37 thoughts on “Protestant REACTS to the Catholic Catechism Scandal of Evil Day 44”
Jesus suffered for you and for me. God the father offered up his only son to suffer in complete obedience to his father … to repair the relationship that Adam broke through a selfish act of his own.
One man Adam broke our holiness with God, another man Jesus restored the holiness of people with God through an act of complete obedience.
As tragic as evil is on this earth, there are greater acts of love that come out of that evil.
Tragedy wakes people up from their numb routine to pay attention to what truly matters in this world. They pay attention and actually care for their fellow neighbor.
Those who have overcome tragedy are beacons of hope and support for others who are just trying to learn how to overcome similar tragedy.
We love hero’s born out of tragedy … they resonate with us more than a hero who never has anything truly bad happen to them.
It’s easy to be happy when your life is great and nothing ever goes bad in your life.
But show me a person who can maintain their faith and find love and empathy in the worst time of their life … and I will show you a person whose faith in God will never die. Satan will never conquer them and those who are around that person will be inspired … oh how many more souls will be saved by that type of hero than someone who lived on easy street.
The problem of evil is ever present but never more present than when it impacts you particularly. Dealing with an aggressive form of MS has forced me to come to terms with all of this. At the end of the day no matter how slighted I may feel or how unjust I may believe it may be that I have so much stripped away from me it pales in comparison to the cross. Were in our blessed lord was tortured stripped naked and nailed to the wood of the cross taking the punishment that we all so justly deserved. The book of Job was also helpful, as well as remembering what we see and go through now is only a grain of sand in comparison to eternity. I was inspired afterwards offertory suffering is actually a part of Protestantism that most groups don't recognize or interpret the relevant passage through their own tradition. Colossians 1:24 "Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I complete what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church," Paul certainly seems to be implying that if you are suffering it can be offered for others. Perhaps because it gets tied to purgatory that it gets ignored.
Another analogy I use is " we man make machines(creation) to work(good), not with the intention(will) to let it breakdown(evil). The more complicated the machines, the more number ways it can breakdown. Freewill is also one of the (too good) ingredients in our make up which opens too many ways to breakdown too.
Hello, So good to see you post again. 😊 I enjoy your videos. I think what draws me in every time is your “brain”. I think I understand your logic very easily, and I have that same drive for learning and understanding. I also like asking these hard questions of myself, and really digging in, being more aware as you very well said. So thank you again for doing this. 😊 I see that only 1-2 people recommended books on redemptive suffering, and that some people gave you bible verses. But no one has yet mentioned one of my favorite saints, and modern-ish model of redemptive suffering. Her name is Saint Faustina, and before I say much more, I have to mention that she is a mystic. So if you haven’t read any mystic saints before, it will help to read a bit about what that means. I just went over to the wikipedia page for Christian mysticism, and reading over that should provide you with enough context. That being said, in her diary she narrates two things: (1) her experiences with suffering, and (2) what Jesus revealed to her during her contemplative prayer about redemptive suffering. I think that reading her diary has been the most illuminating thing to me regarding that topic, so I wanted to share that with you. I hope that it helps. And don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any questions. Keep up the great work. 🙂
Ps. Just saw Noe Martinez’ comment, and would like to echo that anything by Scott Hahn is also awesome. 😄
Pps. I just remembered I also really liked this book by John Janaro, titled Never Give Up. It talks about some of what you touched on in this video, so I thought you might like it too.
Hi Anna! Turn to St Paul to learn of redemptive suffering. A wise priest sent me to St Paul to help my own suffering, which at the time was all encompassing. This same priest also asked me to read an Apostolic Letter from St. Pope John Paul II titled "Salvifici Doloris" (Latin for Redemptive Suffering). There is much to contemplate, and to pray with in this document. And much to find comfort in and to carry on within.
Thanks again for sharing your thoughts as you, as well as Catholic's like me, as we follow along with Fr. Mike and the Catechism. At times I shed tears of joy whilst reading the Catechism, that feeling of being overcome by something greater than I. And its a good feeling, like coming home. Cheers!
Have you seen Father Barron’s “Catholicism” video series? One of the sections is on this question. It does not have the depth of discussion that the catechism has, but it is good watching.
Sorry for double posting but I wanted to keep the topics separate. Even is not a thing it’s the absence of a thing, right? Like cold is not a thing scientifically, it’s a lack of heat. As I struggle myself with this question, I realize that it’s the very evil, the very lack of God, that shows me God is here, is Good, is real. Sorry words are so poor in conveying what I mean. God knows what he is doing and He is good, and other than that I don’t know if my “understanding “ of this is on the mark. But in my own experience that emptiness of evil, really points me to God. God doesn’t stop evil He defeats it, and to me it looks like He defeats it by turning the evil itself on its head. Like the cross. He turned the greatest evil into the greatest good. I’ll stop now because words don’t suffice.
Thank you for another lovely video. Absolutely loved the image of shaking our fists at the sky and saying "Why would you allow such GOODNESS". LOL
I have come to understand that "Evil" is not a "thing" in its own right, it is simply the absence of good. Just as cold is not a thing, it is the absence of warmth (heat). A cavity in a tooth is the absence of healthy enamel. Cancer is the absence of healthy tissue.
With Ana's participation in this study of our Catholic Catechism makes the study much more interesting! Her insights are so good and very valuable. By listening to her, I sense her sincerity and good heart. God manifest to us in so many ways, and having Ana here in this group is another great example of how God makes Himself present to us. Thank you, Ana, for your great points of views and explanations! God bless you immensely. Please do not wait too long to make another great video like this last one. You did a great job! I liked listening to you through the whole video. It was amazing!
God bless you Anna. You sought and God is honouring this and revelation is bringing light and enlightenment. Very honest and insightful sharing. God bless your mission 🙏🕊❤
Jesus, Mary, Joseph, Peter, and Paul were not Roman Catholics. They were all Jewish. The first non-Jewish believer in the gospel is Cornelius in Acts chapter ten. Every believer before Acts chapter ten is 100 percent Jewish. When the LORD commanded Peter to go preach the gospel to Cornelius Peter didn't want to go because he knew that Cornelius was not Jewish. The Bible, Old Testament and New Testament, was written by Jews. The LORD commanded Peter three times, "Feed My sheep" (John 21:15-17). Therefore, Peter gave the keys to the kingdom directly to the sheep and not to the magisterium. And Peter wrote to the sheep (2 Peter 1:5-11) and said, “…add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins. Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall: For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1:5-11). In other words, Peter says that if we do what he says that this will open the doorway to heaven "abundantly."
Peter has been feeding the sheep by sharing the keys to the kingdom with anyone who will do what he tells them to do in 2 Peter 1:5-11 and the entrance to the kingdom will be abundantly ministered to them. And they will never fall. So, why doesn't the church that says that they hold the keys to the kingdom teach their people how to have the power to live holy and the power to never fall?
Why don't they teach their people to do what Peter said? Scholars can give you good advice but do not ever give totalitarian control of your thinking to any elite group of men (the magisterium). If you do, then you have blinded yourself and cannot even see the scriptures that are right in front of you. "…Hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and not perceive: For the heart of this people is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes have they closed; lest they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them" (Acts 28:26, 27). It is your individual responsibility to know the scriptures. "And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest" (Hebrews 8:11). On judgment day you will have to answer for yourself. You will not be able to point at anyone else and say, "It's their fault."
Peter by his personal example never acted as if having the keys to the kingdom meant asserting authority over other people. For example in Acts 15 when a very important matter was to be decided before the assembly the final verdict was given by James and not by Peter (Acts 15:19). Paul gave commandments to the churches he established and not Peter (1 Corinthians 7:17 and 16:1). Also, Paul did not take his orders from Peter. In fact Paul rebuked Peter to his face. “But when Peter was come to Antioch, I withstood him to the face, because he was to be blamed” (Galatians 2:11).
"…Ye know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and their great ones exercise authority upon them. BUT SO SHALL IT NOT BE AMONG YOU: but whosoever will be great among you, shall be your minister: And whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be servant of all" (Mark 10:42-44).
For resources on redemptive suffering, I would recommend Father Corapi’s Good Friday homily from 1998. In fact his three Triduum homilies that Holy Week. Despite his later fall/scandal many years later.
Your transparency, vulnerability and wrestling out loud with God and the Problem of Evil; Physical, Emotional, Spiritual Suffering; and Death is very moving. Thank you for sharing. In my own grappling with this problem that has such sharp teeth, I've come to see God's allowance of evil, suffering, and death as the means by which we can come to love to the highest degree possible, like Jesus. Jesus absorbed evil and loved through it. He not only told us to "Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be called children of your heavenly Father," but he did it. The greater the evil and suffering, the greater potential for an even higher love to absorb and love through it. So, deep, so powerful. The best way to the best possible world is to overcome the greatest evil with a greater love, until there is a cosmos full of people who can love like that, like Jesus.
We who are physically blessed have eyes to see and an intellect to reason and we who are spiritually blessed have spiritual vision toward discernment of spirits. With our physical eyes we can observe suffering yet we fail to understand suffering by reason. It is only by our spirit we envision suffering with the discernment of spirits we see through the sufferings of this life and know there is worse suffering in hell and the absence of suffering in heaven yet it's only through suffering we can fully understand this. And by what measure of suffering do we see God's love through Jesus' sufferings. And by what measure of grace do we receive when we unite our sufferings with Christ's?
Some believe that miraculous healing is what is best for sufferers. I say it's by showing merciful love to all sufferers. For love cannot be usurped by even faith nor hope yet prayer is enhanced efficaciously when love abounds in it. What is it but a little more to say, "I love you: I'll pray for you./?" To merely say, "I'll pray for you," is an incomplete service but to say, "I love you and I'll pray for you," means more than medicine of comfort. In fact this more meaniful than miraculous healing.
I love you and pray for all of you that a piece of the peace of heaven finds you in your sufferings whatever they may be. Amen
First of all, I want to say that I love your videos and have been following them from the beginning. A little about me: I came into full communion with the Catholic Church at the Easter Vigil 2022, after being in the United Methodist Church my whole life. I know what it is like to explore the Catholic faith, and I admire your curiosity to learn more about it.
Regarding your comments around redemptive suffering, I have a few thoughts. This was also a very new concept for me as I learned about the faith, but it was one of the most beautiful things I learned during my journey. For years, as so many Christians do, I struggled to make sense of the suffering in my life, in the lives of my loved ones, in the world, etc. Knowing that we can unite our suffering with Christ's (cf. Colossians 1:24) and that His suffering gives redemptive value to ours was such a comforting thought for me and has helped me immensely in my spiritual life. I know you mentioned in your video that you wish you could "offer it up" to God like Catholics do, but you didn't feel like you could. I guess I'm not sure why you couldn't. I understand that Baptists don't teach redemptive suffering, but I feel like you could still offer up your sufferings to God, even if your faith tradition may not adhere to that practice. If you feel called to do that, I don't see why you wouldn't be able to, as long as you were comfortable doing so. Just a thought!
To your question about resources on the topic, the best resource I can recommend that gives a great explanation of redemptive suffering is a video by a Dominican Friar, Fr. James Brent, entitled (you guessed it) "Offer It Up." It is a truly beautiful video and the clearest, most succinct explanation of redemptive suffering I've ever heard. Here is the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HU8YnfvkJoc
Please keep making these videos. We're all journeying with you.
You have added a new perspective on being a Christian soldier “behind enemy lines”. Thank you for sharing such good theology with us . I’ll be getting and reading Mere Christianity later the week. Blessings on your journey Anna
I forgot to mention two books by Eleonore Stump on the problem of suffering and its antidote: Wandering in Darkness and Atonement. These are exceptional.
Preach it, sister!!!We Catholics talk about purgative or redemptive suffering more than most denominations, but we don't own the concept! Jump in, make it your own. My mom always said to let no suffering go to waste, teaching me from a youngish age to offer up the trials, pains, heartaches for the good of others.
So great to hear from you again! These are great questions that have to be asked. Isn't it wonderful that, if you are willing to examine the hard aspects of our faith, God will lead you to the answers you need?
I think you would like GK Chesterton (who was Lewis’ writing ambition and ‘hero’) JRR Tolkien brought CS Lewis back into a Christianity and the were thought friends. Another book/author is Born Fundamentalist Born again Catholic by David B. Currie. These helped me A LOT… is the a shipping aggress I could send these to you? It would be my honor 🤓
At your Step 2, I'm reminded of Les Miserables. Written by an avowed atheist, and all sort of horrible, unjust things happen, but ultimately a truly just and joyful ending for the protagonist. Cannot watch the last scene, as Jean Valjean dies seeing his daughter taken care of, without crying my eyes out.
Also, A Man for All Seasons, where Sir Thomas More defends the law, even though it may protect the devil, because without those laws, we'd have no protection when the devil turned round on you. God's love and goodness apply to us all.
Jesus suffered for you and for me. God the father offered up his only son to suffer in complete obedience to his father … to repair the relationship that Adam broke through a selfish act of his own.
One man Adam broke our holiness with God, another man Jesus restored the holiness of people with God through an act of complete obedience.
As tragic as evil is on this earth, there are greater acts of love that come out of that evil.
Tragedy wakes people up from their numb routine to pay attention to what truly matters in this world. They pay attention and actually care for their fellow neighbor.
Those who have overcome tragedy are beacons of hope and support for others who are just trying to learn how to overcome similar tragedy.
We love hero’s born out of tragedy … they resonate with us more than a hero who never has anything truly bad happen to them.
It’s easy to be happy when your life is great and nothing ever goes bad in your life.
But show me a person who can maintain their faith and find love and empathy in the worst time of their life … and I will show you a person whose faith in God will never die. Satan will never conquer them and those who are around that person will be inspired … oh how many more souls will be saved by that type of hero than someone who lived on easy street.
The problem of evil is ever present but never more present than when it impacts you particularly. Dealing with an aggressive form of MS has forced me to come to terms with all of this. At the end of the day no matter how slighted I may feel or how unjust I may believe it may be that I have so much stripped away from me it pales in comparison to the cross. Were in our blessed lord was tortured stripped naked and nailed to the wood of the cross taking the punishment that we all so justly deserved. The book of Job was also helpful, as well as remembering what we see and go through now is only a grain of sand in comparison to eternity. I was inspired afterwards offertory suffering is actually a part of Protestantism that most groups don't recognize or interpret the relevant passage through their own tradition. Colossians 1:24 "Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I complete what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church," Paul certainly seems to be implying that if you are suffering it can be offered for others. Perhaps because it gets tied to purgatory that it gets ignored.
Another analogy I use is " we man make machines(creation) to work(good), not with the intention(will) to let it breakdown(evil). The more complicated the machines, the more number ways it can breakdown. Freewill is also one of the (too good) ingredients in our make up which opens too many ways to breakdown too.
As a fellow protestant, i'm hoping you'll give us your take on the articles about Mary! I'm having a very hard time with this section of the catechism
This made me want to hang out at bars some more.
Suffering without love is unendurable and love without suffering can be mere words ~Scott Hahn
Redemptive suffering through the eyes of Saint Paul, by two former protestants.
https://youtu.be/0xwGSThPczQ
There are many videos also out there about suffering hope this one helps too.
Anna, post that poem – it sounds incredible!!
The real key for me was learning that the real difference between good and evil was causation vs experience.
It is evil to CAUSE suffering. It is good to EXPERIENCE suffering.
Check out Bishop Baron’s Stations of the Cross. Confronting suffering is part of what is addressed
Hello,
So good to see you post again. 😊 I enjoy your videos. I think what draws me in every time is your “brain”. I think I understand your logic very easily, and I have that same drive for learning and understanding. I also like asking these hard questions of myself, and really digging in, being more aware as you very well said. So thank you again for doing this. 😊
I see that only 1-2 people recommended books on redemptive suffering, and that some people gave you bible verses. But no one has yet mentioned one of my favorite saints, and modern-ish model of redemptive suffering. Her name is Saint Faustina, and before I say much more, I have to mention that she is a mystic. So if you haven’t read any mystic saints before, it will help to read a bit about what that means. I just went over to the wikipedia page for Christian mysticism, and reading over that should provide you with enough context. That being said, in her diary she narrates two things: (1) her experiences with suffering, and (2) what Jesus revealed to her during her contemplative prayer about redemptive suffering. I think that reading her diary has been the most illuminating thing to me regarding that topic, so I wanted to share that with you. I hope that it helps. And don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any questions. Keep up the great work. 🙂
Ps. Just saw Noe Martinez’ comment, and would like to echo that anything by Scott Hahn is also awesome. 😄
Pps. I just remembered I also really liked this book by John Janaro, titled Never Give Up. It talks about some of what you touched on in this video, so I thought you might like it too.
Hi Anna! Turn to St Paul to learn of redemptive suffering. A wise priest sent me to St Paul to help my own suffering, which at the time was all encompassing. This same priest also asked me to read an Apostolic Letter from St. Pope John Paul II titled "Salvifici Doloris" (Latin for Redemptive Suffering). There is much to contemplate, and to pray with in this document. And much to find comfort in and to carry on within.
Thanks again for sharing your thoughts as you, as well as Catholic's like me, as we follow along with Fr. Mike and the Catechism. At times I shed tears of joy whilst reading the Catechism, that feeling of being overcome by something greater than I. And its a good feeling, like coming home. Cheers!
P.S. great reference to St Peter at the end 😊
Another excellent one!!!! Please keep them coming..
Have you seen Father Barron’s “Catholicism” video series? One of the sections is on this question. It does not have the depth of discussion that the catechism has, but it is good watching.
Thank you so much for sharing!
Sorry for double posting but I wanted to keep the topics separate. Even is not a thing it’s the absence of a thing, right? Like cold is not a thing scientifically, it’s a lack of heat. As I struggle myself with this question, I realize that it’s the very evil, the very lack of God, that shows me God is here, is Good, is real. Sorry words are so poor in conveying what I mean. God knows what he is doing and He is good, and other than that I don’t know if my “understanding “ of this is on the mark. But in my own experience that emptiness of evil, really points me to God. God doesn’t stop evil He defeats it, and to me it looks like He defeats it by turning the evil itself on its head. Like the cross. He turned the greatest evil into the greatest good. I’ll stop now because words don’t suffice.
Thank you for another lovely video. Absolutely loved the image of shaking our fists at the sky and saying "Why would you allow such GOODNESS". LOL
I have come to understand that "Evil" is not a "thing" in its own right, it is simply the absence of good. Just as cold is not a thing, it is the absence of warmth (heat). A cavity in a tooth is the absence of healthy enamel. Cancer is the absence of healthy tissue.
God Bless you in the project!
With Ana's participation in this study of our Catholic Catechism makes the study much more interesting! Her insights are so good and very valuable. By listening to her, I sense her sincerity and good heart. God manifest to us in so many ways, and having Ana here in this group is another great example of how God makes Himself present to us. Thank you, Ana, for your great points of views and explanations! God bless you immensely. Please do not wait too long to make another great video like this last one. You did a great job! I liked listening to you through the whole video. It was amazing!
God bless you Anna. You sought and God is honouring this and revelation is bringing light and enlightenment. Very honest and insightful sharing. God bless your mission 🙏🕊❤
Jesus, Mary, Joseph, Peter, and Paul were not Roman Catholics. They were all Jewish. The first non-Jewish believer in the gospel is Cornelius in Acts chapter ten. Every believer before Acts chapter ten is 100 percent Jewish. When the LORD commanded Peter to go preach the gospel to Cornelius Peter didn't want to go because he knew that Cornelius was not Jewish. The Bible, Old Testament and New Testament, was written by Jews.
The LORD commanded Peter three times, "Feed My sheep" (John 21:15-17). Therefore, Peter gave the keys to the kingdom directly to the sheep and not to the magisterium.
And Peter wrote to the sheep (2 Peter 1:5-11) and said, “…add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins. Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall: For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1:5-11). In other words, Peter says that if we do what he says that this will open the doorway to heaven "abundantly."
Peter has been feeding the sheep by sharing the keys to the kingdom with anyone who will do what he tells them to do in 2 Peter 1:5-11 and the entrance to the kingdom will be abundantly ministered to them. And they will never fall. So, why doesn't the church that says that they hold the keys to the kingdom teach their people how to have the power to live holy and the power to never fall?
Why don't they teach their people to do what Peter said? Scholars can give you good advice but do not ever
give totalitarian control of your thinking to any elite group of men (the magisterium). If you do, then you have blinded yourself and cannot even see the scriptures that are right in front of you.
"…Hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and not perceive: For the heart of this people is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes have they closed; lest they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them" (Acts 28:26, 27). It is your individual responsibility to know the scriptures.
"And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest" (Hebrews 8:11).
On judgment day you will have to answer for yourself. You will not be able to point at anyone else and say, "It's their fault."
Peter by his personal example never acted as if having the keys to the kingdom meant asserting authority over other people. For example in Acts 15 when a very important matter was to be decided before the assembly the final verdict was given by James and not by Peter (Acts 15:19). Paul gave commandments to the churches he established and not Peter (1 Corinthians 7:17 and 16:1). Also, Paul did not take his orders from Peter. In fact Paul rebuked Peter to his face. “But when Peter was come to Antioch, I withstood him to the face, because he was to be blamed” (Galatians 2:11).
"…Ye know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and their great ones exercise authority upon them. BUT SO SHALL IT NOT BE AMONG YOU: but whosoever will be great among you, shall be your minister: And whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be servant of all" (Mark 10:42-44).
… … …
For resources on redemptive suffering, I would recommend Father Corapi’s Good Friday homily from 1998. In fact his three Triduum homilies that Holy Week. Despite his later fall/scandal many years later.
Your transparency, vulnerability and wrestling out loud with God and the Problem of Evil; Physical, Emotional, Spiritual Suffering; and Death is very moving. Thank you for sharing. In my own grappling with this problem that has such sharp teeth, I've come to see God's allowance of evil, suffering, and death as the means by which we can come to love to the highest degree possible, like Jesus. Jesus absorbed evil and loved through it. He not only told us to "Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be called children of your heavenly Father," but he did it. The greater the evil and suffering, the greater potential for an even higher love to absorb and love through it. So, deep, so powerful. The best way to the best possible world is to overcome the greatest evil with a greater love, until there is a cosmos full of people who can love like that, like Jesus.
We who are physically blessed have eyes to see and an intellect to reason and we who are spiritually blessed have spiritual vision toward discernment of spirits. With our physical eyes we can observe suffering yet we fail to understand suffering by reason. It is only by our spirit we envision suffering with the discernment of spirits we see through the sufferings of this life and know there is worse suffering in hell and the absence of suffering in heaven yet it's only through suffering we can fully understand this. And by what measure of suffering do we see God's love through Jesus' sufferings. And by what measure of grace do we receive when we unite our sufferings with Christ's?
Some believe that miraculous healing is what is best for sufferers. I say it's by showing merciful love to all sufferers. For love cannot be usurped by even faith nor hope yet prayer is enhanced efficaciously when love abounds in it. What is it but a little more to say, "I love you: I'll pray for you./?" To merely say, "I'll pray for you," is an incomplete service but to say, "I love you and I'll pray for you," means more than medicine of comfort. In fact this more meaniful than miraculous healing.
I love you and pray for all of you that a piece of the peace of heaven finds you in your sufferings whatever they may be. Amen
Anna,
First of all, I want to say that I love your videos and have been following them from the beginning. A little about me: I came into full communion with the Catholic Church at the Easter Vigil 2022, after being in the United Methodist Church my whole life. I know what it is like to explore the Catholic faith, and I admire your curiosity to learn more about it.
Regarding your comments around redemptive suffering, I have a few thoughts. This was also a very new concept for me as I learned about the faith, but it was one of the most beautiful things I learned during my journey. For years, as so many Christians do, I struggled to make sense of the suffering in my life, in the lives of my loved ones, in the world, etc. Knowing that we can unite our suffering with Christ's (cf. Colossians 1:24) and that His suffering gives redemptive value to ours was such a comforting thought for me and has helped me immensely in my spiritual life. I know you mentioned in your video that you wish you could "offer it up" to God like Catholics do, but you didn't feel like you could. I guess I'm not sure why you couldn't. I understand that Baptists don't teach redemptive suffering, but I feel like you could still offer up your sufferings to God, even if your faith tradition may not adhere to that practice. If you feel called to do that, I don't see why you wouldn't be able to, as long as you were comfortable doing so. Just a thought!
To your question about resources on the topic, the best resource I can recommend that gives a great explanation of redemptive suffering is a video by a Dominican Friar, Fr. James Brent, entitled (you guessed it) "Offer It Up." It is a truly beautiful video and the clearest, most succinct explanation of redemptive suffering I've ever heard. Here is the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HU8YnfvkJoc
Please keep making these videos. We're all journeying with you.
Your brother in Christ,
Joey
You have added a new perspective on being a Christian soldier “behind enemy lines”. Thank you for sharing such good theology with us .
I’ll be getting and reading Mere Christianity later the week. Blessings on your journey Anna
I forgot to mention two books by Eleonore Stump on the problem of suffering and its antidote: Wandering in Darkness and Atonement. These are exceptional.
Preach it, sister!!!We Catholics talk about purgative or redemptive suffering more than most denominations, but we don't own the concept! Jump in, make it your own. My mom always said to let no suffering go to waste, teaching me from a youngish age to offer up the trials, pains, heartaches for the good of others.
Anna, I recommend you read St. Thomas Aquinas. He describes this amazingly. Very theologically and philosophically.
So great to hear from you again! These are great questions that have to be asked. Isn't it wonderful that, if you are willing to examine the hard aspects of our faith, God will lead you to the answers you need?
Hi. You're asking really good questions. I would like to ask you one: so far, for you, does the catechism feel 'true'? God bless,
I'm also Protestant and doing the Catechism. On day 73. I have found every day to be taught so much from Fr. Mike.
I am praying for you. Please do this often. How can I support to keep this going?
You are an amazing young woman, thank God for wonderful people like you! Love your channel!!!
I think you would like GK Chesterton (who was Lewis’ writing ambition and ‘hero’) JRR Tolkien brought CS Lewis back into a Christianity and the were thought friends. Another book/author is Born Fundamentalist Born again Catholic by David B. Currie. These helped me A LOT… is the a shipping aggress I could send these to you? It would be my honor 🤓
At your Step 2, I'm reminded of Les Miserables. Written by an avowed atheist, and all sort of horrible, unjust things happen, but ultimately a truly just and joyful ending for the protagonist. Cannot watch the last scene, as Jean Valjean dies seeing his daughter taken care of, without crying my eyes out.
Also, A Man for All Seasons, where Sir Thomas More defends the law, even though it may protect the devil, because without those laws, we'd have no protection when the devil turned round on you. God's love and goodness apply to us all.
I love your videos! Please keep them coming!
Excellent episode. Have you read any GK Chesterton? He was a contemporary and friend of CS Lewis. I highly recommend his book “Orthodoxy”