Per Christum

For Day 2 & 3 of The Church Fathers Lenten Reading Plan, the assigned text covers Epistle of Mathetes to Diognetus, one of the earliest examples of Christian apologetics.

The primary focus of apologetics is “giving and answer”. Answers are relatively useless however, unless there are questions. I think that while many questions concerning Christianity do not change over time, others are dictated by cultural and personal environments. Therefore the answers must be constantly developing and adapting. Let’s look briefly at what questions the Epistle to Diognetus answers.

• What makes Christianity different from my other religious options? (Ch. 1)
• What’s wrong or lacking in those other religious options? (Ch. 2-4)
• If I become a Christian, how will I relate to the world? (Ch. 5-6)
• Who is Christ, after whom you are named? (Ch. 7)
• Why do we need Him? (Ch. 8)
• Why did God take so long to send Him, if we need Him so badly (Ch. 9)
• What will I get out of this? (Ch. 10)
• Are you just making this up? (Ch. 11)
• I still don’t understand. Can you give me an illustration? (Ch. 12)

The epistle begins providing answers with a comparative study of the religious offerings at that time:

Since I see thee, most excellent Diognetus, exceedingly desirous to learn the mode of worshipping God prevalent among the Christians, and inquiring very carefully and earnestly concerning them, what God they trust in, and what form of religion they observe, so as all to look down upon the world itself, and despise death, while they neither esteem those to be gods that are reckoned such by the Greeks, nor hold to the superstition of the Jews; [emphasis mine]

In Chapter 5, details are given concerning the universality of Christianity:

For the Christians are distinguished from other men neither by country, nor language, nor the customs which they observe.

And perhaps their greatest apologetic asset is the early Christians’ response to persecution:

When punished, they rejoice as if quickened into life; they are assailed by the Jews as foreigners and are persecuted by the Greeks; yet those who hate them are unable to assign any reason for their hatred.

Some of us have experienced this irrational hatred for Christianity. I can’t say I’ve seen much, but I know it exists. In today’s pluralistic United States, this does not often result in widespread physical persecution, but there are exceptions. However the severity of persecution, we should always remember to rejoice; for we know that we are sharing in Christ’s suffering and therefore being quickened into life.

To address the question of “Who is Christ?”, a beautiful passage from Ch 7 describes the way He draws His people:

This [messenger] He sent to them. Was it then, as one might conceive, for the purpose of exercising tyranny, or of inspiring fear and terror? By no means, but under the influence of clemency and meekness. As a king sends his son, who is also a king, so sent He Him; as God He sent Him; as to men He sent Him; as a Savior He sent Him, and as seeking to persuade, not to compel us; for violence has no place in the character of God. As calling us He sent Him, not as vengefully pursuing us; as loving us He sent Him, not as judging us. For He will yet send Him to judge us, and who shall endure His appearing? [emphasis mine]

The bolded text above presents an engaging illustration of the Trinity and the divinity of Christ. Christ was an ambassador of the King, while at the same time, a King Himself.

Cross posted at Chad Is Not Enough.

Draw strength from your divine filiation. God is a Father – your Father! – full of warmth and infinite love.

Call him Father frequently and tell him, when you are alone, that you love him, that you love him very much, and that you feel proud and strong because you are his son.

– St. Josemaria Escriva, The Forge, #331

Lent is here. Why do I like Lent? It is probably the same reason I enjoy cleaning the house and sorting my books every so often. It is good to clean house every so often. Lent gives us a chance to examine those areas of our life that are encumbered by material and sinful things. By denying ourselves physical pleasures and by increasing prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, we allow God to transform us. Lent is in some senses a journey of transformation (sorry to use a buzz word!). Either Jonathan or I took this photo at a local shrine. I enhanced it using Google’s Picasa2, which is an amazing, free, photo organization and manipulation program.

Here is my basic Lenten plan (a plan I am sharing with my girlfriend Jennifer). I am not posting this to brag in any way, but to share the ideas we had. Note that numbers 1-3 are expected of all Western Catholics. Eastern Catholics and Orthodox Christians often have stricter requirements. For more ideas we have compiled Suggestions for your Lenten Fast.

1. No Meat on Fridays
2. Fasting on Ash Wednesday
3. Fasting on Good Friday
4. Read Matthew, John, Galatians, Philippians and Jude
5. Follow the Church Fathers Lenten Reading Plan
6. No Snacking
7. No Fried Potatoes
8. Save gas by avoiding 1 trip out/week
9. Exercise 3 times/week

Now, here is what sin each activity fights:
1,2,3,6,7,9: Gluttony, materialist attachments
4,5: Ignorance, Sloth
9: General Materialism

Also, the plan is to give any money saved (from not eating fries or taking an extra car ride) to a Catholic charity.

What are you giving up?

Also, for those interested in discussing the Church Fathers readings online, please check out the schedule for the Catholics Building Bridges Room on Paltalk.