#463 A Personal Intimacy with God; Its not only possible, it's the Whole Plan.

And St Athanasius , an early church father and the doctor of the church , said the son of God became man so that we might become God . You know , I beg a while to guess at this , but I bet you , most of us , are a bit disconnected from this divine life that these saints are pointing us to .

Yet St John Paul II said there's an echo of this story , of this divine life that we're created for , inscribed in each human heart , in your human heart , and if you put on a proper lens , if I put on a proper lens , we can get in touch with this echo within us in such a way that we have that aha moment .

See , that's the genus of St John Paul II in the body . It connects our lived experience of life to the gospel in such a way that our life takes on a whole new meaning and helps us answer those big questions that our whole culture is so confused about today . Who am I ? What's my purpose ? Why were we created male and female ?

How do I find happiness here on earth ? How do I find love that satisfies forever ? Hey , glad you're with me . I'll be right back for today's episode . I'm excited to be with Linda Piper . In Pennsylvania , they just got nine inches of snow and I'm excited to say that her generator that they just installed kicked on .

I'm excited to hear that , linda , you know you spend money on a generator . I almost got one a couple of times and I didn't , and it looks like it was a good thing for you , huh .

This is from Genesis 1 and Genesis 2 , that man and woman , you know , in their created version , body and a soul , were created to make visible the invisible , the spiritual and the divine , created to make love and goodness visible in the world , to actually bring God's love and goodness into the world as priest , prophet and king .

But anyway , so there's a confusion there . Instead of loving one another in this complimentary fashion , which is this spousal meaning of the body , this idea that we're all created to be a gift to one another and that's not just in marriage , that's in family life .

We see that to kids and grandkids , to our neighbors , people that we meet , we're always supposed to be a gift . The full assign of this intimacy that God desires with us , and the intimacy within the Trinity , is the spousal analogy of man and a woman becoming the two , becoming one and making God's love visible in the world .

So the Pharisees come up to Jesus and they say can we divorce our wives ? And Jesus says no . And you want to divorce your wives because of the hardness of your heart . But your body , your bodies and marriage have a meaning .

And just like God loves you and he's not going to leave you and he makes a covenant with you forever , this is the sign that we're supposed to do in marriage here on earth . So of course we're not going to be able to divorce our wives , at least in the beginning , before sin .

And then he , right away , the disciples of Christ said oh my gosh , you know , if that's true , then maybe it's not advantageous to marry , maybe I'm not going to do it , maybe that's really difficult . And then Jesus answers and said again back to that . He pushes them even further . He says you know , there are eunuchs who are born that way .

There are eunuchs who made , who were made eunuchs by other men , and then there are others who make themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven . And twice , linda , he says let anyone understand this who can . And so let anyone understand . So he realizes that you know something is a charism that you have .

You have a special power given to you by God to be able to understand what marriage is and then move past it on earth to go right into the marriage of heaven . And then finally , linda , you know when he's looking at heaven , this is where we're going , and in heaven you're not going to be married or given in marriage after you've risen from the dead .

Jesus said so . He said at the end of the day , guys , this is a sign , and he says it's pointing to my union , my desire to be with one flesh , with you . You know they don't realize yet . Do they learn that this is the author of the story ? This is actually the bridegroom telling them that . You know what , guys ?

It's union with me and Opening the door to union with the Trinity . This is where we're going and I'm standing right here in front of you and I'm telling you this . You know it's a . It's amazing .

And I find it interesting to Jack , that their reaction was such that maybe it isn't worth marrying in that culture where they're having descendants . Was that's what it was all about . It was marrying and having the children .

So I can only imagine when they're hearing all of this they're , you know , shocked and confused and really not yet capable of understanding the depth of what Christ is saying when he says this celibacy for the kingdom .

So we have to , I think , cut them a little slack , even as we sometimes Struggle and what hope John Paul is helping us struggle through the understanding of what celibacy for the kingdom really means .

And , as we talked earlier , one point that he stresses very much for us is that it's not just a renunciation of marriage and that marital intimacy that would bring us the connotation of we're Rejecting it as a negative thing , but that in fact celibacy for the kingdom is a different but still spousal Vocation .

In other words , it's like calling us to two different kinds of marriages and they didn't quite have that understanding of Christ's bride room yet .

I believe at this point , yet we do have that , so it's easier , easier for us to understand , looking at it from Christ's bridegroom and the entire church is bright that we're very much looking at a marriage and a spousal relationship .

They're finding out that marriage is , has been , really , is really difficult for them to live out . And so we see that Jesus came not to manage our sins here .

He's not going to limit themselves to that conversation , because he came with power , and so this is what they'll find out as we go along , and as they go along is that the power is From God to fulfill either marriage the sign here on earth is Still going to be filled with the bridegroom so that we can live that out and make this visible .

And yet we have to both realize that that that grace that's coming in from God is already a link to our destiny , that that in marriage we have to be , we have to first enter into a depth of a relationship with Christ , both spouses , because that really is the is the source of the love between us in the beginning .

This is why they're struggling so much , and this is why we struggle today so much . We have to be filled , and we still don't realize how much grace we need . We're stepping into marriage in the family Filled with the grace of Jesus Christ , who connects us , of course , to the Father and then gives us the Holy Spirit within us .

You know these , these , this is hard for us to really believe , I think , but I think that the the way you believe that is Is is when you really have a problem in your marriage , and I think , when you have to get down on your knees and you know it's sometimes just pain and suffering is the only thing that's going to bring us into the story , and and so

I know many , many people , including myself , that that's the way we found out that this story was true .

Jack , it just triggered in my mind when I was teaching this in in marriage groups that an image I had in my mind is , as you said , both of us need to have the grace from Christ to strengthen our own spiritual life .

And I See to a salt and pepper shaker set that are that kind of crystal glass , you know , and I see them bonded together with the grace from the Holy Spirit is like superglue , monster glue , whatever term that it bonds those two together . So the husband and wife represent the salt and pepper shaker .

And you think , when troubles arise , you know our culture is split up . Well , with the superglue there , if you try to split , you're more likely going to break either one of those salt and pepper shakers Right .

So that grace is monumental in my mind on how it helps keep us together and it's continually renewed , of course , through the sacraments and through the Eucharist that while we experience problems here and there , we're not going to break to the point of , you know , those shaking .

It's so important and I think Christ here , getting back to what he's telling us in this particular audience , is there is so much value in that meaning of marriage and , as we talked before , we went on . As he says in paragraph two , the spousal disposition of masculinity and femininity for the marriage .

He is leading to a great depth of understanding what marriage needs to be and how . We can only achieve that through the grace from the Holy Spirit . And again , the disciples . This would be a lot for them to understand at that point in time , and yet the Pope is sharing with us .

You know that another point that Christ was getting at here by all of this description is that it would call for a great maturity in the choice of celibacy for the kingdom , and I think that it's also calling for a great maturity in the choice of marriage husband and wife .

In the very same way , they both require that depth of understanding of the spousal meaning and the depth of the Paul through masculinity and femininity .

He understands that we're called to be a gift to one another and so this means a disinterested gift to John Paul , and that doesn't mean I'm not interested in you or my wife say , but I'm not interested in getting anything back . I have to be self-giving .

It's in that self-giving and pouring out that the gifts start to come back to us , and this is very difficult for us to understand . If I'm arguing with my wife , somebody has to break that ice , you know .

And what I learned through John Paul is that I could do that , that I could open myself up and I didn't have to be silent and angry for three or four or five days at a time .

And so over time , that really repaired our , began to repair our relationship , as my wife starts to trust that I was not going to be angry for very long , that even if we had a disagreement , that I was going to come back and regroup and say no , I have to be a disinterested gift , even if she's still angry with me , I'm going to start being kind .

And I would start screwing around and doing little things or whatever . And she almost couldn't stay mad at me anymore , you know what I mean . Or I'd put my arm around her and she would walk away . She's still huffy In the old days . It would get to my ego and I'd be pissed and I'd start yelling all over . Not this time .

This time I'd just laughed , I'd say you know , you're playing hard to get again , you know , or whatever . And so God gives us those graces . And then after a while she started to respond and then she's not mad anymore . And now our biggest argument usually takes around 35 seconds to get over with . And that's a real blessing , linda .

So anyways , the reason I say that again as a priest it says to me I have the power to be filled with God . You know that . And then he says then I look at it and I go , I want that , I want that power not to be . You know , live a priestly life .

But now he turns around and sees a good marriage and he says oh , that's the kind of intimacy God wants with me . So when he turns back to this marriage of the Lamb , he understands the depth of our call for masculinity . And femininity is the depth of the difference , then , between God and his creature too .

In other words , god and his creature are different , just like a man and a woman are different , but it's those complimentary things that God . He still seeks us . He wants a relationship with us we don't have . I didn't have to marry my wife . God doesn't have to extend himself to me , but he does .

And it's , you know , and you say , well , god's too big for me , god's to this guy , well , no , this is the way he designed us , you know , to be able to step into a depth of relationship . It's really a powerful story .

And you know my whole life as a cradle Catholic , this idea of losing yourself to find yourself . If , if I'm to be a gift , I need to know who I am , so I can't give something I don't have , so I lose myself , my ego , the trappings of all of that , so that I can find who I am to be able to be that gift .

And you know , christianity is full of paradoxes like that . And the Pope really points out that we're actually dealing with another paradox in this understanding here , in paragraph three , where he talks about renunciation in the service of affirmation . And it seems like well , how can that be ?

So , if we consider that a paradox is something we've been exposed to many , many times in our faith , we have another one going here where he says that it's a particular form , that renunciation for the kingdom is a particular form of affirmation of the value from which the unmarried person consistently abstains by following the evangelical council , the chastity that goes

along with celibacy for the kingdom , and it does seem like a paradox initially , but when we understand that it's a recognition of the value of that relationship that we have in marriage , that I then can see that if I'm renouncing it I'm giving it up for something great and for something wonderful and for something beautiful , that there is great value in that .

And , as you've talked that the marriage is the sign the celibacy for the kingdom is pointing us to the reality . They're the reminder for us of the reality of where we're headed , our destiny in the Eschaton to actually have our final destiny with union with God .

We've become like cut flowers , we were disconnected from the story and I think , just like I said , sometimes it takes pain and suffering for you to understand the depth of this story and then , stepping into it , to feel the power . On the other hand , you can see what happens when we reject God . Again , I can be like God .

I can call evil good and good evil . And we see what happens when God has forgotten the creature itself grows unintelligible . We don't know who we are .

And you see this with young people and my heart goes out to them , especially the very young who are getting pushed , who are saying your masculinity , your creation as a male , your femininity , these traits are just cultural , they can just be shed like clothing .

And John Paul makes it very clear here that the masculinity and femininity , that this reciprocal , complementary , visible sign that we are to be a gift to one another . And this , these poor young people . Before we came on the air , you had mentioned puberty . Even as we're going into puberty , how many people are not comfortable at that time ?

And this is a very tough time to grow up . I wouldn't want to go through puberty again myself with all the questioning itself , but at least when we went through , somebody usually was around that could say , yeah , your body's changing and it's changing so that you can be a sign , a gift to another person . You know it's changing , your femininity is coming out .

You know your breasts are developing , your hips are getting a little wider because you're getting ready , you know , at some point possibly to be a mother . A man , you know , even in his strength , is supposed to be a sign of protection . That my sign is that , yes , I see the value in the beauty of this woman .

And you know there's a very vulnerable time when a woman is pregnant that really she needs someone there to say , yeah , you know , you're eight months pregnant and I'm going to be there for you , you know , in , whatever that means .

And so when we don't know any of that , now I'm growing up in this crazy culture that tells me that not only you know are you are just about feelings and these things can be changed .

And if you're uncomfortable , but then we porn , you know we pornified the whole culture so that these young people are growing up and saying , yeah , I want to be non-binary , I don't want to be a male or a female , and you think , well , why not ? Well , do you see what they do to each other ?

I think it's injustice to send these young people out like lambs to the wolves out there with their ideologies and they're twisting a distortion of our sexuality . So again , getting back to this poor young person that thinks they're trans , is that I would tell them , you know , we get to the point where you'd say no , you're created to be a gift to others .

Before you get all caught up in your narcissistic self . Right , this is what the culture is telling you . Go into narcissism , go into a self-enslave part of your body . Instead of being a gift to others , you grasp and take and try to change yourself and then tell people demand , other people love you in your brokenness , you know , and you're not a gift back .

In other words , yeah , okay , I could . I love you because , because I'm a Christian , I'm a human being and I'm called to love other people , but you're not loving me . You're so in tune with yourself , yet you want to be fully loved . See , there's a real dichotomy here .

You know that how can my wife expect me to totally give myself to her if both of us are just selfish ? You know there's how many marriages . You know they have their own bank accounts , they have their own lives , and we're not really unified . We don't even talk to each other that much we're not . We don't have any of the same interests .

We don't even have interest in learning about the other person , you know , even in their differences and so . But yet Each of us expect to be fully loved . Even though we're not fully loving the other , we're loving ourselves , you see , and so it's , it's .

It's only when we open up to God again and our bodies are redeemed and healed that we can step back into the story and be a gift to others .

You know , we are Women , are geared , the femininity . Part of that is is for motherhood and Men , the same for fatherhood , and we're called to that . Fruitfulness right , be fruitful and multiply . So In the scenario you just described , in many ways what you're looking at is a complete Unfruitfulness . You know , just the opposite of what we have called to be .

No , you know so , so I'm alone now , right , how many , I don't know , but there's a lot , a lot of them , you know , that bought the lie and our looking back now and hopefully some of them step up to the plate and start to Start to speak to young women you know in their own pain and say you know , this was a lie , this was a lie .

But we know we're called to that fruitfulness , and not just biological motherhood or fatherhood , but also spiritual fatherhood and motherhood . And that's where , you know , the spotlight now shines on the priests and the religious , because they are called to that spiritual fatherhood and motherhood . What's why we call the priests father there .

They're taking on that role of fatherhood for the church , for those of us in the church , and likewise the women religious .

We call the mother superiors , mother , you know , and and it may just seem like we do it kind of just non-thinkingly , but it really Brings us back to the depth of what was God's plan for us and for the fruitfulness that he wants us to experience , which , in my mind , the fruitfulness goes hand in hand with happiness .

But if we're not being fruitful in all those ways God had intended , we're not gonna be happy , and we see that everywhere .

So lent is here . How do I get in touch with my heart like this ? You know , get in touch with Christ , come into union , the communion . It always comes down to a prayer , fasting and mortifications . The mystics and the saints always talk about this .

So prayer , you have to get into silence every day , of course , and prayer , fasting , fasting has to become part of this . You know , jesus said over and over again only these things can only become overcome by prayer and fasting and and mortification . What does that mean ?

Well , there's , there's other things besides food , that that we may have to give up in this culture . You know , social media , anything that takes your mind away from from a depth of Christ , and , and we're filling it with this little shots of dopamine all day long .

And then , of course , we try to fill that with Therapists and with the medicine cabinets and everything else . So this is a call lent is to detach from all that . So , prayer , fasting , you know , again , I , I Really walk into fasting . I like to do these two or three day fasts and and just black coffee and water .

It's enough to break some of these cycles and some of these habits . And I realize how much time I , you know , I think about , you know that , a glass of wine or this or that or whatever . And when I just say no , for a couple days I'm not doing that and you get a little hungry , and then you start to lift yourself up and open yourself up .

You know , so these mortifications , maybe I don't read the romance novels anymore , I read scripture instead . I don't go on social media and and I spend my time being a gift to others , you know , and so so this is important . This is important because I'm aiming at my destiny , you know .

But moving that then to the depths of and I'm not just taking something away by fasting from it if it's a social media but what am I adding to ? To get closer to Christ and throughout his passion , I think one form of prayer can be meditating on his passion throughout Lent to get a better sense of Exactly really what he went through for us .

And when I do that , it Reminds me that all the little Inconveniences that are part of modern life , even nine inches of snow , that it's really nothing . It's really nothing compared to what Christ did for us .

So we have the great opportunity now in Lent to use all of that to avail ourselves , to Get closer to Christ so that we can Better and better be that gift to others that were called to be .

And don't forget , you know , I would like to just add , jack , I'm sorry that in family life , you know , as I look at my daughter and her family and the kids , there's such a great opportunity for parents to teach the children about it as well and to do family sorts of things .

You know , family fasting , where the meals become a lot simpler and more prayers worked into the day , and those sorts of things .

Come and see . You know , it's me that you're looking for . It always starts with desire because in our hearts we have a desire for goodness , we have the desire for love , and God is that goodness and love . We forget that sometimes . You know , go to live without God and you see , look around the world . You see how much sin comes in the world .

When we throw out God , we actually throw out the goodness in our hearts and we turn very easily to evil , which is lust and selfishness and grasping . And so you know this isn't our design . And and and tick , tock , linda , you know we're all getting there and you know , by the time you know this crazy world , you know you can end . I mean your life .

You see the violence on the streets in Chicago . I mean the war is going on . You know we think we're going to live forever somehow , but so . So when we do this dance , when we start to move in closer with God , you know we're really aiming at where we're going anyways . You know what I mean , you know .

Sometimes you say well , prayer , fasting , mortifications . You know . You say no , I'm on a path . They put me on a narrow path . I opened the narrow gate , which is Christ himself and and I'm already walking where I'm going .

This is not taking me off the path , it's putting me on the path I'm supposed to be on and just getting rid of the distraction so I can watch where I'm walking , so I don't stumble over the rocks and the holes so often , right ?

Thanks for any final word here , as we , as we , as we , what's your letting resolution this year ? Have you made it up ? You have to tell . You know now , by the time we put this out , it'll be a week , but while we're recording , we're trying to get it done , but while we're recording , we're trying to stay a week ahead .

So Lent actually is going to start tomorrow . As we're recording this , even though you'll listen to it , it'll be gone . Oh , you know , into it a week already . Have you decided ? Because you actually have one more day to not a half a day to decide .

My brother , actually one of my brothers show me how to fast and he likes to fast for three , four and even longer A day's , just black coffee and water .

And he shows your body actually starts to consume the free radicals that float around in your body that can cause cancers and different things , and your body looks for sources of energy and actually cleans up all those free radicals and stuff . It's amazing how your body works with these things . That Christ said you know .

And when you start to walk into other things , like it surprises , you say okay , he said prayer and fasting . Well , I found peace , I find joy , I find strength in the prayer and the fasting at my body and my soul . Heal you both . And so this is the power of what we're talking about here , is it's fascinating ?