You’ve heard it before; maybe you’re even the one who said it: "I don’t need the Church to be close to Jesus -- no Bishop or Pope is going to tell me what to do." Yet, we have to face one major fact: Jesus gave to the apostles and their successors his authority. That means the Church is apostolic. That’s how we know what we believe is what Jesus wants us to believe. The Holy Spirit keeps the Church faithful to the teaching the apostles heard from Christ by giving the authority of Christ and the apostles to the bishops, assisted by the priests, in union with the successor of Peter, the Pope. Everybody wants to know the truth, to belong to people who truly are in touch with Jesus. The Church is such a community and she remains that way because the Holy Spirit lives in her. But we can’t just leave it at that. How does the Holy Spirit keep the Church close to Christ? That’s where popes and bishops, priests and deacons come in. Human though they are, they possess the Holy Spirit in a special way that keeps them in contact with the original Gospel preached by Christ.

That’s what is spectacular about our Catholic faith--we are always assured that the true message of Christ is preserved, even though individual leaders and members might not measure up to our standards. Think about it. Through 200 years of war, darkness, prejudice, pride, human frailty--you name it--there has always been the true thread of the Gospel in the Catholic Church. That ought to give us stability, comfort, and certainty. Maybe it also explains why we’ve been around so long. Christ said he wouldn’t leave us alone. He said his Spirit would always guide us. Perhaps we shouldn’t be so quick to judge the Church wrong on some issues. Listen closely next time you go to Mass. Whispering through cathedral columns and parish church aisles is the sound of truth, a fresh breeze that always comes from the Holy Spirit.