- Nov 30, 2003
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There is a lot of stuff in the Bible that can be construed as silly superstition.
The priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the LORD stopped in the middle of the Jordan and stood on dry ground, while all Israel passed by until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground.
Joshua 3:17
Huh! They carried the ark of the covenant an walked on the river Jordan. And the water parted so that they stood on dry ground! Some may say that this is silly superstition.
In 2 Kings 5, Naman the leper king came to Eisha to be healed. The prophet told him to bathe in the Jordan river seven times. Not once, not three time, but seven times, as if there was something magical about the lucky seven. And then the king was healed! Did God need the river Jordan? Did He need the king to go into the river Jordan seven times for Him to heal the king?
In 2 Kings 13:21, they threw the body of dead man onto the bones of the deceased prophet, Elisha, and the dead man came to life! If I was not a Christian, I would think that this would be some silly, hocus-pocus magic.
In John 9:5-8, Jesus took mud, spat on it, and applied in onto the eyes of a blind man. I did not know that mud and spit had such special healing powers!
In Acts 5:15, Peter passed by the sick, and on whomever his shadow fell on they were healed.
I could go on and on. Does God need to do these miracles in these magical ways? No! He could have caused these miracles without the ark, without bathing in the river Jordan, without of bones of a dead prophet, without mud, and without Peter's shadow. He just freely chose them. He could have chosen some other method. He did not have to choose any method at all - just willing it to happen. So why did He choose these silly ways?
Just between you and me, I think this shows that God has a sense of humor. G.K. Chesterton once said that the reason that angels can fly is that they take themselves lightly. Pride makes us take ourselves too seriously. Lucifer was so filled with pride that he sunk out of heaven and fell to the earth
. Only a humble person can laugh at himself! I know that when I created the thread "Catholic Miracles that Defy Explanation", a common objection is that those miracles were too beneath them. Their faith is too "mature" for them. It must be a dignified miracle for it to be worthy for them to believe.
How dignified is being healed by a shadow? Or mud in your eyes? Or dunking yourself in a river seven times? These seem to be foolish. And that is the point. God chooses the foolishness of this world to confound the wise (1 Corinthians 1:20-25, 1 Corinthians 3:19) . God chose to save us by the foolishness of the Cross (1 Corinthians 1:18). He did not save us by some lofty-sounding religion. He saved us by Christ crucified, which is a foolish superstitition in the eyes of the world (1 Corinthians 1:23). But it is the power of God to salvation for those who believe.
So I will do whatever God calls me to do. If He wants me to rub my stomach and pat my head three times then I will do it (so far, He has not indicated that He wants me to do that). It does not matter to me if it is foolish or not. All that matters to me is if God commands me to do it.
So when I drive pass a Catholic Church I will cross myself. When I enter the church I will cross myself with holy water. I will receive the Holy Eucharist as the very Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ, no matter how foolish it may seem that a silly "wafer" is actually the Lord, simply because my Lord held up the bread and said "THIS is my body". Jesus said it, I believe it, that settles it! Others may think of themselves too dignified to believe that. But I am a fool for Christ (1 Corinthians 4:10). I am devoted to praying the Rosary, no matter how foolish it may seem, simply because I believe that the Lord wants me to pray it. I have a devotion to Mary, not because God needs Mary's help. No, He needs nobody. He does not need me. He does not need Mary! But even though He does not need me He wants me. Even though He does not need Mary, He chose Mary. I need Mary as much as the blind man needed mud. God could have bypassed the mud. God could have bypassed Mary. But once God has chosen mud, the blind man needed the mud. And once God has chosen Mary then I need Mary.
And once God has chosen the Cross of Jesus Christ as the way for our salvation, we all need the Cross. He could have chosen a different way. Our Lord could have just pricked His finger, and just one drop of His blood was so infinitely precious that it could have saved the whole world (to quote St. Ambrose). And maybe on other planets God has chosen a different way. But here on earth, that way has already been chosen for us. Non-Christians, especially atheists, view the Cross as a foolish superstition. No matter! There is no other name given to us whereby we are saved. We are saved by becoming fools for Christ. The gospel may seem to be nothing but foolish superstition to those who do not believe, but to those who believe, it is the power and wisdom of God for our salvation.
I am starting to get giddy!
The priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the LORD stopped in the middle of the Jordan and stood on dry ground, while all Israel passed by until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground.
Joshua 3:17
Huh! They carried the ark of the covenant an walked on the river Jordan. And the water parted so that they stood on dry ground! Some may say that this is silly superstition.
In 2 Kings 5, Naman the leper king came to Eisha to be healed. The prophet told him to bathe in the Jordan river seven times. Not once, not three time, but seven times, as if there was something magical about the lucky seven. And then the king was healed! Did God need the river Jordan? Did He need the king to go into the river Jordan seven times for Him to heal the king?
In 2 Kings 13:21, they threw the body of dead man onto the bones of the deceased prophet, Elisha, and the dead man came to life! If I was not a Christian, I would think that this would be some silly, hocus-pocus magic.
In John 9:5-8, Jesus took mud, spat on it, and applied in onto the eyes of a blind man. I did not know that mud and spit had such special healing powers!
In Acts 5:15, Peter passed by the sick, and on whomever his shadow fell on they were healed.
I could go on and on. Does God need to do these miracles in these magical ways? No! He could have caused these miracles without the ark, without bathing in the river Jordan, without of bones of a dead prophet, without mud, and without Peter's shadow. He just freely chose them. He could have chosen some other method. He did not have to choose any method at all - just willing it to happen. So why did He choose these silly ways?
Just between you and me, I think this shows that God has a sense of humor. G.K. Chesterton once said that the reason that angels can fly is that they take themselves lightly. Pride makes us take ourselves too seriously. Lucifer was so filled with pride that he sunk out of heaven and fell to the earth
. Only a humble person can laugh at himself! I know that when I created the thread "Catholic Miracles that Defy Explanation", a common objection is that those miracles were too beneath them. Their faith is too "mature" for them. It must be a dignified miracle for it to be worthy for them to believe.How dignified is being healed by a shadow? Or mud in your eyes? Or dunking yourself in a river seven times? These seem to be foolish. And that is the point. God chooses the foolishness of this world to confound the wise (1 Corinthians 1:20-25, 1 Corinthians 3:19) . God chose to save us by the foolishness of the Cross (1 Corinthians 1:18). He did not save us by some lofty-sounding religion. He saved us by Christ crucified, which is a foolish superstitition in the eyes of the world (1 Corinthians 1:23). But it is the power of God to salvation for those who believe.
So I will do whatever God calls me to do. If He wants me to rub my stomach and pat my head three times then I will do it (so far, He has not indicated that He wants me to do that). It does not matter to me if it is foolish or not. All that matters to me is if God commands me to do it.
So when I drive pass a Catholic Church I will cross myself. When I enter the church I will cross myself with holy water. I will receive the Holy Eucharist as the very Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ, no matter how foolish it may seem that a silly "wafer" is actually the Lord, simply because my Lord held up the bread and said "THIS is my body". Jesus said it, I believe it, that settles it! Others may think of themselves too dignified to believe that. But I am a fool for Christ (1 Corinthians 4:10). I am devoted to praying the Rosary, no matter how foolish it may seem, simply because I believe that the Lord wants me to pray it. I have a devotion to Mary, not because God needs Mary's help. No, He needs nobody. He does not need me. He does not need Mary! But even though He does not need me He wants me. Even though He does not need Mary, He chose Mary. I need Mary as much as the blind man needed mud. God could have bypassed the mud. God could have bypassed Mary. But once God has chosen mud, the blind man needed the mud. And once God has chosen Mary then I need Mary.
And once God has chosen the Cross of Jesus Christ as the way for our salvation, we all need the Cross. He could have chosen a different way. Our Lord could have just pricked His finger, and just one drop of His blood was so infinitely precious that it could have saved the whole world (to quote St. Ambrose). And maybe on other planets God has chosen a different way. But here on earth, that way has already been chosen for us. Non-Christians, especially atheists, view the Cross as a foolish superstition. No matter! There is no other name given to us whereby we are saved. We are saved by becoming fools for Christ. The gospel may seem to be nothing but foolish superstition to those who do not believe, but to those who believe, it is the power and wisdom of God for our salvation.
I am starting to get giddy
!
