Ask a Priest

Q: In our faith, we frequently encounter profound paradoxes that challenge our understanding and the practice of our faith. God is simultaneously a singular entity and a trinity of persons. He embodies both human and divine natures. He extends boundless mercy, yet upholds justice.

As individuals, our personal temperaments often lead us to embrace certain aspects of these divine truths while neglecting others.

For example, I might extend mercy to a friend who wrongs me, recognizing their good intentions, yet quickly judge someone who challenges my worldview.

In your role as a spiritual Father, how do you navigate these paradoxes of our faith? What insights can you share to help us more effectively demonstrate love and understanding towards our brothers and sisters?

Jenny Dear Shields
Saint Eugene Catholic Church, Oklahoma City



A: In GK Chesterton's Orthodoxy, he writes, "the primary paradox of Christianity is that the ordinary condition of man is not his sane or sensible condition; that the normal itself is an abnormality."  He speaks of man as being upside down and seeing the whole world, not as it is, but as an inverted image.  Christ Jesus, the Truth, has come to set us free (cf. Jn 8:31-32 ff) and right side up.  As such, many times sayings of Christ, like "love your enemy" (Mt 5:43) and "he who saves his life will lose it" (Mt 16:25), seem very paradoxical to us, but this is because the truth in the world has been distorted by sin and Satan.  How do I navigate paradoxes?  I stand on my head (or stand on [Christ] the Head).

While a 3-day mission might not be enough time to cover the issue of judgment, let's sum up quickly: judgment of a person's soul/heaven vs. hell is not for us to judge (cf. Mt 7:1, 1 Cor 4:3-5); this does not mean that we shouldn't work towards someone's spiritual and moral good – "admonish the idle" (1 Thes 5:12), admonish him as a brother" (2 Thes 3:15), "it is He Whom we proclaim, admonishing everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone perfect in Christ" (Col 1:28), "I unceasingly admonished each of you with tears" (Acts 20:31).  It would be too much to put all the times Christ admonished, challenged, or corrected the people...that was pretty much what He came to do: give us the Truth.  We are able to say that sin is still sin and what is contrary to divine/ecclesial/natural law is still wrong; in fact, we should correct the wrong...charitably: "If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him" (Lk 17:3).

How to demonstrate love and understanding?  The last part first – we need to be on guard against synonymic uses to the word understanding.  By this we should not mean tolerance of sin or sinful ideas.  Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen said, "tolerance applies only to persons but never to principles; intolerance only to principles but never to persons." When it comes to love, we must also remember that Christ calls us to a specific love, especially in the original Greek.  Agape (ἀγάπη) love is the self-sacrifice for the higher good of another person.  St. Thomas Aquinas reminds us that love is not a feeling/emotion but an action of the will, otherwise it could not be commanded by Christ (cf. Jn 13:34).  So, practically, first foster within your heart the choice to self-sacrifice for said person, then love him enough to tell them the truth.  Be prepared that he might reject you; not only did they reject Jesus (cf. Mk 10:17, Lk 4:29, Jn 6:66, etc.), they crucified Him for telling them the truth.  My supreme words of advice: "in all things prayer" (Phil 4:6 ff). 

Father Christopher Brashears
Saint Benedict Catholic Church, Shawnee