Virginity Is Higher Than Matrimony

In the immoral ambience of our days, it is opportune for Catholics to read the praises St. John Crysostom makes of those who choose virginity as a state of life. He compares virginity with the state of matrimony, to conclude that the former is higher. Interesting enough, the great Saint does not necessarily identify the state of virginity with the priesthood or religious state, as some Traditionalists wrongly do.

St. John Chrysostom

As you do, I also think that virginity is a good thing, better than the nuptial life. I add that it is as superior to the nuptial life as Heaven is superior to earth, or as Angels to men.

Since the Angels are not made of flesh and blood, for them there is no conjugal life. Since they do not live on earth, they are not subject to the disorders of passions and pleasures; they do not need to eat or drink; they are not attracted by a melodious music, a captivating song or a remarkable beauty, finally, they cannot be conquered by any type of softness.

Man, however, even though he is inferior to the angelic spirits, zealously and carefully seeks to be as much like them as he can. How does he do so?

Angels do not marry, neither does the virgin man. Angels live before God always at His service; so does the virgin man. Human nature, which bears the weight of the body, cannot ascend to Heaven as the Angels do; however, to compensate such deficiency, man has the greatest possible consolation, that is, by living pure of body and soul, he can receive and posses in the Eucharist the King of Heaven.

Can't you see all the excellence of virginity? Can't you see how it transforms those who still live clothed in this flesh and makes them equal to Angels?

Tell me in what point are those great lovers of virginity, Elias, Eliseus and St. John, different from Angels? In almost nothing. Only in this, that they are Angels in a mortal nature. Regarding the rest, anyone who analyzes them carefully sees that they deserve the same esteem as the angelic spirits. Further, because their condition is far inferior to the Angels, their merit is the greater. For because of their mortal nature, only with much violence and great effort could they attain such an eminent degree of virtue. See how much courage they had and the type of life they lived.

(St. John Chrysostom , Book of Virginity, apud Roman Breviary,

lesson 3 of the feast of St. Aloysius Gonzaga).

Never Doubt the Word of God

It is written in the Bible (Galatians 6:7):

" Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever

a man soweth, that shall he also reap."

Here are some men and women who mocked God:

JOHN LENNON:

Some years before during his interview with an

American Magazine, he said:

"Christianity will end, it will disappear. I do not

have to argue about that. I am certain. Jesus was

ok, but his subjects were too simple, Today we are

more famous than Him" (1966)".

Lennon, after saying that the Beatles were more

famous than Jesus Christ, was shot six times.

TANCREDO NEVES:

During the Presidential campaign, he said if he got

500 votes from his party, not even God would remove

him from Presidency. Sure he got the votes, but he

got sick a day before being made President, then he

died.

CAZUZA:

During a show in Canecão ( Rio de Janeiro ), whilst

smoking his cigarette, he puffed out some smoke into

the air and said: God, that's for you.

I can't even explain how he died.

THE MAN WHO BUILT TITANIC:

After the construction of Titanic, a reporter asked

him how safe the Titanic would be. With an ironic

tone he said: "Not even God can sink it"

The result: I think you all know what happened to

the Titanic.

MARILYN MONROE:She was visited by Billy Graham during a

presentation of a show. He is a preacher and

Evangelist and the Spirit of God had sent him to

preach to her.

After hearing what the Preacher had to say, she

said:

"I don't need your Jesus"

A week later, she was found dead in her apartment.

BON SCOTT:The ex-vocalist of the AC/DC. On one of his 1979

songs he sang:

"Don´t stop me, I´m going down all the way, wow the

highway to

hell".

On the 19th of February 1980, Bon Scott was found

dead, he had been choked by his vomit.

CAMPINAS/SP IN 2005

In Campinas, a group of friends, drunk, went to pick

up a friend. The mother accompanied her to the car

and was so worried about the drunkenness of her

friends and she said to the daughter - holding her

hand, who was already seated in the car: "MY

DAUGHTER, GO WITH GOD AND MAY HE PROTECT YOU",

She responded: ONLY IF HE (GOD) TRAVELS IN THE BOOT,

COZ INSIDE HERE IT'S ALREADY FULL"

Hours later, news came by that they had been

involved in a fatal accident, everyone had died, the

car could not be recognized what type of car it had

been, but surprisingly, the boot was intact.

The police said there was no way the boot could have

remained intact. To their surprise, inside the boot

was a crate of eggs, none was broken.

Many more important people have forgotten that there

is no other name that was given so much authority as

the name of Jesus. Many have died, but only Jesus

died and rose again, and he is still alive. JESUS!!!

P.S: If it was a joke, you could have sent it to

everyone. So are you going to have courage to send

this?.

I have done my part, Jesus said "If you get

embarrassed about me, I will also get

embarrassed about you before my father

What benefit does it have, if a man gains the whole

world but loses his soul?

What can man give in exchange of his soul? (Mathew

16:26).

Regarding purgatory

Is there a verse in the Bible that clearly stated this term? Or is this term UNBIBLICAL?

Firstly, you assume that something needs to be in the bible before it is an article of faith. This is a protestant error. The bible never claims to be the sole authority on the faith. Christ left us a visible church-the Roman Catholic church to guide us. He did not leave a bible. He charged the apostles to PREACH the Gospel to all nations-not WRITE. The bible as we know it only came into being when the ecumenical council of catholic bishops and the pope at the Council of Carthage in 398AD pronounced that the 73 books were inspired by the Holy Ghost. From 398AD to around 1500's, the bible was not widely available, due to prohibitive costs of printing and a largely illiterate population. Therefore, if the bible was the sole guide to faith and salvation, millions of souls would have lost the faith for 15 centuries!

Even if something is not in the bible, as long as it is a dogma taught by the Catholic church, it is true. For Christ built His church on Peter the Rock, the first Catholic pope, and charged him to feed His sheep-the CAtholic faithful. Also, because it was the Catholic church who gave us the bible in 398AD, she is the mother of the child, and only she is the guardian of the bible. If she says there is a purgatory, we must believe her, because Christ left her to guide us.

Now, having said that, the bible DOES refer to a place of purification of the dead, and tells us to pray for them. Only, it does not use the word PURGATORY, but rather it describes the place. Go to http://scripturecatholic.com/purgatory.html and http://www.fisheaters.com/purgatory.htmlfor more biblical references to purgatory.

Matt. 12:32 – Jesus says, “And anyone who says a word against the Son of man will be forgiven; but no one who speaks against the Holy Spirit will be forgiven either in this world or in the next.” Jesus thus clearly provides that there is forgiveness after death. The phrase “in the next” (from the Greek “en to mellonti”) generally refers to the afterlife (see, for example, Mark 10.30; Luke 18.30; 20.34-35; Eph. 1.21 for similar language). Forgiveness is not necessary in heaven, and there is no forgiveness in hell. This proves that there is another state after death, and the Church for 2,000 years has called this state purgatory.

2 Macc. 12:43-45 - the prayers for the dead help free them from sin and help them to the reward of heaven. Those in heaven have no sin, and those in hell can no longer be freed from sin. They are in purgatory. Luther was particularly troubled with these verses because he rejected the age-old teaching of purgatory. As a result, he removed Maccabees from the canon of the Bible.

Heb. 12:23 - the spirits of just men who died in godliness are "made" perfect. They do not necessarily arrive perfect. They are made perfect after their death. But those in heaven are already perfect, and those in hell can no longer be made perfect. These spirits are in purgatory.

1 Cor. 3:10-15 - works are judged after death and tested by fire. Some works are lost, but the person is still saved. Paul is referring to the state of purgation called purgatory. The venial sins (bad works) that were committed are burned up after death, but the person is still brought to salvation. This state after death cannot be heaven (no one with venial sins is present) or hell (there is no forgiveness and salvation).

Zech. 13:8-9 - God says 2/3 shall perish, and 1/3 shall be left alive, put into the fire, and refined like silver and tested like gold. The ones that perish go to hell, and there is no need for refinement in heaven, so those being refined are in purgatory.

Regarding the name of the Church

Is there any verse in the Bible that states that the name of the true church is Holy Roman Catholic Church? Because this is very important for us to know which is the true religion.

It is quite simple to find out which is the church which Christ left us.

1. Christ came 2000 years ago. The only church 2000 years old is the Roman Catholic Church. All other churches are only about 500 years old, starting with the Lutheran church in 1500's.

2. In the bible, Christ built the church on Peter, the Rock.

Matthew 16:15-19 "And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter (kepha, translated into Koine Greek as "petros" meaning "rock" and into English as "Peter"),and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of Hell shall not prevail against it.And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven."

Here, Christ changes Peter's name from Simon to Peter, to call him Rock. Christ gave Peter the power of binding and loosing, what we call the Keys to the Kingdom of heaven, or, the Power of the Keys. He gave PRIMACY to Peter, and made Peter the first pope. Only the CAtholic church has popes, and all its popes can trace their ancestry to the first pope through apostolic succession.

3. One way to see which church is the Church that Christ left us to to compare the teachings of a current church with the teachings of the first christians of the 1st-3rd centuries. The first christians believed in the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist, practiced devotions to the Blessed Virgin Mary and the saints, venerated relics and holy images, had priests, bishops who were ordained in specific rites, who offered the mass, taught that confession to a priest is necessary etc. Many early church fathers such as St Ausgustine, St Cyril, St Jerome writes about these beliefs. The only church which still teaches the same things as the first christians is the Roman Catholic Church.

4. Just because something is not in the bible, doesn't mean that it isn;t true. For the words abortion, homosexuality, the Trinity are not present in the bible, but are called by different names.

5. The first christians didn't call themselves catholic, because all were taught the same doctrines. The name Catholic only came into being when there were heresies and errors taught by heretics-and so, to distinguish between the true christians and the heretical sects, the name catholic came into being. Catholic comes from the Greek word Katolikos, meaning Universal.

Therefore, the only True Church left by Christ is the Roman Catholic Church.

The Priesthood and the Issue of Celibacy

A priest is an alter Christus-another Christ. As such, a priest must be chaste, as Christ was chaste. He must strive to be all that Christ was.

About the ancient practice of married priest, it concerned only cases where a married man wanted to enter the priesthood after he was married. But it was never allowed that a priest who entered the priesthood single got married after entering the priesthood. Dear Christian, it is inaccurate to say that there were married priests in the middle ages. More accurately, there were married priests during the first few hundred years A.D. The practice died out before the Middle Ages. Anyway, it was an exception to the rule, not the norm.

Imagine a priest who had a wife. Do you think that the seal of confession could be kept if he had a wife who kept asking inquisitive questions? No. It is wise for a religious not to have a family, as St Paul teaches. A man who chooses that life must sacrifice his chance to have a family. He enters the priesthood with this knowledge-no one forces him. So he has no right to demand that he be allowed to get married.

May, a woman may not be a priest because Christ cannot be represented by a woman. All the 12 apostles were men. If a woman was eligible, don't you think that He would have chosen His Mother? The equivalent of a male nun would be a monk. God made man and woman for different roles, different temperaments, different abilities, and different roles. The role of a woman can never be that of a priest. But her role is great-she may bring up a future priest, bishop, even pope!

Ten Guidelines from God

Effective Immediately,

please be aware that there are changes YOU need

to make in YOUR life. These changes need to be

completed in order that I may fulfill My promises

to you to grant you peace, joy and happiness in

this life. I apologize for any inconvenience,

but after all that I am doing, this seems very

little to ask of you. Please, follow

these 10 guidelines

1. QUIT WORRYING:

Life has dealt you a blow and all you do is sit

and worry. Have you forgotten that I am here

to take all your burdens and carry them for you?

Or do you just enjoy fretting over every little

thing that comes your way?

2. PUT IT ON THE LIST:

Something needs done or taken care of. Put it

on the list. No, not YOUR list. Put it on MY

to-do-list. Let ME be the one to take care

of the problem. I can't help you until you turn

it over to Me. And although My to-do-list

is long, I am after all... God. I can take care

of anything you put into My hands. In fact,

if the truth were ever really known, I take

care of a lot of things for you that you never

even realize.

3. TRUST ME:

Once you've given your burdens to Me,

quit trying to take them back. Trust in

Me. Have the faith that I will take care of

all your needs, your problems and your trials.

Problems with the kids? Put them on My list.

Problem with finances? Put it on My list.

Problems with your emotional roller coaster ?

For My sake, put it on My list. I want to

help you. All you have to do is ask.

4. LEAVE IT ALONE:

Don't wake up one morning and say,

"Well, I'm feeling much stronger now, I think

I can handle it from here." Why do you think

you are feeling stronger now? It's simple.

You gave Me your burdens and I'm taking

care of them. I also renew your strength

and cover you in my peace. Don't you

know that if I give you these problems back,

you will be right back where you started?

Leave them with Me and forget about

them. Just let Me do my job.

5. TALK TO ME:

I want you to forget a lot of things.

Forget what was making you crazy.

Forget the worry and the fretting because

you know I'm in control. But there's one

thing I pray you never forget. Please, don't

forget to talk to Me - OFTEN! I love YOU!

I want to hear your voice. I want you to

include Me in on the things going on in your life.

I want to hear you talk about your friends

and family. Prayer is simply you having

a conversation with Me. I want to be your

dearest friend.

6. HAVE FAITH:

I see a lot of things from up here that you

can't see from where you are. Have faith in

Me that I know what I'm doing. Trust Me;

you wouldn't want the view from My eyes.

I will continue to care for you, watch over you,

and meet your needs. You only have to trust Me.

Although I have a much bigger task than you,

it seems as if you have so much trouble just

doing your simple part. How hard can trust be?

7. SHARE:

You were taught to share when you were

only two years old. When did you forget?

That rule still applies. Share with those who are

less fortunate than you. Share your joy with

those who need encouragement. Share your

laughter with those who haven't heard any in

such a long time. Share your tears with those

who have forgotten how to cry. Share your faith

with those who have none.

8. BE PATIENT:

I managed to fix it so in just one lifetime

you could have so many diverse experiences.

You grow from a child to an adult, have children,

change jobs many times, learn many trades,

travel to so many places, meet thousands

of people, and experience so much. How can

you be so impatient then when it takes Me

a little longer than you expect to handle

something on My to-do-list? Trust in My

timing, for My timing is perfect. Just

because I created the entire universe in

only six days, everyone thinks I should

always rush, rush, rush.

9. BE KIND:

Be kind to others, for I love them just

as much as I love you. They may not dress

like you, or talk like you, or live the same way

you do, but I still love you all. Please try

to get along, for My sake. I created each

of you different in some way. It would be

too boring if you were all identical.

Please, know I love each of your differences.

10. LOVE YOURSELF:

As much as I love you, how can you not

love yourself? You were created by me for

one reason only -- to be loved, and to love

in return. I am a God of Love. Love Me.

Love your neighbors. But also love yourself.

It makes My heart ache when I see you

so angry with yourself when things go

wrong. You are very precious to me.

Don't ever forget......

From God..

Note: I rec'd this from a friend and I have

no idea who wrote it, but I was so touched

by it, that I had to share it with you.

I hope that you will be blessed by

it and will share it with others.

Touch someone with your love.

Rather than focus upon the thorns of life,

smell the roses and count your blessings!