Article 1. The First Commandment

I. “You Shall Worship the Lord Your God and Him Only Shall You Serve” (cont’d)

Charity

Credit: St. Thomas More College

(2093) Faith in God’s love encompasses the call and the obligation to respond with sincere love to divine charity. The first commandment enjoins us to love God above everything and all creatures for him and because of him.

(2094) One can sin against God’s love in various ways:

• indifference neglects or refuses to reflect on divine charity; it fails to consider its prevenient goodness and denies its power.
• ingratitude fails or refuses to acknowledge divine charity and to return him love for love.
• lukewarmness is hesitation or negligence in responding to divine love; it can imply refusal to give oneself over to the prompting of charity.
• acedia or spiritual sloth goes so far as to refuse the joy that comes from God and to be repelled by divine goodness.
• hatred of God comes from pride. It is contrary to love of God, whose goodness it denies, and whom it presumes to curse as the one who forbids sins and inflicts punishments.

II. “Him Only Shall You Serve”

(2095) The theological virtues of faith, hope, and charity inform and give life to the moral virtues. Thus charity leads us to render to God what we as creatures owe him in all justice. The virtue of religion disposes us to have this attitude.

Adoration

(2096) Adoration is the first act of the virtue of religion. To adore God is to acknowledge him as God, as the Creator and Savior, the Lord and Master of everything that exists, as infinite and merciful Love. “You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve,” says Jesus, citing Deuteronomy.

Today, the church celebrates the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. As we go through the day, let us remember to thank Mary for her yes to the Lord and ask her to continue to guide us in the ways of her Son.

Birth of Mary by Ghirlandaio

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior
for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant.

From this day all generations will call me blessed:
the Almighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his Name.

He has mercy on those who fear him
in every generation.

He has shown the strength of his arm,
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.

He has cast down the mighty from their thrones,
and has lifted up the lowly.

He has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent away empty.

He has come to the help of his servant Israel
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
the promise he made to our fathers,
to Abraham and his children for ever.

Magnificat (Source: Liturgy of the Hours)

This year has been quite a year for me in seminary formation. The 2009-2010 year started way back during the second week of August as the new seminarians arrived at St. John Vianney College Seminary for New Student Experience. When the returning seminarians arrived back for the year on August 20th, we met a LARGE group of new men who had already bonded and congealed. The first few months were a bit difficult adjusting to the large number of seminarians, the largest sized house in some 35 years. However, once the returning men and the new men came together, walking on the same journey of discovering the Lord’s love for each one of us, we were able to bond as a house of brothers. It was going to be an interesting, grace-filled 50th Anniversary Year for the seminary community!!

On Thursday, September 17, 2009, the seminary community welcomed Christopher West, who came to share a bit about John Paul II‘s Theology of the Body. At the time of his visit, Mr. West had been receiving criticism of many people stating that his commentary on the JPII’s work had been misrepresented by the Theology of the Body Institute. However, the seminarians here can attest to the powerful ministry of Christopher West and the institute he founded. The day after his visit, Justin Cardinal Rigali (Archbishop of Philadelphia) and the Most Rev. Kevin Rhoades (then Bishop of Harrisburg) issued a joint statement in support of Christopher West. They wanted to “express strong support for the important work of the Theology of the Body Institute and, in particular, that of Christopher West.” They continued by saying: