Word to the Wise
Wednesday, October 22, 2025 - Wednesday in the 29th Week in Ordinary Time
[Rom 6:12-18 and Luke 12:39-48]Sin must not reign over your mortal bodies so that you obey their desires. And do not present the parts of your bodies to sin as weapons for wickedness, but present ourselves to God as raised from the dead to life and the parts of your bodies to God as weapons for righteousness. For sin is not to have any power over you, since you are not under the law but under grace. [Romans]
OCTOBER 22 [St. John Paul II]
Even a casual reading of the books of Leviticus and Deuteronomy in the first five books of the Bible (which comprise the torah, or the Law of Moses) would indicate that almost every aspect of life was covered. When something came up that didn't seem to be specifically mentioned, a learned rabbi or scribe would be consulted to find a way to fit that situation into the Law of Moses. In other words, if something was to be considered sinful, it had to come under that law. When St. Paul experienced his conversion, he rejected this way of life but then faced the issue (for Jews) of how to define right from wrong! He appealed to faith and the gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit as guides. The rejection of the Law of Moses did not mean "anything goes!" His letters to the Corinthians make that clear!
It has been said of Catholicism: "Everything is prohibited until it is permitted, and then it is mandatory!" The period from the Council of Trent (1545-1562] until the Second Vatican Council [1962-1965] saw efforts to pin down almost any aspect of Catholic life under written legislation. Confessors could find lists of penances suggested for almost any kind of offense! An unhealthy form of spirituality could result from this, known as "scrupulosity" and pastoral practice was endangered by a strict "rigorism" in the celebration of all sacramental or even non-sacramental events. A passion for "validity" could put one back into the problem that St. Paul faced!
It is important to have some uniformity of life for a community to worship and live together. The Ten Commandments stand as a fundamental guide. Indeed, the sacraments are not an occasion for "anything goes!" But St. Thomas Aquinas OP, reminds us that the "new law of Christ" is "nothing other than the Holy Spirit working in our hearts through faith in Christ." The Catechism and Code of Canon Law and other ecclesiastical legislation must be interpreted in that light. Jesus and St. Paul are watching! AMEN