Month: August 2019

I ran across this creed, completely by accident, on twitter. Someone asked why the Athanasian Creed was dropped from being recited at Mass. At the time I had no idea what the Athanasian Creed even was, had never read it or anything about it.

Apparently, before the 1968 changes to the Mass, this creed was recited during Mass; according to the source I have. A good article about this is at: http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/02033b.htm

Here is the creed. On just a very rudimental reading, not really studying it in any detail, it really sounds like something we should recite at Mass. Although it does have the flavor of Vatican II, which is good.

Athanasian Creed,

Whosoever will be saved, before all things it is necessary that he hold the Catholic Faith. Which Faith except every one do keep whole and undefiled, without doubt, he shall perish everlastingly. And the Catholic Faith is this, that we worship one God in Trinity and Trinity in Unity. Neither confounding the Persons nor dividing the Substance. For there is one Person of the Father, another of the Son, and another of the Holy Ghost. But the Godhead of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Ghost is all One, the Glory Equal, the Majesty Co-Eternal. Such as the Father is, such is the Son, and such is the Holy Ghost. The Father Uncreate, the Son Uncreate, and the Holy Ghost Uncreate. The Father Incomprehensible, the Son Incomprehensible, and the Holy Ghost Incomprehensible. The Father Eternal, the Son Eternal, and the Holy Ghost Eternal and yet they are not Three Eternals but One Eternal. As also there are not Three Uncreated, nor Three Incomprehensible, but One Uncreated, and One Incomprehensible. So likewise the Father is Almighty, the Son Almighty, and the Holy Ghost Almighty. And yet they are not Three Almighties but One Almighty.

So the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Ghost is God. And yet they are not Three Gods, but One God. So likewise the Father is Lord, the Son Lord, and the Holy Ghost Lord. And yet not Three Lords but One Lord. For, like as we are compelled by the Christian verity to acknowledge every Person by Himself to be God and Lord, so are we forbidden by the Catholic Religion to say, there be Three Gods or Three Lords. The Father is made of none, neither created nor begotten. The Son is of the Father alone; not made, nor created, but begotten. The Holy Ghost is of the Father, and of the Son: neither made, nor created, nor begotten, but proceeding.

So there is One Father, not Three Fathers; one Son, not Three Sons; One Holy Ghost, not Three Holy Ghosts. And in this Trinity, none is afore or after Other, None is greater or less than Another, but the whole Three Persons are Coeternal together, and Coequal. So that in all things, as is aforesaid, the Unity in Trinity, and the Trinity in Unity is to be worshiped. He, therefore, that will be saved, must thus think of the Trinity.

Furthermore, it is necessary to everlasting Salvation, that he also believe rightly the Incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ. For the right Faith is, that we believe and confess that our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is God and Man.

God, of the substance of the Father, begotten before the worlds; and Man, of the substance of His mother, born into the world. Perfect God and Perfect Man, of a reasonable Soul and human Flesh, subsisting. Equal to the Father as touching His Godhead, and inferior to the Father as touching His Manhood. Who, although He be God and Man, yet He is not two, but One Christ. One, not by conversion of the Godhead into Flesh, but by taking of the Manhood into God. One altogether, not by confusion of substance, but by Unity of Person. For as the reasonable soul and flesh is one Man, so God and Man is one Christ. Who suffered for our salvation, descended into Hell, rose again the third day from the dead. He ascended into Heaven, He sitteth on the right hand of the Father, God Almighty, from whence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead. At whose coming to all men shall rise again with their bodies, and shall give account for their own works. And they that have done good shall go into life everlasting and they that have done evil into everlasting fire. This is the Catholic Faith, which except a man believe faithfully and firmly, he cannot be saved.

Things the Devil doesn’t want me to do. Or what causes the most spiritual opposition in my life.

1) Knights of Columbus activities. Pretty much anything I do with the Knights. Even if it is something as simple as transcribing the minutes from the last meeting, all the way to a major event. Especially the weekend of the Rosary before Mass.

2) Praying the Novena; Nine Sundays in honor of the Divine Child Jesus.

3) Prayer and Adoration offered as intercession for certain individuals; specifically, when offering for our next Bishop, my sister-in-law and her boyfriend, and now even for my wife and kids.

4) Prayer and praise groups.

The spiritual opposition has changed since I first realized what it was and what was going on. When that happened I got really angry and took some drastic action. Since then the spiritual attacks have become much more subtle, subversive.

But whether it is an all-out frontal assault, or, as Saint Teresa of Avail says in her Inner Castle, the little annoying lizards, not too gross or bad when there are only one or two, but when they come from, many. many are coming and soon you are covered with thousands of tiny demons. It is still a spiritual assault. Ment to strangle you spiritually and render you useless in the service of God.

For a long time, I was embarrassed by the moral teaching of the Catholic Church. Like many people, maybe most Catholics, I made excuses for our moral teachings and at other times outright admitted to not believing them. I can recall more than one conversation about the sexual teachings of the Church, as outlined in Saint Pope John Paul’s II’s The Theology of the Body, where I tried to sidestep all the questions, leaving me and the person questioning me both a little frustrated.

Honestly, now I regret all this very much. I underwent a spiritual conversion, really an awaking, then, about three and a half months later I had a moral conversion. Since then I have totally accepted all the teachings of the Catholic Church. The moral teachings outlined in Humanae Vitae and reaffirmed in Veritatis Splendor are timeless and beautiful. I wish someone would have hit me over the head with them 25 years ago and made me learn them, accept them, and believe them then. My life would be much different, although now I see that God is leading me, I often wonder where I would be if I would have surrendered my will to Him back then.

Blessed Archbishop Fulton Sheen said, “Moral principles do not depend on a majority vote. Wrong is wrong, even if everyone is wrong, and Right is right even if no-one is right.”

Really, I don’t see how I could not have believed the moral teachings before, except for the fact that the Bible has many verses, at least seven or eight, Old and New Testament, that talk about being blinded by sin. At that time I really was in mortal sin all the time. My sin literally blinded me to the moral truth. What I couldn’t understand then, seems painfully obvious now, unmistakable.

Yes, I know, I am going all over the place with this post, but, just one more little rant. Reading the Bible I came upon Matthew 5:14-16  and then I read Matthew 16: 15-20. Now, if you take Jesus at his word, and not call Him a lier, then there is only one conclusion you can draw from these verses. The Catholic Church was founded by Jesus, set on the Rock, Peter the first Pope, and Pope Francis is his direct successor. The Catholic Church is the Church Jesus founded, or you are calling Him a liar. Plain and simple.