Mags Gargan
Being a Christian is about more than just being nice to people, it means “loving and trusting a God who we cannot see”, according to the Bishop of Derry.
In a homily at the weekend reflecting on the messages of Fatima, Bishop Donal McKeown said following Jesus is not just about “doing the right things or even believing the right things”. “We all have to make a leap of faith, trusting in the existence, forgiveness and power of God. Faith goes beyond a conviction that there must be a God somewhere. Faith goes beyond an insurance policy for the after-life,” he said.
Bishop McKeown said faith in Jesus “does not just mean being nice to everybody and doing all the right things,” but means “loving and trusting a God who we cannot see”.
He also advised that praying and making sacrifices for sinners “is not just a nice pious practice” or “just helpful for others”, but part “of our duty as followers of Christ”.
The bishop said it might seem like the idea of sin was “out of fashion nowadays” as you can “see most things on regular TV channels where anything goes” and the “internet provides instant access to everything”.
“The assumption is that no-one has the right to say or believe that what somebody else does is wrong. The moral standard seems to be ‘it is right for me’. ‘Thou shalt not make me feel uncomfortable’ appears to be the new 11th commandment,” Dr McKeown said.
Original sin
Referring to the original sin of Adam and Eve he said people have always suffered from the temptation to believe that, “because I want something, I need it – and that, indeed, not acceding to my wants is bad for me”. “Modern morality works on the basis that life is too short to say ‘no’. But once you remove the idea of the Creator from the picture, then the creature becomes the ultimate source of wisdom about what is good for me – and the will of the strong dominates,” he said.
Bishop Donal advised that the scripture readings each week “are not just read for curiosity value” but are meant to “form our hearts and minds in the Faith” and we are all “on a journey of permanent conversion”.