Our Lady of Ashes

Someone asked me recently what to  do  as a Christian with all the violence and atrocities found in the Old Testament, many of them seemingly sanctioned if not commanded by God through the Law or the prophets. Even when not directly described there can be an apparently blood-thirst, especially in some of the Psalms (137 being of the worst) which is distasteful to our contemporary morality. How do reconcile that with "All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for refutation, for correction, and for training in righteousness" ( 1 Tim:3:16 )? First, it's important to do what the person who asked was already starting to do: always read the Old Testament in light of the new, especially in light of the words and actions of Jesus Christ. One text my questioner mentioned was that Jesus said he came to fulfill the law not destroy it, which for him could mean a condoning of the violence within the Law. He's right about Jesus' saying as crucial to in...

The Octave of Easter is Drawing to a close, and throughout the week, the liturgy has focused on the mystagogy of the Neophytes and the newly initiated into the Mysteries of the Church. But drawing deeper into the Faith is a lifelong journey, and for the newly initiated, it can seem like there's either too little, or too much in the way of suggested direction. The book The Four Signs of the Dynamic Catholic by Matthew Kelly [ https://dynamiccatholic.com/the-four-signs-of-a-dynamic-catholic-free-copy ] would not be a bad place to start. It gives you a "program" so to speak of how to stay engaged in your Faith through Prayer, Study, Generous Giving, and Evangelization on top of regular participation in the Sacraments. After that, start reading the daily Mass Readings online [http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/index.cfm] which draws you into the liturgical rhythm of the church and will feed your prayer with the Word of God. For spiritual reading and study her...