Mortal sin – here we gooooo

Mortal sin is tough. Straight up.

I think it’s hard to reconcile the notion of an all-loving, ever-loving God with the existence of Hell. I think this is in part due to our present day notion that we deserve things – our sense of entitlement if you will.
So it’s kind of hard for us to accept that heaven shouldn’t be handed to us on a silver platter.

I think the truth is that we are blessed beyond our knowledge. And part of that blessing is our free will.

I’m not that smart - But the Church is.
Soooo here’s what she has to say…

1861 Mortal sin is a radical possibility of human freedom, as is love itself. It results in the loss of charity and the privation of sanctifying grace, that is, of the state of grace. If it is not redeemed by repentance and God's forgiveness, it causes exclusion from Christ's kingdom and the eternal death of hell, for our freedom has the power to make choices for ever, with no turning back. However, although we can judge that an act is in itself a grave offense, we must entrust judgment of persons to the justice and mercy of God.
- Catechism of the Catholic Church

So mortal sin is a big deal.
It’s a huge deal.

It’s also kind of hard to accept – that a single, voluntary action of grave nature committed with full knowledge can keep us from inheriting the eternal Kingdom our Father has prepared for us.

Sooooo when things are hard to understand – I find myself looking for comparables in this world.
Here’s one.

I think mortal sin is like this…
I once heard a priest explain how or why it could be possible, using the example of a man who jumps off a bridge. He doesn’t have to jump 10 times to die – it only takes one moment, one choice, and his life on Earth is over. So Father Larry suggested that, in the same way, a single action on this Earth can have that same degree of eternal consequence.

I’d like to slightly modify that…
I think when we commit a mortal sin – it’s as though we jump out of a helicopter in to the ocean.
The ocean breaks our fall, and we survive for the moment.
The helicopter then throws a rope out, reaching down to pull us to safety.
And so we remain in the water – with a choice.
A choice to grab a hold of the rope and be pulled back to safety, or a choice to fight to stay afloat in the water as long as we are able to tread water, but then eventually to tire and die.

Our God is a God of endless mercy. His rope is strong. His call is unending.
He beckons us to choose Him. To trust Him. To hang on to the rope He extends – and He guarantees our safety.

I believe the rope He offers us is the gift of Reconciliation – the Sacrament of Confession.

He doesn’t ask for gold or silver; for your happiness or for your possessions – but just for a repentant heart. He calls us to the confessional where His tender mercy is overflowing from the mouth of His minister.

The gift of Reconcilliation is the lifeline that will be present for the rest of your life and mine.
We can struggle and fight on our own in the waters of sin – or we can reach up and hang on tight to a lifeline that will not fail.

If you or I witnessed a man fighting needlessly for his life with help so near by – would we not desperately urge him to cling on to the rope that holds the hope of new life?

The good for the great...

When Jesus reappeared to the Apostles after His Death and Ressurection – I don’t think I could imagine their joy. Yes they had found the empty tomb, and yes they knew that Christ had risen from the grave – but how full their hearts must have been when they first came to recognize His presence amongst them once again.

And then He ascended in to Heaven – then He left them again.

So I wonder – If they had had a choice in whether or not to let their Lord physically leave them, could they have been persuaded? Even with the promise of greater things to come (John 14:12), would they have been willing to risk it? I’m not sure I would have, in their shoes. I don’t think I could have imagined anything greater than walking beside the Lord. I think I would have clung on tight.

But praise God that His plans are greater than ours – that He is able to see beyond our vision, that He is indeed a God of the great and impossible. And so Jesus left and the Church was founded. And it spread throughout the world. And men and women were drawn to the perfect and sustaining love of God. And lives were transformed. And goodwill was propagated. And the Apostles worked miracles. And Jesus Christ was lifted high.

Because God had His way.

I think the Apostles were ‘fortunate’ in a sense. They had no say in whether or not Christ was going to stay. When His Father called him to Heaven – that was that, He was going.

But I think in our lives sometimes, we need to be just as submissive to the Lord’s calling. Christ’s obedience was perfect, and so He went without looking back. But sometimes I wonder if I’m more like the apostles might have been. I don’t know that I’m always ready to let go and give up the good that I have. But I think we’re asked to give up the good, in anticipation of the great. We’re called not to settle for mediocrity, but to realize our full potential – as a favourite author of mine says – to become the best version of ourselves (Matthew Kelly).

It’s a somewhat terrifying thing to do – knowing that the good that we give up may never be realized again. But it’s a risk worth taking. The Father doesn’t lead us to a place He hasn’t prepared for us. He called His Son. And then He sent His Spirit. So, too, in our lives – when we open our hands, He takes what doesn’t belong and replenishes them with abundance.