29 Nov 22 – Advent: A Time for Conversion

[0] Welcome to the Bishop Strickland Hour here on Virgin Most Powerful Radio.

[1] I'm so honored to have Bishop Strickland with us once a week to talk about, this is it, how to fall in love with Jesus and his bride the church.

[2] That's it, how to get to heaven.

[3] Bishop Strickland, thanks again for taking this hour with us, my friend.

[4] Sure, Terry.

[5] God bless you.

[6] No, we're just honored.

[7] Bishop Strickland, this is the Advent season now, and I just wanted to ask, before we get to your tweets, to ask you to kind of prep us all up so that this Advent is going to be the best ever and what should we be doing what should be preparing for and how should we do it well Terry it is beginning a new year liturgically and that's always a good thing to start fresh to think about how you can really begin this new year in the church's year the faith journey the most important new year, really.

[8] But certainly, and thankfully in our churches, and I know in a lot of places, their confessions are emphasized and greater opportunity to go to confession.

[9] That's a great thing to do as we begin Advent is to go to confession.

[10] And just to really do a sort of a spiritual New Year's resolution and ask yourself how you can live closer to Christ.

[11] As we were talking before we started, you know, there is a penitential tone advent, not as strong as Lent, but it is the reason we wear purple.

[12] It is a penitential time in the sense of really recognizing as Lent prepares for the glorious resurrection of Christ, Advent prepares for his birth.

[13] And so the church and her wisdom tells us to do a little penance, back off from, you know, the usual routines of life.

[14] Little penance, pray more, just prepare for that glorious celebration of the birth of the Son of God.

[15] the Son of God incarnate among us.

[16] And as we've talked about before, it's a great time to reflect on.

[17] Really, the incarnation begins with the enunciation March 25th.

[18] So we celebrate the birth of Christ nine months later on December 25th.

[19] And that's what Advent is leading up to.

[20] The great coming of the Son of God into the world, Emmanuel.

[21] So those, the season of Advent preparing for Christmas, the season of Lent, preparing for the resurrection of the Lord, they're very important times to get ourselves ready and to recognize that all that this world has to offer us doesn't ultimately fill that hunger that we have.

[22] I would really encourage, especially with all the concerns that we have in the nation and the world, in the church for really especially to emphasize prayer and fasting during this Advent season.

[23] We don't, the church doesn't have a lot of requirements of fasting, but you can always make your own decision to maybe even for Advent.

[24] Don't eat meat on Fridays.

[25] It's not mandated by the church.

[26] but to really look at things like that for us individually and for our families, for our parishes, for any group of people that maybe you're a nine of Columbus, maybe talk to your council about entering into more prayer and fasting during Advent.

[27] Maybe you're part of a rosary society.

[28] Whatever aspect of the church that you're a part of, certainly your own family and your own individual prayer life, But prayer and fasting, the Lord tells us that some demons are only conquered by prayer and fasting.

[29] And we have to recognize that there are many demons in the world today.

[30] The demons of the secular world going off the rails, the demons in the church that are really like what's going on in Germany with the Senate.

[31] It's really tragic to see bishops turning away.

[32] from the truth, that wherever those shepherds lead, it's into darkness.

[33] There's no change in the truth.

[34] And so Advent is a time to be very clear about that, to be joyful.

[35] There's a, I mean, once again, for Advent, we have Gaudete Sunday, the third Sunday of Advent.

[36] The priest will wear rose -colored vestments.

[37] And it's a joyful moment to remember.

[38] remember, even when we're penitential as disciples of Christ, the joy is never totally gone.

[39] It's not, oh, we're facing deep darkness and everything's dark and ugly.

[40] That's not the purpose of the penitential season.

[41] And those joyful moments at Gaudete and Advent, Laitare, and Lent is a time to let that spark of joy remind us of what we're preparing for, the birth of the Son of God.

[42] So I do urge people, and I talk to people all the time, and I'm sure you do as well.

[43] And we're human, we're worried, we're concerned.

[44] We get fed up with some of the corruption in the nation, the corruption in the church, the crazy things that get said that aren't based in reality or in the common good, much less in the gospel.

[45] It's just a strange and difficult time.

[46] So we need a good spiritual advent more than ever.

[47] We just celebrated the Feast of Christ the King and reminded ourselves, Jesus Christ is king of the universe.

[48] What I tried to say in my homilies on the Feast of Christ the King is to remind people, the Church didn't make this up.

[49] We didn't say, oh, let's come up with an idea.

[50] this.

[51] We'll decide to make Jesus Christ king.

[52] We didn't make him anything.

[53] The church is simply pointing to the truth.

[54] Jesus Christ is king of the universe.

[55] He's the son of God, the second person of the Trinity.

[56] And the tone of the things that are said in the church today and in the world, I think it's easy for people to be confused and think, oh, well, we're changing this, we're changing that.

[57] We just make things up.

[58] That's not how the church operates.

[59] The church points to the truth that God is revealed to us.

[60] And that's what we really need to remember.

[61] So Advent is a time to remember that the king of the universe is being born among us.

[62] That's what we celebrate at Christmas.

[63] And that always has to be the tone of our celebration.

[64] So I urge people to really pray about and think about some acts of penance and prayer and fasting.

[65] One thing, you know, the mandates, you know, by the bishop or whomever really don't seem to be too effective.

[66] People do what they want to do.

[67] But I urge people, mandated or not, I mean, people thankfully are still free to choose to live Jesus Christ the way they choose to.

[68] One thing that I would encourage people to do during advent for maybe this it's only four sundays but the four sundays of advent consider fasting like we used to i mean probably before we were born or just when we were a little bitty kids i i didn't go to communion when it was still the rule that you had to fast from midnight either but nobody's telling you can't do that and it might be a good just for the four Sundays of Advent in preparation for the joy of Christmas.

[69] We can all use, I mean, most of us can use a little fasting, but it's not a diet, but it's a reminder that nothing feeds us other than God.

[70] A lot of things pretend they do, and we can have wealth, and we can have pleasure, and we can have power, and we can have influence, and we can have this great position.

[71] But ultimately, nothing feeds us, accept our relationship with God, because that's how he made us in his image and likeness.

[72] So fasting is about reminding ourselves of that.

[73] So I'd encourage anyone who's listening to consider fasting from the midnight.

[74] Let's say you go to 10 o 'clock mass in the morning.

[75] I mean, that's a little bit of a sacrifice and not have your usual morning coffee, not have the breakfast that you might usually have before you go off to Mass, but make that, and just offer that little fasting that sacrifice for your family, for your own soul to grow closer to the Lord, to be more repentant of sin.

[76] Fasting is a good thing.

[77] The Lord tells us, fasting in prayer, and he did it.

[78] He models it for us.

[79] Bishop Strickland, what you just said reminds me of your bishop's conference talking about a revival of the Holy Eucharist, it seems to me that those are the kinds of practices that need to come back to bring a greater love for the blessed sacrament.

[80] So I didn't think of that.

[81] I go to early mass, so it's no sacrifice for me every day.

[82] I don't eat until I come back from Mass, but coffee doesn't agree with me, so I mean, it's no sacrifice for me. But the point I'm making is if we start changing the practices for what Holy Mass is all about, you know, you learn more by practice than by talking about it.

[83] And so I think that would be a good thing to add if I was a bishop, I would make that suggestion as part of the revival.

[84] And I hope maybe when we have you give you a presentation for the Eucharistic Revival that we're going to have with Bishop Snyder and you and others that we're pulling together, I would love to have you make that as a comment for that because I think it fits really well.

[85] Bishop Strickland, you mentioned in your tweet, it fits right in.

[86] When we come back, we're going to talk about Pope Benedict the 16th tweet that you sent out regarding the Holy Eucharist, the source and summit of the Christian life.

[87] Stay with us, family.

[88] When we come back, we'll have that quote and much more on the Bishop Strickland hour.

[89] I always like to say, I'm too blessed to be stressed.

[90] I'm too anointed to be disappointed.

[91] And if hope was money, I'd be a billionaire.

[92] Why?

[93] Because my hope is in Jesus Christ.

[94] Stay with us, family.

[95] Welcome back to the Bishop Strickland hour.

[96] I get mixed up.

[97] I do three shows, so it's kind of fun to get confused.

[98] But Bishop Strickland, I think that you tweeted this last week, and I thought it was very appropriate for Advent because of our love for the Blessed Sacraments year round.

[99] But I think especially, I'm going to add one more thing that you mentioned about preparing for Advent.

[100] And I would say, once a week, if you're not already doing this for Advent as another way to get closer to Christ, spend an hour before the Blessed Sacrament one hour four times in the week and once a week for four weeks.

[101] And I'm going to make a suggestion, Bishop Strickland, that many of my friends said that after you did that, they started doing it for the new year also because they got so much out of being silent before the Eucharistic king.

[102] So it's just a thought.

[103] Because you tweeted this about Pope Benedict the 16th Emeritus Pope Benedict.

[104] He said this, without the Eucharist, the church quite simply would not exist.

[105] You commented on a tweet.

[106] What did you say about that, Bishop Strickland?

[107] Well, I said absolutely.

[108] I appreciate what Pope Benedict says.

[109] And I simply said to say it another way without Jesus Christ, the church doesn't exist.

[110] Because the Eucharist is Jesus Christ, and Jesus Christ is present in the Eucharist.

[111] So I think and certainly that it's really saying the same thing in different ways.

[112] You know Bishop Strickland I have a show earlier today, the Terry and Jesse show and I quoted a tweet from November 17th.

[113] And the reason I did is I have a section where I bring in Fulton Sheen's quotable Sheen into the Terry and Jesse show.

[114] And this time, I said that Bishop Sheen was talking to you Bishop Strickland on the train.

[115] We go, Sheen ahead.

[116] And it was regarding the needs of the church today in 2022.

[117] And you said to Bishop Sheen, what's the best thing to do?

[118] And you know, your response was, well, I just tweeted this and he was like, you're spot on.

[119] Here's what you tweeted.

[120] He said, Catholics, let us be clear.

[121] God is our creator.

[122] Jesus Christ, our Savior is the son of God.

[123] Life is sacred from conception to natural death.

[124] The Eucharist is the real presence of Jesus in our world.

[125] Marriage is between one man, one woman, and discipleship requires turning from sin.

[126] Talk about basic fundamental teachings of the faith being passed on.

[127] I don't know if I could have said that in that short of a paragraph.

[128] What made you do this?

[129] Well, I just think those truths and more, but those basic truths.

[130] If we all just said, okay, yes, we embrace this.

[131] There are no question, no debates.

[132] This is, these are elements of the deposit of faith that we're willing to die for.

[133] The church and the world would be transformed because there are too many on each of those points.

[134] Yes.

[135] There are, you know, there are many people that don't believe.

[136] And sadly, many Catholics who are saying, oh, well, no, we think it's different.

[137] And we want to to change that.

[138] And it's just, those are unchanging truths that we just need to get back to and be very clear about.

[139] And it's joyful.

[140] As I say always, Terry, it's good news.

[141] Each of those is wonderful news if we really know what it means.

[142] Yes.

[143] And, you know, we just need to keep sharing the truth with vigor, with joy, and unabashedly sharing what we know.

[144] know the truth is.

[145] And all the voices, like we were talking about on various topics, you know, the way our society works, if people don't like what happens, they sue you.

[146] And that can be very bad, but also it can be, I mean, we operate money is king for so many people.

[147] We, as Christians and Catholics, we need to remember that money should just be a tool for doing good.

[148] for doing God's will.

[149] But, you know, that gets distorted even for us.

[150] But I think that we do need to, we just need to speak up and know very clearly what the truth is and be willing to sacrifice for it, to speak up for it, and to challenge anyone who says, oh, no, well, the truth changed, and we're going to operate differently.

[151] It's just not the truth and it's harmful to, there are too many people like we've talked about so many times, and that's one reason we look at the Gaticism because people don't know what the church teaches.

[152] So when they don't know, they're not equipped to be able to say, that's absurd.

[153] That doesn't fit.

[154] That contradicts what the church teaches.

[155] So they go along with these things that ultimately find out.

[156] They find out it is absurd.

[157] It is harmful.

[158] It is destructive to their lives and the lives of others.

[159] Well, Bishop Strickland, you remind me of something we talked about maybe three weeks ago about this transgenderism that is being prevalently promoted in many states, especially California.

[160] And one of the things our state says is that if your child wants to change their sex, that if the parents say no, we can take the child away from you, which is like what are you kidding what planet is this that's the you know state of california but there was a ex -trans woman who lost men there's 50 ,000 people who have had sex changes have had regrets on this but now what's happening is they're being sued the medical profession is being sued this woman lost to $850 ,000 lawsuit against the medical world who approved a surgery to start this transition and I think this is my take you mentioned follow the money I believe this is one of the ways we stop this abuse of our children and that is take lawsuits against the medical profession because they're making tons of money doing these surgeries and they shouldn't be doing them and I'm thinking you know lawsuits and lots of companies are never want to have lawsuits so I'm thinking this could be a way to stop this nonsense.

[161] What are your thoughts?

[162] Yeah, I agree.

[163] And I've heard that some medical groups, I forget exactly the details, but some are already pulling back from it exactly for those reasons.

[164] They don't want lawsuits.

[165] Their ethics may, they may care less about the morality and the ethics of it, but if you hit them in the pocketbook, you know, that can be effective.

[166] The tragic thing is, and I think that, I think we still have to underscore the harm that's been done to people.

[167] I mean, the lawsuits really doesn't change.

[168] It's not reparation for that person, but if it can stop another person from being harmed, certainly I support that.

[169] But I mean, like this woman or man, the trans person that you're talking about, they've already been harmed.

[170] Their body's been violated.

[171] They've been mutilated.

[172] And a lot of times, that can't be.

[173] reversed.

[174] They can't be changed back.

[175] And so they have to deal with that harm.

[176] And so certainly we have compassion for those people that have awakened to what they, the mistake they've made.

[177] But we hope, hopefully these lawsuits will prevent other people.

[178] Because I mean, it is just unhinged for, I mean, like you said, the law in California to say parents don't have a voice in their own children.

[179] And, I mean, that is, you know, that is a mess.

[180] It is.

[181] It is.

[182] And I live in this state, and it is a mess.

[183] Bishop Strickland, later in the show, we're going to take the Catechism 849 as a mandate that the church teaches regarding a very important topic.

[184] But I wanted to, before I go to the next tweet, there's a great story of a elderly woman evangelizing a lapsed Catholic eight years ago.

[185] He's a TV personality.

[186] he was baptized Catholic he left the church when he was a teenager and he just announced Chuck Garcita former pastor of a booming non -denominational parish and well -known TV personality in Detroit for 40 years told Lifesite News that he's returning to the Catholic faith roots after leaving the church when he was like 10 or 12 and what's interesting about it was eight years before is what really pushed him an elderly woman in her 70s went up to him and said, you need to return back to you being a Catholic, and you know it.

[187] I'm praying for you.

[188] Now, Bishop Strickland, we need more old ladies like that in the Catholic Church.

[189] That was bold of her.

[190] Yeah, absolutely.

[191] But she's praying for that man, eight years, and then she hears, she's still alive, to hear that he's now embracing his Catholic faith.

[192] I just want to tie that into a paragraph of a catechism.

[193] It's a teaser, everybody.

[194] The last segment, 849, talks about the mission of the church.

[195] Before we get to that, because we're still going on your tweets, we have a lot of people who are in fear still from COVID.

[196] They have a lot of fear about the economy.

[197] They have a lot of fear about the government.

[198] I have people that are fearing, hey, what's going on in our church?

[199] Okay.

[200] All these fears, the phobias that are, I mean, in California, people are still wearing masks.

[201] I don't know if they're doing that in Texas.

[202] I doubt it.

[203] None in our part of the church.

[204] Well, in California, I'm kind of odd when you go into a Catholic church.

[205] They still have them.

[206] Even though, God bless, Archbishop Gomez said, you know, take them off.

[207] But I think people are scared.

[208] And this tweet made me think of that.

[209] You said this, in darkness, turn to Jesus.

[210] What a great thing to say to people.

[211] In doubt, turn to Jesus.

[212] I love this.

[213] In fear, turn to Jesus.

[214] In weakness, turn to Jesus.

[215] Jesus.

[216] In confusion, turn to Jesus.

[217] In sin, turn to Jesus.

[218] And despair, turn to Jesus.

[219] And then you quote the Bible saying, He is the way, the truth and the life through it all.

[220] Jesus Christ, king of the universe of our lives.

[221] I think if we could say that in the morning, I think that fear would leave us.

[222] So I thank you for putting that together.

[223] What made you do that?

[224] Because I just told you what I think you did it, but I'm interpreting.

[225] What was your reason for doing that?

[226] Well, it wasn't anything specific, but like you said, there is a lot of fear.

[227] There's an anxiety.

[228] It's almost palpable in everywhere.

[229] And I think we just need to remember.

[230] And ultimately, you know, certainly there are good things about our technologies and the media and all.

[231] I mean, we're using it right now.

[232] But But I would encourage people, that's another thing, to go back to Advent, but to really try to find some space away from media.

[233] And, you know, because I think so many people, and I, you know, I have to confess, I get caught up in it.

[234] And you can really get down.

[235] And one thing is a lot of that's not very real, you know.

[236] I mean, it doesn't affect what you're going to do after we finish doing this there in California.

[237] What I'm going to do, it's earlier there than it is here.

[238] I'll go home.

[239] I have a rosary group to pray with.

[240] But when we think about just our day -to -day lives, a lot of these things that we, that were bombarded with, whether they happen or not, it's not right now.

[241] And it's, I mean, certainly, you know, we need to be prepared for some things, but it's kind of like worrying about just, just this comes to me. And it's like worrying about snowstorms.

[242] They're going to happen two weeks from now that they're predicting.

[243] It may not even happen.

[244] Yeah.

[245] So don't worry about it.

[246] Exactly.

[247] You're listening to the Bishop Strickland Hour on Virgin Most Powerful.

[248] We'll come back with more.

[249] And don't forget, we're going to have a great quote from the catechism of the Catholic Church later in the show.

[250] Welcome back to the Bishop Strickland Hour.

[251] Bishop Strickland, I was reading an article about St. John Paul II.

[252] I call him the Great.

[253] He made a comment about unborn babies, and it sounded like you.

[254] I know that he is part of, I think you were ordained in the mid -80s, so, you know, John Paul, too, I imagine, was your hero.

[255] At least he was mine as a young influential age.

[256] But he said this.

[257] He's talking about the unborn and how we have to stop abortion worldwide, and we have to make a stand on this.

[258] And he was criticized saying, Holy Father, why are you continually beating up on this topic of abortion?

[259] I mean, there are other topics.

[260] And his response reminded me of you.

[261] He said, when the babies aren't being killed and millions of babies aren't done, I'll stop talking about it.

[262] Now, didn't that sound like a comment you made maybe two or three weeks ago?

[263] Well, I hope so.

[264] Yeah, you said it.

[265] You said exactly the same thing.

[266] Yeah.

[267] Well, it's true.

[268] It is true.

[269] And again, have you not been told by other people?

[270] You're always talking about too much about the unborn?

[271] I have.

[272] Yeah, yeah.

[273] And my answer...

[274] Until we really correct it, you know, like we've talked about, before, all the terrible violence, I mean, shooting, stabbings, we hear all about it all the time.

[275] That's because life isn't held sacred.

[276] And it's not going to be until we start at the beginning and build up from there.

[277] Absolutely, we need to.

[278] People, really, Terry, people don't realize what a treasure every person is.

[279] I was just out for a walk this afternoon and thinking about just walking through a neighborhood here in Tyler and realizing that the people in all these houses are part of my flock.

[280] I mean, people that I have some responsibility for.

[281] I mean, a lot of them are not Catholic and a lot of them have no idea who I am, but I've got to keep teaching the truth and recognizing that every one of those families, every person in those homes, beautiful, gorgeous home, small, you know, home that's maybe not in great shape, whoever, if a human being lives there, that is a treasure.

[282] We've got to recapture that appreciation of every person and, you know, the terrible wars that have happened through history, the massacre of unborn children.

[283] All of these things undermine the value of the human person.

[284] So we've got a lot of work to do, but we've got to keep speaking about it until the world changes.

[285] And as long as we have breath.

[286] Absolutely.

[287] You know, Bishop Stricklandland, I was talking to someone who is pro -abortion.

[288] And I said, said to them, are you okay with me killing little babies that are in, you know, a little hospitals that are just newborn babies?

[289] The reason I brought this up, I just got, just over the weekend, we had our second little baby girl for our granddaughter born.

[290] And I saw there, you know, she's so tiny.

[291] And I thought about it, what would you say for me to just start killing and stabbing all these little infants in the hospital that were just born?

[292] Wouldn't you say that's horrible?

[293] Would you or would you not?

[294] And of course, well, yeah, I mean, how can you kill a little baby?

[295] And I said, well, don't go on my morality.

[296] Go on science.

[297] What do you think is inside Mama?

[298] We know because when it comes out, it's not a banana.

[299] It's not an apple.

[300] It's a baby.

[301] And so my question to you is if you're okay with me killing these babies outside the womb, of course you said you're not, then why are you comfortable killing them inside the mother's womb?

[302] And I got to admit, the lady looked at me like, you didn't have an answer.

[303] You know, like, well, there is no answer.

[304] If you really are honest with yourself, there is no, I mean, it's the same baby.

[305] Yeah, it's the same baby.

[306] That's the point.

[307] And so we're going to keep talking about it and tell people wake up.

[308] And it's our responsibility.

[309] Yeah.

[310] Yeah.

[311] And, you know, Bishop Strickland, you live in the great state of Texas.

[312] There's thousands of babies that are alive because.

[313] of your legislation.

[314] Texas administrators have voted the heartbeat law, and that saved thousands of babies' lives.

[315] Here in California, again, I'm in the, I feel like I'm in Sodom and Gomorrah because our governor says just the opposite.

[316] You're in Texas?

[317] Come to California.

[318] We'll kill your baby.

[319] I mean, is this microphone on?

[320] Did I say that?

[321] Yes, because it's true.

[322] That's how bad it's gotten.

[323] So, yeah, if we stay silent on this, I think, I'm going to be honest with you.

[324] I think I have a sin of omission if I don't speak up for the little ones.

[325] Well, I totally agree.

[326] And, I mean, you do it with love, you don't attack anyone.

[327] Oh, no. Because the people we're trying to get to listen are precious as well.

[328] That's right.

[329] That's right.

[330] You know, you've got to keep, you know, for their good and for the good of society and certainly for the babies.

[331] Yeah.

[332] Bishop Strickland, you talked a little bit about the German bishops.

[333] And it's sad what's going on there.

[334] And you had tweeted that you said at least one bishop admits that they are seeking some sort of alternative of Catholicism.

[335] Because he said, you know, we just want to have our own version of Catholicism.

[336] Like, no, there's only one version of it.

[337] But he said, we want our own version.

[338] He said, but you said, there's no such thing.

[339] If they don't want the truth the church teaches, they're free to reject it because they have free will.

[340] It is so many have, but you can't reject what Catholic embrace Catholic all at the same time.

[341] In other words, you can't be Catholic and say, we want a different version.

[342] And can you just explain that?

[343] Because I don't think just the bishops in Germany want that.

[344] There are people in this country who think, and this is what they think, they can be Catholic.

[345] and pro -abortion.

[346] And those two don't mix.

[347] Your thoughts?

[348] Absolutely.

[349] There are many things that people are pushing for, and I mean, Catholics in Congress voting for this, you know, marriage, so -called, I mean, so badly named Marriage Protection Act, it's the Marriage Destruction Act, is what it is.

[350] And it's even worse than, I mean, destroying marriage is about as bad as it gets.

[351] But it, it, it is.

[352] It really, people, I don't think, are aware, and even the legislators, I don't think they're really aware of what the agenda is behind it.

[353] And it's trying to really shut down exactly what we're doing right now.

[354] Exactly.

[355] Quit talking about the truth.

[356] Quit talking about Catholicism.

[357] And really, it's very dangerous.

[358] And, you know, we've got to speak up.

[359] up and continue to speak up even with and they tell us it's illegal it's never you know we don't have to follow a law that is contrary to the common good and contrary to just common sense absolutely I mean you know like sadly a lot of laws in California but we've got to continue to speak up and to to resist the you know the German bishops are ignoring, I mean, they just had their elymina.

[360] I read, I mean, that's part of what that, it was one of the bishops speaking after they had had their, the ad limina that, the periodic visit with the Pope.

[361] We had our, as the American bishops, we had our ad limina back in January of 2020, just before COVID started.

[362] But the German bishops were just there for their ad limina.

[363] basically told Pope Francis and even the other members of the Curia, I know that there were several cardinals speaking to him saying, come back to the Catholic faith, but they're saying, no, we're going to continue on this path.

[364] And, you know, really the Senate is unfolding, and people are really using it to do exactly that, to say, well, we want a different version of Catholicism.

[365] Basically, that happened 500 years ago, and it ceased to be Catholicism, and it became Protestantism.

[366] And it's frustrating to me that these bishops, they need to embrace some Protestant faith or create their own.

[367] I mean, there are many different Protestant denominations that have developed in the past 500 years.

[368] I don't know how many there are, but there are many, many Protestant groups and there's a lot of non -denominational.

[369] But Catholic is clearly defined.

[370] Read the catechism.

[371] And if you're contrary to the catechism, certainly, like I said in that tweet, people are free to be.

[372] God doesn't force us.

[373] And we don't force anyone.

[374] If you want to leave the church, it's heartbreaking, but that's your free choice.

[375] But rather than trying to say, oh, we want a different form of Catholicism.

[376] You want a different form of the truth?

[377] It doesn't.

[378] It just doesn't make sense.

[379] Right.

[380] And I brought this up last week to you, and I'll bring it up again.

[381] Many of the denominations of Christianity compromised on these moral issues, whether it's over sexuality of contraception or abortion or same -sex marriage, all these things they said, well, we're going to bring more people in if we just compromise and let that in.

[382] But statistically shows that just the opposite.

[383] it has taken place, the people leave.

[384] And this is something that we should have learned from our Protestant brothers that compromise doesn't do anything except you leave people confused and they are not committed at all to Christian values.

[385] And so I just wanted to bring that up.

[386] But I wanted to, before we get to the catechism, we got a couple minutes on this segment, it seems to me, Bishop Strickland, we still, in the world and even in the church, we are so concerned about offending somebody by telling them the truth.

[387] We don't, we hear people like a bishop up in France where the priest was preaching that more babies died in France since 1975 when abortion was legalized than all the people that died in World War I on November 11th, Armist's Day, and he gets reprimanded by the bishop because the bishop said, you're offending too many people by telling them, stay quiet on that.

[388] Now, Bishop Strickland, I'm not even saying names, the dioceses, it's in the newspapers, but I feel like, Father, the priest, God bless you for speaking up and paying a price, because for four weeks he has to be silent by not preaching, because the bishop said, you've got to be quiet on that issue, and he's not willing to do that.

[389] I think he's spot on, but I won't get your take on that.

[390] Let's get back.

[391] I had to, that's my take on teaching the faith no matter what cost and that priest did it even though he got penalized.

[392] You're listening to the Bishop Strickland Hour.

[393] We'll be right back.

[394] Stay with us.

[395] Welcome back to the Bishop Strickland Hour.

[396] This is a teaser.

[397] We're going to quote a catechism 849.

[398] So open up your catechism paragraph 849.

[399] And I want to just preface this because this is what the official church teachings are.

[400] I know that a couple years ago down in Panama, we had that cenot down there and one Franciscan priest bragged about being there for 40 years or 38 years and never baptizing one soul and thinking that this is what the church is wanting him to do, which is fallacious.

[401] I mean, I feel bad for the guy.

[402] Maybe he got just bad catechesis.

[403] But if you read the catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraph 849, this is a mandate, a missionary mandate, that that, that woman that I told you about the old lady where she called on that lapsed Catholic TV personality to come back to the church eight years ago and now he's back.

[404] That's the kind of Catholic we need.

[405] But let me just read the paragraph and then Bishop Strickland, you give me your commentary on this.

[406] The missionary mandate, having been divinely sent to the nations, that she, the church, might be the universal sacrament of salvation.

[407] I love that line.

[408] the church in obedience to the command of her founder and because it is demanded by her own essential universatility strives to preach the gospel to all men meaning all men and women and then it's the mandate says go therefore and make disciples of all nations baptizing them in the name of the father and the son and the Holy Spirit teaching them to observe all that I command you and lo I am with you always until the close of the age.

[409] And of course, that's right and taken right from Matthew's gospel.

[410] Bishop Strickland, this is very appropriate for us today.

[411] Give me your thoughts.

[412] Yeah, I totally agree, Terry, and I love just the sort of title of this section.

[413] Yeah.

[414] Mission, a requirement of the church's Catholicity.

[415] Wow.

[416] That's pretty clear and pretty strong.

[417] It's not an option.

[418] No. It's not a, well, if you really want to, it's a requirement of being Catholic is to this missionary mandate, is this paragraph 849 says.

[419] And there's two, we've really, I mean, I'm in a very non -Catholic area.

[420] There are many Christians, but not many Catholics, percentage wise.

[421] One thing that I think we need to underscore in this is the church, I mean, and certainly there are a lot of different opinions, but the Catholic church's approach is if you're validly baptized, and that's very simple, really, using water in some form that is not just sprinkled, but flowing water that catches that image of flowing, you can be dunked in a river or in a pool or have water poured over your head like most infants do, but pouring water and saying, I baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

[422] That's all the church requires.

[423] Certainly, the ordinary ministers of baptism are the ordained.

[424] Bishops can baptize, priests baptized, deacons baptized.

[425] But in a lot of Catholics, and we used to emphasize this in our R -CIA classes, Christian initiation for those who are becoming Catholic, any believing Christian, not even, the church says, not even a Catholic, but any believing Christian in an emergency situation can baptize another.

[426] If someone's in a terrible situation and they're about to die and they say, I was never baptized, but I want to be baptized, a believing Christian can do exactly that, pour water over their head and say those words and the church accepts that baptism.

[427] I emphasize that because, like I was saying, walking around the neighborhood, a lot of the people in East Texas are baptized.

[428] Not baptized in the Catholic tradition, but they're baptized.

[429] If they're baptized, they're part of the flock of Christ.

[430] They share the same call to live Christ that we do.

[431] I mean, just at the beginning level of baptism, we know there are three sacraments of initiation, baptism, confirmation, and Eucharist.

[432] And that strengthens us to live our baptism more fully, to turn from sin and to live the gospel more fully.

[433] But I think that is important to understand as the church's mandate to go out and baptize and to certainly bring for those always respecting the free will of the individuals and the i mean the missionaries of old get you know bashed for forcing people to be baptized maybe that happened some i doubt it was the the common practice because people knew their faith that's right you know maybe they were zealous and really urging people to be baptized but i mean we don't I don't know, but, and I'm sir, as there are bad actors today, there were probably bad actors, but to tar the whole missionary activity of the church as, you know, this proselytizing and this, you know, just forcing people or bribing people to be baptized.

[434] Any Catholic of 1 ,500 years ago, if they knew the faith, they knew that that's not what the church calls for.

[435] Certainly, you know, mistakes are made and people get zealous and overstep, but that we need to not cause the mistakes that may have been made to pull us back from what the catechism says.

[436] A requirement of the church's Catholicity is this missionary mandate, given by Christ himself, to the apostles.

[437] And as a successor of the apostles, we have an obligation to continue to share the good news.

[438] Again, not forcing anyone, but calling people to truly embrace Jesus Christ.

[439] Because even, you know, if a misguided missionary is forcing people or, in a sense, bribing people, oh, we'll feed you or you get better food if you go ahead and be baptized, that that isn't really baptism either.

[440] I mean, certainly they would be validly baptized, but that's not what the faith is about.

[441] Christ doesn't force anyone to follow him.

[442] He leaves us free and our free will to choose.

[443] And that's what we need to emphasize.

[444] People are free to choose to reject Christ, but we have the obligation to share the good news of our Savior.

[445] he's savior of all humanity.

[446] And that's what these paragraphs, beginning with 849, that's what it's reminding us.

[447] You know, it reminds me of what Vatican II said on the decree of missionary activity of the church.

[448] It says the whole church is missionary.

[449] And the work of evangelization is the fundamental task of the people of God.

[450] And Bishop Strickland, if you don't mind, I want to read a section from Vatican II that really gives a decree on the apostle of the laypeople.

[451] Like that elderly woman, she implemented Vatican II by asking him to come back.

[452] This is what Vatican II says.

[453] And I always tell people, read the documents.

[454] Don't take the spirit of the Vatican II documents.

[455] Read them.

[456] Here's what it says.

[457] In the church, there is diversity of services, but unity of purpose.

[458] Christ conferred on the apostles and their successors, the duty of teaching, sanctifying, and ruling in his name and power.

[459] Those are the bishops.

[460] But the laity, too, share in the priest.

[461] prophetic and royal office of Christ and therefore have their own role to play in the missionary world of the whole of the God in the church and in the world and this is really powerful for us they know as lay people they exercise we lay people a genuine apostolate by their activity on behalf of bringing the gospel and the holiness of men and on the behalf of penetrating and perfecting the temporal sphere of things through the spirit of the gospel in this way the temporal activity can openly bear witness to Christ and promote the salvation of men since it is proper to the layman state in life for him to spend his days in the midst of the world and of the secular transactions he is called here comes he's called by god to burn with the spirit of Christ and to exercise his apostolate in the world as the king as a kind of leaven yes we're supposed to be the leaven.

[462] I just, I know your, your, your, your, um, I should say the state, the, um, saint, I can't even think, you guys talk, I've read this on your website.

[463] You guys quote this document on your, um, the St. Philip Institute.

[464] I couldn't think of it.

[465] Thank you.

[466] St. Philip Institute.

[467] You, I quoted it in my book, but this is a mandate, not from Bishop Strickland.

[468] No, no. This is a mandate from Holy Mother the Church from the Second Vatican Council.

[469] And I just want to point this out.

[470] This is so beautiful because it gives us clarity in times of confusion right now.

[471] Absolutely.

[472] And I love what the next paragraph 850.

[473] Let's just read that.

[474] Read it.

[475] Read it.

[476] It talks about the very part of the purpose of this.

[477] Yes.

[478] The origin and purpose of mission.

[479] Yes.

[480] The Lord's missionary mandate is ultimately grounded in the eternal love of the most Holy Trinity.

[481] The church on earth is by her nature missionary, since according to the plan of the father, she is as her origin, the mission of the Son and the Holy Spirit.

[482] The ultimate purpose of mission is none other than to make men share in the communion between the Father and the Son in their spirit of love.

[483] That is profound.

[484] It is.

[485] And that really brings it to the very focus of why the church exists, why the church has missionary activity, why we proclaim Jesus Christ.

[486] The ultimate purpose of mission is none other than to make men share in the communion between the father and the son, their spirit of love.

[487] To share in the life of God, that's what it's about.

[488] I got excited just hearing that chapter, Bishop Strickland, because some of us might be confused that we're supposed to be, you know, using our solar panels or are picking up trash out of the ocean, which is a good thing.

[489] But this is the mandate.

[490] This is a top priority.

[491] And sometimes I forget, well, wait a minute.

[492] What are we spending our time on right now in the church?

[493] This is why you quoting the catechism gave me a real focus on, no, no, no. The priority is what the last canon of canon law says.

[494] So if souls, the salvation of souls, and I keep quoting Bishop Sheem, And he says, if souls are saved, everything is saved.

[495] If souls aren't saved, nothing is safe.

[496] So thank you for quoting the catechism.

[497] Can we get a blessing from you?

[498] We ran out of time, Bishop Strickland.

[499] Sure.

[500] Appreciate it.

[501] The Lord be with you.

[502] And with your spirit.

[503] Almighty God, we ask your blessing for Terry and for all of his crew, for all listening to this program that all of us may rejoice in what we've just read about, that it is the plan of our loving God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, to draw us to him.

[504] to draw us into that communion of love and to that great mystery.

[505] That is the eternity God longs to share with us.

[506] May we all be blessed as we seek to turn from sin and live the truth that guides us on this mission of love.

[507] In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, amen.

[508] Thank you very much, Bishop Strickland.

[509] Folks, you can hear all of the shows on VMPR .org's website, podcasts, of all the different shows that we have on Virgin Most Powerful radio.

[510] Thanks for listening and we hope to be back again next week at the same time.

[511] May God richly bless your family and thanks for supporting us here at Virgin Most Powerful Radio.

[512] God love you and your family.