Wednesday, October 19, 2016

Catholic Hermit: Faith Working Through Love

This nothing consecrated Catholic hermit has been struggling with pain lately, due to weather shifts mostly.  The pressure shifts of weather changes can occur within hours, leaving the bodily pain fluctuating.  It is quite a challenge to "simply keep going."

I noted the Scriptures of Galatians 2 from a week ago in daily Mass first reading.  I particularly love the reminder that in Jesus Christ, those trying to be justified by law are separated from Christ and fallen from grace.  It is only in faith working through love that we are in Christ.  Only faith working through love counts for anything.

Galatians 2

"You are separated from Christ,
you who are trying to be justified by law;
you have fallen from grace.
For through the Spirit, by faith, we await the hope of righteousness.
For in Christ Jesus,
neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything,
but only faith working through love."

To me, this seems quite significant, particularly when I ponder the structure of the temporal Catholic world, the secular aspects of the Church.  I have been following with much prayer, the current political dilemma in this country (United States of America) with our coming presidential election.  The corruption in the current government is deeper and broader than I would have imagined to be real.  Yet, real it is.  Truth has been coming out, bit by bit.

The corruption includes the media, and when truth is not dispensed or is masked by main communication channels, systems of order and governance begin to collapse.  I have considered the political scene of so much human clawing for power, prestige, and position--greed, pride, control over others--in conjunction with any organized group be it in industry or religious bodies.

We humans do tend to lean into temptations.  It is not so easy to resist the known, the temporal, the comforts of physical security and also supremacy over others.  It is the animal instinct for some to want to rise above others, to rule the roost, so to speak--to take the prey from the claws of other beasts.

So, too, is often the human instinct to find a sense of security in laws made by humans.  Somehow it brings--falsely, though--a feeling that there are boundaries and structure that will provide stability and formulaic assurance for survival and success.

But only faith working through love counts for anything....  It is the ability to grasp God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, to grasp love of the unseen--to have faith in the spiritual law of God, the law of love, by which we will endure in this world and through eternity.

In the past few days, even more hardships and problems have surfaced in my efforts to keep working on this hermitage.  It is beyond belief, at times, that so many things could go wrong; but then I factor in that I am not made for this world, and the interactions in dealing with the temporal are simply confirmations that this is not my natural place.

To get my mind and emotions beyond the temporal wrongs and mistakes, the temporal problems that continue to unfold surrounding kitchen cabinets that evolved from one simple lie and wrong-doing of one employee--the financial strain and physical stress of rough living conditions can tempt to deplete the body and soul.

Then I am reminded to pray for increased faith. I pray for those who make what seem to be blatant errors, yet to also factor in that I have continued to offer suffering for various concerns and souls in the world.  Faith lets me know that I will face a backlash from such offerings of my suffering.  The devil of un-love beats back.  My reaction must strive for love, working with faith through love.

This is not easy when the bodily pain increases.  Yet if I consider this as a good thing, a sure result of offering suffering as prayer for good, then I know that what I offered and am praying for is hitting a nerve in the universe.  What can I expect but some backlash and increased suffering?  This is a matter of the spiritual realm, far from the temporal machinations of men and women who exist gripped in battles for power.

And this includes those who desire temporal power within religious bodies, not just the secular organizations.  Somehow, we within the Church must strive for faith working through love, while keeping our eyes open to the realities of some falling to temptation to retain power through man-made laws which can take precedence in their minds over faith and love.  These laws often enough derived from good intentions, but they seem to come down to certain personalities needing this type of structure rather than those able to float in the unseens and unknowns of faith, as well as the intangibles of what-is-love.  God-Is-Love.

Regardless, today I must try to get this tangible body up off the mattress on the floor, and pray my way through the day.  I must try to keep the right elbow functional as it is strained from last week's caulking and painting.  Today there is a respite in tough weather conditions; I hope to paint a final coat on the lower portion of back of hermitage. 

I will pray to keep in perspective that the disasters of yesterday's aborted countertop install and more battles with Lowe's now to get the sink replaced and order yet another cabinet that needs to be taller for above the range--well, all that is merely the fodder of the temporal realm. If the Lord allows me the grace and miracle of being able to continue on until I can sell, I know to not get involved in that which will have me needing to interface with the temporal world as much as this adventure!

Pray for faith working through love!  Remain steadfast members of the Body of Christ, one with another in the vast Church, as those who have faith that works, shows itself, through love of God above all things and others as Jesus loves.


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