CD Review – From Love,
By Love, For Love
The most recent CD received by members
of Lighthouse Catholic Media’s CD of the Month Club is called From Love, By Love, For Love, by Father
Michael Schmitz. I had never heard of
Fr. Schmitz before, but he is an extraordinary speaker.
This CD touches upon the timely topics
of contraception and same-sex attraction, in the context of a Catholic
understanding of authentic love. The CD
is not only excellent for its clear explanation of Catholic teaching, but also because
of Fr. Schmitz’s energy, compassion and humor, which make the presentation so
accessible to everyone.
Father begins with a look at the
Gospel story of the rich man and Lazarus, the beggar who died at the rich man’s
door. He asks how people of different
world views would understand and react to Lazarus. To a Christian, Lazarus, as a person, is a
body and soul made in the Image and Likeness of God. Because Man is both body and soul, what
happens to our bodies matters. When we
suffer in our bodies, we suffer; when we sin in our bodies, we sin.
He discusses the nature of Man and
goes on to discuss the nature of sex, which is twofold: the unity of the
spouses, and the procreation of children.
He stresses that the sexual embrace can be engaged in primarily for
either purpose without violating the nature of sex, so long as the other
purpose is not excluded. Excluding
openness to unity is rape; excluding openness to procreation is
contraception. Both violate the nature
of sex and are sinful.
He then goes on to talk about
homosexuality and people who struggle with same-sex attraction. He speaks with such emotional compassion it
is clear that he has great love. He
notes that homosexual acts are a violation of the nature of sex but points out
that the Church condemns all
violations against the nature of sex, as shown by the inclusion of
homosexuality in the Catechism with heterosexual sins. However, the Church is also very adamant in
its condemnation of unjust discrimination against homosexual persons.
Fr. Schmitz also laments the labels
people are constantly being defined by, especially when it comes to same-sex
attraction. (Same-sex attraction alone,
of course, constitutes a temptation, not a sin.) He says, echoing Pope John Paul II, “You are
not defined by your sins, your weaknesses, or your failures, or your temptations,
or your attractions. You are defined by
the fact that the Father loves you, by your capacity to receive the Father’s
Love, and to be an image of Christ to this world.”
He goes on to make the bold statement
that, “there is no safer place for a man or woman with same-sex attraction than
the Catholic Church [because] we will not stop saying that you have a dignity –
that you are made in the Image and Likeness of God.”
Father urges compassion for people who
struggle with same-sex attraction, pointing out that for most it is a heavy
cross, and reminding us that we all struggle with sexuality; each has his own
particular struggle. And even if we have
failed at times in that struggle, no one’s sins are too big for God.
If you are interested, you can get a
copy of the CD at the “Online Store” on the sidebar of this blog. You can also sign up to receive a new
Catholic CD each month by clicking on the “CD of the Month Club” icon. You can even sign up to receive more than one copy
of the new CD each month to give extras to family and friends. If you do, please listen to it first, as some
have Scriptural references that people may have trouble interpreting in
context. Prepare yourself to answer
questions of clarification or refer them to a priest who can.
Listen below to an excerpt of From Love, By Love, For Love.
