More Than You Bargained For
If eternal salvation is a gift from God through Jesus, it means that the only thing required to receive it is either asking for it or “holding out your hands to take hold of it.” If anything more than that—weekly Mass attendance, reciting certain prayers, regular confession of sins, financial contributions, the offering up or happy acceptance of suffering, approval from other members of a sect, or a bishop’s signature that you’re good enough for God now—is necessary, it’s not a gift. It’s a trade.
If you find peace, solace, meaning in life, or other positives from those ideas, I think that’s wonderful. What I got was anxiety.
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2 Comments
Daja
I grew up with that theology all my life. It is basic repurposed Calvinism. I wrote about it years ago (just want to clarify that this was not written in response to you. Already worked through thoughts.)
Here is the link if interested: https://reconcilingthings.com/2015/05/02/the-missing-sacraments/
Xoxo
Cheryl Ruffing
According to catholic.com: “The Catholic Church teaches that salvation comes through Jesus alone (Acts 4:12), since he is the “one mediator between God and man” (1 Tm 2:5-6). The saving grace won by Jesus is offered as a free gift to us, accessible through repentance, faith, and baptism.” In other words: a gift with strings attached. That doesn’t work for me anymore. In fact, it never did. It turns out that I did not have faith; I had superstition. And no, it’s not a question of Catholic vs. Protestant. It’s a question of what I believe. Josef Pieper writes in Faith Hope Love: “No one who believes must believe; belief is by its nature a free act.” So, what do I believe? I believe that God exists, that He is the Creator of the universe, and that He cares about what He has made. At this point, I can manage little more, and I’m good with that. In fact, for the first time in my life, I’m good with who I am. It turns out that self-betrayal will fuck you over like nothing else.