08/05/2023

Amongst the vast changes in the world that I have seen in my own lifetime is this one that is  most probably the greatest, "this one" being the screen and keyboard that I am now using. Sixty years ago when I was going to a job in Turkey, I had to go many, many times to the Library to borrow books to learn about that country. Today after reading the passage from the Acts, I wanted to know where Lycaonia was situated and why it had a different language. In two minutes that question was answered.

The mission of Paul and his companions was successful in that they planted the seed, the Good News, throughout  the "whole world" and overcame many hardships and dangers. We are not told that Paul and Barnabas preached to Jews in Lycaonia but the people proclaimed them as Zeus and Hermes in their own language. This could only have happened in a pagan crowd and both Paul and Barnabas were horrified in their fundamental Jewishness to hear these blasphemies and countered them by rushing into the crowd to prove their humanity.

John's account of his remembrances of Jesus' teaching tells us today that God is Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The First General Council of the Universal Church came about to unify the teaching of the various Churches throughout the world.The Parousia had not happened and the fundamental beliefs about the way  to salvation had to be the same not for the sake of "unity" but because there is only Jesus and thus only one Way Truth and Life.

The result of the Council did not suit everybody and some of us knew that what we had learned through, prayer, the scriptures and meditation was closer to the Lord's teaching than what the others were agreeing to preach. Each of us who has ever lived has known what it is to be "right" and so it was that the formulation of the creed enabled us to have different versions of the "Good News" which  were right because that is how "I" interpreted the words of the Creed. Paul warned us about "slogans" and he was right. 

Today Jesus tells us that there are three persons in our God. His Father, Himself and The Holy Spirit. We are weird and wonderful beings who can out of 1,2 3 conjure up divisions, merciless killings large scale raping and looting and talk ourselves into believing that all these sins are doing the will of God because "filioque" is the right/wrong way to understand the totally unknowable Holy Spirit, Son and Father.

Dear Lord you know that my body is not up to much today and that medicines may mess with my brain. Help me keep control of my will that my soul concentrate on you and humbly continues to seek your forgiveness and mercy. May Mary and all the Saints pray that we on earth can truly know that when our hearts are open the Holy Spirit will enter in and then we will know an intimation of heavenly peace here on earth and let us join our prayers to theirs that the penitential punishment of Purgatory will absolve the Holy Souls all of their self justifications of sin on earth which is Satan's greatest ally in his war against our souls..