OBEDIENCE - Its foundation is always God!

The rebellious angels became evil when they refused to obey God. Their disobedience put them into hell immediately. The disobedience of Adam and Eve brought them and their posterity to great misery, and were it not for redemption they and their posterity would all end in hell.

We are dealing with obedience as a newsletter topic because there are many errors in regard authority and obedience. The constitution of the USA claims that all authority resides in the citizens, and they keep it even when they elect representatives to conduct the matters of social order.

This error is mirrored in Article I, Section I of the Declaration of Right of the Washington State Constitution. It reads: “All political power is inherent in the people, and governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed, and are established to protect and maintain individual rights.” Dear reader, you may think that this declaration is just wonderful. The secular world largely follows this definition. Proudly the citizens proclaim that they are “free.”

Take the opening words: All political power is inherent in the people. Strangely but certainly, this proclaims that man is God. It indicates that man does not receive political power from God, but he has it of his very nature. It is bad enough when those in civil society are mistaken in this matter, and it is even worse when it is proclaimed the same way by bogus Council Vatican II. It is no wonder that society today is corrupting at an alarming rate.

Incontestable proof that all authority comes from God can be learned from Our Divine Savior, Jesus Christ, during His sacred passion. In John 19, 10 & 11 we find written:

Pontius Pilate knew that he had civil authority, but he did not know its source. Christ told him the source of his authority, namely, God.

In order that intellectual beings can live in harmony and as a unit God has ordained that there be authority. There must be a title to that authority. God alone can give authority. Men must designate the persons who will hold authority except where God himself makes that designation. We shall give some examples.

In Ephesians 5, 21 ff:

This is an example where God designated the ruler. No marriage agreement can change that determination. In turn (Eph. 5, 25) God commands that

Animals accomplish their end by the power of instincts that are placed in them by the creator. The instinct of self preservation causes the animals to take care of themselves with food, drink and the like. The preservation of the species’ instinct causes them to bring forth their young and care for them.

Our Lord set up authority in His Church. In Luke 10, 16 Christ directed these words to his apostles:

In Proverbs 1, 33 it is written:

In John 8, 47:

Likewise in John 14, 23 Christ says:

In other words God will give him sanctifying grace which will get him into heaven, provided he is in that state of soul at the moment of death.

We know the sad scenario of the fall of Adam in the garden of delights. His sin does not stop with him, for he was the representative of the whole human race, so all mankind fell with Adam. Think of all the suffering that we endure comes into this world because of that one sin, called original sin!

In I Kings 15, 23 the hideousness of sin is revealed:

Just how is disobedience compared to witchcraft? It resembles the sin of the fallen angels. Hence, it is diabolical, also called witchcraft. Again, why is disobedience called idolatry? Idolatry is the worshipping of a false god. In disobedience the creature worships himself as god. In the formulary of exorcism the Church addresses Satan thus: “You still think that you are equal with God.” Never will all the fallen angels in hell change their minds. Likewise, damned human beings will do likewise forever.

In short, obedience on earth sets human beings up for obedience forever in heaven. On the contrary, disobedience on earth set up souls for disobedience forever in hell.

God’s blessing and curse are set forth wonderfully in Deuteronomy 11, 26 to 28:

A classical example of perfect obedience practiced in the Old Testament is that of Abraham. No matter what sorrow it cost him Abraham obeyed God, even to sacrifice his beloved son, Isaac, had God not stopped the action.

The classical example of perfect obedience for all time is the obedience of the God-Man, Our Lord, Jesus Christ. He obeyed the good pleasure of His heavenly Father from His coming into this world to His cruel death on the cross. He lived in the social structure of His day, and he obeyed the ecclesiastical and civil powers that were over Him. After Christ We see perfect obedience in the Blessed Virgin Mary. Down though the centuries we observe the wonderful obedience of all the canonized Saints.

God’s laws come to us in many forms. Laws that follow natural human reason are called natural laws. God spelled them out clearly in the Ten Commandments. In theology they are explained in great detail, and that is an application of human reason to the basic Commandments. For example: Thou shalt not steal must be explained to know what acts belong to injustice. Also, in the Sixth Commandment the term adultery appears alone. However, it includes the panorama of sins of impurity.

There are two big classes of authority in the world. One is ecclesiastical and the other is civil. God gives origin to the state, and He gives origin to the Church. Both must work side by side as God ordains. The state may not take what belongs to the Church, and the Church may not take what belongs to the state. Christ said: give to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God the things that are God’s (Mark 12,7). Throughout the centuries, civil rulers have tried to take away the authority of the Church, thus, making religion and state one entity. This is in practice in Moslem countries. In Christian countries the distinction, but not separation, of Church and state are observed.

In opening of this newsletter, We gave you the concept of authority as it is erroneously stated in the Constitution of the USA and of the state of Washington. Pope Boniface VIII had that problem to correct, and he did so on November 18, 1303 in his Bull, “Unam Sanctam.” It can be found in Denzinger’s Enchiridion Symbolorum, known in English as The Sources of Catholic Dogma in numbers 468 & 469. In the interest of brevity We must skip 468 and go to 469 which is as follows:

Once again, when authority is from God there is an obligation before God to obey that authority in all things that are not contrary to God’s laws.

We shall deal with a few of the points in the Bull of Pope Boniface VIII given above. He speaks of two swords or powers. One power is in God’s Church, and the other is in all legitimate states. They are distinct, but they are not separated as many believe today. There is a solemn claim (mouthed much in the USA) that Church and state are totally separate entities. Pope Boniface VIII makes it clear that all authority is mounted in the spiritual power which is in the Church. The state is not over the Church, but the Church is over the state as seen above.

Likewise, Pope Boniface VIII tells the world that “authority, although it is given to man and is exercised by man is not human but divine….” It is true that the sources of law and therefore obedience differ, but the end results are the same, namely that it comes from God, and God punishes and rewards those who violate laws and rewards those who obey just laws.

The source of law and authority are in three main categories. They are natural laws, which means that the laws are so simple that they are written in the consciences of men. They are called the “Ten Commandments of God.”

A second source of law and obedience is in divine law, namely the laws that God gives independent of His natural laws. For example, a divine law is that all men must be members of God’s one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church in order to be saved. Divine law requires that men receive the sacraments of the Church as they are instructed.

Finally, law and obedience come from those in charge of private and public order. Hence, there are Church laws, and the Church has an elaborate code of laws called, the Code of Canon Law. In that code one finds natural laws, divine laws and positive human laws.

Civil society also makes codes of laws which contain elements of natural law, divine law and their own positive laws. Hence, when a city council orders that a stop light be placed in an intersection it places its authority behind it with sanctions, namely, what penalty will follow if it is disobeyed.

Law - Obedience Dogma

At the end of his treatment of law Pope Boniface VIII reiterates in most clear terms a dogma of the faith in regard the fundamental source of all authority. God placed that in His Church, and Pope Boniface VIII lays down the dogma as follows: “Furthermore, we declare, say, define, and proclaim to every human creature that they by necessity for salvation are entirely subject to the Roman Pontiff.” Just think of how that dogma is both not believed and not observed by almost the totality of mankind. Those who observe it are similar to the few that were saved from the Great Flood at the time of Noe. All those not on the ark were lost, and only those on the ark were saved from the flood. So it will be at the end of time; all those in God’s Church are in the banquet hall, and among those at the feast only those with the white garment of sanctifying grace go to heaven. The fate of those without sanctifying grace is told us when the master commanded that the one without the white garment be cast outside (with the rest of the damned herd) where there is “weeping and gnashing of teeth.” as stated in Matthew 22, 13.

It is important that We point out a problem which strikes the world when it refuses both to recognize God as the source of all authority and that sin follows from disobedience. Atheists can have no true obedience, for they see no judgment of God, Who, for them, does not even exist. Just how can a ruler rule when natural law, divine law and positive law have no sanctions in the conscience of men?

We read some years ago of a study called “Iron Mountain.” A group of scientists, teachers, legislators, etc. assembled in a secret place (in an Iron Mountain) where they discussed how a ruler could rule men with merely natural means. The solution was that a ruler could not rule a godless people without the horrors of war and or terrorism in general. That solution reminds Us of the statement which goes as follows: if men will not be ruled by God they will be ruled by tyrants.

We shall make this practical. The destruction of the whole face of the Murrah building in Oklahoma City with a fertilizer bomb, was obviously an act of terror by some secret power with ordinance (explosives) to crush all the structural pillars on the whole face of the building at once.

That the twin towers of the World Trade Buildings were hit by airplanes is obvious, but that was not what brought down the buildings. On the very moment that We saw the film where the buildings came tumbling down the obvious reason for the total crash had to be some ordinance (explosives) scientifically placed on the pillars of the buildings which made them come down exactly as when a demolition contractor demolishes a condemned building. Now the terror of 9-11 is constantly played before the public to keep them constantly terrified. The public is constantly under threat of more and more terror. Hence, the suspense caused by terror hangs over the world. The program of ruling with the threat of terror as seen by scientists, rulers and teachers in Iron Mountain continues to escalate, and no end is in sight. The end of constant war would come to a solution if men turned to God and recognized His rule in their divinely enlightened minds and divinely assisted consciences.

It is probable that some of you would like to get studied articles on the matter of terrorism as found in society today. Check the periodical entitled STRAWS IN THE WIND, P.O. Box 513, Albert Lea, MN 56007. We quote Vol. 11, No. 2 dated May/June 2003. In that issue the author Alex Jones wrote an article entitled Total Police State Takeover. He deals at length with the controversial law entitled Patriot Act II. Every citizen should be entitled to know the laws of the land. He writes the following: “I have produced two documentary films and written a book about what really happened on September 11th . ‘The bottom line is this: the military-industrial complex carried the attacks out as a pretext for control. Anyone who doubts this just hasn’t looked at the mountains of hard evidence.’”

The world is moving into atheism. With profound concern We quote St. Paul speaking to Philippians 3, 18-19 as follows:

Here is what happens even in this life with those who refuse to know, love and obey God wherever His authority is present. Those who refuse to be ruled by God will be ruled by tyrants. Yes, devil worshiping tyrants will manufacture wars and terrorism in order to keep the dumb public driveling for peace and security. Who does not know that Nero ordered the burning of Rome so that he would have a “terror” reason for persecuting innocent Christians? For such men, when terror nowhere exists, they will manufacture terror. Of them We quote from Proverbs 21, 288:

Then with the words of God as found in Verse 30 He condemn all evil doers:

At the general judgment when all men are gathered before the Lord, all hidden things of good and evil will be made manifest. The disobedient will go to hell, and the obedient will go to heaven. That judgment will be just and final, and its effect will continue forever.

Progressive Petition in Prayer
Of a Catholic in Sanctifying Grace

O God give me an increase of the virtues faith, hope and charity, and an increase of prudence, justice, temperance and fortitude. Perfect and bolster those virtues with the Gifts of the Holy Ghost, namely: wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety and fear of the Lord. Thus, do Thou make them produce in me the Fruits of the Holy Ghost, namely: charity, joy peace, patience, longanimity, goodness, benignity, mildness, faith, modest, continency, chastity. Lead me in living the eight beatitudes (the first and last being: blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven and blessed are those who suffer persecution for justice sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven). May I live habitually doing the spiritual and corporal works of mercy, in the spirit and practice, of the evangelical counsels of poverty, chastity and obedience. My I do all this with Thy help which will redound to Thy honor and glory and the salvation of my soul and that of all men. Amen.