What is Cafeteria Catholicism? Amazingly there is even a Wiki page dedicated to this topic! It says: “The term “cafeteria Catholicism” is a pejorative term applied to Catholics who dissent from Roman Catholic doctrinal or moral teaching.” That’s a pretty descriptive definition. In simple terms it means one picks and chooses which teachings they want to adhere to and which they do not. Most often this can be seen in relation to the Church’s teaching on birth control.

Soon to be ‘Blessed’ Pope John Paul II had this to say about this issue in 1987 to the Bishops while visiting the US:

“It is sometimes reported that a large number of Catholics today do not adhere to the teaching of the Catholic Church on a number of questions, notably sexual and conjugal morality, divorce and remarriage. Some are reported as not accepting the clear position on abortion. It has to be noted that there is a tendency on the part of some Catholics to be selective in their adherence to the Church’s moral teaching. It is sometimes claimed that dissent from the Magisterium is totally compatible with being a “good Catholic,” and poses no obstacle to the reception of the Sacraments. This is a grave error that challenges the teaching of the Bishops in the United States and elsewhere.”

There is also example of someone in the bible who chose not to accept everything Jesus offered.

Now someone approached him and said, “Teacher, what good must I do to gain eternal life?” He answered him, “Why do you ask me about the good? There is only One who is good. If you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments.” He asked him, “Which ones?” And Jesus replied, ” ‘You shall not kill; you shall not commit adultery; you shall not steal; you shall not bear false witness; honor your father and your mother’; and ‘you shall love your neighbor as yourself.’” The young man said to him, “All of these I have observed. What do I still lack?” Jesus said to him, “If you wish to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to (the) poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” When the young man heard this statement, he went away sad, for he had many possessions. – MT 19:16-22

The man in this story does many good things. Jesus tells him he lacks in only one thing. Yet this man could not (at this time) conform to Jesus teaching. He chose not to sell his possessions. He “went away sad”.

In today’s world, unfortunately, many Cafeteria Catholics do not go away sad. Rather the choice is to, through pride, state “I know better than the Church”. Really that is the message we send when we choose not to accept Her teachings. As stated previously much of this problem relates to teachings such as birth control.

I once met a man who told me he agreed with Humane Vitae right up to the end, but didn’t agree with the conclusion. Huh? How can you do that? Or rather, under whose authority? Jesus entrusted the teaching of His Church (faithful) to the Apostles and throughout the ages they have defended the faith and beautifully (well not so beautifully at times) instructed the hearts of Men. Through the Holy Spirit the Church is guided to Truth….. And you don’t agree with the conclusion? I simply don’t get it. Actually, I think he was the one who didn’t get it. ?

Cafeteria Catholics can be likened to church hoppers in the non-Catholic Christian arena. Those in this category attend church somewhere they are comfortable until the Pastor says something they don’t like or are challenged by and then in order to avoid the challenge, they hop to another church where the message is less challenging. So, we now have a phenomenon of watered-down-Gospel churches who teach a mere acceptance version of the Gospel. Don’t get me wrong, we in the Catholic Church have a lot to learn with regard to welcoming people, however watering down the Gospel isn’t the answer either.

In the end Cafeteria Catholicism is a consequence of the sin of pride. If we find ourselves challenged by a moral teaching of the Church, I hope and pray we have the courage to discern why we cannot accept it rather than to dismiss it as being wrong. The Holy Spirit will not allow the Church to fail; the Victory is already won in Heaven by Christ!

If you are reading this and think I’m wrong, that you do have the right to dismiss a teaching if it doesn’t suit you…well…let me ask you this: Why are you a Roman Catholic? (or whatever Church you belong to)

It’s like this. If you want to be a runner and call yourself a runner, then you have to run right? You have to train and become a runner. If you call yourself a runner and are actually a lazy-couch ridden-tv addict…then you aren’t a runner. The same is true here. If you call yourself a Roman Catholic then you HAVE to believe in certain things…because if you don’t then by extension you are not a Roman Catholic. Here is a simple, incomplete, and short list of some key beliefs of the Roman Catholic Church:

- The Eucharist is the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ. We receive Him in Mass.
- One must attend Mass weekly
- Sex is reserved for the marital relationship only.
- Birth control restricts the marital act and is not in keeping with God’s law (moral)
- All life is created by God and therefore has dignity
- Abortion is illicit under any circumstance. Even one which affects the life/death of the pregnant mother.
- Mary is the Mother of God and was without sin (Immaculate)

These are few of the Truth’s taught by the Roman Catholic Church.

We should be asking ourselves often: Am I in Communion with the Church? This does not only relate to sin, but to our beliefs. If we find that believing in a teaching is hard, then we have an obligation to learn more about it and conform our hearts.

“Jesus said to them, “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me and I have life because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on me will have life because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Unlike your ancestors who ate and still died, whoever eats this bread will live forever.” These things he said while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum. Then many of his disciples who were listening said, “This saying is hard; who can accept it?” – John 6:53-60

This saying is hard. Isn’t that the truth? For centuries we have been attacked for this belief and for centuries it has been hard to believe it. Yet we are called to believe and to accept Jesus in the Eucharist. Many have left the Church because they could not, rather would not, accept this teaching. Or the teaching on birth control, or the teaching on Abortion, or marriage, or homosexuality, or this or that. These are not arbitrary thoughts in the minds of some old guy in Rome. These are part of the beauty of the Catholic Church’s teachings. These are part of the beauty of revelation. These are the beauty of Creation.

My prayer is that we can continue to conform ourselves to the whole Gospel…not just the easy parts. I pray we accept the Resurrection AND the Cross.

Imagine, someone grows up and forgets who they are…..  Not so hard to think of is it.  In today’s world we have people of all ages forgetting who they are.  People focused on success, wealth, sex, possessions, importance, fame, etc.  We work so hard to become who we think we need to be, that we forget who we are. 

Peter Pan in this movie, played by Robin Williams, stayed in the real world to get married and become a dad.  He left Never Never Land and forgot all about who he was.  I think the greatest scene is when he begins to remember who he is and use his imagination, which allows him to see dinner…which moments previous was empty serving trays and plates…but now reveals a feast of great proportion.  Peter is re-learning how to be The Pan. 

Another scene is when Peter finds his happy thought, which allows him to fly.  He can fly, he can fight, he can crow.  He has reclaimed his identity and is again, The Pan.

So who are we?  Who am I?  Am I Peter Pan?  Could it be?  Well, in some ways…yes. 

Remember these:

V. Do you reject Satan?
R. I do.
V. And all his works?
R. I do.
V. And all his empty promises?
R. I do.
V. Do you believe in God, the Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth?
R. I do.

V. Do you believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was born of the Virgin Mary was crucified, died, and was buried, rose from the dead, and is now seated at the right hand of the Father?
R. I do.

Do you believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Catholic church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting?
R. I do.

V. God, the all-powerful Father of our Lord Jesus Christ has given us a new birth by water and the Holy Spirit, and forgiven all our sins. May he also keep us faithful to our Lord Jesus Christ for ever and ever.

R. Amen.

In these we find our identity.  In these simple questions we find who we are, what we believe, and where we are going.

You see I visit Never Never Land frequently so I don’t forget who I am.  I go to Church and attend Mass.  Kneeling there I face Jesus Christ…the ultimate Pan. 

He can fly, He can fight, and oh yes, He can crow. 

I want to remember how it felt when I was Confirmed.  How it felt when I received Christ in the Eucharist for the first time.  How it felt when I said “I do” and received the Grace to be a husband.  I recall these feelings and Graces when I behold Christ in the Eucharist and when I receive.  Going to Mass for me is like standing before the great table of the Lost Boys and seeing all over again the feast laid out for me. 

Christ prepares a banquet table for all of us…the key is seeing through to the supernatural reality of God and not seeing empty vessels of man made bread and wine, but seeing the fullness of life in the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Christ.

I pray I never grow up.  I don’t ever want to leave Never Never Land and forget who I am…A child of God.  I pray the same for you.

Tonight, tomorrow, or whenever you read this…I pray you also experience the feast of Christ laid out for you.  I pray you remember that you are Peter Pan and you too can fly… can fight… and Errr-uh-errr-uh-errrrrrrrr!!!!

God bless.

Now this is a pretty common concept, but the way in which he stated it has stuck with me.  The Magnificat’s reflection for yesterday’s readings was on a similar track.

According to Saint Thomas, Christ bestows upon each individual person the same life of grace which he brought to the world by his visible coming.  Indeed, if we had but faith as then, the miracles of the Gospel could again become daily occurrences.

And then it ends with…

Christ, the source of live, addressed his clear call to all generations: “If anyone thirst, let him come to me and drink.”  Only one condition is laid down: to thirst.

So consider that you and I are given all we need to cast out demons, heal the sick, help the lame walk and the blind see…but our faith lacks.

I love that yesterday’s first reading was from the first book of Kings Chapter 19.  We read of Elijah saying to the Lord that his life should be taken, almost like he failed the mission God gave him.  Rather God sends His angel to Elijah and gives him the food he needs for the journey.  “Get up and eat, else the journey will be too long for you,” the angel says.

I am overwhelmingly encouraged to increase my expectation of Christ in my life.

To open my eyes to His will and His life in me.

I thirst for you o Lord.

Let us increase our faith that we might live in Him who is victorious over sin and shame.

Let us be fed through Mass, the Eucharist, and each other…else the journey of faith be too long for us.

Let us be living examples of His Grace and Mercy and light up the darkness.

I will be praying that all of you increase your expectation, and ask that you pray for me as well.

In the Old Testament, there is much prophesy and tale of blind men.  For example in Isaiah chapter 42:7 we read:

To open blind eyes,
To bring out prisoners from the dungeon
And those who dwell in darkness from the prison.

Here he is implying that those who cannot see are prisoners.  This is interesting metaphorically considering what we read in the New Testament.  In the bible there are two types of blindness.

The first deals with those that know Christ is the Lord, even without seeing him.  For example Matthew 20:30 states, “And two blind men sitting by the road, hearing that Jesus was passing by, cried out, “Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!”” They knew him, though they could not see him.

The second deals with those that are blind to Christ, even though they can see.  For example in John 9:41, “Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but since you say, `We see,’ your sin remains” Jesus is speaking to the Pharisees who believe they see, and that they get it, though they are arrogant in their faith… Christ advises them however that they are blinded by their arrogance.

We can see both types of blindness in the two thieves on the cross.

Now one of the criminals hanging there reviled Jesus, saying, “Are you not the Messiah? Save yourself and us.”  The other, however, rebuking him, said in reply, “Have you no fear of God, for you are subject to the same condemnation?  And indeed, we have been condemned justly, for the sentence we received corresponds to our crimes, but this man has done nothing criminal.” Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”  He replied to him, “Amen, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.” – Luke 23:39-43

These two display both types of blindness, if we equate human blindness to those that are blind to the humanness of Christ…  And likewise those that are blind to the Divinity of Christ, as those that are blind to the spirit.

The good thief is blind to the humanness of Christ, but sees His Spirit, His divinity.  He sees him as powerful.

The one who reviles him is blind to the divinity of Christ, but sees his humanness.  More so, he sees him as weak.

Now I could make this complicated and expand on the 4 combination’s of these two but I’ll just list them.

1^st.  Those that can’t see Christ humanly or divinely

2^nd.  Those that see Christ humanly, but not divinely.

3^rd.  Those that see Christ divinely, but not humanly.

4^th.  Those that see Christ humanly and divinely.

In today’s world I believe both of these types of blindness remain.  There are those that know Christ, even without seeing Him.  These are people of faith, people of humility, and people of Grace.  I know many of these people and so do you.  They just see through the junk and focus on Christ.  Many times I find they can see God working and have a sort of supernatural wisdom.  The greatest of these are those that see Christ wholly, as fully human and fully God.  I’d like to think I am in this group, though I fall just like we all do.

There are also those who are blind to the Gospel.  These are people addicted to the material world, Satan, and all his evil works.  These are those that are so focused on junk, they can’t see HIM.  Like the Pharisees.  We also know many of these people.  They see Christ’s humanness as a weakness and his divinity as a lie.  They reject the life of Grace by their words and actions.

(NOTE: these are the extremes, there are many in between as well.)

And now for the scary part.  There are people of all these types in every Church, in every workplace, and in every city.  We can’t continue to think that those we go to church with aren’t blinded.  Are you kidding me???  How many Catholics on any given Sunday read the bulletin during the Homily, or every week receive the Body of Christ in a state of sin?  Or….how many people are blind to the Truth of the Eucharist?

We are called to SEE the light of Christ.  I am a firm believer that miracles happen every minute of every day, many are just blinded and don’t see them.  Let me list for you a short list of miracles I’ve seen in the last 6 months.

-          a marriage renewed

-          the hearts of men transformed by Christ’s grace flowing through them

-          prayers for healing answered

-          a child in the womb protected

-          a man, whose marriage is at it’s end, make a decision to save it by seeking Christ in his life

-          That same man’s wife, who was done with him, see Christ in him and decide to give it another try

-          a baby born

-          a Baptism

-          a man turn from addiction to porn and seek purity

-          4 men ordained to the Priesthood by their acceptance of God’s will for their lives

-          2 different men, whose lives have been changed by Christ within the last 6 months, start Fishers of Men groups in their parishes

The list goes on and on because the miracle is not the fruit of what occurred, but that men and women chose to make a decision that they, in their humanness, are not capable of.  THAT is God.  THAT is missing from those that are blinded!  Don’t you see???  (pun intended)

It’s not God who isn’t working, its US!  Because we are blinded by our rules, our lack of faith, our pride, our comfort, our materialism, our politics, our self-image, our addictions, etc.

So what do we do?

Well, God writes in Ex 4:11, “The LORD said to him, “Who has made man’s mouth? Or who makes him mute or deaf, or seeing or blind? Is it not I, the LORD?”

It is HE who makes us SEE

Psalm 146:8

The LORD opens the eyes of the blind;
The LORD raises up those who are bowed down;
The LORD loves the righteous;

Mark writes in 10:49, “And Jesus stopped and said, “Call him here.” So they *called the blind man, saying to him, “Take courage, stand up! He is calling for you.””

God will open our eyes if we seek HIM.  And He is calling each of us, he is saying to us ‘Take courage, stand up!’  Be strong and reach out to the blind.

In my Church there is a couple that comes to Mass each Sunday.  The man is blind, yet his wife is ever steadfast.  They walk into Church, his hand on her shoulder, as she guides him to their pew.  They worship at Mass, and leave the same as entered, one leading the other.  I know their faith is strong, I feel it.  I know their love is strong, I can see it.  And I know their desire to be in Christ is strong, because I can see it, not with my eyes.

We are called to be the blind man placing our hand on the shoulder of Christ to be led.  I give my eyes to Him to see what he wills, to go where he leads, and to do what he asks.  That is the blind faith I desire.  For when I am blind to my desires, only then will I see fully Christ in His Glory.  My faith is my eyes, and that is all that I need.

You are in my prayers as I hope I am in yours.

One thing that happened however was on a whole other level of Wow. Fr. Adam Rust (Deacon at the time) who was to be ordained only a couple days after this event, shared his testimony of the events of his life that led him to become a Priest. Much of his talk centered on discerning the call to the Priesthood and that process.

At the end of his talk he turned to the Eucharist (as we were in Adoration, Jesus was exposed in the Monstrance), and he simply said…

“I just want to tell you how much I love you right now Jesus.”

Wow. I was stunned. For a moment I didn’t think anything, I just watched. I didn’t editorialize his talk, I didn’t ponder the events that led him to the Priesthood, I didn’t become further affirmed in my vocation a Husband of Sarah, I didn’t do anything…..except watch in awe as someone expressed in word and action what we are all called to do.

How amazing is this…. Is it sinking in for you yet? How many Priests would do that? How many people would do that? Yet what he expressed is at the core of our faith.

The Catechism states in 1381, ““That in this sacrament are the true Body of Christ and his true Blood is something that ‘cannot be apprehended by the senses,’ says St. Thomas, ‘but only by faith…”

Fr. Adam states simply from his heart to his Lord what we all desire, intimate union with Him who is Jesus Christ the God of the Universe and Savior of the World. Yet this intimacy is not something we can accept on knowledge, or come to understand in human terms, it ‘cannot be apprehended by the senses’ as St. Thomas puts it. We have to have faith in Christ to see Him in the Eucharist.

In paragraph 26 the CACC states, “Faith is man’s response to God, who reveals himself and gives himself to man, at the same time bringing man a superabundant light as he searches for the ultimate meaning of his life.”

Faith in the Eucharist is our response to God, who reveals Himself to us and gives His live for us. One of the tragedies of modern Christianity is to overlook the ongoing effect of Christ’s presence in the world. Think for a moment the gravity of the Eucharist.

We as Church are called to believe that the Eucharist is the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Christ.

STOP! Don’t read that so fast. Think about it.

Body.

Blood.

Soul.

Divinity.

That is a 100% participation in the whole Jesus fully God and fully man. We receive Him in all His glory. Yet the appearance of bread and wine make us think this is a trivial and ordinary thing with no efficacious action on our lives. And for most people, that’s a fact. They are not open to Him and therefore don’t know what they are doing.

Ask yourself this question. Do you experience Mass? Or do you encounter Jesus?

Because, and I’ve said this before, any one of us can go to Mass and get the t-shirt like we went to a concern. Except this one says, “I went to Mass and all I got was this lousy shirt!”

Or we can go to Mass and Adoration to encounter Christ truly present before us, offering us his Body to enrich our souls and hearts and grow in intimacy with Him. Then rather than the crappy t-shirt, we get to live our lives to the fullest. Knowing that God, the King of the Universe, Jesus Christ….took time out of his busy day to simply be with us.

That’s a God I love. That’s a God I want to love more. Thank you Fr. Adam for the example of faith that we should all strive toward.

Now there is only one real question. Does God use a blackberry or an iphone when He is scheduling Mass? I’m going with blackberry. But perhaps….yeah I’m sure there’s an app for that.

Pray this week that you would come to a deeper faith in the Eucharist. And do your family a favor, visit Jesus in the Chapel and pray for them.

May Christ bless you with faith and peace.