offspring any longer. And while there is something called the institution of marriage, if I look at my same sex relationship, and decide it is the same thing as marriage, then it is. This great darkness – nominalism – clouds the mind of the U.S. Supreme Court and forms the basis of the 1973 Roe v Wade and recent decisions legalizing same sex “marriage.”

The last three popes have spent a lot of money on ink just to try and convince modern man that he is a person made in the image and likeness of God, who is Being in Himself. And in fact man’s own children – born and unborn -- are made in the image and likeness of God. God is love. He is no blob of cells, my friend.

I tweet at these atheist humanist nominalists: “Dear Mr. Blob, if an unborn child is a blob of cells, what are you?” Answer: “A blob of cells.”

Blob of Cells?

Well blobs of cells don’t get funerals. And blobs of cells don’t matter. And blobs of cells can be murdered at will. And people who stand up for blobs of cells are hate mongers. They are interfering with the convenience of a useful blob of cells, the family member wanting the unborn or elderly dead. Yes, I am certain that Twitter feels justified in censoring an important pro-life voice on their twitter feed because  pro-lifers by being “anti-choice” are hate mongers. This is upside down thinking.

  

Sadly on one abortion link I found a loan officer, who survived a failed abortion, and still calls herself “pro-choice.” Why? “My mother had her reasons same as every other woman in the world,” Emily said, dismissing all pro-lifers with these words,  “Unless you people have gone through an unplanned pregnancy where the father left you to deal with it all on your own, all while trying to push your way through college classes and two jobs, you have no place to talk about this subject.”

“Dear Emily,” I responded, “The failure in your situation is the heartless human race! If there were people willing to help you dear, you would not have killed your unborn child. How blessed you are to have lived through your mother's poor choice. Shouldn't you offer the mercy that God extended to you to others -- like your own unborn children? I had two miscarriages. And I still grieve. If they were alive, Raphael would be 28 and Christina would be 24. I am Rachel who weeps for her children, yet they are no more.”

But for me, Raphael and Christina are people. Emily doesn't believe that. Unborn blobs of cells can be killed because they have no utilitarian purpose -- at the moment. But we don’t run around killing healthy adults because they serve our utilitarian convenience. An unborn child, a handicapped or elderly person does not serve our convenience. Hence we have the right to kill them, i.e. “end their suffering.” 

So we have the philosophical law of non-contradiction contradicted. In the same hospital, one child aborted before birth struggles for breath abandoned in a bucket in the hallway, while another prematurely born child is given the best medical care and lives. One elderly person’s life is saved, and another is starved and dehydrated to death. Nominalists believe that knowledge of things resides solely in the mind of man, and not in the thing itself. Hence human life and marriage can become whatever you define it to be.

Fascinating that on the day of the 2014 Pro-Life Twitter Storm, Life News came out with a piece: “Unborn babies feel anger and joy, Psychotherapist’s Study Says.” In fact they do. And they also reported Friday that a pro-abortion study admits that thousands of women are hospitalized every year from botched abortions.

But the good news is that despite the blindness of nominalism, abortions decreased by 6 percent in the United States between 2000 and 2009. The number of abortion clinics continues to decline due to a reduction in demand for abortion.  Operation Rescue released a report that showed that over two-thirds of the nation's abortion clinics have closed in the past 18 years.

Can we thank courageous pro-life witnesses like the Kiczeks and numerous individuals who tweeted pro-life messages during the Twitter Storm Dec. 12? Yes, we can.

Matthew Reynolds tweeted this Dec. 12 

 “I felt cheated when I learned that the hashtag #Pray2EndAbortion was not allowed to trend (on Twitter). It makes me more determined for the next time,” said pro-life tweeter Matthew Reynolds.  Another young tweeter asked me, “Did you ever find out if they’re going to set a date for another Twitter Storm? #WeWillNotGiveUp #TwitterDiscrimination.”

I am a Christian realist. Blessed Duns Scotus, St. Thomas Aquinas, Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict are all Christian realists.  We believe that God is Being in Himself, all good, all knowing, eternal and infinite. And He made the creature man in His own Image. God is love. Man has the capacity for great love.  We believe in universals like one, holy Catholic Church, established by Christ to be His Holy Living Presence in the world until the end of time.

My computer is not a mouse. No matter what I think, it is a computer.  I exist and have value whether I can think or not. God is not made in my image. I am made wonderfully in His Image. And my marriage is not based on a “feeling” but a mutual decision blessed by the Church that Christ founded when He said, “You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church.”

And I tell you, my friend, my unborn child is not a blob of cells. He is also a person made in the image and likeness of God, who actually experiences joy and sorrow in the womb. My life has value until natural death no matter how inconvenient my suffering is for those around me.

And I echo the feelings of my Twitter priest friend, “God – if need be – please take away my freedom, but never let me worship Moloch or any of his progeny.” And I would include Twitter, which in the ignorance and blindness of nominalism, has decided, “Thou shalt not kill – unless you are inconvenient, old or unborn.”

  

*According to the CNNMoney’s Tech 30 Index.

CONCEIVED WITHOUT SIN

Sermon by Rev. John Paul Shea

Feast of the Immaculate Conception

Saints Peter & Paul Parish, Tucson, AZ

"The whole universe was created by God, and God was born of Mary. God created all things, and Mary gave birth to God. The God who made all things gave himself form through Mary, and thus he made his own creation. He who could create all things from nothing would not remake his ruined creation without Mary." (O Virgin, by whose blessing all nature is blessed! St. Anselm)

All things rejoice today, for creation has  been restored to life through the  womb of the Immaculately Conceived Virgin Mary. Today we celebrate the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Mary was given the grace to be sinless at the instant of her conception, according to Pope Pius IX's papal bull, Ineffabilis Deus, which declared the Immaculate Conception of Mary an article of faith on December 8, 1854. This buried treasure lay in the heart of the Church for centuries before its public recognition. 

The conviction that Mary was preserved from every stain of sin from her conception was believed by many of the early Church Fathers and gradually gained ground throughout the the history of Christianity. 

At the start of the 19th century, this development led to a petition drive for a dogmatic definition of the privilege of the Immaculate Conception.

Finally in 1854, Pius IX solemnly proclaimed the dogma of the Immaculate Conception, stating that “the Blessed Virgin Mary, from the first moment of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege of almighty God, and in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, Saviour of the human race, was preserved free from every stain of original sin is a doctrine revealed by God and, for this reason, must be firmly and constantly believed by all the faithful.”

The belief in the Immaculate Conception also has gained ground through the words of our Lady herself. When Mary appeared to Saint Bernadette at Lourdes, France in 1958 she identified herself as the "Immaculate Conception."

We are reminded of the significance of the Incarnation. It was through Mary that our Lord received His flesh and blood. It was through Mary that God has come into our world.

Fr John Paul Shea 

As many of you know I was raised Mormon. The Mormon Church believes in Jesus, but they do not believe in the divinity of Jesus. Therefore for a Mormon, the Immaculate Conception would make no sense. But as part of a Church who believes in the Word of God made Flesh in the womb of Mary, the Immaculate Conception not only makes sense, but it is rightly fitting. 

Why would our Lord, the eternal splender of the High God, not choose to come into this world through a holy tabernacle? How could our Lord not choose to live and grow in what is not pure?

God chose Mary to bear our Lord in her womb. He chose her to participate in the redemptive mission of her Son, and this participation calls us to honor Mary with reverence.

We hear in today’s Gospel (Luke 1: 26-38) that even the Angel Gabriel, who is ranked in the highest order of the angels, had extreme reverence for our Lady. He approaches her with the words, “Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.” 

Through these words of the angel we hear a profound “joy.” It is a new joy, a joy that breaks through the sadness of the ancient world that has been dominated by sin -- sin   initiated through the cooperative disobedience of the first woman, Eve; a sin cooperatively redeemed by the Sinless Virgin's "Yes!" It is an everlasting joy because it is holy, pure, and eternal.

My brothers and sisters, God has chosen the Blessed Mother to play a special role in salvation history. He chose to live in her so that He can live in us. As we receive the Eucharist today, let us thank our God for the blessings that we have received through the intercession of our Blessed Mother. Holy Mother of God, pray for us.

"God, then, is the Father of the created world and Mary the mother of the re-created world. God is the Father by whom all things were given life, and Mary the mother through whom all things were given new life. For God begot the Son, through whom all things were made, and Mary gave birth to him as the Saviour of the world. Without God’s Son, nothing could exist; without Mary’s Son, nothing could be redeemed." (St. Anselm) 

Read Fr. Shea's Sunday Sermon too! MAKE CROOKED ROADS STRAIGHT