February 17, 2013 – Catechism 2150 – 2159

“It must be refused when it is required for purpose contrary to the dignity of persons or to ecclesial communion.”  Paragraph 2155.  I wonder if Joe Biden, claiming to be Catholic, should have denied taking the oath of office for vice president because, for his purposes, it is contrary to the dignity of persons.  He swears, on the Bible, to uphold the Constitution, which he believes allows for the killing of unborn children.  He could have given another form of an oath to the Constitution, but to make an oath, invoking God, and then to know that you are not following God’s commands is a clear violation of the second commandment as I see it written in these paragraphs.

We are given a name when we are born and that name marks us and sticks with us.  It is unique to us because we are the only one of us.  Many may have that same name, but God sees the difference.  My father-in-law and his family go by their middle names.  I never really understood that.  Your name is what it is.  Paul has started calling Noah, John, his middle name.  I don’t know where that is coming from.  I wonder if God will call me MILK in some form because that is a name that has been given to me and done in a very Godly setting and been an identity that has brought good to a lot of people.  Our names are important, they are special, and they are a gift from God, not to be taken lightly.  That is not something we think about a lot.