It would seem that each one of the faithful in our present condition must
first identify himself/herself to establish within one's own heart as to
whether he/she is a weed or a blade of wheat. The clearest distinction
comes froth by attesting to myself that I am either indeed obedient to the
Holy Father and the bishops faithful to him, or that I am knowingly
following the drum beat of a leader not faithful to him. The distinction
between the weed and the wheat will become even more manifest once the new
Catechism and the recent encyclical, The Splendor of Truth, become
available to the faithful, and both laity and clergy have an opportunity to
study these and react to their content.
There is still something else that Jesus said which should be seriously
pondered: "...when the Son of man comes, will He find faith on earth?" (Luke
18:8) and, "For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been
from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. And if
those days had not been shortened, no human being would be saved, but for
the sake of the elect those days will be shortened." (Matthew 24: 21-22).
What sort of father would the Heavenly Father be if He did not warn ahead
of time those children of His who are the wheat, of what to expect of us
who sincerely believe that we are in the END OF THE AGE and find ourselves
confused at the presence of a weedy environment within His Son's Church?
Whatever words Jesus spoke, came forth from the Father under the influence
o the Spirit. Our Father in heaven is surely concerned for each one of the
faithful as are also the Son and the Spirit, not leave unmentioned, the
most esteemed Daughter, the Mother of Jesus, the Spouse of the Spirit, our
Mother Mary.
It is to the advantage of the enemy to have the faithful beset by
confusion. It would be in this state that would make it difficult if not
impossible for them to recognize the wolves in sheep's clothing, the
hirelings, and the false prophets, the false christs.
We have been gifted with the Faith. We are asked to live our Faith.
Jesus often chided His disciples for their lack of faith. On the other
hand, He praised those who manifested a strong faith. Jesus and Mary in
our own day are making it so clear how important it is for each of us to
maintain ourselves in faith. We are asked to pray that our faith within us
be strengthened. Our Mother pleads that we pray with the heart so that our
prayer would be a prayer of faith. We are asked by her to turn to the Holy
Spirit for guidance. It is the Holy Spirit Who gives the increase of faith
when such an increase is sincerely requested.
Our Faith teaches us the importance of obedience. Obedience can be
genuine and complete only when we live a life fostered by a lively faith, a
living faith, and a vibrant faith. The enemy is making every effort to get
us out of the heart and into the head to introduce chances for confusion
and a weakening of faith.
In order to survive in faith, in order to remain faithful to Jesus and to
His Visible Head on earth, it is imperative that we remove ourselves
abruptly from all confusion, clutch to our faith and move on and not fall
victim to the condition as did Lot's wife. We must surge ahead, giving
loving service to the physically and spiritually needy, ever clinging to
the Vine as we are buffeted by strong amoral winds, and put ourselves into
the loving care of our Heavenly Father and envelop ourselves within the
mantle of our Blessed Mother. Thus we could walk step by step, day by day,
unafraid, enemies to the left and right of us, confidently making our way
along the pat set out for us - the path which leads to salvation.