China Retreat
November 10th - 13th
Nov. 10th - Mass at 12 noon
prayer service follows the Mass.
Nov. 12th - Mass at 12 noon
Nov. 13th - Mass at 12 noon

Prayer for Grace for our Country

                November 9, 2018 

                R. Can you imagine that Jesus, the Son
                of God, walked the earth and they treated
                Him as if He knew not much, tried to
                argue with Him, called Him crazy.

                    Fr. Carter and I often talked about
                how Jesus lived a private life for
                30 years. Can you imagine with men's
                jealousies and envy, punishment,
                violence, meanness, pride, what
                Jesus would have endured if He was
                "out there" as the Messiah.

                    Look at how Herod was and
                the flight into Egypt.

                    Wherever Mary appears, the devil
                is lurking.

                    When God calls something and gifts
                us – the devil doesn't miss a beat
                to tempt people to oppose God and
                bring down violence, destruction
                where God wants love.

                    The devil is real.

                    Can you see how Christ was
                opposed the years of His public
                life?

Ephesians 6: 12

Luke 23: 34

Jesus said, ‘Father, forgive them; they do not know what they are doing.’ Then they cast lots to share out his clothing.

                R. Jesus lived a life with His Mother
                Mary and step father Joseph – We are to
                live the Mysteries of Christ's life
                in our life. The Incarnation goes
                on in us.

                R. We identify with Christ's life in
                our life – which is why we meditate
                on the Mysteries of the Rosary.
                We identify in the joys and sorrows
                of Jesus, His suffering and victory,
                His labor and prayer.

                We unite to Jesus in the Mass –
                in all our lives.

Matthew 28: 20

and teach them to observe all the commands I gave you. And look, I am with you always; yes, to the end of time.'

                R. Blue Book 11 speaks of our role in
                    helping in the work of redemption.

                R. By sinning we offend God –
                By opposing what we know God wants,
                we set ourselves up against God.
                Sin is ugly – many times very
                secret and hidden and then after
                sinning trying to bring others down
                because of sinning.

                    In the Garden, Eve disobeyed
                God and listened to satan – she
                then coaxed Adam to disobey God.

                    When we sin we set ourselves
                above the Creator who created
                all the men on the earth. Man in
                his littleness is very brazen to
                see all of God's creation and His
                gifts to us and then brazenly
                sin before Him and continue to
                hold out, if he does, opposing
                God's will, while he operates like
                a spoiled child chiding their parents.

                    God wants us pure, wants
                our souls holy, with His life
                in us – how corrupt it is
                to try to lie and trip up others
                by trying them with malice
                intentions to get them to lose
                control. God is All Good –
                Why would a man, chosen by God
                for a special calling, partake in
                foulness and lies and temptations
                against his brothers who God
                has called him to love and
                help to get to heaven. Corruption –
                to try to make another lose
                control while they play innocent,
                and uninvolved after they set
                the trap for evil.

                    Poison – to keep setting traps
                for the very calling of God
                they were to serve. It is
                ugly and meanness to set
                a trap for another human
                being and then walk away innocent
                before God with the intention of
                getting away with it. Parading
                such evil before God who is
                All Good and they are to serve
                in their vocation.

                Man when he sins sets himself
                above God.

                God is Almighty, All Powerful,
                All Good –

                The vastness of His Creation is
                    almost beyond our minds –
                    how is it a man, baptized,
                    and called to a holy life
                    can do such secret
                    evil things and then lie
                    about the traps they set and
                    act as if they did nothing.

                God knows everything –

                Christ will be our judge –

                We need a loving relationship with Christ
                    so He will take us to heaven
                    with Him.

                The more a person gives into the
                    deadly sins, the more
                    distorted their vision –

                Practice makes perfect, the old
                    saying goes –
                    If a man practices lying,
                    deception, of course he
                    is developing a big habit
                    that is unwanted before God –

                The deadly sins of pride, anger,
                    jealousy, lust, slothfulness,
                    envy and gluttony are sins –

                The more a person gives into pride,
                    he can be in the habit of putting
                    himself first before God and
                    everything else.

                How can a person measure
                themselves before the All -
                Powerful God?

                Holiness is an attribute –

                Defying God is absence
                    of what one is to be –
                    Emptiness – darkness –
                    corruption –

                And it is the heart –

                It is the heart that is commanded
                    by God to love Him first –
                    So what we do – we do for God –
                    then disappointments - what
                    people think - how they
                    treat us takes on less and
                    less importance –

                When everything is centered
                    in God –

                God is so beautiful –

                God is Magnificent

                God is All holy –

                Why would a man choose
                    defilement of God –
                    rebellion against God and
                    in pride try to prove he is great?

                God is all good –

                God is our Creator –

                Sin offends God!!

                Sin against God and our
                    neighbor is selfishness –
                    very mean many times –
                    in setting traps –
                    in deceiving –
                    in taking out what is to
                        take place for
                        power, attention
                        and meanness.

                God is love – Love gives –

                As a person grows in greater sin
                    and darkness and isolation –
                    they have all this energy for
                    chaos, confusion, deception,
                    lies, meanness, argumentation,
                    anger, envy, slothfulness –

                And little or no energy to give –
                    to love – to say thanks –
                    to welcome others –
                    to walk in the image and
                    likeness of God –

                What we have - God has
                    given to us –
                    He gives!!

                Think of a person that gives and
                    gives to us and then the
                    person disrespects and
                    offends that person grossly,
                    in ugliness.

                    Ingratitude –

                Jesus died on the cross for our
                    sins – imagine the sinner
                    parading before God in
                    rebellion and impudence
                    and expecting to get away
                    with evil behavior with
                    an arguing, self-righteousness
                    attitude –

                Offending God – Day after day –

                Holding out while they ignore the
                    love and life they are to give
                    to serve God –
                    Day after day –
                    Week after week –
                    Month after month –
                    bitter, enraged – while they
                    are the offenders –
                    Acting like they are offended –
                    NERVE

                Jesus is the victim –
                    Jesus died for us –
                    We are the offenders who
                        sinned –

                Mary says:

                    Gaul –
                    to offend God and
                    then act like they are
                    offended when they defile
                    and disobey God –
                    and parade before Him
                    holding out –

                R. Sin is committed against the
                    All Good God –

                It is against our heavenly
                    Father –
                    who commands us to
                    put Him first –

                Who commands us to love Him
                    with our whole heart, our
                    whole soul and our whole
                    being and love our neighbor
                    as ourselves –

                Did you ever see rotten fruit –
                    Fruit, vegetables are good
                        for only so long and
                        they get rotten.

                God loves us – He isn't a
                    God far away –
                    He is interested in
                    every detail of our lives.

                Jesus wants us to dwell in His Heart
                    of deepest on-fire love –

                Our Father, calls Himself
                    our Father –
                    He sent God the Son
                        to pay for our sins.

                R. What about mortal sin and
                    how we turn ourselves
                    in opposition to God
                    who loves us as a Father.

                A mortal sin is a complete
                    rejection of Jesus Christ –

                It disrupts the union we have
                    with God –

                We are setting ourselves
                    up in defilement
                    of Jesus – rebelling
                    against Him –
                    offending our Father –
                    turning to and serving
                    the evil spirit –
                    the devil over God the
                    Holy Spirit.

                When a person sins, then
                    tries to hold on – hurting
                    and destroying others
                    unity – Instruments in churches
                    meant to serve God –
                    they turn their back on Jesus,
                    the Crucified, and reject
                    Him, His love and suffering
                    He gave for us –

                We are temples of the Holy Spirit –
                    God dwells in our souls –
                    Look what mortal sin
                    does to that!!

                Think of what happens to
                    a soul in grace –
                    and then what happens
                    to that soul if they
                    give into mortal sin.

                Being in the state of mortal sin
                    and rejecting God –
                    holding out in sin –
                    is terrible darkness and
                    doesn't feel good.

                God gives us a sharing in
                    His life in baptism –
                    He forgives the person
                    who is sorry with a
                    firm purpose of
                    amendment –

                God gives mercy to those
                    who seek Him –

                God wants purity of conscience
                    (no lies)

                God wants purity of heart –

                We are affectionate to God –

                We detach from inordinate
                    attachments that are
                    selfish and sinful –

                Religious especially should
                    have the goal of a
                    sinless life –

                We consecrate our hearts
                    to Jesus and Mary –
                    this is what this
                    means –

                Examination of Conscience is
                    necessary –
                    Fr. Carter did it twice a day!

                We are to raise up out of
                    habitual sin –

                Help raise others up –

                Not live to take others
                    down –

                While we walk away
                    and say I did
                    nothing when
                    there has been sin.

                We are to stop the same sins –
                    disobedience
                    argumentation –
                    sinning and living to get
                        away with it
                    seeking power
                    disorder
                    starting chaos
                    causing confusion
                    lying about the truth
                        for frustration
                        and provoking

                JESUS: HOW THIS OFFENDS ME.

                Excerpt from Response in Christ by Fr. Edward J. Carter, S.J.

^SIX    The Christian and Sin 

We should not have a sin-centered mentality. Christ wants us to focus our attention on the positive aspects of the Christian existence. Still, we should not minimize the existence of sin and the part each of us has contributed to the sinfulness of the world. Anyone who tends to doubt the enormous dimension of sin throughout man's history has only to read scripture to be reminded of the truth. Every age has been hauntered by sin's presence, our own being no exception. Some say that the modern world is not conscious of sin, but this observation does not seem to be entirely true. Modern man has articulated his consciousness of sin very noticeably through contemporary literature, philosophy and theology.

To be realistic, then, each of us must be properly conscious of sin, of our own sinfulness, of the fact that sin constitutes one of the major obstacles to the proper growth of the Christian life. 

1. The Nature of Sin

What is the nature of sin? Contemporary theology emphasizes that sin is not primarily a violation of a law, but a disruption of personal relationships. Sin is a refusal to love. Serious sin is a radical refusal to love. Venial sin is a partial refusal to love. 

The most obvious personal relationship that is affected by sin is that between God and the sinner. In sinning a man fails, to a lesser or greater degree, to accept God's loving gift of Himself. He fails also to respond with his own gift of love. In serious sin man refuses intimate friendship with God. In venial sin he dulls the ardor of that friendship. Man, in so far as he sins, maintains that he does not want his life to be directed by the loving hand of his heavenly Father. He wants to be a law for himself; he wants to be the one who decides what is good for himself and what is not. Schoonenberg observes: "Especially in the prophets sin is an aversion from and an unfaithfulness to Yahweh himself; hence it is placed in the heart rather than in the wrong deed. We see that aversion, that rebelliousness, that lack of faith which precede the act of transgressing the Law already in the story of the sin in paradise, where it is presented as the wish of possessing autonomously the knowledge of good and evil, of being independently the Law unto oneself. . .”¹ 

As we sin and fail to love God, we close in upon ourselves. We prevent a further growth in openness to transcendence, to God and to His grace. We block off the source of our only real self-development and fulfillment. To the extent that we close in upon ourselves in sin, to that extent we feel the misery of sin. This misery of spiritual "self-enclosedness" is a faint participation in the essential pain of hell. The damned are eternally and completely closed in upon themselves, completely deprived of God and other personal relationships. This, then, is hell – the damned really experiencing no one but themselves. Hell is God's ratification of the choice which the unrepentant serious sinner has himself made. This choice is one of radical self-isolation. 

Sin is primarily a refusal to love God, a refusal to be loved by Him, to be guided by Him. In sinning, man seeks for a false fulfillment, and therefore actually becomes impoverished. The great St. Augustine puts it this way: "For when the soul loves its own power, it slips from the common whole to its own particular part. Had it followed God as its ruler in the universal creature, it could have been most excellently governed by His laws. But in that apostatizing pride, which is called 'the beginning of sin', it sought for something more that the whole; and while it struggled to govern by its own laws, it was thrust into caring for a part, since there is nothing more than the whole; and so by desiring something more, it becomes less. . .”² 

Yes, sin is an act disruptive of one's relationship with God. But sin has other dimensions also. It is a refusal to love other men as we should. For the Christian, sin is an offense against the covenant life of the People of God. In some way the sinfulness of the individual Christian makes itself felt in the corporate body which is the Church. The Christian, in sinning, is failing to love the corporate good of the People of God. He is failing to contribute his share to the progressive maturation in Christ of the total Christian community. The Christian in his sin becomes a burden to the People of God.  

Sin also is an obvious refusal to love others in those instances when one directly harms others through his transgression. So many sins come under this category: theft, all forms of uncharity, social injustice, scandal, detraction. Furthermore, not only does one man often sin against another, but he frequently leads another into sin. In God's plan man is supposed to help his neighbor achieve his temporal and eternal happiness, but how often, even among Christians, the opposite is true. Not to make a positive contribution to the true growth of others is failure enough, but to be a positive hindrance is a far greater evil. 

There is still another way in which the sinner refuses love to his fellowmen; when man sins he makes his contribution to the "sin of the world.”³ He thus adds to that huge, negative weight, nourished by the sins of the centuries, a weight which is always trying to draw man away from his God-given destiny. This mass of sinful ugliness, this "sin of the world," always has its considerable influence, but at times its hideousness makes itself especially manifest. The great race riots which have tragically risen up recently in various parts of the United States are examples of these special manifestations of the "sin of the world." Such events are not isolated instances of sins connected with race. In back of such tragedies there is a long history of grave social and racial sins, of seething hatred of white for black, and black for white. Such accumulated sinfulness in regard to race is part of the "sin of the world." 

There are many other examples of these special manifestations of the "sin of the world." There are the world wars and the lesser wars, with their share of unbelievable accounts of the hatred which man can impose upon his fellowman. There are the histories of the various crime syndicates throughout the world with all their blatant categories of human degradation – narcotics, prostitution, terrorization and the rest. There are the sins of colonialism and the sins of communism. 

The "sin of the world" with its stark and bold manifestations is a sickening reality. But a reality it is. And each man's sinfulness adds a little to this universal world sin. Each man's sinfulness contributes to sin's divisiveness. Man is intended to help Christ progressively unify all creation more and more into Himself. When man sins, he contributes to the disruptive and disunifying force of the "sin of the world." 

Sin, then, because it is a failure to love God, man and the world, is selfishness. Sin seems to offer some sort of happiness, or advantage, or fulfillment. But this is a delusion. Sin can accomplish none of these things, because man's only real happiness and fulfillment comes from his authentic relationship in love with God, his fellowman and the rest of creation. Sin works against all these relationships. 

Sin is so hard to understand because it is an absurdity. But if we are to grow properly in the Christian life, we must have some basic realization of what sin is, and of God's attitude towards sin and the sinner. Our best source for such a mature realization is given to us in the crucified Christ. In this figure we can know all the Father wants us to comprehend concerning sin. First of all, Christ crucified tells us very starkly of the overwhelming heinousness of sin. We know that sin is overwhelmingly evil because it alone could nail Incarnate Goodness to the cross. Secondly, Christ crucified speaks to us concerning the justice of God. God's justice does ask satisfaction for sin – yes, even that satisfaction which is the death of His Son. Thirdly, and very importantly for us poor sinners, the crucified Christ speaks to us unmistakably and overwhelmingly of the Father's great love and mercy towards us. Because of this love and mercy we can be so positive about human existence, for great as is the power of sin, the love and mercy of the Father, incarnated in His Son, is infinitely greater. This is our peace and consolation. 

God's love and mercy moves the sinner toward repentance, and when the sinner repents, God's love changes him. In Isaiah the prophet we read: " 'Come now, let us talk this over, says Yahweh. Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.' " (Is 1:18). 

Included in our sorrow for sin is a resolve to take the proper means and precautions to avoid sin in the future. One of the reasons we fall into the same sins with the same frequency is that we tend often enough not to go to the root causes of our failures, and, consequently, we often fail to apply the more efficacious remedies. All this not to say that we should become morbidly introspective in looking at sinfulness. However, without succumbing to this type of introspection, we all must allow for appropriate self-examination and self-knowledge. 

Part of this self-examination and self-knowledge includes the manner in which I handle temptation in my life. The proper attitude toward temptation lies between two extremes. The person at one extreme is overly fearful of temptation, concentrates too much on avoiding it, and can even tend to equate temptation with sin. Such an attitude toward temptation breeds a negative mentality toward the Christian life, and detracts from the peace, joy and happiness which Christ wants us to experience. 

The opposite attitude is that which is careless towards temptation. To take reasonable and grace-inspired precautions against temptation is not to be negativistic, but realistic. It is to realize that I am a sinner, and that there are various ways by which I can be led to sin. I cannot avoid all temptations, but out of loyalty to Christ, man and the world, I should not recklessly bring temptation upon myself. 

Despite our best efforts there will always be some sin in our lives, unless God were to give extraordinary graces. There is only one human person, as far as our certain knowledge goes, who has been preserved from all sin. This person is Christ's mother, Mary. Let us remember this very important point, however. The Church's teaching that we cannot avoid all venial sin without a very special assistance from God refers to semi-deliberate venial sin. With God's ordinary graces we can avoid all fully deliberate sin, both serious and venial. It is this fully deliberate sin which is such an obstacle to our proper growth in the Christian life. Finally, let us remember that as we grow in Christ, even the number of semi-deliberate sins become fewer.

2. The Sacrament of Penance

All of us are sinners, and God in His mercy has made special provision for this fact. He has given us the sacrament of penance. It is fitting – in fact necessary as regards serious sin – that the Christian incarnate his sorrow for sin through this sacrament. This is in keeping with the incarnational and sacramental dimensions of our life of grace. These dimensions impel us to exteriorize or incarnate our interior life of grace. The central focus for such exteriorization is the Mass and the sacraments. This exteriorization satisfies both our corporeal and social nature. 

As regards this social aspect of grace-life exteriorization, the Christian must always remember that he is a member of the new covenant, he is a member of a community. In sinning he has not only failed to love God, he has also sinned against the Christian community, and against man in general. As he expresses his sorrow for sin to God in the sacrament of penance, the Christian also gives expression to this communal aspect of his Christianity, because the sacraments have a very definite communal dimension. They are the sacraments of a community, the People of God. Through the sacrament of penance, therefore, the Christian expresses his sorrow to God in community and he likewise receives God's forgiveness in community. 

Certain contemporary practices which strive to bring forth more fully the communal aspect of the sacrament of penance are to be highly recommended.⁴ The practices we speak of are those in which there is a preparation for private confession and absolution through communal readings, prayer and examination of conscience.  

What about the frequency of receiving the sacrament of penance? Some in the Church today seem to be questioning the value of frequent confessions of devotion, that is, confessions which are not necessary because there is no serious sin. What is the truth of the matter? First of all, it must be admitted that in the early Church this sacrament was administered much less frequently that it is today. Gradually, the practice of frequent confession inserted itself more and more into the life of the Church. It is difficult not to admit that such a practice has taken root under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Frequent confession, although not necessary, has various values. Rahner, in his usual penetrating manner, gives a contemporary description of the value of frequent confession of devotion.⁵ The new Dutch catechism puts it very simply: "Some Catholics have the habit of receiving the sacrament frequently. If this is the result of anxieties, it is not advisable. But if it is due to a desire to meet Christ as the Lord who forgives, frequent confession can be a very evangelical practice."⁶ 

In conclusion, we remind ourselves that the struggle against sin is part of the Christian participation in Christ's death-resurrection. In baptism we die to sin and rise to a newness of life. We are constantly living out one aspect of our baptism, then, through our continual resistance to the forces of sin. As with all elements of our Christian existence, such an effort requires motivation. We can use a variety of motives, of course, but all of them ultimately will be centered in Christ. To grow in the realization of what sin has cost Christ is to grow in the determination to avoid sin. To permeate such determination with love of Christ is to respond to Him who has loved us first: "The life I now live in this body I live in faith: faith in the Son of God who loved me and who sacrificed himself for my sake." (Ga 2:20).

 ______

1. P. Schoonenberg, Man and Sin (Notre Dame, Indiana: Fides, 1965), p. 8.
2. St. Augustine, The Trinity, Bk. 12, Ch. 14 (Washington: Fathers of the Church, 1963), p. 356.
3. For one description of the "sin of the world", see Schoonenberg, Op. cit., pp. 98-123.
4. One description of such services is given by A. M. Roguet, O.P., "Les celebrations communautaires de la penitence" in Vie spirituelle, 116 (1967), pp. 188-202.
5. Cf. Karl Rahner, Theological Investigations, Vol. III (Baltimore: Helicon, 1967), pp. 177-189.
6. A New Catechism (New York: Herder & Herder, 1967), p. 459.