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Fidelity seems to be opposed to freedom.  If we strive to remain faithful, it is as though we have amputated our freedom.  Remaining faithful to someone is seen as honorable or loyal when the person seems to be worthy, but when a doubt or objection to their worthiness is found the modern mind sees fidelity as a waste.  If a person no longer experiences love in a relationship, fidelity becomes optional.  What is the point of fidelity if it only causes unhappiness?

Jesus reveals a deeper kind of fidelity that has to precede our fidelity to human beings.  We must be faithful to the truth, and that especially means faithfulness to God.  The story of the three men in the furnace teaches us how essential fidelity to the One True God is.  Being faithful to God, loving God, has to come before any love for human beings, or any place of respect or honor given to them.  We must have an a priori respect and honor for others, especially those in our household or who govern us, but that loyalty must always remain subordinate to fidelity to God. read more

Quotes:

“The wounds caused by the fiery serpent are the poisonous enticements of the vices, which afflict the soul and bring about its spiritual death. The people were murmuring against the Lord. They were stricken by the serpents’ bites. This provides an excellent instance of how one may recognize from the results of an external scourge what a great calamity a person might suffer inwardly by murmuring.”

We don’t often see a connection between St. John the Apostle and St. Joseph, but there are some interesting scriptural grounds to do so.  “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home.”  “Then he said to the disciple, ‘Behold, your mother.’ And from that hour the disciple took her into his home.”  Both St. Joseph and St. John were made part of Jesus’ immediate human family by revelation.  We see that the way to a family bond with Jesus is by a special relationship with the Virgin Mary.  Both St. John and St. Joseph were revealed what kind of relationship they were to have with the Blessed Virgin Mary.  In the case of St. John, he is told to “look at,” or to “behold,” his “mother.”  The same word is used by John the Baptist to indicate the Lamb of God, “behold the Lamb.”  St. Joseph is invited to “take” the Virgin Mary, his “wife.”  This word for “take” also means “receive,” or “set aside for a specific purpose.”  We can see that St. Joseph is called upon by the angel to “take the child and his mother,” each time he has a dream that requires him to move.  This word has both an active sense and a passive sense in Greek, which means we could read, “Do not be afraid to receive Mary your wife,” in the sense that God is giving Joseph the Virgin Mary.  Joseph’s response is also to “receive,” but in the active sense of “taking.” read more