THE GOOD NEWS
ARCHBISHOP BELTRAN
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The Good News ...Good News! Almost 12 years ago, shortly after I came to the Archdiocese, Father David Monahan, then the editor of the Sooner Catholic asked if I wished to write an article for our newspaper. If it was to be a regular feature, he said we needed to give it an identifying title. I responded immediately call it - The Good News. My quick response was a result of my exuberant and total belief and practice of our Catholic Faith. Our Catholic Faith is truly Good News. However, as in the rest of human life, there are in the Church bad moments as well as good moments. There are failures among us as well as successes. There are even scandals in the Church as well as events of great inspiration. But, fundamentally, inherently and finally, our Catholic Faith is Good News. There can be no better news than the revelation of the fact that God loves us. This is the message that Jesus brought to our world. He informed us that despite our sins and failures there is hope for us. He assured us that even though we cannot attain salvation by ourselves, we should still be confident because He is with us. He is our Lord. He is our Savior. This is the Good News and this is what human life is all about, namely, to come to know, love and serve God now so that we can rejoice with Him forever in heaven. Indeed, our Catholic Faith is Good News: FUNDAMENTALLY- because the Catholic Church is established by Jesus, the eternal Son of God who came to save us from our sins. INHERENTLY- because the very constitution of the Church and its essential character is about salvation. FINALLY- because the whole purpose and thrust of the Church is to lead us to eternal life with God. Jesus proclaimed The Good News directly and unambiguously. The Church itself, from its birth at the first Christian Pentecost until the present moment has always acknowledged its divine establishment and its unique authenticity. In good times and in bad times our Catholic Faith remains sound because its life, its inspiration, its driving force is the Spirit of God whom Jesus sends upon us. It is true that we human beings can frustrate the Spirit by rejecting the Grace and Blessings of God because we are free and God never forces us. He calls us to follow Him. He invites us to be good and holy but He does not force us. The Good News of salvation in Christ is always there whether we accept it or not. This is the reason the Catholic Church is both the bearer and the sharer of the Good News by Divine Providence. The Good News has been entrusted to the Church and the Church is commissioned to proclaim this message to all people. Therefore, everyone of us who call ourselves Catholic shares in this obligation to make the Good News known. We do that by: - Living our Catholic Faith fully thus giving good example to others. - Actively sharing our Faith through words and in prayer. - Encouraging weak and lax Catholics to return to the practice of the Faith. - Inviting relatives and friends to pray with us. - Generously and joyfully helping others especially the poor and the distraught. If we really believe the Good News which Jesus revealed about Himself; if we really believe that Jesus entrusted His Church with this Good News then our lives should be lives of great joy. There is no sin, no failure, no tragedy that can overshadow the Good News of Jesus. Once we discover this basic tenent of our Catholic Faith together with Saint Peter we can say to Jesus: “Lord, to whom shall we go? You and You alone have the words of life everlasting.” Thank you Lord for this Good News and for our Catholic Faith! |