St. Michael: Good vs. Evil...
continued from last week
The devil used his free will to disobey God, to revolt. St. Michael used his free will to say “yes” to God. In order to be what we are meant to be, we must keep that image and likeness.
There are many who choose their own wills, often under the guise of trying to do good. They claim that they should be free to do whatever they want as long as it does not hurt any one else. But, each and every sin does hurt others. A person not individuals solely unto himself. Every sin makes the person less human and makes the world more of an evil place.
What is particularly evil are the attempts to hide evil by trying to make it look good. Such is the case with embryonic stem cell research. No other country in the world has shown any progress in this. As a matter of fact, only bad results have occurred: the production of cancerous cells. The rush to give billions of tax payer dollars for embryonic stem cell research is a way augmenting the coffers of certain universities and research facilities. So, the misleading mantra that this “research” will save lives is a cover-up for destroying lives, for justifying abortion and for making more money for institutions.
Fortunately, there are good people in this world; not that they never sin, but that they strive, with God’s help, not to give in to the temptation to make themselves number one above others. They are basically honest, admit their sins and make the effort not to make the same mistake again. Thankfully, Catholics have the Sacrament of Penance—Confession, wherein God directly helps the penitent to keep his resolutions to be good.
It is the repentance, the amendment of life, the prayers and the good works of many who keep the world today from a harsh, divine reckoning. Hopefully we are among this group, not self-righteous, but just struggling to do our best, all the while admitting our failings. We want to be like St. Michael in every instance—to serve God and in doing so to serve others and make this world a much better place.
Fr. Stanley
