D
Dubay
Guest
Confusing homily this weekend. The Priest was saying that we should petition the Arch diocese to revere God and not fear God. why not simply do both??
- Status
1
1ke
Guest
i’m sorta confused on the “petition the archdiocese” part of this statement. I am not at all clear what that could mean.
I mean, can we petition NASA on what color we would like the sky to be tomorrow?
I mean, can we petition NASA on what color we would like the sky to be tomorrow?
J
JohnMulhall
Guest
Hi Dubay, that is an awesome question!
The koine Greek verb “fobeo” is pretty vague in its meaning sometimes. In fact, it means both of what things you are saying! (Of course, the only thing it isn’t vague in is its morphology…first person, present, active)
To me, fear is an “awe” thing, and of course, I shouldn’t mess with a God I am in awe of. The amazing thing is, of course, that, as a sinner, I do…even more amazing (and awesome) is that through the Sacraments, I can be forgiven. God’s awesomeness sanctifies life in ways that I can’t even fathom at this point. The best I have are the Sacrements to demonstrate that fact. The best thing I can think of when trying to discern that fear is to remember Psalm 46.
Much love,
Pax Christi,
JOHN
The koine Greek verb “fobeo” is pretty vague in its meaning sometimes. In fact, it means both of what things you are saying! (Of course, the only thing it isn’t vague in is its morphology…first person, present, active)
To me, fear is an “awe” thing, and of course, I shouldn’t mess with a God I am in awe of. The amazing thing is, of course, that, as a sinner, I do…even more amazing (and awesome) is that through the Sacraments, I can be forgiven. God’s awesomeness sanctifies life in ways that I can’t even fathom at this point. The best I have are the Sacrements to demonstrate that fact. The best thing I can think of when trying to discern that fear is to remember Psalm 46.
Much love,
Pax Christi,
JOHN
D
Dubay
Guest
R
R_C
Guest
You may check this article about one of the 7 gifts of the Holy Spirit called fear of God.
There is a significant difference between filial fear and servile fear.
A servant is afraid of his master. He is afraid that if he does something wrong he will be caught and punished. He does not know what his master does or wants exactly, and if he does something wrong he will be afraid to admit it and try to hide it or disguise it to avoid punishment. Even the demons have servile fear of God (James 2:19).
A son is only afraid of being separated from his father. He is afraid that if he does something wrong he will displease his father. He knows what his father does and wants from him, and if he does something wrong, he may be ashamed to admit it, but will naturally be moved to repent and seek reconciliation, to remain in the wonderful mutual love.
The Lord, by consistently telling His apostles: “do not fear!” and by calling them “no longer his servants, but his friends” and by “giving them the power to become children of God”, clearly shifted the focus from the servile fear of the Old Covenant to the filial fear that fully reflects God’s divine plan for the human being.
Reverence, on the other hand, can be a very peculiar and ambiguous term. No doubt, calling Christ “Lord” is a sign of great reverence, yet we know what He will reply those who show this reverence but do not do God’s will…filial fear is born out of natural, sheer love. It longs to please the father by doing what is good in his eyes. Even irreverence can be forgiven when filial fear is present (Mt 12:32, Lk 12:10).
There is a significant difference between filial fear and servile fear.
A servant is afraid of his master. He is afraid that if he does something wrong he will be caught and punished. He does not know what his master does or wants exactly, and if he does something wrong he will be afraid to admit it and try to hide it or disguise it to avoid punishment. Even the demons have servile fear of God (James 2:19).
A son is only afraid of being separated from his father. He is afraid that if he does something wrong he will displease his father. He knows what his father does and wants from him, and if he does something wrong, he may be ashamed to admit it, but will naturally be moved to repent and seek reconciliation, to remain in the wonderful mutual love.
The Lord, by consistently telling His apostles: “do not fear!” and by calling them “no longer his servants, but his friends” and by “giving them the power to become children of God”, clearly shifted the focus from the servile fear of the Old Covenant to the filial fear that fully reflects God’s divine plan for the human being.
Reverence, on the other hand, can be a very peculiar and ambiguous term. No doubt, calling Christ “Lord” is a sign of great reverence, yet we know what He will reply those who show this reverence but do not do God’s will…filial fear is born out of natural, sheer love. It longs to please the father by doing what is good in his eyes. Even irreverence can be forgiven when filial fear is present (Mt 12:32, Lk 12:10).
- Status