THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH

Her Doctrine and Morals

Passion Sunday

17 March 2024

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The Sunday

Sermon

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Dear Friends,

The ways of the world and the ways of God are opposed to each other. True spirituality works to bring the way of our lives here on earth into conformity and agreement with the ways of God. Worldliness strives to conform God's ways with the world's ways. Demonism takes worldliness to the next level and, ignores or disregards the ways of God altogether and seeks only self-pleasure at any cost — even eternal happiness is sacrificed for momentary self-pleasure.

Jesus stands boldly opposed to worldliness and demonism. The demons mock Him because He promises eternal joy as a reward for self-denial and willingly and cheerfully embracing our daily crosses. The world mocks Jesus because He stands opposed to all their man-made religions, practices, and idols (false gods).

Daily, we find ourselves at similar crossroads. Jesus stands before us as the One and Only Truth, Light, and Life. The world stands before us offering more comforting and many compromising endless half-truths, artificial light, and illusionary life. The demons stand before us, offering us physical indulgence and self-pleasure with a total disregard for God, religion, our souls, and all that is spiritual.

Jesus offers us the true faith and worship that is only found in the True One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church. He is the only way to eternal happiness. No one goes to the Father but through Him. Either we are with Him, or we are against Him. We are either all in or all out — there can be no compromise.

The worldly religions are many and varied, and all offer some good, but the good is poisoned with worldly compromise. Worldly (non-Catholic) religions are made to make us "feel good" about ourselves — not actually to make us be or do good. The compromising religions would have us believe that we do not need to strive to be or do good (Because they believe we cannot.). The world creates false gods, false Christs, and false Jesuses that are more accommodating to our world. It may be physically easier to live a material life in one of the false churches, but this is the most brutal way to die because it leads to eternal death for our souls. The world will coddle and comfort us to eternal death with endless compromising of truth, justice, and right order.

The demons do not attempt to comply or even compromise with God. They encourage us to atheism and even the denial of our souls. We are fed a constant stream of materialism and physical self-indulgence in unabashed defiance and denial of God.

The world and the devils work together in opposition and defiance of Jesus Christ. We must not look at the conflict at the crossroads of our souls democratically. The majority oppose Jesus -- The Truth, The Light, and Life. Our choice is to either be with Him or against Him. The world and the devils are all against Him. The world and the devils all call Him a liar, deceiver, or fraud. Jesus stands condemned by them as He stands boldly and says that they are all wrong and do not have eternal Life in them. Jesus stands alone against the world and the devils.

It is not always easy to turn away from the enticements of the world or the devils, but believing and trusting in Jesus, we must deny ourselves and take up this cross and follow Jesus. We are called to stand with Jesus even as the world and the devils that have turned against Him similarly turn against us. How He was treated or is treated is how we should expect to be treated. Jesus continually suffers this Passion every day in the lives of His true disciples. What is done to the least of His brethren is done to Him. If we are His faithful brethren, then we must be ready to have our fellow men (neighbors, friends, and even family) passionately rise against Him in us.

The only path to Heaven is the true Jesus, not the false Jesus of worldly Protestants or non-Catholics, nor the materialism and paganism of the devils. May we cooperate with God's grace and hold onto the true Jesus in the True Church and in the true Sacraments and Worship even as we suffer the ridicule, scorn, anger, and animosity of the world and the devils.

May the Immaculate Heart of Mary inspire, guide, and protect us!