At some point in our lives, we all want to be the hero, we all want to save the day. From start to finish this is a very ordinary wish. How easy it is to create an unnamed villain just a little more powerful, a little more dangerous. Man does not live on facts. Faith is needed.
As Christians are lives are different, as God’s adopted children, we are part of a distinguished group of faithful believers and followers. We often seek compassion, seek company.
Being the hero is great for movies when there is a script and stereophonic sound.
Sometimes the most important thing is overlooked, temporarily forgotten.
The life of a Catholic often involves the continued search for the God. We want to hear God’s voice, we want to see God if only for a moment. There exists the tendency to approach God, to follow Jesus Christ with a sterile, unsmiling, unidentified coolness, a stiff distance. Remember that God exudes love, God exudes tenderness, God exudes mercy. In order to meet God, in order to hear God we are asked to be like God. We are asked to be ready to share a fistful of kindness, goodness, and holiness. We are asked to be recognizable as loving followers of Jesus Christ. Humility, charity, obedience lead us to God. We, God’s loving, loyal servants share God’s grace, God’s love, God mercy. Compassion, patience becomes our guide. Remember always and believe that we are God’s adopted children. God wants each one of to be his protagonist, he wants us to go out into the world and share his love.
Freewill presents both a challenge and an opportunity for each Catholic Christian as we live each day. We decide what we are going to do. We decide to follow or not follow Jesus Christ. We decide to believe or not believe in God. We decide to sin or not sin. Our decisions, our actions have consequences. We decide to love or not love.
God is consistent, God always loves us. To be consistent in our love for our neighbors, in our love for God, in our love for ourselves can help us achieve salvation, can help us enter the Kingdom of God.
Showing posts with label Faith. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Faith. Show all posts
Monday, September 19, 2011
Friday, September 16, 2011
Memorial Saint Cornelius and Saint Cyprian
Today is the Memorial of Saint Cornelius, pope and martyr and Saint Cyprian, bishop and martyr.
Please remember them in your prayers.
Please remember them in your prayers.
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Love and Serve the Lord
The poetical and lyrical qualities of life are associations noticed and captured by others. Depending on who is doing the observing, who is doing the narrating, and who is dong the listening events in our lives can be condensed to strange volumes of moonlight and melancholy, of conformity and cantankerousness. For some each life becomes a textbook, each life becomes a didactic exercise of advice unsolicited, advice unwanted. Life can be described as a collection of quotes, photographs, lists of songs, lists of television shows, lists of celebrities.
Talk of pain, emotional and physical, talk of austerity, emotional and economic, dominates conversations. Philosophy intersects with emotion and directs the attention here and there. Life becomes unfocused while searching for an argument. Being introspective can lead us to God, can lead us to love. Humanity begins with the ordinary, begins with emotion.
The lyrical and the poetical qualities refer to how we live, how we love, how we express ourselves. It is not limited to our grammatical choices, to our verbal utterances. The lyrical and poetical qualities refer to how we love and serve the Lord.
A need for an intimate reality, an intimate relationship with God expresses itself in a reserved, measured form. A hint of sympathy, a desire for empathy create the power of hope, faith, and love.Divine aspiration, divine inspiration can overpower doubt. We simply have to allow ourselves to believe.
The religious soul continues to struggle with moral temptation. The religious soul struggles and strains against the oppressive yolk of popular culture with its permissiveness, violence, racism, sexism, inequalities, injustices. There is sadness, loneliness. The religious soul strains to remind of us of truth, beauty, goodness. The religious soul asks us to think of and then become living examples of humility, charity, obedience, compassion, and mercy. The epitaph of our lives is often composed by the religious soul, leading us to God, leading us to love, leading us to life eternal beyond our fragile, temporary earthly bodies. The tone of our lives reveals the goodness, kindness, holiness within our hearts, within our souls. Being didactic, feeling melancholy becomes a sign, a symbol of our humanity.
We suffer. We conform. We suffer. We say hello. We say farewell. Happiness arrives. Sadness arrives.
We are asked to sacrifice in the name of the Lord. We are asked to Love in the name of God. We are asked to walk in the footsteps of Jesus Christ. We are asked to be introspective, to pray and to love our brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers and all of our neighbors.
Both lyrical and poetical viewpoints provide insights and images that can help us become closer to God. As Christians we sometimes need help discovering God’s beauty, discovering goodness in human beings, discovering truth in the world around us.
Talk of pain, emotional and physical, talk of austerity, emotional and economic, dominates conversations. Philosophy intersects with emotion and directs the attention here and there. Life becomes unfocused while searching for an argument. Being introspective can lead us to God, can lead us to love. Humanity begins with the ordinary, begins with emotion.
The lyrical and the poetical qualities refer to how we live, how we love, how we express ourselves. It is not limited to our grammatical choices, to our verbal utterances. The lyrical and poetical qualities refer to how we love and serve the Lord.
A need for an intimate reality, an intimate relationship with God expresses itself in a reserved, measured form. A hint of sympathy, a desire for empathy create the power of hope, faith, and love.Divine aspiration, divine inspiration can overpower doubt. We simply have to allow ourselves to believe.
The religious soul continues to struggle with moral temptation. The religious soul struggles and strains against the oppressive yolk of popular culture with its permissiveness, violence, racism, sexism, inequalities, injustices. There is sadness, loneliness. The religious soul strains to remind of us of truth, beauty, goodness. The religious soul asks us to think of and then become living examples of humility, charity, obedience, compassion, and mercy. The epitaph of our lives is often composed by the religious soul, leading us to God, leading us to love, leading us to life eternal beyond our fragile, temporary earthly bodies. The tone of our lives reveals the goodness, kindness, holiness within our hearts, within our souls. Being didactic, feeling melancholy becomes a sign, a symbol of our humanity.
We suffer. We conform. We suffer. We say hello. We say farewell. Happiness arrives. Sadness arrives.
We are asked to sacrifice in the name of the Lord. We are asked to Love in the name of God. We are asked to walk in the footsteps of Jesus Christ. We are asked to be introspective, to pray and to love our brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers and all of our neighbors.
Both lyrical and poetical viewpoints provide insights and images that can help us become closer to God. As Christians we sometimes need help discovering God’s beauty, discovering goodness in human beings, discovering truth in the world around us.
Friday, September 9, 2011
God Asks Us to Forgive
When you attend Mass there is a good chance that either love or forgiveness will be mentioned. So important are these two themes that we need to be reminded constantly, to be reassured that both are beneficial to us, to be encouraged to have the confidence to forgive, to love our neighbor.
Forgiving someone goes beyond the acceptance of a verbal apology. Forgiving someone goes beyond the verbal response. Forgiving when it is true begins in the soul. Forgiveness requires both a spiritual and an emotional letting go. Forgiveness requires prayer, reflection, patience. We can ask God for guidance and help. God provides assistance; Christ Jesus provides lessons.
The secular world likes conflict, unrest, anxiety. The secular world likes to divide people. Mistakes happen. Pain finds us. Sometimes people are malicious and try to incite chaos and mayhem. Sometimes accidents happen. Holding grudges, seeking revenge often creates more problems for us. Two rude acts equal two rude acts. One rude act does not magically disappear.
God deserves a preeminent place in your life. Typing that is easier than doing it. Our lives are filled with many competing items and events. There is not enough time to do all of the things that we want to do. We want more time for prayer, more time to do God’s work. Taking the time to look at our lives, at our conflicts, arguments coolly, objectively requires a spiritual strength, a powerful faith in God.
Forgiving is forgiving, wiping the slate clean, erasing all bad memories, deleting the pain. Forgiving is forgetting. Forgiving requires humility, compassion. As we forgive each other, we extend and share charity with each other. In life bad things will happen, that is a given. The bad does not have to be remembered or preserved in our brains.
As Christians our gaze needs to always be looking up toward the kingdom of heaven. Our lives can be examples of social justice, fairness, and love if we desire. Depending upon the offense, forgiving seems out of reach. Depending upon our relationship with God, forgiving remains out of reach. True, honest forgiveness can be difficult to discover, to extend. If we are able to achieve forgiveness, a moment of divine peace, divine grace will spread from our soul, to our heart, to our mind. Forgiveness asks us to forget our earthly body, our earthly concern and to think and behave like God. Forgiveness shifts our concern from ourselves to those who have harmed us. Our prayers will include them, asking for their protection.
Forgiveness begins with communication to God, when we take the time to present our problems and concerns to God with honesty, truth. Our lives contain different levels of vulnerability, different levels of fear. Forgiveness occurs when we present everything to God and release it from our soul, from our heart, from our mind.
Forgiveness can lead to love. Forgiveness can lead to goodness, kindness, holiness. First we are asked to believe in God, to have faith and trust in God, to love God.
When God is preeminent in our lives forgiveness becomes easier.
Forgiving someone goes beyond the acceptance of a verbal apology. Forgiving someone goes beyond the verbal response. Forgiving when it is true begins in the soul. Forgiveness requires both a spiritual and an emotional letting go. Forgiveness requires prayer, reflection, patience. We can ask God for guidance and help. God provides assistance; Christ Jesus provides lessons.
The secular world likes conflict, unrest, anxiety. The secular world likes to divide people. Mistakes happen. Pain finds us. Sometimes people are malicious and try to incite chaos and mayhem. Sometimes accidents happen. Holding grudges, seeking revenge often creates more problems for us. Two rude acts equal two rude acts. One rude act does not magically disappear.
God deserves a preeminent place in your life. Typing that is easier than doing it. Our lives are filled with many competing items and events. There is not enough time to do all of the things that we want to do. We want more time for prayer, more time to do God’s work. Taking the time to look at our lives, at our conflicts, arguments coolly, objectively requires a spiritual strength, a powerful faith in God.
Forgiving is forgiving, wiping the slate clean, erasing all bad memories, deleting the pain. Forgiving is forgetting. Forgiving requires humility, compassion. As we forgive each other, we extend and share charity with each other. In life bad things will happen, that is a given. The bad does not have to be remembered or preserved in our brains.
As Christians our gaze needs to always be looking up toward the kingdom of heaven. Our lives can be examples of social justice, fairness, and love if we desire. Depending upon the offense, forgiving seems out of reach. Depending upon our relationship with God, forgiving remains out of reach. True, honest forgiveness can be difficult to discover, to extend. If we are able to achieve forgiveness, a moment of divine peace, divine grace will spread from our soul, to our heart, to our mind. Forgiveness asks us to forget our earthly body, our earthly concern and to think and behave like God. Forgiveness shifts our concern from ourselves to those who have harmed us. Our prayers will include them, asking for their protection.
Forgiveness begins with communication to God, when we take the time to present our problems and concerns to God with honesty, truth. Our lives contain different levels of vulnerability, different levels of fear. Forgiveness occurs when we present everything to God and release it from our soul, from our heart, from our mind.
Forgiveness can lead to love. Forgiveness can lead to goodness, kindness, holiness. First we are asked to believe in God, to have faith and trust in God, to love God.
When God is preeminent in our lives forgiveness becomes easier.
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Ruminations
There are times when I try to imagine life in Galilee. There are times when I try to imagine being in the Capernaum temple with Jesus on the sabbath.
How wonderful it would be to hear Jesus Christ speak his words, to experience his syntax. Sitting in Mass I sometimes close my eyes briefly and try to create a scene hurriedly and vaguely. There is much artistic license and Hollywood spectacle but this can be helpful in unpacking the reading. Sometimes additional questions spring up and surprise me with a search for meaning, a search for deeper understanding. Each time I attend Mass there is an opportunity for further learning on how to be a better loving Christian, how to serve God with humility, charity, mercy, and compassion.
In between news about Hurricane Irene, hunting feral pigs from helicopters, searching for Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi's remaining forces, there is always time to be surprised by God.
God’s love is inexhaustible.
The search for connection between Holy Scripture and our daily lives is very important. Finding resonance in the readings can encourage greater love for God. Our faith does ask us to be cerebral, to use our minds to serve God, to use our minds to serve God. Our faith asks each of us to use our ganglions to form gangs of hope and love in ourselves and our communities.
Ebb and flow is natural in life; there is always advance and retreat. In the life of all Christians there are times of solitude, times of solicitude. There are times of vague desire to do good, there are times of gradual acceptance of loving God. Each Christian is allowed to learn when to speak, when to shut up.
I seek faith in a faithful place. I seek God in a loving place.
How wonderful it would be to hear Jesus Christ speak his words, to experience his syntax. Sitting in Mass I sometimes close my eyes briefly and try to create a scene hurriedly and vaguely. There is much artistic license and Hollywood spectacle but this can be helpful in unpacking the reading. Sometimes additional questions spring up and surprise me with a search for meaning, a search for deeper understanding. Each time I attend Mass there is an opportunity for further learning on how to be a better loving Christian, how to serve God with humility, charity, mercy, and compassion.
In between news about Hurricane Irene, hunting feral pigs from helicopters, searching for Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi's remaining forces, there is always time to be surprised by God.
God’s love is inexhaustible.
The search for connection between Holy Scripture and our daily lives is very important. Finding resonance in the readings can encourage greater love for God. Our faith does ask us to be cerebral, to use our minds to serve God, to use our minds to serve God. Our faith asks each of us to use our ganglions to form gangs of hope and love in ourselves and our communities.
Ebb and flow is natural in life; there is always advance and retreat. In the life of all Christians there are times of solitude, times of solicitude. There are times of vague desire to do good, there are times of gradual acceptance of loving God. Each Christian is allowed to learn when to speak, when to shut up.
I seek faith in a faithful place. I seek God in a loving place.
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Rosary or Umbrella
Saturday began quietly. There was slight hesitation about whether to go to early Mass or not. The weather forecast was a confusing mixture of clouds and sunshine. A slight debate over which camera, which lenses, which camera bag began. There were more reasons to remain indoors than to leave, there were more reasons to do something else, anything else than to leave and be productive.
Outside there was sunlight caressing one side of the still silent, somehow wonderfully traffic free avenue. There was something gently beautiful about this view, something which provided hope. There was a brief debate over taking photograph or not.
The walk to the Cathedral of Saint Matthew the Apostle continued. There were few pedestrians moving about that Saturday morning. There were joggers and cyclists and dogs on leashes. The air was cool, the sky was blank. People looked liked statues or other inanimate objects.
There were trees without leaves, buses without riders, taxicabs without passengers. There were many things to think about, many things to remember. This was a time for silent prayer, silent reflection. This was a time to remember some of the people that I had promised to pray for. This was a time to remember my own search for my personal sense of humanity. This was a time to remember to pray for strangers. Mass had been missed, the second destination was plotted.
Walking on the sidewalks, jaywalking at some intersections provided a crazy sense of anonymity and anxiety. There was a second or two of calm carelessness as I looked at this glass and steel building. There was a second or two of casual thoughtlessness as I darted into traffic.
Walking south there was a moment when I wondered if I had the wrong date, if this event was going to occur on another future time.
Then, I saw them. It was about twenty people of all ages, standing there holding their rosaries. Some were holding sheets of paper.
Their voices were gentle, merciful, loving. Their manner was civil, polite. They were publicly praying in front of the local abortion clinic. There was one police vehicle on the street.
A priest with a microphone was leading those saying the Rosary. This was a moment of reverence. This was a moment of hope. This was a moment of charity. The voices gently said the Rosary, each mystery was clearly announced. Standing on the edge of a sidewalk near the entrance to the abortion clinic, these Christians peacefully, calmly prayed for life, prayed for those thinking about having an abortion, prayed for those who have had an abortion, prayed for those innocent children who were killed by abortion.
The Rosary is powerful. As Catholics we are taught to respect life, to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. A sign of that love is supporting life, supporting hope. We must remember God, remember goodness, holiness, and kindness.
We must encourage our friends to help with this fight. All human life is important. All human life contains the potential for beauty, for hope, for love.
All human life deserves a chance.
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Choices and Prayer
There is so much antagonism and anxiety in modern life that it is difficult to decide who our enemies and persecutors are. Enemies and persecutors abound in our day to day lives. They whisper truths and half truths about us. They want to make us look silly, want to see us fall down. Sometime they even desire that we suffer bodily harm.
As Christians we must remember to always keep our faith in God, always to pray for those who are tormenting us. As Christians do not fear those who are plotting, simply forgive them and pray for them. This is in direct opposition to the Hollywood method of escalating conflict.
Prayer is always good. As Catholics we must always be prepared to pray, always be prepared for a moment of silence. We must always remember the Beatitudes, be ready to share kindness and compassion with everyone around us. We must always remember to ask God for mercy for us and for our tormentors. We must never fear the crowd, the whispering voices who are plotting against us. Simply allow your faith in and love for God be your shield.
In the United States there is an epidemic of school bullying. Children are being picked on for a variety of reasons and being called all types of names. Why do some some children bully other children? What type of homes do bullies come from?
We must always remember to pray, to pray often for this world.
As Christians we must remember to always keep our faith in God, always to pray for those who are tormenting us. As Christians do not fear those who are plotting, simply forgive them and pray for them. This is in direct opposition to the Hollywood method of escalating conflict.
Prayer is always good. As Catholics we must always be prepared to pray, always be prepared for a moment of silence. We must always remember the Beatitudes, be ready to share kindness and compassion with everyone around us. We must always remember to ask God for mercy for us and for our tormentors. We must never fear the crowd, the whispering voices who are plotting against us. Simply allow your faith in and love for God be your shield.
In the United States there is an epidemic of school bullying. Children are being picked on for a variety of reasons and being called all types of names. Why do some some children bully other children? What type of homes do bullies come from?
We must always remember to pray, to pray often for this world.
Saturday, January 8, 2011
has given us discernment
So this joy of mine has been made complete. John 3:29
Being Christian is a journey to warmheartedness. It is a journey to love, a journey of faith, a journey of loyalty, a journey of confidence. The destination is a close relationship with God. Being Christian is a journey of sacrifice.
Patience is a necessity which all Christians need to possess. Anxiety can cause doubt, can impair a person’s judgement.
Simplicity is a Christian’s best friend. Learn how to love unconditionally; learn how to love all mankind universally. The love that Jesus wanted us to share with each other is more broad, more powerful than romantic love and infatuation. Keep love simple, keep love humble.
Learn who is your beloved in Jesus Christ. Allow yourself to be silent, to look for goodness, kindness, holiness in yourself and in others. Remember that a Christian life is a journey. Remember to avoid complaining, remember to remain alert. As Christians we should always be ready to accept God’s request for us to follow in the footsteps of Jesus, accept God‘s request that our lives be filled with charity, compassion, humility, and obedience, and accept Jesus Christ as the only begotten son of God who will lead us to eternal life.
Each Christian is asked to believe and embrace love universal, love unconditional. It is important that we learn how to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. It is important that we learn how to praise and petition God. It is important that each Christian learns how give thanks to God. Having a close relationship with God is the primary goal of Christianity. Love, universal and unconditional, is a vehicle for faith, hope, mercy to be shared. This form of love is difficult to master. It requires a selflessness, it is completely unselfish. This love is simple, youthful, fair; the basis for this love begins with the social justice teachings of Jesus Christ.
Universal and unconditional love prepares each Christian to remain in a state of welcoming to all people encountered, especially those in need. As Christians we must be prepared to welcome God into our lives.
Pureness in thought and deed will help us find righteousness, help us move closer to God. Christian morality starts with obeying the word of God. We must honor and praise God with our entire lives. Our hearts, minds, and souls must become incorruptible to sin.
If we observe anyone sinning or if we ourselves are on the verge of sinning always remember to pray. Prayer does help. Use prayer to walk on the right road, to follow in the footsteps of Jesus Christ.
Learn the power and beauty of self-appraisal. Always seek to improve all your activities done for or all the activities in the name of the Lord. Examine yourself fairly, learn from your vulnerability, learn from your fear. Be fair, be just. Remember that you are human. Accept that you might fail, accept that you might sin. Learn to forgive both yourself and others.
This is a great expedition of faith and hope. Allow it to be your life’s great purpose and pilgrimage.
Always remember Jesus and the Apostles preaching and baptizing in Judea. Let your life proclaim that Jesus Christ is the true son of God and he is the true God.
Being Christian is a journey to warmheartedness. It is a journey to love, a journey of faith, a journey of loyalty, a journey of confidence. The destination is a close relationship with God. Being Christian is a journey of sacrifice.
Patience is a necessity which all Christians need to possess. Anxiety can cause doubt, can impair a person’s judgement.
Simplicity is a Christian’s best friend. Learn how to love unconditionally; learn how to love all mankind universally. The love that Jesus wanted us to share with each other is more broad, more powerful than romantic love and infatuation. Keep love simple, keep love humble.
Learn who is your beloved in Jesus Christ. Allow yourself to be silent, to look for goodness, kindness, holiness in yourself and in others. Remember that a Christian life is a journey. Remember to avoid complaining, remember to remain alert. As Christians we should always be ready to accept God’s request for us to follow in the footsteps of Jesus, accept God‘s request that our lives be filled with charity, compassion, humility, and obedience, and accept Jesus Christ as the only begotten son of God who will lead us to eternal life.
Each Christian is asked to believe and embrace love universal, love unconditional. It is important that we learn how to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. It is important that we learn how to praise and petition God. It is important that each Christian learns how give thanks to God. Having a close relationship with God is the primary goal of Christianity. Love, universal and unconditional, is a vehicle for faith, hope, mercy to be shared. This form of love is difficult to master. It requires a selflessness, it is completely unselfish. This love is simple, youthful, fair; the basis for this love begins with the social justice teachings of Jesus Christ.
Universal and unconditional love prepares each Christian to remain in a state of welcoming to all people encountered, especially those in need. As Christians we must be prepared to welcome God into our lives.
Pureness in thought and deed will help us find righteousness, help us move closer to God. Christian morality starts with obeying the word of God. We must honor and praise God with our entire lives. Our hearts, minds, and souls must become incorruptible to sin.
If we observe anyone sinning or if we ourselves are on the verge of sinning always remember to pray. Prayer does help. Use prayer to walk on the right road, to follow in the footsteps of Jesus Christ.
Learn the power and beauty of self-appraisal. Always seek to improve all your activities done for or all the activities in the name of the Lord. Examine yourself fairly, learn from your vulnerability, learn from your fear. Be fair, be just. Remember that you are human. Accept that you might fail, accept that you might sin. Learn to forgive both yourself and others.
This is a great expedition of faith and hope. Allow it to be your life’s great purpose and pilgrimage.
Always remember Jesus and the Apostles preaching and baptizing in Judea. Let your life proclaim that Jesus Christ is the true son of God and he is the true God.
Monday, January 3, 2011
Simple Thoughts
Being Christian is being part of a never-ending expedition. It is an adventure. It is a way of life. Words like morality, moralistic, morals, good character, incorruptibility, virtue are frequently mentioned. Being Christian is an exercise in charity, humility, obedience to God. It is not simply high ideals. It is action, it is reaction. It is prayer and reflection and hope. It is tears and laughter. Being Christian is an eternal struggle of good against bad. Being Christian is an intimate interior dialogue between the soul, the heart, and the mind. It is an argument. It is a choice. Being Christian is often difficult. Being Christian means saying yes to God, yes to sacrificing for God, yes to being obedient to God's wishes. Being Christian can be very public or very private. Being Christian means believing in and loving God. Being Christian means seeking out those others who believe and love God, too.
Courage is needed. Faith is required. Simplicity is needed. Love is required.
Courage is needed. Faith is required. Simplicity is needed. Love is required.
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
We have fellowship with him - December 28, 2010
Have the courage to allow yourself to be humble. First read the Bible. Reflect upon the lives and the decisions of each individual mentioned in the different books and chapters. Each person mentioned is important; each person provides a clue about acceptable and unacceptable behavior. Not all people in the Bible are humble. Not all people in the Bible are Good. The Bible provides valuable lessons about how to serve and how to love God. Humility is very important.
Remember to always share and present reverence and respect for God. Have the courage to seek the charity in others as a way of finding it within. Remember to praise those who need to be praised, to love all without condition, and to use each moment of your life to praise God, to love God, to serve God.
Allow your faith to move you closer to God naturally. Allow your faith to help you become God's loyal servant.
Strive for humility, avoid pride. Learn from the Bible. Love humanity with the entirety of your being. Have the courage to allow this love to direct you toward the heavenly kingdom.
Each movement taken forward in the name of God, for the glory of God, is important when done lovingly, when done with charity, humility, and obedience to God.
Remember to always share and present reverence and respect for God. Have the courage to seek the charity in others as a way of finding it within. Remember to praise those who need to be praised, to love all without condition, and to use each moment of your life to praise God, to love God, to serve God.
Allow your faith to move you closer to God naturally. Allow your faith to help you become God's loyal servant.
Strive for humility, avoid pride. Learn from the Bible. Love humanity with the entirety of your being. Have the courage to allow this love to direct you toward the heavenly kingdom.
Each movement taken forward in the name of God, for the glory of God, is important when done lovingly, when done with charity, humility, and obedience to God.
Thursday, December 9, 2010
your redeemer is the Holy One - December 9, 2010
Whoever has ears ought to hear. Matthew 11:15
Different generations have had different people that they have listened to, followed, imitated, and been entertained by. Each of us have both the responsibility and the ability to share the Good News with others, to use our lives to evangelize. This does not mean fire and brimstone oration on street corners or in parks on Saturday afternoons. Each choice we make, each word we speak is important when it is done for the Lord. Each of our little decisions when done with charity, humility, and obedience to God’s rules can lead others to follow us, to deepen their relationship with God.
Our goal is to nurture and grow the grace of Lord in our daily lives. We must always remember to proceed with faith and love in Jesus Christ.
Our goal is to trust in Jesus Christ and to allow ourselves and our faith to be strengthened by the grace that flows from Jesus Christ.
As we search for salvation we must also want our neighbors to find and experience salvation. Our prayers are always inclusive, our hearts are always open, our souls are always filled with hope, love, compassion.
When you attend Mass listen attentively, actively with all your senses, participate actively with all your senses. Allow yourself to be vulnerable, allow yourself to listen and feel the words of the Good News. Allow yourself to be God’s “Beloved.” Understand and accept the responsibility of being God’s servant.
The Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist feed and nurture our minds, our souls.
As Christians we are encouraged to find our individual way to examine the beauty of living life following in the footsteps of the Lord Jesus Christ. There is so many things happening within our lives, so many opportunities to evangelize, so many questions to discern.
We each can and must create our own snapshot of our life with Christ.
Different generations have had different people that they have listened to, followed, imitated, and been entertained by. Each of us have both the responsibility and the ability to share the Good News with others, to use our lives to evangelize. This does not mean fire and brimstone oration on street corners or in parks on Saturday afternoons. Each choice we make, each word we speak is important when it is done for the Lord. Each of our little decisions when done with charity, humility, and obedience to God’s rules can lead others to follow us, to deepen their relationship with God.
Our goal is to nurture and grow the grace of Lord in our daily lives. We must always remember to proceed with faith and love in Jesus Christ.
Our goal is to trust in Jesus Christ and to allow ourselves and our faith to be strengthened by the grace that flows from Jesus Christ.
As we search for salvation we must also want our neighbors to find and experience salvation. Our prayers are always inclusive, our hearts are always open, our souls are always filled with hope, love, compassion.
When you attend Mass listen attentively, actively with all your senses, participate actively with all your senses. Allow yourself to be vulnerable, allow yourself to listen and feel the words of the Good News. Allow yourself to be God’s “Beloved.” Understand and accept the responsibility of being God’s servant.
The Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist feed and nurture our minds, our souls.
As Christians we are encouraged to find our individual way to examine the beauty of living life following in the footsteps of the Lord Jesus Christ. There is so many things happening within our lives, so many opportunities to evangelize, so many questions to discern.
We each can and must create our own snapshot of our life with Christ.
Sunday, December 5, 2010
a spirit of counsel and of strength - December 5, 2010
Allow yourself to cherish the Sabbath and attending Mass on the Sabbath. Allow this to be a day of charity, humility, and obedience.
Remember the half forgotten prayers of childhood, create some prayers with echoes from yesterday.
Within each prayer rests a portion of your youth, a dollop of all that which is good, kind, and holy within you
And so remember the comfort that prayer does offer
Each time you do acknowledge what you have done
Each momentary strength, momentary weakness
Each prayer does unlock childish memories of faith,
And of Easter, and of the greatest sacrifice you ever heard,
And of a candle-lighted Lent of abstinence and silence
Now, vivid, cinematic, asking me to discern.
Presenting faces of hope, faces of faith, faces of love; faces serving, faces following
Tragedy is the handmaid to all human beings
And yet, those who believe with their entire being
Will surely find salvation and eternal life with God.
I am thinking of a child's prayer now
Said proudly, happily before their father at mealtime.
Remember the half forgotten prayers of childhood, create some prayers with echoes from yesterday.
Within each prayer rests a portion of your youth, a dollop of all that which is good, kind, and holy within you
And so remember the comfort that prayer does offer
Each time you do acknowledge what you have done
Each momentary strength, momentary weakness
Each prayer does unlock childish memories of faith,
And of Easter, and of the greatest sacrifice you ever heard,
And of a candle-lighted Lent of abstinence and silence
Now, vivid, cinematic, asking me to discern.
Presenting faces of hope, faces of faith, faces of love; faces serving, faces following
Tragedy is the handmaid to all human beings
And yet, those who believe with their entire being
Will surely find salvation and eternal life with God.
I am thinking of a child's prayer now
Said proudly, happily before their father at mealtime.
Friday, November 19, 2010
Serve
Prepare yourself to serve the Lord. There is always work to be done. We must always be ready to volunteer. Make time to serve the God by working on a committee at your church. Find something which interests you. Find something which might help you learn something new about your faith. May you find a way to serve God. May you learn the beauty of humility, charity, compassion, and mercy. May your faith be strengthened by your effort.
Messages
I took the small scroll from the angel's hand and swallowed it. In my mouth it was like sweet honey, but when I had eaten it, my stomach turned sour. Revelation 10:10
What a mysterious reading! What a beautiful reading! What a great mingling of good and bad! How wonderful it is to receive the good first, then deal with the bad. All Christians should be encouraged to learn this chapter and recite it every day. Depending on how you want to interpret this chapter, it describes our daily lives as Christians. We have God’s love; God’s love asks us to make sacrifices. Our choices help us on our journey to salvation and eternal life with God. As Christians our choices are not always easy.
When I first read this chapter, I imagined this as a pharmaceutical commercial on television extolling why this new drug should be taken before mentioning the countless side effects. How sweet the pills sound to us until we hear about the side effects!
I like the scene of the angel, the scroll, and John. I like the idea of the angel standing on sea and on land. I like the familiar voice instructing John. I like the angel’s message, the order of the words. John is first warned about his stomach’s reaction to the scroll. His stomach is going to turn sour. So, this message will upset his stomach. Then, the angel told him that the scroll would taste sweet in his mouth like honey. How pleasant that sounds! How good that sounds. What rich symbolism this chapter provides for us to reflect upon!
As Catholics we accept our Faith. Being Christian is difficult. Each day there is a choice of goodness, kindness, compassion, mercy, and love to be made. Being Christian is complicated. Our eyes must be open to looking at the world, through both our eyes and God’s eyes. Our reactions should be his reactions. His love should always be displayed in our every action. Our lives should present a view of happiness and peace built upon a foundation of obedience, hope, charity, and love.
As Catholics we must be listening for God’s personalized, individual messages to each of us. We do not know when or how the messages will be sent. We simply have to be prepared to receive and to obey God’s messages to us. We must be ready to be faithful and obedient. Remember that God had a message which was followed by a message from the angel. We must be prepared to hear God’s voice and to hear an angel’s voice.
What a mysterious reading! What a beautiful reading! What a great mingling of good and bad! How wonderful it is to receive the good first, then deal with the bad. All Christians should be encouraged to learn this chapter and recite it every day. Depending on how you want to interpret this chapter, it describes our daily lives as Christians. We have God’s love; God’s love asks us to make sacrifices. Our choices help us on our journey to salvation and eternal life with God. As Christians our choices are not always easy.
When I first read this chapter, I imagined this as a pharmaceutical commercial on television extolling why this new drug should be taken before mentioning the countless side effects. How sweet the pills sound to us until we hear about the side effects!
I like the scene of the angel, the scroll, and John. I like the idea of the angel standing on sea and on land. I like the familiar voice instructing John. I like the angel’s message, the order of the words. John is first warned about his stomach’s reaction to the scroll. His stomach is going to turn sour. So, this message will upset his stomach. Then, the angel told him that the scroll would taste sweet in his mouth like honey. How pleasant that sounds! How good that sounds. What rich symbolism this chapter provides for us to reflect upon!
As Catholics we accept our Faith. Being Christian is difficult. Each day there is a choice of goodness, kindness, compassion, mercy, and love to be made. Being Christian is complicated. Our eyes must be open to looking at the world, through both our eyes and God’s eyes. Our reactions should be his reactions. His love should always be displayed in our every action. Our lives should present a view of happiness and peace built upon a foundation of obedience, hope, charity, and love.
As Catholics we must be listening for God’s personalized, individual messages to each of us. We do not know when or how the messages will be sent. We simply have to be prepared to receive and to obey God’s messages to us. We must be ready to be faithful and obedient. Remember that God had a message which was followed by a message from the angel. We must be prepared to hear God’s voice and to hear an angel’s voice.
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Doubt
Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught him, saying to him, “O man of little faith, why did you doubt?” Matthew 14:31
Our faith journey often resembles a quest. We search for patience, humility, charity, compassion, mercy both internally and externally. The search for goodness often resembles a dream of youth, when innocence, honor, kindness are valued seriously, objectively as part of the foundation for life’s vocation. We travel into foreign parts of our minds and souls when we allow ourselves to share kindness. We are able to glimpse God through our own acts of goodness and kindness.
As Christians we should expect that there will be moments of doubt in our lives. We will question are believes. We will question our actions, reactions, lack of action. We will question our prayers, when we pray, how we pray. This is natural. This should not hamper us. We must use our doubt as a tool which can help deepen our faith. Instead of allowing doubt to make you anxious or angst ridden, simply allow doubt to teach you about your faith. Doubt can restore Faith to our Faith with a combination of patience, prayer, reflection, and humility.
Always remember to be humble. Always look for goodness and kindness in yourself and others. The more you look for them the more you will find them.
Modern life used to use the metaphor rat race to describe the craziness, unpredictability, ruthlessness of our society as we, the people, worked to make a killing to afford big houses with two car garages with four cars, a golf cart, swimming pool, two ponies, six bicycles, a swing and two hammocks. Our material possessions became a short hand description, presentation of our lives and values. Our material lives provided a glimpse at our presumed live and values. Our private lives were hidden beneath the public expectations created by dressing this way, talking that way. Appearances became more important than reality. Knowledge is secondary to perception. The rat race does not want you to value anything. The rat race simply wants you to purchase this and that. The rat race wants you to meet the right people at the right places at the right time. The rat race wants you only to acknowledge those who can help you tomorrow not those who helped you yesterday. The rat race is built upon doubt, fear, denial. As Catholics we must always remember social justice. Both our prayers and our actions must reflect our understanding and love for all our neighbors, from anonymous, forgotten beggars bundled up with discarded, flattened cardboard boxes and sleeping bags to smiling, waving politicians in tuxedos and shiny leather shoes talking about global warming.
Doubt shall always be with us. Some days it will be stronger, others it will be weaker. Remember that doubt is natural, like sleep, hunger. The knowledge, that doubt exists within all humans should give you comfort. Do not fear doubt. Simply recall the image of Jesus on the water extending his hand to save Peter. Let that image raise your thoughts, your actions. We are all called to help our neighbors, to live lives that reflect, and follow the teachings of Jesus Christ.
The enormous populations of the world need our prayers, the beggars, celebrities, politicians they all need our prayers. Let there be no doubt about that.
Our faith journey often resembles a quest. We search for patience, humility, charity, compassion, mercy both internally and externally. The search for goodness often resembles a dream of youth, when innocence, honor, kindness are valued seriously, objectively as part of the foundation for life’s vocation. We travel into foreign parts of our minds and souls when we allow ourselves to share kindness. We are able to glimpse God through our own acts of goodness and kindness.
As Christians we should expect that there will be moments of doubt in our lives. We will question are believes. We will question our actions, reactions, lack of action. We will question our prayers, when we pray, how we pray. This is natural. This should not hamper us. We must use our doubt as a tool which can help deepen our faith. Instead of allowing doubt to make you anxious or angst ridden, simply allow doubt to teach you about your faith. Doubt can restore Faith to our Faith with a combination of patience, prayer, reflection, and humility.
Always remember to be humble. Always look for goodness and kindness in yourself and others. The more you look for them the more you will find them.
Modern life used to use the metaphor rat race to describe the craziness, unpredictability, ruthlessness of our society as we, the people, worked to make a killing to afford big houses with two car garages with four cars, a golf cart, swimming pool, two ponies, six bicycles, a swing and two hammocks. Our material possessions became a short hand description, presentation of our lives and values. Our material lives provided a glimpse at our presumed live and values. Our private lives were hidden beneath the public expectations created by dressing this way, talking that way. Appearances became more important than reality. Knowledge is secondary to perception. The rat race does not want you to value anything. The rat race simply wants you to purchase this and that. The rat race wants you to meet the right people at the right places at the right time. The rat race wants you only to acknowledge those who can help you tomorrow not those who helped you yesterday. The rat race is built upon doubt, fear, denial. As Catholics we must always remember social justice. Both our prayers and our actions must reflect our understanding and love for all our neighbors, from anonymous, forgotten beggars bundled up with discarded, flattened cardboard boxes and sleeping bags to smiling, waving politicians in tuxedos and shiny leather shoes talking about global warming.
Doubt shall always be with us. Some days it will be stronger, others it will be weaker. Remember that doubt is natural, like sleep, hunger. The knowledge, that doubt exists within all humans should give you comfort. Do not fear doubt. Simply recall the image of Jesus on the water extending his hand to save Peter. Let that image raise your thoughts, your actions. We are all called to help our neighbors, to live lives that reflect, and follow the teachings of Jesus Christ.
The enormous populations of the world need our prayers, the beggars, celebrities, politicians they all need our prayers. Let there be no doubt about that.
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
An Opportunity
Remember that each time you attend Mass, there is an opportunity to learn more about God and an opportunity to share your faith with others after you leave. This does not require a recitation of the Gospel or the homily. It can simply be how you treat your neighbors, with compassion and love. Each moment of our lives should have some movement upward, higher, heavenward. Our gaze should always be upward, toward God. Each moment of our lives we should strive to avoid the mediocrity of sin. Our aim should always be toward pleasing God. Our ambition should be for eternal life and salvation. The arena of life presents us with an opportunity for prayer, penance, and obedience.
We must strive to be pure and triumphant servants of God.
Be ambitious then, with sincere prayers, keep love in both your heart and your life; remember to pray for something great for yourself and for mankind. Each of us will have only one life in this world, prayer will help us to make the most of it. Take advantage of each opportunity to praise and thank God. Attend Mass and pray as often as you can. Let your life be filled with the Good News. Each day increase your knowledge and learning about your faith. Allow your prayers to carry you higher and higher, closer and closer to God.
Allow your prayers to guide you to legitimate pursuits of love, life, and peace. Allow your prayers to guide you in the path to serve God. Allow your prayers to teach you fidelity to duty. We each have the opportunity to bring glory to God, to sanctify ourselves, and to be a soldier for God.
We must strive to be pure and triumphant servants of God.
Be ambitious then, with sincere prayers, keep love in both your heart and your life; remember to pray for something great for yourself and for mankind. Each of us will have only one life in this world, prayer will help us to make the most of it. Take advantage of each opportunity to praise and thank God. Attend Mass and pray as often as you can. Let your life be filled with the Good News. Each day increase your knowledge and learning about your faith. Allow your prayers to carry you higher and higher, closer and closer to God.
Allow your prayers to guide you to legitimate pursuits of love, life, and peace. Allow your prayers to guide you in the path to serve God. Allow your prayers to teach you fidelity to duty. We each have the opportunity to bring glory to God, to sanctify ourselves, and to be a soldier for God.
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
The Learned Men and Women Always Require Evidence, not Truth
The conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus continues in varying degrees today within all of us. At one time or another there is doubt. At one time or another we all want something concrete, something definite and visible to our eyes. We live in a time of information overload. We live in a time of outrageous claims and scary warning labels providing a litany of possible harmful side effects. We want to believe in Heaven, we really do! We want to believe in God, his love and mercy for us! Our secular world tries to convince us that there is no God, asks us to consider other ideas about creation, other ideas about the life, death, and resurrection of Christ. The reasons often cited is that there is no scientific evidence to support these theories. The secular world likes to provoke and promote this warfare between science and our Faith. We accept scientific evidence only because some learned men and women write learned documents contained multisyllabic words which other learned men and women read and pronounce true because the claims sound true and are temporarily demystifying. We must remember that neither science nor our religion are enemies. We must remember that the conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus will continue within ourselves, within our world forever.
Our lives have purpose and meaning when we believe. Our lives inspire goodness, holiness, love when we are obedient to God. When guided by humility, charity, and obedience our intellectual activity leads us toward God. We do not need to see volumes of raw data, we do not need to see petrie dish samples. We simply need to look within our hearts and souls to feel the presence of God’s mercy, God’s forgiveness, God’s love.
Non-believers will continue to present their opinions, their evidence challenging our beliefs. As Christians we must continue with our prayers, our fasting, our almsgiving. We must continue being humble, loving, obedient servants for God. That is our evidence, our good works, our love for our neighbors. We live in a time where opinion masquerades as fact. Truth is often distorted. Everyone challenges everything that they dislike or do not want to accept. Authority is routinely challenged. Traditions and rituals are ridiculed and criticized. So irrational is the realm of the secular world, that extremism falls in and out of favor quickly. There will always be learned people, so enamored with themselves and their predetermined theories about God, Jesus Christ, Christians, that they miss the truth, the reality and beauty of believing.“If I tell you about earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?”
The truth is that there is evidence of God that can be readily, easily studied. It is right in front of all of the learned people. The evidence is also right in front of each of us, right next to each of us. Look around and see the evidence of God’s love and mercy. Look around and see the evidence of Jesus Christ’s life, crucifixion, and resurrection. We are all evidence. As Christians, we are believers in something which we can not see with our eyes but which we can feel and accept with our hearts and souls. Our good deeds, our words can inspire and encourage goodness, holiness, and love in others. We are not trapped within a petrie dish of tradition and ritual. We are God’s living, breathing, praying children who allow our free will to guide us toward heaven.
“And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.”
The learned men and women will always require new evidence, not truth. This is neither good nor bad. For our Faith to continue to grow there must always be debate, dissent, communication. Science simply creates a series of questions, a series of possibilities for us to consider. As Christians we are always asking ourselves questions about love, fairness, social justice. Following in the footsteps of Christ present us with many possibilities to experience and share goodness, holiness, and love. Each day, our choices should reflect and renew our baptismal promises. Our lives should present our love and reverence for God. Through all of our good works, all of our conversations Jesus Christ should be seen. The splendor of our love for God and our love for all mankind should always be felt. Our lives must have the splendid order of humility, charity, obedience to God, to God’s will, directing us, guiding us, protecting us.
“You must be born from above.”
Our lives have purpose and meaning when we believe. Our lives inspire goodness, holiness, love when we are obedient to God. When guided by humility, charity, and obedience our intellectual activity leads us toward God. We do not need to see volumes of raw data, we do not need to see petrie dish samples. We simply need to look within our hearts and souls to feel the presence of God’s mercy, God’s forgiveness, God’s love.
Non-believers will continue to present their opinions, their evidence challenging our beliefs. As Christians we must continue with our prayers, our fasting, our almsgiving. We must continue being humble, loving, obedient servants for God. That is our evidence, our good works, our love for our neighbors. We live in a time where opinion masquerades as fact. Truth is often distorted. Everyone challenges everything that they dislike or do not want to accept. Authority is routinely challenged. Traditions and rituals are ridiculed and criticized. So irrational is the realm of the secular world, that extremism falls in and out of favor quickly. There will always be learned people, so enamored with themselves and their predetermined theories about God, Jesus Christ, Christians, that they miss the truth, the reality and beauty of believing.“If I tell you about earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?”
The truth is that there is evidence of God that can be readily, easily studied. It is right in front of all of the learned people. The evidence is also right in front of each of us, right next to each of us. Look around and see the evidence of God’s love and mercy. Look around and see the evidence of Jesus Christ’s life, crucifixion, and resurrection. We are all evidence. As Christians, we are believers in something which we can not see with our eyes but which we can feel and accept with our hearts and souls. Our good deeds, our words can inspire and encourage goodness, holiness, and love in others. We are not trapped within a petrie dish of tradition and ritual. We are God’s living, breathing, praying children who allow our free will to guide us toward heaven.
“And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.”
The learned men and women will always require new evidence, not truth. This is neither good nor bad. For our Faith to continue to grow there must always be debate, dissent, communication. Science simply creates a series of questions, a series of possibilities for us to consider. As Christians we are always asking ourselves questions about love, fairness, social justice. Following in the footsteps of Christ present us with many possibilities to experience and share goodness, holiness, and love. Each day, our choices should reflect and renew our baptismal promises. Our lives should present our love and reverence for God. Through all of our good works, all of our conversations Jesus Christ should be seen. The splendor of our love for God and our love for all mankind should always be felt. Our lives must have the splendid order of humility, charity, obedience to God, to God’s will, directing us, guiding us, protecting us.
“You must be born from above.”
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Today's Gospel MK 16:9-15 - A Couple of Thoughts About Unbelief and Belief
How do we approach God? How do we live the Faith? How do our choices reflect our belief in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ? We live in time of media hype. Everything is promoted. Everything is commercial. Each day we have choices to make. Do we eat a hamburger or a salad for lunch? Do we buy Italian leather shoes or made in China shoes? There is so much advertisement trying to influence our decision with so much information, so many statistics, so many testimonials that it is often difficult believing any of it. We want to see the results with our own eyes. We want to see the data and make sure that it is correct. We are encouraged to believe so many claims based upon nothing. In many ways our lives are governed as much by a grudging unbelief in so many claims as it is by a humble, natural belief. Trust is often desired but takes it time arriving. We allow ourselves to be suspicious of new ideas, new people, new claims. If our eyes can not examine the data, it might be unacceptable.
When God makes his appearance in our lives how do we greet him? When God makes his appearance in our lives, how do we react to him? Are our Christian lives filled with examples of hope and belief or filled with examples of despair and unbelief? Existing with unbelief is easier than living with belief for some Christians. There is always something to challenge, to doubt. Belief requires a certain amount of trust, a certain amount of hope, and a certain type of faith and acceptance.
We often pray for God’s mercy, God forgiveness. It is not easy for us to show mercy to each other, to show forgiveness for wrongs and slights done by our neighbors. We often talk about loving our neighbors as we love ourselves. It is great to talk about loving our neighbors as ourselves but more difficult to do it. We can talk of living our lives to please God. But, actually doing it is difficult.
We are like the Apostles who after hearing of Christ’s resurrection did not believe it. We have so many ideas, so much evidence, so much information, so much proof that it is easy for unbelief in goodness, unbelief in love, universal and unconditional, unbelief in fairness, unbelief in social justice to fester into a coldness, a hardness of heart and soul.
Do we need to have seven demons driven from our bodies to accept and to follow Jesus? Do we have the confidence and hope to bear witness for God. With prayer and patience we will learn how to follow this request, “Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature.”
We live in a time of such great intelligence and innovation in technology and shocking ignorance of the necessity and power of goodness, holiness, and love. We live in a time where so much of our energy is concerned with acquisition and consumption. The focus of our intellectual energies is often so narrow, excluding everything that is not essential to the present moment. We miss so many opportunities to be good, to observe goodness in others. How we live as Christians should not be influenced by the whims and caprices of pop culture or the secular world.
As Christians we must simply remember to live each day with the desire to please God. Our words and actions must always echo, “Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature.”
When God makes his appearance in our lives how do we greet him? When God makes his appearance in our lives, how do we react to him? Are our Christian lives filled with examples of hope and belief or filled with examples of despair and unbelief? Existing with unbelief is easier than living with belief for some Christians. There is always something to challenge, to doubt. Belief requires a certain amount of trust, a certain amount of hope, and a certain type of faith and acceptance.
We often pray for God’s mercy, God forgiveness. It is not easy for us to show mercy to each other, to show forgiveness for wrongs and slights done by our neighbors. We often talk about loving our neighbors as we love ourselves. It is great to talk about loving our neighbors as ourselves but more difficult to do it. We can talk of living our lives to please God. But, actually doing it is difficult.
We are like the Apostles who after hearing of Christ’s resurrection did not believe it. We have so many ideas, so much evidence, so much information, so much proof that it is easy for unbelief in goodness, unbelief in love, universal and unconditional, unbelief in fairness, unbelief in social justice to fester into a coldness, a hardness of heart and soul.
Do we need to have seven demons driven from our bodies to accept and to follow Jesus? Do we have the confidence and hope to bear witness for God. With prayer and patience we will learn how to follow this request, “Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature.”
We live in a time of such great intelligence and innovation in technology and shocking ignorance of the necessity and power of goodness, holiness, and love. We live in a time where so much of our energy is concerned with acquisition and consumption. The focus of our intellectual energies is often so narrow, excluding everything that is not essential to the present moment. We miss so many opportunities to be good, to observe goodness in others. How we live as Christians should not be influenced by the whims and caprices of pop culture or the secular world.
As Christians we must simply remember to live each day with the desire to please God. Our words and actions must always echo, “Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature.”
Friday, April 9, 2010
Spiritual Deterioration
We must always be concerned with our own spiritual deterioration. If we are not careful, it can happen to each of us. Our secular world prefers soft lighting, dimness; sin and vice flourish and spread with the favor and assistance of secular obnubilation. Although we have electricity and neon lights, we live in dark times, the darkness is ever increasing, ever coarsening our hearts and imaginations. We must always beware of this. Our baptism provided each one of us with enlightenment. We must not forget that. We must find the courage and hope to continue and expand our spiritual activity. Our actions as Christians should always encourage the diminution of evil, vice, and sin. We must work to remove the glamor, the power of sin each moment of our lives. We must always promote living based upon the Beatitudes and the commandments. Our secular world offers a wickedly relaxing decadent slumber which we must always resist loudly, proudly with a sanctimonious fury. We have theology, we have devotion, we have God. With prayer learn how to avoid the formulaic traps of sin and temptation. With silence observe the formalistic strategies of evil and vice as they attack our hearts, our minds, our souls, and our God. Pop culture often behaves like a cruel dictator lavishing praise and attention only on the favored subjects. Remember and be prepared for sudden attacks on God, your personal faith, our religion. Not every laugh and joke is innocent and acceptable. Simply be prepared. Simply do not condescend to the unpleasantness, the impertinence. Remain at peace, with your mind fixed on God. Think of Jesus Christ. Trust in the Holy Scriptures. Your spiritual, intellectual, and moral existence is based upon “radical” teachings of universal unconditional love. Display that love reverently.
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Ending
The month ends today. We have had thirty-one days to journey toward God in which we have passed through some picturesque moments of faith, hope, love; we have seen the extreme discomfort of others grieving, in Haiti. We have questions about life and death, being human, and the solution is not easy when there are only thirty-one days to examine, prioritize, negotiate, compromise.
As Christians we can observe every moment of life, and then offer up the experience to God in prayer. We do not have to become unhappy bitter refugees from life, from heartache. We must remember that life will always involve a little suffering. We all will be wounded, will be asked to make a sacrifice. Hope and love will protect uss.
Each day we must learn humility, obedience, charity. We must learn from our temptations to avoid them, and to help others avoid them.
Splendid winter weather.
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