Saturday, November 7, 2009

Spiritual Sundays - Veteran's Day Message


Since some of you enjoyed the message by Fr. Corapi last Sunday I thought I would share the one he posted this week since it's about Veteran's Day. Fr. Corapi was a soldier in the Army, now he is a soldier for the Lord. He is also a former boxer, former millionaire, former drug addict, former alcoholic, formerly homeless, etc., the list goes on. He is a miracle, he was saved from all of the evil, and became a man of God. You can see/hear him weekly on Eternal Word Television Network. We saw him in person a few years ago when he came to our town.

Veterans' Day Message from Fr. Corapi

Every year in the United States of America we celebrate “Veterans’ Day” on November 11th, which historically marked the armistice (originally Armistice Day) ending World War I. If you are interested in the history of this American holiday, you can easily find it using Google, or any web search engine.

We should all be very thankful for the service of our veterans. Our country and the freedoms we sometimes take for granted were won by, and constantly protected by, the veterans of our Armed Forces. My grandfather served in the US Army during World War I; my father in the Navy Seabees in the South Pacific, some of my uncles served in the Marines, the Navy, and the Air Force during the Korean War. I enlisted in the Army in the late 1960s myself.

“Those who are sworn to serve their country in the armed forces are servants of the security and freedom of nations. If they carry out their duty honorably, they truly contribute to the common good of the nation and the maintenance of peace.”

It is the obligation of all of us, individuals and governments alike, to work assiduously for peace. As my Grandmother often said to me, “war is hell.” She knew as she had a husband and son that fought in both world wars, had nephews and a grandson go off to faraway places. She prayed, worried, and suffered because of war. Nonetheless, she knew, like so many of us do, that without the sacrifices of themselves and their loved ones, there would be no enduring freedom.

There is always something to be learned from the natural order that can be applied to the spiritual and moral life. One of the most common underlying misconceptions and fallacious presuppositions is that there is no evil in the world, that no one will hurt you if you just don’t hurt them. Wrong! There is evil in the world, there has been since darkness entered into Eden, and there will be until Jesus comes again in glory.

There is good and there is evil; there is truth and there are lies; there is life and there is death. Being neutral is a myth. Sitting on a fence is an accident waiting to happen. In the end you will be “for me or against me,” as Jesus says.

We are at war and “our battle is not against flesh and blood,” as St. Paul asserts in his letter to the Ephesians. A good soldier is ready to shed his blood, sweat, and tears for the cause of freedom. Jesus tells us, “I’ve come to set the captives free.” The servant is no better, no different, than his Master. The bottom line of war is victory, and this war is for an eternal prize.

We honor our veterans this week, and rightly so. Let their sacrifices for our country inspire you to even higher things. You and I are called to fight the good fight and run the race to the finish line. Performing our mission as good Catholics and Christians affects countless other souls, some we know, some we don’t. So, as St. Paul cautions us, “Don’t shadow box. Fight so as to win.” Don’t imagine there is not a moral and spiritual war either. This fight results in victory or defeat, Heaven or hell, forever.

God bless you,

Fr. John Corapi



Thank you, Ginger and Charlotte for hosting Spiritual Sundays weekly. Go here for more inspiration.

May God Bless You,

Katherine

9 comments:

Ginger~~Enchanting Cottage said...

What a great post to ponder on as this week approaches us.So many prayers are going up in honor of our Country and the men and women who are fighting for us.We need to continue to pray Thank-you!
God Bless,
Ginger

Susan said...

We are having a special part of our service this morning which honors the Veterans. I am delighted to be taking part in the presentation. Veterans Day this year is especially touching with what just happened at Ft. Hood.
Susan
Susan

Sally said...

Katherine, Thank you for this timely message. God is good.

Charlotte said...

This is so well said. Fr. John Corapi is a wise man. Thank you for sharing his thoughts with us. I wish all of our leaders in Washington understood it. I'm afraid many of them do not.
Blessings,
Charlotte

Mary said...

Katherine, I can't think of a better message than this, especially for Veteran's Day, for for any day...it is applicable for our world, even though some don't understand it...there is no peace without union without God...there is always the fight between good and evil, no middle ground, no grey area...we're either for the Lord or we're against Him. Our military is in peril daily, more than ever before, because the freedom they are fighting for is even greater than what we've fought for before...more than peace and liberty...its for righteousness. We all are soliders in God's army...we all are called to battle daily...I fear many of us are alseep behind an old log, not knowing that the enemy is standing over us with a sword, ready to strike us down. Thinking about Fr. John's history, it is no wonder that he knows God's power...he has seen the "other side" of the good life, and experienced his own hell...but to actually understand what it will truly be like to have eternal life apart from God is beyond our comprehension...we cannot take it lightly.

Thanks for sharing this message...I do want to go to his website and read more...we need to hear this...our government leaders are so blind, Katherine...they are are so lost...we just have to pray for them, and for our country, and for the world leaders, as well. Satan is determined to destroy all of us, but we know that the battle is already won, praise God.

Blessings to you today!

Mary

nannykim said...

Yes, and we sometimes forget that we are daily in this battle. We always need to be aware of this during our daily life! (Hey, for some reason when I came to your post via the link it wouldn't let me comment. I had to go out to your "about me" and then hit the blog again and then I could comment--just wanted to let you know)

Elizabeth Mahlou said...

How inspiring! How often we fight, but not to win; we give up too easily. And how often we forget that the fight is not about us; it is often about people we do not know and have never met.

Small world: I worked at NASA Houston & Gagarin Space Center about a decade ago. Visited KSC as part of my job and once to watch the launch of one of the astronauts with whom I had worked closely!

Denise said...

Thanks for sharing.

Musings of A Minister said...

I agree with what Charlotte and all the others said so I'm just going to say, "Amen." Excellent!!!