If there is evil in the world, is that proof of Gods non existence?
What of natural evil vs moral evil?
These questions, these questions theologians have pondered down through the ages, wise men and prophets, priests and teachers, monks and ascetics, all have meditated on these very questions.
The third chapter of the book of the Lamentations of Jeremiah the Prophet, together with the entire book of Job and a reading of the Catholic Catechism on the question of evil are necessary for a proper understanding of this perplexing paradox.
Come now, and let us reason together.
Lamentations III vv. I-XII (quoted from the RSV-Catholic Edition thanks to biblegateway.com)
I am the man who has seen affliction
under the rod of his wrath;
2 he has driven and brought me
into darkness without any light;
3 surely against me he turns his hand
again and again the whole day long.
4 He has made my flesh and my skin waste away,
and broken my bones;
5 he has besieged and enveloped me
with bitterness and tribulation;
6 he has made me dwell in darkness
like the dead of long ago.
and broken my bones;
5 he has besieged and enveloped me
with bitterness and tribulation;
6 he has made me dwell in darkness
like the dead of long ago.
7 He has walled me about so that I cannot escape;
he has put heavy chains on me;
8 though I call and cry for help,
he shuts out my prayer;
9 he has blocked my ways with hewn stones,
he has made my paths crooked.
he has put heavy chains on me;
8 though I call and cry for help,
he shuts out my prayer;
9 he has blocked my ways with hewn stones,
he has made my paths crooked.
10 He is to me like a bear lying in wait,
like a lion in hiding;
11 he led me off my way and tore me to pieces;
he has made me desolate;
12 he bent his bow and set me
as a mark for his arrow.
like a lion in hiding;
11 he led me off my way and tore me to pieces;
he has made me desolate;
12 he bent his bow and set me
as a mark for his arrow.
Now, these words seem like the Prophet is accusing God. But God forbid! A Prophet of the LORD would never accuse his Master falsely, since we know God is not the author of evil. So what's going on here? God is the Master, the Controller, the Sovereign Lord, the Emperor of All, the Maker and Designer, the Creator, Omnipotent, Omniscient, Omnibenevolent, Omnipresent, Truth Itself, Justice Itself, Love Itself, Life Itself, Being Itself, Benevolence Itself, Perfect, Immanent and Immutable, Infallible and Ineffable, Transcendent and Terrific.
So therefore, to form an orthodox exegesis of this passage, this must all be kept in mind or these passages can easily be misinterpreted. The Prophet is crying in anguish after seeing the Holy City Jerusalem, and even worse, the Holy Temple destroyed, seeing men, women, and children killed, seeing the Holy Things ransacked by barbarian Babylonians beseeching Baal's for blessing. This was unthinkable to a Jew of the 6th century B.C., it must've seemed like God was truly non existent. But the point of this third chapter of Lamentations is not to despair, though it certainly reads as though Jeremiah was in despair, but he then goes on to say in verses 21-24 But this I call to mind,
and therefore I have hope:
and therefore I have hope:
22 The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases,[b]
his mercies never come to an end;
23 they are new every morning;
great is thy faithfulness.
24 “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,
“therefore I will hope in him.”
his mercies never come to an end;
23 they are new every morning;
great is thy faithfulness.
24 “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,
“therefore I will hope in him.”
Ah, there's the Prophetic Spirit. The Prophet may fall into a temporary feeling of despair, but the Prophet shall overcome this despair by the Mighty Power of the Holy One of Israel. The love of YHWH NEVER ceases! Our soul CRIES out, "I WILL hope in HIM". And remember this you Catholics, all you Christians - when you are Baptized, you are baptized into the Body of Christ, each and every member of the Mystical Body is anointed as a Priest, a Prophet, and a King. You, yes YOU reading this, are a PROPHET of God. You are a PRIEST. You are a KING! Do you not see the inheritance which has been vouchsafed unto you? Jesus came as THE Prophet, so we could all be prophets, he came as the HIGH Priest so we could all be Priests (don't confuse my words, there is the Priesthood of all believers and also a special Ministerial Priesthood), He came as KING of Kings so that we can all be kings! What hope this ought to inspire in us! Can you imagine what our eternal dwelling is going to be like? No, you can't, because your finite mind cannot contain the infinite Deity who holds an entire universe in existence the way we hold a newborn infant.
So what does it mean to be a Priest, a Prophet and a King as a 21st century American Catholic? Being a Priest revolves around sacrifice. So for a layman such as myself, I fulfill my Priestly duty by making sacrifices for the good of my family and others, spiritual sacrifices, almsdeeds, intercessory prayer, etc. I fulfill my Prophetic role when I speak the word of God in Spirit and Truth - if what I am saying is 100% orthodox, 100% Catholic, and 100% true, than it has to be of God. If it's 99% true and 1% false, woe unto me for prophesying falsely. What is prophecy? It's not fortune telling, although that was an aspect of earlier times when the Office of Prophet was in its pre-Christ stage. Since all Public Revelation has been given and closed at the end of the 1st century of Our Lord, no new public revelation has come about. This doesn't mean no body has prophesied since then - indeed, every word of Scripture is written in the Spirit of Prophecy, and the Apostolic Fathers, Nicene Fathers, Doctors of the Church and Supreme Pontiffs, surely each and every one of them was a Prophet in their own right. Prophecy can be this simple - telling a person Jesus Christ is the Way, the Truth and the Life. There's no need to go all Latter Day Saints and think you have special secrets or powers that aren't accessible to anyone but the "chosen". The gift of prophecy is a free gift given by the grace of God, which many Christians simply don't know exists or don't even realize when they are prophesying - any time a person speaks a Scripture out loud, it can be considered prophesying. Keep in mind as well, even the Old Testament Prophets, were each and all intensely individualistic and totally unique. For example, Moses the Lawgiving Prophet, Joshua the General of Israel's Armies and Prophet, Samson the Strongman Prophet, Gideon the Warrior Prophet, Ehud the Courageous Prophet, Elijah and Elisha the Forerunning and Wonderworking Prophets, Isaiah the Great Prophet, Ezekiel the Priest-Seer Prophet, Daniel the Wise Prophet, Job the Suffering Prophet, Amos the Prophet to the North, Jonah the Prophet to Nineveh, and on and on and on.
Now last we come to our final office, we are each and all kings by virtue of being heirs and sons of the King of Kings. First though, a quick bit of awesomeness.
Samson killing a lion with his bare hands.... Samson was the original worlds strongest man!
And... now I am tired and don't feel like writing any more, so I shall end my mindless rant here and now, before I lull you to sleep if you are still with me.
I love you all so much, and if a single person reads a single sentence of this, then my mission is fulfilled. So God bless you, and please pray for me as I have gone through a good amount of suffering recently. Please pray God help relieve my physical pain and emotional exhaustion In His Good Time and Pleasure.
Holy Mary, refuge of sinners, pray for us
Lord Jesus, friend of sinners, have mercy on us
Holy Guardian Angels, guides of sinners, help us
Lord Jesus Christ please especially bless all hospital workers, nurses, EMT's, paramedics, doctors, LNAs and CMA's, all people who work at preserving precious Life and alleviating suffering on a daily basis, bless them, help them, save them and keep them O God by thy Grace, especially I pray for my friends Oscar, Abby and Sherry, prosper them temporally and eternally, forever and always, amen.
Almighty God especially please be with, bless the work of their hands, and guide with wisdom and knowledge, together with compassion and understanding to heal and mend broken bodies and wounded souls, especially the Catholic Medical Center, Elliot Hospital, VA Hospital, and Dartmouth Hitchcock clinic, and all clinics and hospitals in the Diocese of Manchester.
+Yours in Christ Jesus,
Jason Michael Spyridon Prewara
IC XC NIKA
No comments:
Post a Comment