The meaning of our identity
The top represents the Ark of the Covenant, both in the old and new testament, which signifies our veneration to Mary who guides those asking for her help. The Ark, int he old testament, was also something that commanded respect. Those who approached it in the incorrect way were struck down.
The angels of th bowing signify that even the most holy, or most accomplished, still bow to a greater presence, being God. Despite our best attempts at greatness, we are still under God.
The spears are the Holy Lance, in the colours of white red and blue which are White for the light of Christ, Blue for the water which came from His side, and Red for the most precious blood.
The cross is the Maronite cross, which is shaped like a Cedar of Lebanon showing the roots to the largest and oldest church of the Middle East.
The Alpha and Omega are the sign of the first and last. All students are the first and last line of defence for themselves, family and values.
The shape the Alpha and Omega are in is the cornerstone. Like the cornerstone rejected, this is a symbol that those who think of themselves useless are anything but in the eyes of Christ.
The colours yellow, red and blue are the colours worn by the Swiss Guard who are dedicated to the defence of the Vatican.
The Arabic writing translates to “if you want peace, prepare for war”, the belief that preparing for the worst will enable peace in chaos.
The sword and the scroll indicate a commitment to both development of the mind and body for the benefit of others. The sword is a tool that can be used for destruction and knowledge used for creation. Combined, they form a balance needed to develop a person.
If you have to go to a place you don’t want to go to get things done, then it’s your job to make sure not only do you go to that place, but you get the job done. The challenge would not present itself to you if it wasn’t for you to complete. Overcome everything with persistence and faith.
Why I wrote this book
This book was written as a supplement to faith formation. It has not been promoted or officiated in anyway by the Holy See or administration of the Roman Catholic Church, or even by the Maronite Eparchy of Australia. While I am part of this community, none of them had any official input or responsibility for the ideas in this book.
This is my view on faith, and my set of ideas on how I think faith can be improved for young men. This doesn’t mean it’s exclusively for men. If you’re a woman and you’re reading this, you can get a lot out of it also. I welcome you to read through it as well.
I wrote this book because I was growing tired of being labeled, even if it was my own mind doing the labeling. I wrote this because I wanted other people to see that the defeatist attitude, the fence sitting and the indecisiveness in our lives was ruining us as a community. I was seeing less decisiveness from people in positions of influence. I hope I can be a role model even in some small way for people who know deep down that the world needs to change, but just don’t know where to start.
I offer no sure-fire way to become a super hero. It’s not magic. I offer no clear-cut advice on what to do in your specific situations where leadership is needed. But I do offer inspiration from a biblical perspective and from a martial science perspective. I offer my own experiences to prove to you that if you’re a Catholic, male, and have some experience in martial arts or combat sports—or even if you’re only one of those things—you can align yourself with the divinity of Christ to be your best at whatever you apply yourself to do. You don’t need to be a hardened fighter to do this. You could be a musician or a veterinary nurse. It still applies to you.
I was told some specific things about the final draft of this book before it was published. Here are some of the descriptors: “toxic masculinity,” “right wing views,” “mansplaining,” “flawed logic,” “old and backward thinking,” “stupid conservative inconclusive viewpoints,” “ignorance,” “offensive and arrogant opinions.”
Each to his own. What I can tell you is that I’ve not attacked anyone, called anyone names, or disparaged any person or group. I’ve just called things as they are. If you’re wanting to see things from a factual viewpoint, influenced by what’s commonly known as a conservative position, then continue reading. My training in the martial science I committed to, along with my faith, helped me to form that view. If yours is different, then take it with a grain of salt.
I’ve used the NKJV and Douay-Rheims Challoner (DRC1752) version of the Bible within this book as part of my research. I chose these versions of the Bible as I found they were two of the most widely used versions of the Bible by Catholics. However, I recommend that you speak to your parish priest if you’re concerned about any interpretation.
From time to time within this book I interchange a few words, for example martial arts, combat sports, martial science, and martial disciplines. Most of my definitions come from the work of my friend Dr Andrew Melito who first bought me his ideas on what the differences were. However, in the event that in your reading you encounter some of these words, I shall clarify what I am talking about. Here are my definitions, and some examples:
Combat sports - These are no-contact (rarely), semi- or light-contact, and full-contact sports in which two people fight in a particular way, to win in rounds, or against the clock, or until one can no longer fight. Combat sports are conducted with rules and in a controlled environment. Two examples are boxing and Muay Thai.
Martial arts - A term which loosely describes the different styles of martial training. To me, the word art suggests something historic or classical in nature. That is, we in the present moment are studying something which is old. An example of “art” could be abstract art. While abstract art is still being produced, the way of abstract art and the parameters of it have not changed over time. To me the term martial art means something which is historic in nature. A martial art system will teach a student old or outdated techniques on how to defend himself against attacks. It is dead in the sense that it is no longer adapting to cultural changes. An example of this is Aikido. While some people have made there version of Aikido vastly more effective than the Aikido official texts would suggest, it could be argued that those people have not engaged in learning or teaching the traditional martial art of Aikido. In 2019 in Sydney, we don’t need to train to fight a samurai in his armour, Hence the techniques taught aren’t right for today’s society.
Martial discipline and martial science - I put these together because a science is a form of discipline and a discipline is a form of science. Science is a systematic way of categorising information that can be tested, evaluated and explained. Put simply, science is information which is continually evolving through natural selection by way of testing. Information that has been tested and found false is categorised as false, and information that has been tested and shown to be true beyond all reasonable doubt is categorised as true. The science of medicine is a great example of this. Our present study and knowledge of medicine isn’t what it was 400 years ago. It’s vastly improved. Martial sciences are similar. What worked 600 years ago may not work today, thanks to changes in technology, culture, environment and people. We don’t need to learn how to defend ourselves against being attacked by someone on horseback with a Naginata (long staff with a curved blade on the end—a typical classical Japanese weapon). We do, however, need to know how to defend against someone who uses a knife the way a sewing machine uses a threading needle. An example of this is American Kenpo Karate.
Foreword
I
