Saints Peter and Paul, Apostles

Thoughts for the Week - Fr. R. Taouk 
29th June 2014

Blessed John of Avila - The True Church, Where to Find It

In her (the Church) with a very little effort one can be saved, because the faith and good works which are demanded are easy with the grace of God; but outside of her nothing is of any use.

What is the address of your house, O Lord, that we may know how to find it and so attend your banquet? Just as you enter the city you will be met by a man carrying a jar of water; follow him (Luke 22:10). What a sign! How extraordinary, simple and humble wisdom and how true and full of meaning. Water, in the scriptures, signifies wisdom (Ecclus 15:3); and also grace itself (Jn 7). Where you find heavenly wisdom there is my Church.

Follow a man who is carrying a jar of water; our Lord said. If you look at the jar merely or the water you may be deceived; but look at the fact that a man is carrying it and nothing will be wanting to you to judge rightly. There may be heretics who hold the words of God and the Sacraments; but they do not want to confess that there is a man - one man - who carries this jar of water. They say that it is not necessary that there should be a head, one man, and that it is enough that we have for our head the God-man ... There will never be one faith and one baptism, or one God or one Christ unless there is one man who carries the jar of water, whom do you follow. If this is not so, as those who do not wish to admit that there is a man who is Christ's Vicar on earth, if they have faith which is one, and you will see that one has his own, and that there are as many faiths as there are heads.

The Pope does not create the faith, he preserves it and thus forms a sure sign of the true Church of Christ, because the truth of Christ has to be known as such, and for this it is necessary that the Church should tell us what is and what is not the doctrine of Christ. This is the sure sign of the Church where Christ dwells; that it has a head who is the Pope. It is a visible Church, not an invisible one, because if it were invisible then what it has to teach and declare would be obscure.

'O Lord grant that I may be a faithful and humble servant of Thy Church!'