Author Topic: Forgive So We Can Live and Let Live (Read 1780319 times)

cassini · « **Reply #60 on:** July 12, 2024, 06:00:47 AM »

Fr Sean again.
Acceptance of Jesus Spurs Rejection by the World

God sent Amos (7:12-15) to prophesy to His people. They knew him because he told them they would suffer for their sins. However, it didn’t stop him from being faithful to God by preaching His Word. Jesus sent out His Apostles in pairs and gave them authority over demons. He told them to rely on God’s providence rather than on human support. Thus He prepared them for rejection. “If any place will not welcome you or listen to you, leave there and shake the dust off your feet in testimony against them as you leave” (Mk 6:11). Jesus reminded them that they spoke in His Name, not in their own. “The one who listens to you listens to me, and the one who rejects you rejects me; and he who rejects me rejects the One who sent me.” (Lk 10:16). Preparing the Apostles for what was to come, Jesus cautioned them, “Remember the word I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also; if they kept my word, they will keep yours also” (Jn 15:20). Knowing what lay ahead, namely crucifixion, Jesus also knew that persecution was in store for His Church’s leaders and members. Worldly people would create their own god in their image worshipping pleasure, popularity, power, and possessions while rejecting the God who created them to live prudently, justly, courageously, and temperately by embracing Jesus Christ as members of His Church.

On the platform of a train station there was a large crate with a big dog inside. He had the saddest look imaginable. A lady asked a bystander about him and why he looked so sad. She was told: “You would look sad too if you were like him. You see he chewed the tag off the crate, and doesn’t know where he is going.” How many people in the world today are like that dog? They don’t know where they are going. They have no purpose. Their false gods have abandoned them. Only the God revealed and expressed by Jesus Christ is able to tell us who we are, what our purpose is, who the true source of our power is, what values are worth embracing, where we’re headed and how to get there.

Jesus provides us with the wherewithal to be fully human and fully alive. Mental, spiritual, emotional, moral, social, and even physical well-being depend on our relationship with Jesus. Why? Because to be healthy in each of these dimensions of our makeup we need to know and feel acknowledged, affirmed, and be treated with affection. Everyone needs to feel that his or her existence is acknowledged, his or her priceless value affirmed, and know that he or she is loved unconditionally. `We need these not just periodically but consistently. Without these we’re doomed to be dysfunctional and miserable. As a child I was taught that, “Sticks and stones may break my bones but names will never hurt me.” We used to rattle that off when someone ridiculed us or called us ugly names. That helped us to look the persecutor in the eye and not be intimidated. Of course we also needed parents’ and teachers’ support. But above all we knew that God acknowledged our existence, affirmed, and loved us unconditionally. We knew that Jesus proved this love by dying on the Cross to save us from sin and eternal death. That knowledge gives us power over those who reject us. When we know that God loves us we have no fear.

Why does the world hate the Catholic Church? Catholics are the most persecuted group of people in the world today. Jesus sent the Apostles, “preaching the need of repentance, expelling many demons, anointing the sick with oil, and working many cures” (Mk 6:12-13). Why would anyone reject that? G.K. Chesterton wrote that, “Christianity has not been tried and found wanting; it has been found difficult and not tried.” What’s difficult about Catholic teaching? In Jesus’ Name, it confronts us with the truth about God, ourselves and our role in the world and why we are totally dependent on Him for every good thing. The problem is that human beings want to be God and please themselves by using creation for their own selfish ends. The idea that we’re sinners-in-need-of-repentance flies in the face of our prideful ego that says “whatever satisfies me is what’s good and freedom is doing what I want!” We see that in abortion, euthanasia, atheism, Marxism, same-sex “marriage”, pornography, adultery, disrespect for human life, etc. So we see worldly governments and even some cardinals, bishops, and clergy, rejecting God’s Revelation, the Natural Law, and two thousand years of Jesus’ Church’s teaching. Those who want to be God hate Catholic teaching because it constantly reminds them that they’re not God, but rather false gods making false promises leading themselves and others to hell.

Catholic teaching calls for repentance, which implies the humility to face our sinfulness and accept our need for Jesus to save us through participative membership in His Church where He makes the Sacrament of Reconciliation available to us. It requires us to amend our lives according to God’s Commandments. Therefore, we pray, “May the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ enlighten the eyes of our hearts, that we may know what is the hope that belongs to our call.” (Eph 1:17-28) The basis for that hope is the knowledge that God “has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavens … to be holy and without blemish … in Him we have redemption … forgiveness of sins. …In all wisdom and insight, He has made known to us the mystery of His will … In Him we were chosen … that we might exist for the praise of His glory … In Him we have heard the word of truth, sealed with the Holy Spirit” (Eph 1:3-14). With the Psalmist, Jesus’ Church calls us to promise that we “…will hear what God proclaims: the Lord – for He proclaims peace. Near indeed is His salvation to those who fear Him” (Ps 85:9-10). Peace implies justice. Justice means being right with God, our self and our neighbor, which requires repentance and forgiveness. It is only when we’re right with God that we can be right with ourselves and others. Those who make themselves the standard of what’s right reject those who see God’s commandments as the true moral standard for human behavior. Standing up for Catholic moral teaching often brings down the wrath of those who refuse to admit that what they are doing is sinful. The Catholic Church, founded by Jesus on Peter, offers solid hope for genuine peace and permanent happiness. If I know that God is for me, it doesn’t matter who is against me (Rom 8:31), because I know that God acknowledges, affirms, and loves me so that I don’t need to kowtow to others for their acceptance, affirmation, and affection. This is the power we receive from embracing the Catholic Faith. (fr sean)

cassini · « **Reply #61 on:** July 17, 2024, 12:01:40 PM »

Fr Sean again.
Sheep without a Shepherd Get Lost

A crowd of over five thousand followed Jesus. St. Mark (6:30-34) tells us that, “When Jesus saw the vast crowd, His heart was moved with pity for them, for they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things.” Why do sheep need a shepherd? Because sheep aren’t the smartest of animals and they tend to wander off, get lost, or become victims of other animals. Was Jesus insulting the crowd when He likened them to sheep? I don’t think so. As human beings who’re supposed to be intelligent we often act foolishly trying to be independent and lose the run of ourselves, and become victims of our own stupidity. A math teacher asked her students, “If there were ten sheep in a field and one jumped over the fence, how many would be left?” All the children, except one, said nine. The teacher asked the lone boy for his answer and he said “none would be left.” She said to the boy, “You don’t know your math,” and he said, “Maybe not, but I know sheep!” [Cassini: I presume because the nine would follow the one out of the field] Just as sheep need a shepherd who knows what they’re like and what their needs are, so we need a leader who knows us and what we’re like. We need a good shepherd who has “the right or desirable quality” to “lead, tend, and guard” us in the world so that we don’t wander off, get lost, or be led astray by false prophets (Mt 7:15). That shepherd is Jesus Christ. He identified Himself as the “Good shepherd who lays down His life for His sheep” (Jn 10:11).He demonstrated His shepherding in Mk 6:37 when He asked His apostles to provide food for the hungry crowd. A good shepherd is always attentive to the needs of the flock.

In the Old Testament God imaged Himself as a shepherd (Jer 23:1-6) in relation to His people. He promised His scattered people, “I myself will gather the remnant of my flock…I will appoint shepherds for them who will shepherd them so that they no longer fear and tremble … I will raise up a righteous shoot to David; as king He shall reign and govern wisely, he shall do what is just and right in the land.” This, of course, is a prophecy about the coming of Jesus who will become the Kingly Shepherd and Saviour of all who repent and seek His forgiveness as He leads them to His Heavenly Father and eternal happiness. Inspired by the Holy Spirit, the Psalmist (Ps 23:1-6) proclaimed: “The Lord is my Shepherd; there is nothing I shall want … He guides me in right paths … I fear no evil for You are at my side with Your rod and your staff that give me courage.”

Knowing that in His human nature He wouldn’t be in the world very long, Jesus appointed men to continue the shepherding of His people in His Holy Name. These were the Apostles to whom He handed on His example and teaching. He founded His Church on Peter to be the pasture where He would give visibility to His flock and where he would nourish and give them courage. In His Church Jesus’ followers would hear His word and experience His Real Presence as He continues His shepherding through those whom His Church appoints in His Name. These are the Bishops, successors of the Apostles, and the priests and deacons as their helpers in shepherding God’s people, Jesus’ flock. Jesus gave three tasks to Peter (Jn 21:15-25) to be carried out for the good of the sheep – the members of His Church, namely: “Feed my lambs…Feed my sheep…Tend my sheep” (Jn 21:15-25). That involves supporting, nourishing and encouraging the faith of those who are loyal to Jesus and His Church; supporting, nourishing and encouraging charity toward the neighbour; and protecting and providing for the weakest and most vulnerable members of the flock from conception to natural death.

As shepherds acting in the Name of Jesus, the bishops, priests and deacons have the responsibility of carrying out three threefold task which Jesus gave to Peter. That involves evangelizing and catechizing the members of the Church which requires preaching the Gospel “in season and out of season, convenient or inconvenient (2 Tim 2:4-9). It involves the solemn and reverential celebration of the Holy Mass and the solemn administration of the Sacraments. It involves the moral teaching of the Ten Commandments and the Beatitudes. It involves the formation of every Church family and group as Eucharistic communities guided by the Holy Spirit who equips each member with wisdom, understanding, counsel, courage, knowledge, prayerfulness, and fear of the Lord as needed in the life of each member and community. In the Sacrament of Holy Orders, through the power of the Holy Spirit, Jesus conforms men to Himself as bishops, priests and deacons exercising His role of Priest, Prophet and King in order to nurture and nourish the priesthood of the laity. The laity participate in Jesus’ ministry of Priest, Prophet, and King through offering their sacrifices to Him, evangelizing and catechizing their children, and witnessing Christian virtue at home and in the workplace. Thus the shepherds lead, advise and nurture the sheep who in turn witness to their faith in Jesus to those who don’t know Him.

When I was in the seminary in America, professors used to tell us that God will judge bishops, priests, and deacons by a higher standard than lay people because of the graces He bestows on them as shepherds in His Holy Name. One professor used to say that only bishops and priests go to hell for being unfaithful to their vocation. That was frightening. God spells this out through the prophet Jeremiah: “Woe to the shepherds who mislead and scatter the flock of my pasture, says the Lord. Therefore, thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, against the shepherds who shepherd my people: You have scattered my sheep and driven them away. You have not cared for them. But I will take care to punish your evil deeds” (Jer 23:1-6).This is God’s word which mustn’t be taken lightly by bishops and clergy. What God said yesterday He says today and will say tomorrow because He doesn’t change His teaching. Sadly, today there is much confusion and anger within the Church which is generated by bishops and clergy promoting heresy and blaspheming the Lord. We must pray for good shepherds who feed and tend the lambs and the sheep with the Word of God and the Body and Blood of Jesus, the Good Shepherd, who died to save His flock, the Church. Similarly, bishops, priests, and deacons must be willing to walk in Jesus’ footsteps as He calls every man and woman to “reform your life, repent and believe in the Gospel” (Mk 1:15. (fr sean)

cassini · « **Reply #62 on:** July 24, 2024, 12:24:21 PM »

Fr Sean again.
Faith in Jesus Is Always Tested

A student said to me once, “School would be great if it weren’t for tests.” Many adults deprive themselves of further education because they fear having to take exams. Why? Is it because we’re afraid of failure? Fear of exposing our weaknesses prevents us from achieving success. Testing is essential to identify strengths in order to develop them and expose weaknesses in order to eliminate them. Would you buy an automobile without a test drive? No intelligent person buys the proverbial pig in a poke. Unless we test something we can’t know if it will achieve its purpose. Religious faith, like everything else in life, needs to be tested to see if it’s real. If your Faith isn’t tested, you aren’t Catholic. Look at how Abraham's faith was tested when God asked him to sacrifice his son (Gn 22:2).

Just before the Jєωιѕн feast of Passover, Jesus miraculously healed many sick and demon-possessed people. Large numbers of people spent a whole day listening to Him. By the end of the day Jesus saw that the people were hungry, both physically and spiritually. He said to Philip, one of His apostles, “Where can we buy enough food for them to eat?” (Jn 6:5). St. John tells us that Jesus, “… knew well what He intended to do but He asked this to test Philip’s response” (Jn 6:6). Philip, based on what he saw rather than on his faith in Jesus, answered: “Not even with two hundred days’ wages could we buy loaves enough to give each of them a mouthful!” (Jn 6:7). Andrew intervened saying that a boy in the crowd had five loaves of bread and a couple of fish and opined, “but what good are these for so many?” Both Philip and Andrew failed Jesus’ test. Philip and Andrew focused on what seemed impossible. Jesus, on the other hand, focused on what He could do knowing that His Father would provide. “Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed them … and also as much of the fish as they wanted.”

Both Philip and Andrew acted out of their senses rather than their faith in Jesus. What is faith? It is the ability to trust in God, in one another, and in ourselves. Natural faith isn’t enough; we need supernatural Faith which is a gift from God bestowed on us in Baptism. The Holy Spirit tells us, “Only faith can guarantee the blessings that we hope for, or prove the existence of the realities that at present remain unseen” (Heb 11:1). Faith enables us to hope for what we need even though we don’t see how it will come about. Faith always generates hope. That’s why we need faith to guarantee the blessings that we hope for. We hope for love, happiness, peace, forgiveness, mercy, justice, health and ultimately Heaven. But it’s our faith in Jesus Christ that makes that hope more than just wishful thinking. Faith proves the existence of these realities that at present remain unseen. The Holy reminds us, “We walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Cor 5:7). Our problem is that we limit ourselves by wanting to walk by sight rather than by faith. Why? Because walking by sight put us in charge. Walking by faith makes us realize that God is in charge and we are dependent on Him. Our faith is tested when we face realities whose outcome we can’t see. Then we find out if our Catholic faith is real or superficial – intentional or cultural. When we’re faced with cancer, death, a business failure, or some misfortune or other we find out if our faith in Jesus is real. If my faith in Jesus’ Christ is real then, no matter what happens to me, I know He will make it all work out for my good and that of everyone else. I don’t see how, but I know through supernatural faith that I will emerge as a better person because I put my trust in Him through the power of the Holy Spirit. That’s supernatural faith. Natural faith isn’t enough because it’s based on what I see. As St. Paul, that great man of faith inspired by the Holy Spirit, attests, “We know that God makes all things work together for the good of those who have been called according to His decree” (Rom 8:28). The Divine virtue of Faith tells me that if I love God, all things, no matter how bad, will work for my good and the good of those whose paths I cross.

Having supernatural faith means we trust in Jesus’ power to provide for our needs. The Psalmist sums it up when he proclaimed: “I will extol You Lord, for You drew me clear and did not let my enemy rejoice over me … You preserve me from going down into the pit ...Hear, O Lord, and have pity on me … You change my mourning into dancing” (Ps 30:4-13). In a crisis our tendency is to focus on what we don’t have rather than on what we do have. Jesus exemplifies what we should do, namely taking the little we have and asking Him to bless it. Then God the Father will provide us with more than we need. That is the power and consolation of the Catholic Faith. But for that to happen we must truly believe with all our mind, heart, soul, and strength. The Holy Spirit reminds us through St. Paul: “I urge you to live In a manner worthy of the call you have received with all humility, gentleness, and patience … striving to preserve the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace: one body and one Spirit, as you were also called to the one hope of your call; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all” (Eph 4:1-6).

The message is that God provides for all our needs. But we must put all our trust in Him. How? By asking the Lord to bless what we have, however little it might be. If we do, the Lord will provide more than what we need. This is how the Catholic Faith makes a telling difference in our life. When we trust in God’s providence we know that the “Lord will guide you always and satisfy all your needs” (Is 58:11). Then we’ll pass the test of supernatural faith and show, in the inspired words of St. Paul, that, “In Him who is the source of my strength I have strength for everything” (Phil 4:13). We don’t know we’re Catholics until our faith in Jesus is tested and we pass the test. (fr sean)

cassini · « **Reply #63 on:** July 31, 2024, 11:50:53 AM »

Fr Sean again.
Satisfying Your Soul’s Hunger

You and I are a combination of body and soul. They are integrally related since our soul penetrates every organ of our body. Actually we’re more spiritual than physical. Our body will die one day but our soul, our self, will continue. Both need nourishment while on this earth. But which one gets our attention? Olivia Newton John sang the raunchy song, “Let’s Get Physical”, that ended with, “Let's get animal … Let me hear your body talk.” The Holy Spirit, though, has a different emphasis: “I urge you not to indulge your bodily desires. By their nature they wage war on the soul” (1 Pt 2:11). The body talks selfishly. Hedonism is the philosophy that promotes the pursuit of sensual pleasure as the most important goal in life. Pain is to be avoided at any cost. This philosophy of self-indulgence or pain-phobia is reflected in the notion that “I’m entitled to comfort!” This is why the Spirit revealed that, “You must give up your old way of life; you must put aside your old nature, which gets corrupted by following illusory desires, and acquire a fresh spiritual way of thinking” (Eph 4:22). Thinking that pleasing the bodily desires will satisfy us is an illusion because our body can’t avoid suffering and death. “A man will reap only what he sows. If he sows in the field of the flesh, he will reap the harvest of corruption; but is his seed-ground is the soul, he will reap everlasting life” (Gal 6:8). Satisfying what doesn’t die, namely the soul, makes sense. Why would you put all your efforts into what doesn’t last?

Why does the body get more attention than the soul? The blind messages of the body are, eat, drink, and reproduce. These are animal instincts and need to be controlled for the good of our humanity which stems from our spiritual soul. The belly growls when it’s hungry but the soul doesn’t. So we forget the importance of nourishing our soul from which our humanity comes. It’s our soul that makes us human, not our body. Our humanity flows from the fact that we’ve a human soul that gives us the ability to think and freely make choices. If we couldn’t think or choose we would be like animals that are ruled by instinct. The animal part of our brain instinctively wants to eat, drink and reproduce. But the human part of our brain, informed by our spiritual soul, wants to belong, be free, be powerful and be joyful. It’s through our ability to think about and freely choose what we need to do in order to belong, be free, be powerful and be joyful that we’re able to control and direct our urges to eat, drink and reproduce. It’s our soul that gives us that capability. So if our soul isn’t properly nourished it loses its power to guide our bodily instincts or desires. Thus the Holy Spirit teaches us: “Your mind must be renewed by a spiritual revolution so that you can put on the new nature that has been created in God’s way, in the goodness and holiness of the truth” (Eph 4:24). That takes place in Jesus’ Church.

Jesus Christ is God’s way to happiness for human beings. There’s no other. He shows us how to rise above our selfish desires and discipline our body so that it doesn’t overshadow our soul’s needs. A large percentage of our personal and communal problems stems from our malnourished souls. The demands of the body should never distract from the needs of the soul. God sent Moses to free the Hebrews from slavery. In the desert their bellies did the talking expressing their ingratitude to God for freeing them from slavery. “Why did we not die at the Lord’s hand in Egypt, when we were able to sit down to pans of meat and could eat bread to our heart’s content!” (Ex 16;2). Our body just wants immediate satisfaction very often to the detriment of our freedom, power and joy. Our soul, on the other hand, focuses us on belonging, freedom, being powerful and joyful which God through union with Jesus in His Church guided by the Holy Spirit.

When the soul is deprived our thinking is distorted and our will is weakened so that we make bad choices that leave us feeling empty and dissatisfied. Jesus came to free our soul from sin and fill it with God’s grace through the power of the Holy Spirit so that we might be fully human and fully alive.

Just as our body needs food, so does our soul. Jesus made Himself our soul’s food. As God provided bread for the hungry people in the desert, (Ex 16:2-4), so He now provides bread to satisfy our hungry soul in the Person of Jesus. When Jesus miraculously fed over five thousand people with five loaves and two fish, they wanted to make Him their King. But He knew they were only concerned with their bodily needs, not their soul’s nourishment. He told them: “You are not looking for me because you have seen miracles but because you had all the bread you wanted to eat...” (Jn 6:26). Then He added, “Do not work for food that cannot last, but work for food that endures to eternal life, the kind of food the Son of Man is offering you…” (Jn 6:27). Jesus explained, “… for the bread of God is that which comes down from Heaven and gives life to the world” (Jn 6:33). The people begged Jesus, “Sir, give us that bread always” (Jn 6:34). Then Jesus revealed: “I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never be hungry; and he who believes in me will never thirst” (Jn 6:35). Jesus is the bread of life, food for our soul, not symbolically but literally. This is what He does in every Holy Mass – He feeds our soul by giving Himself to us, body, soul and divinity, under the form of bread and wine changed by the priest in Jesus’ name at the Consecration and given to us in Holy Communion. A well-nourished soul is the foundation for good thinking and making good choices that deepen our sense of belonging to Jesus’ Church where He frees us from our sins, empowers us with His grace, and brings joy to our hearts. Earthly bread won’t satisfy the hunger for heaven; only heavenly bread will satisfy that hunger. (fr sean)

cassini · « **Reply #64 on:** August 07, 2024, 01:23:48 PM »

Fr Sean again.
The Holy Eucharist: The Life-Giving Miracle

When Jesus taught His disciples to pray He included among the petitions, “Give us this day our daily bread” (Mt 6:11). The importance of bread as food for the body is evident in every civilization. Bread is one of our most basic foods. Even fasting doesn’t forbid the eating of bread. It’s considered essential for sustaining the body’s energy. It’s even used as a slang term for the money necessary to provide for our needs. Money is also referred to as “dough,” necessary for baking into bread. When we’re hungry we look forward to a slice of bread to calm a growling stomach. Without bread we’re dead.

In the Old Testament we read about the prophet Elijah escaping from Jezebel’s vow to kill him. Tiring, he sat under a broom tree and cried, “This is enough, O Lord! Take my life, for I am no better than my fathers” (1 Kgs 19:4). In his exhaustion, he fell asleep under the tree. An angel woke him up and found that, “at his head a hearth cake and a jug of water” (19:6). After eating, Elijah went back to sleep. Again, “The angel of the Lord came back a second time, touched him and ordered, ‘Get up and eat, else the journey will be too long for you!’” (19:7). Elijah obeyed, and strengthened by the bread, walked for forty days and nights to the mountain of God, Horeb. God provided him with bread to restore his energy. In a similar way the bread we eat to strengthen our body as we journey through this world to where God wants us to be is a gift from Him. Every good thing comes from God. Our Faith must be that of the Psalmist: “I sought the Lord, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears… Taste and see the goodness of the Lord; blessed the man who takes refuge in Him” (Ps 34:2-9).

Just as our body needs bread, so also does our soul. We can bake bread to nourish our body, but where do we get bread for our soul? Again it has to come from God, since only He can nourish our soul since He created it. How does He provide the necessary nourishment? He does so in the Person of Jesus Christ who identified Himself as “the bread of life that came down from Heaven” (Jn 6:41). Many of those who heard Him reacted with disbelief and no longer followed Him. They said, “Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph? … How can He claim to have come down from Heaven?” (Jn 6:42). Jesus didn’t say, “I’m just speaking symbolically or figuratively and I don’t want you to take me literally.” Instead He reinforced His declaration by saying, “I myself am the living bread come down from Heaven. If anyone eats this bread he shall live forever; the bread I will give is my flesh for the life of the world… Let me solemnly assure you, if you do not eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you” (Jn 6:51, 54). Jesus revealed that without eating His body and drinking His blood we are lifeless, dead.

Jesus revealed how He was going to make this possible at the Last Supper when He took bread, blessed it, broke it, and said, “Take this and eat of it, this is my body” (Mt 26:26). He did the same with the cup of wine, declaring, “this is the cup of my blood … take and drink…” Here Jesus changed bread into His body thereby making Himself the “Bread of Life.” Thus He made it possible for all believers to, “Taste and see how good the Lord is; blessed the man who takes refuge in Him” (Ps 34:9). To make it possible for all generations to taste Him, Jesus ordained His Apostles to, “Do this in memory of me” (Lk 22:19). Jesus’ Church, in the person of her ordained bishops and priests, has been doing this since her birth at Pentecost in the Holy Mass until the end of time. Thus Jesus continues, through the ordained successors of His Apostles, to miraculously give us the gift of His body, blood, soul, and divinity to fill our soul with His life. Do you believe in this miracle? Do you taste and see the goodness of the Lord when Jesus miraculously gives Himself to you in Holy Communion?

This miracle takes place at every Holy Mass. Every Holy Mass is a miraculous encounter with Jesus sacrificing Himself in order to give life to our soul. We can see it only with the eyes of supernatural Faith? When Jesus encountered His listeners’ disbelief about accepting Him as the “bread of life come down from Heaven,” He reminded them that they were rejecting the Holy Spirit and weren’t acting as God’s children. He told them: “Everyone who has heard the Father and learned from Him comes to me” (Jn 6:45). St. Paul warns us, “Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with which you were sealed for the day of redemption” (Eph 4:30). To hear God the Father and believe fully in Jesus as the “bread of life” it’s necessary to let the Holy Spirit enlighten our spirit. Remember that, “No one can say: ‘Jesus is Lord,’ except in the Holy Spirit” (Rom 12:3). That’s the basis for supernatural Faith, a divine virtue and a gift from God. Many who identify as Catholic reject Jesus as the bread of life when they refuse to attend the Holy Mass and, as a result, deprive their soul of the eternal life for which it yearns. St. Paul urges us to, “Be imitators of God, as His beloved children, and live in love, as Christ loved us and handed Himself over for us as a sacrificial offering for God for a fragrant aroma” (Eph 5:2). This is the life-giving miracle Jesus performs every time we celebrate Holy Mass. In receiving Jesus in Holy Communion, we receive the “Bread of Life.” Jesus is the Life-Giver who miraculously gives Himself to us and who empowers us to imitate God by being “kind to one another, compassionate, forgiving one another as God has forgiven you in Christ” (Eph 4:32). The bread for our body won’t prevent it from dying. But the Bread for our soul, namely Jesus, will ensure it lives happily forever. The celebration of the Holy Mass is the visible witness of Jesus’ life-giving miracle enlivening our souls making us into a Holy Community as members of His Church. Do you realize this is a fact? (fr sean)

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Author Topic: Forgive So We Can Live and Let Live (Read 1780319 times)

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