Catholic Prepping: A Seeming Contradiction
Some time ago, I broached the topic of Catholic prepping and what I think that means. Without question, being prepared for our final end is of the greatest importance. It is the preparation. It is what our lives are all about, or, as our priests say (paraphrasing here):
What a man does with sanctifying grace is the primary story of his life. Everything else is peripheral.
Yet, I also have to admit that at times (more frequently of late it seems) I’ve thought about what is prudent to my family’s continued success in this increasingly anti-Catholic, temporal world. On the surface, at least, there appears to be a conflict between prepping and trusting in God’s Providence.
Examples from Scripture
There are numerous examples from Sacred Scripture of both prepping (at least prudently) and trusting in God’s Providence. We can recall the story of Joseph who, having interpreted Pharaoh’s dream, prepared the Egyptians for seven years of famine. On the other hand, we also see that God supplied the Israelites with manna from heaven in the desert, a food that the Israelites could not keep overnight–even if it seemed prudent–for God demanded their trust. In the Gospels, Christ admonishes us not to be anxious for what we will eat (see Matthew 6:24-34). At the same time, He asks, “[C]an you not know the signs of the times?” (see Matthew 16:3 [and context]).
In St. Luke’s Gospel, we also read of Our Lord admonishing the disciples to watch for the signs of His second coming, as well as signs of the fall of Jerusalem, which occurred in 70 AD (see Luke 21: 6-38). In this statement is even the directive to bug out:
Then let those who are in Judea, flee to the mountains; and those who are in the midst thereof, depart out: and those who are in the countries, not enter into it.
So what is the correct attitude for a Catholic to have towards prepping?
A Lesson from A Man for All Seasons Applied to Catholic Prepping
In A Man for All Seasons the character St. Thomas More has quite a few excellent lines, but a few things he says stick out particularly in my mind, (emboldened words my emphasis).
Now listen, Will. And, Meg, you listen, too, you know I know you well. God made the angels to show him splendor–as he made animals for innocence and plants for their simplicity. But Man he made to serve him wittily, in the tangle of his mind! If he suffers us to fall to such a case that there is no escaping, then we may stand to our tackle as best we can, and yes, Will, then we may clamor like champions…if we have the spittle for it. And no doubt it delights God to see splendor where He only looked for complexity. But it’s God’s part, not our own, to bring ourselves to that extremity! Our natural business lies in escaping so let’s get home and study this Bill. (See here for complete script.)
For background, this dialogue takes place after Meg informs her father, Sir Thomas, that a new act requiring an oath has been passed through parliament. His response is to look for a way to take the oath if at all possible, if the words were acceptable.
Applying the Quote
What strikes me so much are the two statements I marked in bold. True, these are not the words of the real St. Sir Thomas More. They come from the script of a play. Nevertheless I think they are quite profound and worth considering for those who might be struggling with the seeming conflict of trusting in God vs. preparing for difficult times. I draw the following observations from them:
Duties of Our State in Life
For those of us who are the heads of our families, our natural business would seem to be to look to the affairs of our families. We can be assured that fulfilling the duties of our state in life is in accordance with God’s will. Conversely, if a course of action would interfere with our duties, it should be avoided. An example of something that would interfere would be to purchase something beyond our means such that we cannot provide the necessities of life for those under our charge.
Embrace God’s Will
If it is God’s will that we become martyrs, no amount of prepping is going to prevent that. That said, it is God’s part, not our own, to bring ourselves to that extremity. If our natural business lies in escaping, we should attempt to escape, even while we are willing to sacrifice ourselves if that is God’s will.
God Gave us Reason and Intelligence to Serve Him
If it is correct that man was made to serve God in his mind, using his intelligence, then we should do exactly that. I have no doubt that we should serve God with our intelligence, for the Baltimore Catechism tells us, “God made us to know Him, to love Him, and to serve Him in this life and be happy with Him in the next.” The greatest commandment is to love the Lord our God with our entire being, which surely includes our intelligence. Therefore, if right reason informs us that bad times are ahead or that the present conditions cannot long remain, it would seem correct–indeed it would seem a duty–to take action, serving God with our reason.
Anxiety is not Healthy
Even if right reason informs us that we need to take action, we should not become anxious. God gave us intelligence for a reason, but he’s not going to abandon us either. Our intelligence came from God, too. We can be assured the grace will be there when we need it. Any prepping we undertake in response to a conclusion of our intelligence should not be an act of desperation but an act of confidence, an act of trust. If it is instead an act of desperation, that would seem indicative of a trust issue.
Conclusion
The conclusion I draw from this is that prepping and trusting in Divine Providence are not mutually exclusive. Rather they can be two sides of the same coin. Priorities, however, are extremely important.
Seek first the kingdom of God, and his justice, and all these things shall be added unto you. Matthew 6:33
No man can serve two masters. For either he will hate the one, and love the other: or he will sustain the one, and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. Matthew 6:24
The example of St. Joseph is always in season for preppers. He bugged out with Jesus and Mary on extremely short notice and despite the hardship. He did what God told him to do when God told him to do it. He did it without being anxious. Neither did God tell him to leave before his time.