The joy of the Lord is my strength. Non-believers seek happiness, but we seek joy. Happiness might last for a season, but joy is an eternal experience, that will be with you, through thick, and thin. Blessings.
encourage the faithfulon August 18, 2015 at 10:45 pm
Tom, even your short posts are pithy. How many Christians really know their faith? Pope Emeritus Benedict is a great teacher. Many of his encyclicals and other works are about faith, hope and love. If that is not a Catholic witness of joy I don’t know what is! Pope Benedict is the 20th Century’s theological giant – a kind and humble man who shared his spirituality with the world firmly and generously. He will be recognized as a saint one day. The Catholic religion is a religion of “both/and.” It is exclusive and inclusive. The joy in one’s heart is achieved through the pain of sacrifice. Before the fall, joy was the means and the end. After the fall, pain and sacrifice became the means and joy became the end.
About his “Jesus of Nazareth” Trilogy, in Volume 2 which is called “Jesus of Nazareth Holy Week: From the Entrance Into Jerusalem To The Resurrection,” Pope Benedict said he “attempted to develop a way of observing and listening to the Jesus of the Gospels that can indeed lead to a personal encounter” with Jesus as he, Benedict, “tried to maintain a distance from any controversies over particular points and to consider only the essential words and deeds of Jesus.”
If I were to choose a book to seek the joy of knowing God through Christ, His Son, I would start with that volume because it is the Pope’s theological understanding of Father and Son. And Benedict’s theology is mystical, a subjective communion with God.
I’m with you on Pope Benedict. He is under-appreciated, but I suspect you’re right about his future sainthood. What a great teacher! Thanks for your rich insights.
The joy of the Lord is my strength. Non-believers seek happiness, but we seek joy. Happiness might last for a season, but joy is an eternal experience, that will be with you, through thick, and thin. Blessings.
Amen, amen, amen!
Tom, even your short posts are pithy. How many Christians really know their faith? Pope Emeritus Benedict is a great teacher. Many of his encyclicals and other works are about faith, hope and love. If that is not a Catholic witness of joy I don’t know what is! Pope Benedict is the 20th Century’s theological giant – a kind and humble man who shared his spirituality with the world firmly and generously. He will be recognized as a saint one day. The Catholic religion is a religion of “both/and.” It is exclusive and inclusive. The joy in one’s heart is achieved through the pain of sacrifice. Before the fall, joy was the means and the end. After the fall, pain and sacrifice became the means and joy became the end.
About his “Jesus of Nazareth” Trilogy, in Volume 2 which is called “Jesus of Nazareth Holy Week: From the Entrance Into Jerusalem To The Resurrection,” Pope Benedict said he “attempted to develop a way of observing and listening to the Jesus of the Gospels that can indeed lead to a personal encounter” with Jesus as he, Benedict, “tried to maintain a distance from any controversies over particular points and to consider only the essential words and deeds of Jesus.”
If I were to choose a book to seek the joy of knowing God through Christ, His Son, I would start with that volume because it is the Pope’s theological understanding of Father and Son. And Benedict’s theology is mystical, a subjective communion with God.
I’m with you on Pope Benedict. He is under-appreciated, but I suspect you’re right about his future sainthood. What a great teacher! Thanks for your rich insights.