John 3:31-36
31 He that cometh from above, is above all. He that is of the earth, of the earth he is, and of the earth he speaketh. He that cometh from heaven, is above all. 32 And what he hath seen and heard, that he testifieth: and no man receiveth his testimony. 33 He that hath received his testimony, hath set to his seal that God is true. 34 For he whom God hath sent, speaketh the words of God: for God doth not give the Spirit by measure. 35 The Father loveth the Son: and he hath given all things into his hand.
36 He that believeth in the Son, hath life everlasting; but he that believeth not the Son, shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.
Today’s Gospel is a continuation of yesterday’s theme. We must obey Christ and those to whom He gave authority to speak and teach in His stead. Our first reading shows the Holy Apostles defying civil and religious authority:
27 And when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priest asked them, 28 Saying: Commanding we commanded you, that you should not teach in this name; and behold, you have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine, and you have a mind to bring the blood of this man upon us. 29 But Peter and the apostles answering, said: We ought to obey God, rather than men. 30 The God of our fathers hath raised up Jesus, whom you put to death, hanging him upon a tree.
31 Him hath God exalted with his right hand, to be Prince and Saviour, to give repentance to Israel, and remission of sins. 32 And we are witnesses of these things and the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to all that obey him. 33 When they had heard these things, they were cut to the heart, and they thought to put them to death.
Even though our Lord had admonished His followers to obey civil and religious authority, even if corrupt, they had no choice but to obey Jesus as the higher authority. It should be obvious that the author of morality and law must be obeyed over any earthly authority not authorized specifically to speak in His stead and in accord with His teachings. But, we are forced to submit to immoral laws such as those that legalize abortion and “no fault” divorce. Few have the courage to stand up for God and His Church.
In the early decades of Protestant England, Catholics were threatened with death, loss of position, wealth and property if they would not denounce Catholicism and swear to the king and the false church he had invented. Most did, but countless faithful Catholics were tortured and killed rather than betray Christ and His Church. Frankly, it is no wonder that the early Protestants removed the books of Maccabees from the Bible so that Christians would not have their heroic martyrdom in defense of the religion given to them by God as an example.
Although I cannot find the quote, a story attributed to Saint Thomas Moore during that time is illustrative. It is said that his nephew encouraged him to sign the oath to the king and his false church, even if he did not believe it. He tried, quite logically, to convince him that he could lie to man but be loyal to God. This was a mirror image of the faithful, elderly Jew, respected by all in Maccabees, who was presented with the same arguments. He allowed himself to be tortured and killed rather than to betray God or to provide a bad example for the youth. Moore, from his prison cell replied, “The question is not why I am in here. The question is why are you out there?”
In our time, the history of the genocide that England waged on both faithful English Catholics and the Catholic, Celtic nations has been largely erased. So have the murders of “peasants” and the wars for which Martin Luther boastfully took credit in authorizing and inspiring. The same is true of the French Revolution, the Spanish Revolution, the Mexican Revolution and the hundreds of millions slaughtered by communists who oppose the Catholic Church. Just as they removed Maccabees from the Bible, Protestants present a very false history, making absurd accusations against Catholicism while ignoring the facts that undermine their teaching. Unfortunately, most absolutely believe the lies they have been taught and hate the Church with an irrational passion based on falsehood. But, many non religious oppose the Church and her teachings because they are secularists who accept only the authority of government, academia and modern culture. In face of this opposition, we must remember the words of today’s Psalm, “Many are the troubles of the just man, but out of them all the LORD delivers him.”
Judson Carroll is the author of several books, including his newest, A Daily Catholic Devotional, Reflections on the Daily Mass Readings July - December, 2026 It is Available in paperback on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GRGY1D15
A Daily Catholic Devotional, Reflections on the Daily Mass Readings January - June, 2026 It is also available in paperback on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GDK16N45
and
Confirmation, an Autobiography of Faith: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C47Q1JNK
His podcast is The Uncensored Catholic https://www.spreaker.com/show/the-uncensored-catholic