The sheep that belong to me listen to my voice,
says the Lord,
I know them and they follow me. JN 10:27
ACTS 15:7-21
My Soul's Beloved,
Making things easier for those who come to the faith or to attract others to come to the Church does not mean watering down the faith, nor does it mean that we soft-pedal her doctrines handed down to her by the Apostles who first received them from You.
Yes, some things can change over time, but these have no bearing on the divine truths that remain the same yesterday, today, and eternally. We thank You for the authority of Peter and his successors. We thank You for Your guarantee to the Church that she will never teach error. We thank You for the fullness of the Holy Spirit that lives in the Church. We thank You for the unbroken line of successors to Peter and the Apostles. We thank You for the lives of the Saints that grace our hall of saints in the Church, who are witnesses to us that it is possible to live lives of extraordinary virtue through grace. Thank You above all for Your assurance that You will be with her always and that the gates of hell shall never prevail against her.
Grant us this grace, Beloved, that we who are baptised into the Church and are members of Your Body are authentic witnesses so that the world is drawn to the Beauty, Goodness, and Truth that find their home in the Church and in her life and doctrine.
After the discussion had gone on a long time, Peter stood up and addressed the apostles and the elders.
When they had finished it was James who spoke. ‘My brothers,’ he said ‘listen to me. Simeon has described how God first arranged to enlist a people for his name out of the pagans. This is entirely in harmony with the words of the prophets, since the scriptures say:
After that I shall return
and rebuild the fallen House of David;
I shall rebuild it from its ruins
and restore it.
Then the rest of mankind,
all the pagans who are consecrated to my name,
will look for the Lord,
says the Lord who made this known so long ago.
‘I rule, then, that instead of making things more difficult for pagans who turn to God, we send them a letter telling them merely to abstain from anything polluted by idols, from fornication, from the meat of strangled animals and from blood. For Moses has always had his preachers in every town, and is read aloud in the synagogues every sabbath.’
PSALM 95(96):1-3,10
Proclaim the wonders of the Lord among all the peoples.
O sing a new song to the Lord,
sing to the Lord all the earth.
O sing to the Lord, bless his name.
Proclaim his help day by day,
tell among the nations his glory
and his wonders among all the peoples.
Proclaim to the nations: ‘God is king.’
The world he made firm in its place;
he will judge the peoples in fairness.
Jesus said to his disciples:
‘As the Father has loved me,
so I have loved you.
Remain in my love.
If you keep my commandments
you will remain in my love,
just as I have kept my Father’s commandments
and remain in his love.
I have told you this
so that my own joy may be in you
and your joy be complete.’
After the discussion had gone on a long time, Peter stood up and addressed the apostles and the elders.
When they had finished it was James who spoke. ‘My brothers,’ he said ‘listen to me. Simeon has described how God first arranged to enlist a people for his name out of the pagans. This is entirely in harmony with the words of the prophets, since the scriptures say:
After that I shall return
and rebuild the fallen House of David;
I shall rebuild it from its ruins
and restore it.
Then the rest of mankind,
all the pagans who are consecrated to my name,
will look for the Lord,
says the Lord who made this known so long ago.
‘I rule, then, that instead of making things more difficult for pagans who turn to God, we send them a letter telling them merely to abstain from anything polluted by idols, from fornication, from the meat of strangled animals and from blood. For Moses has always had his preachers in every town, and is read aloud in the synagogues every sabbath.’
PSALM 95(96):1-3,10
Proclaim the wonders of the Lord among all the peoples.
O sing a new song to the Lord,
sing to the Lord all the earth.
O sing to the Lord, bless his name.
Proclaim his help day by day,
tell among the nations his glory
and his wonders among all the peoples.
Proclaim to the nations: ‘God is king.’
The world he made firm in its place;
he will judge the peoples in fairness.
Proclaim the wonders of the Lord among all the peoples.
JOHN 15:9-11
My Soul's Beloved,
JOHN 15:9-11
My Soul's Beloved,
Here is the answer to all that is necessary for us to live fruitful lives, a life of the abundance of the joy of the Lord, a life of purpose, a life well-lived because it seeks nothing more and nothing less than to keep the Commandments of God. To do the will of Your Father was food and drink to You, and ought to be for us too, who call ourselves Your sisters and brothers.
Yet, Lord, we struggle tremendously to let go of our passions, concupiscence, because we are also children of Adam. We are children born with original sin, children who struggle not to be of the world, although we are in it. It is a daily, hourly, moment-by-moment struggle, and we fail constantly.
But Lord, if we throw ourselves on Your mercy, if we rely on You and not on ourselves, if we allow the Holy Spirit to live in us and direct us, then little by little, day by day, we will grow in Your image and likeness. Lord Jesus, we all desire to love You as You ought to be loved, and our greatest joy and fulfillment come from being receptive to the Holy Spirit, who will provide all the graces we need to live holy lives, but sadly, Lord, we often fall. Help me to love You as You ought to be loved. Help me to understand more fully how gracious You are and how much You love me, who am undeserving of Your love, and I will respond to Your love and life in me.
Jesus said to his disciples:
‘As the Father has loved me,
so I have loved you.
Remain in my love.
If you keep my commandments
you will remain in my love,
just as I have kept my Father’s commandments
and remain in his love.
I have told you this
so that my own joy may be in you
and your joy be complete.’
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