1033 We cannot be united with God unless we freely choose to love him. But we cannot love God if we sin gravely against him, against our neighbor or against ourselves: "He who does not love remains in death. Anyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him."610 Our Lord warns us that we shall be separated from him if we fail to meet the serious needs of the poor and the little ones who are his brethren.611 To die in mortal sin without repenting and accepting God's merciful love means remaining separated from him for ever by our own free choice. This state of definitive self-exclusion from communion with God and the blessed is called "hell."
1034 Jesus often speaks of "Gehenna" of "the unquenchable fire" reserved for those who to the end of their lives refuse to believe and be converted, where both soul and body can be lost.612 Jesus solemnly proclaims that he "will send his angels, and they will gather . . . all evil doers, and throw them into the furnace of fire,"613 and that he will pronounce the condemnation: "Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire!"614
1035 The teaching of the Church affirms the existence of hell and its eternity. Immediately after death the souls of those who die in a state of mortal sin descend into hell, where they suffer the punishments of hell, "eternal fire."615The chief punishment of hell is eternal separation from God, in whom alone man can possess the life and happiness for which he was created and for which he longs.
1036 The affirmations of Sacred Scripture and the teachings of the Church on the subject of hell are a call to the responsibility incumbent upon man to make use of his freedom in view of his eternal destiny. They are at the same time an urgent call to conversion: "Enter by the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is easy, that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard, that leads to life, and those who find it are few."616
Since we know neither the day nor the hour, we should follow the advice of the Lord and watch constantly so that, when the single course of our earthly life is completed, we may merit to enter with him into the marriage feast and be numbered among the blessed, and not, like the wicked and slothful servants, be ordered to depart into the eternal fire, into the outer darkness where "men will weep and gnash their teeth."617
1037 God predestines no one to go to hell;618 for this, a willful turning away from God (a mortal sin) is necessary, and persistence in it until the end. In the Eucharistic liturgy and in the daily prayers of her faithful, the Church implores the mercy of God, who does not want "any to perish, but all to come to repentance":619
Joe Diedrich is not your average Catholic. In fact, for most of his early adult life he was adamantly and vocally anti-Catholic, much to the disappointment of his Catholic school teachers.
Even though Joe was brought up in the Church, his catechism experience, family tragedies and substance abuse issues kept him from fully accepting and living the faith.
Joe was born in Rockford, Ill., and was the youngest of six kids. On the outside, they were the perfect Catholic family. However, when tragedy hit, Joe says instead of turning toward the Faith, he ran screaming from it in the opposite direction.
“There were six of us kids but three died within the first week of life. When I was 10 my brother was hit by a car and killed and then in 1988, my sister was raped and murdered. After that I looked around at these people in my life who were supposedly representatives of Catholicism, and I just wanted to have nothing to do with them or the Church,” Diedrich says. “I was extremely verbal about my hatred and, really, it was all based on ignorance.”
Substance abuse and illegal activity took over Joe’s life in high school and he credits these, in part, for his crisis of faith. It got to the point where he was having suicidal thoughts, but three months after he graduated high school he had, what he calls, a “moment of reversion.”
“After a night of indulging in some illegal activity, I ended up alone and drunk and in a rainstorm, when it happened. I thought I was going to die. I’m absolutely convinced the Divine intervened. After that night, I never touched another drop and now I’ve been 34 years sober. I don’t call it a conversion since I grew up Catholic, I call it a Reversion,” says Diedrich.
Once he sobered up, Joe decided to go to Benedictine College in Kansas for his sophomore–senior years of college.
“Even though I had this experience, I was still pretty messed up, but Benedictine College saved me. It was not just the catechesis but the fellowship was unbelievably loving.
and they demonstrated that. I went to them newly sober, clean and a mental case and they just loved me back to spiritual health,” says Diedrich.
In Joe’s journey back to Catholicism, Diedrich mentions being happy to be back, but, after a while, he realized deep down he was just going through the motions. In 2000, Joe says he experienced some enlightening experiences with forgiveness and has been dedicated ever since.
“One night I just lost it and just blew up and I hurt someone very dear to me. And they forgave me. I had never seen anything like that. I’ve always lived a self-centered life, but that’s gotten a lot better thanks to God and the forgiveness of others.”
The past 16 years were a time of growth and awakening for Diedrich. During that time, he became a dedicated religious education teacher — but has one regret — allowing his past to prevent him from starting sooner.
“As a kid, I fought religious education tooth and nail because I felt like no one really cared. Now, considering how I grew up, I think I have a lot of “street cred” with these kids. They are really interested in learning about the Church. The highest compliment I received from a student was, ‘You make it fun!’ That’s how they’re going to remember,” says Diedrich.
A tool he uses in class are the stories of the saints, which helped him grow in faith when he was struggling.
“I am inspired by their lives and I want to share that with others. So, I started making these Saint Shirts that I wear all the time and people asked about them. I started telling the kids stories about Maximilian Kolbe, and they begged to hear more,” says Diedrich.
One thing Joe wants other fallen away Catholics who are considering coming back to know is that you don’t have to throw the baby out with the bathwater.
“I think a vast majority have fallen away based on personalities not principles. It’s important to keep an open mind, search for someone and/or someplace where you feel safe asking questions. If you’re afraid to ask questions, ask them scared. If your scared to do the right thing, do it scared, that means it’s probably the right thing.”
Member of the Salesians, professed in Seville, Spain in 1909. Priest, ordained in Andalusia in 1917. Martyred in the Spanish Civil War.
Jamal Khashoggi said ‘I'm suffocating... Take this bag off my head' before he died: Final words of slain journalist revealed
The final known words of slain dissident jounalist Jamal Khashoggi were revealed today by a Turkish newspaper. Washington Post contributor Mr Khashoggi, a prominent critic of the Saudi authorities, w....
CURRENCY dealers bet heavily against the pound today amid growing fears over the collapse of Theresa May’s fragile Brexit hopes and more ministerial resignations this week. May’s unpopular deal is ha....
The film was created with original footage from Imperial War Museums’ film archive and audio from BBC archives.....
Police speak with the public in Melbourne on Saturday, a day after a man went on a stabbing frenzy on Bourke Street. Police declared the event a terrorist attack. Scott Morrison has said the Muslim ....
‘The DUP has made it plain that it will not accept either a regulatory or customs border down the Irish Sea.’ Theresa May, left, and DUP leader Arlene Foster. Theresa May will run out of money this w....
X Factor latest: Robbie Williams and Ayda Field down to one act each as Misunderstood and Giovanni Spano axed
Giovanni Spano and Misunderstood became the latest two acts to get the boot from The X Factor as the double eliminations continued. Absent judge Robbie Williams lost his third act after the duo finis....
In case sea freight hold-ups get to much, BMW has secured air options for post-Brexit part imports.....
The Manchester City manager was happy with his players after the 3-1 win over Manchester United.....
Celebrities whose coastal homes have been damaged or destroyed in a Southern California wildfire or were forced to flee from the flames expressed sympathy and solidarity with less-famous people hurt w....
Israeli security forces killed six Palestinians including two commanders from the Hamas Islamist group in the Gaza Strip on Sunday, Palestinian officials said. A Hamas official said violence erupted ....
If so, it’s just had a bonanza, segueing neatly from a stampede for tickets to hear Michelle Obama in conversation at London’s Royal Festival Hall to a full-on meltdown in pursuit of a chance to see f....
Remembrance Sunday saw tributes nationwide as Britain – and the world – fell silent to mark the centenary of the end of World War One. One of the most powerful commemorative events took place on Brit....
Wayne Rooney will pull on an England shirt for the final time at Wembley on Thursday night as the Three Lions host the USA in an international friendly. Rooney officially retired from international f....
Major Chinese animal feed maker Tangrenshen Group reported on Sunday that feed produced by one of its units had been contaminated with African swine fever, raising fears of its spread further across t....
Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd cashed a record 213.5 billion yuan (£23.8 billion) in sales on Sunday during its 24-hour online retail frenzy Singles' Day, but the event's annual g....
The project for the centenary of Armistice Day, was inspired by film maker Danny Boyle, as an informal, nationwide gesture of remembrance.....
An on-the-run fraudster was able to escape the country by taking a flying lesson and persuading the instructor to drop him off in France, a court heard. ....
An enormous shark ”nursery” swarming with the predatory fish and strewn with their eggs has been found in the waters 200 miles off the western Irish coast. The rare discovery was made by a remotely o....
Irish Premier Leo Varadkar paid a warm tribute to Mr Higgins, describing Ireland as fortunate to have him as president.....
The moon will be in a waxing gibbous phase, with about 60% of its disc illuminated. The pair will be in the constellation Aquarius. Next morning, a glittering duo will be visible as they rise above ....
Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho said his side were improving after losing 3-1 to Manchester City.....
Athenahealth, whose cloud-based service is used to track revenue from patients, physicians and hospitals, had been under pressure to sell itself from Elliott, which has about a 9 percent stake in the ....
Finland's GPS signal was intentionally disrupted during NATO war games in the Nordic countries over the past few weeks and the culprit could be Russia, Prime Minster Juha Sipila said on Sunday. Finla....
A simple, five-minute neck scan could predict the potential onset of dementia 10 years before symptoms appear, research has found.....
Steve McQueen’s Tate Britain project is based on another artist's idea, ex-British Council director claims
Steve McQueen’s ambitious project to photograph every Year 3 pupil in London is based on the idea of another artist who started working in schools 14 years ago, a former British Council director has c....
"We are working to set the conditions in order to create a single player to distribute internet and broadband," Di Maio, who also doubles as Industry Minister, said in an interview with la7 television....
The Little Drummer Girl, episode 3, review: This latest BBC dramatisation of a John le Carre novel is brilliantly done
Charlie (Florence Pugh), young English actress improbably turned Mossad agent, manages to drive a car full of (concealed) Semtex across Europe without lighting a fag (inadvisable in the circumstances)....
A senior Air India pilot was grounded after he failed breathalyser tests shortly before a flight from New Delhi to London on Sunday. Arvind Kathpalia, who is responsible for safety at the airline as ....
The photos have gone on display in a special exhibition at Maryhill Burgh Halls to mark the centenary of the end of the First World War.....
Matt Hancock will champion the UK’s genomics, life sciences and artificial intelligence programmes in Paris speech. The health secretary, Matt Hancock, is to meet the French president, Emmanuel Macro....
The retailer’s former store at Bank Buildings, a B1-listed building in the heart of the city centre, was badly damaged in a major blaze.....
One in five millennials who have seen someone experiencing physical difficulties in public said they did not offer to help, a poll has found. The findings have been revealed to mark the launch of the....
Transport charity Sustrans wants a further 5,000 miles of the network to be traffic-free by 2040.....
The pair watched as flowers were laid at the grave of The Unknown Warrior, later shaking hands at the end of the service.....
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Ezekiel Elliott had 151 yards rushing and his go-ahead 1-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter helped the Dallas Cowboys beat the Philadelphia Eagles 27-20 on Sunday night.....
Embroidered clothing will be programmed to move in the neural patterns and pathways associated with epilepsy.....
Ten people were killed in the Ballymurphy area of west Belfast during three days of gunfire in August 1971.....
© 2018 City of Airway Heights. All Rights Reserved. | Website Created & Hosted by Vision Internet – Innovators of Online Government