“If it comes from God…”

Notice how relevant to the Church today is the speech by Gamaliel in today’s first reading:

“For if this endeavor or this activity is of human origin,
it will destroy itself.
But if it comes from God, you will not be able to destroy them;
you may even find yourselves fighting against God.”

When we look at the history of the Church, there have been more scandals than we can ever imagine. Heresies, murders, political intrigue, illicit children by popes, you name it. For 2000 years, we fallen humans have done our best to destroy the Church from within. Never mind the attacks from the media, we have done enough by permitting the abuse of children by those who have promised celibacy should be enough to destroy the Church.

Even with all the scandals, and no period in the Church’s history is free from them, the Church still exists, spreading the Gospel of Christ to the whole world. As Gamaliel said, “if this endeavor or this activity is of human origin, it will destroy itself.” If the Church were merely a human organization, such as the Masons or the governments of the world, the massive weight of hypocrisy and scandal would have destroyed it years ago.

We can be assured that the Church was established by Jesus and is supported to this day by the Holy Spirit through the rest of Gamaliel’s statement: “But if it comes from God, you will not be able to destroy them; you may even find yourselves fighting against God.” The Church is a divine institution, made up of imperfect humans, and is sustained by God through the authority of the Pope and faithful bishops in union with him. God will not allow the Church to disappear from the earth until that day when Our Lord Jesus Christ returns from the dead. The Church and Her members will undergo periods of cleansing and persecution, as I believe we are now entering, but will be all the stronger for it.

Today, please take time to pray for those who have been hurt by sexual abuse by priests and bishops, especially those children who have seriously harmed. Also, on this birthday of our Holy Father Benedict XVI, let us pray for him, that he may have the courage and guidance by the Holy Spirit to lead the Church out of this horrific scandal.