Which Voices of Authority Should We Listen to? GNM Reflection

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For you this week:

Reflection for Saturday: Which voices of authority should we listen to?
Inside the Ministry: The Father’s Heart
Last chance: The GNM staff wants to pray for your beloved deceased
This week’s WordBytes faith-builder: How Can You Be Sure What Is God’s Will?
New Podcast interview: Sewing Hope in Hearts by a Fuller Experience of Eucharist

Saturday October 30, 2021

Scriptures Romans 11:1-2, 11-12, 25-29
Psalm 94:12-15, 17-18
Luke 14:1, 7-11
bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/103021.cfm
Podcast:
bible.usccb.org/podcasts/audio/2021-10-30

Saints Calendar:
gnm.org/saints-find/saints-calendar

He told a parable to those who had been invited, noticing how they were choosing the places of honor at the table. (From Saturday’s Gospel reading)

Reflection for Saturday:
Which voices of authority should we listen to?

man shouting into megaphone Which voices of authority should we listen to? Good discernment today can be very challenging! We want to do God’s will, but there are so many people in positions of authority who are contradicting God’s will. With strong insistence, they’re telling us how to live, what to believe, what to teach our children, and whether to be vaccinated against Covid or take a stand against mandates. Sometimes it’s obvious when a leader is working against God, but often it is not — especially when they claim to be Catholic or they hold positions of authority within the Church.

This can be very confusing. Even stressful. So, which voices of authority should we listen to?

If the voice of authority is within the Church but we disagree with his mandates, how are we to handle it? What’s the holy response? Is it quiet compliance?

Jesus provides guidance in this Saturday’s Gospel reading, but it might surprise you. It’s often over-looked. We listen to the parable and miss the reason why he told this particular story at this particular time.

Jesus had been invited to a meal in the home of a Pharisee — a religious leader, someone in authority. But it was not a private meetup. The Pharisee had invited his friends: “And the people there were observing him carefully” because it was the Sabbath and Jesus had a history of breaking Sabbath laws. They thought they had the authority to reprimand him, and they were looking for the opportunity to do so.

How did Jesus handle this? He embarrassed and insulted them with his parable about seating positions. He chose that particular parable at that particular time because he was challenging those who had maneuvered themselves into places of honor around the table.

It’s important to remember that “giving honor to” does not always mean “obeying”. Jesus honored the Pharisee who invited him to dinner by graciously accepting his offer. But honoring him did mean obeying any of his ill-conceived commands, even if it meant being persecuted for healing someone on the Sabbath.

Like Jesus, we should honor and respect those who are in authority but we should never obey orders that contradict God’s will. We should disobey any commands that are harmful or inappropriate (i.e., sinful).

The problem is: It can be difficult to feel good about disobeying. The solution: Remember that there is a chain of authority that should guide all of our decisions. It begins with God. He is, of course, the only voice of authority that really matters. He reveals it in his Word and Sacred Tradition (i.e. 2000+ years of Church teachings)

Second in the chain of command is the authority that God has given to us — you and me. We first see our God-given authority in Genesis 1:28 (“Fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over… “everything.) In the New Testament, Jesus gives us authority over demons and sickness, and the authority to preach the Good News.

Third in the chain is delegated authority. This includes leaders in government, teachers in classrooms, and clergy in the Church. Our ability to discern if their commands should be obeyed is equal to how well our consciences have been formed (by studying the Word and traditional teachings of the Church), how much our consciences are inspired by Holy Spirit (by having a good, personal relationship with the Holy Spirit), and how strongly we desire to be submissive to God’s will.

When Saint Paul wrote that we must always submit to governing authorities (Romans 13:1-5), he was talking about rulers who “hold no terror for those who do right but are feared by those who do wrong.” In other words, authorities who are acting on God’s behalf — truly and not just by our assumption or their claim.

Whenever this is out of order, there’s a problem and Satan has an open door.

What should be our response to the disorders in authority that occur today? First, research the truth as much as you can. This needs to include the Catechism of the Catholic Church, the teachings of Saints, and other official Church writings. Saint Pope John Paul II wrote a wealth of Holy Spirit-inspired encyclicals and apostolic exhortations that are totally reliable, for example. (Have you gotten a copy yet of my study guide on his encyclical Ecclesia de Eucharistia. It’s an answer to at least one of today’s controversies. Visit gnm.org/terry-modica-author/my-soul-shall-be-healed.)

Second, place your faith in God over and above your research. How strong is your relationship with the Holy Spirit? How actively are the Spirit’s gifts and fruits manifesting in your life? How often do you use the Sacrament of Confession and the Penitential Rite of Mass to purify your thinking? How important to you is the desire to be holy and saintly?

Which voices of authority should we listen to? Without an active and lively relationship with the Holy Spirit (the Spirit of Truth), we cannot trust what we hear from the world or from authorities in the Church who undiscerningly trust (i.e. without the Holy Spirit) what they hear in the world.

Inside the Ministry:

My newest book, “The Father’s Heart” (see tothefathersheart.com), is being published by Charis Books. We are moving ahead with a rush to get it published in time for Christmas-gift giving. Watch for more announcements. As soon as the cover design is finished, we’ll be taking pledges (pre-orders without payments), and the first 200 pledged orders will get 20% off the $18.50 price. The countdown has begun! Who do you want to give this to for Christmas?

Last chance! The GNM staff wants to pray for your beloved deceased

On All Souls Day and throughout the month of November, Graciela, Lily, Kathy, Ralph and I would like to pray for those whom you dearly miss.

We are gathering the names of the beloved deceased from our Good News family. If you can, make a donation now in honor of a deceased loved one, and the staff will pray for him/her. If you cannot, we don’t want to leave anyone out, so we’ll accept a donation of prayer; sign up at gnm.org/support-by-prayers and reply to this email with the names of those for whom you want us to pray.

Specifically, we’ll pray for an increase of your loved one’s joy and total union with God. We’ll also pray that this dear one will become a personal patron saint for you and your family.

Donate in memory of a loved one

WordBytes is a library of Catholic faith-building articles by Good News Ministries. Come on in and explore! Visit WordBytes.org today.

This week’s recommended faith-builder:
How Can You Be Sure What Is God’s Will?

Discerning God’s will is not a complicated business. It is in reality, simple. It’s always available, and God always speaks in the vernacular — He speaks our language, because He wants us to hear Him. It’s His great desire that we hear Him. The complications set in when we try to hear God without doing our part to open the channels of communication.

For more on this, visit wordbytes.org/master-needs-you/what-is-gods-will.

podcast

Sewing Hope in Hearts by a Fuller Experience of Eucharist

Bill Snyder and Anne Desantis interviewed me recently for their podcast show Sewing Hope (patchworkheart.org). It will be on CMAX.TV, but they’ve allowed me to post them on GNM’s site so you can access it now.

The questions they asked me included:

“We know that you came into the Church through a conversion of the Eucharist. So, that has to be so close to your heart, right? That’s just such a profound, beautiful truth that you got to experience and live in a very unique way. And I would love it if you share with our listeners and viewers how that moment came about. And was that part of this study guide [My Soul Shall Be Healed; see gnm.org/terry-modica-author/my-soul-shall-be-healed] that you’ve recently put together — because of that relationship that you have with Jesus?”

And: “You said that the Eucharist is a ‘who’, not a ‘what’. And I think that is a big, huge misconception by so many Catholics, and non-Catholics, too. Is there anything else that you want to share on that note? Because that is a pretty big thing: ‘who’, not a ‘what’?”

Listen to this podcast @ gnm.org/footsteps91.

Or watch the video @ gnm-media.org/sewing-hope-in-hearts-by-a-fuller-experience-of-mass.

Footsteps to Heaven podcasts

Explore our Catholic Video Library for Faith Growth

How do you want to grow your faith today? Try these Catholic videos by Good News Ministries!

God bless you!

Every morning, I lift up in prayer everyone who helps Good News Ministries in any way (donors, volunteers, prayer supporters, etc.) and all the prayer requests posted on our site. What can I cover in prayer for you? Post your prayer request.

How else can the team and I serve you today? Visit our homepage.

Thank you for reading this newsletter.

Terry Modica Your servant in Christ,
Terry Modica, Executive Director
Good News Ministries
gnm.org

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Keep your eyes on Jesus!
And when you have to look at others, see them through his eyes.

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