The Faith Explained with Cale Clarke

It’s finally a reality!

I’m proud to announce that our first iPhone App, The New Mass, is available now, from the Apple App Store. You can find out how to download it here, or simply access the App Store from your iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad!

As you probably know by now, there is a new English translation of the Mass, approved by Pope Benedict XVI, that will be in a parish near you within a few months – most likely by Advent 2011. This new translation is both more faithful to the official Latin text of the Mass, and helps to explain the biblical roots of the liturgy. The New Mass App will help you to learn the new responses you’ll have to know for the Mass (we can’t go from memory anymore, folks!), while giving some of the reasons for each change. Best of all, you can still use it with today’s Mass!

I’d really like to thank Batsirai Chada, my co-developer in producing this app. Couldn’t have done it without you! We served as each other’s best man at our respective weddings, and I’m happy we could stand together once again for this important project.

I was so thankful that when I showed the New Mass app to my Archbishop, His Grace, Thomas Collins of Toronto, he liked it, saying that it was “wonderful”.

I think you’ll like it too. Happy downloading!

In yesterday’s Gospel reading at Mass, Jesus talks about what’s become known as the Golden Rule:

“Do to others whatever you would have them do to you.
This is the Law and the Prophets” (Matt 7:12).

Which brings to mind that silly poster put out by a so-called “Catholic” organization, which attempts to show that all religions teach something like the Golden Rule. The point seems to be that all religions are pretty much the same.

The only problem is, it’s not true.

Catholicism actually teaches that it is unique among all religions – and what is unique is not a what, but a who – Jesus Christ, who said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life, and no one comes to the Father except through me” (Jn 14:6). That’s either true or it isn’t.

But as for the Golden Rule: Jesus’ version is much different and more challenging than the version presented by other faiths. Their versions say something to the effect of, “Don’t do to others what you wouldn’t want them to do to you”. In other words, it’s a negative command.

As author Philip Yancey has noted, Jesus’ version, “Do unto others”, is far more open-ended and challenging.

In today’s Gospel reading from Matthew 7, Jesus says this:

“Stop judging, that you may not be judged. For as you judge, so will you be judged, and the measure with which you measure will be measured out to you.

Why do you notice the splinter in your brother’s eye, but do not perceive the wooden beam in your own eye?

How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove that splinter from your eye,’while the wooden beam is in your eye?

You hypocrite, remove the wooden beam from your eye first; then you will see clearly to remove the splinter from your brother’s eye.”

First of all, I want to point out that our Lord is actually being quite funny here. Hebrew humor is often humor by exaggeration, so you can imagine he probably drew a few laughs by saying something to the effect of, “Before pulling that splinter out of somebody else’s eye, you might want to pull the telephone pole out of your own eye, so you can see what you’re doing!”

All joking aside, Jesus’ main point against wrongfully judging others has been grossly misinterpreted by many, who wish to use Jesus’ words to justify sinful lifestyles. The argument goes something like this: “Jesus says not to judge others, so you can’t possibly judge my behavior to be wrong.”

Actually, I can – and I should! And so should you. We must make judgments on particular behaviors. Objectively, certain behaviors are wrong (that’s why we have laws against things like theft, murder, etc.). What we can’t judge are people’s motives (why they do what they do), or the state of their soul before God. We just don’t know the answers to those questions – the Church doesn’t even venture a guess as to who may be in hell. And the only way we know some are in heaven (saints) is because they’ve given us evidence that they are there (miracles).

One of the chief criticisms leveled at Catholics regarding the Dogma of the Assumption of Mary is that “it’s not in the Bible!”

Well, that may not be the case, as Revelation 12 clearly stated that “a great sign appeared in heaven, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars…she brought forth a male child, one who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron…”

Three guesses as to who the woman and her child are.

However, I will grant that the actual event of the Assumption is not in Scripture – that is, there isn’t a detailed account of Mary being taken up into heaven, body and soul, at the end of her earthly life. But that doesn’t mean that it didn’t happen.

Consider the last verse of the Gospel of John: “But there are also many other things which Jesus did; were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.” If that’s true of Jesus’ life, no doubt it’s true for Mary’s also.

But today’s scripture reading at Mass from 1 Kings 2 is also important, because, along with the case of Enoch in Genesis (“he walked with God, and was no more, because God took him”), the “assumption” of the prophet Elijah, body and soul, into heaven in a chariot of fire proves that not only could God do such a thing as assume a saint like Mary into heaven, but that he has done so on at least two other occasions in the past.

Could he? Could God do it? Of course he can – otherwise he wouldn’t be omnipotent. Did he? Of course he did – and his infallibly established Magisterium (teaching office) has confirmed it.

And now for Act II…

Here’s Part 1 of a talk I gave at Ernescliff College at the University of Toronto earlier this month on the Theology of the Body. Apologies for the video quality – they used the best camera they could get their hands on.