22 Sep 2020 – Thou Shalt Not Steal

[0] Welcome to the Bishop Strickland hour.

[1] It's Terry Barber with Bishop Strickland.

[2] And as you know, what we do is we cover the Ten Commandments, the Sacraments, all basic teachings.

[3] As a bishop, he's there to do all that and much, much more.

[4] Bishop Strickland, welcome to our show.

[5] Okay.

[6] Great.

[7] I see him.

[8] He's going to be with us in a minute.

[9] What I will say is we are going to be covering the Seventh Commandment, which I think you're going to find is very interesting.

[10] I was very moved by the Seventh Commandment because there's so much in there that deals with, you know, The thou shall not steal, so much in there for that.

[11] But I want to just say, Bishop Strickland, you have been tweeting quite a bit this past week, and I want to say thank you and thank you and thank you because I need to hear this.

[12] The first tweet, I need to hear it every day, and it's just refreshing to have a bishop say, turn to Jesus, it sounds simple, Here's what you're saying, but it is the most profound challenge a person can face.

[13] Turn to Jesus if you are a stumble into sin.

[14] Get up again and turn to Jesus.

[15] If you're worried, doubtful, exhausted, and sad, turn to Jesus.

[16] If you're seeking direction in your life, turn to Jesus.

[17] Bishop, Strickland, that sounds so biblical.

[18] What made you do this in this time of history right now?

[19] What, I mean, I just want to ask, what made you tweet that tweet?

[20] Well, Terry, I can't honestly say what inspired me at that moment, but I think just the reality that he is the answer.

[21] Yeah.

[22] His light is the light of the universe and the truth that he lived, suffered, died, and rose to share is the truth for all humanity.

[23] I don't think we say that enough to Christians.

[24] I'm a lifelong.

[25] I was baptized as an infant, and I've done my best to live as a disciple.

[26] I'm a sinner.

[27] I fail regularly, and I try to get up again, just like that tweet talks about.

[28] We have to be honest with ourselves, but turning to Jesus is the answer to, really, he came to save the world.

[29] He came almost 2 ,000 years ago to save the world.

[30] Well, he came 2020 years.

[31] He was born.

[32] He died a few years more than that.

[33] But, you know, I think we need to own that, to rejoice in that, and to just, you know, it sounds like my Protestant friends here in East Texas.

[34] Maybe that's why I'm tuned in to Jesus.

[35] Amen.

[36] But the Catholic Church is the font of Jesus.

[37] the Eucharist is him really present.

[38] We need to rejoice in that and look to him for strength.

[39] You know, Bishop Strickland, I love it because I wrote a book called How to Share Your Faith with anyone, and the idea of turning your life to Christ is a theme in my book.

[40] So when you tweeted that, I was like, praise God, the bishops are doing, bishop is saying this.

[41] But I'll just give a quick story of how powerful that can be.

[42] I get people who ask me, will you meet with my friend?

[43] troubled young man. I always say, sure, I have lunch with him.

[44] So Saturday, I had a busy day, but I squeezed a 10 o 'clock brunch, met this young man. He's about 26 years old, you know, muscle man built up like a truck.

[45] And so I shake his hand and, you know, good firm shake.

[46] And so tell me about yourself.

[47] I mean, I won't say his name, but anyhow, he, he's telling me about, you know, he's had some trouble in his life.

[48] He grew up without a father, which is typical, you know, now in America.

[49] And so I encouraged him.

[50] to turn his life to Christ at the breakfast table there.

[51] And I encouraged him to listen to Archbishop Sheen's Life is Worth Living, which would give him the meaning and purpose of life.

[52] So by golly, Bishop Strickland, I gave it to him, and he said, wait, wait, that's 50, you said 50, half -hour shows?

[53] That's a lot of listening to do.

[54] I'm not sure I'm ready to do that.

[55] So I said to him, I said, okay, let's call him Mike.

[56] I said, Mike, let's make a deal.

[57] If you can beat me in an arm wrestle, you don't have to listen to any of those recordings.

[58] but dude if I beat you you got to listen to every single one of those recordings and I got to Baltimore Catechism on video you got to hear that too so he smiled at me said you're going to do you think you can beat me in an arm wrestle old man I said well I said okay well I said well let's just find out man let's do it so we get there and I do the arm wrestle and I'm holding my arm straight and he's going to put me right down but my arm's not moving and I can look on his face and I said now remember If you lose, you've got to listen to Bishop Sheen's Life is Worth Living, 50 -half -hour shows.

[59] Are you willing to do that?

[60] You ain't, I ain't losing.

[61] I said, okay, well, before I put your arm down, let me move the plate because if I put you down, your arm would go on to the plate.

[62] So I pick up the plate and I move it, and then I just put him down.

[63] And he went, what?

[64] How did that happen?

[65] I said, don't worry about how it happened, dude.

[66] You're a man of your word.

[67] Now, tonight at 6 o 'clock, I'm meeting with him to start the sessions.

[68] so I say that because I encouraged him to fall in love with Jesus and he'll know the meaning and purpose of life and he was just like well you know I would like to know you know truth but you know I'm not so sure but I the reason I did this is to encourage him to taste what truth is because I believe that beauty and the truth of the Catholic faith is irresistible especially when somebody is hurting and they're looking for answers about life So I share that story because of your tweet.

[69] Your tweet said, simply turn to Jesus.

[70] Well, that's what I did Saturday.

[71] And then I just challenged him with an arm wrestle.

[72] And someone's going to say, how do you beat people?

[73] Well, that's another story for another day.

[74] But Bishop Strickland, your tweet inspires me daily to ask people to fall deep in love with Jesus and his church.

[75] So thank you for that.

[76] All right, Bishop Strickland, I got two more tweets.

[77] And this one I want to let it rip because I just, I just, just want to thank you again.

[78] We cannot stand up enough for the unborn.

[79] We can't, I mean, Mr. Strickland was a real.

[80] We were the largest of the United States of 31 years ago, because enough's enough, we're going to make a stand.

[81] And I can't stop making that stand because I believe if we can't stand for the unborn, who will?

[82] So here's what you said in your tweet.

[83] Will I live?

[84] Talking about the unborn.

[85] The only worry of an unborn child.

[86] Yeah, will I live?

[87] No worries about food or clothing or housing, our rights, our opportunities, or the environment, our freedoms of education.

[88] Simply, will I live if we end their life through abortion and all the other issues become meaningless because they are dead.

[89] Bishop Strickland, tell me what you think.

[90] I mean, I'm like, wow, that's straightforward.

[91] Why did you do that?

[92] Well, I think it needs to be put out there.

[93] A lot of people are sort of, people have hardened their hearts to the truth.

[94] I understand that there are all kinds of issues that need to be dealt with.

[95] Yeah.

[96] But I don't think we can deal with anything by murdering another person.

[97] And that's what it comes down to.

[98] And we can pretend, oh, it's just tissue, oh, it's just part of the woman's body.

[99] We all know that isn't true.

[100] I mean, just scientifically, and even without science, people knew that that wasn't true.

[101] That child is another human being.

[102] And God has chosen to give them life.

[103] And when we choose to end that life, for whatever reason, it's, as we've said, intrinsically evil.

[104] I guess because of my tweets and all, we probably talk about the evil of abortion every time we talk.

[105] Yeah.

[106] But we need to.

[107] I agree.

[108] And it really is the preeminent issue.

[109] Really, I will share something that I thought, you know, I try to really think these things through, and I'm sure people think I'm silly or whatever, but I'll be silly for Christ.

[110] Amen.

[111] Fools for Christ.

[112] I'll be rejected for Christ, whatever it takes.

[113] But I thought, let's just create a law that says every woman, when she finds out she is pregnant, that she can sign a certificate that says, I want to abort my child.

[114] And every woman has a right to do that.

[115] In a sense, they have that right.

[116] But the nuance in this certificate that I would want put into the law is, yes, you have decided you want to avoid.

[117] You abort this child.

[118] But you have to wait.

[119] You have the right, and the state will support you, but you have to wait until the first birthday of that child.

[120] And if you still want to murder that child at one year old, you've signed a certificate, the state will honor it, and we will allow you to do that.

[121] I wonder what that would do to abortion.

[122] And stop it.

[123] would end it, I think.

[124] I sure hope so.

[125] Oh, are you kidding me?

[126] There may be some that would be willing to murder that one -year -old, but hopefully very, very few, because it just puts the reality right there before them.

[127] That's what we, that gets glossed over and forgotten and pretending and all of this, and we need to just keep telling people, you're murdering a child of God.

[128] please stop straight and sweet you know bishop strickland i've had our first grandchild he's seven months old and just last night we were watching him sleep okay just watching a little baby sleep i mean it's your heart you got it i was overwhelmed overwhelmed by the beauty of that child and i said to my wife again just what you just said that people would never abort their baby if they could see their baby like i'm seeing my grandson right now Are you kidding me?

[129] I'd lay my life down for that child right now.

[130] There's nothing I wouldn't do to stop somebody from hurting that child.

[131] And that's Bishop Strickland, and we've got some more tweets, and then we're going to get to the Seventh Commandment.

[132] I'm so excited that we're here to teach the faith, give people the meaning and purpose of life because life is short.

[133] In eternity, it's forever.

[134] You're on Virgin Most Powerful Radio, worship Joseph Strickland of Tyler, Texas.

[135] And this is Terry Barber.

[136] We'll be right back.

[137] It's inspire you to fall deep in love with Jesus and his church.

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[143] The work in India is done by Father Antonio's organization, St. Mary's.

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[152] This is Terry Barber.

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[158] Thank you so much for your support.

[159] Welcome back to the Bishop Joseph Strickland Hour.

[160] My name's Terry Barber, and we're going through some tweets of the bishop.

[161] And I'm telling you, before we get to the 7th, the commandment, I'm excited that a bishop would make a statement on a tweet.

[162] I'm surprised that the world isn't going, wait a minute.

[163] Did I read this right?

[164] Well, here it comes.

[165] As Bishop of Tyler, and here's what he says, I endorse, and if you don't know who Father Altman is, a priest in Wisconsin, who's been on YouTube making some strong statements.

[166] I'll let Bishop talk about that, but he's endorsing Father Altman's statements in this video.

[167] And here's what this, and I'm going to say a bishop, it's humility to say my shame, he's talking about Bishop Strickland's shame, is that it took me so long to do this endorsement.

[168] Thank you, Father Altman, for your courage.

[169] And boy, does he have courage?

[170] And you have courage, too, Bishop.

[171] If you love Jesus in his church and this nation, please heed this message.

[172] What message of Bishop Strickland are you talking about?

[173] Who is this guy?

[174] Give us the story, why you would pick him out to endorse his material for those who don't know who he is.

[175] Well, what really, he hooked me watching the video.

[176] I get sent all kinds of videos like this, and a lot of times I don't get a chance to watch him.

[177] But I did watch this, and I believe it was, you know, the grace of God that called me to watch this video.

[178] And he starts talking about, do we love God?

[179] Yeah.

[180] Do we love God?

[181] And then he talked about, you know, some of the issues, the sanctity of life, the sexual morality problems.

[182] And then he, you know, he basically, I mean, what I would encourage people to do, and I've gotten a lot of negative, a lot of positive.

[183] Really, either way, I just feel called to put the truth of Christ.

[184] It's not my truth.

[185] Amen.

[186] I didn't invent any of this.

[187] And as I've told you before, if anyone.

[188] can point to me in the catechism where it says, Bishop, you're wrong.

[189] I will say I was wrong.

[190] But when it comes to the sanctity of life from conception to natural death, when it comes to sexual morality, that it's only appropriate for sexual intimacy between a married man and a married woman open to children.

[191] That's a pretty narrow path that people don't like.

[192] That's what Father Altman is talking about.

[193] And then he gets into, and people are just up in arms.

[194] How dare you, Bishop, how dare he say this?

[195] Yeah.

[196] But it is the Democratic platform that says, Just the facts.

[197] We're all about abortion and we're all about LGBTQ equality.

[198] So ignoring those two basic tenets of the Catholic faith, certainly the Republican side, the independence, our system is simply broken.

[199] Amen.

[200] That is, as people of faith, we have to acknowledge it.

[201] And, you know, people say, well, how dare you, you know, go after the Democrats?

[202] Frankly, I feel called to go after all of them that are politicians that are not, if they claim to be Catholic, read the catechism.

[203] Live the Catholic faith according to the challenging truth of the catechism.

[204] I don't claim to do that perfectly.

[205] I'd go to confession all the time.

[206] But for people, to say they're Catholic and then to support this platform.

[207] And really what occurred to me as I listened to Father, and certainly he went over the top on a few things.

[208] I certainly do that.

[209] We get caught up in the message, but it's the message of Jesus Christ.

[210] Amen.

[211] And the reality is if we see in a candidate, serious failings in that message, then I think we have to notice.

[212] You know, I didn't hear Father Altman ultimately say, you've got to choose one candidate over the other, but he does get very strong about, but the Democratic platform says that, you know, abortion is perfectly fine with Democrats and the all the gender issues that we just support people, you know, having sex with whoever they want in whatever situation, redefining marriage.

[213] that's simply not what the catechism teaches.

[214] Really, as I've talked to people and prayed about it myself, I really believe we need more than ever the church to simply speak up, to speak up to Republicans, to speak up to Democrats, to speak up to wherever in the political spectrum.

[215] I mean, people talk about, oh, they're socialist or whatever.

[216] We need the voice of Jesus Christ.

[217] Amen.

[218] that comes through his church.

[219] And then that voice calling every politician, they're all children of God like we've talked about before.

[220] I feel as a pastor, as if you want to be Democrat, then call your Democrat leaders to the truth of the gospel.

[221] Amen.

[222] Like we were talking about, everyone can come to Jesus.

[223] everyone can have a conversion experience.

[224] We need to pray for that and call the, if you say, I'm Democrat because they do this, this, and this, great.

[225] Then call them to the sanctity of life.

[226] Call them to the sexual morality that flows out of that Sixth Commandment that we talked about for four weeks, I guess.

[227] Call them to the truth of Jesus Christ.

[228] We're all sinners.

[229] We all need to be called back to the truth.

[230] Many of the people on both parties in our broken system, and to me that's what has to be emphasized.

[231] This system is broken.

[232] The very best people are not stepping up for political office because we see them get torn apart.

[233] We see them have to compromise their values.

[234] We see them change into the people that they never wanted to be because it's a broken.

[235] system.

[236] How do we fix that?

[237] I believe we start with every domestic church today.

[238] Every those who are what the church says, what Christ says, is the family, as he intends, a man and a woman committed.

[239] That's a problem to create an opportunity for parents to teach their children.

[240] For all of us who are Catholic, when you baptize a child and you've been, Well, you have seven kids.

[241] You've been to a few baptisms of your own children.

[242] Sure.

[243] And the right was changed just recently, but it basically says, parents, you are taking on the responsibility of forming your children in Christ.

[244] We tell parents that they are the primary educators.

[245] And honestly, as a bishop, I will be the first to confess.

[246] I haven't in my diocese, I haven't given them the tools to be the first educators, the primary.

[247] educators of their children.

[248] I need to get with it, and we're trying to do that.

[249] It will take the rest of my life and beyond to really give parents the tools that they need.

[250] But that's what we need to do.

[251] If we believe, I mean, honestly, Terry, keep going.

[252] I'm loving it.

[253] I stood at the Bishop's conference and said, brothers, do we believe this or not?

[254] I remember that.

[255] Sadly, the silence that I'm hearing and the pushback from people, when I say, we need to believe in what Jesus Christ says.

[256] Amen.

[257] I think too many of us don't really believe that that bread and wine becomes his body and blood, soul, and divinity, that when you and I go to confessions to a priest, our sins are forgiven by the power of Jesus Christ that works through that priest, that someone that's anointed with the sacrament of anointing of the sick is anointed in the healing power.

[258] of Jesus Christ, I'm afraid too many don't believe it as deeply as we should.

[259] If we believe it, I need to change my life.

[260] I need to turn to Jesus.

[261] You need to turn to Jesus.

[262] It needs to be a daily prayer.

[263] Here we celebrate the birthday of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

[264] And she was immaculately conceived because God had a plan.

[265] We're living in a world that tends to ignore God's plan and say, oh, we've got this, we'll run the world.

[266] And how is that going?

[267] Let's just ask ourselves, let's just take a deep breath and say, how is humanity running the world?

[268] How well is that doing?

[269] If we begin to focus on the salvation of souls, mine and yours, us as men stepping up and saying, I'm a sinner Lord, and I need to change this and this about my life to be more virtuous, think about all the problems we have and we're going to get into the seventh commandment thou shalt not steal so much is broken in our world because we've forgotten that commandment but you put all these ten commandments together and really start trying to live them the the border issues the inequality issues the race issues all the issues the nightly news would start to have to find something to do because if everyone suddenly were living these virtues and saying, I've got to get to heaven.

[270] I've got to reform my life and fall to the Lord Jesus Christ.

[271] All these issues went away.

[272] But even the church's tending to do in our time is say, oh, we've got to fix this.

[273] We've got to fix this.

[274] We've got to find a program.

[275] We've got to find a man. We've got to do all these things.

[276] We've got to do this instead of saying, Lord, do this in me. And I'm going to, you know, keep sharing that message because it's a joyful message of truth and light that the world so desperately needs.

[277] And I'm going to do my best to share it.

[278] I share with you just today just before we were talking.

[279] I was supposed to go speak in another diocese, but I just got disinvited today.

[280] I'm proud to be disembodied because that indicates to me that I've stepped on a nerve.

[281] Maybe that will wake people.

[282] It's not my truth.

[283] No. But we've got to wake up to the truth that Jesus Christ suffered to share with us.

[284] He died on a cross so that we could know his truth.

[285] And then he rose to show us how true it is what he offers us.

[286] We've forgotten that, even as his beautiful bride to church.

[287] and as you can tell I get passionate about it I love it I love it but I'll be disinvited from whatever if it means that's what happens if you speak the truth of Jesus Christ we have to speak it in love and I know maybe Father Altman's especially at the end of his video maybe got a little too strong we all do that we all need to ask forgiveness but his main message was if you love God and believe his truth, then you've got to vote accordingly.

[288] That's right.

[289] You know, people get nervous and people get all upset.

[290] But I don't have the perfect answer for who needs to be elected.

[291] But Christ has the truth that will guide us.

[292] And as a bishop, people say, oh, Bishop, it's wrong for you to get into politics.

[293] Frankly, everything's politicized these days.

[294] Even you wearing those headphones, you'll, something gets politicized because maybe the plastic was made by, you know, I mean, it gets complicated.

[295] Everything's politicized.

[296] And you can tear up everything through, oh, that's political.

[297] Let's be godly and not political.

[298] Let's listen to God.

[299] Let's believe he sent his son.

[300] Let's believe the message of sacred scripture.

[301] Let's believe the message of the church.

[302] And for all the non -Catholics, better Christians than I am sometimes, because they really believe in Jesus.

[303] But for those who are committed to Jesus, who are not Catholic, help us challenge his church to be more truly devoted to Jesus Christ.

[304] You know, that's what we need.

[305] Amen.

[306] Well, wow, wow.

[307] Bishop Strickland, you got me fired up.

[308] We're not right versus left.

[309] It's right versus wrong.

[310] We'll be back with more with Bishop Strickland Hour.

[311] Hi, this is Jesse Romero from the Terry and Jesse show also from Jesus 9 -1 -1.

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[321] Thank you for listening to Virgin Most Powerful Radio.

[322] Thank you.

[323] God bless you.

[324] Keep the faith.

[325] Terry Barber, I want to thank you for your support here at Virgin Most Powerful Radio.

[326] Here's an easy way to do it.

[327] If you're going to sell or buy a house, call real estate for life.

[328] 877 -543 -3871 because they're going to get you a Christ -centered agent to purchase your home or to sell your home.

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[330] Call 877 -543 -881.

[331] Thank you so much for your support.

[332] Welcome back to the Bishop Strickland Hour.

[333] Bishop Strickland, I was fired up in that last segment.

[334] I knocked off a few push -ups because I was too excited.

[335] I am, and I'll tell you why.

[336] I have a kindren spirit with you.

[337] I don't know if you ever had contact with Father Benedict Grissel, but I had a lot of work with him.

[338] I certainly read and heard about him, but I didn't ever meet him.

[339] Well, I went to the Youth Day with.

[340] I did a lot of things with him, and I did a lot of recordings of his talks.

[341] Well, one day he called me and said, Terry, I'm going to shake.

[342] I got thrown out of this religious Congress out here in California, and I understand you did too.

[343] So shake, we're jail partners.

[344] And he said something very similar because what you just said is what he said.

[345] I cannot compromise on the truth.

[346] I'm going to have to tell the people.

[347] What happened is one of the speakers said that Jesus Christ didn't really resurrect from the dead.

[348] And so, Bishop, he said to the people that man, who was a priest, is wrong.

[349] And I have to tell you, as a Catholic priest, I couldn't let it go.

[350] I have to tell you that.

[351] Thank God.

[352] Yeah, but he spoke up, but it cost him.

[353] He never got invited back.

[354] But you know what he said?

[355] I don't mind.

[356] It's just what you said.

[357] If they don't like me, that's okay.

[358] Badge of honor.

[359] Yes.

[360] And so he.

[361] Christ says they hated me before they hated you.

[362] Amen.

[363] And just.

[364] So, Terry, just let me say.

[365] Say it.

[366] If you ever say, Bishop Strickland, we need to quit doing this radio show because you're just, we can't support you.

[367] Yeah.

[368] You're okay with that.

[369] Anytime you want to fire me, just let me know.

[370] And can I tell you, Bishop Strickland, you're firing me up because I'm, I see the fire in your belly.

[371] And I'm not saying, I'm not saying anything bad about your other brother, bishops.

[372] I'm just saying, I wish we had more bishops who have.

[373] had that fire to say, wait a minute, I'm not concerned about the politics in here, because you know what?

[374] Politics have nothing to do with it.

[375] It's a matter of truth, and I'm going to speak the truth in charity and love.

[376] And if the governor says, poohy on me, well, that's what he says.

[377] I'm okay with that.

[378] But you know what, Bishop Strickland, before we get to the Seventh Commandment, I have to say this.

[379] You fired me up in that last segment.

[380] I just want a little follow -up.

[381] You talked about people not believing in the real presence of Christ, even priests.

[382] And we've been here before.

[383] But, you know, Pope Pius the 10th, he wrote a document in 1907 on modernism.

[384] And I remember as a young man, I didn't really know what that was.

[385] But I read it.

[386] It's a short document.

[387] We actually have it on our website.

[388] Okay, I said it.

[389] We do because it's so beautiful.

[390] It talks about the loss of the supernatural and that we come into the Catholic faith.

[391] And it seems to me that that's what you're talking about.

[392] Am I on to something?

[393] Absolutely, Terry.

[394] And that's why I've emphasized we're in the year of the Eucharist.

[395] I would hope every bishop would declare a year of the Eucharist because we need it.

[396] Yes.

[397] You know, see, it's the basic wonder.

[398] I just met with a priest this afternoon and we were talking about what a what a tremendous gift.

[399] I'm just a sinful man. I'm not so smart.

[400] I'm not anything superlative.

[401] I'm just a guy.

[402] in East Texas.

[403] But I stand at an altar.

[404] I take bread and wine.

[405] Oh my gosh.

[406] And it becomes the Lord of the universe.

[407] Amen.

[408] Not through my power, but through the words I speak that he told us to speak.

[409] It becomes his body and blood, soul, and divinity.

[410] What more exciting life could a person have?

[411] And it just, we've got to help people believe Catholics and bring other people that aren't Catholic into the church because it's the truth.

[412] He is real.

[413] He is really present.

[414] In his mother that we celebrate her birthday on September 8th, she is always saying, do what he tells you, follow my son.

[415] And we, like bad kids, and I'm one of them, we say, I think I'll do it my way, mom, and we get ourselves off track.

[416] So we just have to keep going back to it, sharing the truth lovingly, and not letting things stop it.

[417] And in this political season, I don't know who needs to be president.

[418] But frankly, what we're being offered is not the best.

[419] that we could have.

[420] It's because, you know, the system is too corrupt.

[421] It doesn't attract the very best people.

[422] I mean, that's just the reality.

[423] And I mean, I'm not the best bishop that people could have.

[424] I've just got a decent brain and a, you know, a talent here and there.

[425] But I mean, there are much more talented men that could be called to what I'm doing.

[426] But I just have to do the best I can.

[427] And all of us doing that can transform the world in Christ.

[428] Well said it.

[429] God uses the weak to confound the strong.

[430] It's a biblical teaching, and I'm Exhibit A. Bishop Strickland, I want to just say that when you talk about the Holy Eucharist and the year of the Eucharist, I was 14 years old when I listened to Archbishop Sheen's priest retreat.

[431] And when he talked about heaven on earth and the mass is heaven on earth, and when I realized that I'm at present at that one eternal sacrifice mystically I was like whoa do you guys know this nobody knew this I have over 41 years of asking people at churches now with the COVID -19 I don't travel as much as I used to but I used to do a lot of traveling and I would go to them back of churches and I would do surveys and ask people what they believe about the Holy Eucharist now I know what the Pew research said okay they through phone calls but I think it's much worse, Bishop Strickland.

[432] I got 90 % that couldn't tell me that they believed in the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist.

[433] So nine out of ten couldn't tell me what, and then I just was cringing.

[434] So I've been doing this for 41 years, and it's not getting any better.

[435] And I'm scratching myself going, what do we got to do to tell people about Jesus in the Eucharist?

[436] and to be honest with you, I'm not in management, I'm in sales, okay?

[437] But I would encourage my priest friends and the bishops to really go back to the fundamentals of the church like what you're doing here on this program because believe it or not, Bishop Strickland, I hear it all the time.

[438] People say, I didn't know that.

[439] I didn't know.

[440] You mean you didn't even know the commandments?

[441] You didn't have the sac?

[442] You didn't know about we're in a Bible or confession, John 20.

[443] You don't know any of this stuff?

[444] No, nobody.

[445] You went to how many years the Catholic?

[446] education now bishop strickland i'm sorry i'm going off a little here and i'm going to get to the seventh commandment but what i am saying to you is it's incredibly important what you're doing here at virgin most powerful teaching us the fundamentals of the faith is just what i think holy mother church needs to do as a layman who's been around for 41 years in evangelization it's refreshing to hear someone like you just tell it as simply as we can say you know uh this is what the church teaches this is not personal opinion.

[447] I mean, you're saying things that Archbishop Sheen used to say when you said, I'm not doing my will.

[448] Sheen says there's a song they sing in hell.

[449] I did it my way.

[450] And then Bishop Sheen says, there's a song they sing in heaven.

[451] I did it his way.

[452] And that's what you're saying.

[453] Turn your life to Christ.

[454] It's simple.

[455] All right, I'm done.

[456] But wow, you got me. I was tired.

[457] I had two priests and I had a bunch of meetings today.

[458] And I'm going, I got to go do the bishop strickland are okay i may have some ice i'm usually tired by because it by the time i get to this it's been a long day but it always invigorates me because i love this and i love christ and his church i can tell i love jesus and his church i love it it gives me life it gives meaning to everything that i do and that's what i want to share with everyone yeah we shouldn't be shy about it we shouldn't hold it under a bushel basket.

[459] We shouldn't compromise it.

[460] It's challenging.

[461] And I fail at that challenge on a daily basis, but I keep getting up in God's mercy and doing my best.

[462] And the world needs Christ.

[463] Amen.

[464] We're both kind of getting carried away.

[465] Oh, I know.

[466] I am.

[467] I'm sorry.

[468] I'm reminded of a great story that I've heard about St. John Paul II when he went back to Poland for, I forget exactly how long, but for an extended period of time, you know how people to give a speech or something, and the people are plotting or whatever.

[469] Well, the people, Saint now, St. John Paul II, was standing there.

[470] And this was in Poland, where they had been oppressed and the communists had tried to get rid of God, get rid of Jesus.

[471] And they stood there with St. John Paul II for, several minutes.

[472] I wish I knew he remembered exactly, but more than a few minutes.

[473] I mean, like five, 10, 20 minutes, but they just kept chanting, we want God.

[474] Yeah.

[475] We want God.

[476] We want God.

[477] Yes.

[478] That is what we're hearing from all the violence on the streets, from all the, you know, the vitriol we hear about, you know, rights of abortion and all of this, the depth of those people's hearts.

[479] is their cry that they may not even understand, but they want God.

[480] They want God's truth.

[481] They want the light of Jesus Christ.

[482] And so till my dying breath, I hope to continue to teach that through our institute, St. Philip Institute .org.

[483] People can go to that.

[484] There's the way of Christ that's available all online to go through basic teaching on what do we believe as Catholics.

[485] It's It's like a 40 -page book that is a lot of pictures.

[486] I mean, it's not that hard to get the core of the faith.

[487] And once we have that, as you know, and I know, you can study for a lifetime the rest of it.

[488] That's right.

[489] Well, said, thank you, Jesus.

[490] That's all I can say in.

[491] Do I sound like an evangelical Catholic?

[492] Well, I am.

[493] And Bishop Strickland, now we're going to get to the Seventh Commandment in the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

[494] And again, this is not his bishop.

[495] Strickland's opinion, not my opinion.

[496] We're taking it right from the catechism.

[497] And I want to encourage you, if you don't own a catechism, it would be a good idea to get one at a bookstore online and study it alongside your Bible.

[498] I tell people they should have two books.

[499] If they have a library, if I said there's two books to get, it's not my book.

[500] That's for sure.

[501] And it's probably not Bishop Strickland's book.

[502] I don't know if he has a book, but it's not his book.

[503] It's the Bible and the catechism.

[504] Okay, so let's take it from the Seventh Command.

[505] you shall not steal.

[506] Paragraph 2401, Bishop Strickland.

[507] I'll read it, and then you can open up the dialogue here.

[508] The Seventh Commandment forbids unjustly taking or keeping the goods of one's neighbor and wronging him in any way with respect to his goods.

[509] It commands justice and charity in the care of earthly goods and the fruits of men's labor.

[510] We'll be right back.

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[547] Welcome back to the Bishop Strickland Hour.

[548] My name's Terry Barber.

[549] I'm with Virgin Most Powerful radio, and I'm going to echo St. John Paul II comment and say back to Bishop Strickland, we want God.

[550] We want God.

[551] And so that's what we're here for.

[552] Right now, we're studying the Seventh Commandment, and bishops are to teach, govern, and sanctify.

[553] And Bishop Strickland has graciously accepted our invitation to be on Virgin Most Powerful Radio to teach, govern and sanctify, especially the teachings he's giving us.

[554] So Bishop Strickland, the Seventh Commandment talks about not stealing.

[555] Can we get into this now?

[556] What are your thoughts on that particular commandment?

[557] Absolutely, Terry.

[558] And I think it's a great commandment to really focus on.

[559] Yeah.

[560] And as we're teaching children, the Ten Commandments, it's one that I think everyone can understand.

[561] And the think the reason I think it's a good example is we can all understand the various different levels of the seriousness of stealing.

[562] And it kinds of gives us a good moral model that especially teaching children where you can help them understand that if it's something really big and really expensive, that's more serious.

[563] It's always wrong to steal.

[564] But we can understand that And even I think a younger child can understand, stealing a pencil is not the same as stealing a car.

[565] That's right.

[566] And then everything in between.

[567] So I think that's an especially good commandment because other commandments, it gets a little harder to, especially with children, to really describe what's the difference between a venial sin and a mortal sin.

[568] And helping them to understand, stealing is always wrong.

[569] Like you quoted the catechism, taking someone else's property.

[570] And like so many things that we're seeing erode in our present culture and society, I just saw, I mean, it makes you think this is a joke.

[571] This can't be real.

[572] But a book that, and it may have been a joke, who knows, sometimes I get faked out.

[573] I think we all do.

[574] Oh, yeah.

[575] Because we can get into the lying, you know.

[576] Fake news.

[577] There's a lot of that, too, in the world.

[578] But this book was about the great things about Luther.

[579] You know, it was a book saying how great looting was and how you could really get a lot of great stuff through looting.

[580] And it's like, are you crazy?

[581] Is this real?

[582] And it may have been a joke, but whether it's a joke or not, we've certainly seen plenty of people taking advantage of the violence and the commotion to just go rob a store.

[583] And it's like, how in the world do you justify that?

[584] and people don't.

[585] People don't think too often.

[586] Too much of it is just emotion.

[587] They get caught up in the moment.

[588] And so they say, oh, well, nobody's watching.

[589] The police have been defunded or they're off doing something else.

[590] So everybody else is broken into this Walmart.

[591] So we're going to go in there too and steal what we want.

[592] And it's like they're having a party.

[593] And what people forget about.

[594] And once again, Terry, I'm a proud, broken record.

[595] Yeah.

[596] But even stealing, what does it really come down to?

[597] It comes down to this is the property of another person.

[598] And so stealing really is a violation of the sanctity of the person once again.

[599] Certainly to steal their life, we talked about that with murder.

[600] Right.

[601] And it takes too many different forms in our world.

[602] always has, but stealing is again devaluing the person saying, I've got, I'm stronger or I'm smarter or I just have the opportunity to steal this person's items.

[603] And it may be valuable.

[604] It may not be valuable.

[605] But when in the problem with stealing anything, it's wrong.

[606] But it also, So if a kid gets the custom of saying, oh, I don't need to go buy a pencil, I'll just steal somebody's at school.

[607] There are a lot of extra pencils hanging out.

[608] Then they get the idea and they get into bad habits.

[609] So we need to teach children and to embrace for ourselves.

[610] Never take anything that isn't yours, even the smallest thing.

[611] And if you do, then certainly go to confession.

[612] but that's another great example that I think we can teach with this commandment, unlike others, because sometimes as a priest, when you hear a confession, the person needs to try to write the wrong that they've committed.

[613] Right.

[614] And a lot of times, you can't take the words back, you can't take a lot, whatever you tell you want, make restitution.

[615] I think we need to pay attention to that as well.

[616] That is really, if we've made the mistake, something, recognize that sin, and we go and ask God's forgiveness and confession, we can make restitution by returning that item or returning its value, and once again, we're respecting that person.

[617] And even though we made the mistake of disrespecting them, return their $100 bill or whatever it may be as it goes up the scale.

[618] of significance and value that makes it more serious, but it's stealing, whether it is a pencil or it's their car.

[619] Bishop Strickland, you made me think of a story Bishop Sheen talked about on the Seventh Commandment, and it was about in the 1970s in New York, there was a lady at a hotel, and she got caught stealing cash out of the till, out of the cash register, and they went to court.

[620] and the particular case went to a judge, and her attorney said, well, wait a minute, has anybody ever told you, was that part company policy not to steal money out of the cash register?

[621] No, they never explicitly told you you shouldn't do that.

[622] Well, then, you can't be accountable to that.

[623] How would you know stealing money's wrong?

[624] and Fulton Sheen was making the point how ridiculous our courts can be and how we have lost the sense of sin in our culture.

[625] And so you mentioned a comment about, yeah, looting.

[626] You gave that story about, let's go loot, it's great.

[627] We get to pick up TVs, stereals, whatever we need.

[628] It's awesome.

[629] We get a rush, man, it's really neat.

[630] You break windows.

[631] About anything on being...

[632] accountable, higher, myself.

[633] See, it's self and I. And if that's the culture, the commandment doesn't apply to me. Down to something, Bishop Strickland?

[634] Well, I think you are, sadly.

[635] And it's just, it's part of the brokenness that we deal with in so many areas.

[636] I mean, if you think about it, there's a whole industry that deals with people having a tendency to steal.

[637] I mean, if we suddenly could just say, okay, yeah, we got another nine commandments to work on, but if we could suddenly say the seventh commandment, no stealing is going to happen ever again.

[638] We don't need locks.

[639] We don't need guards on our software and our computers.

[640] I mean, a whole huge industry, a billion dollar industry goes away.

[641] because you don't need locks if everyone says, we're not going to steal.

[642] You don't need all the protections.

[643] I mean, and I'm sure we both get frustrated with, you know, there's so many guards on things.

[644] It makes it hard for the honest people to just do what they need to do because you've got to jump through so many hoops because of the dishonest.

[645] So absolutely, we've got a lot of work to do.

[646] and the truth that God is revealed fully through his son Jesus Christ is the truth that takes care of it all, if we'll just listen.

[647] Well, I have a brother who's in the grocery store business.

[648] What they call shrinkage is people stealing stuff out of the stores.

[649] And I asked my brother, I said, Pat, what's going on with shrinkage?

[650] Is it going up or going down every year?

[651] No, I mean, to my surprise, no. Yes, Bishop Strickland, people are stealing.

[652] more out of the stores.

[653] And that just goes again to show me that it's so important to catechize people about the commandments.

[654] And they're not, as I say, the ten suggestions.

[655] They're the ten commandments and that our happiness, as I tell people, is really dependent on how well we live out these ten commandments.

[656] And, you know, we know the summary, you know, love God as yourself, as your neighbor as yourself and all that.

[657] But here's the bottom line.

[658] The reason many people have committed these sins, and in my humble opinion, I'm putting the finger up myself, Bishop Strickland, and that is, they haven't been taught.

[659] There's a lot of people out there that just think, well, I mean, you know, the big companies, they can afford it, or they justified in their mind that, hey, I can't afford that TV, so why, if I get an opportunity to take it?

[660] But they haven't really thought it through in the sense of justice and doing the right thing.

[661] And I blame myself, I blame our church, I do, that we haven't done a good enough job to teach people the right from wrong.

[662] And that's an indictment on me and on our church.

[663] But, you know, that's what I think, Bishop, because many people are stealing because they just haven't been taught, you know, to have, first of all, a knowledge of who God is and that we have to obey these commandments to be happy and that we offend, not just the person who you stole the whatever you're stealing from, but it's an offense against God.

[664] And I think people need to understand that.

[665] And I think that if they actually had an understanding of the price of sin and redemption, that I think shrinkage stealing would go down.

[666] And that's why I'm excited to be able to teach with you the Seventh Commandment, all the commandments, because it really sets people free.

[667] The truth will do that.

[668] Absolutely.

[669] Well, we'll have a couple more minutes to do with you.

[670] I'm sure we get a blessing in, but I'm at the seventh.

[671] We're going to continue next.

[672] But what are your parents, because being the first teachers, you have that institute that you have on your website.

[673] Could you encourage mom and dad to go online and maybe even get some formation for themselves so they can pass that on to the children?

[674] Is that a good approach?

[675] Oh, absolutely.

[676] That's exactly what they need to do.

[677] I know parents we haven't as you said we haven't done a good job of teaching no but parents are smart and they have the resources I mean there's so much available at st phillip institute dot org at many other institutes around the country and around the world yeah bishop strickland how about a blessing before we have one minute left in the show sure the lord be with you and with your spirit almighty god we ask your blessing for all who are listening guide us in your truth help us be joyful in knowing your truth more deeply through your son and the power of your spirit.

[678] May the Blessed Virgin Mary always intercede for us as our loving mother.

[679] And we ask this blessing in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

[680] Amen.

[681] Thank you very much, Bishop Strickland.

[682] Folks, I want to remind you, we have lots of other shows on Virgin Most Powerful Radio.

[683] Just go to our website, which is Virgin Most Powerful Radio .org.

[684] And we'll give you more programs that will help you fall deeper in love, with Jesus Christ and His Bride the Church.

[685] And I want to thank all those who support us spiritually, financially, go to our website, become a monthly donor, and you'll be getting all kinds of good catechises sent to you through an MP3.

[686] May God richly bless you and your family.

[687] God love you.

[688] St. Faustina's Prayer for priests.

[689] Oh, my Jesus, I beg thee on behalf of the whole church, granted love and the light of thy spirit.

[690] and give power to the words of priests so that hardened hearts might be brought to repentance and return to thee, O Lord.

[691] Lord, give us holy priests.

[692] Thou thyself maintain them in holiness.

[693] O divine and great high priest, may the power of thy mercy accompany them everywhere and protect them from the devil's traps and snares, which are continually being set for the souls of priests.

[694] May the power of thy mercy, O Lord, shatter and bring to naught all that might tarnish the sanctity of priests.

[695] For thou canst do all things.

[696] Amen.

[697] Virgin Most Powerful.

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