Pope Benedict XVI joined the international community in condemning a massacre in Syria, and he called for Christian and Muslim leaders in the country to guide their faithful in prayer and collaboration to restore peace and calm. The massacre in Houla May 25-26 left about 108 people dead, including 49 children and 34 women. The U.N. Security Council May 27 condemned the massacre of civilians and, while not pinning all the blame on the Syrian government, it accused the government of inappropriately using heavy weapons in a residential area. In a statement May 28, Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, Vatican spokesman, said the massacre was "a motive of great sorrow and concern for the Holy Father and the entire Catholic community, as it is for the international community which has expressed unanimous condemnation of the incident. Renewing its appeal for an end to all forms of violence, the Holy See exhorts the parties involved and the entire international community to spare no efforts to resolve this crisis through dialogue and reconciliation," Father Lombardi said. The Vatican also said religious leaders and those who believe in God "are called to commit themselves to promoting the peace which is so much sought after, for the good of the whole population." Today we pray for the people massacred in Syria and around the world.

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius delivered her remarks as scheduled May 18 at Georgetown University at an awards ceremony during the university's commencement week events. According to The Hill newspaper, she was interrupted after she began her speech by a protester shouting something about "abortion." The paper said the individual was escorted from the room "and continued yelling for several minutes outside." In her remarks at Georgetown's Public Policy Institute ceremony, Sebelius did not mention the criticism of the university's invitation to her to speak on campus, but the Archdiocese of Washington was among those who strongly criticized her appearance at the Catholic university because of her role in the HHS contraceptive mandate. The nation's Catholic bishops have repeatedly criticized the mandate, saying it threatens the religious freedom of Catholic institutions such as universities, hospitals and social service agencies because it would force them to provide employees with health insurance coverage for abortion-inducing drugs, contraceptives and sterilization procedures in violation of church teaching. In its May 15 statement, the Washington Archdiocese noted that because of the "dramatic impact this mandate will have on Georgetown and all Catholic institutions, it is understandable that Catholics across the country would find shocking the choice of Secretary Sebelius, the architect of the mandate, to receive such special recognition at a Catholic university. It is also understandable that Catholics would view this as a challenge to the bishops." In a May 14 statement Georgetown's president, John DeGioia, acknowledged concerns were "expressed by some" on the campus and in the larger American Catholic community objecting to Sebelius participating in the institute's awards ceremony.

David R. Carlin, Jr. has written an interesting op-ed piece that discusses the campaign to discredit Christian thinking which is highly evident in the current argument for gay marriage. Now, none other than the President of the United States has become a willing vessel for this immoral nonsense. Carlin writes, "A learned friend of mine recently wrote an op-ed piece for a newspaper in which she argued that the drive for same-sex marriage is not simply about same-sex marriage; it is also about winning moral approval for homosexuality. If society, acting through the state, tells us that homosexuals can marry one another, then it is by the same token telling us that there is nothing morally objectionable about homosexual conduct. My friend is, of course, correct. But I’ll add to this that the drive for same-sex marriage is not simply about same-sex marriage or the moral legitimization of homosexual behavior; it is also about the de-legitimizing of Christian morality. More, it is about the de-legitimizing of Christianity itself. The taboo on homosexual conduct is as old as Christianity itself and clearly goes back to Old Testament times. And if there is such a thing as natural law, the taboo is rooted in natural law; for nature (or God as author of nature) seems to have designed the anatomy and physiology of human beings in such a way that sex between men and women is sex “according to nature.” Sex between men and men or between women and women, though it can be accomplished in an unnatural manner, doesn’t seem to be what nature/God had in mind. What’s more, the taboo on homosexual conduct is not only as old as Christianity and Christian morality; it is an essential element in Christian morality, not a merely incidental element. St. Paul made this clear by going out of his way on a number of occasions to condemn it in no uncertain terms. And even though pro-homosexuality speakers and writers, with the intention of surrounding their sexual opinions with a spiritual aura, often contend that Jesus did not utter a word of condemnation of homosexual behavior, this is not exactly so; for He condemned it by implication when He spoke in an unflattering way of the city of Sodom. (See Matthew 11:23-24 and Luke 10:12.) The Catholic Church has classified it as a mortal sin — a moral offense that merits eternal damnation. The taboo on homosexual conduct is as much an essential element of Christian morality as is the taboo on abortion. And both taboos are strongly connected with the extraordinarily high valuation that Christianity has always given to the virtue of chastity. So if you wish to overthrow the Christian rules against sodomy and abortion, which is precisely what the prevailing secularist morality of the day wishes to do (and indeed is doing very successfully), then you wish to overthrow the Christian moral system. You don’t necessarily have to be conscious of that wish: Some of those who are out to destroy Christian morality are fully conscious of their intention, others are not. Whether conscious or not, however, the course you will be pursuing is a course tending to the overthrow of Christian morality." Those who do not believe that this is a designed campaign should review their history. Gay-rights advocates very explicitly laid out their plans in the 1980s. The move was made earlier but was not as obvious or vocal. Many have said that it is a movement that has focused on infiltrating all parts of the Church including the seminaries and that argument now holds merit in light of the tragedy of the child molestation charges that have damaged the Church more recently. The plot is obvious. If the opposition can wear us down and overwhelm our will with a constant cascade of attack, they assume we will give up. What they don't know or perhaps underestimate is God's will cannot be overwhelmed. With each wave of evil that comes at the Church, there is a larger wave waiting to consume the evil. We cannot fail if we are working for God. Prayer is our sword. We must not despair and if we do, we should turn to Jesus Christ to show us how to recover. Remember the words of our Savior as he faced his death "Father, if you are willing, take this cup away from me; still, not my will but yours be done.” (Luke 22, 42).

Have you ever really thought about the motive of Judas Iscariot? I was watching an interesting movie recently about this apostle who is known as the one who betrayed Jesus. It was Judas who identified Jesus when the Sanhedrin came to arrest him. The movie attempted to give back-story to who Judas really was. The main message was that Judas dearly loved Jesus but he thought that he knew more than Jesus. In the end, just like in the Garden of Eden, it was ego that caused Judas to lose his way. He wanted Jesus to be a certain kind of leader. He wanted Jesus to ascertain his kingship. Judas was from Jerusalem so when Jesus went there on Palm Sunday, Judas was very happy. It may have been the first time that Judas had been to his hometown in three years. Like many of us who attach ourselves to other people and then depend on their power to define who we are, Judas wanted to show off Jesus. He wanted everyone to know that he was with the King of the Jews. Judas understood leadership in a certain way and that way was about authority and obedience. What he had failed to learn in the three years that he had been with Jesus was the type of leadership that Jesus used. Jesus was a servant leader. He modeled what type of behavior he expected from his followers. Jesus did not ask anyone to do anything that he himself would not do. A key point in the movie takes place when Jesus is angered by the moneychangers in the Temple. Jesus demands that they treat his Father's house with the respect it deserves as a place of worship. Jesus is angry and forceful. He turns over tables and demands that the merchants leave the Temple. This was what Judas was looking for at all times but Jesus had his priorities. He was focused on what we should be focused on and that is that God our Father deserves respect and reverence. Jesus was not concerned with an earthly kingship. Pope Benedict XVI has written about this very topic in his book Jesus of Nazareth. Pope Benedict writes, "the Roman emperor's claim to divine kingship encounters the Christian belief that the risen Christ is the true Son of God, the Lord of all peoples of the earth, to whom alone belongs worship in the unity of Father, Son, and Spirit." Christianity acknowledges civil authority just as Jesus did when he said to give Caesar what is owed him. Judas was seeking to combine the two but Jesus had no intention of doing so. Judas is portrayed in this movie as using the opportunity to identify Jesus to the authorities so that Jesus will have to exert his kingship. Judas thinks by doing this he will force Jesus' hand. Judas does not have the knowledge and insight that Jesus has of course. He does not know, as Jesus did, that all that is to happen must happen for our salvation. It is a recurrent theme with us. We frequently make decisions based on worldly principles. The patience to wait for God's decision is a daily struggle for us because we are still caught up in the worldly notions when we should be focusing on what is truly important. Loving God and sharing his good news should be our daily focus. The rest will be taken care of by God.

The church's first martyr found the strength to face his accusers because of his close relationship with God, Pope Benedict XVI said. St. Stephen, who was accused of blasphemy and stoned to death, upheld the faith and gave witness to Christ as the righteous one proclaimed by the prophets, the pope said during the general audience in St. Peter's Square May 2. Continuing his catechesis on Christian prayer, the pope focused on St. Stephen, who was "accused of saying that Jesus would destroy the temple and the customs handed down by Moses." The saint told his accusers the body of Jesus is the new temple of God; it is in Jesus that God and humanity are in true contact, which makes real communion with God and transformation possible, the pope said. The saint explained how God does not dwell in places made by human hands; the "new true temple where God dwells is in his son," who gathers and unites all people in the sacrament of his body and blood, the pope said. Today's Christians can draw inspiration from St. Stephen, who found strength during his martyrdom in his relationship with God and by meditating on the history of salvation. "Our prayer, too, must be nourished by listening to the word of God in communion with Jesus and his church," he said. In Christ, people can make real contact with God "with the trust and abandon of children who turn to a father who loves them infinitely," he said. Of the more than 20,000 pilgrims from all over the world who attended the general audience, an altar-server from the Diocese of Brownsville, Texas, had the privilege of meeting Pope Benedict. Armando Sanchez, 17, came to Rome thanks to the Make-A-Wish Foundation. "When they told me that I had this opportunity to go wherever I wanted and meet whomever I wanted, I did think about celebrities, but I said no," Sanchez said in an interview with The Valley Catholic, newspaper of the Brownsville diocese. At the end of the audience, Sanchez and his mother, Maria de la Luz Sanchez, greeted the pope. The pope shook their hands and blessed the teen. Sanchez has been a cancer patient for 16 years and has multiple tumors in his heart, brain and optical tracts, according to The Valley Catholic. The Make-A-Wish Foundation has been fulfilling the wishes of hundreds of thousands of children and teens with life-threatening illnesses since its founding in 1980. "Many young people would rather go to Disney -- he chose Rome," Oblate Father Michael Amesse told The Valley Catholic. "That speaks volumes. He loves God so much," said Father Amesse, who is rector of Immaculate Conception Cathedral, where Armando is an altar server. The teen's mother told The Valley Catholic that "Armando is an example for the whole world. He doesn't need or want anyone's help. He takes care of himself. He is very strong." The teen said he plans on pursuing a career in pathology after high school graduation and that is also discerning the priesthood. While he briefly went through a period of being angry about his condition, today he said he has accepted it. "Some people have stressful jobs or pressures at home, this is my cross to carry," he said.

Faith is an entirely free gift that God makes to man. We can lose this priceless gift, as St. Paul indicated to St. Timothy: "Wage the good warfare, holding faith and a good conscience. By rejecting conscience, certain persons have made shipwreck of their faith." To live, grow, and persevere in the faith until the end we must nourish it with the word of God; we must beg the Lord to increase our faith; it must be "working through charity," abounding in hope, and rooted in the faith of the Church. This quote from the Catechism provides an important lesson for today's Catholics. In the U.S., there are clearly dark forces working to harm the Church. We as Catholics must learn about our faith so that we can combat heresy, inaccuracies, and propaganda. I find it amusing that the anti-Catholic special interest groups are using the argument that since most Catholics don't adhere to the our Church's teaching on birth control, we should not be upset that Obamacare will force Catholic organizations to include this option in the Government-required plan. My first reaction was who are these Catholics that you are polling? The issue of birth control has probably taken a back seat to other issues when we look at what topics our priests are preaching about from the pulpit. But that does not mean that we are to turn away from God's teaching. Picking the rules you want to adhere to is not what a true relationship with God is about. Think about Adam and Eve and their fateful decision to disobey God and eat from the tree of knowledge. It was this craving to become God that drove our first ancestors to choose to follow their ego rather than their conscience. But back to the argument presented earlier in this post. The bigger problem may be that we as Catholics have lost our way. We have become lax when it comes to knowing all that we can about our religion. Our faith needs to be nurtured and we do that by taking care of our relationship with God. One of the best ways to do that is by knowing all that we can about God's Church. Our faith development is a never ending process. Perhaps we are being led astray by the slick marketing about birth control. Perhaps we are lured by the idea that preventing pregnancy will make us happy. We will have more time to spend on things we enjoy. We can spend our money on things we covet. We can do whatever we want whenever we want. Looking back on those preceding statements, it is easy to see how that this will lead to a very selfish lifestyle. Maybe because so many of us have chosen to live in and of the world, we have lost the right to call ourselves Catholic. Can we really defend something that we know so little about? Maybe, as St. Paul says, we are losing this priceless gift of faith because we continue to make decisions that are counter to what our conscience tells us. So it follows that we should not be offended or surprised when others attempt to define who we are as a people and what our faith is really about. I reject that notion and I urge you to do the same. Arm yourself with the knowledge that will prepare you to protect your Church. Make no mistake that the attempt to endow our Church with worldly doxology is a definite strategy. Each small step leads us further down the proverbial slippery slope. Now is the time to make a stand. Being a Catholic in the true sense is hard but the end result is so wonderful. Is everlasting life with your Father in heaven not worth a little of your time and effort? Stand up and be counted and let the world know that the Catholics will not be marginalized nor will our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. His meekness was reserved for times when people needed compassion and empathy. But when the money changers dared to use his Father's house for inappropriate business, Jesus stood in the the gap and said no. Will you do the same for Him now?