27 Sep 22 – Jesus Christ, Our Only Lord and Savior

[0] Welcome to the Bishop Strickland Hour.

[1] My name's Terry Barber with Virgin Most Powerful Radio.

[2] Bishop Strickland, welcome back, my friend.

[3] All right, we're having a little audio problem there, Mr. Engineer.

[4] There we go.

[5] Well, Bishop Strickland, thanks for coming again to talk about our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, every day.

[6] No one better to talk about.

[7] No way.

[8] And you know what, to top it all off, maybe 20 minutes ago you tweeted something.

[9] Maybe it was 10 minutes ago.

[10] I don't know.

[11] I got it from my staff.

[12] says and this is what we do folks if you're brand new to the show we take the tweets of bishop strickland along with catechism of the catholic church in the current events and we get commentary and it's all encouraging people to fall deep in love with jesus christ and his bride the church as a matter of fact what we have done today we titled this jesus christ our only lord and savior and the reason i did that and bishop strickland you I've quoted you, but I put it at the show because for the last 40 or 50 years, even in our church, I don't know if we've been clear enough to teach that truth, that Jesus Christ is the only way.

[13] And we sometimes see syncretism, meaning one religion is as good as another creeping in.

[14] And so that's not a biblical worldview.

[15] And I just had to compliment you because some of the things you're talking about.

[16] tweeting tell people that hey it's jesus christ and it's he's the only way to salvation no other name under the sun can get you to heaven and i think that's very bold of you to say that but you know what it's true more importantly absolutely i mean that's the message of jesus christ there's only one son of god only one savior of humanity and having grown up in a very non -catholic world beautiful part of the world, but here in East Texas, Catholics are in the minority.

[17] Very Christian area, but most of the Christians are not Catholic.

[18] And there's a tendency to say, even within the Catholic, I mean, in the Christian world, that one church is as good as another.

[19] That's not what we teach.

[20] And certainly, you know, people say, oh, the Catholic Church says you're going to hell if you aren't Catholic.

[21] No, we don't say that either.

[22] but we believe that the Catholic Church, with all her imperfections, and I'm a sinful, very imperfect member of the church, but the church is holy because the Holy Spirit is with us.

[23] And so I think we have lost that fervor of really joyfully proclaiming the truth that we believe that the Catholic Church, is the church that Jesus Christ established.

[24] She's still here after all these centuries because the Holy Spirit, it's a supernatural strength.

[25] That's right.

[26] That helps to overcome all the sinfulness, all the confusion, all the corruption that's been part of the church.

[27] Yeah.

[28] And it is part of the church because we're all sinners.

[29] Right.

[30] But even beyond that, as Christians, and Christ prayed that we might all be one.

[31] Yes.

[32] And the division in Christianity is sad.

[33] It's tragic.

[34] There's too much division in the Catholic Church.

[35] You know, I tweeted also to pray for our Methodist brothers and sisters who are going through their own struggles right now.

[36] The Methodist Church is, you know, facing some real splits because of basic teachings.

[37] Christ prayed that we would be one.

[38] How can we be one in him, in his truth?

[39] There's only one truth, ultimately.

[40] Two opposing messages can't both be the truth.

[41] There can be different aspects of the truth, and certainly it all has to fit together.

[42] But one truth can't contradict another.

[43] That's like Christ himself.

[44] He says he can't contradict the truth.

[45] He's got to be faithful to his father and his spirit.

[46] They are one, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

[47] And I think we need to, as Christians worldwide, we need to celebrate and rejoice in the message of Jesus Christ.

[48] Certainly, yes, sadly, we have our divisions even within Christianity.

[49] Oh, yeah.

[50] But if we believe Jesus Christ is God's divine son and Lord and Savior of all humanity, we need to joyfully and vigorously share that truth.

[51] Because the world is losing, we're losing ground rather than gaining it in many places.

[52] I mean, you probably saw the latest poll that says the United States is less than 50 % Christian now.

[53] And that is sad.

[54] We need to continue to proclaim.

[55] And today we're celebrating the Korean martyrs, a marvelous story of martyred and that's repeated over and over and over again in the church.

[56] And I always say, I mean, this is just something that struck me as a Catholic, as a bishop now, but you don't die for something that you say, well, yours is as good as mine.

[57] You die for something that you know is worth dying for, that you know is so vital that you're what, rather give up your life in this world, then deny that truth.

[58] That's the kind of vigorous faith we need.

[59] We need the faith of the martyrs.

[60] Like the saints of old said, the blood of the martyrs is the seed of faith.

[61] We need that seed of faith to reinvigorate us as Catholics and as Christians to really believe in Jesus Christ.

[62] And if we really study him, I happen to believe that you're going to ultimately, embrace the Catholic Church.

[63] But you're not forced to.

[64] God doesn't force us.

[65] It's wrong for anyone to be coerced into embracing of faith or any aspect of the faith.

[66] God leaves us free.

[67] We have free will and we need to keep that sacred and uphold the freedom of everyone to make that choice.

[68] But you and I know to the depths of our being, we know that Jesus Christ is Lord of all.

[69] He's the son of God.

[70] He has come to save all humanity.

[71] And we need to joyfully and vigorously share that truth.

[72] And if people, in the time of Christ himself, if people rejected, Christ didn't coerce anyone.

[73] He didn't, he simply spoke the truth.

[74] If people walked away, they walked away.

[75] And even told his disciples, if people don't receive the truth, shape the dust of that town from your feet and move on.

[76] So Jesus is not about coercing people.

[77] And we shouldn't be either.

[78] People should be free to choose.

[79] But that's been, it's almost like that's been carried to an extreme where we're so respectful of that freedom to choose that we don't even present the truth.

[80] Exactly.

[81] And if you're not free to choose if you've never known the truth.

[82] You've got to, we've got to share the truth, and that's what the missionaries and the martyrs of old, the great saints that helped to bring Christianity around the world into the new world after it became known, and prior to that in every corner of the earth that was known, the apostles and then the successors of the apostles and the great missionaries share the joyful truth.

[83] And I guess I would really want to, as I know I've said before many times, it's good news and it brings joy.

[84] Why wouldn't we want to share good news that brings joy?

[85] And that's the message of Jesus Christ.

[86] It doesn't mean it's not challenging and doesn't bring the deepest challenges in our lives to turn from sin and to live the truth of this message.

[87] It's a lifelong quest to turn from sin and to live the gospel.

[88] But that's what we have to do.

[89] And there are two many pieces of it that are being left.

[90] It's just like they're lying by the side of the road and they're not being presented to people.

[91] You've got to turn from sin.

[92] That has to be part of it.

[93] And that isn't being emphasized in ways.

[94] And it's damaging people because people that are caught up in sin, they're taking the lack of emphasis on turning from sin and reformed.

[95] And I've got to do it daily.

[96] All of us do.

[97] I mean, we need a solid example.

[98] of conscience that challenges us.

[99] I was with friends just last week and read one.

[100] There was a very good examination of conscience.

[101] And one of the things that it said there was to not admonish the sinner.

[102] And to me, that is key for our time because people said, oh, you can't judge.

[103] No, you don't judge another person, but you share the judgments of the truth and you admonish people that you know are ignoring that truth, again, without coercion, without disrespect, but the greatest charity is to share the truth.

[104] And we seem to have forgotten all of that.

[105] Amen.

[106] I can just think of Father Bill Casey saying the most merciless thing you can do is let your brother wailo in sin.

[107] In other words, hey, do you really love somebody if you let them stay in mortal sin, objective mortal sin?

[108] They're living with their boyfriend or their girlfriend.

[109] and you're not going to say something about it?

[110] I think that's an omission, and that's my take on it.

[111] Bishop Strickland, you have a nice tweet from St. John Paul II, just came out and said, I think this is what gives you strength.

[112] It gives me strength when I read these things, to stand up for the truth in spite of persecution.

[113] And I mean, last week we'll talk about what happened with you and other bishops and priests, and I signed that petition myself.

[114] My wife did too.

[115] But let's talk about St. John Paul II's tweet.

[116] he said, I plead with you, the Pope was saying to you, me personally, to you, Bishop Strickland, to all of our individual listeners, never, ever give up on hope, never doubt, never tire, never become discouraged, be not afraid.

[117] That was one of his big things.

[118] Wow, what a great quote.

[119] When we come back, we'll have Bishop Strickland talk a little bit about that.

[120] And also about what he just did last week with Bishop Snyder.

[121] and others that I think is a great service to Holy Mother the Church because it's proclaiming the perennial teachings of the church.

[122] Stay with us, family.

[123] We'll be right now.

[124] Welcome back to the Bishop Strickland hour.

[125] I was really impressed Bishop Strickland, because you seem to be speaking from your heart about something that's very important, and that is that people have an encounter with Jesus Christ.

[126] Absolutely.

[127] They've got to have it.

[128] Without that, you've got nothing.

[129] And I just quoted St. John Paul, too, about never giving up, never give up on hope, never doubt, never tire, never become discouraged, be not afraid.

[130] That was his quote of arms.

[131] He always talked about, be not afraid.

[132] I don't know about you, but that inspires me today in 2022.

[133] Absolutely.

[134] And it's easy for, I mean, sadly, as you were mentioning before we started recording, there is a lot despair.

[135] There's a lot of loss of hope.

[136] There's a lot of depression and even suicide out in society.

[137] And if we know Jesus Christ, he is the Lord of hope.

[138] There's always, and the great thing is the abundant mercy that is there for us.

[139] I'm a sinner.

[140] We all are.

[141] And the mercy is always offered to us.

[142] There's a tendency to want mercy these days without acknowledging the sins.

[143] And the real freedom is to be freed from the sin and to be able to flourish in the grace that God offers us.

[144] That's really loving people, and that's really proclaiming the gospel, is to call people to be freed.

[145] And sin, as we know, takes many different forms that people may not even acknowledge or recognize that sinful patterns have left them in this place of, you know, despair.

[146] And it's our obligation to share the hope that is Jesus Christ.

[147] Amen.

[148] Mr. Strickland, I think of Cardinal Zen and how you tweeted about him going on trial.

[149] This is a Cardinal who could have left Hong Kong and been a free man, but he decided to stay with his flock and to the end.

[150] And he might be going to prison for quite a few years.

[151] Probably will.

[152] He'll probably die in prison.

[153] He's 90 years old.

[154] I mean, you know, he's going to die soon probably.

[155] But those are the kind of successors of the apostles that inspire us.

[156] And I want to just say last week you did something that you could have been quiet on.

[157] You could have just said, you know what?

[158] Not my battle.

[159] Let someone else take the heat on this.

[160] You, Bishop Athanasius Snyder, Cardinal Mueller, and others have signed a document, and I think it's out of charity, but you're going to take heat for it, obviously.

[161] Many scholars signed it because we were concerned about what the Holy Father, and again, I'm just going to say, the Holy Father is the vigor of Christ, not the superior of Christ.

[162] So what he can't do is change what Christ teaches.

[163] And what you guys did, and many lay people, is you brought this up.

[164] up to the Holy Father saying what you said about Holy Communion that individuals can receive just by the very fact of reading the Word of God, but forgetting about repentance, that you say, no, Holy Father, with all due respect, that's not what the Catholic Church has always taught.

[165] You guys documented the Council of Trent, canon law.

[166] I mean, it was a well -documented letter, but I have to ask you right now.

[167] I mean, I know you're not a masochist.

[168] I know that.

[169] You don't like people yelling at you and screaming.

[170] And I get the, but what made you put your name on a document that you know you're going to take heat for?

[171] Well, really, Terry, I think we need the conversation.

[172] We may not get it, but I think we need the clarity.

[173] I think we've got to understand what's being said.

[174] And there are too many contradictory things going on.

[175] And I don't want to get into all the details.

[176] But I think we need a conversation.

[177] Terry, I am glad to be proven wrong that this is not what this is talking about, that this document wasn't saying we don't have to reform our lives and turn from sin as well as believing.

[178] Believing is a part of, they go hand in hand.

[179] There's a lot of, and you know, you might be able to read the document, the letter and the document it refers to and say, well, that's not what it meant.

[180] But what I think the main point that I see is what's happening.

[181] People are interpreting things as you can very vigorously oppose what the church teaches.

[182] Call yourself a practicing, a good Catholic, and go to communion, and it's contradictory.

[183] And that's mainly just pastoral.

[184] I mean, people here in the flock of the Diocese of Tyler with that kind of confusion, they're, you know, it's much easier to say, oh, well, you know, I've been told it doesn't matter.

[185] And, you know, I can totally disagree with basic church teaching and shouldn't have to worry about it, and I'll go ahead and receive communion.

[186] That's not what the church teaches.

[187] And I don't think that's the intention of anyone.

[188] So I think we need more conversation and more understanding, more clarity of what are we saying here?

[189] And I would love to be proven, you know, that was totally wrong and totally off base.

[190] I'd be glad to understand that there's no question of turning from sin and believing as good.

[191] going hand in hand.

[192] But we're seeing people, politicians, or just everyday people, the interpretation is, I don't have to change my lifestyle, and I can still go to communion.

[193] I don't have to change how I'm living my life.

[194] I don't have to change what I promote or what I support.

[195] And that's just not, that's not coherent with what the church teaches.

[196] I have to change my life.

[197] And I continue to face that challenge.

[198] All of us do.

[199] To change ourselves.

[200] Again, it comes back to Jesus.

[201] To be conformed to Jesus Christ more and more fully.

[202] To the degree that I'm a sinner, I'm not conform to Christ.

[203] That I'm obligated to change.

[204] And if we love him, we want to change.

[205] We want to be more like him.

[206] I mean, the, the Blessed Virgin Mary calls us to be like her son.

[207] Do what he tells you.

[208] And so loving Christ means a willingness to constantly be reconverting our lives and reconfirming our faith in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

[209] So the loving thing for all of us to do is to continue to grapple with sin and to be grateful for God's mercy and to continue to seek to be more and more conformed to Christ, to be more configured to him.

[210] That's what baptism does.

[211] That's what confirmation.

[212] That's what all the sacraments are about.

[213] The Eucharist is there to feed our soul and draw us closer to Christ, to be more and more configured to him.

[214] Bishop, thank you.

[215] And I'm not a biblical scholar, but today's really, We didn't do the reading for the feast today, but this reading from Luke chapter 8 made me realize that, yeah, we have to act on the word of God.

[216] This is Luke 8, Chapter 8, verse 19 to 21.

[217] I just want to read it, but I just made the connection reading this gospel this morning, and I said, wait a minute.

[218] See, you can't just read the Bible and say, oh, that's a nice book, kind of like Gone with the Wind.

[219] It's just a novel.

[220] No, we have to act on it.

[221] here's what the reading says and then tell me my ex of jesus is all wet the mother of jesus and his brothers came to him but were unable to join him because of the crowd he was told your mother and your brothers are standing outside and they wish to see you he said to them in reply my mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of god and act on it so maybe i'm all wet on this but acting on the word of god meaning repentance that's what I think when I read the Word of God and say repent and believe in the gospel that I can't just read it and not respond.

[222] Am I on to something or maybe I'm off?

[223] Absolutely.

[224] To act on the, to hear the Word of God and act on it.

[225] Certainly, it has to do with repentance.

[226] It has to do with generously reaching out to those in need and not being selfish.

[227] It means overcoming all those tendencies that are contrary to the word.

[228] of God and sometimes sins of omission and sins of commission.

[229] There you go.

[230] And as we know, that passage, sometimes people would say, oh, Jesus is disrespectful to Mary.

[231] Mary knows and Jesus knows, and all of us should know, he's paying her the highest compliment because she is full of grace.

[232] She is fully hearing the word of God who she bore in her womb and the great mystery of the incarnation.

[233] But she hears the word of God and acts on it with her very being.

[234] And so Mary is the model of exactly that.

[235] So that's what Jesus is saying.

[236] She's first in line to be mother and brother and sister and father to be related to Jesus.

[237] Mary is the first example of that.

[238] And all of us are called to the same thing.

[239] To hear the word of God and be changed by it.

[240] To turn our lives away from anything sinful or anything contrary or anything simply not paying attention to what the Word of God says.

[241] I'm sure there are people out there saying, I live a basically good life, and I avoid, you know, we can go through this list of sins.

[242] I said, I'm not doing that, but if they're not worshiping God, if they're not engaging in living the Word, then they are in trouble as well.

[243] So it's not just explicitly just all sin but it's embracing sin gets in the way of embracing life in Jesus Christ we're called to embrace life in Jesus Christ and get rid of all those obstacles that sins are to not acting on the word of God wow I love your catechesis this is really just you know what it is it's it's it's like basic teachings of the Catholic faith we go over and over it again Why do we do this, folks?

[244] It's because what do you do when you want to be a good ball player?

[245] You work on the fundamentals.

[246] So we're just working on the fundamentals.

[247] I'm not talking about the hypostatic union right now.

[248] We can talk about that later.

[249] Maybe, you know, when we're having a good, whatever.

[250] In other words, that's a theological, kind of a neat word.

[251] But right now we're talking about salvation, the ultimate good.

[252] Bishop Strickland, before we take our break, I always like to plug what you're doing in your diocese in evangelization.

[253] You have an institute.

[254] Can you share that with our friends?

[255] Yeah, the St. Philip Institute of Catechesis and Evangelization, St. Philip Institute .org.

[256] You can find it online, St. Philip with 1L.

[257] And there we have a great team of young theologians working to share the truth joyfully, especially in the area of marriage and family in catechesis for the whole family, in getting the word of the truth out through our communication.

[258] So it really is a joyful message in the joy of these young professionals that are there in the Institute, sharing that truth and helping people to see that the Lord wants us to flourish in joy.

[259] That doesn't mean we don't face challenges, all of us do.

[260] But the Lord wants us to flourish in the joy that he offers to the world, to rejoice that we are sons and daughters of God, and we're called to live that.

[261] Amen, when we come back, Bishop Athanasia Snyder and Bishop Joseph Strickland comments on something happened last week in Kassistan with the Holy Father.

[262] Stay with us.

[263] Welcome back to the Bishop Joseph Strickland show.

[264] Gary Barber here for Virgin Most Powerful Radio.

[265] Just last week, the Holy Father went all the way to Kassistan.

[266] That's where Bishop Snyder lives.

[267] There's not very few Catholics, actually, that live in that huge country, but Pope Francis attended this week a peace and harmony conference that was with all the different major religions.

[268] And Bishop Snyder was there, and he got an interview with EWTN, and he just voiced a little concern that I share, I'll see what the bishop has to say here, a concern that when church leaders take part in these events, you know, all the different religions are getting together, that it could give the impression that the church belongs to like a supermarket of religions.

[269] Everybody's there.

[270] You can choose what you want.

[271] But Jesus Christ is not the supermarket of religion.

[272] As Bishop Snyder said, and Bishop Strickland said, he is the only one true God.

[273] So he's advocating finding ways to improve such meetings and recommends it would be better to have local meetings on a human level, thereby mitigating the danger of relativism and differentism and that word syncretism, meaning one religion is as good as another.

[274] I wanted to ask Bishop Strickland, his thoughts and your concerns, because I have my thoughts about this, because I've experienced this in my life.

[275] What are your thoughts about what the Bishop Snyder had to say?

[276] Well, Terry, like we were saying earlier, to me the best answer is to look to Jesus Christ and who he really is.

[277] And anything that doesn't joyfully and vigorously proclaim that truth, we do need to be careful.

[278] Certainly, we need to be respectful of people who don't believe in God, don't believe in Jesus Christ, but that it is always kind of a fine line that we have to walk to not diminish our faith.

[279] And I guess what I emphasize is what I said earlier.

[280] It's good news and it's joyful.

[281] We need to trust in the truth that we know in Christ.

[282] And it's a truth for humanity that humanity needs desperately as much now, maybe more now than ever, but certainly through the ages, humanity has needed the message of Jesus Christ, the son of God.

[283] There's only one Jesus.

[284] There's only one son of God.

[285] And the church basically teaches to the degree that you're embracing that one truth, you're part of us.

[286] The church teaches that anyone baptized, Father, Son, and Spirit, with some form of washing of water.

[287] And it can take various different forms.

[288] It's really very simple what the church says.

[289] This is valid baptism.

[290] It has to be baptism in the name of the Father, the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, and with the washing of water in some way through that threefold naming of God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

[291] All the baptized are one in Christ, and that really needs to be emphasized.

[292] And those who are not baptized, they're still called to that one Lord, one faith, one baptism that all of us who are baptized share in.

[293] And I think that's what Bishop Schneider is getting at.

[294] Absolutely, as Catholics, we support the Pope, we support the papacy.

[295] But through the ages, very often the challenge, I mean, I can't imagine.

[296] the challenging job in today's world of being the vicar of Christ.

[297] But to support that, it's supportive to speak the truth.

[298] It's supportive to say, maybe that wasn't the intention at all, but this is the way it's being heard out in the world or in any given circumstances.

[299] Real support to the papacy is to always return to the truth.

[300] And like I said, if my understanding.

[301] of what's been said or what Bishop Schneider said, if somehow that's a misunderstanding, I will gladly be corrected.

[302] But if the impressions need to be clarified, I think we, out of support for both Francis, the church, all the cardinals, the whole reality of the Catholic Church, we need to speak up and say, let's have more clarity here.

[303] Let's understand this.

[304] more deeply than what is the popular understanding at this moment, because it's doing harm and getting to a different topic, but it's one truth.

[305] And when we talk about, you know, there's so many movements in the church.

[306] I was just reading about another, the bishops conference in Belgium, is approving a ritual for same -sex unions.

[307] Thankfully, the Vatican just said not that long ago, we can't bless sin.

[308] That's what that's talking about.

[309] We have an obligation to call lovingly, but vigorously, to call a group of bishops or anyone or any individual that's in the church, call them back to the truth and say, We can't bless sin.

[310] We don't condemn anyone, but we can't bless sin.

[311] And that's what, you know, at least in what I could read of what the Belgian bishops are putting together, that's what they're talking about, a ritual in the church that acknowledges people that are living in sinful situations.

[312] It's just, it's not, it's harmful to humanity.

[313] it's harmful to those individuals.

[314] Real love is to call people to the truth.

[315] Amen.

[316] Bishop Strickland, you constantly clarify the kingship of Christ.

[317] I know that it was 1925 and the Holy Father declared Christ the king, and we have it on our calendar.

[318] I think it's the last Sunday of the calendar year before Advent.

[319] And everything you say, I mean, this is just so fundamental back in the 15th of September.

[320] You said, Jesus Christ, our only Lord and Savior yesterday, today, and forever.

[321] If you know him, rejoice and be glad.

[322] Share him with every person you encounter and live the joy of being his disciple.

[323] If you do not know him, he is inviting you to embrace his gospel and follow him in love.

[324] That's the kind of stuff I'm expecting bishops to say, Bishop Strickland.

[325] I'm reading it.

[326] I got a little over the top on it, but that's so basic.

[327] man that's the message of Jesus Christ and I'm sorry the idea of you know saving bottles I got I recycle I've got a solar system on my house I even have an electric car so you can't condemn me for you know using but what am I going to spend my energy on to tell people about my solar panels no about Jesus Christ and so I get when I hear you speak the real power of the sun the real power of the sun I love it That's what we're looking for, Bishop Strick.

[328] And listen to this.

[329] And we're talking off the air.

[330] This is the American Health Society.

[331] They just, pain in the United States experience the highest ever combined rates of death due to alcohol, drugs, and suicide during the first year of COVID -19.

[332] I'm sorry, Bishop Strickland, we kept our churches open.

[333] People needed Jesus Christ even during the pandemic.

[334] But here's my point.

[335] This report, we finally have it because it takes about two years for these reports to come in.

[336] 186 ,763 Americans in 2020, a 20 % increase combined death rate and the highest number of substance misuse deaths ever recorded in a single year.

[337] Now, this is what blew me away, Bishop Strickland.

[338] Alcohol, drug, and suicide deaths have been increasing for decades.

[339] Because we leave God out of the picture, right?

[340] But in 2020, the increase was unprecedented and was driven by a 30 % increase in the rate of drug -induced debts and a 27 % increase of rate of alcohol -induced debts.

[341] Combined rates of alcohol, drug, and suicide debts increased in all 50 states except New Hampshire.

[342] And for the first two states, West Virginia and New Mexico, surpassed 100 debts per 100 ,000 residents for alcohol It goes on and on, but here's the point I'm making.

[343] At the time that the COVID -19 was hitting, people were depressed because they said, this is going to kill you.

[344] They were fearful.

[345] And you've talked about this fear, and it seems to me that if we as a church proclaim, don't get vaccinated.

[346] I'm sorry, I'm just to say that right now, get vaccinated with the blood of Jesus Christ.

[347] That, to me, could have been the message.

[348] that was clear throughout the church.

[349] And I'm just going to be honest with you as a layman.

[350] I didn't hear that except in a few small circles like yourself and others.

[351] But we're talking about natural death that people were so depressed.

[352] They drank, they used alcohol and drugs, and because they didn't know Jesus.

[353] And that's my take on it.

[354] Am I on to something?

[355] Oh, absolutely.

[356] And even just in terms of human psychology, If you have faith and you know God loves you and you know his son, Jesus Christ, it's going to enhance your immune system.

[357] I mean, it makes you a stronger human being.

[358] Of course.

[359] And it makes you able to endure whatever afflictions you have to deal with.

[360] I mean, that's how we're made.

[361] We're made in the image and likeness of God.

[362] That relationship strengthens us.

[363] And that's what we have to emphasize to people.

[364] That is where our strength really comes from.

[365] Amen.

[366] When we come back, you quote another bishop, archbishop Newham, he said that, he basically said the president should stop defining himself as a devout Catholic.

[367] Now, wait a minute, this bishop's getting into politics, but you know what?

[368] He's dead on.

[369] And I bet Bishop Strickland, he's going to get a lot of heat for saying that.

[370] So I want to understand why you commend him for saying that.

[371] Is it because, I'll just maybe make a suggestion, because of the good of Holy Mother the Church and the Salvation of Souls for Truth in Advertising?

[372] Because it seems to me that President Biden needs our prayers for his conversion.

[373] He's a baptized Catholic, but he's hell -bent on killing unborn babies.

[374] And let's be honest, that's not the definition of a devout Catholic.

[375] So when we come back, I want to ask you why you would support the Archbishop's state, because here again, Bishop Strickland, you're going to get into hot water because why?

[376] As you're telling the truth, thank you.

[377] You're listening to the Bishop Strickland Hour on Virgin Most Power Radio.

[378] If you want to listen to some more of the Bishop Strickland Hours, go to our website, BMPR .org and get the podcast.

[379] Stay with us, family.

[380] We've got one more segment.

[381] Welcome back to the Bishop Strickland Hour.

[382] We're going to be getting into the catechism of the Catholic Church after just a few minutes here.

[383] Bishop Strickland, I think that many times when your brother bishops come out and say some fundamental obvious statement that's really clear and needed to be said, you seem to never miss a beat and saying thank you for doing that.

[384] And that's what you just did with the Archbishop there.

[385] And you know, you said thank Archbishop Newman for letting us pray that the president and all Catholic leaders who have wandered away from the truth, may they repent and embrace the wondrous mercy of Jesus.

[386] What a great prayer to pray for President Biden.

[387] Yeah, and that's why I can commend Archbishop Nauman because, you know, it's a challenging time to be a bishop anywhere because many people, even within the church, are opposing what the church teaches, they want it changed or they don't want to hear it.

[388] So when I hear, bishops boldly speaking up for the truth that we know, just like we try to do, quoting the catechism.

[389] We need to support each other.

[390] We need to be unified, but our only real and lasting unity will always be in Jesus Christ, to praise that we will be one.

[391] We as shepherds have to embrace that oneness.

[392] And so that's why I commend those who are brave enough to stand against, you know, the voices that are encouraging us to pull away from the teachings of the church.

[393] And frankly, I mean, it's it's very controversial to say to President Biden that he should really stop promoting himself as a faithful Catholic.

[394] Many don't agree with what Archbishop Nguyen said, but it's what the church teaches.

[395] And again, Terry, it comes down to it's the best thing for Mr. Joe Biden's here, and it's the best thing for every other person in the United States and in the world to hear.

[396] Because the problem is, I mean, we're all human.

[397] We all look for the easier path.

[398] And I would wager that there are people saying, oh, well, I thought maybe, you know, I can imagine there are people saying, well, I disagree with this basic teaching of the church.

[399] And obviously, it's okay.

[400] And I can go to communion because President Joe Biden can't.

[401] So they, not holding him to the example that he needs to live with, it does damage to, to everyone.

[402] Because it does damage to everyone.

[403] It gives people the idea that, well, if as the president, it doesn't matter for him, then it doesn't matter for me. I mean, there's a certain logic in that, but it does matter for the president.

[404] So it matters for all of us.

[405] And the real, again, the real charity, that what Archbishop Nowan said is real charity.

[406] Yes, it is.

[407] He's calling this individual son of God to, to, to, to, to, to, to, again.

[408] examine his life.

[409] And in the same time, he's providing an example for all of us.

[410] I need to do the same thing.

[411] Am I living as a faithful Catholic?

[412] I need to ask myself that in a good examination of conscience.

[413] And if I find ways that I've failed, which I do, I need to confess those and return to the path of seeking to live the truth fully and joyfully.

[414] It's a challenge for all of us.

[415] Yes, it is.

[416] So I do try to support my brother bishops when they're bold enough to speak up and say something that may not be the popular thing, but look to Jesus.

[417] Very often, what he says in the gospel was not the popular thing.

[418] Yeah.

[419] But he had to, as he tells us, he has to speak the truth.

[420] He is the truth.

[421] And he shares the truth in wondrous ways that sets people free.

[422] in the time of the gospel and through the history of the church, but we've got to follow his lead and share the truth and let the challenges come as they come with the truth.

[423] Amen.

[424] Archbishop Foley, an American archbishop, worked in the Vatican, 15, 20 years ago, and he said, scandal is one of the biggest obstacles in evangelization.

[425] And what he meant by that?

[426] Because I asked, I wanted to know what, what he means is that when we have these scandals like Joe Biden is a scandal by saying he's not it's not true what he's saying and so we have to have clarity but when we have prelates not saying what the church has always taught the perennial teachings of the church it's a scandal because like you just said I've met people they go well look if this bishop says this then I guess I can go and and marry another girl even though I'm married to this first girl and still receive holy communion no that's not not what the church teaches but that's the impression they're getting and i think out of charity i'm not in management i'm in sales but out of charity when i talk to these men i tell them straight up dude this is how it works that thou shall not commit adultery it's right there that that commandment has no expiration date there's no one in the church that can change the teachings of christ and the bible the Vatican too made it real clear when it said that scripture is at our highest level of authority and I think we have to remember that when we talk about moral teachings of the church even with prelates like yourself bishop you don't have the authority to change this even though you're a bishop or a cardinal even the pope but this bishop foley made sense to me about scandal and I just I'll do an unabashedful plug Ignatius press is going to re -release my book how to share your faith with anyone because I put a new chapter in about sharing your faith in spite of scandal people are saying well I don't want to take somebody over to the church look what's happening in the church nobody knows anything no we can't use that as an excuse not to share the gospel I don't care if you're the last person on the planet I don't care Bishop was the only bishop in the whole world who was speaking the truth about now that wouldn't happen but let's say he was and I'm going to say I don't have invite somebody to the church here because, you know, there's nobody speaking about.

[427] Who cares?

[428] It's Jesus Christ.

[429] I'm not going to let, see, here's the point, Bishop Strickland.

[430] This is who we worship Jesus Christ and no one else.

[431] Absolutely.

[432] I think a great point in that, Terry, is the church's sacramental theology.

[433] Yeah.

[434] It doesn't depend on the sanctity.

[435] Certainly, every bishop, every priest, every deacon, every ordained minister in the church is called to seek sanctity.

[436] But the sacraments don't depend on sanctity.

[437] They depend on Jesus Christ.

[438] It's Christ acting through all the sacraments in different ways.

[439] I think that's a great reminder in a very concrete way that, you know, the most sinful priest.

[440] Yeah.

[441] It's tragic that, you know, there have been priests that we're sinners.

[442] We're all sinners.

[443] But the Mass, the Eucharist is still the body and blood, soul, and divinity of Jesus, even when celebrated by priests, that, you know, a person may know that this priest is not living up to his priestly call.

[444] And certainly, we need to prayerfully.

[445] and carefully call.

[446] Like I've said, you know, I want to be called to deeper holiness by my flock and to acknowledge that I'm a sinner.

[447] We're all sinners in need of reform.

[448] But no matter the lack of sanctity in my life, when I celebrate Mass, Christ acts through that.

[449] That's what we have to remember.

[450] And it's a great way of reminding us who's really the head of the church?

[451] Good point.

[452] Jesus Christ.

[453] Amen.

[454] The son of God sent by God in order to bring us to the Father.

[455] That's what the church is about.

[456] So God is the head of the church, and we're all here as servants, and that's the beautiful model that Christ gives us.

[457] He is the son of God, and he also becomes our servant to model for us what we're called to do.

[458] None of us are God, but we're all called.

[459] to be servants of his truth.

[460] And you know, Bishop Strickland, the catechism is a great place to go to those resources when you have questions on your faith.

[461] Even if you hear some priest or bishop say something, look in the index for that topic, whether it might be purgatory, and read right from the catechism.

[462] The catechism has some amazing topics.

[463] I'll give you an example of how amazing it is.

[464] Even, you know, the just war theory when we can go to war.

[465] Here's one that's interesting, everybody.

[466] Paragraph 2243 says, armed resistance is but to oppression by political authority is not legitimate unless all the following conditions are met.

[467] I bet you never heard this one before folks.

[468] Number one, there are a certain grave and prolonged violation of fundamental rights.

[469] Number two, all the other means of redress have been exhausted.

[470] Number three, such resistance will not provoke worse disorders.

[471] Number four, there's a well -founded hope of success.

[472] Number five, it is impossible reasonably to foresee any better solution.

[473] Mr. Strickland, I only bring this up because you see how broad the catechism is on almost every topic we can think of.

[474] There's a paragraph giving us solid answers to questions that might come up in our culture.

[475] You never know.

[476] Other countries are persecuted.

[477] When can you actually resist?

[478] Well, the catechism gives us that answer.

[479] Yeah.

[480] And like you said, it's well thought out.

[481] It's well formulated through centuries of grappling with these issues so it's it's a wealth of truth and knowledge that in very practical ways helps us to know how to navigate a very sinful broken world amen bishop strickland how about a we got plenty of time for a blessing and then i want to just remind everybody all these shows are archived to podcasts and you can listen to these at your convenience so if we could get a a blessing, please, from you?

[482] Almighty God, we ask your blessing for everyone participating on listening to this broadcast that we may all grow as your sons and daughters in your line and grace.

[483] May the martyrs inspire us to give our lives today in the ways that we are called to and ultimately know that dying for the truth is a glorious opportunity if we are called to that.

[484] but to live for the truth is even more glorious we pray that your spirit will guide us in joy and strength and we ask this in the name of the father and of the son and of the holy spirit amen Bishop strickland one thing you always say we defend life the eucharist our lady but this is something you always say we need to become first century Christians again that we're in the 21st century what did they have that we need I'll tell you, a strong relationship with the person of Jesus Christ.

[485] Yep, and so many people come to faith by studying the church fathers.

[486] Amen.

[487] I encourage everyone, study the fathers of the church in the first, second, third.

[488] Well said, Bishop Strickland.

[489] Thanks again for joining us, folks.

[490] Remember, this show is going to be archived.

[491] Share it with your friends and family.

[492] We need clarity with charity, and that's exactly what Bishop Strickland gives us.

[493] not his personal opinion.

[494] Who cares about his opinion?

[495] He cares about my opinion.

[496] I want to know the mind of Christ.

[497] That's what our network is all about.

[498] May God richly bless you and the family, and we hope to hear from you again.

[499] Next week, same time, thank Christ Station.

[500] God love you, and thanks again for listening.