My dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

There have been and will be many responses to the recent terrorist attacks perpetrated in Paris by the radical jihadists of the Islamic State. These responses fall into various categories, such as political responses, military responses and religious responses. I will leave the political responses to the politicians and the military responses to the soldiers and their commanders. My response is a religious one from the Catholic perspective.

Our first response should be prayer. In the face of evil, we must always turn to Jesus, whom we honored Sunday, Nov. 22 as King of the Universe. The Preface of the Mass for the Solemnity of Christ the King reminds us that Jesus offered himself "on the altar of the Cross as a spotless sacrifice to bring us peace" and "accomplish the mysteries of human redemption." Indeed, we should fervently pray that Christ our King will lead us all to his "eternal and universal kingdom, a kingdom of holiness and grace, a kingdom of justice, love and peace."

Second, we must forgive and love our enemies. In his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus told his disciples, "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you" (Matthew 5:43-44). Yes, this includes terrorists, but loving our enemies who commit heinous atrocities does not mean condoning what they do or being naïve about the dangers that they continue to pose. Jesus also said that we must "be shrewd as serpents and simple as doves" (Matthew 10:16). We have a right to defend ourselves and adopt appropriate measures that protect our national security. Ultimately the most loving thing we can do for our enemies is to help them see the error of their ways and lead them to the truth.

This leads to our third response, which is to seek to change hearts. Yes, this means changing the hearts of those who mistakenly see terrorism as a legitimate means of achieving their religious ambitions. Of course, this is not easy, since the terrorists have a powerful propaganda machine to recruit a seemingly constant flow of new jihadists and suicide bombers. Christians must vigorously proclaim the truth that is found in the love of Jesus Christ, who said, "If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free" (John 8:31-32).

The task of changing hearts does not pertain only to turning the hearts of the jihadists from their violence, but in fact must start with changing our own hearts to make sure that God is our number one priority. Accounts of the attacks in Paris reported that the rock band called "The Eagles of Death Metal" were performing a song called Kiss the Devil for a cheering crowd when the terrorists stormed the music hall. The lyrics for that song contain these lines: "Who'll love the devil? Who'll sing his song? I will love the devil and his song! Who'll love the devil? Who'll kiss his tongue? I will kiss the devil on his tongue!" It is not a coincidence that worship of the devil leads to death. That is why we pray in the Prayer to St. Michael that he will "be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil."

One of the reasons why the secular West is such a despised target by the jihadists is that our culture is perceived as decadent and immoral, and in many ways this perception is not inaccurate. A Gallup poll of the Islamic world published in March 2002 found that, in all of the countries surveyed, respondents view Western values as having a negative effect on local values. When asked what specific Western influences had a negative impact, the answer was clear: Western morals and decadent culture, described by citizens of predominantly Islamic countries to include vulgar or immoral activities such as libertine attitudes toward sex, alcohol consumption, vulgarity and nudity in films and music, and inappropriate dress and/or hairstyles.

The second most frequently given examples of the problems with Western culture relate to perceptions that citizens of the West have a growing indifference to religion or a weakening degree of adherence to religious precepts. Again, this perception is not far from reality, given that the majority of Christians in the West do not go to church every Sunday and many would rather attend or participate in sporting events than go to Mass.

In sum, our Christian response to terrorism must be to pray to Christ our King, to forgive and love our enemies, and to turn hearts from their narrow self-interest to genuine love of God and neighbor.

May God give us this grace. Amen.