Quote of the Dei (# 6)

photo courtesy of retooled11

"If the Devil is real, then God must be real, too."

- Ramirez (Jacob Vargas) in Devil (2010)

An Essay on Morality: Christian Morality (Part 2)

photo courtesy of mick y

Is morality only for Christians?

No. It is possible for an atheist to live a moral life, as it is for a Christian (or other theists) to live an immoral one. After all, everyone inherently share the desire for goodness and truth and the disdain for evil and lies. There are however, by default, differences in how morality is viewed by Christian believers and non-believers:

Source of morality

Christians:

• God – Christians believe that moral laws presume a Moral Law Giver.

Atheists:

• Evolution – a poor candidate as the source of morality. Morality simply has no place within the mechanics of natural selection. Altruism, for instance, cannot work within a system of “survival of the fittest”.
• Nature – is amoral and thus, cannot be the source of morality. Again, using a lion’s behavior as an example, it cannot be judged immoral for attacking and devouring its prey; it’s simply acting on its survival instinct.
• Culture (Man) – is dismissed as the source of morality by Peter Kreeft through the use of the following analogy (based on Immanuel Kant’s moral theory): A locksmith who locks himself in a room is not really locked-in for he can unlock himself. Kreeft further asks: “how can the one bound and the one who binds be the same?” In other words, it is impossible for man to impose morality on himself.

Judgement of morality

Christians:

Christian morality is summarized in the Ten Commandments. Thus, a person who commits a violation of any of the commandments, such as murder of innocent lives, is guilty of committing sin/immoral act.

Atheists:

Atheists often turn to nature and evolution to explain the existence of morality. However, neither explanation can account for how and why we judge certain acts as right or wrong; this is due to the following reasons:

• Nature’s indifference – As previously explained, nature is amoral; it knows not of good or evil. If morality comes from nature, then nothing can be judged as moral or immoral. But how can this be? For instance, how can someone view the Holocaust as anything but evil? As Scott Hahn wrote: “People will usually recognize evil, even if they are reluctant to recognize good”.
• Survival of the Fittest – Moral standards, according to the mechanics of evolution, works as follows: anything that aids self-survival is “good” and anything that aids self-extinction is “evil”. This is the morality of Nazism – an ideology responsible for the perpetration of the worst crimes against humanity. They alleged that the Jews and other “inferior” groups threaten the purity of the Aryan race and is therefore “evil”; they then justified the murder of millions of innocents as “good” because it aided to the survival of the “master race”.

Reason of morality

Christians:

The Christian answer is based on 2 premises:

• 1^st Premise – Morality is based on God’s nature
• 2^nd Premise – Man is made in God’s image and likeness.

In light of the aforementioned premises, man's moral obligation makes perfect sense:

Man is called to love because God is Love; Man is called to the truth because God is Truth.

Atheists:

In the novel “The Brothers Karamazov”, Fyodor Dostoevsky wrote that in a world without God “everything is permitted”.

Why love and not hate?

Why the truth and not the lie?

Why be good and not be evil?

If God is not, then indeed, why not?

Despite the differences, everyone - Christian believers and non-believers alike, are called to live a moral life. There is an inner voice - the conscience, within all of us, urging us to do good and avoid evil. This is further proof of God’s love for us all; as Dinesh D’Souza wrote: “while the atheist may have rejected God, God has not rejected him”.

1. Introduction
2. Christian Morality
3. The Conscience 
4. The Natural Law

Confrontation Between God and the Devil (by Fr. Jose Francisco C. Syquia)

photo courtesy of !Shot by Scott!

While my two companions and I were seated inside the small office where I sometimes conduct interviews, a self-assured woman entered the office accompanied by her father. She was a doctor who had just finished medicine from one of the top medical schools in the country. I agreed to meet her since there were enough signs that pointed to a great probability of extraordinary demonic harassment. An occult practitioner had warned her not to see me because I was “bad”. Nevertheless, she made up her mind to see me since no occult practitioner had yet been able to help her with her problem.

            She had been into the occult and had “duwendes” protecting her. The problem started when, after completing an important project in her life, she prayed to God and offered to Him the fruits of her work. After that, paranormal occurrences started to take place in her home, terrorizing her family. What was worse, within a short span of time, an alien entity had begun to take over her body and now she is frightened. Before the meeting, I had already asked Archbishop Gaudencio Rosales, my bishop, for the faculty to perform an exorcism. I knew in my heart that I would be needing it.

I greeted the client guardedly. Peering right into her eyes, I noticed that they were glazed. “This is not a good sign,” I told myself, knowing full well that the eyes easily make evident what is occurring in the depths of the soul. I turned to one of my companions in the office, one who is sensitive to spirits, and I noticed that she seemed sick. Again, not a good sign.

I proceeded to interview the doctor and her father more thoroughly. She was forthright with her answers and, as the interview progressed, I also tried to explain to her the probable spiritual dynamics that were occurring in her life.

I knew that things were not right when the father, who was not sensitive to the paranormal, told me that he felt the hair on his body stand. Unknown to me, my sensitive companion started to also feel the same thing. She told me afterwards that it was around that time that she also started to “see” huge dark entities pacing back and forth in the hallway outside the office. There was no one else on the floor where we were since it was already late in the afternoon.

I decided to end the interview by giving her some assignments to do. I told her to get rid of all her occult paraphernalia, bolster her spiritual life and start using the sacramental of the Church. As we all stood up to call it a day, she asked me to bless the water that they had brought along. I readily agreed. With my two companions beside me, and she and her father in front of me, I started the prayer of blessing.

A strong voice suddenly erupted from the young doctor’s throat. “Stop!” I stopped the prayer immediately wondering what was wrong. But even before I could lift my eyes to look at her, my gut was already telling me that something was unusual with her voice. It sounded like hers but not totally.

            As my gaze rose to hers, I realized that my foreboding had just come true. I was not looking at the eyes of a young woman. Her eyes were now alien and snake-like, filled with arrogance.

            “Stop that!” she said again.

            My mind was reeling at what was happening, trying to put two and two together. I was caught unprepared. This was the first time in my life that a demon had spoken directly to me.

            The woman then arrogantly crossed her arms and gave me a look that was telling me, “What will you do now?”

            I gulped. My mind was racing for the right response. I knew that through her stories that she could remain in this possessed state for more than an hour. Nervously, I grabbed my “exorcism kit” from the table nearby and quickly pulled out my manual of prayers. I could sense the heavy fear rising in me like a giant tidal wave about to hit land.

            Trembling, I used all my willpower to calmly leaf through the correct pages where the deliverance prayer was. The entity eyed me with a piercing gaze as I placed my hand on the woman’s head and began to mouth the words of my command. Even as I started, I knew that I would fail; there was so much fear in my heart and so little faith. My words rattled as they left my lips and my knees wobbled from the strain of trying to remain focused.

            The woman slowly took hold of my hand that was on top of her head and, in an almost snake-like manner, removed it. She then moved backwards slowly and very confidently sat on the soft-cushioned chair just behind her. She folded her arms defiantly and stared at me. Trying with the best of my ability to remain calm and collected, I again mouthed the word of my command. The entity at the same time started to mockingly laugh, voicing out the chilling words, “Is that the best you can do? Priest? You cannot get rid of me! I can stay here all afternoon!”

            It knew that I was afraid of him and that I do not have the faith to drive him out, my heart silently moaned. My companions by this time were hiding behind my back since they had no firsthand experience with possession cases. The father remained immobile and rooted on his spot.

            The entity continued its tirade of mockery against me. “Why do you do this, priest? Go back to your mansion! You cannot be happy doing this! You are a rich man!” It knew my background! This was further parapsychological proof that an alien entity was at work. I could now sense the very dark and evil presence all around me. This was one powerful spirit given free reign in the life of this woman.

            “Lord, what am I to do? Help me!” I called out silently from the depths of my heart. At that precise moment, I realized my weakness, the answer to why my prayers of command were ineffective. I did not have faith and the demon knew this. It also knew that I had fear in my heart. Yes, demons can know the emotional state of a person by his bodily reactions.

            I knew then what I had to do. I had to draw from within me the faith that could move mountains. Without delay, I silenced myself and entered into God’s presence. “Lord, grant me the strength I need to bring Your victory in this deteriorating situation,” I prayed.

            In response to this desperate cry for help, God gave me a feeling of peace and quiet confidence which entered my heart little by little. I opened my eyes and peered into the eyes of the sneering entity. I did not approach her but simply extended my hand towards the young doctor and spoke the words of command with calm authority.

            The voice of the entity immediately changed from one of arrogance to one of anger. “Stop that!” it said. I knew the Lord had joined the battle against this demon.

            As I continued to repeat the prayers of deliverance with more and more boldness and faith, the demon became totally uncontrollable in its rage, screaming in hatred and pain. Miraculously, the body of the possessed doctor could not get up from the chair where she was seated; she remained rooted on the spot, taking the spiritual bombardment.

            With renewed courage, one of my companions grabbed a bottle of holy water and started to sprinkle its contents on the woman. But the water did not and could not touch her. Some sort of invisible shield was protecting her!

            I approached the possessed person and placed my face close to hers to meet her gaze directly. I remembered a teaching which said that if you do not know the name of the demon, you may still directly command it by looking into the victim’s eyes, which is usually where the evil spirit manifests itself most visibly.

            The entity avoided my eyes, averting its gaze by looking at the ceiling. Tears were flowing from the woman’s fearful eyes. Strangely, my companions later told me, whenever each of them peered at the woman from their hiding place behind my back, the entity would be eyeing them diabolically. I told them that this was impossible because I watched the person closely the whole time that the demon started to get hurt and it never took its gaze off the ceiling.

            As I continued my barrage of prayers, I kept my eye on the entity as I grabbed my “exorcism kit” with my free hand. I hurriedly grabbed my other tools for the spiritual warfare: the exorcism crucifix, the holy water, the exorcised salt, the exorcised oil, The Roman Ritual for Exorcism, some other prayer pamphlets and a first-class relic of St. Ignatius of Loyola. I scattered them hastily on the table for easy access. The entity continued to scream with fear and pain but was obstinate in remaining within the woman. “She is mine! She is mine! I will never leave!” it screamed.

            I held the relic and cupped it in my hand. Quickly, without the entity seeing it, I placed it on top of the possessed woman’s head. The screams became louder and deafening as I struggled to keep this holy object – which tortures and “burns” any spiritual being – in place.

            “No! Stop! Stop! Sit down and let’s talk about this!” it screamed, pleading and pitiful.

            “I do not dialogue with demons!” I shouted back. “Leave her or I will continue this torture!” I knew at this point that the demon was weakening since it was now bargaining with me. This time, when my companion behind me used the holy water, the victim screamed in pain as though she was being burned. The father, who was crying on one side of the room, dashed forward to wipe off the holy water from the “burning” arm of his daughter. I firmly grasped his arm and told him loudly that it was not his daughter who was in pain, but the demon within her.

            He backed off, wavering but still clutching his handkerchief which he planned to use to wipe off the sacramental. By this time, I could sense that my energies were fast being depleted due to the intensity of the emotional, psychological and spiritual struggle. I had to keep my focus on commanding with faith and authority as well as deflect the emotional fears and anxieties that the demon was sending my way. We must keep in mind that when one is a beginner in spiritual warfare, he must have the discipline to control his mind and thoughts and remain focused since the devil can harass us with obsessive thoughts during the encounter. Our imagination must also remain under our control, as well as our feelings, since the devil can sometimes put images that distract us from the encounter and amplify any negative emotional openings that we may have.

            Throughout the ordeal, the victim was sometimes aware of what was happening; other times she was not. She felt, as she related to me later on, that her soul was in one tiny corner of her being. She also stated later that during this encounter, the spirits which manifested themselves were more powerful than any she had experienced before. She was aware that she was snarling and shouting in pain although she herself experienced no physical pain. Her father also told her that she screamed the loudest when the exorcism crucifix was placed on her head. She had tried to fight but her face was contorting badly and her body merely continued to snarl and growl at me.

            My knees now started shaking uncontrollably due to fatigue and tension although it had been, I believe, just less than ten minutes since the confrontation started. I then took The Roman Ritual of Exorcism since I had been given the faculty to perform an exorcism on this woman. I thumbed hurriedly through its pages while holding the exorcism crucifix with my free hand. As I mouthed the words in the solemn rite, the high emotional tension in my body started to inhibit me from forming the words properly. To my frustration, I got tongue-tied but still did the best that I could to continue. The screams from the possessed continued unabated, but nor for long.

            My blood turned cold when the voice that came from the woman said with renewed vigor and power, “She is ours! She is ours! We will never leave!” An important rule that I had not done because things happened so fast was to seal the place so that any spirits within the vicinity would not be able to give support to the entity within the possessed person. Now, the evil spirit was no longer alone. It had gotten reinforcements to aid it!

            I bent down in tired frustration with my hands on my shaking knees. I knew that I could not keep up this struggle for long. I then prayed a silent prayer to Mama Mary for her powerful intercession. “My Mother has never ever failed me!” I thought.

           

            Suddenly, an inspiration hit me (thank You, Mother!). This young woman must herself enter into the battle and tell God that she chooses Him and not the demon! In any exorcism, the possessed person must renounce the devil as much as he can, with the freedom remaining in him, especially if he has been involved with satanic activities. Then he must choose God with as much passion as he can muster. This would then release any “right” the devil has over the person.

            I took the woman’s hands and placed the exorcism crucifix into them. I told her to loudly say the words, “Jesus, I love You!” I was hoping against hope that wherever her consciousness was imprisoned in, she could still hear my words. Her father and my two companions joined their voices with mine in telling her to call on Jesus. The young woman’s consciousness suddenly emerged and came into the foreground and she immediately started to mouth the words, “Jesus, I love you.” As she tried to repeat these words a second time, her mouth froze at the beginning of the word Jesus. She couldn’t seem to continue. I could see the struggle in her pitiful face as she tried unsuccessfully to say the Name of Jesus while gazing directly at the crucifix she was clutching. The spirit was preventing her from speaking! She seemed like an infant desperately trying to speak its first words. The whole group then gathered around her encouraging her to say the Name of Jesus and to fight whatever was holding her in bondage.

            As she struggled with almost superhuman effort, my mind was silently praying “Dear God, please help us. Please help her!”

            Suddenly, the words burst forth from her lips. “Jesus! Jesus! I love You, Jesus!” As she repeated these words over and over again, I saw her tearful and sweat-filled face beaming and now at peace. She held the crucifix gently and tenderly kissed it.

            “She is back,” I told myself, “The demons have departed! Thank You, Dear God! Thank You!”

            My knees then gave way at that precise moment and I flopped down into a nearby seat. “The Lord truly came at the perfect moment,” I reflected, “I would have collapsed from exhaustion if the struggle continued any longer.” My companions were also visibly drained and shaken by the experience but relieved as I was that the battle was over. The victory was again the Lord’s!

            Although we were rejoicing, I knew that the war was far from over.

Reference/s:
Fr. Jose Francisco C. Syquia (2006). Exorcism - Encounters with the Paranormal and the Occult. Shepherd’s Voice Publications, Inc.

An Essay on Morality: Introduction (Part 1)

photo courtesy of Daniel Sanculi

What is morality?

Morality comes from the Latin word moralitas, meaning "proper behavior". It can be defined as the distinction between what is good/right from what is evil/wrong.

What are the properties of morality?

Morality is distinctly human

While some display behavior that might seem like moral sentiments, animals primarily act on instinct. For example, a lion will mate with as many partners and as often as possible because it simply has no choice on the matter and only acts on its instinct to propagate. Humans, on the other hand, know that at the very least, there has to be limits on sexual behavior. This is the reason why we put sexual offenders in prison.

Morality is universal

Consider the following facts:

• Every known culture has a system of morality; every known culture has their own version of the Golden Rule/Law (“One should treat others as one would like others to treat oneself.”).
• Everyone prefers virtue, though more often practice vice; e.g., even a cheat don’t want to be cheated on.
• Everyone endowed with reason knows that one ought to be good and not be evil; anyone who believes otherwise belongs either in a mental hospital or in jail.

Morality is absolute

The following are examples of moral relativist/subjectivist self-refuting ideas:

• The relativist/subjectivist says “there is no absolute”; yet this itself is an absolute statement.
• The relativist/subjectivist says “there is no truth”; yet this itself is a statement claiming to be true.
• The relativist/subjectivist says “you should not impose your morality on me”; yet this itself is a statement of moral imposition.

The fact is we all have absolute moral standards that we use to judge the behavior of others. And while there are differences in the particulars, there is agreement on the fundamentals. For instance, while we may argue on the morality/immorality of capital punishment, we all agree on the value of protecting innocent life.

1. Introduction 
2. Christian Morality 
3. The Conscience 
4. The Natural Law

The Paradoxical Commandments

photo courtesy of Homer Page (www.time.com)

The Paradoxical Commandments

by Dr. Kent M. Keith

People are illogical, unreasonable, and self-centered.

Love them anyway.

If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives.

Do good anyway.

If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies.

Succeed anyway.

The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow.

Do good anyway.

Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable.

Be honest and frank anyway.

The biggest men and women with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest men and women with the smallest minds.

Think big anyway.

People favor underdogs but follow only top dogs.

Fight for a few underdogs anyway.

What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight.

Build anyway.

People really need help but may attack you if you do help them.

Help people anyway.

Give the world the best you have and you'll get kicked in the teeth.

Give the world the best you have anyway.

Note:

It's said that Mother Teresa had a "personalized" version of the Paradoxical Commandments written on the wall of her home. Poems can inspire us, and in Mother Teresa's case, she used one as a backbone of a life spent loving God and serving her fellow man. Mother Teresa's version can be found here.

2 Scientists, A Rocket and A Painting (by Peter Kreeft)

photo courtesy of scottbush

When the first moon rocket took off from Cape Canaveral, two U.S. scientists stood watching it, side by side.

One was a believer, the other an unbeliever.

The believer said, "Isn't it wonderful that our rocket is going to hit the moon by chance?"

The unbeliever objected, "What do you mean, chance?

We put millions of manhours of design into that rocket."

"Oh," said the believer, "you don't think chance is a good explanation for the rocket?

Then why do you think it's a good explanation for the universe?

There's much more design in a universe than in a rocket.

We can design a rocket, but we couldn't design a whole universe.

I wonder who can?"

Later that day the two were strolling down a street and passed an antique store.

The atheist admired a picture in the window and asked, "I wonder who painted that picture?"

"No one," joked the believer;
"it just happened by chance."

Quote of the Dei (# 5)

photo courtesy of doublecappuccino

"Oh, I don't reject Christ.

I love Christ.

It's just that so many of you Christians are so unlike Christ.

If Christians would really live according to the teachings of Christ, as found in the Bible, all of India would be Christian today."

- Mahatma Gandhi

Only a Real Risk Tests the Reality of a Belief

photo courtesy of Gallo Quirico

You never know how much you really believe anything until its truth or falsehood becomes a matter of life and death to you.

It is easy to say you believe a rope to be strong and sound as long as you are merely using it to cord a box.

But suppose you had to hang by that rope over a precipice.

Wouldn’t you then first discover how much you really trusted it?

The title and above quote are taken from “A Grief Observed” – a book written by C.S. Lewis that documents the crisis of faith and the grief he experienced after the death of his beloved wife.

Indeed, only during moments of despair do we truly discover the real depth of our faith or lack thereof.

I offer a prayer for anyone who stumbled upon this entry and is undergoing a personal ordeal.

And, if it’s not too much to ask, can you please send one this way as well?

May God grant us the grace to find our ropes strong enough to hold on to during our times of need.

The Argument from Aesthetic Experience

photo courtesy of www.telegraph.co.uk

Since my taste in music is not sophisticated enough to be familiar with Bach, please allow me to share my (dumbed down) version of Kreeft and Tacelli’s “Argument from Aesthetic Experience” (original found here):

On a clear and cloudless night,

I look up to the sky and see the stars,

And know in my heart that there is a God.

You either get it or you don’t.

Hope and the Lazarus Miracle

photo courtesy of wondermade

It’s one of the most significant miracles recorded in the Gospels: Lazarus, a beloved friend of Jesus, had already been dead and buried for four days; Jesus, in an act pre-figuring His own resurrection, miraculously raised Lazarus from the dead. However, unlike Jesus, Lazarus did not have a glorified, resurrected body, but rather a “normal”, earthly body brought back to life. This meant he eventually (for the second time and for good), died a physical death; as to when and how, the bible does not tell us.

The miracle of Lazarus highlights a subject many don’t feel comfortable thinking of, much less talk about - death. Though we should not obsess over death, it would do well for us to contemplate it once in a while. The most obvious reason being its certainty; all of us will die someday.

Advances in medical science continuous to add years to the human life span but this merely delay the inevitable. When a loved one becomes seriously ill, we should pray for their fast recovery and healing. But even if by some miracle, a terminally ill patient gets cured, death, as it did with Lazarus, would still eventually catch up with that person. What should we do then?

Christian apologist Dinesh D’Souza suggests that more important than praying for physical healing, we also ought to pray for “a deeper kind of healing… the healing of the soul.” Perhaps a kind of healing that, as the inimitable Archbishop Fulton Sheen said, would teach us to “love goodness to a point where we can drink death like water”; a kind of healing that will prepare us to embrace, rather than fear, death; and a kind that will enable us to see death as a gateway to eternal life.