July 31 Mon
We are here to serve, and to facilitate that Christ may live in people's souls. We, Christians, do not belong to ourselves any more. That attitude produces real happiness. “Giving, giving, giving! That's the way: serving others. The way to be happy is not to have any problems of one's own. The secret of happiness? Give of yourself without even expecting to be thanked for it.”

These words of St Josemaría are applicable to us all: “Many people have spoken to me in amazement of the joy which, thanks be to God, my children in Opus Dei have and which they spread to others. Faced with this evident truth, I always give the same reply, because I know no other. Their happiness has its foundation in the fact that they fear neither life nor death; that they are not overwhelmed when they meet with misfortune; that they strive daily to live with a spirit of sacrifice, in spite of their own defects and weaknesses, and they are constantly ready to deny themselves in order to make the Christian path easier and more pleasant for others.”

A passing enthusiasm will not do. We are talking about a genuine, burning flame, which ends up in a total gift of self. “We are the seed in Christ's wounded hands, and the divine Sower then casts the seed into the furrow. The sower puts his hand into the sack and brings it out full of shining golden grains, which he flings far and wide. That is how you and I have to give ourselves, without looking for any recompense on earth, or inventing imaginary trials. But, as the Gospel states, the grain of wheat must fall into the ground and die – so it seems – in order to bear fruit. Only if we do that will we be good seed for the sowing that our Lord wants to do, to open up divine paths on earth.”

St Josemaría’s advice will also help: “Sincerely examine the way you are following the Master. Ask yourself if your self-surrender is of a dry, officious type, with a faith that has no sparkle to it; if there is no humility or sacrifice, nor any good works throughout your day; if you are all show and pay no attention to the details of each moment... In a word, if you lack Love”.
“If this is the case, your ineffectiveness should come as no surprise to you. React right away, and be led by the hand of our Lady.”

 July 30 Sun
Following Christ can cost us effort. Yet St. Paul assures us that no real evil can come to us, only amazing good because we are predestined, called, justified, and glorified according to the image of Christ. “All things,” even suffering, “work for good for those who love God.”

The kingdom of God, or the salvation Christ has won for us, or Christ himself, is of unsurpassed value. Thus, the most prudent thing is to put it first in one’s life, like the person who finds the treasure buried in the field, or the jeweler who finds a pearl of great price. At the same time, there is an urgency in doing so, because we will all be judged at the end of our lives and either be approved or condemned.

Prudence, or sound decision-making, is the ability to know what to do in any situation and to act on that knowledge. Solomon had enough prudence to ask God for more of it. To obey and to love God’s will is great prudence.
To realize that God will judge me for the good and evil I do in this life is the beginning of prudence if it will move me to repent of the evil and to do good.

Thomas Aquinas identified three steps or activities within prudence. They are counsel, judgment, and decision.
COUNSEL means to reflect on what to do, to think it over, to pray about it, to ask for advice, to use your intellect to try to discover the best thing to do with the time available.
The man who discovered a treasure buried in a field could not ask other people what might be the best to do, so he had to counsel himself.

JUDGMENT means to decide what, among the many possibilities, is best; meaning what will be moral, and also likely to be effective.
The man who found the treasure reasoned that the best course of action was to sell everything he had and buy that field. Very often, God wants us to continue digging, in the place we are, and there –not in another place– we will find the treasure.

DECISION means to take action. Based on what your reason tells you is best; then you tell your will to do it.
The man did sell his worldly possessions and bought that field and so got the treasure.
When it comes to the moral thing to do, prudence guides conscience. “The prudent man determines and directs his conduct in accordance with this judgment” of reason.

Aided by prudence, “we apply moral principles to particular cases without error and overcome doubts about the good to achieve and the evil to avoid.” (CCC 1806)

Conscience does not determine what the moral principles are. Those principles are not “invented” but found in the natural law and the divine revealed law.

 July 29 Sat
A Virtue at a Time. The key to a lasting growth is to advance with little steps. A good idea is to pick one of these ten virtues of Mary each week, and to practice it in everyday situations.

1. Profound Humility. How we can live out this virtue: See yourself as God sees you! Pray the Litany of Humility, accept compliments gracefully and quietly, and don’t be embarrassed to make mistakes in front of others.

2. Lively Faith. Faith is a gift from God. We receive it –we do not manufacture it on our own. To receive this gift, we must seek communion with the Giver. Choose to trust Him and practice receiving His gifts with open hands.

3. Intelligent Obedience. We are called to obey God the best we can, even when we don’t fully understand why He asks for certain things.

4. Life of Prayer. Make time for mental prayer in silence, thanking God, and ask for help to do His Will. Bring Christ into every little thing, offering up all your thoughts, words, actions, joys, and sorrows.

5. Mortification. Make little sacrifices and offer them up for specific intentions. Accept the small irritations, humiliations, and inconveniences of daily life as quietly as you can. Mortify yourself in little things such as getting up right away when the alarm goes off.

6. Purity. Pray and frequent the Sacraments. Strive to keep your heart and body pure, and your mind clean and focused on worthwhile goals. Seek to purify your intentions. Don’t manipulate others.

7. Ardent Charity. Imitate our Blessed Mother and try to bring those around you closer to Jesus, the true and perfect Lover.

8. Heroic Patience. Unite your little sufferings and contradictions with the sufferings of Our Lord on the Cross, and of Our Lady of Sorrows. Pray for the gift of perseverance.

9. Kindness. Open your heart to the grace of God, and show gratitude for his blessings. Smile and be kind, friendly, and alert to the needs of others, putting them before your own.

10. Divine Wisdom. Ask the Holy Spirit for wisdom, to look at all things with the eyes of Christ and not with your own. Ask Our Lady, Seat of Wisdom, to help you.

Remember: Our Blessed Mother is right there, by your side, at every step of your way. Don’t hesitate to ask for her guidance and assistance. Lastly, don’t be afraid to grow in love for Our Lady.

Tagalog podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/carlos-belmonte1

 July 28 Fri
God made us sowers of peace and joy. To all mankind we bring the "joy with peace" that Christ has promised us as part of the hundredfold – a joy whose roots are implanted in suffering, in the Cross; and a peace which is the peace of Christ, and which comes from our being identified with him.

Peace is a consequence of humility. It is the inner harmony that comes from the awareness of our own shortcomings as well as of God's gifts. Humble people are realistic in the interior struggle: they know they make mistakes, and admit them; they attribute to God alone the divine effectiveness of their labors.

“My daughters and sons, if you act in this way, how many obstacles will disappear! How many unpleasant moments we will avoid! If you ever have a hard time of it and you realize that your soul is filling with uneasiness, it is because you are clinging to yourselves. Our Lord came to redeem, to save, and he was not concerned about anything but that. Are we going to be concerned about fostering our pride?

“If you center your attention on yourself, you are not only taking a wrong road, but besides, you will lose Christian happiness in this life. You will lose that joy and cheerfulness which are nonetheless incomplete, because happiness will only be complete in heaven.” St Josemaría

Pride takes away peace because it makes us live in a false world, far from God. If someone imagines that he can achieve something alone, then the failure which he is bound to experience causes him to be uneasy, restless and anxious. Humility, on the other hand, leads us to God, and to his Son, Jesus Christ. And there we find peace.

The effort to acquire humility does not entail a brutal, tense, or anxiety-filled struggle; it means asking God to make us humble, and recognizing that in the concrete reality of our day we can do nothing by ourselves, but with God's help we can do all things.

Humility will keep us untroubled, in spite of our own mistakes and exterior difficulties. As St Josemaría wrote: “We all make mistakes, even in areas where we have been fighting for years and years. If our ascetical struggle disheartens us, then we are proud. We must be humble, and we must want to be faithful. It is true we are unworthy servants, but with those unworthy servants God can do great things in this world if we, on our part, do one thing: if we make the effort to stretch out our hand and take the hand which God, who offers us his grace from heaven.”

Only by relying on grace will we be at peace; only if we place our hope in God, and not in ourselves.

 July 27 Thu
We often make the sign of the Cross. The sign of the cross is meant to express our faith in the mysteries of the Blessed Trinity –Father, Son, and Holy Spirit– and of the crucifixion of the Word Incarnate. It is the briefest act of adoration and faith in these two great mysteries.

The sign of the cross also manifests our faith in the indwelling of the Trinity. It reminds us of the connection between these mysteries, and that Jesus is the Way to the Blessed Trinity.

We can become intimate with the one God, and with the three the divine Persons only through Jesus and his cross; thus, we should be reminded of this fundamental truth by the sign of the cross. It is the sign of our adoption as children of God; it is our life. ...

We profess our faith when we say, "Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit," many times a day, to the Trinity dwelling within us.

“All the grace and gift that is given, is given in the Trinity, from the Father, through the Son, in the Holy Spirit.” St Athanasius

The sign of the cross connects us to the Mass; in it, the Victim is always offered to the Trinity. “As you attend Mass, you will learn to deepen your friendship with each one of the three divine Persons: the Father who begets the Son; the Son, begotten by the Father; the Holy Spirit, who proceeds from the Father and the Son. When we approach any one of the divine Persons, we approach the one God. And when we come close to all three Persons — Father, Son and Holy Spirit — again we come into the presence of the one true God.” St Josemaría

Besides, in the Blessed Sacrament, Our Lord remains with us as Emmanuel, "God with us." He instituted the Blessed Sacrament as a continuation of the Incarnation, and he is there for the same reasons as when he was on earth: to give glory to God, and not only to be with us but also to deepen and foster our union with the Blessed Trinity. By shedding his Precious Blood, he established the indwelling of the Trinity in our souls, both on earth and in heaven, for heaven is a continuation of the life we have lived on earth since baptism.

 July 26 Wed
All virtues are intertwined with humility.
“PRAYER is the humility of one who acknowledges his profound wretchedness and the greatness of God. He addresses and adores God as one who expects everything from Him and nothing from himself.
FAITH is the humility of the mind, which renounces its own judgement and surrenders to the verdict and authority of the Church.
OBEDIENCE is the humility of the will, which subjects itself to another's will, for God's sake.
CHASTITY is the humility of the flesh, which subjects itself to the spirit.
Exterior MORTIFICATION is the humility of the senses.
PENANCE is the humility of all the passions, immolated to the Lord.
Humility is truth on the road of the ascetic struggle.”

Beware any form of pride that disguises itself as humility. St Josemaría gives us a test to recognize it: “Are you truly humble? Can you mortify your self-love, for the sake of charity? Can you accept those humiliations which God asks of you, in unimportant things which don't obscure the truth? What is it that makes your charity slow? Quite simply, pride. So, ask our Lord to grant you humility, because if pride is not controlled promptly, with the passage of time it only gets worse.”

Humility also enables us to see our defects and shortcomings: not simply our limitations as creatures, but the faults for which we are personally responsible; then, we tell God: “Against you, you only, have I sinned, and done that which is evil in your sight.” We become aware not only of the evil done, but also of our disordered passions which would lead us to commit sin, if we did not have the continuous help of God's grace.

“As I wrote you many years ago, even the rotten fruit, the dead twigs and the dry leaves, when buried at the foot of the tree, can fertilize the tree that bore them. How could our mistakes and our errors, in a word, our sins – which we do not want, which we detest –do us any good? They could, if contrition follows, and we are ashamed and anxious to do better, and cooperate with God's grace. Through humility, what was dead is converted into life. What was going to cause sterility and failure, turns into victory and abundant fruit.”

If you are humble nothing will touch you, neither praise nor disgrace, because you know what you are. Thus, you will desire to cling to God, in constant praise and glorification of his name, helping him in his divine work of Redemption. And you will help others to know Jesus Christ, and through Him, the Father and the Holy Spirit. And you reach Jesus through Mary, and through keeping close to St Joseph and our Holy Guardian Angels.
Image: Holy Family with St Joachim and Anne

 July 25 Tue
God takes into consideration our social nature, “At a purely natural level the individual is in no way isolated from life in community. Every human being is born into a family, and we absorb from our surroundings all the culture and traditions that make for spiritual growth and perfection.”

We owe a great deal, therefore, to society, and in particular to our country, and we are naturally obliged to be grateful; we ought to love our country and hold it in high regard. But for a Christian, this patriotism must be animated by charity.

On the other hand, “Nationalism is a sin. It is a lack of justice towards other nations. And what about patriotism, the love for one's country? That is a virtue, a Christian virtue, and I bless it with both hands. It is important to distinguish well between the two. In order to save a soul, I would be willing to take any nationality whatever, and yet I won't allow anyone to claim they love my country more than I do. Can you see the difference between love of one's country, which is a noble sentiment, and nationalism? Nationalism is displeasing in the eyes of God because it makes us sin against our duties towards other nations. It is the height of folly, and always ends up doing harm to the Church.” St Josemaría

The Church therefore teaches that “citizens must cultivate a generous and loyal spirit of patriotism, but without being narrow-minded. This means that they will always direct their attention to the good of the whole human family, united by the different ties which bind together races, people and nations.”

The Second Vatican Council teaches: “In loyalty to their country and in faithful fulfillment of their civic obligations, Catholics should feel themselves obliged to promote the true common good. Thus, they should make the weight of their opinion felt in order that the civil authority may act with justice and that legislation may conform to moral precepts and the common good.” In contrast, it would be unreasonable to expect everybody to get professionally involved in politics ...

It continues: “the Church, by reason of her role and competence, is not identified in any way with the political community nor bound to any political system.” We cannot assume that everyone should adopt the same political stance. Such an attitude would diminish the freedom we all have as human beings.

This love for freedom, so much a part also of the spirit of Opus Dei, brings with it the duty to help people respect the opinions of others in all those political and professional matters which the Church has left to their free choice. The Church teaches that Christians “must recognize the legitimacy of different opinions with regard to temporal solutions, and respect citizens, who, even as a group, defend their points of view by honest methods.”
Our Lady appearing to St James, on a pillar, in Saragossa

 July 24 Mon
Yesterday, the Gospel reminded us about the Message of the Last Judgment: At the moment of death, every man will receive “his eternal recompense in his immortal soul.” This is the particular judgment by Christ. (CCC 1051)

Those who will shine like the sun are “the multitude of those gathered around Jesus and Mary in Paradise who form the Church of heaven, where, in eternal blessedness, they see God as he is . . .” (CCC 1053).

“Following the example of Christ, the Church warns the faithful of the ‘sad and lamentable reality of eternal death’ (GCD 69), also called ‘hell’” (CCC 1056). The burning and wailing and grinding of teeth is the punishment “of eternal separation from God in whom alone man can have the life and happiness for which he was created and for which he longs” (CCC 1057).

But both the Church and Christ want no one to be lost, and for God “all things are possible” (CCC 1058).

“On the Day of Judgment all men will appear in their own bodies before Christ’s tribunal to render an account of their own deeds” (CCC 1059). This is the General or Last Judgment.

The future Last Judgment calls men to conversion now, since everyone who hears about it, as Christ told the crowd about it in the parable of the weeds, still has time. Right now, for us, therefore, this is “the acceptable time, … the day of salvation.” This truth should inspire in us “a holy fear of God” and a commitment “to the justice of the Kingdom of God,” that is, to live the Gospel. (CCC 1041)

Practical application: Conversion and penance. God wants every one of us to do good deeds and to stop doing evil deeds.
Now is the acceptable time to do so. Not the past, which is over; not the future, which may never come.

To do so, we can ponder the words of the parable of the wheat. Even though God is merciful and gives us grace, we can turn ourselves into weeds.
This is why a daily examination of conscience and frequent confession are essential for all of us.

Thus, let us pray that priests:
     Preach the reality of sin and hell.
     Preach the remedy, in the Sacrament of Penance.
     Place themselves into the confessional so people can get this medicine!

July 23 Sun
God shows his power by condemning sin, especially in those who know better. When God condemns sin, he is just.

Yet God’s power, justice, and mercy are one, so he judges with clemency and governs with compassion. God accepts our repentance.
A similar quality ought to be practiced by men: by his way of dealing with his people Israel, God taught that “those who are just must be kind.”

Since the God who has revealed himself to Israel is the only true God, and since he is both all-powerful and all good, it is inconceivable that he would not become the God of everyone on earth. Thus, “All the nations you have made shall come and worship you, O Lord, and glorify your name.”
This prophecy has come true in Christ and his Church, whose mission is to bring the Gospel to all peoples.

An obstacle, then and now, is the weakness of God’s servants: we sin, and so need God’s “mercy and compassion;” and we are weak, and so need God’s “strength.”

God wants what is best for us. When we want what God wants, or at least “want to want” what God wants, deep down the Holy Spirit expresses it within us. So even though we don’t “know how to pray as we ought,” the Holy Spirit prays for us, asking for what is best.

Yet some men, by their actions, are morally evil, and so, children of the evil one. One day they will suffer in hell in “the fiery furnace, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.” This fate will be deserved because, in the kingdom of God, they have been those “who cause others to sin and are evildoers.”

This parable provides an answer to why God permits some evil. The Master in the parable says, “if you pull up the weeds you might uproot the wheat along with them.”
God does not uproot every evil now because to do so would do greater harm than good. One reason of its existence, is that those who do evil and cause others to sin can repent.

In addition, those who are “good seed” also need time to prove their determination. It could be said that some wheat stalks need some weeds around them.

Ultimately, we are either “weeds” because we do evil and follow the devil (whether or not we know it) or “wheat” because we do good and follow God (whether or not we know it).

We are all good seed planted in God’s garden, but we have a liking for the weeds, and some of us choose to become all weeds. God lets us be what we choose to be, while he helps us be good, if we want that. We are choosing either the most terrible fate or happiness forever.

July 22 Sat
Ungodly men reasoned to themselves: "Let us lie in wait for the righteous man, because he is inconvenient to us, and opposes our actions; he reproaches us for sins against the law, and accuses us of sins against our tradition."
Such was the life of Jesus, and such should be the life of all of us, his apostles, since “a servant is not greater than his master. If they persecuted me, they will persecute you.”

But, “Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul.” They are dried-up water wells.
Although we will encounter difficulties, our response, with God's help, has to be unwavering: remaining firm in the faith. We must bear witness to the truth. “If we are faithful, we will have the fortitude of a person who is humble, because he lives identified with Christ. My children, we are what is lasting; everything else is passing away. It doesn't matter!”

“Sometimes the persecutions are violent. …For some time now, the Church has been in a painful, anarchic kind of situation, which gives rise to continually renewed confusion in doctrine, morals and discipline, causing serious harm to souls…. We must drown all that terrible evil in an abundance of good.”

Logically, also against the Work: “It was persecution like the persecution our Lord suffered at the hands of the chief priests: slander, lies, deceit, insults, in the press, in private conversations... We were everyone's whipping-boy. Everyone felt they had a right to spit on us. And yet we were happy in our isolation. We could see our Lord's hand in this persecution and we knew he was with us. So, we kept our mouths shut, and we smiled and worked and prayed.”
 
“Yes, my children, that's how the Work was accomplished – with no money, and no virtues. All I had was twenty-six years of age and a sense of humor.”
God is not only behind us but among us, working incessantly. Thank, Lord! because you have never abandoned us, because you have done battle for us, and with us. None of the devil's deceits has ever succeeded nor can ever succeed against our Lord. Thank you!

Our Lord, along with the Blessed Virgin, took care of the Church and of the Work with great love, leading us along the path to holiness and supporting us along the way.

In the painting, St Josemaría wanted to describe her protection. Our Mother holds the Child Jesus, as she looks at a solid pillar with the seal of the Work. The pillar has been attacked with stones, (some of these remain at its foot) and some corner has been chipped off. Yet she extends her mantle over it as a pledge of her protection. Two angels crown her as Queen, while others offer incense to honor God. Jesus blesses the pillar, God’s Work, his work.

 July 20 Thu
Sanctity and apostolate: To this we have been called, to be God's children and heirs to his glory with Jesus Christ. The early Christians, men and women of the first century, were perfectly clear about this. “From the moment when Jesus Christ said that he was the Way, the Truth and Life, and invited everyone to follow him, there burst forth in the souls of many faithful, right from the earliest times of the Church's life, the desire to make a reality of the search for the evangelical perfection which was practiced by Christ himself as our model: the life of personal holiness and apostolic action.”

“And so, the genuine spirituality of the Gospel started to produce abundant fruits of holiness in every sphere of the pagan society which the early Christians lived in. They were men and women who practiced their faith sincerely, and as a result brought new members into the Church. They worked alongside everyone else, as citizens, if they were citizens... They practiced fraternity to an exquisite degree and dedicated themselves to God and to the spreading of the Good News, in the measure of the gifts they had each received. The result was that the whole of pagan society was Christianized.” St Josemaría

Like the first Christians, we too have received God's call to cooperate with Christ in sanctifying people and institutions here on earth. “God wants each of you, to try to be holy in your own specific circumstances and position in life: this is God's Will, your sanctification. A holiness that will often be hidden – without outward show – but one that is fought for every day, a heroic holiness: to co-redeem with Christ, to save souls with him, to put order with him into all human affairs.”

Thus, personal sanctity: love for God and love for all souls for his sake. If we weren't trying to be closer to our Lord every day, our apostolic efforts would be in vain, and all our external works useless.

Nothing is unimportant in God's eyes: everything is an opportunity for sanctity and apostolate. Everything – no matter how insignificant it may appear – has an eternal value. Whoever then relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but he who does them and teaches them shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

Be faithful in the small things because it is in them that you must fight the battle.

 July 19 Wed
Christian charity means sharing in the sorrow of those who suffer, because we are all children of God, and they are your brothers.

“-A Child. -A Sick Person. As you write these words, don't you feel tempted to put them with a capital letter? It's because, for a soul in love, children and sick people are He.” (St Josemaría) In sick people and anyone who is suffering, Christ himself becomes present, suffering for us.

God listens with special attention to those who suffer and who joyfully accept sorrow and death. Their suffering and their sorrow become a powerful lever of God's mercy.

As Christians we know that we are children of God, and we are certain of being in our Father God's loving hands. What some people experience as an almost unbearable burden, is for us, children of God, a priceless treasure. We should offer up all our sufferings to our Lord; and whether they consist of minor discomforts or serious pain, we should ask him to unite them all to his sufferings for us on the Cross.

“In our sick brothers and sisters, we can find Christ Crucified, laden with graces for us. Those brothers and sisters are a treasure that we should value highly.”

St Augustine says: “If you love your neighbor, you should take as much care of their body as of their soul, which does not just mean getting a doctor, but also providing food, drink, clothing, and housing, and protecting them from whatever could harm them ... The merciful are those who give whatever is necessary to defend others from harm, kindly and gently ... Don't you realize that being merciful means becoming poverty-stricken yourself by sharing another's poverty?”

If we really take the sick into our hearts, we will find it easy to pray for them frequently in the course of the day, both in the Holy Mass and during our work. We will do anything to make them happy. We will try to make sure that their illness does not upset them; we will make it easy for them to rest, and to do whatever the doctor says they should. And we will try to help them get through times of particular discomfort as lightly as possible.

And if we see Jesus Christ in our brothers or sisters who are ill, we will one day hear our Lord saying to us: “Come, O blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world ... for I was sick, and you visited me.”

 July 18 Tue
The Gospel shows us how the Pharisees and Herodians try to set a trap for our Lord over the question of payment of the tribute; and we see him responding, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's.”

As Christians we are citizens both of the Church and of civil society, with all the rights and duties that every citizen has. We live and work in the world, and we have to make a stand against the mentality that tries to laicize everything. “Some try to relegate God and the Church to the depths of people's consciences. … This anticlericalism wants to shut God and the Church up within the limits of people's private life, so that the fact of holding Christian faith and morals has no effect on public life at all.”

Yet all just and noble human affairs have a divine meaning, because they come from God and are ordered towards God. If we bear this in mind, we will avoid making the sort of split that is so frequent in the lives of many Catholics.

“Christ separated the fields of jurisdiction of the two authorities of Church and State, to forestall the harmful effects of ‘Caesarism’ and ‘clericalism’. He established the healthy kind of anticlericalism which consists of real, deep love for the priesthood; what a sorry sight it is when the high calling of the priest is cheapened and debased by getting mixed up in mean, worldly projects. He fixed the autonomy of God's Church and the legitimate autonomy enjoyed by civil society in regulating and structuring its affairs.

“But the distinction established by Christ does not in any way mean that religion should be relegated to the sacristy, or that the ordering of human affairs is to be done outside the realm of all divine or Christian law. Because that would be to deny the faith of Christ, which demands obedience from the whole person, body and soul, as an individual and as a member of society.

“Christ's message lights up the whole of a person's life, from its beginning to its end, and not merely the narrow reach of some personal acts of subjective piety. Laicism means a denial of the sort of faith that expresses itself in deeds, the faith that knows that the world's autonomy is only relative, and that the ultimate meaning of everything in the world is the glory of God and the salvation of souls.” St Josemaría

In these days, we should pray intensely to St Joseph, to protect God’s Church, against her external and internal enemies, “Monstra te esse patrem!” “Show us that you are our father and lord!”
Image: The Spousal of Mary and Joseph.

 July 17 Mon
God permits, not desires, many religions. The New Testament, tells us that he who rejects Christ’s messengers rejects Christ, and that Christ commissioned the Church to preach the Gospel to the whole world.

Thus, the ultimate purpose of any Church activity is to propose the Truth and to provide the means of salvation. It is not to get people of all faiths, and of no faith, to feel comfortable with each other.

The forced adhesion to a certain religion or culture, of course, must be rejected.

Some elements of our nature (such as “color”, “sex”, and “race”) are received without our consent. But religion is a matter of commitment of mind and will (even if sometimes under compulsion).

The commitment to a religion is a personal decision, as is to accept a belief system that –in itself– may be true or false, or even good or evil.

When we say that God “wills” something bad, we mean that He wills it in the sense of permitting it as part of his Providential plan (as is the case with every evil that happens).

Or, we may imply that He wills an evil by itself; that He presents an evil as a good which we are to accept and embrace. That is a monstrosity. If not from common sense, then from Divine Revelation, we know that the multiplicity of religions is not actively willed by God as a good, but merely permitted. For we believe that it is only the Divinely-attested revealed religion that God actively wills us to accept.

The greatest service we can provide for our neighbors is our witness to our following Christ, as exemplified by the corporal works of mercy, but also by the spiritual works.

Christ always subordinated everything to the goal of being one with Him in the Father’s love. This cannot be accomplished through a purely humanitarian, solely “socially oriented”, interpretation of the Gospel. Either we are willing to lose our life –our earthly attachments, our personal theories of existence, our desire for worldly peace and security, our enchanting habits and socially comfortable attitudes– in order to receive and give the life that Christ offers…or else, we are simply preaching a very different gospel, a gospel which serves our own prejudices and our own comfort in this world.

Facing disoriented crowds in the present world, without faith, without Christ, should we limit ourselves to make them “feel good”? Is this really fraternity? Should we proclaim that our purpose is not to get them to know the Truth; that it is rather, to get people of all faiths, and no faith, to feel comfortable with each other? If so, shouldn't we re-think our answer to our Savior’s question: “What father, when his child hungers for bread, will give him a stone”?

 July 16 Sun
Our words are informative, we give information. The word of God is performative, and permanent; what he says, is done, according to his plans. It achieves something, as when Our Lord said, “Your sins are forgiven” and they really were.

The soil where the good seed falls is every man. The seed –God’s word– is good, but the fruit depends on the soil where it falls. Man has the responsibility to receive and correspond to the grace of God.

“Some seeds fell by the roadside.” The road is trodden earth, hardened. They are those oblivious to God’s word. They are people without order in their affections, not very vigilant in their feelings, with their imagination often set on useless thoughts.
We need to ask the Lord for strength to never be negligent or lukewarm, without contrition or repentance.

Another part fell on stony ground, when the sun rose, the wheat withered and dried up because it had no root. This rocky area represents superficial souls, with little interior depth, inconstant, and incapable of persevering. They have good dispositions; they even receive grace with joy, but when they have to face difficulties, when it costs them something, they retreat; they are not capable of sacrificing themselves to carry out the resolutions they once made, and these die without bearing fruit.

We must ask the Lord for constancy of purpose, a spirit of sacrifice so as not to stop in the face of the difficulties that we will necessarily encounter. To begin and begin again and again, with holy stubbornness, striving to reach the holiness to which Jesus calls us, and for which he gives us the necessary graces.

Another part fell among thorns; the thorns grew up and choked it. They are people choked with anxiety about getting by in this world and filled with desire for material goods, and so, grace remains barren. They are blind to what is truly important. Where your treasure is, there will your heart be.

We can also be good soil, people who welcome grace and bear fruit. The Lord pours himself into the soul to the extent that he finds a welcome. God gives us so many graces because he has confidence in each one of us. ‘God who created you without you, will not save you without you’.

Am I corresponding to the graces that the Lord is giving me? Do I cleanse the harmful weeds by frequent Confession, by acts of contrition? Do I prepare my soul to receive the inspirations of God? We can no more be satisfied with what we do in the service to God than an artist is satisfied with the painting that comes from his hands. Everyone tells him: it is a marvel; but he thinks: no, it is not that; I would want more. This is how we should react.

"Besides, the Lord gives us much, he has the right to our fullest correspondence..., and we must go at his pace". Let us not lag behind.
(Today is Our Lady f Mount Carmel)

 July 15 Sat
The initiative is always God’s initiative. Vocation begins with Jesus’ gaze, full of love, that attracts another gaze. Vocation is a response to some One –Jesus– who fixes his eyes on you; only on you.
Jesus challenges you in a personal and irresistible way, to look at Him. Then, suddenly, you discover in your heart an immense panorama of personal commitment and apostolate. Finally, the immense joy of responding with a sincere "yes" to Him.

Thus, one consequence of this commitment is deep joy. “God loves the cheerful giver. What is it that we most desire, what drives us most, and has moved us to dedication? The love of God. Well, He will give us still more. He will make us fall completely in love, if we do things with joy.”

When dedication is woven with true confidence in our Lord, when we try to be humble and seek only to please God, then “we are completely happy, my children.”

“Whoever says Opus Dei says joy. Whoever says Opus Dei has to say work, but work with joy; charity with joy; understanding with joy.”

“My children, we are going to give ourselves fully, we are going to live by faith, happily. We are going to stick fast to Jesus Christ, to love Him truly, truly, truly.”

“We are going to live out our great love story, because that is what we are, people in love. It is for Love that we have put aside everything, giving our lives to carry out his Work on earth. We are going to stay very close together, well within this boat, the Work, a little part of the Church. And we are going to tell our Lord once more that we are here because He has called us: Here I am because You called me! (1 Sam 3:9).” St Josemaría

I will not pray, so much, for your material success; I will pray, mainly, for your faithfulness.

 July 14 Fri
Jesus got into a boat with his disciples. And there arose a great storm; the boat was being swamped by the waves; but he was asleep. Like the disciples, we have received from God the gift of being in Jesus Christ's boat. If we stay with him, we will reach the end of our journey, the happiness of heaven.

But on our voyage through this present life, storms can arise: moments of darkness, turbulence, and trial; or, still more frequently, times when we have to change direction, because we have started to go off-course.

St Josemaría: “If you are immersed in God, things will be only as important as you choose them to be, just as the saints did, because they were anchored on the firm rock which is Christ Jesus.

Thus, we must be with Christ in the boat, with Christ, who seems to be asleep.  Christ’s disciples went and woke him saying, "Save us, Lord; we are perishing."

“We should be going to our Lord, many times every day, seeking to maintain a constant conversation with him, to thank him and atone to him for the many offenses he suffers. We should look for him all the more, then, when we encounter some setback. But we shouldn't exaggerate these things, as I say, because everyone has difficulties – with our relations, sometimes those closest to us; with a friend, or a neighbor, or those who hate seeing us working so effectively in the service of the Church.

“Why are you afraid, O men of little faith? Do you see? He told us before that faith moves mountains, and now he is asking us to be bold and daring. With faith, with the strength of faith, we aren't afraid of anyone or anything; not even of God himself, because he is our Father. For us, nothing, absolutely nothing, can go wrong. As long as we are trying to be faithful, although we make mistakes, although we have to say sorry ‘seventy times seven’ times every day, we have Christ's strength behind us. He is what lasts. Everything else just makes a good story, it's all transitory.

Still, you should know that “one's own mind is a bad adviser, a poor pilot, to steer the soul in the storms and tempests, among the reefs of the interior life…That is why it is God's Will that the command of the ship be entrusted to a Master so that, with his light and knowledge, he can guide us to a safe harbor.”

 July 13 Thu
“When people give themselves freely, at every moment of their self-surrender, freedom renews their love; to be renewed in that way is to be always young, generous, capable of high ideals and great sacrifices… I tell you this because, although I have been around a good many years, when I pray at the foot of the altar ‘to God who gives joy to my youth’, I feel young and I know that I will never consider myself old. If I keep true to my God, Love will constantly vivify me.

“It's because we love freedom that we tie ourselves down. Only pride sees such bonds as a heavy chain. True humility, which is taught us by the One who is meek and humble of heart, shows that his yoke is easy and his burden light: his yoke is freedom and love and unity; his yoke is the Life which he won for us on the Cross.”

And after the Cross – let us not forget – comes the glorious Resurrection and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. “In the life of Christ, Calvary preceded the Resurrection and Pentecost. This is the order that must be followed in the life of any Christian. We are, as St Paul tells us, heirs indeed of God and joint heirs with Christ, provided, however, we suffer with him, that we may also be glorified with him. The Holy Spirit comes to us as a result of the Cross – as a result of our total abandonment to the Will of God, of seeking only his glory and renouncing ourselves completely.” St Josemaría

Yes, you must live life beautifully and not allow the spirit of the world that makes gods out of power, riches, and pleasure make you to forget that you have been created for greater things. To reach them, be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies.

This is the road that leads straight to God: total detachment from ourselves and from what we possess, what we use. It is worthwhile to ask from our Lady this gift for everyone, remembering her loving submission to God's will: “Be it done unto me according to your word.”

 July 12 Wed
“I acknowledge my sin,” says David. If I admit my fault, then God will pardon it. Let us never assume that if we live good lives we will be without sin; our lives should be worthwhile only when we continue to beg for pardon.

Usually, the less contrite we are for our own sins, the more interested we become in the sins of others. We seek to criticize, not to correct. Not finding valid excuses for ourselves, we accuse the others.

David showed us how to make amends to God: “I acknowledge my transgression, and my sin is always before me.” He did not concentrate on others’ sins; he turned his thoughts on himself. He did not merely stroke the surface, but he plunged inside and went deep down within himself, asking to be forgiven.

Do you want God to forgive you? Learn from the psalm: Lord, “If you wanted sacrifice, I would indeed have given it; but you take no delight in burnt offerings.”
Are you then without a sacrifice? Are you to offer nothing? Will you leave God without an offering?

Consider and say with David: “A sacrifice to God is a contrite spirit.” Now you have found out what you are to offer. In olden times, you would have offered cattle – these were the sacrifices.
But David says: “You will take no delight in burnt offerings.” If God is not pleased with burnt offerings, will you remain without sacrifice? Not at all. “A sacrifice to God is a contrite spirit; God will not despise a humble and contrite heart.”

Now you know what you have to offer. No need to bring cattle, no need to send ships and travel away to buy incense. Search within your heart, find what God wants from you.

First, your heart must be contrite. Are you afraid of it? You have to ask: “Create a clean heart in me, O God.” For a clean heart to be created, the unclean one must be crushed with contrition.

We should be unhappy with ourselves when we commit sin, for sin is displeasing to God. Sinful though we are, let us at least coincide with God in this, that we do not like what He does not like. Then you will be in harmony with God’s will, because you find awful in yourself what is abhorrent to your Creator.
St Augustine

 July 11 Tue
We must be on guard especially in moments of blindness. The Scripture tells us about two brothers, Esau and Jacob. Esau had a history of foolish or unfaithful actions, most of them in little things, but some not so little. But one moment was decisive. Once, he came home hungry from the fields, and sold his birthright to Jacob for the paltry price of a plate of lentils. The only thing that mattered to him at that moment was to eat and stave off his hunger; everything else had lost all meaning for his heart in his blindness.

The moment of blindness passed, and then he realized what a wretched price he paid in exchange for his birthright. But it was too late, and all he could do was lament for having thrown overboard the greatest treasure of his life in a moment of madness.

In case we should ever find ourselves in a similar situation, blinded by selfishness, let us remember St Josemaría’s words. “Don't forget ... that we can make mistakes in life, but that doesn't mean there is anything wrong with our way of life, nor with our Love. What it means is that we need to be more prudent for the future. No one can reason like this: ‘Because I can't manage to fulfill this duty, I won't fulfill any of my duties.’ That would be a reaction of pride: to fall out from the hands of God, to become diabolical.”

This is the temptation of Esau: to suffer the loss of the greatest treasure God could possibly have given us, for something as worthless as a bowl of lentils.

In those moments of blindness, the divine call and the abundant fruits of fidelity seem empty of meaning, compared with the obsessions of the flesh or the whims of the heart; the person desires “to live his own life,” or shuts himself up in his own pride.

“We all have defects. But our defects should never be a reason for us to turn away from God's Love. Rather they should lead us to cling to that Love, seeking shelter in his divine goodness, as the old warriors did, by wearing their suits of armor. Our defense is the cry: ‘Here I am, because you have called me!’ Just because we discover how fragile we are, is no reason to run away from God. What we must do, is to attack our defects, precisely because we know how God trusts us.” St Josemaría

We attack our defects by living in a continuous presence of God, to reject all temptations.
Image: Mother of Fair Love, Pray for us.

 July 10 Mon
A friend asked me, Why does God allow bad, corrupt people to prosper?
In a company or corporation, I see that some of these persons are promoted, and even remain at the head of the governing board, causing harm to the corporation and disorienting the customers. Why so?

– Only God knows. For some situations, there are legal means. But let us look now at the crucified Christ; he is crowned with thorns. “Then the governor’s soldiers stripped Jesus and put a scarlet robe on him, and then plaiting a crown of thorns, they set it on his head.” (Mt 27, 27-29)

These thorns inflicted a great torment on him. But did he take off the crown of thorns? Did he ask anyone to take it off from him?
– No. He suffered for our salvation.

Where were the thorns? Not strewn on the ground, like loose nails!
– The thorns were at Jesus’ head, at the top of his Body.

Likewise, for that corporation, I guess, we have to continue praying, asking Our Lord to shorten the period of His suffering (mind you, He is the One who suffers most).

Yes, “Corruptio optimi pessima,” the corruption of the best is the worst kind of corruption. Only humility helped by grace can stop that corruption, that sudden switch from the best to the worst. St Augustine writes: “I have found no better people than those who are advancing in holiness, but neither have I found any worse than those who have abandoned it."

“Holding fast to our Lady's hand, let us make the resolution now to be faithful always; to be faithful day by day in the little things, which is to say, to live a continual, lifelong faithfulness, that is, perseverance.” St Josemaría

Meanwhile, be patient. God may permit us to lose a skirmish, but He never loses the battle.

 July 9 Sun
The Lord reveals himself to those who are humble. Today, we hear him say: "I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them to the little ones.”

The "little ones" listen to him; they perceive that he speaks in the name of the One who sent him. But others have hardened their hearts and rejected the Son of God sent into the world to save them.

When humility is neglected, man tries to supplant God, but not in the way which Christ himself has made possible, saying, “Take and eat, for this is my Body” (1 Cor 11:24), but by trying to reduce God to human limits.

Do I bless the Lord because he has chosen me, when there are so many people with more qualities and virtues than I? Do I thank him because many souls open themselves to the light of God through my effort? Do joy and gratitude reign in me for all the good that the Lord accomplishes in the Church and among us?

St. Augustine: “Know thyself through Him; know that thou art man, and yet so great is thy worth, that for thy sake God became man. Do not attribute this to your pride, but to his mercy.”

Drawing close to Jesus Christ, we learn to be meek and humble, we renounce judging others, we seek to serve them, we are filled with the joy and peace proper to those who allow themselves to be modeled by the Holy Spirit.
All good things come from God. At times it may seem that evil predominates. But being closer to Jesus, we can look at the world with more accurate judgments.

Those who know that they are small before God accept the loving divine demands. Identified with Jesus by the work of the Holy Spirit, they are filled with peace.

You hear within you: "How heavy is this yoke that you have freely taken! It is the voice of the devil; the burden... of your arrogance. The only heavy yoke is that of self-love, of pride.”

“Ask the Lord for humility, and you too will understand those words of Jesus which I freely translate as: my yoke is freedom, my yoke is love, my yoke is unity, my yoke is life, my yoke is efficacy.” (Mt 11:30),

The Virgin Mary’s joyful example and her powerful intercession make it easier for us to take the yoke of Christ, which is love, freedom, life and fruitfulness.

 July 8 Sat
“Giving alms to the poor is one of the chief witnesses to fraternal charity: it is also a work of justice pleasing to God” (Catechism of the Catholic Church 2447). Charity toward the poor comes in many forms: we can give them fish for a day or teach them to fish.

What constitutes “the poor” encompasses a broad range, from destitution to struggling to make ends meet. Charity to the former may include money and clothing; to the latter it could be scholarships to school or free training for a professional occupation. The point for the giver is to meet the need, whatever that may be, in order both to ease the recipient’s suffering and to enable him to feel God’s love through our compassion. In doing so we show “a preferential love” for the poor that is a hallmark of a true disciple of Christ. (Catechism 2448)

But one should not be “reductionist.” What about the “spiritually poor?” In our day, sad to say, real spiritually poor people exist in droves: first, the lonely, depressed, addicted, and suicidal are some of them. Of course, these have nothing to do with the “poor in spirit,” who are the humble before God. (Matthew 5:3)

Then, those who live without God in their lives are also spiritually poor.

As with material poverty, spiritual poverty has a range: those who do not know God or have forsaken Him are the most destitute; those who have God but not Christ are a rung up; those who have Christ but not the Catholic Church are less poor but still suffer from not having their needs completely met; those who are Catholic but do not attend Mass are blind to their poverty.

The spiritually poor surely need to receive charity too. Should we exclude them from among “the poor”? What should this charity be?

Some think, from a materialistic worldview, that faith is relative, and secondary to persons’ “real”— that is, material — needs. Holders of this view may well believe in Christ, but they do not think, contrary to our Lord’s repeated warnings and the continuous teaching of the Church, that what they believe matters or has anything to do with salvation.

 July 7 Fri
Why should we examine our conscience, daily? To discover the small faults that hold us back from total service to God and souls. We love our Lord, and we desire to love him more every day. But those desires are not enough. Love means deeds! Our love has to make sure that our soul's desires are matched by our actions.

This is why we struggle, and this is why we need the examination of conscience. It is indispensable. If we neglect our examination of conscience out of laziness, small infidelities, mistakes and evil inclinations multiply like weeds in our soul, without any reaction from us.

Make a brief examination of conscience before going to rest at night. Two or three minutes are enough. Follow these steps:

•    Place yourself in the presence of God recognizing his strength and your weakness. Tell him: “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.”

•    Ask your guardian angel for light to acknowledge your defects and virtues.

•    Examine your conscience with sincerity: What have I done wrong? What have I done right? What could I have done better?
Did I often consider that God is my Father? Did I offer him my work? Did I make good use of my time? Did I pray slowly and with attention?
Did I try to make life pleasant for other people? Did I criticize anyone? Was I forgiving? Did I pray and offer some sacrifices for the Church, the Pope and for all those around me?
Did I allow myself to be carried away by sensuality? By pride?

•    Sorrow. Make an act of contrition asking our Lord’s pardon.

•    Resolution. Make a small specific resolution for tomorrow, like: Staying away from certain temptations.
Avoiding some specific faults.
Exerting special effort to practice some virtue.
Taking advantage of occasions for improvement.

•    Pray three Hail Marys to the Virgin Mary asking for the virtue of purity for yourself and your loved ones.

ACT OF CONTRITION: O my God, I am heartily sorry for having offended you and I detest all my sins, because I dread the loss of heaven and the pains of hell; but most of all because they offend you, my God, who are all good and deserving of all my love. I firmly resolve, with the help of your grace, to confess my sins, to do penance, and to amend my life. Amen.

 July 6 Thu
God raised us to the supernatural order, a dignity which completely surpasses anything that is due to our nature as human beings. He, in his infinite goodness, has called us to be his own children.

Thus, supernatural life must form the ultimate basis of our personality. Human things and divine things must come together as one, because we have been chosen by God in the middle of the world to take Christ to the summit of all human activities, to divinize the things of this earth. “By yourself, if you don't count on grace, you can do nothing worthwhile, for you would be cutting the link which connects you with God. With grace, on the other hand, you can do all things.” St Josemaría

Our Lord Jesus Christ calls grace "living water", because it is always acting. The grace of the Holy Spirit, when it enters the soul and settles there, has greater power than the most torrential river; it never fails or dries up or ceases to come. To express this inexhaustible gift, this indescribable energy, the Lord calls it a fountain and a river. He also calls it water that springs up, to express its force and impetus.

That is how our life will be if we respond faithfully to God's grace. There is nothing that can withstand the force of grace: The waters shall make their way through the mountains. For God fills all things and makes them fruitful with his grace. With his strength we can achieve anything; all we have to do is get rid of whatever impedes his action. Then we will have all the power of our Father God. Anchored in this confidence, St Josemaría encourages us: “With God's grace, you have to tackle and carry out the impossible, because anybody can do what is possible.”

Thus, each of us must be like a computer mouse in the hand of God, writing a love letter to the world; obeying Him, executing His plan of salvation.
Madonna with the Child Jesus and St John Baptist by Carracci (1560-1609)

 July 5 Wed
"If you love me, you will keep my commandments". Love is not something lyrical and vaporous, but the fulfillment of the good and wise Will of God, our Father. The Lord, who unceremoniously censured the numerous Jewish precepts, describing them as a heavy burden (Mt 23:4), reminds me that there is no love for God and for others where there are no works that manifest this love. Jesus does not want a forced love, but a free and spontaneous love, but without confusing it with an anarchic and capricious sentimentalism.

When philosophies turn feelings or instinct into the rule to decide, confusing sincerity with comfortable obedience to my state of mind. When freedom is so often understood as license. When one appeals to one's own conscience to circumvent one's duties towards God, affirming that God cannot admit a forced service, that one does not feel, Christ says: "Whoever accepts my commandments and keeps them, he loves me.”

Thus, life is a challenge; you must take it. Do not allow yourself to be disheartened by any failure as long as you have done your best.

Sadness makes no dent in the one who remains united to God by love. What can disturb a Christian," asks St. John Chrysostom, "death? No, because he desires it as a reward. Insults? No, because Christ taught us to suffer them: 'Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you' (Mt 5:11). Sickness? Neither, because the Scripture advises: 'Receive what God commands you and be of good cheer in the vicissitudes of trial, for gold is tried in the fire, and men pleasing to God are tried in the crucible of tribulation' (Eccl. 2:5). What then is there left to trouble the Christian? Nothing. On earth, even joy often ends in sorrow; but for those who live according to Christ, even sorrows become joy.

Let us ask ourselves: Do I make the commandments of the Law of God my own? Am I interested in the objectives of the Church, of the parish, or do other interests take precedence over this principal and pleasing duty? Is my Holy Mass the worship I give to God, that He deserves, and wants? Is loving Him, and the extension of the Kingdom of Christ, the true motor of my existence?

To be a Christian is to savor, with immense, inexpressible joy, that God loves me, that he seeks me out, is interested in me and forgives my clumsy and sometimes ungrateful ways of behaving, and, consequently, to try to correspond to this love that is as great as it is undeserved.
But God, who knows the inmost heart, gives the promised reward.

 July 4 Tue
Getting in over our heads in the life of prayer. “Put out into the deep…” (Lk 5:4) That was the admonition that Jesus gave to his disciples. It sounds so easy. But it takes courage.

The oceans, with their unfathomed depths can be dangerous – as the recent news headlines remind us. When we speak of the “ocean” of God’s mercy – even deeper, even stronger – we must speak with awe.

Dive into the ocean – any ocean – and you take a risk; you might be lost at sea. So, most of us stay close to shore. Only the saints took the headlong plunge.

My father, a strong swimmer, taught all his children not to “put out into the deep.” For a recreational swimmer at the beach, he told us repeatedly, “there’s no reason to go out over your head!”

At the beach, that is good advice. But maybe not in the life of prayer, because the oceans of God’s mercy will never turn deadly. Any ocean should be regarded with awe. But the “fear of God” is a pure sort of awe, not tainted by anything like the fear of drowning or of shark attacks. The exhortation to “put out into the deep” goes hand-in-hand with the frequent admonition to “be not afraid.”

Beach goers cling to the shore, clustered in a tiny strip of shallow water. Even the yachts and fishing boats are fairly close to land. Beyond them stretch the miles of open water. Only the serious seafarers, who know the oceans well, go out so far.

It is relatively easy to try your hand in the life of prayer. To give God an hour every Sunday, without follow-up, can be refreshing – like a quick dip in the ocean. But a serious effort to know God, to be committed to him, is a much greater challenge. You can get lost. In fact, if you rise to the challenge, you will get lost...in God. And that – let’s be honest – frightens us.

As I stand on the shore, letting the waves lap over my toes – but no more! – I find myself thinking about the Sunday Mass as a quick dip; something that refreshes us and restores our energy. Or we can think of it as an immense event connected to the rest of our life, with power behind our comprehension, that sweeps us away and makes us soar up to God’s heart. Give me the latter, please.

“The more we are prepared for Mass, the more grace we will take away from the Mass. And remember: the grace available in the Mass is infinite – it’s all the grace of heaven. The only limit is our capacity to receive it.” Scott Hahn

 July 3 Mon
“I well understand Thomas' confusion before our Lord, and the marvelous act of faith and love that bursts forth from him, ‘My Lord and my God!’ (Jn 20:28). He touched Christ as we do in the Eucharist, when we receive him each day in the sacred Host. And as we touch him in the effectiveness of our apostolate. … Yet, how goes our faith?” St Josemaría

Although he doubted at the start, tradition tells us that afterwards, St Thomas preached the Gospel in India so effectively, that centuries later many still preserved the faith. Today we ask our Lord to strengthen our faith.

God wants to bring about the renewal of the world through the same path that Christ followed, indeed, the path that is Himself. There is nothing magical about Christianity. There are no shortcuts, but everything passes through the humble and patient logic of the grain of wheat that dies to give life, the logic of faith that moves mountains with the gentle strength of God.

This is why God wants to continue to renew humanity, history and the cosmos through a chain of transformations, of which the Eucharist is the sacrament, a mysterious image. Through the consecrated bread and wine, in which his Body and Blood are truly present, Christ transforms us, assimilating us to himself: he involves us in his work of redemption, making us capable, by the grace of the Holy Spirit, of living according to his same logic of self-giving, like grains of wheat united to him and in him. In this way, unity and peace are sown and ripen in the furrows of history, which are the goal towards which we are striving, according to God's plan.

We walk the paths of the world without mirages, without ideological utopias, carrying within us the Body of the Lord, like the Virgin Mary in the mystery of the Visitation. With the humility of knowing that we are simple grains of wheat, we have the firm certainty that faith and the love of God, incarnated in Christ, is stronger than evil, violence and death. We know that God is preparing for all men a new heaven and a new earth, where peace and justice reign; and in faith we glimpse the new world, which is our true homeland.

As the sun sets on our lives, we continue on our journey: with us is Jesus in the Eucharist, the same One that Thomas touched, the Risen One, who said: "I am with you always, to the end of time" (Mt 28:21). Thank you, Lord Jesus! Thank you for your faithfulness, which sustains our hope. Stay with us, for it is already night. "Good shepherd, true bread, O Jesus, have mercy on us: feed us, defend us, lead us to eternal happiness in the land of the living." Amen.

 July 2 Sun
To be a Christian is not to sympathize with a cause, however noble it may be, but an adherence of our intelligence and heart, a commitment to a Person, Jesus. It is to share his life and destiny, to participate in his free and loving obedience to the will of the Father. The incisive, almost harsh tone of today's Gospel reminds us: "Whoever loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me".

Anyone who is familiar with the teachings of Jesus understands that these words do not oppose the 1st and 4th Commandments, they merely point out the order in which they are to be lived. "Honor your father, so long as he does not separate you from the true Father" (St. Jerome).

Nor do these words of Jesus imply contempt for one's own life, but rather the conditions to live it to the full. Nothing must come before the love of God. Parents and children should remember this when God insinuates himself into their lives and invites them to a more generous dedication to the cause of the Gospel. And everyone should understand that to live obsessively concerned with oneself and one's interests, with one's own well-being, without thinking of God and others, is to blind oneself to the fountain from which one wishes to drink.

Yes, you must live life beautifully and not allow the spirit of the world – that makes gods out of power, riches, and pleasure – make you to forget that you have been created for greater things.

What makes a person – and even an entire society – truly unhappy is this anxious search for well-being, the unconditioned attempt to eliminate everything that is contrary to it. Life presents a thousand facets, each one of them is an original call from God: an unprecedented opportunity to work, to give the divine witness of charity.

Without the Cross there is no Christianity. Selfish comfort seeps into every affection and every action. Only time, setbacks, the monotony of daily work, humiliating temptations, falls, and discouragement can purify us, giving that healthy forgetfulness of self that Jesus proposes to us. Yes, love is purified and strengthened by these trials. It can also degenerate into rebellion, as it happened with the bad thief, because the acid test of love is pain.

Love to be real, it must cost – it must hurt – it must empty us of self.

However, the reward is heaven. Christian commitment is not self-renunciation, but the fruitful activity of love. God is not to be outdone in generosity.

 July 1 Sat
We have been created for greater things, not just to be a number in the world, not just to go for diplomas and degrees, for this work and that work. We have been created in order to love and to be loved.

Thus, the purpose of our life, the only reason for our existence, is to praise God. The whole of creation is a song of praise to God, and it should be the supreme desire that fills our life on earth and all that we do. For our life to be clean and upright – also a song of love to God – we have to turn to Jesus for help, in the Mass. That is where we offer to God the Father a sweet-smelling sacrifice, a fragrant offering, a pure, immaculate Victim, a perfect hymn of praise and thanksgiving.

Our piety is nourished by the Mass, the center of our inner life. And our participation in the liturgical celebration links us effectively to the Holy Sacrifice of the Cross. Our whole being takes part: our understanding, our will, and our body too, through the actions and gestures we perform. The Second Vatican Council teaches that “our union with the Church in heaven is put into effect in its noblest manner especially in the sacred Liturgy, wherein the power of the Holy Spirit acts upon us through sacramental signs.”

St Josemaría wrote: “Have veneration and respect for the Holy Liturgy of the Church and for each of her ceremonies, – Carry them out faithfully. – Don't you see that, for us poor humans, even the greatest and most noble things must enter through the senses?” In each rite and ceremony, the Church is helping us to learn about and contemplate the supernatural truths.

In the liturgy we usually sing, to raise up our hearts to God and place ourselves under his protection. Singing expresses the love and joy in our hearts. “Rejoice always, pray constantly, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the Will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” With the liturgical songs, we express what we have in our heart. It is a need that we feel, because as St Augustine says, “singing comes naturally to people in love, and we are in love.”

“There are some people who are enraged when they die. With the grace of God, I hope I shall die singing.” We sing to our Blessed Mother, who accompany with us on our way: “Our life, our sweetness and our hope ... Turn then ... thine eyes of mercy towards us... Show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus.”