Autobasileia is Salvation

Autobasileia is as Origen describes, the "Kingdom in person". It is Jesus.

Pope Benedict says in his book Jesus of Nazareth (p. 49),

Jesus himself is the Kingdom; the Kingdom is not a thing, it is not a geographical dominion like worldly kingdoms. It is a person; it is he. On this interpretation, the term "Kingdom of God" is itself a veiled Christology. By the way in which he speaks of the Kingdom of God, Jesus leads men to realize the overwhelming fact that in him God himself is present among them, that he is God's presence.

This sense of Christ as the embodiment of infinite realities is crucial in truly understanding reality itself, for Christ is the reality (Col. 2:17). When one attempts to define the Kingdom of God as something less than Christ himself, it will always fall short.

This is true in regards to salvation. Salvation is a mystery and a reality that begs definition. Real spiritual mysteries are infinitely knowable, so we have the study of salvation in Christ known as soteriology. Yet, so many gifted, godly, and great theologians fail to recognize the simplest, yet most profound truth, that salvation is a person. That person is Jesus Christ.

In language as in our thoughts, a noun must be either a person, place, or thing. But the truth of Salvation goes beyond man's attempts to narrow and define. Salvation is a person, place, and thing. That person is Jesus, the place is Jesus, and the event is Jesus. He is the Gospel. Jesus is the Good News.

When my sadly mistaken, Protestant brothers in Christ say the Roman Catholic Church preaches a different Gospel, they are actually revealing the fact that they either don't know what the Catholic Church professes or they have narrowly defined their Gospel to fit their doctrine rather than reality. Many have tried to narrow the definition of Salvation to an event, yet even their understanding of the "event" of Salvation has fallen short. They even go so far as to narrow their definition of salvation to a moment in time.

Even then they sadly make the focus of their truncated view of salvation to be some event in their life not the moment Christ said "it is finished", the moment he shed his blood, the moment he died, the moment he arose, the moment he ascended into heaven, or the moment he returns. The great irony is they accuse the Catholic of salvation by works and then define salvation as some moment THEY do something.

The true Evangelical, Pope Benedict XVI, demonstrates a clear understanding of this in discussing the disciple's mission on p. 173 of his book Jesus of Nazareth:

The first task is preaching: to give people the light of the word, the message of Jesus. The Apostles are first and foremost Evangelists - like Jesus, they preach the Kingdom of God and thereby gather people into God's new family. But the preaching of God's Kingdom is never just words, never just instruction. It is an event, just as Jesus himself is an event. God's Word in person. By announcing him, the Apostles lead their listeners to encounter him.

The emphasis added was mine, because protestant Evangelicals preach a Gospel that says you must get saved, and that moment is the main event. The true Gospel preserved in the Roman Catholic Church says that you must get the Savior. They say that the moment you get saved you get Jesus. We say that every moment is an opportunity to get Jesus, to be more like Him or to draw nearer to Him. He must increase and we must decrease. Salvation can only be understood as a process. As a person, Salvation is a growing relationship with Jesus. As a place, Salvation is drawing closer to Jesus. As an event, Salvation transcends all of time from its beginning to infinity, AND BEYOND!.

When someone describes something it can easily be true even if it falls short of complete. However, if that person then claims to have a complete description or narrow it by saying what it is not then they have raised the bar on whether their claim is true or not. This is my point of contention with those who claim things like "faith alone", "salvation is not a process", or the Catholic Church teaches a "different Gospel" than found in the scripture. Claiming that salvation is a process does not exclude moments, but the "moment only" message excludes the process. I can see moments of salvation described and experienced in scripture but scripture absolutely teaches nowhere "moment only" or "faith alone". It clearly states just the opposite in Paul's command to work out your salvation and in Jame's statement that we are not justified by faith alone.

This pattern of error, which is to truncate the truth, can be clearly seen in regard to the canon of scripture and in regard to Ecclesiastic authority as well. Their Bible is not complete and the concept of "sola scriptura" is incomplete. They fail to recognize the full canon. They also refuse to admit that perfect truth in the scripture must have an interpretation without error to be true. The interpretation can be true even though it may be incomplete, but it must be infallible to be true. The Scripture does little good without accurate preservation, translation, and interpretation.

Open letter to engaged couples

Dear young couple,

When we were engaged we sought direction from married couples and the current popular Christian books on the subject of contraception in marriage. We desired with all our hearts to worship and honor God in our sexual union. From many books and leaders of Evangelical Christianity, we got the same message that the Bible did not speak specifically about this issue. Therefore, it was a “personal” decision to be made with your doctor’s advice.

We muddled along but kept searching for the truth. How could the most significant physical/spiritual act in creation, “procreation” be something in which only my physician could give me direction? It is obvious to us now how the secular world with its “culture of death” is winning the battle against Life, when Christians only see the sexual union as something physical to be under the direction of a physician. Sadly, to many Christians, fertility is just something to be manipulated like a runny nose. But in reality, it is a precious gift and privilege from God.

Primarily, Natural Family Planning is about inviting the Holy Spirit into the marriage bed. Practically, NFP is about “fertility awareness” and responsible parenthood. Practicing NFP, especially in our overly sexualized culture, gives couples a powerful tool in unselfishly honoring one another in physical intimacy. Statistically, even for purely health conscious reasons, couples that practice this method have less than a 5% chance of divorce. It is even less when couples have a genuine desire to be in harmony with the way God designed us to live out the marriage covenant in self-giving love.

Our prayer is that you, as a couple, will be generous in the service of life and be a witness to the world of what a godly marriage should be!

Choose Life!

The Mass "Il est là!" He is there!

The Mass is the best place in the world for me. Yet, I struggle with resentment and anger toward those that profane the mass, especially with a lack of respect for Christ's presence. May God humble me and help me to teach others what this dear saint knew and expressed in the power of the Holy Spirit.

Saint Jean–Marie Vianney, "All good works put together are not equivalent to the Sacrifice of the Mass, because they are the works of men and the Holy Mass is the work of God." It is in the Mass that the sacrifice of Calvary is made present for the Redemption of the world. Clearly, the priest must unite the daily gift of himself to the offering of the Mass: "How well a priest does, therefore, to offer himself to God in sacrifice every morning!"

Read this article here. "The Holy Mass is the Work of God"

Humanae Vitae 31

HUMANAE VITAE
ENCYCLICAL OF POPE PAUL VI
ON THE REGULATION OF BIRTH
JULY 25, 1968

Final Appeal

31. Venerable brothers, most beloved sons, and all men of good will, great indeed is the work of education, of progress and of love to which we call you, upon the foundation of the Church's teaching, of which the successor of Peter is, together with his brothers in the episcopate, the depositary and interpreter. Truly a great work, as we are deeply convinced, both for the world and for the Church, since man cannot find true happiness -- towards which he aspires with all his being -- other than in respect of the laws written by God in his very nature, laws which he must observe with intelligence and love. Upon this work, and upon all of you, and especially upon married couples, we invoke the abundant graces of the God of holiness and mercy, and in pledge thereof we impart to you all our apostolic blessing.

Given at Rome, from St. Peter's, this 25th day of July, feast of St. James the Apostle, in the year 1968, the sixth of our pontificate.

PAULUS PP.VI.

Humanae Vitae 30

HUMANAE VITAE
ENCYCLICAL OF POPE PAUL VI
ON THE REGULATION OF BIRTH
JULY 25, 1968

To Bishops

30. Beloved and venerable brothers in the episcopate, with whom we most intimately share the solicitude of the spiritual good of the People of God, at the conclusion of this encyclical our reverent and affectionate thoughts turn to you. To all of you we extend an urgent invitation. At the head of the priests, your collaborators, and of your faithful, work ardently and incessantly for the safeguarding and the holiness of marriage, so that it may always be lived in its entire human and Christian fullness. Consider this mission as one of your most urgent responsibilities at the present time. As you know, it implies concerted pastoral action in all the fields of human activity, economic, cultural and social; for, in fact, only a simultaneous improvement in these various sectors will make it possible to render the life of parents and of children within their families not only tolerable, but easier and more joyous, to render the living together in human society more fraternal and peaceful, in faithfulness to God's design for the world.

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Humanae Vitae 29

HUMANAE VITAE
ENCYCLICAL OF POPE PAUL VI
ON THE REGULATION OF BIRTH
JULY 25, 1968

To Priests cont.

29. To diminish in no way the saving teaching of Christ constitutes an eminent form of charity for souls. But this must ever be accompanied by patience and goodness, such as the Lord himself gave example of in dealing with men. Having come not to condemn but to save,[41] he was indeed intransigent with evil, but merciful towards individuals.

In their difficulties, may married couples always find, in the words and in the heart of a priest, the echo of the voice and the love of the Redeemer.

And then speak with confidence, beloved sons, fully convinced that the spirit of God, while He assists the magisterium in proposing doctrine, illumines internally the hearts of the faithful inviting them to give their assent. Teach married couples the indispensable way of prayer; prepare them to have recourse often and with faith to the sacraments of the Eucharist and of Penance, without ever allowing themselves to be discouraged by their own weakness.

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Humanae Vitae 28

HUMANAE VITAE
ENCYCLICAL OF POPE PAUL VI
ON THE REGULATION OF BIRTH
JULY 25, 1968

To Priests

28. Beloved priest sons, by vocation you are the counselors and spiritual guides of individual persons and of families. We now turn to you with confidence. Your first task -- especially in the case of those who teach moral theology -- is to expound the Church's teaching on marriage without ambiguity. Be the first to give, in the exercise of your ministry, the example of loyal internal and external obedience to the teaching authority of the Church. That obedience, as you know well, obliges not only because of the reasons adduced, but rather because of the light of the Holy Spirit, which is given in a particular way to the pastors of the Church in order that they may illustrate the truth.[39] You know, too, that it is of the utmost importance, for peace of consciences and for the unity of the Christian people, that in the field of morals as well as in that of dogma, all should attend to the magisterium of the Church, and all should speak the same language. Hence, with all our heart we renew to you the heartfelt plea of the great Apostle Paul: "I appeal to you, brethren, by the name of Our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree and that there be no dissensions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment."[40]

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