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What is a True Soldier of Jesus? Be strengthened in the Lord and in the might of His power. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the deceits of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to resist in the evil day, and to stand in all things perfect. Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints. Ephesians 6:10-18 Every member of Miles Jesu is, by name at the very least, a Soldier of Jesus. Miles Jesu translates to Soldier of Jesus from the Latin. But really Soldier of Jesus is much more than a name. We should assume that every adult member of Miles Jesu has been confirmed! That Confirmation marks us as ready for battle, fit for the fight! The Catholic Church tells us in the Catechism that by Confirmation we are made 'soldiers of Jesus'. It is sad that many Catholics have never taken the time or made the effort to understand just what they committed themselves to when they received the Sacrament of Confirmation. We knelt before the Bishop, we acknowledged our readiness, and received the light slap on the cheek that signified the battle was about to begin in earnest. And for what? What did it all mean to us? That it was time for the party? Perhaps we went to our homes, or to a restaurant, and had a big reception with lots of family, friends and food. And quickly we forgot that we were now officially in the service of our great Lord and King, Jesus Christ, fighting with Him for the salvation of souls, first and foremost mine. How easily we let slip away the fervor of that day when we 'knew' we wanted to fight with Jesus against the devil and his minions. How easily we've been cowed into shutting up when it came to standing up for what's right, for what's good, true and holy. How easily we've bought into the line that you never discuss religion and politics. Okay, politics i can understandâ?|Jesus didn't found a political party. But not to discuss our glorious Catholic Faith with others, especially if they seem rude or antagonistic, is an insult to Its Divine Founder and to our Heavenly Father Who sent Him. Jesus said He would deny before His Heavenly Father anyone who denied Him before men. There are two ways to deny. 1. Actively rejecting or refuting truth. 2. Not to actively reject or refute untruth. Silence gives consent, and we shall be judged for every idle silence. Just ask yourself this, what was the last thing i did to help bring about an end to abortion? Yet babies are dying 4,000 by the day in the United States alone. We signed on for the battle. The battle is for the salvation of souls. Jesus is the source and summit of all graces for us to fight that battle. He has already won the war and He has promised to give us the graces sufficient for the battle. He will stand with us. He only needs us to let Him help us win the daily battles. So what is our problem? It's the 'Peter Problem'. We all suffer from it to one degree or another. He had great intentions and a booming voice. That might be enough to convince most anyoneâ?|it wasn't enough to convince our Blessed Lord. Peter declared boldly to Jesus, 'Though they all fall away because of You, I will never fall away!' 'This very nightâ?|three times you will deny me Peter', replied our Blessed Lord sadly. Soon after Peter would say, 'Even if I must die with you, I will not deny You.' Oh, Peter, Peterâ?| Or is that me standing there? It's me! I've grown lax, lazy, maybe even been seriously wounded time and again by mortal sin. I am tempted to throw in the towel, to give up my weapons, to concede the battle. Jesus has given up on me after all, hasn't He? At least, i feel that He has. Or perhaps i just don't see the point anymore in fighting on. But know this, brothers and sisters, Jesus never gives up on us, even after our most serious falls! See Him on the Crossâ?|that's how far He is willing to go for us. How far are we willing to go for Him? Let us draw from the courage of St. Peter's perseverance in following our Lord, as well as learn from his humility in rising up after every fall. Yes, he did flee Rome even after he'd been made the Vicar of Christ on earth. But remember also, he did become a mighty saint, the first of our Popes and a glorious martyr. St. Peter, rising and falling, and rising time and again, proves to us that God has a great plan for us. If we learn humility from our falls and a greater confidence and reliance on God, then we can be even stronger and more effective Soldiers of Jesus than before our fall. O happy fault, we sing at Easter, that out of such evil, God could bring an even greater good and a more exalted joy. Let us be true Soldiers of Jesus, committed to the battle till the end, but also willing to rise up humbly and confident in Him, ready to continue on in the battle. Our brother, Servant of God Paul Murphy, pray for us! |