From the Pastor’s Desk:

Faith and freedom go arm in arm. When Europeans first came to the shores of the new world they were looking for a place to worship God freely, to find land to build their lives upon and unfortunately for some, wealth regardless of how they “got” it. Our nation was established with the freedom to worship God. It did take time for the founders of our nation to work that freedom out. All you need to do is read/study the early 100 years of our history. Depending upon what area immigrants found themselves settling, depended upon how free they were to worship God as they chose. Catholic as well as Jewish faiths were in many places persecuted with Catholic Churches, Convents and Schools and Jewish Synagogues burned. Much of that was due to ignorance. Ignorance we continue to see and experience today.

When people do not have the knowledge or understanding of a faith or way of life, many times the result is some form of persecution. As I just returned from my pilgrimage titled, “walking in the footsteps of St. Paul”. I have a greater understanding of the greatness of Paul, the Apostle to the Gentiles. I had studied Paul, studied the growth of the early church, studied the Roman and Greek gods, but there were parts I either slept through, forgot or never learned.

At the time of St. Paul, the Roman Empire was the master of the Mediterranean world and beyond. Paul as a Roman citizen due to his family in the past selling goods (tents) to the Roman soldiers, was able to more freely about during his missionary journeys.

Paul was so often misunderstood because the Roman and Jewish worlds were so different psychologically and culturally. The Roman thought could not believe in only one god who created all things, or from the Greek thought there is no such thing as resurrection.

Even in Paul’s teaching to the Jewish people, most did not accept resurrection or his teaching on the Body and Blood of Jesus. I will continue next week with freedom/religion/and their cost.