Sacrilege, Spiritual Assurance, Superstition, and Sacramentals
When you believe in things that you don’t understand then you suffer.
Stevie Wonder, “Superstition”
Sacrilege
“Hocus-pocus” is part of the vernacular, harmless “magic words” used before performing a sleight of hand. It can also be used in judgemental contempt as in “That’s so much hocus-pocus.” The latter usage is troubling considering the probable source of the expression.
The bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world.
John 6:51
At the Last Supper Jesus gave thanks, took bread, broke it, and commanded, “This is my body that is for you. Do this in remembrance of me. For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes” (1 Corinthians 11:24, 26). Christ made clear and the Church has always taught that, after consecration, Jesus is “truly, really, and substantially” present under the Eucharistic species (Catechism of the Catholic Church #1211). To Catholics, the Eucharist is “the source and summit of the Christian life” (#1324) and “the sum and summary of our faith” (#1327). During consecration the priest, acting in persona Christi, declares “Hoc Est Corpus Meum” – This is my body. Sacrilegious scoffers shortened it to “Hocus-pocus.”
Spiritual Assurance
Let’s be perfectly clear. The Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist is the central controversy among believing Christians. Whoever is wrong about this is wrong indeed. Either well-meaning Christians are missing out on the most powerful and intimate sharing in God’s life this side of Heaven or sincere believers are mistakenly worshiping wafers of bread and cups of wine. It is a matter of faith, far from being blind, but confident trust in the words and promises of the One who is faithful and trustworthy.
Superstition
Superstition… can affect the worship we offer the true God, e.g., when one attributes an importance in some way magical to certain practices…. To attribute the efficacy of prayers or of sacramental signs to their mere external performance.
Catechism of the Catholic Church #2111
I’ve always been uncomfortable with claims like “Pray this Novena and God will give you X blessing” or “Bury a statue of St. Joseph and your house will sell quickly.” Are Catholics superstitious? Certainly the allegation is fair in certain circumstances. Jesus addresses some superstitious practices of the otherwise pious scribes and Pharisees in Matthew 23:16-22. True worship, as the catechism makes clear, is not based on our actions but on a genuine outward display of trust in God’s mercy and love. Superstition is a form of idolatry. The real question is, where or on what are we placing our trust?
Sacramentals
There is scarcely any proper use of material things which cannot…be directed toward the sanctification of men and the praise of God.
Catechism of the Catholic Church #1670
A recent Franciscan Media Saint of the Day clarifies this. St. André Bessette, who suffered with health issues, had a life-long devotion to St. Joseph. The sickly Saint was acclaimed for having healing powers by using certain oils. He credited the building of an Oratory in Montreal dedicated to the earthly father of Jesus to that great Saint through the use of medals and a statue buried on the proposed spot of the church. It is now the largest church in Canada and a major pilgrimage site. These oils, medals, and the statue are sacramentals, material things used for the worship of God, not as some purely external magic.
Pray the novena, by all means. Pray to St. Joseph, using a statue to help meditate on him and his ability to intercede for you to his earthly Son (Still uncomfortable with the burying part, but who am I to argue with a Saint?). The Saints are alive! Choose one or more as special friends. Pray to and with them daily.
St. André Bessette, pray for us.
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