I must say, the longer I am a Catholic the more I am "blown away" (as said 'back in the day'...) by what our Lord has done for us, especially through the Church He established.
Not only did he create the entire universe and time itself, he chose to become one of us for our salvation. God has never been an angel. He has never been any of the other heavenly hosts. But he became a human being, and after his death his human body was glorified and ascended into heaven. The Word of God has a human body in heaven.
Can you imagine that? God himself thinks so highly of us, who he created in his image, that the Second Person of the Holy Trinity sits on his throne with his crucified then glorified human body!
Although sinless, he took our sins upon him and suffered and died for us. He died for us sinners. Wow.
In 1996, at the age of 38, I came home to the Catholic Church. I grew up as an Anglican and in university I had a lot of contact with evangelical Christians. What I began to realize was that Jesus did not leave us a bible. He established a Church. He left the deposit of faith with his Church.
This Church is a Church that teaches with Divine Authority. There is no 'wiggle room' in the Church established by God!
His Church wrote the books of the New Testament and eventually, through the Holy Spirit, compiled the Canon of Scripture.
The early Christians had the Jewish scriptures and the oral teachings of the Apostles. The written teachings and the oral teachings/traditions are what the Holy Spirit uses to communicate Truth to the Body of Christ. Never scripture alone. That idea is a somewhat 'modern' invention, largely thanks to a former disobedient priest named Martin Luther.
Since we have both the Scriptures and Tradition the Holy Spirit has taught us more.
We now know that God crowned a mere human as the Queen of heaven.
Oh how God loves us!!!
Image from: https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsmM7-6ffKfgmG7h-DF_wi_F0S7q-uko_D1iSfHN-phPQbRKabw0Yeoh6jBaix7nhk5wPDFbriVz0k0Gz48eb4ff4UJOCCrMFVUGopkiwcrkN-4xr8Cuv2y1bVk-DLYzsNzEFTmOPi0Ls/s1600/CoronationMary.jpg
Through Apostolic succession, this Church, the Body of Christ, has as its earthly head the successor of Peter, the Pope. Jesus did not leave us alone. Through the succession of his Apostles the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is still offered every day on all Catholic and Orthodox altars. Jesus is still present in his Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity here on earth.God gave the power to his Apostles and their successors to forgive sins.
When I assist at Mass I witness a genuine miracle. A time where God intervenes with nature. Mere bread and wine, through the power of the Holy Spirit and by the actions and words of the successors of the Apostles, become the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of our Lord and Saviour. We are "re-present" and the one sacrifice that Jesus made for us at Calvary.
Image from my computer; originally from somewhere on the Internet ...
We have so much to be thankful for. So many reasons to love God with all our hearts, souls, and with all our actions.The saints learned to hate sin ... to prefer death to committing even one mortal sin.
Let us remember daily to direct all our thoughts, words and actions heavenward.
To start your day you can use the 'morning offering' that I've been using for years:
Most Holy and adorable Trinity, One God in three Persons, I adore You with the most profound humility. I praise you and give you thanks for the favours you have bestowed on me.[One of the things I love about this prayer is the line "May Your Divine Love animate them".]
Your goodness has brought me safely to the beginning of this day.
Behold, O Lord, I offer you my whole being, together with such crosses and contradictions as I may meet with in the course of this day.
Give them, O Lord, Your blessing. May Your Divine Love animate them, and may they tend to the greater honour and glory of your Holy Name.
God be with you!
Dominus vobiscum, Reg.
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