June 11th, 2005
The following are excerpts taken from the book, “Co-Workers of the Truth” – Meditations for Every Day of the Year, Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, Ignatius Press, 1990.
The Unborn: When the murder of an innocent life is called a right, then injustice has become justice. When the law cannot no longer protect human life, it is suspect as law. Saying this does not mean wanting to impose specifically Christian morality on all members of a pluralistic society. What is in question here is human nature, the humanity of a person who cannot make the trampling on a created being a means of self liberation without profoundly deceiving himself. 61
God: The first requirement, then, is that God be present in our life…. It is not enough then, to believe somehow theoretically that there is a God; we must regard him as the most important element in our life…. Often it seems almost impossible to accept God’s will. But one who yields to this rebellion poisons his whole life…. He (God) says to us; I know, you don’t understand me yet. But trust me anyway, believe that I am good, and dare to live by this trust. 64
Truth: But where truth no longer exists, every standard can be altered; one can, in fact, do exactly the opposite; renunciation of the truth is the real source of our present crisis. 31 Freedom for truth and freedom of truth ultimately cannot exist without recognition and reverence for the divine. 74 Truth is not one of the great moral catchwords of our age; it does not stand high on the roster of virtues…. Considering the widespread social concerns of our epoch, there seems to be little time left for the wearisome question of truth. 147 One who does not respect the truth cannot construct anything worthwhile. If truth is not held in honor, the freedom, justice, and love cannot flourish. Truth, by which I mean the simple, humble, patient truth of daily life, is the foundation of all the other virtues. 148
Jesus: Christianity: Church: A Jesus who agrees with everyone and everything, a Jesus without his holy anger, without the hardness of truth and genuine love is not the real Jesus as he is depicted in the Scriptures, but a pitiable caricature. 139 A Christianity that believes it has no other function than to be completely in tune with the spirit of the times has nothing to say and no meaning to offer. It can abdicate without more ado. 86
If the Church were to accommodate herself to the world in any way that would entail a turning away from the Cross, this would not lead to a renewal of the Church, but only to her death. 162
The Family: The original cell of all human society is the family. That is where we learn the fundamental relationship of human society and, consequently, also the ability to relate to God…. On the preservation of the family depends a nation’s capacity for peace…. And the destruction of the family is therefore the most certain sign of the Antichrist, the disturber of the peace, disguised as one who brings freedom & peace. 169
George H. Kubeck, Appropriate for today. Duplicate and or translate into Spanish.
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