On Facebook, I recently saw a post by Archbishop Richard Smith of Edmonton, Alberta, saying that when he has done meetings with members of the archdiocese (probably related to the ongoing summits initiated by Pope Francis), one theme keeps emerging over and over, that the people want instruction. It's very true this is necessary, for in the bible it says "My people are dying because of lack of knowledge" (Hosea 4:6, my translation). In the course of my research and translation of John’s gospel, I realized that what Jesus spent most of his time doing is teaching the people. The subject of this teaching isn’t revealed, but I believe it is exactly the basic things about the Faith and about God, and the nature of the universe that He taught. There is a lot of reasons that this isn’t taught today, but the truth is that throughout history, this kind of teaching is actually very rare. You’d think that when a priest does their homily (or sermon as the case may be), they would do this, but many priests are as confused and in error of some of the truths of the bible and our heritage as most of their parishioners. So how can we get this teaching? God has raised up saints in every generation, and when they teach, they reveal the mysteries of God in full truth to us. These saints are rightly called doctors, because they heal the lies constantly told to us by the secular world, and even by other faithful catholics, about that which matters most, the Truth of the nature of God, the universe, and our Faith.
The problem is that every age uses different words and has different problems. So God has raised up saints in our midst, but we may not even know they are saints. In any case, the true definition of “saint” or “holy” is simply, someone set apart. The saints in Heaven have been permanently set apart, and so we know them to be in heaven, but those here still on earth can be and are still set apart for the service of God. So I, though a sinner and a fool, believe that I have been set apart by God for this purpose. I believe He has given me the spirit of a scholar, to probe the mysteries of the bible. But this activity is never done on its own, or just for self erudition (though it can be useful for that), but to bring fire to those who are in darkness.
My struggle though, is always trying to find ways to do this, since I am an introvert! I have always struggled with blogs, because I quickly end up abandoning them when I become attracted to other interests or when I feel like I am having trouble thinking of things to write. Still, I would like to share this knowledge that God has given me, and I’m wondering if I should attempt to share it through this blog. So I may try my hand at that for a while. Also, if you have any questions or suggestions of how I can go about this, I would appreciate the input! Thanks for your attention and faithfulness, may Christ be ever praised!
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