Inspired Reflections

I watched a Good Friday service yesterday. Holy Week services have always been among my favourites of the church year. The commemoration of the Last Supper, the solemnity of Good Friday, the beauty of the candle light at the Easter Vigil, and the hope and sense of renewal of Easter Sunday spoke volumes to me. It was nice to hear the songs I love and to connect with the familiarity of scripture I can pretty well recite from memory. The service was going well, in my mind, until the contradictions present in the Hell and brimstone homily. According to this particular priest, people not attending Mass is why Covid-19 has happened. I’m not sure how I feel about that so I'll refrain from blathering here. Thankfully, the service went on to end on a lighter note.

I’ve been thinking about church ever since. The mostly positive and few negative experiences will always be a part of me. Due to personal reasons, I have not been a regular church goer in a while. In the eyes of the church and Canon Law, that makes me a "lapsed" Catholic or one who was baptized Catholic but does not actively practice. Trust me when I say the tears I shed were plenty and the prayers were fervent. I’ll leave it at that as it is not my intent to rehash anything here. My physical absence from the building has nothing to do with my belief in or love for God or Christ.  It has nothing to do with me spiritually. It certainly does not make me a bad person just as attending regular services does not make a person good.  

I’d be a liar if I said I didn’t miss the fellowship of the community at times. Thankfully I know it is just as important to “be” the church. Kindness, love, respect, and acceptance are values that I hold close. Humans, after all and according to Psalm 139:14 are ". . . fearfully and wonderfully made". I am no exception. Jesus loved others without fail and wanted others to do the same. I have held up my promise there.  

A quotation I love rings true: “You can speak with spiritual eloquence, pray in public, and maintain a holy appearance. . . but it is your behavior that will reveal your true character.” Mic drop. I can quote (and misquote scripture) with the best of them. Ultimately, actions will always speak more than where one sits on a Sunday. God makes NO mistakes. The exceptions, I suppose, will always be evil doers and those who spin bad theology.