By FR. KEVIN M. CUSICK
The presumption of heavenly reward has blotted out almost all use of reason for some souls when it comes to the real possibility of condemnation to Hell for all of eternity. Religion has become an exercise in make-believe for the many who, despite some level of catechesis, insist that a deceased relative or friend is “in Heaven.”
The living, too, seem also to presume that, once baptized or confirmed, they have a reserved seat at the heavenly banquet and, despite their choices on Earth for good or evil, when the time comes that their worldly sojourn is through, they too will take their “rightful” throne with the saints in glory. This conflicts ever so slightly with the teaching of St. Paul himself whose insistence we work out our salvation only “with fear and trembling” is recorded in Holy Scripture.
Election season conversation brings out a measure of righteous indignation among those who habitually compromise with moral evil by voting pro-abortion and in favor of other moral evils.
The following is the Facebook comment reaction of a baptized, confirmed Catholic when informed he may want to think twice about voting for another baptized and confirmed Catholic who also happens to be part of the most pro-abortion, Godless, LGBT, anti-Catholic presidential ticket in all of U.S. history. Foul language is obscured for the sake of tender ears:
“Bull$^!#. Absolute bull$^!#. Post all the crap you want, but never presume to judge my faith. Who are you to deny my sacrament of baptism? Who are you to nullify my sacrament of confirmation?”
No one is denying or nullifying anyone’s Sacraments of Baptism or Confirmation. What we likely have here, however, as revealed by the exaggerated reaction of someone I know to be the graduate of a Catholic high school, is a public confession of years of voting for pro-abortion and anti-God candidates for public office. What we also have is a false belief in a “magic” or superstitious version of religion, alien to Catholic truth, that a soul, once baptized or confirmed, is launched on an uninterrupted trajectory directly to eternal glory in Heaven.
Not so.
No one is judging someone’s reception of a sacrament. Not the point. All the sacraments in the world, except Confession, cannot save a soul in mortal sin; that is, someone not in a state of grace. Baptized Catholic apostates, heretics, and unrepentant sinners cannot be saved. Unless they confess their sins in sorrow and receive absolution or, failing that, make a perfect Act of Contrition before death, they go to Hell as baptized and confirmed Catholics.
The above Facebook user was reacting to a shared post from my page about Fr. James Altman’s assertion that “you cannot be a Catholic and Democrat.”
I shared the link to a video by Fr. Altman (https://youtu.be/3-7eoTN2vNM) and commented in connection with it. I wrote: “The Church in its role as a moral power founded by Jesus Christ has a God given duty to speak out about politics and politicians. It is, however, the Church’s right and duty to provide a moral judgment on temporal matters when this is required by faith or the moral law.”
I also provided the link to a document by the Church on the matter: (http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_20021124_politica_en.html).
In that document by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Doctrinal Note on Some Questions Regarding the Participation of Catholics in Political Life, we read that “it must be noted also that a well-formed Christian conscience does not permit one to vote for a political program or an individual law which contradicts the fundamental contents of faith and morals. The Christian faith is an integral unity, and thus it is incoherent to isolate some particular element to the detriment of the whole of Catholic doctrine. A political commitment to a single isolated aspect of the Church’s social doctrine does not exhaust one’s responsibility towards the common good.”
Thus, those who style themselves both Catholics and Democrats, and who say they vote accordingly based on the party positions regarding capital punishment, care of the poor or other issues while choosing to ignore the pro-legalized child murder and even infanticide promoted by said party, are failing in their claim to Christianity.
The document also speaks of a failure to recognize that what the Church promotes happens also to be simply “true,” and thus able to be grasped by those of other beliefs or even no belief.
“While a plurality of methodologies reflective of different sensibilities and cultures can be legitimate in approaching such questions, no Catholic can appeal to the principle of pluralism or to the autonomy of lay involvement in political life to support policies affecting the common good which compromise or undermine fundamental ethical requirements. This is not a question of ‘confessional values’ per se, because such ethical precepts are rooted in human nature itself and belong to the natural moral law. They do not require from those who defend them the profession of the Christian faith, although the Church’s teaching confirms and defends them always and everywhere as part of her service to the truth about man and about the common good of civil society. Moreover, it cannot be denied that politics must refer to principles of absolute value precisely because these are at the service of the dignity of the human person and of true human progress.”
No Catholic can claim to be “personally opposed” to abortion while voting for those candidates who do support it. No such category of human moral agency exists. We are each entirely and wholly responsible for the moral choices we make, to include voting. Such appeal to a supposed “pluralism” is a common mistake for those suffering the effects of poor catechesis or, worse, intentional promotion of moral evil and thus a chosen political participation in it by party affiliation and voting habits.
Another truth is revealed by the righteous anger of practical heretics. Lacking along with a practice of authentic Catholic faith is a cheerful and fundamentally positive outlook that goes with the identity of what we sometimes call the “happy warrior.”
We pray, we struggle, we fight for what is right and true for others’ sake. But we act thus also first for ourselves. And with this the hopeful assurance grows within us of our own blessed destiny one day in Heaven. The effect of this hope based on faith and in love is undeniable in the lives of all the saints being formed now on Earth. The foretaste and promise of beatitude is already palpable in the good humor, joy, and fundamental positivity of orthodox Catholics and others of Christian faith who share in the truth as taught by the Church.
Fundamentally negative and therefore weak in faith Facebook or social network lurkers very rarely weigh in on positive events with congratulations or best wishes but are, on the other hand, often quick to criticize, condemn, and complain when their consciences are pricked by Catholic teaching.
Many of them do not regularly attend Sunday Mass and thus are already vulnerable with salvation jeopardized. Please pray for these souls at risk.
Thank you for reading and praised be Jesus Christ now and forever. Continue the conversation with me on Parler, the new free speech social network @FatherKevinMCusick.
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