Does God Exist?

One of the discussions in my Intro to Christian Theology class this week was the question of God's existence. So, its very cool that the Archdiocese of Milwaukee and Bishop Donald J Hying, came out with a new video answering this very question as part of the C4 series during the Year of Faith. Bishop Hying not only answers the question but also gives great examples of God's existence by bringing up different aspects of everyday life to prove his point. Please watch this video and share it with others as part of the New Evangelization and the Year of Faith!

Ask A Seminarian Open Forum Question #1

Just recieved a question from Victor S E Moubarak. Here is what he had to say-

Victor S E MoubarakOctober 15, 2012 6:58 AM

Great idea about the Open Forum. Here's a question, perhaps unfairly aimed at you.

The Year of Faith aims to teach Catholics about Vatican II (50 years on). But in reality, many Catholics and Christians go to church to pray and worship God as best they can. They are not high-minded intellectuals like the priests and bishops who inhabit the Church. To them, Vatican II and gatherings of bishops in synods in Rome are light years away from their daily lives, lived as best they can according to God's Word.

Is the Church risking to confuse/alienate its congregations with a whole year of teachings which may well be above people's heads?

Best wishes and thank you for your vocation.

God bless.

John Bender:

Great Question! The Year of Faith not only teaches about Vatican II, but it also celebrates the very purpose that it tried to make, 50 years ago. The problem that comes up now however, is that everyone has a totally different view on what Vatican II was. The Year of Faith attempts to use the Catechism of the Catholic Church as a tool to teach the faith. Ultimately, the Catechism isn't meant to be over someone's head, but rather, is a means of explaining difficult aspects of faith in a easy to understand form. It is very difficult to sum up the main point of Ecumenical documents and councils, but I will do my best.

 Vatican II came at a time when Blessed Pope John XXIII knew the world had been through two world wars, through persecution and trials, but he knew the church needed a revival. Because of the problems of the world, Catholics tried to live separate from it. Instead of living in our Catholic bubble, Pope John XXIII wanted to revitalize the church and inspire people to bring Christ into the world. What he was referring to was an earlier form of the New Evangelization. No longer should we as Catholics stay within our Catholic bubble, but we should be evangelizing and bringing people to Christ by our example. This means that  the time that simply going to Mass, but then going and hiding our faith when we go to public places, needs to end.

The Catholic faith is constant and unchanging, but we need to present it to a world that is constantly changing. The church wants to present the faith and teachings in new ways that people of today's day and age can understand. and is by no means, trying to confuse people. We need to live out our faith and bring people to a better understanding of it, perhaps through social media and technology which much of the world uses today.  We do not need to be high-intelligent to do this. The Year of Faith attempts to give people a way reflect on how we can present Christ to a world by  not totally dependent on Him. It is not asking us to do anything radically new, but rather continuing to incorporate Christ in our daily lives. The main goal for us by the end of this year is to better understand our faith and become better evangelizers.

I hope this helped.

 God bless you!

Continuing to Proclaim the Good News

“Lord, You give the great commission: “Heal the sick and preach the Word.”

Lest the Church neglect its mission, and the Gospel go unheard,

Help us witness to Your purpose with renewed integrity,

With the Spirit’s gifts empower us for the work of ministry.

Lord, You call us to Your service: “In My Name baptize and teach.”

That the world may trust Your promise, life abundant meant for each,

Give us all new fervor, draw us closer in community.

With the Spirit’s gifts empower us for the work of ministry.”

                                                         -Jeffery W. Rowthorn (1978)

This is one of my favorite church hymns. As you listen, you can envision Jesus sending out the apostles on a bright morning, the blusterous winds blowing their hair all around; the apostles being strengthened by the Holy Spirit. They are to be sent to preach the Gospel to all the corners of the earth. The apostles were probably not physically prepared, but they did have the confidence and the reassurance of Christ.

This great story should have the same meaning for all of us. When we are thrown into situations where we feel unprepared, we should be re-assured of Christ’s presence at all times. We must be vigilant at all times, ready to preach the Gospel at all costs. With this great mission, we also are aware that many times we will be faced with opposition, many times from our own brothers, our own families and friends. These very people who we least expect ridicule or harm from can try to derail our mission due to misunderstanding, but with steadfast faith, hope and love for our Creator, we shall not be shaken. We shall continue to push forward the mission of Christ and call others to venture closer to him. If one of our brothers or sisters is ridiculing us for doing something to help bring people closer to the truth about our Lord, then we use this opportunity to pray for them and then never cease doing what we know is right. Never can it be said that evangelization is a not a good thing.

Over the course of these past few months I have received much feedback about my blog from family and friends, but a lot from new visitors. Most of the feedback has been very positive. I’m glad to know that my writings are helpful enough for people to use them as a resource to discern their vocations more closely. Surprisingly, I have also received negative feedback. I have received negative reactions comments about my letter to President Obama and for having a “corny” writing style when describing seminary life and aspects of prayer and faith. Despite these criticisms, I have no intention of giving up my blog or writing. My writing is not for my own benefit, but it is for the laborers whom the Lord of the Harvest has called to explore the opportunity to serve him in this way.

 Evangelization will always be confronted with criticism, but the important thing to do is to continue on the path that the Lord has sent us on. Christ himself was faced with scrutiny and criticism each and every day while He continuously told us the truth. Isn’t our goal to become more like him? If so, then we are on the right path. We will never give up doing what we have been called to do despite those who totally misunderstand our mission. We are always in the presence of Christ and He will never lead us astray or put us through something that we can’t handle. Don’t give up on him. He never gave up on us.