Sin vs Jesus
We know sin is bad and Jesus is good, right? There's so much more to this though and this topic can go pretty deep. Our YouCat comes from a much thicker book (believe me, the YouCat is way more fun to read, ask me how I know) called the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC, is the abbreviation for this book) I want you to read this little part from the CCC:
Again, we know Jesus is good he died on the cross for us because we are sinners. Do you know what sin is? I'm sure we can all name some sins but what is sin itself?
Go to your YouCat question 315 to see what the Church says about sin.
Sin is more than just breaking rules. God doesn't give us rules to follow, He gives us boundaries to keep us safe. Much like a farmer keeps his cattle in a pasture surrounded by fencing, so God surrounds us in His pasture with His fencing. If we break free from God's safety net we could hurt not only ourselves but others, too. Think about what would happen if a steer got loose on Hwy. 8, can you imagine the damage or even death that could occur? The farmer doesn't fence in cattle to prohibit fun and enjoyment, instead, it's done for the protection of the herd, the farmer's investment, and innocent passersby. This is how we should view the guidelines God has for us. When we leave the boundaries God has put in place for us, we sin. When this happens we not only hurt ourselves by turning away from God but we could be hurting those around us as well.
Jesus is the ultimate cowboy. He humbled Himself and became Man, he rounded up all the rogue cattle (sinners), corralled us back in the pasture (gave us guidelines and 'rules for life'), and mended the fences (died on the cross and gave us the sacraments, i.e. Eucharist & Reconciliation).
Recap: personal sin is when we choose to turn away from God, and are essentially saying we know better than God. God's boundaries aren't really necessary for my life, I got this covered myself.
What about social sin? Do you know what that is?
We are all born into a sinful society, watch the nightly news for 10 minutes if you don't believe me. Now, if you're watching the nightly news you will eventually not be shocked over the things you are seeing. You become almost numb to the crazy events that occur in our schools, our towns, our country, and the world. Can you imagine your grandpa playing Grand Theft Auto? Mine wouldn't. Overtime, however, our own ideas of right/wrong become mixed with everyone else's and it gets more challenging to figure out what is in God's pasture and what is smack-dab in the middle of Hwy. 8.
This does not mean we can blame society for our sinfulness. We are still responsible for our turning away from God (sin). The CCC says we have a responsibility for the sins committed by others when we cooperate in them:
Question 2: In your own words how does Social Sin apply to you?
Who knew George, John, Paul, and Ringo would be able to help pull it all together for us.
"sinners (you and me) were the authors and the ministers of all the sufferings that the divine Redeemer (Jesus) endured." CCC 598Question 1: What does this mean to you?
Again, we know Jesus is good he died on the cross for us because we are sinners. Do you know what sin is? I'm sure we can all name some sins but what is sin itself?
Go to your YouCat question 315 to see what the Church says about sin.
Sin is more than just breaking rules. God doesn't give us rules to follow, He gives us boundaries to keep us safe. Much like a farmer keeps his cattle in a pasture surrounded by fencing, so God surrounds us in His pasture with His fencing. If we break free from God's safety net we could hurt not only ourselves but others, too. Think about what would happen if a steer got loose on Hwy. 8, can you imagine the damage or even death that could occur? The farmer doesn't fence in cattle to prohibit fun and enjoyment, instead, it's done for the protection of the herd, the farmer's investment, and innocent passersby. This is how we should view the guidelines God has for us. When we leave the boundaries God has put in place for us, we sin. When this happens we not only hurt ourselves by turning away from God but we could be hurting those around us as well.
Jesus is the ultimate cowboy. He humbled Himself and became Man, he rounded up all the rogue cattle (sinners), corralled us back in the pasture (gave us guidelines and 'rules for life'), and mended the fences (died on the cross and gave us the sacraments, i.e. Eucharist & Reconciliation).
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| No, this is not literally Jesus. Everyone knows Jesus had long hair and a beard. |
Recap: personal sin is when we choose to turn away from God, and are essentially saying we know better than God. God's boundaries aren't really necessary for my life, I got this covered myself.
What about social sin? Do you know what that is?
Social Sin = The sinfulness of society into which a person is born. Its premise is that modern socialization and collectivization have immersed everyone in other people's values and moral actions to an unprecedented degree. -Fr. John Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary
We are all born into a sinful society, watch the nightly news for 10 minutes if you don't believe me. Now, if you're watching the nightly news you will eventually not be shocked over the things you are seeing. You become almost numb to the crazy events that occur in our schools, our towns, our country, and the world. Can you imagine your grandpa playing Grand Theft Auto? Mine wouldn't. Overtime, however, our own ideas of right/wrong become mixed with everyone else's and it gets more challenging to figure out what is in God's pasture and what is smack-dab in the middle of Hwy. 8.
This does not mean we can blame society for our sinfulness. We are still responsible for our turning away from God (sin). The CCC says we have a responsibility for the sins committed by others when we cooperate in them:
- by participating directly and voluntarily in them
- by ordering, advising, praising, or approving them
- by not disclosing or not hindering them when we have an obligation to do so
- by protecting evil-doers
Have you ever seen someone cheat on test? Maybe you've giggled or laughed about it later? By doing that you're giving your approval of the sin. You weren't the one that broke out of the pasture as you weren't the one that sinned, but you laughed about it and thought it great that the test cheater was walking around Hwy. 8 outside the boundaries set in place by God.
That is social sin and it's not good. By doing this we contribute to the sinfulness of our society. I know I've done this before, I've encouraged or laughed about something somebody did that was a sin. I made it harder for others to realize the safety zone God put in place for us.
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| I've caused this to happen, even though I stayed in the safety of the pasture. |
Who knew George, John, Paul, and Ringo would be able to help pull it all together for us.
Question 3: What does Let it Be have to do with sin and/or social sin?
Let's see how Las Vegas fares when Fr. Jack asks them about sin.
Let's see how Las Vegas fares when Fr. Jack asks them about sin.
Fr. Jack is awesome! He's so down-to-earth and non-threatening.
Question 4: What is the difference between venial and mortal sin? (hint: look at YouCat 315-316, p.178-179)
So far this year we've looked at how to be happy (follow the Beatitudes) and how merciful and loving God is towards us (Prodigal Son parable). Now we're looking at sin which is choosing to completely turn our backs on God and walk away from all this goodness He has for us.
Because of His love and mercy, however, He sent us a way out of this mess. There is hope! The Creator of EVERYTHING humbled himself to become part of creation, He became man.
Please read YouCat 70 & 71 p.50-51.
Question 5: Why is Jesus so significant in the battle between good and evil?
Question 6: Please explain felix culpa.
Take a look at this video and really think about the lyrics.
Because of His love and mercy, however, He sent us a way out of this mess. There is hope! The Creator of EVERYTHING humbled himself to become part of creation, He became man.
Please read YouCat 70 & 71 p.50-51.
Question 5: Why is Jesus so significant in the battle between good and evil?
Question 6: Please explain felix culpa.
Take a look at this video and really think about the lyrics.
Question 7: How does this song illustrate felix culpa?
Ok, so we know how to be happy (Beatitudes), we know that no matter what, God will be merciful (Prodigal Son), we know that we don't always stay within the boundaries God has set in place (sin), and we know there is hope for this mess (Christ Jesus). How do we go about repairing the damage?
Ok, so we know how to be happy (Beatitudes), we know that no matter what, God will be merciful (Prodigal Son), we know that we don't always stay within the boundaries God has set in place (sin), and we know there is hope for this mess (Christ Jesus). How do we go about repairing the damage?
RECONCILIATION!
One of our sacraments of healing is called reconciliation, or penance, or sometimes confession. Ever hear of this one? This is the one that makes you want to crawl in a hole and die out of sheer embarrassment. (yes, we all feel this way)
Reconciliation is actually derived from a word that means "eyelash to eyelash". When we go to confession we are actually getting that close to God, we are getting eyelash-to-eyelash with God. How cool is that?!?!
Question 8: Why is reconciliation so important? Please explain in your own way.
So, stay inside the pasture of God's guidelines to remain happy. Know that the boundaries are there for your protection and everyone else's protection, too. God is so full of mercy that nothing you could ever do would separate you from Him permanently because the Word of God (2nd person of the Holy Trinity) became man, Christ Jesus, and took your place on the cross.
When we sin we turn our backs on God but because of God's mercy and Christ's death and resurrection we have the beauty of Reconciliation. We can turn back towards God after we sin and choose to sin no more..... until we screw up royally yet again.... but there's an app for that. Just kidding, there's a sacrament for that, just head back to the confessional again, and again, and again.
Question 9: Go to our website and tell me WHEN the sacrament of reconciliation is offered.
Here's a link: Rusk County Catholic Community
(you may have to look around the website a bit, but it's there)
1. We are all the sinners who Jesus read before he forgave us.
ReplyDelete2. I can't express my political views if I don't know a lot about politics.
3. If it doesn't pertain to you let it be.
4. Venial sin is a lesser sin that does not result in a complete separation from God and eternal damnation in Hell as mortal sin would.
5. He saw both and he knew everything from both sides, he saw both good and evil.
6. Blessed or happy faults.
7. We were blessed with baby Jesus but later he took away all of our faults.
8. Reconciliation is important because we are cleansed and feel like we haven't done anything wrong and feel innocent and our conscience is cleared. So we can have a fresh start to make new mistakes.
9. 2nd grade, December, before Christmas, before our first communion.