I am continuing my discussion of Evangelical Catholicism by George Weigel. Previous post is here.
The second characteristic Weigel lists is, “Evangelical Catholicism affirms divine revelation and embraces its authority, which continues through history in the teaching authority of the Church.”
Having grown up in a post Vatican II Church where questioning authority seemed, in retrospect, almost mandatory, this trait fascinates me. We have moved from questioning to accepting that God is God and we are not. He truly does know better. Jesus is truth and reveals himself to us in the Incarnation.
If friendship with Jesus is embraced, then it follows that we believe the truth he teaches. The Church teaches truth through the magisterium. Believing these truths does not mean we have surrendered our freedom; rather that we have formed our consciences based on Truth and therefore can embrace what we are taught with full consent of our will.
The next characteristic is a favorite of mine, “Evangelical Catholicism celebrates the seven sacraments as divinely given means of sanctifying life.” It resonates with me for many reasons. Personally I do not know how I would survive without the sacraments, especially the Eucharist and Penance. Professionally my goal is to reach families through teaching about the sacraments to bring them back or closer to the Church.
It is through the sacraments that we encounter Christ who took ordinary things; water, bread, wine to name a few and use them to help us experience the divine, we receive grace to move forward and to deepen our friendship with God. Evangelical Catholics know that participation in the sacraments, especially the Eucharist, leads them to reach out to others in the world. “The Holy Eucharist is the sacrament “for the journey” – viaticum- not only as death approaches, but throughout life.”
As I continue to read and ponder these characteristics I am reminded to pray more for the families I minister to in the parish so they may encounter the Truth and have positive experiences of the sacraments. I encourage you to read this book. It is both thought provoking and practical, giving me much to consider.
Copyright © 2014, Deanna Bartalini
Deanna Bartalini
Deanna G. Bartalini, is a Catholic writer, speaker, and educator. She serves on the retreat team at Our Lady of Florida Spiritual Center. Deanna loves teaching about Catholicism and how it fits into our daily lives. She writes at DeannaBartalini.com, serves as the editor of the NewEvangelizers.com blog, and is a contributor there as well as at AmazingCatechists.com. Deanna contributed to A Catholic Mom's Prayer Companion published by Ave Maris Press. She is the author of “Invite the Holy Spirit into Your Life: Growing in Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness and Self-Control” published by Our Sunday Visitor. Deanna is available to lead retreats and speak at catechist and ministry events.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.