Category: Salvation

“Whatever is not from faith is sin” (Romans 14)

May 18, 2023 / Michael Haverkamp

Chapter 14 of Paul’s epistle to the Romans isn’t easy to understand. It’s not a passage that comes up frequently in the cycle of Church readings. What is Paul saying to his audience? And what is the Holy Spirit telling us today? Welcome anyone who is weak in faith, but not

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“Love is the fulfillment of the law” (Romans 13)

May 2, 2023 / Michael Haverkamp

Paul concludes chapter 13 of his letter to the Romans by making two points that are essential to a virtuous Christian life: Owe nothing to anyone, except to love one another; for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery; you shall not

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All Israel Will Be Saved (Romans 11)

February 28, 2023 / Michael Haverkamp

Hence I ask, did they [the Israelites] stumble so as to fall? Of course not! But through their transgression salvation has come to the Gentiles, so as to make them jealous. Now if their transgression is enrichment for the world, and if their diminished number is enrichment for the Gentiles, how

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Nothing can separate us (Romans 8)

January 31, 2023 / Michael Haverkamp

“We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28) Paul can pack a lot of punch and lot insight into one verse of his letters. He does it often in his letter to the Romans, not

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Call on the Name of the Lord (Romans 6)

January 4, 2023 / Michael Haverkamp

If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For one believes with the heart and so is justified, and one confesses with the mouth and so is saved. For the scripture says, “No one

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The New Adam (Romans 5)

December 13, 2022 / Michael Haverkamp

For if by that one person’s [Adam] transgression the many died, how much more did the grace of God and the gracious gift of the one person Jesus Christ overflow for the many… where sin increased, grace overflowed all the more, so that, as sin reigned in death, grace also might

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The Faith of Abraham (Romans 4)

November 30, 2022 / Michael Haverkamp

Some time afterward, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: Do not fear, Abram! I am your shield; I will make your reward very great. But Abram said, “Lord God, what can you give me, if I die childless and have only a servant of my household, Eliezer of

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Despair

September 14, 2022 / Michael Haverkamp

Despair could be called the opposite of presumption. It may be more precise to call it the opposite of hope. In broad terms despair means no exit; our problems have no solution; our life has no meaning. In specific Christian terms, it is the belief that what we have done

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Presumption

August 31, 2022 / Michael Haverkamp

Many Christians, and some in the secular world, have heard of the seven deadly sins: pride, envy, wrath, sloth, avarice, gluttony and lust. I’d like to speak in this post and my next one about two deadly mindsets. The Catechism describes them as “sins against the virtue of hope” (CCC,

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What is Heaven like?

August 9, 2021 / Michael Haverkamp

On August 15 we celebrate Mary’s glorious assumption, body and soul, into Heaven. What is Heaven like? Heaven is a communion of love. It is a love that unites the Father, Son and Holy Spirit with those who trusted in His mercy and took up their cross. It is hard

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Predestination

July 27, 2021 / Michael Haverkamp

Controversy over predestination led to wars and schisms during the Protestant Reformation. For Catholics today, it may feel like a daunting topic best avoided. It wasn’t something I understood well until a priest explained it in a simple way in a homily. The Church’s teaching on predestination boils down to

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First Fridays and First Saturdays

March 16, 2021 / Michael Haverkamp

Many Catholics have heard of and made the First Fridays devotion that comes from a promise Jesus made to Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque. Other Catholics know of the first Saturdays devotion that Mary revealed to Saint Lucia dos Santos. And many Catholics know of neither of these devotions. So what

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Can non-Christians be saved?

March 3, 2020 / Michael Haverkamp

If our salvation hinges on our acceptance of Jesus, what about souls who never heard of Jesus? Here’s what the Church teaches: “Those also can attain to salvation who through no fault of their own do not know the Gospel of Christ or His Church, yet sincerely seek God and

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The Abundance of God’s Mercy

February 18, 2020 / Michael Haverkamp

It may seem too good to be true that a last minute appeal to God’s mercy could work. But God’s mercy is in fact so good and so true that it does work, and we see it work in the Gospel of Luke: Now one of the criminals hanging there

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Sin and mercy

February 4, 2020 / Michael Haverkamp

In reflecting on salvation, I would be remiss if I didn’t speak about mortal sin. For just as we are saved by our faith in the Lord Jesus, we can lose our friendship with Jesus by committing a mortal sin and failing to repent. Any sin demonstrates a lack of

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Are you saved?

January 21, 2020 / Michael Haverkamp

Are you saved? You may have been asked this question before. You may have thought about it. I hope you will. The consequences of our actions in this life resonate for eternity. For those who are Catholic like I am, you may be asking the related question, what does the

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