3 Questions

(Keep in mind that I'm not the best of writers/arguers/discussers/answerers, whatever you call it for this)

1. What have I learned about Jesus in this course?

What have I learned about my Lord while reading this book? How has it changed my vision of Jesus? Truthfully, the answer is “hardly anything new” and “it hasn’t”. It’s not because it’s a bad book; in fact, it’s a pretty good course for kids my age, who don’t know much—if they know anything—about the true Jesus.

However, I already knew most of the contents of the book regarding the Lord. I knew He was the God-Man, both 100% Divine and 100% Human. That He chit-chatted and made friends, and ate, and wept bitterly. I knew he had enemies, and I knew who they were (although a bit of the details about the Pharisees vs. Sanhedrin were new).

Even so, I wanted more, and so, in a roundabout way, the book made me go out on my own to look at primary sources, to read on my own, to answer my own questions. Who do the Protestants say Jesus is? Who does the rest of the entire world say He is? What do they believe He actually said, actually meant by this, this and this? What truly IS the Eucharist, and why do we believe that, but not the other Christians on the Earth? Just what is so revolutionary TODAY, RIGHT NOW, HERE IN MY LIFE, about His message? The book touched on this last part, but as I look around online, and even around the classroom, I can see that it’s a little bit behind on the times.

Why would one go to Adoration?

So, Jesus died for us all. OK. So, what does that mean I do now? What did He want His followers to do after He saved all of us? Receive Sacraments. Alright. Anything else? What does being Catholic, being a true follower of Jesus Christ, entail?

The answers I found to my questions, on my own, reading from the Popes, the Saints, priests, watching EWTN... They were shocking, and I wonder why they weren’t included in the book. Kids my age certainly need to know these answers, although, I can see that they might not understand. And yet, I did—and I’m shocked, and I look at Jesus in a new light.

So, to wrap this up (it’s already gone on far longer than you probably wanted it to); the book has taught me very little about Jesus that I hadn’t already known, but has prodded me into learning more about my God and my Faith, and that is how I will answer the following questions.

2. What have I learned about God because of what I’ve learned about Jesus?

I have learned that He truly knows what He is doing. Through His love for the Son, the Holy Spirit is born “through Him, in Him, in the unity of the Holy Spirit” “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was God,” etc. He truly is the Almighty, the Loving Father, the Just Judge, the Giver of Life...everything that we can attribute to Him, He Is. He Was. He Always Will Be. He is the only one who can truly say, “Yahweh”. He is the only one who we can put faith in. He gives the saints and angels their powers, He gives us life, the ability to love, the ability to reason, and—He knows each of us personally, better than we know ourselves. He is the Only One. He is Eternal. He is My God.

3. Who do you now believe Jesus is?

We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is seen and unseen. We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, one in being with the Father. Through Him all things were made. For us men and our salvation He came down from heaven: by the power of the Holy Spirit, He was born of the Virgin Mary , and became man. For our sake He was crucified under Pontius Pilate; He suffered, died, and was buried. On the third day He rose again in fulfillment of the scriptures: He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end. We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son. With the Father and the Son, He is worshiped and glorified. He has spoken through the Prophets. We believe in one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church. We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come.