THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH Her Doctrine and Morals Seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost 23 September 2012

The Sunday Sermon

Dear Friends,

The Pharisee calls Christ “Master”; this is a deceptive lie. Only the son may call his father, “father”; and only student may call his teacher, “teacher”; so it follows that only the disciple may call his master, “master”. The Pharisee is not a disciple of Christ. He does not follow Christ nor is he seeking instruction from Christ. He therefore has not right to address Christ as “Master”. It is true that Christ is God and is therefore the Lord and Master of all, but those who refuse Him the love and obedience due to Him break off this relationship. The heretic, schismatic, pagan, and Jew have no true relationship with Christ and therefore have no relationship to God. He is their Creator but because of their rebellion against Him they are no longer sons of God but rather sons of the devils who now inspire and guide them in this life so that they will reach eternity and enter into Hell with them.

Religion to these people is nothing more than deceitful hypocrisy. It is a tool which they use to mislead others or even to manipulate and control others. This is why we see that Christ calls these people, “children of the devil” and a “brood of vipers.” (Matt 12, 34) It is in this hypocritical disposition that the Pharisee calls Jesus “Master”, in attempting by flattery to put Him off His guard, so as to trap Him. It is foolishness as Jesus is God and can see very clearly this man’s heart and intentions. The question of which is the greatest commandment was a disputed one, so this question is posed to put Jesus in the midst of the dispute where however He answers it will be offensive to someone. Jesus answers the man with a simple and direct answer showing clearly that the love of God is the greatest commandment and then the love of neighbor. After this Jesus silences these men by asking them a question. In their rebellion, against the grace of God, these men cannot see that Jesus is both God and Man. Therefore, they cannot explain how Christ is the Son of David and at the same time is David’s Lord. In posing this question Jesus silences these evil plotting hypocrite Pharisees.

These Pharisees live on today in all those who attack the Church which is the Mystical Body of Christ. The teachings of Christ’s Church (The Catholic Church) are the teachings of God; all those who reject the Church reject God. “He who hears you, hears Me and he who hears Me hears Him who sent Me.” (Luke 10, 16) It is clear then that all those outside of the Church who call upon Jesus do so falsely; they are not the children of God but rather the children of the devil because they reject Jesus in His Church and follow the inspiration of devils just as the Pharisees of old did.

These call upon Jesus as “Lord, Master, and God” but it is a lie because in their hearts they have rejected Him. It may be true that they search the scriptures, but they do so not to find God and love and serve Him, but rather to entrap Him (in His Mystical Body the Church) and so find a means or reason to reject and destroy Him. We must therefore always be on our guard when speaking of religious matters with those outside the Church; whether consciously or unconsciously these people are out to attack and destroy the Church and therefore Christ – God. No matter how well meaning or even how-pious they may appear; they are still children of Satan and not of God. It is Satan appearing as an angel of light that inspires and guides them. Just as the Pharisees could not believe that Jesus is the Christ and is therefore both God and Man, so those outside the Church cannot believe one or more teachings of Christ in His Church.

We are not Jesus so we cannot see this evil disposition in people’s wills and the devils are very clever in helping them disguise it, so we must ever be vigilant and cautious, in our discussions with them. Let us always remember our Morning Offering where we beg God’s help and guidance for the day, as well as the help and guidance of the angels and saints. Before we engage in a conversation with anyone outside the Church on matters of faith, let us first pray that they may be freed from the influence of these evil spirits that are guiding them, and ask God’s help in guiding us to lead them back to Him. We must always keep in mind that appearances are most often deceptive and be on our guard always to protect our standing as children of God who can truthfully call Jesus: “Master”.