Introduction for the book “God Will Have Us Holy”

In an age of crisis and confusion, when the majority of mankind has abandoned the call of Christ in favor of a new morality which has swept the globe, the concept of sin has been long forgotten by far too many. Those who come to Christ today often do so in a state of flight, fleeing a lifestyle and a personal philosophy which has brought them to the brink of moral, perhaps even physical and eternal, ruin.

The major message in St. Alphonsus Liguori’s treatise, and in the decision to republish it as God Will Have Us Holy, is that mankind needs to remember that sin is a more serious reality than we tend to regard it today. Sin brings much more devastation than simply the guilt which must be taken to Confession. Sin damages the soul, damages the soul’s relationship with God, damages the order of the world, and threatens the soul with eternal damnation. When we are aware of having sinned, we are inclined to seek the mercy of the Savior. When God is aware of our sins, it pains Him and inclines Him to seek to bring us back to the path that leads to Heaven.

It is this last point, God’s own efforts to draw us back to Him, which St. Alphonsus takes time to explain in a most complete and comprehensive manner. Such a treatment of this subject is generally lacking in the Church today. As a result, many Catholics are either confused about, or misguided on, the topic of God’s Mercy and Justice. The strong emphasis today which is placed on Mercy often leads Catholics to think that there is nothing left for them to do about their sins after successfully making it to Confession, if they even think Confession is still necessary! For those who do still understand the necessity of Confession for mortal sin, and the strong encouragement to go to Confession even for venial sin, it needs to be understood that there is more to do than simply confess our sins and receive God’s Mercy.

Accompanying the Confession of sin must be a true sorrow for the sins confessed as well as a firm purpose of amending one’s life, such that the sins confessed are not repeated in the future. In various ways, St. Paul expresses this by saying, “Flee from sin!” This is the call of the prophets, the call of St. John the Baptist, the call of the Apostles – it is the call of Christ. Abandon sin and strive after holiness.

It is clear in the teachings of the Church, and extremely advantageous for souls to know, that God desires our salvation even more than we do! This means that His entire orientation toward us is one of salvation: He will do everything in His power to deliver us from a life that leads us away from Him. It is in this context that St. Paul in his letter to the Hebrews explains that God is a Father who disciplines and chastises those whom He loves, those whom He receives as His children. 

It is with these things in mind that we must understand the words of St. Alphonsus Liguori contained in this book. Catholics today, though many have overlooked it, have already heard these reminders in the popular message of Our Lady at Fatima. Here, they have already been called upon to take heed of the need of God to chastise His children, and chastise the world, for the sake of sin. It was in the message of Our Lady of Fatima that it was recently made clear just how much sin offends God, so much so that, as the world was still reeling from World War I, Our Lady came to warn us that God was holding over the world the threat of a further chastisement, a “worse war,” which the sins of mankind had merited. As Our Lady and St. Alphonsus clarify, God’s inclination is not to punish but to love and to bless His children. That being said, God will have us holy. He does not want us to be lost, so He will threaten chastisements to bring salvation back into our focus, and He will send sufferings in order to ensure that we do not forfeit our salvation in exchange for the fleeting pleasures of this passing life.

The message of Our Lady of Fatima has also had a special influence in the spiritual practices of modern Catholics. She called for the daily recitation of the Rosary to obtain peace in the world, the renewed devotion to her Immaculate Heart and the First Saturdays devotion, and the consecration of Russia to her Immaculate Heart, a message which has occupied the Church ever since it was made public. All of these spiritual practices were means of preventing what Our Lady warned might happen to the world if we did not do so.

It was in her third appearance, on July 13^th, 1917, that Our Lady of Fatima gave the stern warning to the world which was mentioned earlier, before which she showed these children a vision of Hell: “If people do not cease offending God, a worse [war] will break out during the Pontificate of Pius XI. When you see a night illumined by an unknown light, know that this is the great sign given you by God that he is about to punish the world for its crimes, by means of war, famine, and persecutions of the Church and of the Holy Father.”[1]

When we offend God by sin, we abandon the Father and, like the Prodigal Son, we are reduced to misery. In these moments it is often only by means of a chastisement, like the “great famine” in this Parable, and the “worse war” in the message of Fatima, that a desire to return to God is enkindled. St. Alphonsus says that God has bound Himself by the promise of pardoning us if we are repentant. It is the repentant, like the Prodigal Son, who obtain the Mercy of God and are spared the punishment held over them due to their sins. God will do anything He can to prevent us from being lost. If we repent and ask for His Mercy, He will pardon us through the merits of His Son, Jesus Christ, who sacrificed Himself on the Cross to expiate our sins. If we refuse to abandon our sins, and refuse to turn to the Mercy Christ has obtained for us, the Justice of God is all that is left. St. Alphonsus adds:

God, says St. John Chrysostom, when he punishes us on this earth, does not do so out of hatred to us, but that he may draw us to himself. He chastises for a little while, that he may have you with him for eternity. When the physician uses the knife, he does so to cure, says St. Augustine. And God, the saint continues, does the same in our regard. “God seems to be cruel; but do not fear; for he is a father who is never cruel, and does not wish to destroy us.” But, does not God say the same himself? Those, whom I love, I rebuke and chastise; be zealous therefore, and do penance.[2]

If we purpose truly to turn to God, then let us pray to him and rejoice; even though the sins of the entire world were ours, we should be heard, as I said to you in the beginning. Every one who prays with a purpose of amendment, obtains mercy.[3] Let our prayers be in the name of Jesus Christ, who has promised that the eternal Father will grant us everything we ask in his name, that is, through his merits. If you ask the Father anything in My name, He will give it to you.[4] Let us pray, and never cease from prayer; thus we shall obtain every grace, and save ourselves.

Those today who would adhere to the call to “Flee from sin!” and amend their lives must follow the counsel of Our Lady of Fatima and St. Alphonsus Liguori. Taking up this book, God Will Have Us Holy, is a sure way to understand how that is accomplished. The words of St. Alphonsus Liguori are those of one of the most eloquent teachers of the Faith, and are those which confirm and explain all that Our Lady warned about at Fatima: sin truly does offend God and must be addressed by repentance and amendment of one’s life, turning to God in prayer, penance, and works of holiness. If we do so, we will persevere in the friendship of God and will, one day, be welcomed as His beloved children into the Kingdom of Heaven.

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