I am not speaking of the Sacrament here. I am speaking of the human act of reconciliation.
I confronted one of the anti-Catholic remarkers yesterday. She replied admitting that she did not intend to judge or offend Catholics, that she knows the veneration of relics and Saints is not worship. But she said she was tired and frustrated in her non-Catholic ministry, and the words just came out without thought.
The Orthodox remarker said, "I know I have a lot of old prejudices against Catholics...", the Baptist said nothing at all, and the Evangelical said, "I know Catholics love Christ..."
It was nice to hear that, for once, (because it does not happen very often), that a non-Catholic Christian is sorry for their anti-Catholic words. I was not surprised that this would be her personal response, because I had a sneaking suspicion that this particular non-Catholic (an Evangelical missionary) did not really believe what she had said. Often, the worst words spoken are the farthest from our true intention.
Isn't it in anger where Satan gets a foothold?
I suggested to the missionary that maybe if she did not work against the Catholic Church in a country whose population is nearly 90% Catholic that maybe she would find allies in her desire to spread the Gospel. Maybe they would even support her where she feels without aide and friendship. We Catholics are known for our life support systems...education, healthcare, social services, religious instruction...we like to get into the middle of things and start handing our sandwhiches or Bibles. Heck, we like to encourage non-Catholics to live in peace inside their own faiths.
Perhaps, there is hope for Christian unity after all. I must admit, as a lifelong Roman Catholic, I do not believe in its existence much. I believe unity will come only in heaven, only after human death. Otherwise, I have been rarely impressed with the non-Catholic response to Catholics (like me) saying, "Hey, just try and understand us at least before you condemn..."
Perhaps, some people do not believe that because they know a few key Bible verses they know everything.
We reconciled...Yay God!
I confronted one of the anti-Catholic remarkers yesterday. She replied admitting that she did not intend to judge or offend Catholics, that she knows the veneration of relics and Saints is not worship. But she said she was tired and frustrated in her non-Catholic ministry, and the words just came out without thought.
The Orthodox remarker said, "I know I have a lot of old prejudices against Catholics...", the Baptist said nothing at all, and the Evangelical said, "I know Catholics love Christ..."
It was nice to hear that, for once, (because it does not happen very often), that a non-Catholic Christian is sorry for their anti-Catholic words. I was not surprised that this would be her personal response, because I had a sneaking suspicion that this particular non-Catholic (an Evangelical missionary) did not really believe what she had said. Often, the worst words spoken are the farthest from our true intention.
Isn't it in anger where Satan gets a foothold?
I suggested to the missionary that maybe if she did not work against the Catholic Church in a country whose population is nearly 90% Catholic that maybe she would find allies in her desire to spread the Gospel. Maybe they would even support her where she feels without aide and friendship. We Catholics are known for our life support systems...education, healthcare, social services, religious instruction...we like to get into the middle of things and start handing our sandwhiches or Bibles. Heck, we like to encourage non-Catholics to live in peace inside their own faiths.
Perhaps, there is hope for Christian unity after all. I must admit, as a lifelong Roman Catholic, I do not believe in its existence much. I believe unity will come only in heaven, only after human death. Otherwise, I have been rarely impressed with the non-Catholic response to Catholics (like me) saying, "Hey, just try and understand us at least before you condemn..."
Perhaps, some people do not believe that because they know a few key Bible verses they know everything.
We reconciled...Yay God!
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