Gene Wei ’24

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In the past few weeks, some of my peers began to show a lack of interest in participating in mass or Sunday church. Two said they were busy with work or school. Another voiced getting tired of going to church but still believes in God. Another argued that if God is so powerful and good, why are there illnesses, suffering, and death?

I believe there are three important topics such Christians should know: detachment, what is religion, and the three types of evil.

Detachment is a common issue we can face. What is detachment? Detachment is a process that separates us from things that affect our relationship with God. Thus says the Lord: “Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart turns away from the Lord. “(Jeremiah 17:5) Christians need to realize that skipping church for homework, job, or other activities is separating us from God. Nothing is more important than God.

Second, Christian’s need to remember what religion is. The word religion means bind. Therefore, we need to bind with God. Some claim, “I’m spiritual, but not religious” or “I don’t like organized religion.” These are not valid reasons to separate yourself from the all-loving Father. If we decide to stray away from God, we will always feel emptiness inside of us and lose the special relationship with God. “Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless.” (James 1:26)

Finally, to understand evil, Christians need to remember three concepts: natural evil, moral evil, and poena. Natural evil is a necessary part of the ecosystem of the universe. For example, a volcano erupts, destroying everything around it, but over time the volcano expands the land allowing ecosystems to regrow even bigger. Moral evil comes from the willful acts of human beings. This means as long as we have free will, a person can choose to perform the action like murder or stealing. Poena is the penalty and punishment. Poena is a method of punishment to the wrongdoers; for example, God caused the Great Flood in order to “baptize” the earth from all the sinners. Moral evil is another consequence of separation from God, a devastating separation.

 All Christians need to remember that we cannot walk away from God, and we cannot place things in between us and God. We also need to remember that the suffering we experience is caused by original sin and evil exists due to the lack of good. God is good, meaning we experience suffering because we lack Him. Worshiping Him in church strengthens that bond.