FREEDOM AND LOVE COINCIDE IF WE ABANDON ALL FOR CHRIST

VATICAN CITY, 27 JUN 2010 (VIS) - The Pope focused his remarks prior to praying the Angelus on this last Sunday of June to the theme of the call of Christ and the requirements it brings.

Addressing thousands of faithful gathered in St. Peter's Square, the Pope said that "a young man or young woman who leave their family, their studies or their work to consecrate themselves to God" represent "a living example of the radical response to the divine vocation".

"One of the most beautiful experiences a person can have in the Church is that of being able to see and touch the work of the Lord in people's lives, of experiencing the fact that God is not some abstract entity, but a reality so great and strong as to fill man's heart to overflowing; a living Person Who is close to us, Who loves us and asks to be loved".

Benedict XVI highlighted how the requirements for following Christ "may seem very harsh, but in reality they express the novelty and absolute priority of the Kingdom of God which is present in the Person of Jesus Christ. They are, in the final analysis, the radical commitment that is due to the Love of God, which Jesus Himself was the first to obey".

"A person who renounces everything in order to follow Christ enters a new dimension of freedom", he continued. "Freedom and love are the same thing, while obeying one's own egoism leads to rivality and conflict".

The Holy Father concluded by inviting everyone "to contemplate the mystery of the divine-human Heart of the Lord Jesus. ... People who fix their gaze on that Heart, pierced and ever open with Love for us, feel the truth of the following invocation: 'Be you, my Lord, my only good', and are ready to abandon everything in order to follow the Lord".

ANG/ VIS 20100628 (470)

Trust In Our Lord

The devil is trying me again. When will he realize that the more he throws my way, the more Faith I gain in grace and protection? He may set me back a little with helping others, but this only strengthens my desire to defeat him in every manner. To see through his ugliness, and see only the Face of Christ in all people. Through the intercession of St. Vincent de Paul, my Patron St. Sylvia, my Guardian St. George, my Defender St. Michael, my Family in Heaven, and my Blessed Mother Mary, Christ will be by my side. He will shine His Love on me and allow me comfort in the Arms of my Father, my God. When I am tired, I will rest my head on God’s shoulders and feel peace in the arms of Abba. When I am well, I will strive to imitate my Brother, Jesus. I will trust in His great mercy to guide me with pure intentions. Come Holy Spirit; fill me with your grace.

9/22/2003

Why this work matters: human dignity and the road ahead :: Archbishop Chaput

Why this work matters: human dignity and the road ahead :: Archbishop Chaput

Da Mihi Animas: Could you survive without money? Meet the guy who does!

Da Mihi Animas: Could you survive without money? Meet the guy who does!

Does God Exist

YouTube - Does God Exist

Preach It!

Marcellino D'Ambrosio, Ph.D.

The Bible is not just for Churches and Synagogues. Portions of it are read as literature, even in secular university classrooms. Invariably, when you look at the syllabus of such courses, you find Job.

It’s not hard to see why. Job poignantly expresses what all human beings experience at one time or another — the feeling that life is a burden, that our daily routine is drudgery, that our suffering is meaningless, that there’s not much hope for our future (Job 7:1-7).

Things are tough all over — in Job’s day, in ours, in Peter’s. It’s all about trying to earn a living and raise a family with taxes, government, disease, and unexpected tragedies yapping at our heels. The Gospel (Mark 1:29-39) shows us such a world that is suddenly turned upside down by Someone who breaks all the rules. Demons that normally inspire terror themselves run away in fear. Fevers flee. Incurable illnesses yield. Instead of talk about the burden of the law with its innumerable regulations, Good News is announced that gives people hope again. The Good News is that God is on the move, that He, not the Emperor or the Prince of Darkness, is King, and He is not slave master but Father. The Someone responsible for all this commotion happens to look like one of them, and indeed is one of them, but does things that only God can do. As He speaks, they begin to feel as if the world may have meaning, that life may actually be worth living. They want to be with Him, to hear His electric words and see His astonishing deeds. So they won’t leave Him alone. Crowds gather outside the door of the humble place where He is staying.

What happens next is instructive. Knowing His need for communion with His Heavenly Father, He rises early next morning to seek solitude and a few moments in prayer. But they need Him. So they send the apostles to track Him down. When they find Him, He is not annoyed. He does not protest that it is His day off and tell them to come back tomorrow or sometime next week. He has come to bring Good News, to bring light to those in darkness, healing to the suffering. Many are desperate, so His mission is urgent. He gets up, but doesn’t return to Capernaum. Instead, He moves on to other towns. Those who wish to enjoy the excitement of His company must join Him in His mission.

St. Paul has the same sense of urgency as his Master (I Cor 9:16-19). He is aware of being entrusted with an awesome responsibility. It is not an option for him to share the gospel. What he has received as a gift, the most precious gift imaginable, he must give as a gift. And he must give it not only to those he likes, or those with whom he has some natural bond. He must not do it only when it suits him, when it is convenient. No, he must exert himself. He must seek common ground with all: Jew, Greek, weak, strong, educated, uneducated — so as to express the gospel to them in a way that they can understand. And this mission led him to cover more ground than even his Master — not just Judea and Galilee, but what is now Turkey, Greece, and Italy.

Not all are called to be traveling preachers like our Lord and St. Paul. But the Church teaches unequivocally that membership in the one, holy, Catholic and apostolic church is not just about being saved and enjoying God’s company. There is a suffering world out there that desperately needs the saving truth and healing touch of Christ. Notice that immediately upon being healed, Peter’s mother-in-law began working. Baptism is completed by confirmation, an anointing to serve. You can’t be fully a member of the apostolic church without participating in the apostolic mission.

GOOD OR BAD TRADITIONS?

From: One Bread, One Body

"That is the way you nullify God's word in favor of the traditions you
have handed on." —Mark 7:13

The people of Jesus' time used mere human traditions to nullify God's
word. We do the same today. For example, God's word calls us all to be one
as Jesus and the Father are One (Jn 17:21). Yet we've remained divided in
our denominations for hundreds of years. It's our tradition.

In the Bible, the Lord commands us: "Your thoughts should be wholly
directed to all that is true, all that deserves respect, all that is
honest, pure, admirable, decent, virtuous, or worthy of praise" (Phil
4:8). Yet we have a tradition of watching TV, which directs our thoughts
to evil, lust, greed, violence, and selfishness. Jesus strongly forbids
the slightest expression of impurity.

If we fall into the temptation to look lustfully at another, Jesus
proposes that we gouge out our eyes (Mt 5:28-29). Yet we have a tradition
of dressing suggestively and joking about sexual matters (see Eph 5:3-4).

In the Bible, the Lord repeatedly commands us to be "sober and watchful"
(1 Pt 5:8; 1 Thes 5:6). However, we have a tradition of drinking alcohol.
Some churches even have the tradition of selling alcohol, even when they
are almost certain of furthering someone's alcoholism.

We must repent of nullifying God's word by observing our traditions, and
we must obey the traditions which the Holy Spirit has given us (see 2 Thes
2:15).


Prayer: Father, bring down the strongholds of the evil one (2 Cor 10:4).

Promise: "God looked at everything He had made, and He found it very
good." —Gn 1:31