There’s something striking about this dogma of faith isn’t there? Dogma, by the way, is another name for “what the Church believes”, a fundamental teaching of our Faith, required for all Catholics to believe, truth requiring belief.
I don’t know if you’ve figured this out about me after nearly 4 years as your pastor, but I love the Church’s Dogmas. I love the fact that we have explicit beliefs that define us. There is a lot of confusion and subjective opinion in the world, people disagree about all manner of things: what’s the best pizza place in Cleveland, who’s the more masterful classical composer Bach or Mozart, what’s the more enjoyable sport to watch baseball or football, these things are a matter of taste. And De gustibus non est disputandum—matters of taste are not worth arguing about. You like Athens Pizza, I like Angelo’s Pizza, great, wonderful, enjoy. Each to his own taste.
However, as Catholics, there are matters which are not up for debate, which are not a matter of subjective opinion or taste—dogmas that will not change, cannot change, they are part of the fabric of Christianity and part of what God himself as revealed to us. They are certainly not dependent on a majority vote. And that’s a very good thing. We can’t vote that Catholics no longer need to believe that Jesus Ascended. It happened. It’s not up for debate. And that’s good. Something to anchor your life to.
There are three different types of Dogmas. The first type are those clearly reported in Scripture. For example, in our first reading, the Acts of the Apostle contains an account of Jesus Christ’s Ascension into heaven: “As they were looking on, he was lifted up”. And then again in the Gospel this weekend, we read: “As he blessed them he parted from them and was taken up to heaven.” Clearly reported in scripture. Clearly enumerated in our Creed. Here’s a Dogma that if you want to be Catholic you need to learn it, believe it, profess it.
And that is a gift from God. Again amidst all the chaos and bafflement in the world, Catholics profess truth. We might not know what the heck is going on in our country right now, or what’s going to happen with inflation, or war, with these horrific pockets of violence in schools erupting over the country, but we know Jesus Christ Ascended into Heaven, and that’s something to base your life on.
Dogma is not political theory, it is not philosophical speculation, it’s not wishful thinking. It’s real. It’s true. You can bet your life on it. You can bet your soul on it. And you should spend your life telling the world about it.
So some of our Dogmas are directly stated in Scripture. Other Dogmas are not stated directly, but are clearly implied. For example, The Bible not once, ever, uses the word Trinity—yet it is clear from Scripture that Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are three divine persons of the Blessed Trinity.
A third type of Dogma, still carrying the same weight, are those truths which can be defended by Scripture, but cannot be found in scripture, but have been clearly taught from the time of the Apostles and professed by the early Church. For example, that Jesus instituted the seven Sacraments. Or that His Blessed Mother was Assumed into Heaven. These Dogmas aren’t professed weekly in our Creed, but we still believe them with unshaking Catholic belief.
This is why it is a good idea for you to own and read the Catechism of the Catholic Church. The Catechism is a beautiful, thorough, systematic enumeration and explanation of the Dogmas of the Catholic Church. You want to know what the Church teaches about The Holy Trinity, the Sacraments, the Church, the Commandments. It’s all there. Read it. Belief it. Profess it. Live it.
And again, thank God for Dogma. Or else, I would be up here just making this stuff up. I’m not here to preach the Gospel according to Estabrook. That would be a ridiculous waste of time. My opinions are not Gospel, and the Gospels are not my opinions. And when I preach, thankfully, the Dogmas of the Church limit and direct my preaching. The Dogmas ensure I don’t stray into opinion-land and heresy. As St. peter says in his first reading “Whoever preaches, let it be with the words of God”.
The Catechism lists four sins against God, which violate the faith that we owe to God as a response to his Divine Revelation. Incredulity, Heresy, Apostasy, and Schism. All have to do with refusing to believe what the Church teaches. These sins are very very serious. To refuse to believe in what God has revealed, to repudiate the Christian faith, and to refuse to submit to legitimate authority in the Church are serious sins. “Those who reject you, reject me” the Lord said to the Apostles. But sadly, these sins are not rare.
You may have seen in the news, a certain Catholic California politician whose archbishop has legitimately declared that she is not to present herself for Holy Communion* until she publicly renounces her error regarding the dignity of innocent human life in the womb and her cooperation with the grave sin of abortion.
The politician has brought this penalty upon herself, and thanks be to God that this good archbishop is trying to help her come back to the fold, for her soul is at stake. Her actions and words have clearly demonstrated her break with Catholic teaching and practice, her rejection of her bishop’s legitimate teaching authority. From what I’ve read, the archbishop has tried—he’s pleaded with her, invited her to discuss her error, and she’s obstinately refused.
So she is not to present herself for Holy Communion because to receive Holy Communion is to claim one’s desire to be in Communion—with God, with the Body of Christ the Church.
It may be difficult to understand but excommunication is always medicinal penalty—it’s medicine—to help a soul who is sick to recognize that it is sick and to seek restoration with the Church. The invitation to return to the fold is always there.
In a letter to his archdiocese, the archbishop writes, I “ask all of the faithful of the Archdiocese…to pray for all of our legislators, especially Catholic legislators [who have gone astray]…that with the help and under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, they may undergo a conversion of heart in this most grave matter, and human life may be protected and fostered in every stage and condition of life.”
This may be an uncomfortable topic for us, but as your pastor, I didn’t want this to go unaddressed. There have been a lot of conflicting news stories about this, and excommunication is a complicated issued. But it affects all of us. It reminds us of the importance of defending human life, of course, but also how error can lead us away from God and communion with the Church, and that we should always be open to correction. Where Christ has gone, we hope to Go, but that involves following him, obeying the Dogmatic teachings of the Church that he has established, and living it. We are to be not just hearers of the word, but doers of the word.
As always, if you have any questions about this or any dimension of Catholic belief or practice, let’s sit down and talk.
May we firmly believe, profess, and live all that our holy mother the Church teaches, so that where Christ the Head of the Church has gone in his Holy Ascension, we, the members of his Body may follow, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.
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