Posted on 04/13/2020 6:47:25 PM PDT by marshmallow
Priesthood was a natural calling for Charles Untz, but he would never realize that dream. A tragic car accident took his life on March 20 2000, when he was just 18.
But his faith, piety and spirit-filled joy, exhibited throughout his 18 years on earth, has had an impact on people across the globe.
One is Fr Steve Hansen, pastor of the cathedral in St Joseph, Missouri. He personally experienced Charles’ intercession and credits it for saving his priestly vocation.
“Kids who want to live purity, who want to obey their parents and who want to love the church, they imitate Charles,” Fr Hansen told The Catholic Spirit, newspaper of the Archdiocese of St Paul and Minneapolis.
Charles, son of Steve and Ellen Untz (pictured) of Andover, was known as a devout young man who encouraged many o the path to holiness. But it is after his death that many have come to hear about him and seek his intercession – which is credited with inspiring a dozen vocations in the diocese.
Archbishop Harry Flynn, then Archbishop of St Paul and Minneapolis, wrote a column for the Catholic Spirit after Charles’ funeral, reflecting on the young man’s life and faith. Early in 2020 the archbishop had celebrated Mass at the Untzes’ parish church. Charles had been an altar server, and the prelate was impressed with the teen’s reverence.
“Any one of us can look at the untimely death of that young man and wonder out loud to God: ‘Why Charles? He was so good. He could have done so much,'” Archbishop Flynn wrote. “And the Lord’s silent reply would be: ‘He can do more good from here.'”
At one juncture in the seminary when he was paralyzed by doubt, now-Fr Hansen heard Charles speak to him while praying.......
(Excerpt) Read more at catholicherald.co.uk ...
bookmark - and thanks for posting this
Good story. Prayers up.
No matter how good a regular human is, they should never be prayed to.
Yes, I mean saints even Mary.
Why?
They are not divine.
There is but one mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus
1 Tim 2:5
Why then do you pray for intercession from anyone other than the Messiah, God’s Chosen One, who died for the sins of the world?
Please, read your bibles rather than listening to men (including me). Instead of responding to me, read your bibles to convince yourself one way or the other who you should be worshiping and praying to.
FYI, we don't pray to saints the way we pray to God. We don't worship them, either.
There is but one mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus
1 Tim 2:5
Very good points. One problem. The Lord has perfected one key skill: delegation. And He is good at it. He is the sufficient principal cause of grace while His inferiors are instruments of grace. It all makes sense with a little physics.
Hope this helps explain Saints again. Please read instead of listening to others on what we believe and how having the saints pray for us is beneficial and biblical.
https://www.catholic.com/tract/praying-to-the-saints
Scripture is clear we are to pray to the Creator....not the created.
How is there a difference??
Do you not pray to God on behalf of others? Have you never had someone ask you to pray for them?
But in 1 Timothy 2 doesn't Paul also call on all of us to offer prayers and intercessions for all men, high and low? That's what we, as Catholics, are doing when we ask saints and other men and women who have displayed exceptional holiness and devotion to intercede on our behalf.
You worship, praise, and thank God when you pray to Him. You just talk to the saints like friends and ask them to intercede on your behalf with God.
You never just talk to God?
Recall in Phil 4:6-8 Paul told us to bring our requests to God.
Again, there are no examples of believers being told to pray to a created being who has the limitations of created beings.
You don’t worship a created being.
Also, asking a created being for something rather than God who answers all prayers like asking the bank teller for a loan - the teller does not have the authority.
Praying FOR someone is not the same as praying TO someone.
But you are asking someone other than God to intercede on your behalf, right? Where is what we, as Catholics, asking the saints or some other holy individual to do the same wrong but you asking someone to pray for you is OK? Asking them to intercede for us through prayer is not the same as praying to God. After all, it's not like we can pick up a phone and call them so how else would we do it?
In the NT we only have examples of believers being told to pray to the Creator....not the created.
When the disciples ask Jesus to teach them to pray what did He teach them?
Ask my mom for intervention? Ask Abraham or Moses?
Nope....
He taught them...Our Father....
And that illustrates the Roman Catholic error on this topic....believing there is a separate class of believers who seemingly have special access to God that the average believer doesn't have. Which is completely contrary to Scripture which teaches we all have access to God and can all approach Him and that He will hear and answer our prayers.
Of course I do, just like I said: "You worship, praise, and thank God when you pray to Him."
Recall in Phil 4:6-8 Paul told us to bring our requests to God.
Yes, that, and through the intercession of others, just like on earth. The saints are like an extension of intecessors on earth.
Again, there are no examples of believers being told to pray to a created being who has the limitations of created beings.
Since the Bible doesn't say what Heaven is like, or how things in Heaven work,, and since not everything is in the Bible (such as the writings of the early church fathers and saints), you can't limit what goes on in Heaven to what it says in the Bible.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.