Trading the “Hereafter” for the “Here and Now”

shame, the here and now, troubled waters, transhumanism

So many people, it seems, are trading the eternal joys of the “hereafter” for the temporary pleasures of the “here and now.” I myself am guilty of this from time to time, so  as we begin a brand new year, I thought it would be good to do a self-assessment on whether I live more for the short-term things of this world, or do I live my life for Jesus, and the unending delights of the next world. As expected, it is a mixed bag.

Evil Speech

Occasionally, I bad mouth people who I think are  heretics, mean, devious, liars, greedy, etc.  This is a natural thing for most of us. But in the end, God says to love your enemies, to pray for those who persecute you, be generous with those who take your coat, etc.  And that is not natural.  I also find myself gossiping a lot about people, which St. Paul says is deserving of death. St. James warns us about how the very small tongue can defile the whole body.  In this internet age, social media gossip can circle the globe in seconds, and once it’s out there, it can never, ever be taken back. Jesus tells us, during our final judgment, that we will be held accountable for every idle word, and that our own words will convict us. So, I have a LOT of work to do in this area.

Giving Alms or Hoarding Money

I usually try to give money to my parish, to charitable organizations like St. Vincent de Paul and St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital, and to the people begging for money at the busy intersection.  Almsgiving atones for sin, according to Sirach 3:30. The Archangel Raphael tells Tobit and Tobias that almsgiving is better than storing up gold, and that it will purge away every sin. Jesus said that  the widow who gave 2 copper coins to the temple gave more than the rich people did, because she gave out of her need, while the rich gave out of their surplus. So now the question for me becomes, “Do I give God his 10% off of the top of what I make each month, or do I just give him what’s left over?”  It  isn’t really known why God preferred Abel’s sacrificial offering over his brother Cain’s, but quite possibly it is because Cain gave God his leftover second best, while Abel gave God his first and best offering.

For 2021, I really need to reassess the total amount of money I give to God.   The Divine Mercy prayer at the bottom of the image of Jesus with the red and white rays emanating from his heart says, “Jesus, I trust in you.”  So if I really trust in Jesus to take care of me and my family, and am not just paying Him lip service, then I have to believe that He will help me in my financial situation, and He will make sure that I have enough money to pay all my bills each month, even after giving more alms.  The really good news regarding that is that it shortens my purgatory time. The Bible also says that God loves a cheerful giver, so, in addition to giving more money to Him, I need to be happy about it!

Performing Good Works

The 500 year old battle over whether good works are necessary to be saved or not has been solved. The answer is yes, IF they are performed because of our love for God, and not because we want to be seen and praised for them. Luther’s problem with understanding “works” was that he got the useless works of the Jewish law (circumcision, only eating kosher foods, not touching unclean things, etc.) mixed up with the very necessary good works, which in no way are analogous to Jewish works of the law (which went away with the New Covenant and Jesus). Faith and works go together like heat and light do in fire. You can’t have a fire without both of those things. So if you liken fire to the Holy Spirit, then its heat is analogous to our faith, and the light to our good works. It isn’t faith or works (either-or), but faith and works (both-and). Romans 2:6 says that we will be judged according to our works. Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount that we will perform good works. St. James says that faith without works is dead, and who wants dead (no) faith?

So in 2021, I will need to make sure that I help people more, not only with money, but also with my time and talent. This could mean actually getting involved in a parish organization, instead of running away from them  It’s so funny to hear the exact same story from so many parishioners (“I HAVE NO TIME! IT’S TOO MUCH OF A COMMITTMENT!”). Some back away quickly if they are asked to give some of their time and talent back to God.  Most parish organizations only require 2 or 3 hours a week (out of 168 total). If we just realized that God is watching us every minute of our existence, then it wouldn’t be such a problem to give up watching TV or surfing the Internet for 2 or 3 hours per week, in order to give back to God for all that He has given us.

Most Catholic parishes are pretty unfriendly to strangers (as opposed to Protestant churches, which welcome them with open arms), but I have found that if one does make the commitment to join a parish organization, then you will meet some of the greatest people in the world, that you would NEVER have met any other way. I can personally testify to this, as the folks I have met in the Legion of Mary are off-scale wonderful, like-minded, super Catholics. I wouldn’t trade their friendship for anything. And the people we are helping (who are elderly and dying) pray for us now, and then again after they die, which means it’s a win–win situation for all of us. And for you single folks looking for a mate, finding someone in a parish organization while working for God is MUCH safer than meeting them in a bar. Been there, done that.

Speaking Out Against Evil

In the past, I have been silent when confronted with others who have anti-God opinions, in the name of human respect. But St. John the Baptist wasn’t silent about Herod’s great sin of marrying his brother’s wife. St. Paul wasn’t silent when confronted with pagan Greeks and their “gods.” Jesus wasn’t silent when the Pharisees accused Him of blasphemy. While human respect can be okay in some instances, it is never good when we fail to speak THE TRUTH to non-believers. If we Catholics just blend in with “the world,” then what good is that?  We are supposed to be the light of the world, and a light cannot blend in with darkness.  We simply MUST speak out against abortion, so-called homosexual “marriage,” men being allowed into women’s restrooms if they “think” they are female, widespread voter fraud, defunding the police, evil bishops who want to change church teaching in their diocese only (Catholic means universal!), etc.  Why? Because all that is required for evil to triumph in this world is for good men and women to do nothing.

Prayer Life

For those of us blessed with being able to attend daily Mass, we should try to go as often as possible. That’s what the “Our Father” advocates, when it says to “give us this day OUR DAILY BREAD” (the daily reception of the Eucharist).  The Mass is the highest form of prayer that there is because it is the sacrifice of God for man, re-presented daily through time and space for our spiritual benefit. To have the body and blood of Jesus Christ flowing in our veins after Holy Communion means that the devil becomes more afraid of us than we are of him.

And while many of us can’t attend daily Mass, for sure, we can all read our bibles for at least 30 minutes a day. The Church grants an indulgence for that. And we certainly can spend 20 minutes a day meditating on the mysteries of the Holy Rosary. If we do that, then the Blessed Virgin Mary, whose mission is to crush the serpent’s head, will come to our aid as the most loving Mother of all time. And that means that bad things that would have happened to us, now will not. It means that no matter what crises we have to overcome, She will have our back and give us the grace to subdue whatever the challenges are.

The devil once told St. Gemma Galgani that he would come down really hard on her if she continued to pray for others.  Jesus told St. Faustina that the prayers she said for others were very pleasing to him. Therefore, it seems to me that praying for others, especially the poor souls in purgatory, non-believers, our family, priests and religious, and ESPECIALLY for our enemies is a wonderful thing to do.

Novenas (9 days of prayer for a specific intention to either a saint or Jesus) are also a wonderful way not only to get the answers to our prayers, but to get closer and closer to God.

Worship

I also need to be more reverent during Mass, especially during the Consecration, meditating on the Passion. I also need to be on time for the start of Mass. So many people come to mass 10 or 20 minutes late, giving God and His Mass minimal time.  In most cases their employer would not tolerate employees coming in late all the time, but for some reason, it’s not a problem to come in late to Mass, after the readings and during the homily.

Summary

The bottom line in this “here and now” vs. the “hereafter” battle that most of us go through daily, is that we have to change our focus from concentrating on making money, going to work, watching television, etc., to that of working for the Church and Jesus Christ. We have many tools with which to do this. We have the sacraments, the bible, spiritual books, saint movies, the rosary, meditation on God, prayer, etc.  In a lot of cases, what this means is that some of our friends will think that we are crazy and will fall away. But that’s okay.  If you have worldly friends who keep you away from God with dirty jokes, who are always talking about money and sex, or who are just concerned about leisure and vacations, then it’s a good thing that they disappear from your sphere. Otherwise, they will continue to be a drag on your spiritual life. The old adage that a bad apple next to a good one will always make the good one go bad, and not vice versa, is very true in life as well. For some reasons, the earthly people usually cause the religious person to give up on Church and join them in their worldly pursuits, rather than the other way around.

So in 2021, let’s all resolve to double down on our Catholicism and strive to become saints, instead of trying to get rich or move up the corporate ladder. In the end, only saints make it to heaven, and we can either become one here on earth, or later on in purgatory (it’s much better to become one here, rather than later on in the flames of purgatory). Striving to become holy in this life is definitely the Catholic “here and now” strategy of attaining the “hereafter” of the Kingdom of God!

If you’ve ever accidentally burned yourself, just think of going through that pain forever in hell. There really is no choice when you consider that!

 

 

 

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7 thoughts on “Trading the “Hereafter” for the “Here and Now””

  1. Pingback: VVEDNESDAY EDITION – Big Pulpit

    1. Martin Guntermann-Bald

      So,
      we should keep away from all these free-running devils, the persecutors, the demagoges, the tempters and fear their hellish devastations.
      Just stay with the good people!
      Thank you, ordinary papist!

  2. Martin Guntermann-Bald

    Dear Ray!
    A philosophical objection: What can a “hereafter” be when time no longer exists?
    We just imagin eternity as endless prolongation of time …
    But maybe it is its essence.
    I think: Everybody is a part of a unique mosaic.
    Everybody combines light and darkness.
    Even if we now can*t imagine how the dark and evil parts of our soul and life
    can contribute to the rich and full life in god, they are part of “my personal reality” and
    they will be revealed in an transcendent light at the end of the days …
    Or?
    The church found “eternal” words and metaphers to comfort our harassed souls.
    May we live in peace!
    Amen.

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