Accepting & Living Church Teachings
Mark S. Roberti, Director of Stewardship
Heartland Parishes of Ellis County

Most Rev. Samuel Aquila, Bishop of Fargo, N.D., recently came out with a pastoral letter for his parishioners. Every Catholic needs to read it. It is entitled, "You will Know the Truth, and the Truth Will set You Free."   You are not going to see this in mainstream press, so I am going to synthesize parts of it and add a little commentary myself.

Bishop Aquila starts by strongly emphasizing that many of today’s Catholics are being more influenced by the secular culture in which we live than by the teachings of Jesus Christ.  Likewise, he candidly admits that many Catholics have an "inadequate understanding of the Catholic faith."

He says that catechetical formation in the last 30 years has failed to properly pass on the faith to the present generation(s).  That is certainly true, but if we were to place blame, who would be at fault...bishop, priests, catechists, parents, or ourselves?  I think it’s all of the above.  As Church, we are responsible for each other.  As individuals, we are responsible for ourselves.  We have all dropped the ball.  We need to pick it back up, individually and collectively.

An integrally related point of Bishop Aquila’s concern is people who call themselves Catholic "even rejecting the principle that we must follow what the Church believes and teaches?"  He explains that whether or not we chose to believe the tenets of the faith, they are the truth.  They are the standard to which we will all be held accountable

The letter points out that we are increasingly being drawn into in a value system that is, frequently, diametrically opposed to that which we -- as Catholics -- are supposed to believe.  Artificial means of contraception, abortion, embryonic stem cell research, cloning, euthanasia, pornography, unmarried sex, homosexual unions, styles of dress, perverse art and music, etc, are some of these more pervasive dangerous influences.   

We are now so accustom to their presence in our culture that we are becoming oblivious to their detrimental impact upon our families, our faith, and the very dignity of the human person.  This “intellectual” philosophical trend is called relativism; “Your truth and my truth are just difference points of view.”  Cardinal Ratzinger, the Prefect for the Doctrine of the Faith in Rome has called “relativism” the most serious threat to our faith today. 

We need to recognize that this "relativism" is not only wrong, it is also evil.  To deny absolute truth is to deny the very God who is “the way, the truth, and the life.”   We become cooperators with the side of evil when we buy into such world view. We, ourselves, become a "Trojan Horse" in the City of God.

What must we do? According to Bishop Aquila, "We must deepen our understanding of what it means to live out our faith in the world."  He suggest reading the Catechism of the Catholic Church and other Church documents such as the Documents of Vatican II and Pope John Paul’s encyclicals.  Believe it or not, they are quite readable.  They are also exceedingly informative.   

The best way is to start with the Catechism.  If you don’t already have one, get one.  Look at the footnote citations at the bottom of the page.  Get the related documents it cites.  I believe that not only will you be convinced by the teachings of your Church, you will also be proud of them.    

The mass media and private and publicly funded foundations are doing everything they can to weaken the Church’s influence in our lives and the world. They are promoting what Pope John Paul II has called a "culture of death."   If they can get us to believe that the Church’s teachings are irrelevant in today’s world, they win.   We are carried into the treacherously powerful current of relativism...which empties into a veritable rip tide of chaos.    

In conclusion, understand that salvation is neither universal nor automatic. Something of paramount importance to you and your family is at stake here.   In knowing the teachings of the Church, "you will know the truth...and the truth will set you free."  You will also be impelled to stand up for your Lord, your family, your Church, and your country. That’s what a good steward is supposed to do.