The sheep that belong to me listen to my voice,
says the Lord,
I know them and they follow me. JN 10:27
says the Lord,
I know them and they follow me. JN 10:27
ROMANS 9:1-5 ©
My Soul's Beloved,
If only we who belong to Holy Mother Church had the same passion for the conversion of souls as St. Paul did for his Jewish brothers and sisters, we would be prepared to joyfully offer our lives in order that those who do not believe would receive the gift of faith and be saved.
Too many of us even those who are ordained ministers of God are indifferent to the mission entrusted to us to go out into the world to preach the Gospel and make disciples. We are too busy pandering to the desires of our flesh, too busy with trivialities and frivolity to take our vocation as disciples to make disciples seriously. If our world is on the brink of total chaos and if the powers of evil and darkness have spread around the world threatening to destroy all that is true, good, and beautiful we have no one to blame but our own indifference, and our cold and hardened hearts.
Too swiftly O Lord our days on earth come to a close and we will find ourselves standing before You, the righteous judge before that day dawns grant us the grace to stir ourselves out of our spiritual lethargy and take the mandate given to every member of Your Church to make disciples in every nation. The time of sleep has ended let us rise up to new life in the Holy Spirit and set the world ablaze with the fire of Your love.
PSALM 147:12-15,19-20 ©
O praise the Lord, Jerusalem!
Zion, praise your God!
He has strengthened the bars of your gates
he has blessed the children within you.
He has strengthened the bars of your gates
he has blessed the children within you.
He established peace on your borders,
he feeds you with finest wheat.
He sends out his word to the earth
and swiftly runs his command.
He sends out his word to the earth
and swiftly runs his command.
He makes his word known to Jacob,
to Israel his laws and decrees.
He has not dealt thus with other nations;
he has not taught them his decrees.
He has not dealt thus with other nations;
he has not taught them his decrees.
O praise the Lord, Jerusalem!
LUKE 14:1-6 ©
My Soul's Beloved,
My Soul's Beloved,
Too often we are like the Pharisees we know we are wrong but we see a dilemma to our credibility as we stubbornly hold on to our prejudices or refuse to accept the truth because we will have to acknowledge that we are wrong. When the truth is revealed to us there is only one option to accept and embrace it giving up our own pet theories or narrow-minded views.
When You questioned the lawyers and Pharisees whether or not it was against the law to cure a man on the sabbath or not they remained silent. If reason as well as empathy and compassion had prevailed, they would have answered truthfully that it would not break the sabbath law to do so. But because they were devious, selfish, and proud and because they perceived that their own authority was being threatened they remained silent. The answer was obvious but they chose silence over justice.
Concern for our brothers and sisters in need and upholding the dignity of all human persons always trumps any and every law. In the upside-down culture prevalent in our world today greater compassion is shown to animals than to human beings. More laws are enacted to protect animals than to protect and save babies in the womb and the poor, the old, the sick, and the weak.
Let us reflect on the question You ask of each of us today: ‘Which of you here, if his son falls into a well, or his ox, will not pull him out on a sabbath day without hesitation?’ Will we answer truthfully no matter what it will cost us or will we remain silent? Give us the courage we lack, Lord, to make a difference as we choose to do what is right, true, and good always.
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