A Marian "Apparition" or Reminder?...

“It was through the Blessed Virgin Mary that Jesus came into the world, and it is also through her that he must reign in the world.” (St Louis de Montfort)

 

 

After being away from blogging for such a long while but never losing sight and reflection of my simple journey, today, I share my reflection of a milestone as we cross over to the cosmopolitan town of Subang Jaya, in Malaysia, where the population of Roman Catholics remain a small minority, what seem like a tiny drop in the vast ocean…nevertheless, without this drop, the ocean would be incomplete.

There has been much talk about a supposedly “apparition” of Mary on the window pane of a private healthcare centre; Subang Jaya Medical Centre (SJMC).  Only through the eyes of faith, can one can see the beauty of Our Lady and deep within the heart of faith knows that perhaps the Lord is reminding us and a stern call to the corrupt party of the day to change, or “ubah” as some would be more familiar.  

St Bonaventure asserts that the Blessed Virgin Mary is the way which leads to our Lord…where truth, justice, integrity and humility prevail.

In the holy scriptures, we know that Mary, a young Jewish woman from Nazareth in Galilee, remained hidden during her life, poor and lowly, such that God was pleased to conceal her from nearly every other human creature.  Nevertheless, Mary was chosen by God to become the earthly paradise of Jesus Christ.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church sheds more light that what the Catholic faith believes about the all-holy, Blessed Virgin Mary is truly based on what it believes about Christ, and what it teaches about Mary’s divine motherhood, illumines its faith in Christ.  Mary is the Mother of our Saviour, the Mother of God (in Greek, Theo-tokos)…full of grace and enriched by God with gifts appropriate to such a role. 

God had initiated the work of mankind’s redemption on the basis of her cooperation.  By virtue of this, Mary becomes the spiritual mother of every human-being…we, thus, becomes her children.

Echoing the words of St Paul that, “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor has the heart of man understood…” the beauty, the grandeur, the excellence of Mary, who is indeed a miracle of miracles of grace, nature and glory.

“Devotion to you, O Blessed Virgin, is a means of salvation which God gives to those whom he wishes to save.” (St John Damascene)

Amidst much publicity of this “apparition” in an Islamic-majority country, where much of Christian literature, publications and scriptural texts are banned by the ruling party of the day, some still remain positive, brave and hopeful that justice will prevail, whereas others are sceptical and doubtful...easily seduced by money influence.

St. Louis de Montfort also dealt with true and false devotion to Mary.  Speaking of his own era he complained how, “The devil, like a counterfeiter and crafty and experienced deceiver, has already misled and ruined many Christians by means of fraudulent devotions to our Lady.”  Obviously “fraudulent devotions,” also includes the possibility of false apparitions, and if that was true three hundred years ago, then it is even more the case today, especially in the case of Subang Jaya.

 

He then goes on to make an extremely important point, one which clearly indicates that some modern apparitions must be false: “A counterfeiter usually makes coins only of gold and silver, rarely of other methods, because these latter would not be worth the trouble. Similarly, the devil leaves other devotions alone and counterfeits those mostly directed to Jesus and Mary...because these are to other devotions what gold and silver are to other metals.” 

 

Yes, fellow pilgrims, the Roman Catholic church continue to possess much treasures and richness of the apostolic faith, in this case, devotion to the Mother of Christ, which many others, if not all, new Christian denominations have conveniently cast or filtered away.  Now, what disciple of Jesus Christ would cast their own mother aside and then call themselves good Christians?  Jesus, himself loved his mother till the very end; even entrusting her to all of us.  To this end, only the Roman Catholic church has been faithful to this...still praying to Mary, the holy mother of God for her intercession for all our needs and the conversion of sinners.

 

Thus, unless the devil has radically changed his method of operation, which seems unlikely if not impossible, given that his opposition to the divine remains unchanged, then some of the modern alleged apparitions of Mary today may be false.  As is indicated in the section on biblical prophecy and apparitions the devil's usual approach is to copy an authentic prophecy, writing, movement or devotion and: “flood the market” with forgeries, thus sowing confusion and causing problems for the Church.

Thus it is certain that the authentic Marian apparitions have been counterfeited and that in all probability many, if not most, of the modern alleged apparitions are false.  This may seem like an extreme statement, but ultimately, the facts will surely bear it out.

 

To those simple minded people who have simply been touched and strengthened their faith in Christ by virtue of this Marian “apparition”, it can only be by the grace of God that your hearts be moved and your faith increase.

Make no mistake that St Louis de Montfort has always stressed that, “Christ must be the ultimate end of all devotions.  Jesus, our Saviour, true God and true man must be the ultimate end of all our other devotions; otherwise they would be false and misleading.  He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and end of everything.

 

“We labour,” says St Paul, “only to make all men perfect in Jesus Christ.”  For in him alone dwell the entire fullness of the divinity and the complete fullness of grace, virtue and perfection. In him alone we have been blessed with every spiritual blessing; he is the only teacher from whom we must learn; the only Lord on whom we should depend; the only Head to whom we should be united and the only model that we should imitate.  He is the only Physician that can heal us; the only Shepherd that can feed us; the only Way that can lead us; the only Truth that we can believe; the only Life that can animate us.

He alone is everything to us and he alone can satisfy all our desires.  We are given no other name under heaven by which we can be saved.  God has laid no other foundation for our salvation, perfection and glory than Jesus.  Every edifice which is not built on that firm rock, is founded upon shifting sands and will certainly fall sooner or later.  Every one of the faithful who is not united to him is like a branch broken from the stem of the vine.  It falls and withers and is fit only to be burnt.

 

If we live in Jesus and Jesus lives in us, we need not fear damnation.  Neither angels in heaven nor men on earth, nor devils in hell, no creature whatever can harm us, for no creature can separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus.  Through him, with him and in him, we can do all things and render all honour and glory to the Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit; we can make ourselves perfect and be for our neighbour a fragrance of eternal life.”

 

The salvation of the world began through Mary and through her it must be accomplished. As true disciples of Jesus Christ, in union with Mary, our Mother, we will crush the head of Satan with our heel, that is, our humility, and bring victory to Jesus Christ.

For the community in Subang Jaya, as pilgrims through life on a journey back home, simply feel blessed.  Whether or not this “apparition” is true, only your eyes of faith can reveal the truth known only to you.  As we can only call Jesus Lord by the power of the Holy Spirit, so it is with the same Sancte Spiritus that has graciously revealed the same to mere pilgrims in Subang Jaya.

 

Again, St Louis de Montfort reminds us that no other Catholic devotion calls for more sacrifices for God, none empties us more completely of self and self-love, none keep us more firmly in the grace of God and the grace of God in us.  No other devotion unites us more perfectly and more easily to Jesus.  Finally no devotion gives more glory to God, is more sanctifying for ourselves or more helpful to our neighbour…then our simple devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary.

To the pilgrims at Subang Jaya and this blog…just two simple words… Fiat (yes) and Amen (“So be it”…a simple expression of faith that God will hear and act on the prayer)...

Ave Maria, gratia plena,
Dominus tecum,
benedicta tu in mulieribus,
et benedictus fructus ventris tui Iesus.
Sancta Maria mater Dei,
ora pro nobis peccatoribus, nunc, et in hora mortis nostrae.
Amen

 

(to the gifted hands that took these phorographs, may the blessings of the Lord be with you)

LENT...Finding Life's Compass...

Not many days from now, on February 22, the holy season of Lent will once again dwell upon us...Ash Wednesday.

The events that preceded the death and resurrection of our dear Lord Jesus Christ will come upon us yet again; the Via Dolorosa...way of the Cross.  It is a season of gratitude.

This is yet another opportunity, graced upon us, to examine our own life, our journey...to determine those parts of us that need to die...parts we must let go...grudges, fears, laziness, resentments, old habits, etc...a time for us to repent.

It is also a time for each one of us to journey to Jerusalem with Jesus once again; renewing bits of ourselves, peeling away another layer of our human condition.  Each year comes and goes quickly...as impatient as we all are...the transformation and birth of our true self only takes place in God’s time.  We must patiently and humbly wait for Him...but we must stay awake...we must be sensitive to God’s presence around us...we must learn to listen to His quiet whisper...most of all we must simply place our full trust in Him.

As I begin to jot down the above reflection, my thoughts rushed back to last weekend when I visited a terminally ill colleague.  He has been journeying or rather; crawling through life...battling and hanging on to whatever bits of life that remains in him; with Stage IV nasal cancer...which of late has spread to parts of his body...now both his kidneys seem to be failing him.  His breaths are short and much weight has been lost.  Time seem to stand still...

Yes, cancer is such a cruel disease...created by mankind...it does not choose...it does not warn the victim.  Cancer brings so much silent pain for the parent and family, but even much more hopelessness for the innocent victim.  Does God punish us?  How can one find faith and hope under such circumstances?

The seconds become minutes, the minutes spill into hours, the hours into days, days turn into weeks, into months, into years...into eternity...  What simple words of comfort does one offer such a friend?  The journey towards Golgotha seem endless...

Encouragement, strength, courage, a touch, a hug, a smile...most of all one’s humble presence...only the sacred silence where both human spirit simply and quietly reach out to bond as one creation... through Him, with Him, in Him but ever most of all, loved and cherished by God...no matter how far we have drifted or turned away, no matter how broken our bodies have become...God will always love you!

My dear friend would surely swap his condition, just lying on the hospital bed, waiting...for the good health that most of us able-bodied take for granted day in and day out.  Through our daily actions and worldly pursuits, we display absolutely no gratitude for life...for God!

Such is the hopelessness and regret that is felt when one’s time on earth is almost up...when one’s breath enters into sudden death...not knowing the hour that is to come.  Soon the tiredness will be put to rest.

For most of us, who are truly “alive”, do we actually realize and cherish life as a gift? Are we conscious of our “alive-ness”?

Or, are we simply more distracted by how this “gift of life” is packaged?  Whether we have this or that, whether we are born into a rich and wealthy family, so many whether and what ifs.

The more that we come to the realization (and this is not simple) that life is freely gifted from God, the more our life will be a life of faith and spirituality; a life where we come to know God, where we journey in relationship with Him...where God becomes real in our lives.

As truly simple pilgrims through this life, the meaning of our short pilgrimage on earth must not depend on reaching any particular destination, accumulating a certain level of material wealth or striving to achieve any worldly goal...the world label this as success.

Very simply, it should instead depend on our humbleness, simplicity, openness, faithfulness, hope and trust...that God knows the way far better than we do – He will lead us, if we just let Him.  He will love us, if only we allow Him.

However, as prideful as we all are, in our entire majestic ego, we become impatient, restless, we seize control, we want control, we want worldly assurance...we want to become powerful in the eyes of the world.  In the course of this mad obsession, we put layers after layers upon us, until we lose our simple identity; we forget our humble roots, becoming deaf to the call to discipleship, blind to others, mute to sharing the goodness of God, losing our sense of direction...becoming out-of-touch with God.

This Lent, we must come back to the Gospel...diligently journey the Via Dolorosa with Jesus...He will surely give us hope, He will bring us home.  Trust Him with your entire life.  This is the best investment one can make...with guaranteed returns!

Hope does not pretend that everything will be alright.  Hope simply means knowing that Jesus will sustain us and walk with us...as our faithful companion.  As I mentioned to someone recently, my simple view is that “God is good ALL the time.”

It is almost certainly the selfish acts of mankind, with its egoistic human condition, that causes chaos all around and subsequently, having to face drastic consequences of such actions...both from the past, but most of the time, changing the course of many generations into the future.

As I reflect on the Apostolic Letter entitled, “Motu Proprio Data” of the Supreme Pontiff Benedict XVI for the indiction of the Year of Faith which is due to begin on October 11, 2012 to November 24, 2013, I am reminded that the “door of faith” (Acts 14:27) is always open for each one of us.

“We must rediscover a taste for feeding ourselves on the Word of God faithfully handed down by the Church, and on the bread of life, offered as sustenance for his disciples.”

The life of Christians, as pointed out in this simple Apostolic Letter, knows the experience of joy as well as the experience of suffering.

“This is a great joy to you, even though for a short time yet you must bear all sorts of trials; so that the worth of your faith, more valuable than gold, which is perishable even if it has been tested by fire, may be proved - to your praise and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.  You have not seen him, yet you love him; and still without seeing him you believe in him and so are already filled with a joy so glorious that it cannot be described; and you are sure of the goal of your faith, that is, the salvation of your souls.” (1 Peter 1:6-9, New Jerusalem Bible)

This short papal letter moves on to remind each one of us that what the world is in particular need of today is the credible witness of people, like you and me, enlightened in both mind and heart by the Word of the Lord, and capable of opening the hearts and minds of many to the desire for God and for true life...a life without end...a life that is journeyed with the hope of the resurrection...a journey travelled with Jesus as an Easter people.

As such, the trials of this short and finite life, while helping us to understand the mystery of the Cross and to participate in the sufferings of Christ, are a prelude to the joy and hope to which simple faith ultimately leads to.

Next week, beginning Ash Wednesday, onwards into the coming holy season of Lent, let us commit, discipline and entrust ourselves to the Lord Jesus, who is and will always walk beside us as our faithful Companion, as He always knows what we need and most of all, what is best for us.

Wishing one and all across the world, a holy and healing season of Lent, coupled with a meaningful Via Dolorosa with Jesus...towards the door of faith...  May the hands of the Lord touch your hearts in a way that will move you ever closer to Him.  Amen.

The Price of Salvation...Not 'Free'

“Let your life be free from love of money but be content with what you have, for he has said, 'I will never forsake you or abandon you.'” 
(Hebrews 13:6, NAB)
 
If you have ever tried to Google for the word “Free”, you will receive about 7,170,000,000 results. It is interesting to note that if one were to just add on “Grace” the results would reduce significantly to about 68,500,000. Thereafter, if we bring “God” into the whole equation, the results will shrink down to only 8,000,000!  Now, if “Faith” were to be planted in, Google produces about 1,950,000 results. The price of “Commitment” will cause everything to go down even further to about 266,000 results and in this season of Lent, “Repentance” would result in the whole search humbling down to a mere 53,900!!  Interesting statistics, fascinating trend...



But what has this interesting Google discovery got to do with our journey towards Lent?  Let me attempt to simply illustrate my thoughts for today.
In life, as we already know too well, there are lots and lots of ‘free’ stuff around us, tempting us, seducing us, crying out for our attention, wanting a piece of our limited time – things, tasks, shortcuts, remedies, relationships, distractions, etc, etc.  A materialistic attitude is a gross obstacle to the spiritual life.  The philosophy of materialism makes man a 'little God'.  There is simply no place for God in this kind of mentality.


Well, grace is also ‘free’ and very simply it is the love given freely by God to all of us, His creation.  There is really nothing that we can do to merit grace, because it is a gift from the God who made us; gifts are free!   Let us ponder a little bit more on this term ‘free’.


In dull economic terms, ‘free’ technically does not exist in the domain of money; one of the reasons that ‘free’ is sometimes such a difficult concept to grasp – its something we cannot count with our fingers!  Very simply, ‘free’ has no cost or price attached (so it seems) and it is basically nothingness – something which gets consumers like us terribly excited, influencing our choices, distracting our focus.


Nevertheless, it is reasonable for us to sometimes associate ‘free’ with diminished quality – just because there isn’t a price attached to it; we tend to value it less, take it for granted, and without a second thought, waste it.  Generally, we do not care as much about things we do not have to pay for; we take free stuff because it is there, not because we want it.

Could this be a possible reason then as to why 'cradle' Catholics (who never had to pay any price at infant stage) are perceived to be less passionate and actively committed about their faith, then say, 'born-again' Catholics (who are transformed by the workings of God's grace during baptism)?  Food for thought!


Thus, charging a 'price' can encourage a much more responsible and committed behavior; consumers become more careful not to lose it.  The downside of this – when a certain cost or price is imposed, the participation decreases radically; as depicted from the earlier metaphor of the Google search results.  Coincidently, quite an interesting similarity observed!


As such, fellow pilgrims, faith is simply our personal act of response to the free gift of grace, which is always at the initiative of God who reveals himself to us.  God gives each one of us sufficient grace and free-dom to overcome the challenges in this journey through life, even when it sometimes seem like we are constantly struggling.
 It is when we are weakest that we are the strongest because that is precisely when God's power can be made perfect in us. 

We observed that many people, when things get so bad, seemingly hopeless and burdensome in their lives, tend to fall down on their knees in tears and beg God to fix things now; put things right immediately.


Our commitment to the former response is our acknowledgment of God as the loving Father, over our own limited mortal strength.  This is the beginning of our relationship with God; also the beginning of the end of our human pride - repentance.  We repent and surrender ourselves before the Lord of life in order that He may come, take control and transform our lives from within.


Conversely, the pride-ridden and self-proclaimed ‘strong’, who constantly boast of being in full control of their worldly affairs by virtue of their own competency, abilities and actions, would find it tremendously challenging to respond with such a spirit of radical discipleship; their hearts having been hardened by the cruel ways of the world.

To illustrate further, when soil is loose, it imediately absorbs drops of rain to be nourished and enriched.  However, if the same rain falls on a rock (our harden heart), it bounces off.  Similarly, one of the prerequisites of learning how to swim is to relax in the water.  As we relax, we discover how buoyant the water is and how much it supports us.

“...without me you can do nothing.”  (John 15:5, NAB)


As we journey on towards Lent, we come to realize that there must initially be a first step, on our part, towards making the commitment to repent, turn God-ward and acknowledge our need for God.  God cannot work in us as powerfully if we choose to be self-reliant, doubt Him and not want to take notice of His free grace continuously showered upon us. 

Today, simply take the first step to humbly acknowledge Jesus, the Son of God, who laid down His life, and paid the price of our salvation...the agony, the sorrow, the conspiracy, the humiliation, the mocking, the scourging, the crucifixion on a cross - the cruelest form of torture devised by 'free' man - the slow death over six agonizing hours.

“Do you not know that you are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?”  (1 Corinthians 3:16, NAB)




Therefore, wake up and freely choose to bring yourselves before the Lord and permit Him to act in you.  If God seems far away, whom do you think has moved?  Well, God obviously did not...

Faith...Simply More Precious Than Gold...

The small forgotten 'two-road' town of Raub is situated in west of Pahang Darul Makmur; between the mountain ranges of Benom and Titiwangsa in Malaysia - about 2 hours drive from the capital of Kuala Lumpur, off the highway, along a 2-lane road, twisting and turning through simple remote villages.  The air here is clean, pure and crisp as a result of its 270-odd meter elevation.

Raub became a famous settlement in the early 20th century for its gold mining resource.


It’s colonial past is still evident in the fine old buildings scattered around the town area.

RAGM or the Raub Australian Gold Mine 1889 (later known as the Australian Gold Mining Co, Ltd in 1892) operated the gold mine in Raub until 1961.


This humble town is one of the oldest town in Pahang and old folk’s tale recounts that in the early days, an old man and his two sons discovered gold every time they scooped up the earth in Raub.

Thus, Raub derived its name from the Bahasa Malaysia word, meaning ‘scoop’.  People found that for every tray of sand there was a handful (raub) of gold.


Cameron Highlands and Fraser’s Hill are both located within the Raub district; only about an hour away from the town. Malaysia’s National Park, the Taman Negara is just slightly more than an hour away.


Being embraced by greenery and hills all round, the main economic activity of Raub would be agriculture – fruits especially, distributed to the bigger towns in Malaysia.  The main crops in Raub are durians, rambutans, limes, mangosteens, duku langsat, passion fruits and bananas.

Most of the buildings in Raub town were built during the pre-World War II era.  The Catholic Church of the Annunciation was established back in 1952.  The Catholic community here are simple, serene and peace-loving.


With the development of new expressways and the closure of gold mines, the sleepy town of Raub is almost forgotten.


Nevertheless, it is still a home for many.  For those who have migrated to dwell in the busy city, Raub remains the root of their being; a place they often return for retreat and renewal.  My connection with this humble abode lies with a relative uncle Paul who will almost have journeyed this earth for 95 rich years and still going spiritually strong, hopefully to a century.  Over the years, this pilgrim has experienced faith being planted, nurtured, groomed, nourished, challenged, bloom and passed on to the younger generations.  Ever so gently, the pilgrim knows that the journey still goes on...until the homecoming...to hold on ever so obediently to the faith as handed down by the earlier generations.


The pace of life in this sleepy town actually reduces one’s distractions from the noises of the world; allowing one to simply contemplate diligently on the Word of God, prayerfully hearing His whispers surrounded by the absolute pureness of His Creation, thus satisfying the heart's longing for God - the restlessness within. 

The spiritual fruits of such a pilgrim's journey constantly reminds us that we are all mere humans, carved on the palms of His Hands, made to simply love Him more and others without exception - each day; with complete submission to the will of God.  Accepting the rule of God means radically changing one's order of values.


The Kingdom of God could never be bought-in without suffering; the latter, when viewed in a totally new way, through the lenses of the Word of God, will not prevent us from enjoying His love.  Riches, power, comfort, good times, pride - gold can hinder one from truly seeking the Kingdom of God.


"In this you rejoice, although now for a little while you may have to suffer through various trials, so that the genuineness of your faith, more precious than gold that is perishable even though tested by fire, may prove to be for praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ."
(1 Peter 1:6-7, NAB)

Religion...Gives Meaning to Life and Hope...

The international media has been swarmed about happenings and distress in Egypt; political transformation, street protests, curfews, disturbances, evacuations.  According to the CIA World Fact Book, Muslims make up 90 percent of the country’s 80 million people, Copts 9 percent and other Christians 1 percent.  These people will sit-in at Tahrir Square till the tyrannical regime collapses and justice restored.

What is not often reported or highlighted by the media is the fact that during such chaotic times of change, Muslims and Christians are united against the Mubarak regime.  Christians started their Sunday Mass in Cairo’s Tahrir Square as Muslim protesters formed a ring around them to protect them during the service.  On the earlier Friday, more than a million Muslims gathered for Friday Prayer in Tahrir Square with Christians forming a ring around their fellow Muslims to protect them during prayers. 

Tahrir Square continues to be a witness of remarkable scenes of inter-religious solidarity in the struggle for freedom and justice.  Christians and Muslims recited in unison the “Our Father” prayer in Tahrir on Sunday, a day intended to commemorate those killed in pro-democracy protests since January 25, 2011.   Joining hands against the regime of Egypt’s President Hosni Mubarak, Egyptian Muslim and Christian protestors shared funeral prayers in Tahrir Square on Sunday, 6 February, for the victims of brutal government security crackdowns on demonstrations.  Such testimony of religious solidarity and faith within such a massive event, amidst the cries for reformation.  The pilgrims of faith have united themselves on this journey.

As we witness this historical event, many people continue to be troubled in conscience when they think about religion, especially about their own religion and the radical response it calls for.  Strange for some, unsettling for others, indifference to the rest. 

"It is a strange God," said Frank Sheed, a writer and theologian, "who could be loved less by being known more".  Religious thinkers have always tried to find an answer, a single word or an explanation, for God's mysterious action in His world.  They have not yet come up with a final answer - and probably never will.  You are searching for belief in a God who makes sense to you - who is what your own idea of God is.

Questions, doubts, difficulties, hopelessness, depression can be means of strengthening your faith and purifying your spiritual life.  In Egypt, we see that however much people may differ from each other in time or place, they do not differ much from each other in their fundamental need to lead a meaningful life and to give expression to what makes their life meaningful.  Their acts of worship may be so different from each other as night and day - whatever the variations, at the core of it all, at the center of their religious sense, there lies the encounter with the Mystery, the Divine.

Religion is a catch-all term embracing the various ways humans have of giving common expression to what they think life's journey is ultimately all about.  "Man", says a noted American anthropologist, "is unlike other animals, for he is a creature who comprehends things he cannot see and believes in things he cannot comprehend."  Religion deals with a dimension beyond scientific grasp; religion responds to the Mystery of the universe.  Religion is about our relationship with the Infinite.

As Christian pilgrims, we have our own unique set of beliefs about religion; a relationship with God.  Others have theirs.  We should not dismiss our neighbor's religions, for they too are attempting to formulate their own awareness of God as they have come to know Him.  From their different approach, we, too, can humbly learn to see God from a different angle and perhaps, just perhaps, like the people in Egypt, add to our own knowledge of God.  From our tradition too, likewise, we must help others learn.


Whichever spiritual attitude you choose, the world will be at least a little different because of your choice.

"Faith is the realization of what is hoped for and evidence of things not seen.  Because of it the ancients were well attested.  By faith we understand that the universe was ordered by the word of God, so that what is visible came into being through the invisible."

(Hebrews 11: 1-3, NAB)

The Church...The Rock...

Just completed this book by Jeff Cavins; a great conversion story. Inspiring and satisfying to the longing and hungry heart.






The opening pages of this book carry an excerpt from Pope John Paul II (Tertio Millennio Adveniente), “God therefore goes in search of man who is His special possession in a way unlike any other creature”.

This very down-to-earth book describes vividly the journey of an angry son who left the Catholic Church out of rebellion; unable to fill the emptiness within – “I wasn’t being fed”. This is the testimony of a baptized Catholic on a spiritual search – raised in a devoted Catholic family, was an altar boy, attended weekly Mass, goes to confession as a family, carries a rosary, held the Bible with great reverence, wore a scapular. This book reveals how he turned away from the Eucharist because he wanted something more.


It tells the engaging story of the encounter with Bible Christians communities; confidently “on fire”, Bibles worn from daily use, born again! The book contains simple honesty, largely disillusioned, about the Catholic mass being “dead”, built on empty traditions, Catholics being viewed as ignorant, even dumb sometimes, not knowing Christ and worst of all, not even knowing the Word of God. The author’s marriage to a Protestant and more than 12 years serving as a Protestant pastor makes this conversion story so much more emotionally intriguing and relevant in the midst of this chaotic world we live in.


The journey then unpeels layer-by-layer of the author’s re-discovery of the truth, the misconception that he would be better fed elsewhere and how this truth redefines the apostolic tradition of our one holy Catholic Church; how the Bible then truly comes to life.


What makes this conversion story appealing to all is the revelation of many Catholic theological insights in simple layman lingo, at times, humorous; all these interwoven between God’s gentle promptings in calling the author and his family back to the Catholic Church. This is a story of reconciliation with the Catholic Church, a prodigal son’s repentance and return to his father, coupled with the faithfulness of a mother who prayed for his return home at every Mass.


This book proclaims the treasures of our Catholic faith and also equips us to evangelize this faith to others. Appropriately, the closing sentence in the Postscript of this testimony reads,”…you can do greater things than you have ever imagined.”


If your heart is hungry, this never-can-put-down book will feed you with good nourishment