6 Nov 2008
Entitlement or service?
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Now all the tax-collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to Jesus. And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, ‘This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them.’
So he told them this parable: ‘Which one of you, having a hundred sheep and losing one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the one that is lost until he finds it? When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders and rejoices. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbours, saying to them, “Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.†Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who need no repentance.
‘Or what woman having ten silver coins, if she loses one of them, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it? When she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbours, saying, “Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin that I had lost.†Just so, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.’
Scripture passage from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright 1989, 1993, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
24 November 2008 @ 7:42 am
Greetings Father,
I am a Catholic living in the Salt Lake City area of Utah. I was raised LDS and part of my family is LDS. I was baptized into the Catholic faith about 14 years ago or so. My LDS brother, Mark, was thrilled to show a book that he read, Know your Religions, for which you provided the forward and provided input on the content.
I was thrilled to read your forward and I expected to be in for a rare treat that is fair treatment of our Catholic faith by an LDS author. Have you read this book since it was published? I am up to only page 50 and can’t believe how inaccurately the author has explained Catholicism.
My brother, like the author, seems to be surprised by how much we have in common. I suspect you read the text and, perhaps, felt there was much in common as well. BUT, I know what the words mean for both faith traditions and I can tell you that the summations sound as if we are very much alike, but in truth our language has vastly different meanings so that we have very little in common.
Would you mind sharing your thoughts?
Thank you and God bless you,
Dane
dfalkner@divineoffice.org