If only...

If only we had been able to hold on to the amazing world of love and peace we had in Eden - a place where we could be really human and be loved and love the way God had intended.

But we were lied to.  Check out how Bishop Barron explains the broken world we have now:

    
So, let's answer some questions:

One:  Is God a Loving Dad Who Sets Boundaries Because You're Worth Protecting or A Mean Tyrant Who Doesn't Think You're Capable of Thinking for Yourself? 

Let's talk about that for a moment...

If we each get to determine what things are good or what things are bad, then eventually nothing is bad and nothing is good. 

So, there you are minding  your own business, listening to  your favorite music when someone just walks up to you and says, "Hey, I want your phone."  And just takes it from you.

If what's good or what's bad is determined by each of us in our own way, without anything that resembles a set of OBJECTIVE TRUTHS, then you wouldn't be able to get your phone back without getting into a fist fight, because, to that other person, stealing isn't bad, so, tough luck.  Nobody else would be able to stand up for you, either, because it's all a matter of SUBJECTIVE BELIEFS.

Or let's say that you're being routinely lied to by your best friend.  When you confront him and say, "Hey, Dude, what's up with this? Yesterday, you told my boss that I was the one who broke the copier.  But that was you!"   He looks at you and shrugs, and replies, "Yeah, that kept the boss from being mad at me, and I was just looking after myself."   Try explaining that lying hurts others and damages their reputations, and it won't matter, because each of us gets to say what's right or what's wrong.

God recognized the problem before it even happened.  If there aren't basic rules that set boundaries on our behavior, then we're going to hurt ourselves and others.  A loving dad sets rules that help his kids recognize how to love one another - and how  not to hurt each other.  

 

Two:  Why Did the Decision to Disobey God Make Sin? And What Is Sin, Anyway? 

Father Mike Schmitz knocks one out of the park:      

Three: Hey, Why Put That Stupid Tree in Eden, anyway?

  The Crux Chapter 1 from FOCUSNational on Vimeo.