From the First
Sacred Parental Duty
"And these words which I command thee this day, shall be in thy heart."
"And thou shalt tell them to thy children: and thou shalt meditate upon them sitting in thy house, and walking on thy journey, sleeping and rising." (Deuteronomy 6:6-7)
"bring them up in the discipline and correction of the Lord." (Ephesians 6:4)
Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God is one Lord.
"One Lord, one faith, one baptism"
There is one God, the Creator and Lord of all of Humanity (i.e. every person to have existed throughout history, including all atheists, all pagans, all buddhists, all hindus, all taoists, all mohammedans etc.)
Recognising false gods, false concepts of god or false religions, in this information age, is to reject the one true God, and is thus a grave injustice to the one Creator.
Why is a clear understanding of this essential to the Christian faith?
There are many prominent and false prophets in the world, motivated by Satan, who encourage religious indifference and participation in the worship of false Gods and who teach that all are independent pathways to eternal life.
"I am the Lord thy God, who brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.
Thou shalt not have strange gods before me." (Exodus 20:1-3)
"But the things which the heathens sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God. And I would not that you should be made partakers with devils.
You cannot drink the chalice of the Lord, and the chalice of devils: you cannot be partakers of the table of the Lord, and of the table of devils." (1 Corinthians 10:20-21)
The Lord Jesus Christ specifically confirmed the Genesis account of creation:
"And there came to him the Pharisees tempting him, and saying: Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause?
Who answering, said to them: Have ye not read, that he who made man from the beginning, Made them male and female?" - St Matthew 19:3-4
Recent Church history demonstrates beyond any doubt that permitting the scriptural account of creation in the book of Genesis to be undermined in young minds, is the greatest destroyer of the faith.
"Jesus saith to him: I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No man cometh to the Father, but by me." - St John 14:6
Jesus Christ the Truth incarnate, promised those He personally chose to lead His Church, that He would send the Holy Ghost to teach and show them "All Truth".
This means not only the truth revealed personally by the Lord Jesus Christ during his lifetime, but the truth to be revealed to His Church in all ages:
"You have not chosen me: but I have chosen you; and have appointed you" - St John 15:16
"I have yet many things to say to you: but you cannot bear them now.
But when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will teach you all truth." - St John 16:12-13
"and behold I am with you all days, even to the consummation of the world" - St Matthew 28:20
"He that heareth you, heareth me" - St Luke 10:16
"And I will give to thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven. And whatsoever thou shalt bind upon earth, it shall be bound also in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose upon earth, it shall be loosed also in heaven." - St Matthew 16:19
The Nature of Truth
Truth is not created
Truth is a conceptual snapshot of an aspect of objective reality
Individuals arrive at the truth by the application of right reason to the objective evidence of their senses
Whereas God wills that all men be saved and thet they come to the knowledge of the truth, an individual's sensory perception, and their ability to learn and reason, are variable and controlled ultimately by God who permits Satan to conceal His truth from the unbeliever.
The unbeliever is blinded in and by their sin.
"For you were heretofore darkness, but now light in the Lord. Walk then as children of the light." - Ephesians 5:8
"In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of unbelievers, that the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should not shine unto them." - 2 Corinthians 4:4
"Therefore they could not believe, because Isaias said again:
He hath blinded their eyes, and hardened their heart, that they should not see with their eyes, nor understand with their heart, and be converted, and I should heal them." - St John 12:39-40
"And in all seduction of iniquity to them that perish; because they receive not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. Therefore God shall send them the operation of error, to believe lying:
That all may be judged who have not believed the truth, but have consented to iniquity.
But we ought to give thanks to God always for you, brethren, beloved of God, for that God hath chosen you firstfruits unto salvation, in sanctification of the spirit, and faith of the truth" - 2 Thessalonians 2:10-12
God is the Lord of sciences
God allows His truth to be revealed to the faithful believer.
Contend for the faith once delivered - St Jude 1:3
The one faith comprises the teachings and commands of Jesus Christ as handed down orally, then recorded in the Gospels by His chosen Apostles.
This record is a finite and sacred deposit of divinely revealed truths, handed down through the centuries by the Apostles and their successors in the Church.
This sacred deposit of divinely revealed truth is the one unchanging and unchangeable faith intend to be shared by all men in all ages.
All of Humanity have one and the same creator to whom they owe their existence and in Justice, their praise and worship.
Man was created in the image of God with one immutable human nature.
"And God created man to his own image; to the image of God he created him. Male and female he created them." - Genesis 1:27
All men being created in the image of God does not mean all persons are equal.
God has gifted men and women differently, according to their different natures.
He has gifted individual persons differently, with unique characteristics and talents, according to His will.
God's plan is nevertheless the same for all of Humanity (all pagans, all aetheists, all buddhists, all hindus, all mohammedans etc), that by the exercise of their free will and co-operating with His gifts of grace, they choose to become His adopted sons and daughters, and thereby share eternal life with Him.
God permits, but does not will, different religions for different men
Why is this important to know?
It is an injustice to God that men worship false gods, subscribe to their own false concepts of God or participate in false religions
Many false prophets promote religious indifference, which is an indirect promotion of false Gods and a denial of the one true God.
Promoters of false religions steer people away from God's plan to populate the earth with Godly seed by a variety of anti-Christian practices such as population control, genocide, abortion, contraception, homosexuality, feminism, divorce and re-marriage etc
God 'chose' His People, His Prophets, His Apostles, His Leaders.
The scriptures are full of references to God's 'favoritism'.
All humans are not equal, except in the limited sense that they are made in God's image.
God assigns all leaders, at all levels of His hierarchy of human society, from the Church, to the Nation, to the institutions of state, to the regions, to the local communities, to the workplace, to the family.
As God is the head of all of creation, every human institution has one head, answerable to God above all.
All legitimate leaders are God's appointed, even the foolish, the wrong-headed, the tyrannical, the sinful and the promoter of evil.
God matches leaders with people for His purposes, which are often unfathomable but always work for the greater good
God permits leaders to promote evil, for a greater good.
It is often the case that people are given the leaders that they deserve.
Christians are called to submit with docility, and all suffering, to every leader God places over them, except only when a leader makes a command to sin, which must never be obeyed.
There is never a cause for rejection of or rebellion against God's choice of leader at any level.
"If only I could find my purpose in life...!"
(...said the hammer to the screwdriver)
No creation ever determined it's own purpose.
The purpose of a creation
is always determined by its creator.
The purpose of a tool
is always determined by the tool-maker.
The one God, created one humanity, for one principal purpose, that He literally spells out for them...
"And God blessed them, saying:
Increase and multiply, and fill the earth."
"Wherefore a man shall leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they shall be two in one flesh." (Genesis 2:24)
Your Principal Purpose is:
All are free to reject this, as most do.
Many attempt to determine their own principal purpose, often by mis-prioritising their "career".
Accepting God's principal purpose for your existence underlines the critical importance of:
the virtues of true Humility and self-sacrifice
attending His Church
accepting parental guidance or other authoritative counsel in the marital selection process
The divine blessing of Co-creation and the parental duty to raise Christian offspring
"And these words which I command thee this day, shall be in thy heart."
"And thou shalt tell them to thy children: and thou shalt meditate upon them sitting in thy house, and walking on thy journey, sleeping and rising." (Deuteronomy 6:6-7)
"bring them up in the discipline and correction of the Lord." (Ephesians 6:4)
From principal purpose flows all secondary purpose, determined through God's grace by His allocation of natural gifts, talent and disposition (virtue, charity, humility etc)
Celibates aside, every person has the free will to either cooperate with God's will and start a family once they leave father and mother, or to frustrate that will by taking their own 'more strategic' trajectory or setting their own 'more strategic' timetable.
History proves that non-cooperation with God's will ultimately leads to loss and destruction (not necessarily of a material kind).
Cooperation with His will and graces, leads to the development of virtue, natural talent and motivation, resulting in an abundance of life (not necessarily a life of material abundance).
"The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I am come that they may have life, and may have it more abundantly." (St John 10:10)
God's will is to populate heaven, with holy souls taken from this world that have been sanctified in truth.
Living according to God's will requires full cooperation with His principal purpose for your creation and existence.
Man was created to know, love and serve God in this world, and in so-doing becomes His adopted children, heirs to the inheritance of His heavenly Kingdom.
"For the Spirit himself giveth testimony to our spirit, that we are the sons of God."
"And if sons, heirs also; heirs indeed of God, and joint heirs with Christ: yet so, if we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified with him." (Romans 8:16-17)
Glorifying, worshipping and serving God is just, and in justice, these acts constitute duties because they render what is due to the Creator, for blessing man with all that life in this world has to offer.
Christian parents perform this sacred duty of service to God by raising holy families, sanctifying them in the truth of Holy scripture and thus destining them for eternal life with God.
"Sanctify them in truth. Thy word is truth. As thou hast sent me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. And for them do I sanctify myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth." (St John 17:17-19)
The greatest disservice to God would be to risk any of one's precious offspring, falling into the great ocean of lost souls destined for destruction, through neglect of this sacred duty.
The public school system was specifically designed to supplant the role of parents as primary educators of their children, and to relieve them of this sacred Christian duty.
In this regard the education system has largely achieved its special military objective.
Every person must choose the army they serve; either that of eternal life and hope, or that of eternal death and despair.
The choice of the vast lukewarm majority is neutral non-alignment, which defaults automatically to eternal death and despair.
Given the stakes involved, there is no more consequential topic upon which to focus one's attention.
A Life or Death Challenge
In the world of scientific endeavor there is one challenge above all others, that none of the greatest minds in human history have been able to conquer.
No scientist has ever been able to create new life, except according to God's formula.
The creation of life is God's domain.
God blessed man with a conditional licence to access this domain, as well as the free will with which to trespass upon it.
Having created man..."God blessed them, saying: Increase and multiply, and fill the earth" (Genesis 1:28)
God instituted marriage as a blessing, with limits governing the co-creation of new life, for the benefit of His co-creators and their offspring, as well as to best effect His divine will to populate heaven with holy souls:
"Wherefore a man shall leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they shall be two in one flesh." (Genesis 2:24)
In God's plan there is no provision for a period of childish, self-indulgent singledom immediately after leaving father and mother.
Men are commanded to take a wife, and to produce offspring, because this is God's plan which is always in man's best interests, provided it is executed in accordance with the divine will.
Rebellion against the divine will, always ends poorly for the hapless rebel.
On the contrary, there is no human pursuit more rewarding or more joyous than the creation of new life in accordance with God's command and law, with its clear limits and eternal consequences for breach.
"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is prudence"
Having been beneficiaries of God's great blessing, there is a duty to raise offspring constantly immersed in the word of God, that sanctifies in truth:
"And these words which I command thee this day, shall be in thy heart.
And thou shalt tell them to thy children: and thou shalt meditate upon them sitting in thy house, and walking on thy journey, sleeping and rising." (Deuteronomy 6:6-7)
"bring them up in the discipline and correction of the Lord." (Ephesians 6:4)
Integral to raising a holy family for a man, is his choice of a wife and mother to his children.
"Did not one make her, and she is the residue of his spirit? And what doth one seek, but the seed of God?" (Malachi 2:15)
A Godly woman will bring forth Godly seed.
By her fruits she shall be known.
She will be a model of virtue to her offspring when they are at their most impressionable.
According to God's hierarchical order, she will be subject to her husband in all things not sinful, in charge of her family's domestic affairs, choosing modest dress with a veil on Sundays, reflecting her command of scripture and her natural feminine humility.
It is not possible to over-state how vital (i.e. life-giving) is the choice of a truly Christian wife and mother, in this modern secular world where pride, self-focus, rebellion and scandal abound.
Both parents will live and breath the word of God as mandated by scripture and will instill this discipline in their offspring, thus sanctifying them in the truth.
Because each parent personally shares the divine blessing of co-creation, the duty to raise offspring in the Christian faith is also personal to each parent.
This means the duty may never be delegated, whether to the other parent, or to a school or even to the Church.
A father must exercise the headship of his family by attending to this sacred duty personally.
Following is a summary of the essentials of the Christian faith that, as a minimum, every parent must understand, then pass that understanding on to their offspring, in order to discharge their sacred duty of service to God and to fulfill the principal purpose of their existence.
p.s. coming late to the realisation of personal short-comings in this regard is a cross to bear, calling for amends to be made by the power of God's grace.
God's plan for all persons he ever has, or ever will create, is that they live in His presence for eternity.
"I will build my Church" (singular)
"The Sheepfold of the good shepherd" (singular)
The Church provides protection from predation and death, safe access to pasture, under the authority of the good shepherd
Noah's Ark (one vessel) of Salvation
The prayer for 'unity'
Governance and Teaching
John 17:18
Governance and Teaching
Governance and Teaching
Governance and Teaching
Rendering to each their due
Divinely instituted and prescribed
An individual understanding of anything may be properly ordered and thus in accordance with the truth, or it may be disordered and thus false.
The Lord specifically sent the Holy spirit to teach and show the Apostles of His Church, 'all truth':
"But when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will teach you all truth. For he shall not speak of himself; but what things soever he shall hear, he shall speak; and the things that are to come, he shall shew you." - St John 16:13
Through God's grace, the Holy Spirit teaches and shows individuals the path of truth, but the individual person does not receive or accept all truth.
If they did, there would have been no point in establishing a Church and sending the Holy Spirit specifically to teach and show the Apostles 'all truth'.
When individual understandings diverge, the role of the Apostles and their successors in the Church is to properly order the collective understanding in accordance with all truth.
The struggle to maintain unity?
The struggle to maintain unity?
The struggle to maintain unity?
Ephesians 5:1 being child-like
The struggle to maintain unity?
The struggle to maintain unity?
The struggle to maintain unity?
The struggle to maintain unity?
"Wherefore a man shall leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they shall be two in one flesh." (Genesis 2:24)
The struggle to maintain unity?
The struggle to maintain unity?
The struggle to maintain unity?
The struggle to maintain unity?
Ephesians 5:13
The Christian 'Deposit of faith' was revealed by the lord Jesus Christ to His chosen Apostles, for the salvation of all souls in all ages; for all Buddhists, all Hindus, all Taoists, all Muslims, all Christians and all atheists.
The singular Apostolic Church 'built' by Jesus Christ is at once both institutional and mystical in nature.
The Church was built for the salvation of all men in all ages, one visible sheepfold for a single flock drawn from all men to have ever lived.
He prayed that His flock might be one as the Father and He are one.
He selected one group of teachers and commissioned them with the task of spreading his teachings and commands to all nations and He delegated to this select group the authority to determine and judge the application of His teachings and commands, to issues in all ages.
He promised to be with them in all ages and authorised them to speak His singular doctrine with one voice in all ages (He who hears you hears me).
He warned of contentions and schisms, and that a divided house can not stand.
He indicated that only the humble (ie. those prepared to submit to His authority (including those with His delegated authority)) would inherit the kingdom of heaven.
He delegated to the Church the authority to 'apply' His teachings and commands in binding form to issues in all ages.
All members have been entreated to turn to the Church to judge and determine any disputed doctrine, so as to avoid contention and schisms.
He promised the Church both His constant presence and the constant guidance of the Holy Ghost in all Truth.
The Church has guarded, protected, defended and handed down ('traded'), whole and undefiled, the original divinely revealed Truths that comprise the Deposit of faith - the Church's Sacred 'Tradition'.
Dissidents in all ages have denied the Church's authority to apply His teachings and commands in binding form, and have as a result separated themselves from the Church (eg the 'great eastern schism' and the protestant revolution).
In more recent times such dissidents have also sought to defile Christ's revelation while remaining in positions of administrative authority within His institutional Church.
They openly deny the immutable Truth of divine revelation and binding Church teaching.
They claim that 'the Church' must change with the times, that no Pope is bound by his predecessors and that binding Church teaching from the past may be overturned by the current administration, as with secular governments.
These claims are clearly antithetical to Christ, the everlasting and unchangeable Truth, who is the inseparable head of His one and only Church.
Christ is the everlasting and unchangeable head of an everlasting and unchangeable Church, yet the current crop of dissidents, who have assumed administrative control of the visible institution have proposed a 'new ecclesiology' for the Church He 'built'.
They have proclaimed an essentially new Church.
They have proposed an all New Order for their new 'church', introducing a complete new suite of replacement sacraments made by human hands.
There is only one Church that receives and defends the Traditional Faith, then hands it on undefiled.
This 'New Order' has rejected the timeless Catholic faith in favour of a 'modern faith' of their own preference, that changes with the times and must be constantly updated.
'The New Order' is one more protestant sect, falsely trading as the Catholic Church.
This sect is being permitted as a test of the true Catholic faithful who were exhorted by St Paul to hold fast to the Traditions handed down whether by spoken word or epistle .
The natural world is a battlefield with two supernatural enemies constantly warring
Every man has the choice to serve either God or Satan
Knowing God
Men and Angels were created by God to know, love and serve Him.
Satan was an Angel who famously refused to serve God and was cast out of Heaven as a consequence.
From this example we learn the importance, as a matter of justice (which is rendering to each what is due) of serving our creator.
We naturally serve whom we love and we can't love whom we don't know, so our first duty to God is to know Him:
The first thing to know about God is that He wants for nothing and needs nothing from us, yet He clearly desires our love.
Understanding that everything God asks of us and everything He insists upon from us, is exclusively for our benefit
We can know something of God from the fact that we were created in His image
We can know something of His plan for us from these blessings
Clearly, by acting on these blessings we serve God and His overall plan of creation
God has revealed Himself and every teaching and command necessary for all men in all ages to achieve eternal life, faithfully recorded by His chosen apostles and handed down through the centuries.