I am an atheist (though not a “despairing atheist” lol) but I wanted to tell you how much I enjoy your channel. You make learning about the faith accessible and honest. Thank you :)
@@bipolarrambling242 How there can be any purpose if everything is eventually going to die and disappear? All our struggles, failures and achievements, from our possessions to our thoughts and our very selves, our parents and children, breakthrough inventions, ideas, buildings and books, everything will unavoidably die, because the whole universe will die. Entropy is merciless - nothing will endure. The only thing you're left with is a false sense of meaning. The evolution shaped us so that we're excellent at fooling ourselves by either believing in some supernatural eternal existence (which is somehow about to happen of itself), or just avoiding this fundamental question at all - because those who dare to face it without faith often give up, becoming nihilistic and suicidal. So the choice is simple: An irrational belief in some way of salvation, or permanent denial, or rational nihilism. But actually it's not quite irrational to believe, neither it's quite rational to despair, because the most rational answer to the question of why the universe (and us within it) even exist, is that it has been created, which leads to a conclusion that there must be a Creator 🙂
“None of these things are beyond God’s redeeming touch and none of them can get in the way of God’s ultimate plan, our salvation.” Thank you, Fr. Casey, for these timely words of profound hope.
Very comforting Father Casey. Yes, I believe God has a plan. I choose to Trust Him in spite of our trails at this time. God is using you in this Medium on U tube to comfort His children. I thank you.
Thank you! One of the most upsetting platitudes... Everything happens for a reason. .... Especially after my son died. What I have come to know: 1. It's a broken world - thanks, Adam and Eve 2. God is IN everything that happens, and he can work through ANYTHING to bring grace.
"And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose." (Romans 8:28) God is light, it doesn't matter how dark something seems, with the light the darkness disappears. It doesn't matter how bad something seems, with God's goodness the badness dissapears. He is Omnipotent, with His Infinite power he is capable to bring goodness into badness, joy into the sadness, strength into the weakness, grace into the tragedy. Even something so bad as the crucifixion of an innocent became in our salvation. The certainty of our faith is that if we respond to the love of God and turn to him, God will transform everything bad and painful in our lives into something good, something that leads us to Him. If we turn to God, he can transform tragedy, even our own sins from the past, into salvation. God can use everything that happens(or happened) even the things we consider bad, to do good. In God's hands everything becomes useful for our salvation. His love is beyond everything it has not limits. By tragedy He increases our desire for good things and He makes the virtues(faith, hope, patience, love...) flourish in us by his Holy Spirit. Just as the storm becomes useful for the growth of the flowers and the grass of the field, so the tragedy and the sorrows becomes useful for the growth of our souls. And like a said even our own sins through true repentance and penance, God transforms them into love for him; because those who are forgiven much, love much (Luke 7:47). By knowing the weight of our sins we get to know better the goodness of Him who forgave us. We get to know the love of our savior and the value of his salvation. God floods our miseries with his mercy. You love your son, you always loved him, but now you want him more because you experience his absence. God create him to be your son and He gave him to you, if God had not created him, and given him to you, you would not have known him, you love him because of God who loved you first. Everything you've had and loved came from God. Certainly you have not lost anything, anyone (because in the hands of God nothing, no one, is lost, nothing is useless) you have only realized how much you love your son and want to see him again, like Mary when Jesus died. Now you know her better. You know God better. You will see your son again, and your joy will be perfect because you will have cast out the fear of losing him. God did not separate you from your son, God binds us all together, by first binding ourselves with Him. We experience pain in this life, but it is the pain of a woman who is going to give birth. Once she gives birth sadness turns to joy, and pain turns to glory. Only your desire for good things has increased, when the desire increases, our capacity to receive those things increases, our soul prepares to love more. If we turn to God, there is no darkness because He is light. Everything is useful for our own sanctification. For our encounter with God's infinite love. The first joy of heaven is realizing that all things worked together for good to those who love God. That God took into account everything happened in our life, nothing was wasted, no suffering, no tears, nothing was insignificant.
I'm sorry someone said that to you at a time you were in pain over losing your son. I teach communication skills and tell people what is best to say and what not to say. I will add. "Everything happens for a reason" to my don't day list.
Father, this might be one of the most inspiring and illuminating sermons that I have ever heard. You are truly gifted and possess great wisdom and insight, sir. I am grateful that God showed me this account. These videos are greatly helping me during a trying time in my life, especially when I cannot attend Mass like I want because of covid. Thank you Father.
A touching message for a troubled heart...Thanks father ...i really appreciate your points...coz u speak with conviction and full faith in the workings of God..u r really an inspiration for young n old alike..God bless you always 😇😇
Some years ago my Mother was diagnosed with Chronic Lymphasistic Leukaemia and began Chemo Therapy. I could hear the fear in her voice and I made the decision to return home to support her. I had to give away most of what I had in my house. Three days before I left to return home, I was diagnosed with early Prostate Cancer - great timing! I had been referred to a hospital near home. The Surgeon, I later discovered was the best Surgeon in the UK for that particular procedure. Two months later I was operated on and all of the Cancer was removed. Ten years later I was officially pronounced Cancer free. I believe that God was at work in all of this in that I had chosen to look after my Mother and God rewarded me for my good deed. The operating was successful and I lived and looked after my Mother until she died 10 years later. We had a great time together with plenty of love, fun, joy and sadness. I would do it again if I had to. Since then I have had a number of serious health issues and still, I am here. I believe God is not calling me yet and He has some plan for me but I do not know what. I hope He tells me soon before it is too late. I have two Theology Degrees and I think your videos are excellent. I wish they were around when I was doing studying Theology. So simple and direct. I may not agree with everything but it is a matter of interpretation, etc., and discussion which must go one all of our lives.
Thank you for this message, it's nice to hear something positive. I find right now other Christian sites are saying this is GOD punishing us and this is now the end of times.
Thank you Father Casey. I really appreciate hearing your perspective on this. I've been watching your videos for a while now and you have really helped me learn about Catholicism. I've grown up around a lot of evangelicals, but in the last year I became interested in learning more about the Catholic Church, so I really appreciate your ministry. Many of the evangelicals, pastors and lay people alike, that I have heard discussing this pandemic, seem to see it as "more" evidence that the end times are near. They have really been acting some what fanatically about it. After I learned about the differences between the Catholic and evangelical interpretations of Revelations, I became somewhat skeptical of the claims that my Evangelical relatives make and the way they are always trying to find proof, like the end times is a giant conspiracy. So, it is nice to hear a perspective, coming from a religious person, that isn't like that. If you happen to see this Father Casey, I would appreciate it if you wanted to discuss the end times in a comment, or even a future video. I think there is a lot of fear mongering among some groups and would love to see it addressed. Anyways, thank you Father Casey, for this wonderful ministry, especially this video.
Having just read your comment to Fr. Casey, written three years ago, I wonder if you took a leap of faith and attend RCIA classes and if you became Catholic. You don't have to answer me. of course. I'm just curious. I love being Catholic and would be very happy for you if you have joined us.
St. Alphonsus Liguori speaks on this directly in Uniformity with God's Will: "We must unite ourselves to God’s will not only in things that come to us directly from his hands, such as sickness, desolation, poverty, death of relatives, but likewise in those we suffer from man -- for example, contempt, injustice, loss of reputation, loss of temporal goods and all kinds of persecution. On these occasions we must remember that whilst God does not will the sin, he does will our humiliation, our poverty, or our mortification, as the case may be. It is certain and of faith, that whatever happens, happens by the will of God. From God come all things, good as well as ‘evil.’ We call adversities evil; actually they are good and meritorious, when we receive them as coming from God’s hands: “Shall there be evil in a city which the Lord hath not done[22]?” “Good things and evil, life and death, poverty and riches are from God[23].” It is true, when one offends us unjustly, God does not will his sin, nor does he concur in the sinner’s bad will; but God does, in a general way, concur in the material action by which such a one strikes us, robs us or does us an injury, so that God certainly wills the offense we suffer and it comes to us from his hands."
This is an excellent video . I don’t hear many people willing to say WE SCREWED UP. It’s always easier to blame someone else and if God was there just to fix everything we screw up, wouldn’t we be in heaven ??
Yet another reason I gave up Callie to the humane society a year ago. The last thing you said, Father. The adoption was a closed adoption for my sake and for hers. We don't know what her condition was at the time of her adoption, but I knew I needed to give her up for the sake of my health and hers. She was a service animal and I had gotten her a furry friend, too. I couldn't bear the thought of losing Callie to Corona Virus. I had her blessed. My friends came to see her my parish priest came to bless both cats in the end, if not for sharing my cats with the humane society I would not have met my fiance Cesar and fell in love with Jesus Christ even further; and Callie would not have been saved from a viral infection, because she has a home with people who can afford her much more than I can. She developed various conditions known for Maine Coones that need special attention. As a person who is disabled returning to work and school, I'm just grateful for the intercession of St. Francis of Assissi. And I am Grateful for having known Callie ❤️💕💞 for the brief time that she was in my life. She was a special furry friend to me. Your words give great comfort, especially this Christmas, since I am not celebrating with my family or my fiance Cesar or my cat, or my home parish, but at school in my parish where I was baptized as an infant. It's a big campus with lots of people! God bless you and your ministry, Father Casey.
I love the overall message of this video and agree with most of the details. I don't, however, think that we create evil out of nothing. Only God can create. We can only corrupt what God made
Thank you so much! I needed to hear this. It opened my eyes to how God works and why. I have wrongly thought that God is strict, evil and manipulative. It was pushing me away from God. Good thing I realized it was all a big misunderstanding!
Thank you Brother Casey 🤗 You have profound wisdom & Truth 👼 Thank you for continuing to share your insightful videos especially at this time. Yes, I believe God is Love 💕 & we have free will. The evil in the world including the coronavirus is not from God. I believe we need to show more solidarity & kindness with people. I pray for everyone in the world especially during this global crisis 🙏 God Bless you and everyone 👼 we are all in this together 🥰
I heard a Spanish Priest say in a video (he also uploads videos to RUclips, he's called Padre Fortea) that God could have stopped coronavirus from existance, as in the Apocalypse it is said that it's the Lamb who opens the seals of the Horsemen of Apocalypse, including the disease one. God is in control, but He ultimately decided not to stop coronavirus. In the Priest's words, we do not know why He did so, but God knows everything and it is for sure that He allowed this for a greater good, just as He did with the disasters He allowed in Scripture (for example Israel being invaded and the jews being enslaved). I find this take interesting too, I know this is an old video but I'd love to know your thoughts on this. A big hug from Spain.
we were not set on a cottonwool planet with no challenges, there are many storms which we have to rise to survive, is that the source of our intelligence?
God is trying to send a message to the universe.... for all of us to meditate, to reflect, to listen, to change our lives, to repent, to hope and the best.... is to love
"What will the world look like in July?" With the way things are going, I'm going to put down good money the murder hornets will eat a bald eagle to the bone by the end of the month
No one has the right to judge another. Only God knows everything and can judge us all. We are to love as God loves us but not to judge. We are commanded to forgive each other as He forgives us but not to judge because we are all sinners. This is a God given mandate.
My belief is There is only one plan and that is the plan of salvation. Everyone Must go toward that goal. The means thru which you get there is different for everyone but it is God's will that everyone will. There IS NO PLAN for our lives. God knows what we will do but all of our decisions are our own. I know protestants that always talk about a plan for their life and they are just waiting for it to begin because where they are is not a great place and they end up just waiting for God's plan for them to begin. We can ask God to intervene in our decisions but He does not have a predetermined in a 'plan'. However, if we do ask God to intervene and we make a wrong decision (not in an evil decision, ever) we should be content and accept that because we it is where The Holy Spirit will use it for a lesson. God is very economical. He doesn't waste anything.
I have a question. How does God have control if humans have free will? How do things happen and align with God’s Plan if he can’t (and won’t) control us to make it happen
This is why we all need to follow the dietary law from God. The clean/unclean foods. Matthew 5:17-20 This is what happens when we eat unclean foods. May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.
7:25 There is also one more force that causes hardships, besides ourselves.....and that's the Demonic, which can heavily influence minds, of not just sinners but even the weak, invoking exaggerated fear and despair (and other assaults in worse cases). Of course one must always remember that God has power over evil spirits and to always call to Him for help.
OK. I sub'd your channel because you make me think. Great News right ? Maybe not so much. I got questions - lots of 'em - but let's start with one and get your opinoin on another thought I've had and go from there : The Pentarchical Church ; if four kept Their Position and One didn't , should I be asking , to borrow the old Chestnut , " Who Moved ?" and by extension " Why" ? Essentially, if the accepted thought is that there was a schism , who instigated it and now , who was right the Majority or the Minority ? Secondly, this thought occurs listening to this video: “Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent. Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent. Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil? Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him God?” ― Epicurus I get your position that Man shoots HIMSELF in the foot and therefore , God keeps a Bandage Handy ( Rabbi Harold Kushner had much the same thought in his book "Why bad things happen to good people " ) ; but there are days when the only prayer I can muster is " If not NOW God , WHEN ?!! " I try to believe that if God is Watching all this , there has to eventually be a Whistle from On High and the Declaration " All Right ! EVERYBODY out of the Pool ! " Otherwise, if We ( and by extension our actions ) are just pieces on some Celsetial Chess Board , then BOTH Players are some cruel, uncaring , sadistic SOB's that rival anything Mt. Olympus threw at us . Be Blessed. Be Safe .
Personally I have never believed the old adage that "Everything happens for a reason". I prefer to say that "Reason can be applied to everything that happens". I suppose it's all about free will and personal perspective. There is good and there is evil in this world and we have the power to focus and commit ourselves to either, regardless of how good or bad our experiences. If we hold fast to what is true and eternal (God of course) then there is always hope. It makes me think of another old adage, "That which does not kill us makes us stronger".
We can only see our lives. Could you imagine being in one spot at one time because 10 generations later it had to happen for your family line to happen in the future? Free will is our ability to choose. But that doesn't mean He doesn't know the choice a head of the decision. I stress that people remember time is a concept made by man for man. Time must be a laughable concept in heaven.
I don't get the argument that if everything that happens is the will of God, then there's no space for our will. If someone wills what the God wills, then wouldn't we say that the God is acting through them, and what happens is the result of both the person's and God's will?
Hallo Fr thank you for this video. We believe in Jesus as True God and True man. Can we find the actual nature of God as a human? Was Jesus African and Black? Why so many churches have white portraits of Jesus, can the church decolonize this concept? Thus why the Christianity (Catholicism) came with Western people to Africa with a structured way of worshiping rather of learning from African how to worship because if Jesus was black I believe there are African ways associated with spirituality?
I have learned God wills only good, but allows for other things, even evil, to occur for reasons of purification. Why else would the devil exist? All so true though. Good video.
About "punishment" I always imagine that "walking out of the Light means walking into the dark, away from the loving Light. There only is one Light in the end. Not being there might feel like a punishment, But the dark also can come upon us while we're innocent. Wouldn't it be God's purpose that we "help" Him spreading the Light all over the world? Jesus showed us the way. If we fail, we experience pains, possibly calling that "punishment". It makes sense right? Cause in the dark, we hardly can see!
Gods plan cannot be thwarted and his design will unfold as intended, but we are allowed freedom and so God cannot micro manage everything. But that which he does not will he must at least permit, and good may still come from that, for Gods love pervades everything.
Mother Theresa said, "God is humble". What does this mean? Well, C.S. Lewis once said there are times when God says to humankind, "THY will be done.". People do as they will, for that is God's gift. But God's sovereignty reigns. Scripture tells us that Joseph was sold into slavery by the malicious will of his brothers. It was not God's will for Joseph's brothers to harm him. And yet, through it all, God pulled Joseph into His ultimate plan of redemption, saving a nation, the Egyptians, from famine. God promoted Joseph in the eyes of Pharaoh, who gave him great authority over the Egyptian kingdom. In this, God brought great good out of evil. Ultimately, Joseph was reconciled with his brothers and forgave them, despite what they had done to him. Isn't this God's way? the way of forgiveness? God granted Joseph peace in the way He had chosen for Joseph (and remember that Joseph wasn't blameless in what had befallen him...in this we find God's grace; His unconditional favor).
Sorry but I completely disagree Fr. Casey. I'm coming from a more Augustinian/Thomistic/Calvinistic perspective. I believe that your view is directly contradictory to Scripture such as Wis. 8:1 and Rom. 8:28. God's meticulous providence is also established in Eph. 1:11. God does not "desire" evil things for their own sake, but decreed that all things that come to pass will come to pass precisely because He has an ultimate plan in which all evil actions have a purpose. Gen. 50:20 establishes how God acts in history by bringing good out of the evil actions of his creatures. It's true that God isn't the cause of evil actions in the same way that He is of good, but it undermines the understanding that God is ultimately in control if He simply has to accommodate evil actions rather than willing them for some greater purpose. The best example of this is the death of Christ, which was the most evil action in the history of humanity (Acts 2:23, 4:27-28).
Do you have room in your theology for primary and secondary causes? Agreed. God does not sin nor is He responsible for sin. Yet, read Acts 2:23, "this Man [Jesus], delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death." (Spoken by Peter) God determined it, God planned it. Yet, the ones who nailed Him to a tree are held responsible. Primary cause (God) and secondary cause (man). What could be more evil than the torture and execution of the only sinless and perfect human to ever live (God in flesh)? Were the men who killed Him guilty of an evil act, yes. Did God intend it for the eternal good of those that trust in Him? Absolutely! Secondly, you said in your video that there are things in this world that God does not control. Then at the end, you said we can take solace in the knowledge that God is in control??? If God is in control of all things, then I can take solace knowing that even the evil doers of the world, Satan himself, can only operate if God allows it. Then nothing is futile and Romans 8:28 is true which says all things happen for the good of those that love Him; the context reveals this is their eternal good not temporal comfort. If God is in control of COVID-19, and God is good (and He is both), then I know I have nothing to fear. Even if I get sick and die, Jesus has overcome death; so death is just the start of eternal life. Which, for the believer who dies from COVID, that makes the Coronavirus a good thing. If there are things in the world that God does not control - if He cannot, or will not, control or restrain the sins of men, control and restrain deadly viruses like COVID-19 - then there is no hope for anyone. If He does not control those things, praying about them is pointless. If God is not in control, you must face this world alone. You are at the mercy of forces which either supersede God or God does not care to deal with (which makes Him aloof, unloving, and negligent). This is not the God of the bible.
@@Veritas1234 "You said if God can't control our sin, then there is no hope while earlier you clearly explained that Jesus paid for those sins and provides us with an eternal hope. " I said there is no hope but keep reading: "...no hope for anyone. If He does not control those things, praying about them is pointless. If God is not in control, you must face this world alone." The "no hope" is a reference to this world and the events in this world; not eternally. "prayer is really nothing more than telling God thank you and giving him a permit to enter your heart, mind, and soul. " Jonah and a guy from Tarsus named Saul (among many others), would disagree. God does not need permission from us to do anything (Ps 115:3; 135:6).
I believe that God does have the capacity to be evil but does not act on it. If we are made in His image we are just like Him and we certainly be evil.
I read once that evil is the lack of, it is not a thing itself. Like darkness is a lack of light. Evil is a lack of Good. If you apply this to understand God then God cannot do evil as it is a lack of good. As God does not lack good he can not do anything evil. As we can lack good... we can do evil. Although we are created in his image there are a great deal of stuffs we can't do. I can only create something using what God has already provided- created. I will die. A lack of life.
Ephesians 1:4 (KJV) According as He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love: 5 Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, 6 To the praise of the glory of His grace, wherein He hath made us accepted in the beloved. Romans 8:28 (KJV) And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose. True Bible believers can find peace in God's Word above. True believers are those that do not add works to Grace. Grace is God's free gift of salvation to us unearned and undeserved. Ephesians 2:8 (KJV) For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.
Giod wills liove and he can will evil? When I do good. . He gets the credit. He wills evil. My fault if I do it. God is in control until I exercise my free will. Sorry. But it makes no real sense. Sound good but it is not sound.
But it's simply doesn't work that way. If God is all-knowing then he knew about each sin and bad thing that will happen in his creation. And he was ok with it and was going to do that anyway. He knew that millions of children will die from cancer or from starvation. He gave as that ability to starve to death. We couldn't die from diseases or lack of nutrition without his permission. And he gave this permission. No matter of greatness of his plan he was still willing to give us the possibility to die from various horrible deaths. If God isn't in control even over a single cancer cell, then he definitely not all-powerful. He has responsibility for each good and for each bad thing because he is an Alpha and he created all the way it is.
Gods will is often divided in full will ( create universe, save humanity), and permissive will ( act conform his desition ) so yes, he can be all knowing and still us be free
@@tomasveras2175 Problem still remains. From God's perspective world is fully deterministic. If, for example, a parent will give a match to a child (knowing that child, with 100% certainty, will burn a house) and child burns a house, then this will be an expression of childs free will and parents "permissive will", but the responsibility is still fully on parent, as he is the agent wich predetermined that situation. Or if I start some chemical process in the laboratory. Even if I don't directly interact with molecules, I can fully determine its result. And if I start such a process, its result will be fully intended by me.
This is exactly what I needed to hear. I’ve been struggling with how God could allow this, and this definitely helped me understand. Thanks, Fr. Casey!
I like to fall back on Romans 8:28: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Like you said, there's a big picture. And sometimes, looking back, you realize how that bad thing from the past, has turned to something wonderful in the present. So I tell myself (and others) to wait to see what results; God is good. Always.
God didn't will or make my mistakes, I did it. took me a long time to realize that. Been working on trying to be a better Catholic and a better person,, please keep me in your prayers Father , my name is James and Menace is my cat. I'll keep you in my prayers. Thank You 🙂
I’ve been curious about this matter since I was very young. This helped me a lot on understanding my religeon and God better. Muchas gracias Fr. Casey!
Bernie Bower I think this is the Christian faith, not just Catholic. I’m not a Catholic (I’m an Anglican) but I follow the channel because I enjoy Casey’s viewpoint. Most of what he says applies to Christians generally, not just Catholics.
Sheila S Thanks for being a loving person. I need to be careful to only add descriptors when they add to a thought e.g. “that person on the phone was nice”, works just as well “that lady on the phone was nice”. In this case though I meant -Catholic faith- to rebut some traditional Catholics who sometimes push for a ~stricter God~.
The Reason for Easter Would you consider the offer of Jesus? “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry again” (John 6:35 NLT). The grain-to-bread process is a demanding one. The seed must be planted before it can grow. When the grain is ripe, it must be cut down and ground into flour. Before it can become bread, it must pass through the oven. Bread is the end result of planting, harvesting, and heating. Jesus endured an identical process. He was born into this world. He was cut down, bruised, and beaten on the threshing floor of Calvary. He passed through the fire of God’s wrath, for our sake. He “suffered because of others’ sins, the Righteous One for the unrighteous ones. He went through it all-was put to death and then made alive-to bring us to God” (1 Peter 3: 18 MSG). Amen.
@tipseason Rex Thank you for this Bible verse, took note of it. I am reading The Holy Bible and i am not yet finished and when you really want to learn and know the truth, there are many things to note down.
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I am an atheist (though not a “despairing atheist” lol) but I wanted to tell you how much I enjoy your channel. You make learning about the faith accessible and honest. Thank you :)
Still an atheist? 😉
@@damnedmadman I am indeed
@@bipolarrambling242 How is that possible? Without God, there's absolutely no purpose and no hope - only death!
@@damnedmadman I don't think that's true, but even if it were, it doesn't prove that God exists, only that life would be better IF God did exist.
@@bipolarrambling242 How there can be any purpose if everything is eventually going to die and disappear? All our struggles, failures and achievements, from our possessions to our thoughts and our very selves, our parents and children, breakthrough inventions, ideas, buildings and books, everything will unavoidably die, because the whole universe will die. Entropy is merciless - nothing will endure.
The only thing you're left with is a false sense of meaning. The evolution shaped us so that we're excellent at fooling ourselves by either believing in some supernatural eternal existence (which is somehow about to happen of itself), or just avoiding this fundamental question at all - because those who dare to face it without faith often give up, becoming nihilistic and suicidal.
So the choice is simple: An irrational belief in some way of salvation, or permanent denial, or rational nihilism. But actually it's not quite irrational to believe, neither it's quite rational to despair, because the most rational answer to the question of why the universe (and us within it) even exist, is that it has been created, which leads to a conclusion that there must be a Creator 🙂
“None of these things are beyond God’s redeeming touch and none of them can get in the way of God’s ultimate plan, our salvation.” Thank you, Fr. Casey, for these timely words of profound hope.
I remember seeing a book entitled something like “Everything happens for a reason, and other lies we tell ourselves”
Did you read it?
Very comforting Father Casey. Yes, I believe God has a plan. I choose to Trust Him in spite of our trails at this time. God is using you in this Medium on U tube to comfort His children. I thank you.
My mother died yesterday and your video served as great comfort to me Father. Thank you.
Mark Gorsuch god rest her soul. Sorry for your loss
My condolences, Mark. May she be with Our Lord today.
God bless brother to comfort you through this mourning, I also lost my mother
@@cornelio7694 I will pray for you as well.
I'm so sorry for your loss, may your mother rest in God's loving arms now.
Thank you!
One of the most upsetting platitudes... Everything happens for a reason. .... Especially after my son died. What I have come to know: 1. It's a broken world - thanks, Adam and Eve
2. God is IN everything that happens, and he can work through ANYTHING to bring grace.
@@Veritas1234 thank you.
"And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose."
(Romans 8:28)
God is light, it doesn't matter how dark something seems, with the light the darkness disappears. It doesn't matter how bad something seems, with God's goodness the badness dissapears. He is Omnipotent, with His Infinite power he is capable to bring goodness into badness, joy into the sadness, strength into the weakness, grace into the tragedy. Even something so bad as the crucifixion of an innocent became in our salvation.
The certainty of our faith is that if we respond to the love of God and turn to him, God will transform everything bad and painful in our lives into something good, something that leads us to Him.
If we turn to God, he can transform tragedy, even our own sins from the past, into salvation. God can use everything that happens(or happened) even the things we consider bad, to do good. In God's hands everything becomes useful for our salvation. His love is beyond everything it has not limits.
By tragedy He increases our desire for good things and He makes the virtues(faith, hope, patience, love...) flourish in us by his Holy Spirit. Just as the storm becomes useful for the growth of the flowers and the grass of the field, so the tragedy and the sorrows becomes useful for the growth of our souls.
And like a said even our own sins through true repentance and penance, God transforms them into love for him; because those who are forgiven much, love much (Luke 7:47). By knowing the weight of our sins we get to know better the goodness of Him who forgave us. We get to know the love of our savior and the value of his salvation. God floods our miseries with his mercy.
You love your son, you always loved him, but now you want him more because you experience his absence. God create him to be your son and He gave him to you, if God had not created him, and given him to you, you would not have known him, you love him because of God who loved you first. Everything you've had and loved came from God. Certainly you have not lost anything, anyone (because in the hands of God nothing, no one, is lost, nothing is useless) you have only realized how much you love your son and want to see him again, like Mary when Jesus died. Now you know her better. You know God better.
You will see your son again, and your joy will be perfect because you will have cast out the fear of losing him.
God did not separate you from your son, God binds us all together, by first binding ourselves with Him.
We experience pain in this life, but it is the pain of a woman who is going to give birth. Once she gives birth sadness turns to joy, and pain turns to glory.
Only your desire for good things has increased, when the desire increases, our capacity to receive those things increases, our soul prepares to love more.
If we turn to God, there is no darkness because He is light. Everything is useful for our own sanctification. For our encounter with God's infinite love.
The first joy of heaven is realizing that all things worked together for good to those who love God. That God took into account everything happened in our life, nothing was wasted, no suffering, no tears, nothing was insignificant.
I'm sorry someone said that to you at a time you were in pain over losing your son. I teach communication skills and tell people what is best to say and what not to say. I will add. "Everything happens for a reason" to my don't day list.
Father, this might be one of the most inspiring and illuminating sermons that I have ever heard. You are truly gifted and possess great wisdom and insight, sir. I am grateful that God showed me this account. These videos are greatly helping me during a trying time in my life, especially when I cannot attend Mass like I want because of covid. Thank you Father.
A touching message for a troubled heart...Thanks father ...i really appreciate your points...coz u speak with conviction and full faith in the workings of God..u r really an inspiration for young n old alike..God bless you always 😇😇
Some years ago my Mother was diagnosed with Chronic Lymphasistic Leukaemia and began Chemo Therapy. I could hear the fear in her voice and I made the decision to return home to support her. I had to give away most of what I had in my house. Three days before I left to return home, I was diagnosed with early Prostate Cancer - great timing! I had been referred to a hospital near home. The Surgeon, I later discovered was the best Surgeon in the UK for that particular procedure. Two months later I was operated on and all of the Cancer was removed. Ten years later I was officially pronounced Cancer free. I believe that God was at work in all of this in that I had chosen to look after my Mother and God rewarded me for my good deed. The operating was successful and I lived and looked after my Mother until she died 10 years later. We had a great time together with plenty of love, fun, joy and sadness. I would do it again if I had to. Since then I have had a number of serious health issues and still, I am here. I believe God is not calling me yet and He has some plan for me but I do not know what. I hope He tells me soon before it is too late. I have two Theology Degrees and I think your videos are excellent. I wish they were around when I was doing studying Theology. So simple and direct. I may not agree with everything but it is a matter of interpretation, etc., and discussion which must go one all of our lives.
Thank you for this message, it's nice to hear something positive. I find right now other Christian sites are saying this is GOD punishing us and this is now the end of times.
This've been one of my biggest doubts but now you've clarified it so well. Thank you Father Casey, God bless you!
This young man is a great speaker and very intelligent.
Thank you Father Casey. I really appreciate hearing your perspective on this.
I've been watching your videos for a while now and you have really helped me learn about Catholicism. I've grown up around a lot of evangelicals, but in the last year I became interested in learning more about the Catholic Church, so I really appreciate your ministry.
Many of the evangelicals, pastors and lay people alike, that I have heard discussing this pandemic, seem to see it as "more" evidence that the end times are near. They have really been acting some what fanatically about it. After I learned about the differences between the Catholic and evangelical interpretations of Revelations, I became somewhat skeptical of the claims that my Evangelical relatives make and the way they are always trying to find proof, like the end times is a giant conspiracy. So, it is nice to hear a perspective, coming from a religious person, that isn't like that.
If you happen to see this Father Casey, I would appreciate it if you wanted to discuss the end times in a comment, or even a future video. I think there is a lot of fear mongering among some groups and would love to see it addressed.
Anyways, thank you Father Casey, for this wonderful ministry, especially this video.
Having just read your comment to Fr. Casey, written three years ago, I wonder if you took a leap of faith and attend RCIA classes and if you became Catholic. You don't have to answer me. of course. I'm just curious. I love being Catholic and would be very happy for you if you have joined us.
St. Alphonsus Liguori speaks on this directly in Uniformity with God's Will:
"We must unite ourselves to God’s will not only in things that come to us directly from his hands, such as sickness, desolation, poverty, death of relatives, but likewise in those we suffer from man -- for example, contempt, injustice, loss of reputation, loss of temporal goods and all kinds of persecution. On these occasions we must remember that whilst God does not will the sin, he does will our humiliation, our poverty, or our mortification, as the case may be. It is certain and of faith, that whatever happens, happens by the will of God.
From God come all things, good as well as ‘evil.’ We call adversities evil; actually they are good and meritorious, when we receive them as coming from God’s hands: “Shall there be evil in a city which the Lord hath not done[22]?” “Good things and evil, life and death, poverty and riches are from God[23].”
It is true, when one offends us unjustly, God does not will his sin, nor does he concur in the sinner’s bad will; but God does, in a general way, concur in the material action by which such a one strikes us, robs us or does us an injury, so that God certainly wills the offense we suffer and it comes to us from his hands."
In his time , he makes all things beautiful in his time . 🙏
thank thank thank you God bless you!!! I am tired of the idea that everything happens for a reason et is God s will!!!!!!! You enlighted me!
God bless you 🙏✝️. Thank you for all you do
These old ones are great. Wonderful format. Wisdom.
Beautiful message Fr Casey. This helped me so much!!
Thank you Father. I lost my mother in March, this video brought some comfort.
In the end good will prevail.
I could listen to you talking for days.
This is an excellent video . I don’t hear many people willing to say WE SCREWED UP. It’s always easier to blame someone else and if God was there just to fix everything we screw up, wouldn’t we be in heaven ??
this was so well explained
Thanks again Father Casey for instructing us and leading us down the right path.
Bless you Fr Casey
Thank you for this thoughtful exposition
Yet another reason I gave up Callie to the humane society a year ago. The last thing you said, Father. The adoption was a closed adoption for my sake and for hers. We don't know what her condition was at the time of her adoption, but I knew I needed to give her up for the sake of my health and hers. She was a service animal and I had gotten her a furry friend, too. I couldn't bear the thought of losing Callie to Corona Virus. I had her blessed. My friends came to see her my parish priest came to bless both cats in the end, if not for sharing my cats with the humane society I would not have met my fiance Cesar and fell in love with Jesus Christ even further; and Callie would not have been saved from a viral infection, because she has a home with people who can afford her much more than I can. She developed various conditions known for Maine Coones that need special attention. As a person who is disabled returning to work and school, I'm just grateful for the intercession of St. Francis of Assissi. And I am Grateful for having known Callie ❤️💕💞 for the brief time that she was in my life. She was a special furry friend to me. Your words give great comfort, especially this Christmas, since I am not celebrating with my family or my fiance Cesar or my cat, or my home parish, but at school in my parish where I was baptized as an infant. It's a big campus with lots of people! God bless you and your ministry, Father Casey.
I love the overall message of this video and agree with most of the details. I don't, however, think that we create evil out of nothing. Only God can create. We can only corrupt what God made
Thank you father this lifted me
Thank you, Father! This video helped me to prepare lectio divina on Matthew 10:26-33 for my parish!
Thank you so much! I needed to hear this. It opened my eyes to how God works and why. I have wrongly thought that God is strict, evil and manipulative. It was pushing me away from God. Good thing I realized it was all a big misunderstanding!
Thank you father.. Well said🙏
Thank you Brother Casey 🤗 You have profound wisdom & Truth 👼 Thank you for continuing to share your insightful videos especially at this time. Yes, I believe God is Love 💕 & we have free will. The evil in the world including the coronavirus is not from God. I believe we need to show more solidarity & kindness with people. I pray for everyone in the world especially during this global crisis 🙏 God Bless you and everyone 👼 we are all in this together 🥰
" hard subject " ☺
Pray for me father today , my name is suhail =su+hail and I live in dubai.
Blessings . 💗💗💗
Job is my favorite book. Maybe the oldest... and maybe a counter argument to this vid?
Thank you Fr. Casey, best explanation I ever heard.
I heard a Spanish Priest say in a video (he also uploads videos to RUclips, he's called Padre Fortea) that God could have stopped coronavirus from existance, as in the Apocalypse it is said that it's the Lamb who opens the seals of the Horsemen of Apocalypse, including the disease one. God is in control, but He ultimately decided not to stop coronavirus. In the Priest's words, we do not know why He did so, but God knows everything and it is for sure that He allowed this for a greater good, just as He did with the disasters He allowed in Scripture (for example Israel being invaded and the jews being enslaved). I find this take interesting too, I know this is an old video but I'd love to know your thoughts on this. A big hug from Spain.
Thank you father Casey. God bless you. I would like to recommend reading Salvifici dolores by Saint Pope John Paul II.
we were not set on a cottonwool planet with no challenges, there are many storms which we have to rise to survive, is that the source of our intelligence?
I really like the river analogy!
God is trying to send a message to the universe.... for all of us to meditate, to reflect, to listen, to change our lives, to repent, to hope and the best.... is to love
Father casey, in the readings of Job, God allows bad things happen to Job, i think sometimes God allows it for some reasons
Well said
"What will the world look like in July?"
With the way things are going, I'm going to put down good money the murder hornets will eat a bald eagle to the bone by the end of the month
I think that when Aquinas said that all creation was one thought in the mind of God, he was right.
Thanks
Thanks Fr Casey Well said ❤️
Beautifully said.
No one has the right to judge another. Only God knows everything and can judge us all. We are to love as God loves us but not to judge. We are commanded to forgive each other as He forgives us but not to judge because we are all sinners. This is a God given mandate.
As long as our God has the ultimate say so--- we can safely leave our lives in His Mighty Merciful Hands. Don’t be afraid.
My belief is There is only one plan and that is the plan of salvation. Everyone Must go toward that goal. The means thru which you get there is different for everyone but it is God's will that everyone will. There IS NO PLAN for our lives. God knows what we will do but all of our decisions are our own. I know protestants that always talk about a plan for their life and they are just waiting for it to begin because where they are is not a great place and they end up just waiting for God's plan for them to begin. We can ask God to intervene in our decisions but He does not have a predetermined in a 'plan'. However, if we do ask God to intervene and we make a wrong decision (not in an evil decision, ever) we should be content and accept that because we it is where The Holy Spirit will use it for a lesson. God is very economical. He doesn't waste anything.
I have a question. How does God have control if humans have free will? How do things happen and align with God’s Plan if he can’t (and won’t) control us to make it happen
This is why we all need to follow the dietary law from God. The clean/unclean foods. Matthew 5:17-20 This is what happens when we eat unclean foods. May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.
7:25 There is also one more force that causes hardships, besides ourselves.....and that's the Demonic, which can heavily influence minds, of not just sinners but even the weak, invoking exaggerated fear and despair (and other assaults in worse cases). Of course one must always remember that God has power over evil spirits and to always call to Him for help.
What a beautiful person x
OK. I sub'd your channel because you make me think. Great News right ? Maybe not so much. I got questions - lots of 'em - but let's start with one and get your opinoin on another thought I've had and go from there :
The Pentarchical Church ; if four kept Their Position and One didn't , should I be asking , to borrow the old Chestnut , " Who Moved ?" and by extension " Why" ? Essentially, if the accepted thought is that there was a schism , who instigated it and now , who was right the Majority or the Minority ? Secondly, this thought occurs listening to this video:
“Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent.
Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent.
Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil?
Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him God?”
― Epicurus
I get your position that Man shoots HIMSELF in the foot and therefore , God keeps a Bandage Handy ( Rabbi Harold Kushner had much the same thought in his book "Why bad things happen to good people " ) ; but there are days when the only prayer I can muster is " If not NOW God , WHEN ?!! " I try to believe that if God is Watching all this , there has to eventually be a Whistle from On High and the Declaration " All Right ! EVERYBODY out of the Pool ! "
Otherwise, if We ( and by extension our actions ) are just pieces on some Celsetial Chess Board , then BOTH Players are some cruel, uncaring , sadistic SOB's that rival anything Mt. Olympus threw at us . Be Blessed. Be Safe .
Personally I have never believed the old adage that "Everything happens for a reason". I prefer to say that "Reason can be applied to everything that happens". I suppose it's all about free will and personal perspective. There is good and there is evil in this world and we have the power to focus and commit ourselves to either, regardless of how good or bad our experiences. If we hold fast to what is true and eternal (God of course) then there is always hope. It makes me think of another old adage, "That which does not kill us makes us stronger".
Well, prophet Isaiah at Isaiah 45:7 states: " I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things."
We can only see our lives. Could you imagine being in one spot at one time because 10 generations later it had to happen for your family line to happen in the future? Free will is our ability to choose. But that doesn't mean He doesn't know the choice a head of the decision. I stress that people remember time is a concept made by man for man. Time must be a laughable concept in heaven.
Thank you.
True ,our Lord is the king of kings .our mother ,the mother of God,can save us if we pray to her
I don't get the argument that if everything that happens is the will of God, then there's no space for our will. If someone wills what the God wills, then wouldn't we say that the God is acting through them, and what happens is the result of both the person's and God's will?
Thank you 🙏
People rationalize that things happen for a reason because "uncertainty" makes us uncomfortable.
My cousin is in hospice right now
Hallo Fr thank you for this video. We believe in Jesus as True God and True man. Can we find the actual nature of God as a human? Was Jesus African and Black? Why so many churches have white portraits of Jesus, can the church decolonize this concept? Thus why the Christianity (Catholicism) came with Western people to Africa with a structured way of worshiping rather of learning from African how to worship because if Jesus was black I believe there are African ways associated with spirituality?
So are you saying that if God is all good than he can't be all powerful.
I have learned God wills only good, but allows for other things, even evil, to occur for reasons of purification. Why else would the devil exist? All so true though. Good video.
Yeah even for bad reasons.
About "punishment" I always imagine that "walking out of the Light means walking into the dark, away from the loving Light. There only is one Light in the end. Not being there might feel like a punishment, But the dark also can come upon us while we're innocent. Wouldn't it be God's purpose that we "help" Him spreading the Light all over the world? Jesus showed us the way. If we fail, we experience pains, possibly calling that "punishment". It makes sense right? Cause in the dark, we hardly can see!
Can you explain also the idea of God's omnipotence? thanks!
Gods plan cannot be thwarted and his design will unfold as intended, but we are allowed freedom and so God cannot micro manage everything. But that which he does not will he must at least permit, and good may still come from that, for Gods love pervades everything.
Ok good but... WHAT DO YOU MEAN THERE ISN'T A CALL TO ONE PATH FOR US (what you mentioned about vocation) 🤯😱😵😵😵
We are all called to serve God - in our various vocations. However, the choice remains ours.
Mother Theresa said, "God is humble". What does this mean? Well, C.S. Lewis once said there are times when God says to humankind, "THY will be done.". People do as they will, for that is God's gift. But God's sovereignty reigns. Scripture tells us that Joseph was sold into slavery by the malicious will of his brothers. It was not God's will for Joseph's brothers to harm him. And yet, through it all, God pulled Joseph into His ultimate plan of redemption, saving a nation, the Egyptians, from famine. God promoted Joseph in the eyes of Pharaoh, who gave him great authority over the Egyptian kingdom. In this, God brought great good out of evil. Ultimately, Joseph was reconciled with his brothers and forgave them, despite what they had done to him. Isn't this God's way? the way of forgiveness? God granted Joseph peace in the way He had chosen for Joseph (and remember that Joseph wasn't blameless in what had befallen him...in this we find God's grace; His unconditional favor).
❤❤
Sorry but I completely disagree Fr. Casey. I'm coming from a more Augustinian/Thomistic/Calvinistic perspective. I believe that your view is directly contradictory to Scripture such as Wis. 8:1 and Rom. 8:28. God's meticulous providence is also established in Eph. 1:11. God does not "desire" evil things for their own sake, but decreed that all things that come to pass will come to pass precisely because He has an ultimate plan in which all evil actions have a purpose. Gen. 50:20 establishes how God acts in history by bringing good out of the evil actions of his creatures. It's true that God isn't the cause of evil actions in the same way that He is of good, but it undermines the understanding that God is ultimately in control if He simply has to accommodate evil actions rather than willing them for some greater purpose. The best example of this is the death of Christ, which was the most evil action in the history of humanity (Acts 2:23, 4:27-28).
WHAT IF GOD PERMITS THIS TO HAPPEN WITH ALL THAT HAS TAKEN PLACE IN THE WORLD GOD IS A LOVING FATHER HE IS ALSO RITHUIS
Do you have room in your theology for primary and secondary causes? Agreed. God does not sin nor is He responsible for sin. Yet, read Acts 2:23, "this Man [Jesus], delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death." (Spoken by Peter)
God determined it, God planned it. Yet, the ones who nailed Him to a tree are held responsible. Primary cause (God) and secondary cause (man).
What could be more evil than the torture and execution of the only sinless and perfect human to ever live (God in flesh)? Were the men who killed Him guilty of an evil act, yes. Did God intend it for the eternal good of those that trust in Him? Absolutely!
Secondly, you said in your video that there are things in this world that God does not control. Then at the end, you said we can take solace in the knowledge that God is in control??? If God is in control of all things, then I can take solace knowing that even the evil doers of the world, Satan himself, can only operate if God allows it. Then nothing is futile and Romans 8:28 is true which says all things happen for the good of those that love Him; the context reveals this is their eternal good not temporal comfort. If God is in control of COVID-19, and God is good (and He is both), then I know I have nothing to fear. Even if I get sick and die, Jesus has overcome death; so death is just the start of eternal life. Which, for the believer who dies from COVID, that makes the Coronavirus a good thing.
If there are things in the world that God does not control - if He cannot, or will not, control or restrain the sins of men, control and restrain deadly viruses like COVID-19 - then there is no hope for anyone. If He does not control those things, praying about them is pointless. If God is not in control, you must face this world alone. You are at the mercy of forces which either supersede God or God does not care to deal with (which makes Him aloof, unloving, and negligent). This is not the God of the bible.
@@Veritas1234 "You said if God can't control our sin, then there is no hope while earlier you clearly explained that Jesus paid for those sins and provides us with an eternal hope. "
I said there is no hope but keep reading: "...no hope for anyone. If He does not control those things, praying about them is pointless. If God is not in control, you must face this world alone." The "no hope" is a reference to this world and the events in this world; not eternally.
"prayer is really nothing more than telling God thank you and giving him a permit to enter your heart, mind, and soul. "
Jonah and a guy from Tarsus named Saul (among many others), would disagree. God does not need permission from us to do anything (Ps 115:3; 135:6).
I believe that God does have the capacity to be evil but does not act on it. If we are made in His image we are just like Him and we certainly be evil.
I read once that evil is the lack of, it is not a thing itself. Like darkness is a lack of light. Evil is a lack of Good. If you apply this to understand God then God cannot do evil as it is a lack of good. As God does not lack good he can not do anything evil.
As we can lack good... we can do evil.
Although we are created in his image there are a great deal of stuffs we can't do. I can only create something using what God has already provided- created.
I will die. A lack of life.
Ephesians 1:4 (KJV) According as He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love:
5 Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will,
6 To the praise of the glory of His grace, wherein He hath made us accepted in the beloved.
Romans 8:28 (KJV) And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose.
True Bible believers can find peace in God's Word above. True believers are those that do not add works to Grace. Grace is God's free gift of salvation to us unearned and undeserved.
Ephesians 2:8 (KJV) For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.
Ummmmm.... shouldn't you have a tonsure?
There is the thing of spiritual warfare
The final purpose in life is saving our souls. Not our bodies.
God wills to permit evil and could easily prevent it. If you deny this you do not understand basic theology.
Cause-effect does not exist..,
Some things simply do not provoque,..
Experience of God? Do you mean falling on your knees in front of this instrument of torture and execution and a man bleeding to death upon it?
Giod wills liove and he can will evil? When I do good. . He gets the credit. He wills evil. My fault if I do it. God is in control until I exercise my free will. Sorry. But it makes no real sense. Sound good but it is not sound.
But it's simply doesn't work that way. If God is all-knowing then he knew about each sin and bad thing that will happen in his creation. And he was ok with it and was going to do that anyway. He knew that millions of children will die from cancer or from starvation. He gave as that ability to starve to death. We couldn't die from diseases or lack of nutrition without his permission. And he gave this permission. No matter of greatness of his plan he was still willing to give us the possibility to die from various horrible deaths. If God isn't in control even over a single cancer cell, then he definitely not all-powerful. He has responsibility for each good and for each bad thing because he is an Alpha and he created all the way it is.
Gods will is often divided in full will ( create universe, save humanity), and permissive will ( act conform his desition ) so yes, he can be all knowing and still us be free
@@tomasveras2175 Problem still remains. From God's perspective world is fully deterministic. If, for example, a parent will give a match to a child (knowing that child, with 100% certainty, will burn a house) and child burns a house, then this will be an expression of childs free will and parents "permissive will", but the responsibility is still fully on parent, as he is the agent wich predetermined that situation. Or if I start some chemical process in the laboratory. Even if I don't directly interact with molecules, I can fully determine its result. And if I start such a process, its result will be fully intended by me.
You can't figure out God, so don't.
Not to brag , but in times like these, I glad I don't have any kids!!
This've been one of my biggest doubts but now you've clarified it so well. Thank you Father Casey, God bless you!
This is exactly what I needed to hear. I’ve been struggling with how God could allow this, and this definitely helped me understand. Thanks, Fr. Casey!
The bats allowed this, not God. We have free will, and so do the viruses.
for a long time it was hard for me to fully understand free will.
It all hinges about it as free will and faith are inexorably
linked.
I like to fall back on Romans 8:28: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Like you said, there's a big picture. And sometimes, looking back, you realize how that bad thing from the past, has turned to something wonderful in the present. So I tell myself (and others) to wait to see what results; God is good. Always.
God didn't will or make my mistakes, I did it. took me a long time to realize that. Been working on trying to be a better Catholic and a better person,, please keep me in your prayers Father , my name is James and Menace is my cat. I'll keep you in my prayers. Thank You 🙂
I’ve been curious about this matter since I was very young. This helped me a lot on understanding my religeon and God better. Muchas gracias Fr. Casey!
Well said Fr Casey! This is the Catholic Faith I grew up with. God loves us. As they say in the movies "nuf said"
Bernie Bower I think this is the Christian faith, not just Catholic. I’m not a Catholic (I’m an Anglican) but I follow the channel because I enjoy Casey’s viewpoint. Most of what he says applies to Christians generally, not just Catholics.
As they say in Jamaica "nuff said"
Sheila S Thanks for being a loving person. I need to be careful to only add descriptors when they add to a thought e.g. “that person on the phone was nice”, works just as well “that lady on the phone was nice”. In this case though I meant -Catholic faith- to rebut some traditional Catholics who sometimes push for a ~stricter God~.
The Reason for Easter
Would you consider the offer of Jesus? “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry again” (John 6:35 NLT).
The grain-to-bread process is a demanding one. The seed must be planted before it can grow. When the grain is ripe, it must be cut down and ground into flour. Before it can become bread, it must pass through the oven. Bread is the end result of planting, harvesting, and heating.
Jesus endured an identical process. He was born into this world. He was cut down, bruised, and beaten on the threshing floor of Calvary. He passed through the fire of God’s wrath, for our sake. He “suffered because of others’ sins, the Righteous One for the unrighteous ones. He went through it all-was put to death and then made alive-to bring us to God” (1 Peter 3: 18 MSG).
Amen.
Harrowing yet beautiful. Praise be🙏❤
Well Said Father well said!
"Everything happens for a reason" is trite.
Everything happens in our Lord's reason.⛪ this pandemic gives us time to reflect and reset our lives.
@tipseason Rex Thank you for this Bible verse, took note of it. I am reading The Holy Bible and i am not yet finished and when you really want to learn and know the truth, there are many things to note down.
hey look I spotted the heresy