What influenced the Early Church Fathers

The early church existed in a place and time that had many influences surrounding the early Christians, such as Greek Philosophy, as well as Roman impacts.  I thought it would be interesting to find out how some of the early Church Fathers handled these influences and so while looking, I came across a website called The History Guide that had a lecture on the subject, although the information is a bit spare.  It can be found at this link:  http://www.historyguide.org/ancient/lecture16b.html.  This is what I gathered from this lecture:

                The first Christians regarded Greek thought as merely something for Pagans only to give any esteem to—there was no reason for the faithful to be concerned with such things because they had their faith and the teachings of the Church.  But then Clement of Alexandria, who lived from around 150 to 220 A. D., stated that Greek philosophy was a preparation for Greeks in the same way that the Jewish scriptures prepared the Jewish people for Jesus.  Also, some theologians looked at Jesus as being the Logos and, under the influence of Roman stoicism; people were viewed as having unity in Christ. 

                The lecture goes on to tell us of St. Jerome, who wrote the Latin Vulgate translation of the Bible around 400 A. D., which could be considered a reflection of Roman influence since the very language of the Empire was used.  But of course the real significance would be that Christianity was made the Roman Empire’s state religion just ten years earlier. 

                 There is also discussion about St. Augustine of Hippo, who although at first was attracted to Manichaeism heresy and led a sinful life, converted to a Christian in 387 A. D. as influenced by his mother, St. Monica.  St. Augustine used a number of ideas from Roman and Greek thinkers, including Plato, to write his City of God. 

                It seems most fascinating to see that there are these influences from many sources that give Christians such a multidimensional way of expressing the faith.  I had recently studied in a course that used all sorts of American literature to find truths of the Catholic faith—mostly from non-Catholic authors.  The work of Clement of Alexandria, St. Jerome and St. Augustine as well as the course that I took all inspire me to look around and see what kind of influences can take me deeper into understanding the faith, while still being true to it. 

Work Cited:

The Church Fathers:  St. Augustine and St. Jerome.  The History Guide, 2006.  Web.  26 October 2012. 

Can We Defend the Inquisitions?

             I think that one of the more interesting ways that some people argue against the Catholic Church is to throw out random facts about certain times in history that they believe the Church showed great weakness, unfaithfulness to God and even cruelty.  Is this a valid way of debating people about their beliefs?  Well, it seems as though it is a natural thing to do to point something out in an argument about someone that they cannot defend without feeling embarrassed about it.  So it goes with arguments against the Church—one of the favorite being, “how could the Catholic Church allow something like the Inquisition to occur?” and then go on about all of the torture and killing that happened by the clergy. 

                My usual response to such a question would usually be something along the lines of explaining that the people in the Church are not perfect and it would be unjust to judge the entire Church on those few.  But now, that argument doesn’t seem good enough.  So, I looked online to see if there was something to help me better illuminate what it was that happened during the Inquisition.  I came across a video by Real Catholic TV that gave an explanation which can be found at this link:  http://www.stpeterslist.com/3159/4-sources-to-understand-even-defend-the-catholic-inquisitions/  (by the way, I actually don’t know much about Real Catholic TV or the host of the video, but I thought it gave an interesting way to give the info).  These are some of the things I got from watching it:

                To begin with, one of the points in the video is that we should consider the fact that during the Middle Ages, people took the soul and salvation very seriously and that false teachings should be gotten rid of.  It is not like today, at least in the US, when people’s individual choices are their own business—if you don’t interfere, no one gets hurt.  In an empire of believers, that is not the way to think.  So, when people taught wrongly about the faith, the reaction from the people was severe.  Sometimes, those who taught heresy were killed by those who did not appreciate their doing so.  Therefore, something needed to be instituted in order to protect those who may be unjustly accused and a chance for those who are guilty to mend their ways. 

                How could a system that uses torture to get confessions and burning people as a punishment be considered as something that protects people?  Well, instead of being attacked by an angry mob, those who were accused needed to give a list of people who could falsely accuse them and see if the accuser, whose identity was kept from the accused, was one of them.  This was meant to persuade people from not falsely accusing others as they would be putting themselves in danger.  Therefore, people were protected from the general public (if they were though guilty by them) and from the possibility of being punished by the Church (if they were falsely accused).  According to Fr. John Vidmar, OP, in his book The Catholic Church Throughout the Ages, those who took the law into their own hands had ended and that “the number of those put to death for heresy was reduced dramatically” (Vidmar, 149). 

                Another way they were protected according to the video was that priests stayed at different towns in order for people who may have been guilty to go to confession and be reconciled with the Church before being accused.  This is a great spiritual work of mercy on the part of the Church to offer this to sinners.  This is a very far cry from the image of a hateful, unmerciful Church that is so often forced upon us. 

                Pope Innocent IV, as a last resort, had permitted torture to be used.  And used it was—on 2% of those who accused and were accused—but not permitted for more than 15 minutes.  Fray Tomas De Torquemada, who was in charge of the Spanish Inquisition, did not use it much, but he is often looked at as the worst example of one who used it.  In fact, he was actually someone who wanted justice to be done. 

                Just from the few facts that are discussed here, we can see that there is more to the Inquisition than most people will want to or have the capability to understand, due to ignorance or even bigotry.  I still can’t say that I’m totally not ignorant on the subject.  After all, there were many abuses, which now brings me to my original argument that not everyone in the Church is a perfect and sinless person and that it is not just to blame the entire Church on the actions of a few evildoers.  But armed with more knowledge than I had before, I can conclude that the Inquisitions were not as unrestrained and brutal as many have been led to believe.  I would agree with what Fr. Vidmar said when he wrote, “The Medieval Inquisition was actually a considerable advance in the treatment of criminals” (Vidmar, 149). 

Works Cited

“The Inquisition.”  Real Catholic TV.  Saint Peter’s List.  2010.  Web.  23 October, 2012. 

Vidmar, John.  The Catholic Church Throughout the Ages.  New York/Mahwah, NJ:  Paulist Press, 2005.                                                                       Print. 

Christina's Midterm Entries

City of God: Written by St. Augustine

 

            I have had the opportunity to study a lot of St. Augustine’s work and a reoccurring theme in each of his works I have read seems to be his dedication and awareness to the truth. The City of God seems to be broken into different parts. Essentially though, he is addressing the fall of the Roman Empire, which was believed to be the empire that would last forever in riches and wealth of mind.

            In the first four books Augustine is addressing the sin and vice that had forsaken the Roman Empire. He also addresses the fact that the empire did not last as long as it did because of the false Gods and idols that they worshiped, but because of God, the almighty Father.

            In book six he addresses the people that believe that false gods are to be worshipped for the sake of eternal life. He addresses the philosophy of the heathen writer Varro, denouncing the first two of his three divisions, mystical and natural. Almost directly after he disproves that the mystical and natural can lead you to eternal happiness he does the same with the natural. Augustine ends the first part of his work by saying that demons are evil and should not be worshiped and that only God can offer eternal blessedness. In conclusion, the first part of The City of God is when Augustine refutes the pagan claims that the Roman Empire fell because the majority of its people converted to Christianity and stopped worshipping the Pagan gods. However, Augustine proves their theory illogical because problems and disease still arose when they were worshipping the Pagan gods and the gods did nothing about it. Augustine concludes that perhaps the devastation that they suffered was not due to the lack of worship towards the gods but BECAUSE of their worship of the false gods.

            The second part of The City of God opens by addressing the history and destiny of the heavenly and earthly cities. He addresses their existence by directly referencing Genesis in the Bible. In this second part he parallels the history of the city of heaven with the city of the earth. Generally he explains that the happiness that is found in heaven can be found in the earthly kingdom as well. He also addresses the final judgment, explicitly mentioning that the ones who have done wrong on earth will face punishment. However, in the end, the good will be saved and have eternal happiness in heaven.

            I have read parts of The City of God previous to this assignment but by the end of this assignment I had a whole new appreciation for the way St. Augustine can articulate what the truth is and how the world and heaven are truly one in the same. Our devotion to Christ is what truly sustains us, not the worship of pagan gods and goddesses. I also appreciate how Augustine used sound logic to prove that the pagans were wrong in their beliefs and practices. The City of God, in the big picture, is what truly matters. Therefore, I think it is possible to say that anything in comparison to that is quite minute.

 

Work Cited: The City of God, St. Augustine

 

Constantine and The Cross: 1962 film and review

As I was researching articles for this assignment I stumbled upon a film based on the life of the emperor Constantine. After reading the review, which is pretty neutral (as you will see) I reflected on how the film and media businesses really do have a wealth of great opportunities in their palms. They have the ability to make movies about great men and women, tell the truth and promote goodness. I think this film may have done just that. The review noted that some of the scenes may have been unnecessarily gory, however I would challenge that and say that if gore is/was the truth, than it should not be hidden. After all, the Passion of Christ was an absolutely incredible film and I think if they removed the graphic parts of the movie, it would not be the same.

 

-         http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/87809/Constantine-and-the-Cross/overview

 

Tristan and Isolde

During the time of the Crusades there was also something called courtly love. Tristan and Isolde is a perfect example of this courtly love. Generally, a soldier or knight of some sort fell for a beautiful woman (married or single) and he would proceed to court her through song, mystery and so forth. In the story of Tristan and Isolde, Isolde is single when Tristan and her first meet, however that changes before they have the change to have a serious relationship. Isolde marries and they proceed to have an affair which they call love. It seems as though their relationship is sustained by being apart and then reuniting. It seems as though when they are apart the ecstasy of being together makes the final union all the more satisfying. I brought this up because I feel as though it is relevant to the crusades. The crusades had both positives and negatives and I feel as though the mentality associated with courtly love may have effected how they fought and proceeded in the crusades.

 

-         Work Cited: Notes from Dr. Arden’s Humanities Class.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Lessons of Julian of Norwich in Revelations of Divine Love

    It is the will of God to seek and ultimately see Him, being united with Him in heaven for all of eternity. This is one of the many lessons which is explained in the account of Julian of Norwich of her personal story Revelations of Divine Love.

    In the year 1373, Julian of Norwich, an English mystic and the first autobiographical writer in England, received a total of sixteen revelations as she lay deathly ill after praying to Our Lord for three things. The first was that she could have a deeper and better understanding of His Passion; the second was that she, while still a young woman, would receive such a terrible illness from God so as to unite herself with Our Lord’s suffering, and to be at the point of death (although she did not want to undergo death before uniting herself more closely with God) in order to receive the anointing of the sick. The third and final prayer was the prayer to receive three wounds from Christ, namely, "the wound of true contrition; the wound of genuine compassion; and the wound of sincere longing for God.” Her prayer was answered and the divine love of Christ was presented to Julian during her illness at the age of thirty-one.

    Julian’s work is overall quite remarkable. She provides reflections on her revelations, placing great emphasis on the beauty of the love of God while offering thoughts of her own perplexity of the matter of evil. Through her revelations of Christ’s passion, she received the knowledge of the always-present love and profound mercy of God. Julian, in her first revelation, sees the crown of thorns on the precious head of Our Lord and recognizes the humility and amazing love Christ showed to the world through this action. Furthermore, she relates that “to know the goodness of God is the highest prayer of all,” and goes on to write, “we shall never cease wanting and longing until we posses Him in fullness and joy.” This is her first lesson: that all who follow this desire in their hearts and love God will see Him, recognizing their own humility and nothingness while understanding the goodness of God and His abundant love. Another lesson in the first revelation is to strive for the humility of Our Lady, and that we need the faith, hope, and love she held within her whole being to receive God’s grace in life.

    In the second revelation, Julian sees the beauty of God’s redeeming act, saying, too, that our lesson is to seek God in all things, “wait on Him,” and trust in Him with all our hearts. This, she says, will truly please Him. She explains, “By this faith He makes us ever to gain grace.” The third revelation focuses on the mercy and grace of God with regards to the matter of sin in the world created by God Who is perfect and all good and cannot create anything evil. Julian presents questions about sin, stating she is utterly puzzled by it, but her conclusion is that in the end, God will, as told to her, make all things well. She states that God is a loving Father, loving His creation and forever upholding all that He has made. She explains that although sin may occur, God can never be angry for if that were the case, He would not be showing love to His creatures and as a result, they would die without His love. She questions it again in a later revelation, however, only to become more puzzled in her attempt to comprehend the matter.

    The fourth revelation also deals with sin, yet Julian explains beautifully of the forgiveness and mercy of God. Her lesson in this revelation is to teach us that by the Precious Blood of Our Lord which he poured out for love of us on the cross we shall be washed clean from our sins. She writes, “for ever it flows in heaven, rejoicing to save mankind, such as there are already and those who are yet to come, making up the number of saints.” The fifth revelation consists of the lesson of learning to overcome temptation by the devil through the passion of Jesus Christ. She says that no matter how hard the devil may work to tempt a soul to perform an evil act, if a person desires to be washed clean by Christ’s Blood, all temptation will be gone and God’s love will prevail. In the sixth revelation we see Julian’s joy at the gratitude presented by God for a soul’s suffering for Him, in union with Him. She teaches in this revelation that God is pleased at the willingness and duration of service to Christ and that reward will be great. Julian presents in the lesson that even in times of despondency, which she experienced during this particular revelation, one must never allow Himself to be separated from the love of Christ. She states that we must want the will of God which is “that we should know He keeps us safely, alike in weal or woe,” knowing that God sometimes permits the soul, out of love, to experience suffering in order to become more united with Christ.

    This is carried further in the eighth revelation when she sees the pitiful suffering of Christ as He dies on the cross and the thirst He has, as well as the reasons for His thirst. She said the thirst was both physical and spiritual in that He was physically in want of water as His precious lips were dry, but also in the spiritual sense in that all who love Christ want to suffer with Him and He is pleased with souls who suffer and thirst for Him, loving Him so greatly and having hope to be united to Him in His pain and agony. Julian describes how Our Lady suffered with her Son and says that while we suffer with Him, there is much comfort in beholding the face of Christ on the crucifix, and His look “banishes pain.” She says that in choosing and suffering with Jesus, in thirsting for Him, one’s “own intention is deliberately and eternally set on being united to Our Lord Jesus.”

    Julian offers to us yet again the opportunity to seek the grace of God and to rejoice over our redemption in the ninth revelation. She relates her vision of Jesus saying to her, "If I could possibly have suffered more, I would have done so," and she sees this as the greatest gesture God could make to the soul of man. She says that by the words of Christ saying He would have done more, He meant "How could I not, out of love for you, do all I can for you?" Her lesson: follow the will of God, and it is His will that we should delight with Him in our salvation, being comforted and strengthened immensely. By His passion, "God has brought us out from the eternal pain of hell." He desires for us to be one with Him in heaven. The tenth revelation reminds us more of the redeeming act and teaches the world to see how Christ has loved us by dying on the cross, which is the greatest act of love the world has known. Julian describes the revelation in which the Mother of Christ is revealed next. Julian's lesson in this revelation is the following: "...I am not expected to want to see her physically present here on earth, but rather to see the virtues of her blessed soul, her truth, her wisdom, her charity, so that I can learn to know myself, and reverently fear my God."

    Within the next two revelations, Julian's philosophical and theological notions of God being the Creator of all that there is and that evil does not truly exist are spot on with Church teaching. She states that God can only create good and that sin, a privation of the good, is only known by the pain and suffering it causes. She says that this sin "purges us and makes us know ourselves, so that we ask for mercy." Julian touches once again on the matter of evil and sin and her perplexity at the notion of it. It is here, however, that her neo-platonist ideas come into play. She somewhat ominously states in one concluding thought on matters of this revelation that "all will be alright" in the end and that we will all eventually rejoice in Heaven with God. She does shed light on the importance in wanting always to do the will of God, and by doing so, we will be conforming our will to His will, and this shall please Him and He will reward us, but she says again that in the end "everything will be alright." By saying this again, she gives the implication that there is no reason for any soul to be damned to hell.

    In the final three revelations, Julian continues to offer lessons on the importance of praying for mercy, the importance of prayer and how "even in aridity" prayer is pleasing to God, and additionally teaches us to rejoice over our patient enduring of trouble. Within these final revelations, however, questions arise in the mind of the reader as to what Julian meant by stating that "[i]n every soul to be saved is a godly will that has never consented to sin, in the past or in the future. Just as there is an animal will in our lower nature that does not will what is good, so there is a godly will in our higher part, which by its basic goodness never wills what is evil, but only what is good."

    All in all, the revelations and lessons of Julian of Norwich are quite remarkable and continue to influence Christian thought to this day. There are, however, many questions one must ask when reading this text. It is important to note that Julian was aware that she was still perplexed with regards to certain matters, and thus it is important to be attentive in reading, making sure to read under the guidance of Church teaching on matters of sin, separation from God, and the reality of hell.

A Review of Origen's Treatise On Prayer

A Review of Origen’s Treatise On Prayer

                In the treatise On Prayer by the early Church Father, Origen, there are several ways in which he describes the dispositions and manner by which one is to pray to God.  In this work, Origen attempts to distinguish these ways of praying by providing strong evidence of his explanations mainly through scripture passages.  He makes some points when he writes about how one should pray and what one should pray (Origen, pg. 82). 

                When referring to how one ought to pray, he recommends letting go of all spite toward others before in order to be prepared for prayer.  As he wrote, “When we leave behind bearing malice in coming to pray, we keep the Savior’s commandment, ‘if you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against any one’" (Origen, pg. 100).  While writing about what is prayed, he mentions prayers of supplication, prayer, intercession and thanksgiving, providing many scriptural examples to show what he meant by each. 

                While taking more of a philosophical approach, he also deals with those who believe in God, but does not believe that praying is necessary.  This is because, “God not only foreknows what will happen but also foreordains it, and nothing can happen contrary to His foreordination” (Origen, pg. 91) as the argument goes, and therefore, “’prayer is in vain’” as written to him in a letter (Origen, pg. 92).  To refute this thought, Origen’s argument states that if this is true, no one has freedom and those who believe that this is the case “must admit something extremely foolish—first, that we are not living beings and, second, that we are not rational beings" (Origen, pg. 93). 

               While focusing on how to pray, he gives a beautiful description of when one prays they must seek “heavenly and great things” (Origen, pg. 115) rather than corporal things.  He says that this is because what is corporal is only a shadow of those heavenly things and will surely come to the one praying.  He then goes into several Old Testament examples to show that the needs of the flesh are met when one focuses on the spiritual, so that one does not need to worry about such things.

                It is quite obvious that Origen is very knowledgeable about the scriptures and the ways of Christianity, which is a testament to the great faith and enthusiasm of the early Christians.  However, there seems to be, in this writing, some influence and confusion from other sources that existed at that time.  For example, he does not seem to have the idea of the Holy Trinity being three Persons in one God.  This seems evident when he wrote, “I have spoken sufficiently in the preceding examination on the subject of prayer and…have been capable of receiving it according to the grace given by God through His Christ. (And my hope is that it has been given also in the Holy Spirit; if so, you who read this treatise will judge of its inspiration)” (Origen, pg. 117). This seems to look at the Father, Son and Holy Spirit as three different beings all together.  However, this can be a misjudgment on the part of this writer.            

There is so much more that could be writen about this ancient work, such as his in-depth examination of the Our Father and also when he writes about where would be the best place to pray.  Even though sometimes his words are a bit hard to follow because of the many directions he takes to explain his position on things, Origen seems mostly to have been a very devout, knowledgeable Christian man who truly believed what he wrote.   This piece On Prayer would be a good read for those who want to go deeper into how and what disposition one needs to pray.  It may be advised that it would be better if someone who was able to catch any misunderstandings that Origen may have had as he was from a time where not all doctrine was very well defined.  But other than that, it can be seen that this theological work is truly from a devoted writer. 

Work Cited:  Origen, Origen:  An Exhortation to Martyrdom, Prayer and Selected Works.  Trans:  Rowan A. Greer.  New York:  Paulist Press, 1979.  Print. 

               

The Fourth Lateran Council: a Time of Change in the Catholic Church

The Fourth Lateran Council.  Rome, 1215.

    The history of the Catholic Church is filled with a plethora of incredible figures and so many remarkable events which are of great inspiration and are often impossible to forget. One event in the history of the Church that was of incredible importance in bringing about significant changes in extremely positive ways was the Fourth Lateran Council. With this, under the power of the Holy Spirit working through perhaps the greatest pope, Innocent III (who convoked the council), the secular ideas and rules which had once been pressed upon the Church were now under submission of the Church in its reformation. According to Alan Shreck, the Fourth Lateran Council was the most successful and most impacting councils of the Church.  

  

    Pope Innocent III, in an effort to help many recover from the terrible sadness from the failed crusade, he regained power quite successfully. Papal power was at its peak and reformation in the Church was remarkable. In an introduction to the Papal Encyclicals online, one reads, “[d]uring the pontificate of Innocent III... there appears to have occurred much growth in the reform of the church and in its freedom from subservience to the empire as well as in the primacy of the bishop of Rome and in the summoning of ecclesiastical business to the Roman curia. Innocent himself, turning his whole mind to the things of God, strove to build up the Christian community. Spiritual things, and therefore the church, were to have first place in this endeavour; so that human affairs were to be dependent upon, and to draw their justification from, such considerations.” The introduction goes on to say that “Christian disasters in the holy Land probably provided the occasion for Innocent to call the council. Thus the pontiff ordered a new crusade to be proclaimed. But he also used the crusade as an instrument of ecclesiastical administration, combined with reform of the church, namely in a fierce war against heretics which he thought would restore ecclesiastical society.”

 

     Fr. John Vidmar, O.P., writes in his book The Catholic Church Through the Ages: a History that the Fourth Lateran Council “emphasized the individual’s response to the Gospel, drawing a relation between the vertical (pietas) and horizontal (caritas) which affected everyone.” Essentially for the first time, the lay faithful were given more direction, more explanations were presented, and the Church made changes for the greater community. In an online article in the Catholic Encyclopedia regarding the Fourth Lateran Council, the following is stated: “[T]he pope himself opened the council with an allocution the lofty views of which surpassed the orator's power of expression.... After this discourse, followed by moral exhortation, the pope presented to the council seventy decrees or canons, already formulated, on the most important points of dogmatic and moral theology.”
 

    With over 400 bishops gathered, and more than 800 abbots and priors, as well as other representatives, Catholic reformation came about and it has influenced us for centuries. It was at this council that the religious men gathered presented the Church with the annual duties to go to Confession and to receive Holy Communion. Furthermore, the term “transubstantiation”was approved as the official explanation for the “action of the Eucharist” (Vidmar, p. 154) at the Consecration of the Mass, making it clear that while the accidents of bread and wine remain the same, the substances change into the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ. The seven sacraments instituted by Christ were reaffirmed at seven after much question on the precise number, and this council improved the state of the clergy in that it "demanded better ministers,” as Fr. Vidmar explains, and it approved the orders of Franciscans and Dominicans after hesitancy and scepticism. In addition, we received clarification on the doctrine of the Trinity and the Incarnation, and the Albigensian heresy was condemned. 

     Because of the bishops and all gathered in this remarkable council, we encounter in the Catholic Church a great revision, explanations and clarity on so many practices within the Church, the building of a closer community, and religious freedom. Let us remember this important event that took place in the year 1215, this council which so greatly influenced the Catholic Church and changed the course of history forever. 

Works Cited

Shreck, Alan. The compact History of the Catholic Church, Ohio: Servant Books, an imprint of St. Anthony Messenger Press, 

    2009. Print. 

Vidmar, O.P., John. The Catholic Church Through the Ages: A History. New Jersey: Paulist Press, 2005. Print.

Leclercq, Henri. "Fourth Lateran Council (1215)." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 9. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 
    1910. Retrieved 17 Oct. 2012<http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/09018a.htm>. 

Introduction and translation taken from Decrees of the Ecumenical Councils, ed. Norman P. Tanner. March, 2012. Retrieved    
    17 October 2012. http://www.papalencyclicals.net/Councils/ecum12-2.htm

Christian Martyrs: Our Inspiration 

St. Stephen, the first martyr

   Fr. John Hardon, S.J., once said, “Unless we recover the zeal and the spirit of the first century Christians-- unless we are willing to do what they did and to pay the price that they paid, the future of our country, the days of America, are numbered.” Now one may ask, could it have been that Fr. Hardon had a sense of where the world was going to be in the year 2012? Perhaps. Or maybe he could see that history was repeating itself in many ways. In any case, Fr. Hardon’s words are those of inspiration and wisdom, advice to the young and old alike in our world. 

   Let us take a step back and think for a moment of how the Catholic Church was greatly influenced by the early Christian martyrs. Due to the early Christians who were persecuted and fought to the point of death for their faith, the Church underwent significant development what with an increase in conversions, theological issues coming into view, and fundamental questions arising with regards to Christianity. Do we take what they did for granted? Has our world forgotten what the first century Christians as well as later saints and holy people (such as St. Joan of Arc, those who fought in the Crusades to restore Christianity to Jerusalem, St. Thomas Becket--who was murdered because he fought for rights and liberty of the Church rather than let England overtake it--, those who fought in the Cristeros war, the North American martyrs, and so many more) did to fight for their Faith or their country's freedom? Have we taken for granted the strength and integrity it took to show God that they were ready to do anything to defend His Church, to defend Him?

   To illustrate this point, we see in the first century the early Christians who , for which they were greatly persecuted. The Christians were given a mission to expand the Church for Jesus Christ, to spread the Gospel to all nations, to bring all peoples to the true faith. They were, however, as Alan Shreck writes in his book The Compact History of the Catholic Church, considered to be a secret society, enemies of the state, atheists who refused to worship the gods of Rome. The defense of the Faith was the real “crime” though, and the early Christian martyrs became inspirational witnesses in defending the Church Church, dying out of love for Christ.

   Tertullian wrote that “the blood of martyrs is the seed of the Church,” and rather than the demise of the Christians, what was seen was growth and development because of the courageous men and women defending their Faith. The growth continued; faithfulness, courageousness in times of hardship and terror-- it did not die with the death of many Christians. Grace abounded and more Christians wanted to defend and eventually died for the Faith. Polycarp, Ignatius of Antioch, Sts. Perpetua and Felicity, and so many more gave their lives for Christ. Persecution did end for the most part with Constantine, under whom Christianity was supported, considered to be a unifying force, and protected, but Christianity still needed to be and, in fact, still needs to be, defended. Because of its early defense, though, Christianity did grow all the more. The Church never failed. From the early Christian martyrs we see that because of their willingness to fight for and defend their faith, because of what they accomplished, good was brought out. Christians fought with all of their strength and something in which they believed was able to be protected, even by the government. 

  In the year 2012, we need to stand up for our beliefs and rights given to us by God. In recent times, there has been a devastating attack on the basic tenets of our religion. I am sure we would all love to see the answer to our prayers be a positive and immediate one and see our government allow Christians to have religious freedom, to witness the HHS Mandate be overthrown, for people to recognize the utter horror and complete destructiveness of abortions, for abortion to be made illegal and to be ended once and for all, for birth control to be eliminated entirely, for so many more things to be put to an end. 

St. Joan of Arc

   Our answer lies in the example of the early Christian martyrs and the martyrs throughout history: we need to keep fighting, no matter what. We can't accept or give in to doing things against our faith. There were growing pains for the early Church, and there is no denying there will be growing pains for us. As we are readying ourselves and preparing for the upcoming elections, we have as Americans the duty to vote and make our voices heard. We have the obligation to defend the unborn, to stand up for our inalienable rights endowed by God. We have the duty to fight for and defend our faith and beliefs. Let us be unafraid to evangelize and attempt to bring others to a closer union with Christ and Our Lady (especially in this Year of Faith), even if it means more persecution. Let us always remain as the apostles of Jesus Christ we are called to be, spreading the Gospel and defending our Faith with all that we have. Let us be inspired by the Word of God, by the wisdom of the Holy Spirit, and let us take a step back and be the “living stones... being built up as a spiritual house... to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” (Peter 2:5) Let us go forward with the ministry we are called to; let us go forward following the conscious of our call. Let the witness and inspiration of the martyrs in the history of the Church penetrate our souls and embolden our hearts. 

Works Cited

Shreck, Alan. The compact History of the Catholic Church, Ohio: Servant Books, an imprint of St. Anthony Messenger Press, 2009. Print. 

Vidmar, O.P., John. The Catholic Church Through the Ages: A History. New Jersey: Paulist Press, 2005. Print.