“he must deny himself”
In the Gospel reading Jesus speaks of the best way to stay close to him is to deny himself pick up his cross and follow Him[i]; Jesus even stresses that might lead us to giving up our very self to Him. This could be scary. This is the truth that we face and we can either do it or not, there is no middle ground here.
Is fear a good thing? Fear can be described as a passion or feeling. Fear is in a unique position that can be both. Fear can incline a person to act or not act on something that is good or evil. For example, I can have the fear of letting God into my heart, mind, and soul because then I know I have to let go of some sinful ways. I would have to let go of me being the center of the universe and thinking I can do it all by myself. So in fear I do not act and by this way I am committing a sin of omission. On the flip side a different example is if I were asked to do something that I know is sinful I would have fear at the very least I would be punished, but even more important I fear the loss of God within me. Discuss other examples of how fear can be good or bad?
What is filial fear? “Fear of some impending evil based on love and reverence for the one who is feared. Actually filial fear is closer to love that dreads offending the one loved. Thus the filial fear of God is compatible with the highest love of God. A person, knowing his or her moral weakness, fears that he or she might displease or betray the one who is loved. It is selfless fear. The word “filial” comes from becoming of a child in relation to its parents. We are the children and God is the parent in this relationship.”[ii] Psalm 110 says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.”[iii] When we are close with God we grow in His wisdom. We quickly see the differences between truth and sin; between right and wrong; between good and evil.
What if we do not have filial fear? “The greatest dangers is perhaps precisely the lack of concern about the sin that has been committed and a thoughtlessness and superficiality which could lead eventually to a total loss of the sense of sin. This attitude, which can be seen in those who seem to be falling back into paganism, is the result of having lost this holy fear of God. In such deplorable situations the offence against God is ridiculed, passed off as trivial or otherwise made light of.”[iv] “As Sirach says, “if a man is not steadfast and zealous in the fear of the Lord, his house will be quickly overthrown.”[v] There is a saying “If a man doesn’t stand for something, he will fall for anything”. If we do not have a deep love for God then we will not fear the loss of Him. We will wander off and lose his voice. We will then be completely susceptible to the Satan. We should never worry about someone who can harm us physically, but one who can kill our soul.
Why should we not be afraid of those who may wish to harm us? Christ tells us, “I will tell you whom to fear, Fear him who, after he has killed, has power to cast into hell; yes I tell you fear him!”[vi]The worst thing someone could do is killing us, but that is it. Once it is done it is done, and we would become martyrs if we had died defending the faith. We must remember no matter how well we treat our bodies we all eventually die. However, our souls will live on forever. We should never want to be far from God and His infinite love for us.
To have filial fear and filial love is to have perfect contrition. What is perfect contrition? “When it arises from a love by which God is loved above all else, contrition is called ‘perfect’ (contrition of charity). Such contrition remits venial sins; it also obtains forgiveness of mortal sins if it includes the firm resolution to have recourse to sacramental confession as soon as possible.”[vii] “Filial fear and love always go together. If we were to reject the filial fear of God, the desire to please him, the concern not to grieve him, we would run the risk of altogether neglecting the ascetical struggle and fall into a presumptuous reliance on the goodness of God. On the other hand, if one is motivated only by fear, one cuts one self off from the great and merciful love of God our Father, from childlike simplicity and trustful abandonment. These attitudes are essential for a soul aspiring to holiness.”[viii]
Why is filial fear a good thing? The more we practice filial fear the more we are away from mortal sin. The more we are away from sin the more we can be aware in when we encroach in times of temptation. A person who fears the Lord, loves God, knows what sin is, and what happens to the soul if he/she commits a sin.[ix] St. Augustine writes, “Blessed the soul who fears God, since it is strong against the temptation of the devil. ‘Blessed is the man who fears the Lord always’ (Prov. 28:14) and he to whom has been given the remembrance of the fear of the Lord. He who fears God leaves the pathway of evil and adheres to the path of virtue. The fear of God makes a man wary and vigilant to avoid sin. The dissolute life triumphs where there is no fear of God.”[x]
The Penny Catechism states that “We must hate sin above all other evils, so as to be resolved never to commit a willful sin for the love or fear of anything whatsoever.” We sin when we either love something more than we love God or we fear something more than we fear God. What does it mean to fear something or someone more than to fear God? We might fear human respect, in other words we might care more about offending another person, than offending God. We might care more about what a person thinks than we care about what God thinks. We might fear a loss of popularity or loss of a job more than the loss of salvation.
Fear of the Lord is one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit
Search: Fear of the Lord
Search: Fear and Fatima
[i] cf. Luke 18:23
[ii] Hardon, Modern Catholic Dictionary pg. 212
[iii] Ps. 110:10
[iv] Fernandez, In Conversation with God, 3 99.2
[v] Sir. 27:3-4
[vi] Luke 12:4
[vii] CCC 1452
[viii] Fernandez, In Conversation with God, 3 99.2
[ix] cf. Fernandez, In Conversation pg. 641
[x] St. Augustine, Sermon on humility and the fear of God