Today is the
feast of St Matthew today. St Matthew was a tax collector who dropped
everything and followed Jesus when Jesus called him. He later went on
to write his version of the Gospel that bears his name. His version
of the Gospel was one of the four versions that record the Church’s
understanding of Jesus and of his teaching. The sad thing today is
despite the consistent teaching of the Church through centuries, many
have rejected the teaching of the Apostles and claim to know the
truth about Jesus Christ. Which is why in North America alone, we
have more than 30,000 Christian communities who claim they know the truth. By
doing so, they destroy the unity of the Church and go against what St
Paul stressed in the first reading: there is one body and one
Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, one
Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above
all and through all and in all.
Catholics believe
that the Catholic Church has the fullness of truth because Jesus
revealed everything to the Apostles and their successors in the
Catholic Church. Some say this is an arrogant claim. But the Church
claims this not to boast, but to let people know where they can find
truth. She merely repeats the claim of her Bridegroom that he is the
Way, the Truth and the Life.
This is why it is
extremely sad that many prominent Catholic lay theologians and clergy
prefer to preach their own opinions rather than the authentic
teaching of the Church. By doing so, they confuse Catholics about the
truth such that today, using the phrase, the teaching of the
Church, causes confusion because some of those who represent the
Church preach error.
So how will we
know if someone preaches the truth? We know whether someone preaches
the truth if it is based on the teaching of the Apostles and of the
early Church. The teaching of the Church from the time of the
Apostles to the Early Church Fathers has been consistent throughout
centuries. It is only now, in our generation, that many intentionally
teach error for their own purpose. These claim to want unity so they
bully the faithful to compromise and be silent. But unity within Holy
Mother Church is not achieved by compromising the truth or accepting
what others say so as not to offend them. Unity is achieved by
remaining faithful to the teaching of the Apostles. The first reading
tells us that the gifts of Christ should build up the body of Christ
in unity and knowledge of the Son of God. This is done only when the
truth is taught and when Jesus Christ is preached. If a teaching does
not preach Jesus Christ truthfully or distorts his teaching, it destroys the Church which is the Body of Christ.
The Church grows
in unity and knowledge of the Son of God when she calls people to
repentance to follow Jesus. Jesus called Matthew and Matthew
responded to that call. Matthew’s response scandalized the
Pharisees because they thought holiness is obedience to the law. Yet,
for Jesus, holiness is achieved by following him through repentance
after one hears the truth proclaimed.
One of the more
common opinions today is the Church needs to be pastoral, therefore,
loving and accepting because God is merciful. While Scripture
repeatedly tells us God is merciful and his love endures forever, it
is erroneous to preach that God is merciful therefore, I can do what
I want without changing myself because he accepts me for who I am.
This preaching does not lead to a knowledge of Jesus Christ. This
teaches that there is no need for repentance, therefore, no need for
forgiveness therefore, no need for a Savior. If there is no need for
a Savior, then Jesus died for nothing because there is no need to
atone for sin. The sick need a physician. But if the sick does not go
to the physician, then the sick will die, soon. If the sinner does
not go the Jesus, the sinner will also die in their sins. The Gospel
says, Jesus came to call sinners and this call requires a response.
Matthew shows how to respond: drop everything and follow Jesus.
This is the
message of the Apostles which the Psalm describes as the message that
goes out through all the earth. This has been the message through
centuries and will be the message until the end of time. There are
many heresies in the Church today, but we know that like all
heresies, these will fail because not even the gates of hell will
prevail against the Church. The message since the time of the
Apostles is: we are sinners. We need to repent and in doing so, Jesus
becomes our Savior. There is no other Savior than Jesus Christ. So we
accept the Sacrifice of Jesus at this mass, relying on his mercy,
that we are saved, not by anything else, but by the grace and mercy
of God when we repent of our sins and follow Jesus.
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