MAY 26, 2017
Why are you being confirmed?
Is it just a "merit badge?" As if Catholicism were just some sort of scouting program?
God desires for you to spend Eternity with Him. That is, instead of "the other place."
If you were going to build a house, you would have to put in a foundation. If you're going to build a good life, you need a foundation, too.
The foundation of a good life is the Virtues.
These are "good habits." You don't get good habits by acting badly. You build up good habits by acting good. Just like getting a good jump shot requires practice, growing in virtue means practicing living virtues.
The good news is that through Baptism and the Sacraments, we receive the Theological Virtues of Faith, Hope, and Love. Faith to believe what is unbelievable. Hope to trust when there is no light at the end of the tunnel. And Love, to love those people who aren't very lovable or when we don't feel like it.
These affect us as human beings by acting on our Heart, Mind, and Soul.
Faith affects the Mind, Hope affects the Soul, and Love affects the Heart.
By allowing these infused virtues to act in our lives, we become more than who we are, that is, supernatural. God has given us these Supernatural virtues for just this reason.
The natural virtues are Prudence, Temperance, and Fortitude. These, too, affect the Mind, Soul, and Heart. Prudence helps us to make good choices, Temperance helps us to respect ourselves and others, and Fortitude allows us to keep going when what we're doing is difficult – to have courage and boldness to do what is right. And Justice helps us balance our lives between friends, family, God, and community.
The Virtues are the foundation of a good life, but are even more than that. Virtues make us into the most perfect version of ourselves. Through God's grace and our effort, we become who God created us to be.
In Confirmation, the Gifts of the Holy Spirit are given to us in abundance. The Gifts of the Holy Spirit perfect the Virtues within us. But if we forgot to do our homework on becoming virtuous – that is, by developing good habits in our Heart, Mind, and Soul – we don't give the Holy Spirit much to work with. The more Virtues – that is, the more good habits you have – the greater the gifts to be received.
Whatever Virtues you do have, will be perfected – and amplified – by God's grace through the outpouring of the Holy Spirit and the reception of His Gifts. Through all the Sacraments, but especially through Confirmation.
But if we haven't put down a solid foundation of Virtue in our lives, the Gifts of the Holy Spirit won't have much to perfect within us. That is why it is important to develop good habits and grow in Virtue by being virtuous.
As we grow in Virtue, the Gifts of the Holy Spirit strengthen, perfect, and amplify these Virtues within us through His sevenfold Gifts. These, too, affect us.
As human beings, we are Body, Heart, Mind, and Soul. The Virtues and the Gifts of the Holy Spirit affect our Heart, Mind, and Soul.
Knowledge, Understanding, and Counsel are Gifts that affect the Mind; helping us to take in, process, and share what we see, experience, and learn. Fear of the Lord and Piety affect the Soul; helping us to show reverence for God and the many gifts He has given us, and helping us to respond in our lives by sharing our gifts with God and neighbor. And Wisdom and Fortitude affect the Heart, helping us to make the appropriate choices, and to have the courage to follow through.
Thus, Our Heart, Mind, and Soul are affected by God's grace in Baptism through the Supernatural Virtues, by our own efforts (and the efforts of our parents and teachers) to develop good habits by living the virtues, and through Confirmation allowing God's grace to perfect our efforts through the Gifts of the Holy Spirit.
Then, in the end, we will manifest the Fruits of the Holy Spirit in our lives. That is, we will begin to experience Heaven on Earth. But it's not a light switch sort of thing – it takes work and effort. We need to exercise Faith, Hope, and Love – the Theological Virtues; we need to develop good habits by exercising the Human Virtues of Prudence, Temperance, and Fortitude. And once we have laid down a solid foundation of Virtue in our lives, the Gifts of the Holy Spirit will perfect these Virtues in our Hearts, Minds, and Souls. Building us up into the best version of ourself – based on God's perfect plan, the plan He has laid out for each one of us from all Eternity.
And in that action of the Holy Spirit in our lives and our response to God's grace, we will begin to see Heaven on Earth in the Fruits of the Holy Spirit. We will be able to experience the Glory of God in our lives and share that with others when we cooperate with the Holy Spirit and God's grace in our lives.
