Elimination of fear through Overcoming of Tragedy

"How should members of a tradition respond when their tradition is implicated in tragedy or evil?"

When I was a child, I would always dread the moment when I would first walk into church. My parents always made sure to arrive a couple of minutes early, just in time for us to make our way over to the giant statue of Jesus' crucifixion that was right at the entrance of mass. I remember it perfectly, the way that Jesus would look down at me in agony. I remember the blood stains all over his wounds, and the nails that were pounded into his hands and feet. I watched as people would stare right into his face, and tenderly place their hands on his wounds. My mother always would urge me to do so as well, but I always rejected her offer as I found myself to be experiencing complete and immediate fear at the thought of it. I just simply could not comprehend how people could purposely confront such a gruesome image, and then symbolically put themselves in the situation by relating to it and TOUCHING it. I was scared of it all. And this image made me somewhat afraid of all that was religious and that which is labeled as "holy". It all always brought me back to that image.

So how exactly should one react to the traditions of the church when its origin derives from a tragedy? That is a question that I have struggled with since my childhood when I watched those people embracing Jesus in that graphic depiction of his crucifixion. This image made me fear Jesus. With the look of agony that the statue gave me, I could not help but feel guilty as well. I felt that his look was a cry for help, and there I was, doing nothing. Therefore, I also feared that Jesus would spite me. And growing up I thought that the only way I could escape that fate was by completing the rituals that the Church offered. I found that there was no alternative to that because if I didn’t follow through with the traditions, I would be punished by God.

Now that I am older, I still believe that my initial reaction to the Church and its rituals is a very natural one. The crucifixion of Jesus is a very dark and powerful image that requires maturity to confront. And initially fear is how I approached it and what motivated me to follow the Church’s traditions. However, as a child I lacked the understanding that Jesus died for our sins. It was something that I heard all of the time, but I never understood what it meant until very recently in my life. It is at this point when I started to approach the church and its traditions very differently. It is not something I have to do anymore, but something I choose to do. Understanding the tragedy behind the crucifixion allows us as Catholics to understand why we follow through with the traditions of the church. Most importantly, it gives us purpose and erases that fear which we may initially feel. It is difficult to know how to react to tragedy, but overcoming it eliminates fear and allows for development in one's faith.

Defining the terms "holy" and "apostolic"

From my perspective, to define something as holy is to describe it as being associated with the Holy Trinity: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. I interpret the Holy Trinity to be the epitome of the divine; therefore in my opinion, any person, place, or thing that is blessed with its presence is considered to be holy. I also believe that sacraments are holy, both the community valued Seven Sacraments and the individual sacraments that we experience in our everyday lives. I think that these moments generate the awareness of such a holy presence that exists in our world and therefore, they are just as holy. They enable us to form a relationship between the secular and holy which is why they hold so much significance within our faith. As to whether or not something is holy, I believe it is the Church’s responsibility of determining its genuineness. I believe that it is the Church’s responsibility to determine whether or not something is holy comes along with the authority which God has granted the Church in guiding us through interpretation of the word. I think that through this authority, the Church is a more qualified candidate in making that decision.

What is resonant to me in the term apostolic is the reference to the apostle’s mission to spread the word of God. I think that this aspect of Catholicism emphasizes the model Christian way of life. As I mentioned in my last blog post, I don’t believe that God would reject an individual who declares their faith in Him. By this, I don’t mean to say that I don’t believe in the significance of Sabbath, but I believe that a person should foremost be actively engaged with the apostolic mission, whether it is by spreading the word or living according to it. The apostolic mission encourages each and every one of us to become active members within our Church which should be a priority. Faith is an activity; one is not truly engaged in it unless one is actively participating in it. Therefore, if one truly declares their faith in God, one is fully involved in the apostolic mission and its message. I think that the Church most represents the apostle’s mission through its teaching of God’s word. However, it also represents those that live according to the word of God because the Church is charitable in its teaching and promotes hospitability within it (which was something heavily emphasized within the Bible). Despite my opinion that one does not necessarily have to go to Sabbath to be part of the apostolic mission, I think that those that go demonstrate great dedication to the mission and contribute to its purpose.