Each stressed that it’s time to consider the moral state of our lives and then leave our sins behind.

I’d like to propose something else to think about during this Advent season. This is not easy to write, but for many of us who have been active in a variety of Catholic causes it is hard not to feel the incredible apathy that hangs like smog over our faith community.

There is something out there that is holding us back from fighting back against the eroding of our place in society. This is not new but the detrimental effects are growing worse by the day.

Anyone who follows current events knows our democratic rights are no longer to be taken for granted. Any physician who wants to exercise his or her conscience is under threat of losing his license. A professor who speaks out about the pure silliness of new pronouns faces the wrath of the new puritans. A prominent university, Trinity Western, that simply wants to train lawyers, has to fight for its existence because it demands respect for Christian morality. Just look at the state of pro-life clubs on university campuses and you should weep.

Most have read about Lindsay Shepherd, the Wilfrid Laurier University teaching assistant who was subjected to an appalling school interrogation for daring to show different points of view on the issue of non-traditional honourifics. Imagine the nerve of her to foster debate rather than indoctrination.

If any of this is new to you I advise you to wake up … and then do something. The time for shoulder shrugging is over.

A good Catholic friend of mine said he feels like he’s a guerrilla fighter in a war to re-establish faith and sanity in our badly drifting society. C.S. Lewis referred to people like us as a rebel force that gets its marching orders from above every Sunday at church.

Where to start? There are a number of great organizations fighting the righteous fight. Some are Catholic and others fight for causes that concern us: the Sisters of Life, the Euthanasia Prevention Coalition, Parents As First Educators, Campaign Life Coalition and the Toronto Right to Life Association, Aid To Women and the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms. There are many more.

These groups need our prayers, our money and our moral support. By moral support I don’t mean just thinking good thoughts but also promoting these groups to your friends, families and co-parishioners. We have so many opportunities as Catholics to raise important issues with others. When we don’t, we are letting a golden opportunity pass us by and we are diminishing ourselves.

Knowing what’s out there is an important first step. Say you know a young woman who is single and pregnant and struggling with what to do. Everyone should know to point her to the Sisters of Life. For those who meet someone who is worried sick about the leftist agenda in our schools you could direct them to Parents As First Educators. If you know someone considering euthanasia you can talk to the Euthanasia Prevention Coalition for advice.

The help many of these groups require is often not onerous. It might be spending one hour a week writing letters of protest to politicians, the heads of universities and even to the Church when you feel an issue is not being properly addressed. For those with more time it might be taking part in a demonstration or manning a phone at a pro-life office.

These groups will also arm you to better articulate your faith and positions to others. We need to build up our collective confidence. We have to stop avoiding uncomfortable discussions with our secular friends. We should stop apologizing for ourselves. And when asked to explain some aspect of our faith be sure to ask your interrogators to justify their own positions.

What has happened is that radical secularism has become the norm. We have to change the narrative. We are the followers of Christ. That should steel us all.

Christ is coming. Christ is coming, indeed. Let us drop our sinful lives, make more frequent confession and attend Mass more often. But let us also show our love for Him by fighting for the Kingdom of God on Earth.

(Lewis is a Toronto writer and regular contributor to The Catholic Register.)