{"id":30503,"date":"2017-07-06T13:58:39","date_gmt":"2017-07-06T17:58:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.markmallett.com\/blog\/?p=30503"},"modified":"2017-07-10T08:49:59","modified_gmt":"2017-07-10T12:49:59","slug":"the-paralysis-of-despair","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.markmallett.com\/blog\/the-paralysis-of-despair\/","title":{"rendered":"The Paralysis of Despair","gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"text"}]},"content":{"rendered":"

THE NOW WORD ON MASS READINGS
\n for July 6th, 2017
\n Thursday of the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time
\n Opt. Memorial of St. Maria Goretti<\/p>\n

Liturgical texts\u00a0here<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

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THERE\u00a0<\/strong>are many things in life that can cause us to despair, but none, perhaps, as much as our own faults.<\/p>\n

We look over our shoulder “at the plow,” so to speak, and see nothing but the crooked furrows of poor judgment, mistakes, and sin that follows us like a stray dog. And we are tempted to despair. In fact, we can become paralyzed with fear, doubt, and a deadening sense of hopelessness.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In today’s first reading, Abraham ties up his son Isaac and places him on the altar to become a holocaust, a burnt offering. By then, Isaac knew what was coming, and it must have filled him with dread. In this regard, “father Abraham” becomes a symbol of God the Father’s just judgment. We feel, because of our sin, that we are bound to be punished, maybe even bound to the fires of hell. As the wood upon which Isaac lay jabbed into his flesh and the ropes which bound him left him feeling helpless, so too, our sins constantly jab at our peace and our weakness leads us bound to believe that our situation will never change… and thus, we despair.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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That is, if we remain fixed upon our misery and sense of hopelessness<\/em>. Because there is an answer to our folly; there is a Divine response to our habitual sin; there is a remedy to our despair: Jesus<\/em>, the Lamb of God.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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As Abraham looked about, he spied a ram caught by its horns in the thicket.\u00a0So he went and took the ram and offered it up as a burnt offering in place of his son. (Today’s first reading)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Isaac is unbound only<\/em> when another offering takes his place. In the case of humanity, whose sin placed an abyss between the creature and the Creator, Jesus has taken our place. The punishment for your sins, past, present, and future, was laid upon Him.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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We beseech you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin<\/em> who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Corinthians 5:20-21)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

So now, there is a path forward, even if you feel paralyzed by your sin, paralyzed by your emotions, paralyzed by despair such that you can barely speak to Him. It is to allow Jesus, once again, to take your place\u2014and this He does in the Sacrament of Confession.<\/p>\n

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Tell souls where they are to look for solace; that is, in the Tribunal of Mercy [the Sacrament of Reconciliation]. There the greatest miracles take place [and] are incessantly repeated. To avail oneself of this miracle, it is not necessary to go on a great pilgrimage or to carry out some external ceremony; it suffices to come with faith to the feet of My representative and to reveal to him one’s misery, and the miracle of Divine Mercy will be fully demonstrated. Were a soul like a decaying corpse so that from a human standpoint, there would be no [hope of] restoration and everything would already be lost, it is not so with God. The miracle of Divine Mercy restores that soul in full. Oh, how miserable are those who do not take advantage of the miracle of God’s mercy! You will call out in vain, but it will be too late.<\/strong><\/em> \u2014Jesus to St. Faustina,\u00a0Divine Mercy in My Soul,\u00a0<\/em>Diary, n. 1448<\/span><\/p>\n

When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Courage, child, your sins are forgiven.” (Today’s Gospel)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

If you find that you are falling into sin habitually, then the answer is to make Confession a habitual part of your life. If you find that you are erring frequently, then it is a cause, not for despair, but for greater humility. If you find yourself constantly weak and with little strength, then you must turn constantly to His strength and power, in prayer, and in the Eucharist.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Brothers and sisters… I, who am the least of God’s saints and the greatest of sinners, know of no other path forward. It says in Psalm 51 that a humble, contrite, and broken heart, God will not spurn<\/em>. [1]<\/sup><\/a>Ps 51:19<\/span><\/span>