Day 278: The Second Commandment (2142-2149)

• It’s Day 278!!

• ARTICLE 2: THE SECOND COMMANDMENT

• THE NAME OF THE LORD IS HOLY

• “You shall not take the name of the Lord, your God, in vain.”

• Also, “You shall not swear falsely, but I say to you, do not swear at all.”

• In our day and age, the name of the Lord is a curse word

• The name of our Lord is taken in virtually every context

• It is seen in TV shows and movies etc.

• The name of the Lord is blasphemed so often

• In revealing His name to us, God has entrusted Himself to us in this profound and deeply personal way

• So we have to have the spirit of fear, awe, and trembling  when it comes to the Lord’s name

• Let’s pray!!

Prayer by Fr. Mike: “Father in Heaven, we give you praise and we give you glory. We thank you. We thank you for bringing us to this moment, and we thank you for revealing your name to us. We thank you for revealing your heart to us that in disclosing your name to us, Lord God, you have entrusted your heart to us. You have entrusted yourself to us. Help us to never, never ignore, be indifferent towards, misuse, or abuse your name. Lord God, please protect us from this sin. And please help us to make reparation for any sins against your name. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen”

• So there we have it!!

• INCREDIBLE!!

• So many sins have become mainstream

• So many grave sins have become commonplace

• God has entrusted…

• SQUIRREL!! 😉

• Let’s listen to Fr. Mike’s story about his friend, Nick…

• There are certain cultures that practice the occult and voodoo

• If someone reveals their name to them, it makes them vulnerable

• It is one of the reasons why during exorcisms, the exorcist commands the demon in Jesus’ name to reveal their name

• When they reveal their name, they become vulnerable

• To share one’s name is to share oneself

• It is to make yourself vulnerable

• What does God do?

• In the course of Revelation, God reveals His sacred name

• He has revealed Himself to us in Jesus Christ

• The name of Jesus is remarkable

• The name of Jesus is His presence and His presence is His Power

• When we utter the name of Jesus, He is present

• If we actually had respect and fear of the Lord, we would never ever utter the sacred name of Jesus carelessly

• AND YET…

• What happens?

• We say things like “oh my God” all the time

• We say “Jesus Christ” when we get cut off in traffic

• To do this is a direct sin against the Second Commandment

• John Henry Cardinal Newman says in Paragraph 2144, “Are these feelings of fear and awe Christian feelings or not?...I say this, then, which I think no one can reasonably dispute. They are the class of feelings we should have-yes, have to an intense degree-if we literally had the sight of Almighty God; therefore they are the class of feelings which we shall have, if we realize His presence. In proportion as we believe that He is present, we shall have them; and not to have them, is not to realize, not to believe that He is present.”

• Think about all the times in Scripture when God reveals Himself to someone and they fall down as though dead

• John, the beloved disciple, was one of Jesus’ best friends and even took care of Mary for the remainder of her life on earth etc. 

• In the Book of Revelation, he turns around and he sees Jesus in His glory and falls down as though dead

• Even if we have an intimate friendship with Jesus, if we come face to face with God Himself it is overwhelming

• No one can see the Face of God and live

• If we believe to a small degree that God is present then we have a small degree of fear and awe

• Think about the context of Adoration or the Mass

• Jesus is fully, substantially, truly present in His Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity

• If we nonchalantly approach Him, maybe that reveals that we only believe that He is present to a certain degree

• To not have those feelings of fear and awe is not to realize or not to believe that He is present

• Maybe we didn’t know

• Maybe we were ignorant of the whole thing

• The same thing is true when it comes to the sacred name of Jesus and the sacred name of God

• Here’s another story by Fr. Mike…

• “Christianity is the only religion where the believers would actually use the name of their God as a curse word.”

• Now Fr. Mike is talking about Mrs. Anderson…

• Wow!! Fr. Mike got sent to the principal’s office!!! 

• Oh man….Fr. Mike’s principal was a nun!!!!! Ouch!!!!

• We need to take it seriously

• Paragraph 2146 says, “The second commandment forbids the abuse of God’s name, i.e., every improper use of the names of God, Jesus Christ, but also of the Virgin Mary and all the saints.”

• Paragraph 2145 says, “The faithful should bear witness to the Lord’s name by confessing the faith without giving way to fear. Preaching and catechizing should be permeated with adoration and respect for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

• Remember, one of the five effects of Confirmation is that you are given a special strength to spread and defend the Faith by word and deed, to never be ashamed of the Cross, and to proclaim the name of Jesus Christ boldly

• One of the dangers of teaching or preaching in the Church is we become so accustomed to holy things that we can start treating these holy things as if they are just simply normal things or common objects

• The same is true with the name of the Lord

• We treat the holy name of the Lord as a common name

• Paragraph 2147 says, “Promises made to others in God’s name engage the divine honor, fidelity, truthfulness, and authority. They must be respected in justice. To be unfaithful to them is to misuse God’s name and in some way to make God out to be a liar.”

• Paragraph 2148 says, “Blasphemy is directly opposed to the second commandment. It consists in uttering against God-inwardly or outwardly-words of hatred, reproach, or defiance; in speaking ill of God; in failing in respect toward him in one’s speech; in misusing God’s name…”

• When it says INWARDLY, it means the willed choice

• It doesn’t just mean a thought passes through your mind

• Blasphemy must be intentionally chosen

• At the same time, our prayer must be honest

• Maybe you are in a moment where you are struggling a lot like Job

• What does Job do?

• Job has three words of lament

• In some ways, Job’s words are a reproach against God and he is speaking words of defiance in some ways

• BUT…

• He is calling out to God for help but he is being honest about it

• This is the tightrope we have to walk

• There is being honest with the Lord about what we are going through 

• There is questioning God

• These are as opposed to words of defiance or words of reproach or words of hatred

• We have to speak honestly of God and honestly to God

• BUT…

• We always have to make sure our speech and prayer is on the side of honesty of a son to His beloved Father

• Even if we don’t understand

• Even if we are in our season of Job

• Even if we are in the midst of suffering

• We can cry out honestly and ask questions

• We need to make sure our prayer is always honest

• Whenever we approach the Lord, we know that God is good even if we are going through the trial of our life

• Paragraph 2149 says, “Oaths which misuse God’s name, though without the intention of blasphemy, show lack of respect for the Lord. The second commandment also forbids magical use of the divine name. [God’s] name is great when spoken with respect for the greatness of his majesty. God’s name is holy when said with veneration and fear of offending him.”

• Whenever it comes to God, things of God, holy things and His Holy Name, we need to have the utmost care and approach them as they are sacred and holy

• We always have to approach the Lord’s name as we approach He, Himself

• Fr. Mike is praying FOR YOU!!

• Please pray for Fr. Mike and for each other!!

• I cannot WAIT to see you at some point in the not-too-distant future!!