04/15/2023 – Chapter 23 fellowship – “Failures”
Let me capsulize the three type of failures outlined by Kreeft:
- Physical sufferings that come to us, independent from our actions and moral choices: It is rare that I take issue with Peter Kreeft, but I am doing so here. How can I classify under “failure”. Let’s say I am afflicted with pancreatic cancer. My suffering up until my death can be used as an opportunity to glorify God through the suffering. But Peter does not mention whether or not I choose to seize that opportunity. I concur that is a sin, but only if I don’t seize upon that opportunity, particularly if the Good Lord has shown me much during my lifetime.
2. Internal weaknesses, both personal and emotional: Peter submits as an example that adulterous heterosexual desires are not sins, but adulterous acts are. I would note that Jesus said if you just look at a woman with desire in your heart, your have committed a sin. Let’s review the scene where Joseph is being enticed by Potiphar’s wife into an adulterous affair. I would submit that he didn’t commit a sin in that 1) Potiphar’s wife was enticing him, he didn’t initiate the desire; and 2) whether or not he had momentary desire, he appropriately ran from it. Now, let’s say as a married man , I look upon an old high school flame at a reunion with adulterous intent, is that not a sin? I say indeed, for that specifically addresses what Jesus was talking about. That is not an innocent desire for I knew of the toxic potential, but disregarded it completely. If the desire is there, don’t go, plain and simple!
3. Willfull sins. This third category goes without saying. But let me share with you, Peter’s two paragraph summary to this chapter that I think carries a deep mysterious Truth:
“What of sins? What of moral failures? Couldn’t God give us the grace to overcome more sins? Of course He could. Why doesn’t he then? God does not will them, but He permits them, both to preserve your free will and to humble our pride. If we overcame all our sins, we would succumb to pride and our last star would be far worse than our first. We would be super-Pharisees.
So if you want to overcome some other sin, start with pride. if you want to grow some missing virtue, start with humility.”
Brothers and Sisters: Thoughts?
Soli Deo Gloria!