Fr. Mike Schmitz (0:05)

Hi, my name is Fr. Mike Schmitz and you're listening to the Catechism in a Year podcast where we encounter God's plan of sheer goodness for us revealed in Scripture and passed down through the tradition of the Catholic faith. The Catechism in a Year is brought to you by ascension. In 365 days, we'll read through the Catechism of the Catholic Church, discovering our identity in God's family as we journey together toward our heavenly home. This is day 137. Oh my gosh. We're reading paragraphs 1005 to 1011, meaning 1011. As always, I'm using the Ascension edition of the Catechism, which includes the Foundations of Faith approach, but you can follow along with any recent version of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. You could also download your own catechism in a reading plan by visiting ascensionpress.com ciy and also, I don't know if you know about this, but for members only, for special people, they can click follow or subscribe in your podcast app for daily updates and daily notifications. But sometimes people like to hunt and peck. They like to go on their own and like they, you know, find it themselves. You can go your own way, go your own way if you want. Day 137 Reading paragraphs 1005 to 1011. My goodness, you guys. Today dying in Christ Jesus. Yesterday we talked about this, right? We talked about the reality of how did the dead rise? What is rising? When will this happen? Who does it happen to? What is it to rise with Christ? Yesterday we highlighted the fact in paragraph 1005 that United with Christ by baptism, believers already truly participate in the heavenly, heavenly life of the risen Christ. Of course, this life remains hidden with Christ and God. So we recognize that there's already a death that we ought to have gone through. And we did. Sacramentally, we went through a death. If you've been baptized, you went through the sacramental death, you've been buried with Christ in baptism. And so we're going to talk about that even more when it comes to the later on paragraphs here that death is transformed by Christ Jesus. But today we have to. I think this is fascinating. You know, years ago I read this book by Dr. Peter Kreeft and I think it's called Love is Stronger than Death. It's. It is, it's remarkable. A lot of his books are remarkable, but in it he highlighted the fact that the Catechism is going to highlight. And this fact is the wages of sin is death. That Death in some ways is not natural to us. Of course, it would be like, no, no, no. If you're going to be, you know, a sober person who looks at reality, the harsh realities of life, then you're going to, of course you're going to accept death. Death is just part of life. And yes, that's true. But on the other hand, God had never intended us to experience death as we experience it. Now, that paragraph 1008 will highlight this, that death is a consequence of sin, that death entered the world on account of man's sin. And it says this. Even though man's nature is mortal, God had destined him not to die. So death is contrary to the plans of God the Creator, and entered the world as a consequence of sin. Now what does that mean for us? Well, it means that death is actually a problem. That means that death is actually the enemy. In fact, scripture says death is the enemy. But I think sometimes maybe this isn't new, but I know for myself, when I was raised a Catholic, raised Christian, it was like, no, no, no. Death has been redeemed and transformed by Jesus. In fact, death is not the enemy, which makes sense after Jesus, because paragraph 1009 will say this death is transformed by Christ. But I think for us to truly understand the greatness of what Jesus has done for us, we first have to recognize death is actually an enemy, maybe even the enemy in so many ways. And Jesus Christ has conquered this enemy. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. And we have to, I think, in some way in our lives appreciate that reality so that we can appreciate what Jesus has done for us. So we're going to talk about that today, as well as the fact that because of what Jesus has done for us, Christian death now has a positive meaning, of course, right? We have to almost fight for the negative meaning so we can even more fully appreciate the positive meaning. And that's paragraphs 1010 and 10 11. Just so incredible, because what does St. Paul say? For to me to live is Christ and death is gain man. I hope with today we can affirm both of those things that, yes, death is the enemy and Christ has conquered it. So that for me to live as Christ and death is now gained. So let's pray it's coming for our Heavenly Father, Father in heaven, in Jesus name. We approach you in the power of your Holy Spirit that you've poured out upon us. We have been made into your sons and daughters, and our mortal bodies have been transformed. They will be transformed even more fully to be like your immortal body. But right now we walk amid the thorns and thistles of life. Right now we walk amid the sufferings and sorrows of this world. And right now we know that we will face death. We will face that moment when we give up our last breath. Our heart beats for that last time and our body and soul will be separated. God, in this moment, prepare our hearts for that. Give us courage in the hour of our death. Send your angels and saints. May Mary pray for us at the hour of our death. And may, Lord, may you meet us at the hour of our death. Because you, yes, death is the enemy. You did not make death, nor do you rejoice in the destruction of the living. But your son has transformed death and given us new life. And so we ask you, please, at the hour of our death. Give us courage in the hour of our death. Give us grace in the hour of our death. Take us to yourself. In Jesus name we pray. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Okay, as I said, it's day 137. Reading paragraphs 1,500 to 10 11. Dying in Christ Jesus to rise with Christ, we must die with Christ we must be away from the body and at home with the Lord. In that departure which is death, the soul is separated from the body. It will be reunited with the body on the day of resurrection of the dead. Death it is in regard to death that man's condition is most shrouded in doubt. In a sense, bodily death is natural. But for faith it is in fact the wages of sin. For those who die in Christ's grace, it is a participation in the death of the Lord, so that they can also share his resurrection. Death is the end of earthly life. Our lives are measured by time, in the course of which we change, grow old. And as with all living beings on earth, death seems like the normal end of life. That aspect of death lends urgency to our lives. Remembering our mortality helps us realize that we have only a limited time in which to bring our lives to fulfillment. As the book of Ecclesiastes states, remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the Spirit returns to God who gave it. Death is a consequence of sin. The Church's magisterium as authentic interpreter of the affirmations of Scripture and tradition, teaches that death entered the world on account of man's s sin. Even though man's nature is mortal, God had destined him not to die. Death was therefore contrary to the plans of God the Creator, and entered the world as a consequence of sin. Bodily death, from which man would have been immune had he not sinned, is thus the last enemy of man left to be conquered. Death is transformed by Christ. Jesus, the Son of God also himself suffered the death that is part of the human condition. Yet despite his anguish as he faced death, he accepted it in an act of complete and free submission to his Father's will. The obedience of Jesus has transformed the curse of death into a blessing. The Meaning of Christian Death because of Christ, Christian death has a positive meaning. As St. Paul writes, for to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. This saying is sure, if we have died with him, we will also live with him. What is essentially new about Christian death is through baptism, the Christian has already died with Christ sacramentally in order to live a new life. And if we die in Christ's grace, physical death completes this dying with Christ and so completes our incorporation into him in his redeeming act. As Saint Ignatius of Antioch wrote, it is better for me to die in ice than to reign over the ends of the earth. Him it is I seek who died for us. Him it is I desire who rose for us. I am on the point of giving birth. Let me receive pure light. When I shall have arrived there, then I shall be a man. In death. God calls man to himself. Therefore, the Christian can experience a desire for death. Like St. Paul's who stated, my desire is to depart and be with Christ. He can transform his own death into an act of obedience and love toward the Father after the example of Christ. As Saint Ignatius of Antioch further, my earthly desire has been crucified. There is living water in me, water that murmurs and says within me, come to the Father. Saint Teresa of Avila stated, I want to see God, and in order to see Him, I must die. Saint Therese of Lisieux said, I am not dying, I am entering life. All right, so there we have it. Paragraphs 1005-1011. My goodness. I end with those three quotes from St. Ignatius of Antioch, St. Teresa of Avila, and St. Therese of Lisieux and just realize, oh my gosh, here is God who has transformed death. Let's highlight this. Wow. Paragraph 1005. Let's start from the very beginning. In order to rise with Christ, we must die with Christ. That's just what has to happen. Death is necessary not only because it's a necessary part of biological living, but in order to get to Jesus, we have to pass through this transition. We have to pass through this thing. Called death. And yet there's so much about this that is mysterious for us. Paragraph 1006, what's it say? The very first line from Gaudi Mat Spez says it is in regard to death, that man's condition is most shrouded in doubt. Because why? Because. Wow. It's a journey that every one of us has to make, and it's a journey every one of us has to make in some ways alone. I don't know if you've ever thought about that, but even as you know, you might die surrounded by family or friends, you might die with people there. But it's one of those journeys that we have to make on our own. At some point, we take that last breath. At some point when that heart stops beating, at some point when that soul leaves our body. I mean, that's the word, right? Leave. And I know many of you have experienced death. You've experienced the death of people that you've loved and lived for. And so you know this. You've experienced the deaths of people that have loved you. And maybe you even were able to be there in that moment where they did breathe their last breath. And there's something about this that just is so mysterious, it's so unknown. And as it says in the catechism, it's most shrouded in doubt because it says here, in a sense, bodily death is natural. Exactly. But for faith, it is in fact the wages of sin. Just like I mentioned Peter Kreeft had said. At first we recognize, okay, if you're just going to be sober, have that, you know, the hard look at reality, it's very normal, it's very natural. But we realize that actually death is a consequence of sin. And also for us who die in Christ's grace, it is a participation in the death of the Lord, so we can also share in his resurrection. So it's the end of earthly life. We recognize that. And it gives an urgency to our lives. To know that we're not going to live forever gives us. I mean, hopefully it makes us appreciate what we have. Hopefully makes us appreciate what we've been given. In fact, one of the reasons I love living in the northern hemisphere, I love living in northern Minnesota, is because we have four seasons. Well, we have three and a half seasons. Summer is there for a little bit. We have one season, it's called winter, and then, then pothole season. But, you know, we have these changing of seasons, and there's something about this that is so powerful. I used to envy those people who lived in the you know, south with Florida or, you know, Southern California, Texas, that kind of situation. Hawaii. Oh, my gosh, Amazing, because you always get warm weather. You always get the sun, and we don't. In fact, when the sun comes out, it's like, oh, my gosh, everyone is outside. Up here in northern Minnesota, we get a nice day. And after winter, a nice day is in the 40s, and people are wearing T shirts, they're wearing shorts. And it's one of those. You just appreciate it because you know it's not going to be here forever. In fact, that's also when it comes to work. When it comes to some people who plant or work outside, they realize, okay, the weather is nice today. We need to act today because we don't know the weather is going to be. Or we do know the weather is going to be bad after this. And so because of that, it's kind of like this little mini death. Every single year, as we go through the cycle of winter, summer, fall, and spring. Those are out of order, but you know what I'm saying. But the sense of, wow, Death gives an urgency to our lives. Remembering our mortality, it says in paragraph 1007, helps us realize that we have only a limited time in which to bring our lives to fulfillment and that death is a consequence of sin and the last enemy to be destroyed is death. Paragraph 1009 is just so powerful, though death is transformed by Jesus Christ. So incredible. Well, so, because what does Jesus do? The Son of God himself suffered the death that is part of the human condition. Yet in spite of this, how did he do it? This is the key for all of us. This is how you and I are called to face death. He accepted it in an act of complete and free submission to his Father's will. This is. This is what you and I are called to when we face our own death. We're called to accept it in an act of complete and free submission to our Father's will. How do we prepare for death? Well, one of the ways we prepare for death is by fasting. Like, really, one of the ways we prepare for death is by letting go of things that we're clinging to. And when I say fasting, I don't just mean food. I mean, you know, we have some attachments in our lives. And one of those practices for letting go, you know, at the end of our lives, we have to let go of everything so we can practice letting go through fasting on a regular basis. I need this thing. Well, do I really? Do we let it go? We practice for death by going to sleep. I don't know if you've ever prayed about that or thought about this. Climbing into bed with nothing else, playing, like with nothing on the tv with nothing playing on device. But just climbing to bed in silence and lying down in silence is a practice for death. Lord, the day will come when I don't have a choice and I'll be lying in my bed hopefully, and I'll just have to enter into the silence. Even going to bed, going to sleep is a practice for death. Because why? Because Christ has transformed this. An act of complete and free submission to His Father's will. Because of Jesus, Christian death has a positive meaning for me to live as Christ and to die is gain. And so we know that if we've died with him, we will also live with him. And we have hope that even St. Ignatius, right, it's better for me to die in Christ than to reign over the ends of the earth. We know this. We know that Jesus Christ has transformed death for us. And in death, God calls us to himself. He doesn't forget us in death. We don't enter into oblivion. In death. We are called from this world to the Lord himself. And that's one of the reasons why we're called to look at death in a new way. We're called to look at death not as the enemy and not even as a door we have to kind of go through. I don't really want to, but fine, I'll do it. But as death as a mother, in some ways, death as a lover, that brings us to the one that we love. Death is the thing that brings us to the one that we love. And so we have to recognize. I can't just resign myself to death. I want to actually long for the Lord. And this is the thing I'm just praying for right now. I'm praying that all of us have this longing for the Lord. Not a hatred of this life, not that at all, but a longing for Jesus so much that, okay, I can't wait to die again. Not a hatred of this life and not hastening our death, but a longing for Jesus so fully longing for the Father and the Holy Spirit so fully that we recognize, okay, Lord, I cannot wait for this moment. So help me prepare, help me practice Saint Teresa of Avila. I want to see God, and in order to see Him, I must die. I mean, that's just so, so frank. It's so clear. It's so true. And I want to see God too. And I know that in order to see Him I must die. But I have to die in his grace. And so I just want to be faithful. And I'm praying that you and I, that we're all faithful. You know, I know we're going to mess up. I know we're going to fall, we're going to stumble. But the Lord is faithful and he always takes us back when we're willing to let him take us back. But today my invitation is to practice dying. To see death as not as merely the enemy, but as the way in which you and I will get to see God. Let's pray for each other in that. Because I know death can be scary and death can be heartbreaking. Death can lead us into grief. But death can also lead us into hope. So that's what I'm praying for. I'm praying for you that you have hope. Please pray for me. My name is Father Mike. I cannot wait to see you tomorrow. God bless.