The Bread of Life

One of my last stops before returning to the Catholic church was at a historic protestant church where the founders of our country once worshiped.  Even though I referred to myself as a "recovering Catholic" and essentially thumbed my nose at the place from which I came, there was a lot that simply struck me as wrong and no amount of pretending not to see could ease my conscience.

One particular Sunday, a former Catholic priest gave the homily.  The rector of the church announced at the end of the service that this former Jesuit had sought and was granted admittance into this protestant church as a priest.  Not long after, one of the assistant priests referred to this same ex-Jesuit as his husband from the pulpit.  I happened to really like this assistant priest because he was a gentle person and he gave stirring homilies.  He had a beautiful singing voice and was approachable and kind.  But he was destroying himself just the same and  preaching from the pulpit that his lifestyle was somehow normal and acceptable meant he was leading others down that dark alley with him.

St. Peter wrote of Christ that "no deceit was found in His mouth."  Jesus was a straight-shooter in today's parlance.  He didn't parse words and get caught up in minutiae. He told it like it was.  When He spoke with the Samaritan woman at the well, He told her that she was right not to refer to having a husband in the singular because in fact she had had many husbands.  He didn't tell her it was ok to have had so many husbands.  He didn't tell the woman caught in adultery "if it feels good, keep doing it"  He forgave her and bade her to sin no more.

Some of our brothers and sisters are headed down that dark, dirty alley where they are lead to believe that the depravity in which they are engaged is normal, acceptable and moral.  Sometimes, I get angry because I'm trying to raise children in a world where they get conflicting messages.  They hear things that try to lead them to believe that if they reject the depravity of homosexual behavior that they are being hateful and judgmental.  The world would like them to believe that charity means anything goes, so long as no one is being murdered (that is, of course, unless the lives of the unborn are being snuffed out, in which case the world thinks murder is perfectly acceptable.)

One of the Center City churches I occasionally visit is most easily reached by traveling through a very seedy part of town where the street signs all have rainbows on them.  It saddens me to see so many young women who have butchered themselves in an attempt to look like men, walking hand in hand with other young women.  I think of the terrible destruction of God's creation when I see young men who have completely emasculated themselves, conversing with their arms around each other's waists.  I finger my little wooden Rosary and pray that they might be lead to conversion before it's too late.

Jesus told us that He is the Bread of Life.  He spoke of marriage between a man and a woman.  He ate with sinners, but  with the admonition to go and sin no more.  To pretend that it's ok for two people of the same sex to marry one another in the name of charity and love is anything but.