Aug 1 Sat - Can prayer help me find clear directions in my life?

 

Aug 1 Sat

Can prayer help me find clear directions in my life?

Those who truly pray know that prayer affects one's entire life; it is not merely an activity, but involves them personally—in their identity and their relationships. This stems from having discovered who God is.

Prayer is the response of one who knows that his life unfolds in God. That recognition is gradual: with the help of grace, it grows… or wanes. What matters is not what to do during moments of prayer or how to address God, but rather knowing God, knowing and believing in His Love, and then recognizing one’s unworthiness, avoiding evil, and abhorring sin.

Prayer is getting to know oneself and others… adoration of God, gratitude.

A person may understand life: 
- either as a gift, and thus live with gratitude (this is the beginning of true prayer), or 
- as a right, and live in the discontent of constant demands. 
Hence, the fundamental disposition of humility. To enter into a life of prayer is to gradually discover one’s own weakness and the wonder of God: two things that are closely linked.

Three general guidelines for prayer:

The first is to learn about God (reading the Gospel, the life of Christ, or other accessible texts…): prayer arises in the presence of God’s reality. Thus, I will stir a longing to know and love Him at the beginning of the journey and always. What matters most is not so much what I do, but where prayer leads me, what I am seeking.

The second is to trust a spiritual director who respects my freedom and will help me recognize my own frailty.

This person will help me to better understand my life: to acknowledge my responsibility for my own gifts, to find opportunities to serve, truly trusting God (which leads me to take risks for Him…), and to accept my own limitations. Thus, I can turn these into opportunities to live out my divine sonship, to delve deeper into God’s mercy, and to ask for the virtue of hope.

A third point is to realize that I am not an isolated verse but part of the story of redemption, which includes a tradition. Thus, the need for direction–a guide–to understand myself and God, who speaks to me and also reveals Himself to a people… My personal story must be understood in the context of what came before, what surrounds me, and what follows. That is why I need to turn to the masters of prayer and learn from those around us: St. Josemaría and his writings, the means of formation…

Ultimately, prayer is a means of making myself aware of my relationship with God. This involves presenting myself before Him just as I am, and recognizing His action just as He has chosen to carry it out. Prayer is living with trust in the recognition of Someone—my Father God—who transcends and surpasses me. Only by praying will I learn to pray.

I received life and live my life; now, with prayer, I must embrace my life and give life. 

Jul 31 Fri - Should I help others come close to Jesus, or is this only for priests?

 

Jul 31 Fri

Should I help others come close to Jesus, or is this only for priests?

Like Jesus, we must have compassion for souls, who are like sheep without a shepherd.
They wander through life without ever hearing that the divine Shepherd came to ransom them from their sins. 

“No one can rest content in Opus Dei without feeling troubled by the anonymous crowds: a drove, a flock, a herd, as I once called them. Under their apparent indifference, there are so many noble aspirations, so many possibilities! We must serve all of them. We must bring them back to life, heal them, enlighten their minds, and strengthen their wills, so they can become useful!"

Zeal for the salvation of all souls is an essential characteristic of all God's children. We have to fan it into a flame every day by following the example set by Jesus, who calls us to co-redeem with him. 

We may at times be tempted to dissociate ourselves from other people and refuse to get involved in their lives. Against such moments, we have St. Josemaría's warning: “If you were to fall into the temptation of wondering: ‘Who's telling me to embark on this?’ we would have to reply: ‘Christ himself is telling you, is begging you.’” 

“The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. You must ask the Lord to whom the harvest belongs to send laborers out for the harvesting. Don't take the easy way out. Don't say, ‘I'm no good at this sort of thing; there are others who can do it; it isn't my line.’” 

“No, for this sort of thing, there is no one else: if you could get away with that argument, so could everyone else. Christ's plea is addressed to every Christian. No one can consider himself excused, for whatever reason: age, health, or occupation. There are no excuses whatsoever. Either we carry out a fruitful apostolate, or our faith will prove barren."

“All my children must feel the generous urge to reactivate men's rusty, torpid energies in the service of God. They must make whatever sacrifice is needed, devoting all their strength to the task. They should adopt as their own our Lord's cry: I have compassion on the crowd, feeling pity for the multitudes."

Our charity should be orderly to reach everyone.
God has called us by our name and loves us with special affection. 
“But we have not received the grace of a Christian vocation for ourselves alone." God has called us to spread his message of infinite love throughout the whole world. Not a single soul is excluded from our charity. When Christians understand and implement the catholicity of the Church, when they realize how urgent it is to announce the good news of salvation to everyone, they find that they have to become all things to all people, to save them all.

“We begin with those closest to us; from the heart of the family to our workplace, then to civil society, to the seat of learning, or to the political arena. Our apostolic zeal is at work among all our fellow-citizens in every walk of life. It reaches out to international relations, and encompasses whole races, continents, and civilizations in its love."

“Jesus is urging us on." 

Jul 30 Thu - Should I forget myself and open myself to others?

 

Jul 30 Thu

Should I forget myself and open myself to others?

Love bears fruit only if we lose a part of “ourselves” to make room for the other.

Pope Leo XIV reflected on the nature of true love, which –he said– requires at least three essential attitudes: “detachment, loss, and friendliness.”

Love bears fruit only when we are willing to lose a little of ourselves to make room for another, to lose a little time to listen to a friend, and to lose a little comfort to share in a difficult situation.

We find it hard to understand this, especially in a world where losing seems to be a weakness, and people are obsessed with having and possessing.

St. Josemaría: “After losing those human consolations, you have been left with a feeling of loneliness, as if you were suspended by a mere thread over the black emptiness of the abyss. And your cries, your shouts for help seem to be heard by nobody."

“Be humble, don't seek yourself, don't seek consolation. Love the Cross –to bear it is little– and our Lord will hear your prayer. And calm will be restored to your senses. And your wounded heart will heal. And you will have peace."

"Unto death, death on a cross. You have to get out of yourself; you have to complicate your life, losing it for love of God and souls. So, you wanted to live a quiet life. But God wanted otherwise. Two wills exist: your will should be corrected to become identified with God's will: you must not bend God's will to suit yours."

“Some have dedicated all their yearnings and their professional work to the service of the Church, for the good of all men."

“Let us learn to obey, let us learn to serve. There is no better leadership than wanting to give yourself freely, to be useful to others."

Whoever keeps his life only for himself –as the Gospel says– actually loses it, because he does not open himself to the joy of love, and he becomes barren.

Jesus asked us to follow him and to be witnesses to his Kingdom. This is not about some external acts, but about committing our whole being to a loving relationship with him.

From the moment the Lord began to send His apostles on mission, He wanted them to be free from any ties. This principle applies to everyone: even the most important attachments find their fulfillment only in the love that Christ gives us.

Married life, for example, can only be lived to the full by “leaving one’s parents’ home” to be committed to the marital relationship.

Similarly, in the upbringing of children, we help them fulfill their potential and find happiness by teaching them to be self-reliant and make their own decisions.

For this reason, Jesus invites us to embrace the Cross: He offered Himself, He lost Himself, and precisely, this way, we receive His life in abundance. Likewise, if we live according to the logic of gift, we too will be able to bring forth new life in our friendly relationships. 

Jul 29 Wed - Should I fully embrace the Council?

 

Jul 29 Wed

Should I fully embrace the Council?

A Christian Catholic must enthusiastically accept the teachings of all the Councils of the Church.

Last year, the Church celebrated the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea. Most Christians embraced it. Yet to this day, one can detect the lingering influence of the Arian heresy; there are theologians in Catholic universities still propounding the idea—anathematized at Nicaea—that Jesus is “mutable or subject to change.”

Aha! I tricked you, didn’t I? When I opened with a question about “the Council,” you assumed that I was referring to Vatican II. For decades now, Catholics have spoken about Vatican II as THE COUNCIL, often implying that it is the only Council that matters.

Every ecumenical council is an important moment in the life of the Church, and Vatican II is no exception.

The Second Vatican Council was convened in no small part to continue the work the First left unfinished, after the First was cut short when Italian troops occupied Rome. 

Vatican I focused on the role of the Roman Pontiff, leaving open questions about the authority of bishops. Vatican II took up that question, among others, but still, many questions remain about the nature of a diocesan bishop’s authority. The Council (and here I do mean Vatican II) did not resolve all those questions.

Many questions remain. Not only questions about episcopal authority and collegiality, but also questions about the necessity of the Catholic Church for salvation, the understanding of conscience, and the proper form of the Eucharistic liturgy. On all these questions, an inquisitive Catholic can easily find sharply opposed opinions, some of them clearly at odds with the actual written pronouncements of the Council.

How can these conflicts be resolved? Pope Benedict XVI, who participated in the conciliar debates, offered the very reasonable proposal that every conciliar teaching—of Vatican II or any other council—should be interpreted with the “hermeneutic of continuity,” on the unassailable understanding that what the Church has always taught remains what the Church will always teach, since the Truth entrusted to the Church in Jesus Christ is not “mutable or subject to change.”

Continuity –not rupture– is fidelity to Jesus, to his Revelation. Thus, the word of God with a new garment is kept alive and is handed down from generation to generation by the Church with the assistance of the Holy Spirit.

Opposed to this continuity, we sometimes hear opinions about the need for “rupture,” to cut off with most of what the Church has always taught.

The teachings of an ecumenical council are not proclaimed to break or discontinue the Faith.  Yet they do not represent the complete and final definitive statement of the Church. Every Council leaves some questions unanswered, some statements unclear, and some points in need of clarification.

But if anyone interprets Vatican II as repudiating fundamental principles of Catholic teaching, he must be misinterpreting the Council. But here again, I am saying “the” Council. Which Council is he misinterpreting? Probably all of them.

How I wish that many good Catholics would wholeheartedly accept Vatican II, what that Council actually taught and sought. For this to come, we should understand the teachings of Vatican II as the Council Fathers would understand them.

Excerpts from Phil Lawler 

Jul 28 Tue - Did God choose me? And for what?

 

Jul 28 Tue 

Did God choose me? And for what?

“God chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love, He predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will” (Eph 1:4-5).

In the original Greek text, the verb ‘to choose’ describes the election as a historical fact, fulfilled in God's eternal plan, before time had begun, emphasizing the certainty and definitiveness of this divine act from the perspective of eternity.

Indeed, the expression “before the creation of the world” further underlines the dimension of the pre-existence and eternity of God's saving plan. This phrase not only indicates temporal precedence to creation, but also points to the immutability and certainty of God's purpose in choosing us.

The word used, "to select, to choose," in the New Testament, always implies a choice for an end (e.g., choosing apostles, choosing sons for God).

In this passage, the divine action of choosing is associated with His blessing mentioned in the previous verses. The direct object "us" identifies the recipients of God’s election, while the phrase "in him" specifies the sphere of the election: in Christ.

The expression "in Christ" suggests that the election directs all believers corporately to Christ rather than individually. This phrase indicates that Christ is not merely the instrument of election, the One who chooses, but also the destination or realm toward which we are chosen. The election is not abstract, but takes place "in Christ". This underscores that the choice of all believers is intrinsically linked to the person and work of Jesus Christ. It is through their identification with Christ that believers are the object of this eternal election: to be ‘another’ christ.

The verb ‘to choose’ appears in about 22 passages and always with the nuance of "choosing people for a purpose". Underlying all of them is the divine initiative: "It was not you who chose me, but I chose you" (Jn 15:16). In Ephesians, the emphasis is on the election of believers "in Christ."

St. John Chrysostom observes that God has chosen us to "be holy and blameless before Him." That is, the divine election entails the call to live a blameless life before God. He adds that God is Holy, and therefore we must aim for holiness. This election does not exempt us from moral responsibility; on the contrary, it demands that we respond to God’s election with a holy life.

And what motivated God to choose me? My merits?
God thought of us in Christ from eternity. And "before the foundation of the world," God loved us and chose us (cf. Eph 1:4; 1 Peter 1:20), to include us in his family. This election is free grace that engenders holiness. It is God's "free and gratuitous initiative" before creation.

God chose me because He loved me. And His love remains. 

Jul 27 Mon - Is stubbornness a virtue or a sin?

 

Jul 27 Mon

Is stubbornness a virtue or a sin?

Stubbornness is not automatically a sin or a virtue; it depends on what you are refusing to yield to and why.

St. Josemaría: “The charity of Jesus Christ will often lead you to make concessions. That is very noble. And the charity of Jesus Christ will often lead you to stand your ground. That too is very noble."

“Be uncompromising in doctrine and conduct. But be yielding in manner –a mace of tempered steel, wrapped in a quilted covering.
Be uncompromising, but don't be obstinate."

When is “stubbornness” a sin?

“Stubbornness” (or obstinacy) is a willful determination to yield –a kind of refusal that resists correction or legitimate guidance.

That kind of obstinacy can become seriously sinful, especially when it hardens into an interior resistance to grace and truth.

Sometimes, “to compromise is a sure sign of not possessing the truth. When a man gives way in matters of ideals, of honor, or of Faith, that man is a man without ideals, without honor, and without Faith."

“Listen to a man of God: 'So, that I won't yield an inch? And why should I, if I am convinced of the truth of my ideals? You, on the other hand, are very ready to compromise… Would you agree that two and two are three and a half? Wouldn't you? Surely for friendship's sake you will yield in such a little thing?'
And why won't you? Simply because, for the first time, you feel convinced that you possess the truth, and you have come over to my way of thinking!"

In that spiritual sense, stubbornness is also associated with the sin against the Holy Spirit, commonly listed as including “obstinacy” (along with despair, presumption, and impenitence).

And Thomas Aquinas distinguishes “obstinacy” in evil as involving a certain firmness that makes turning back to God difficult, though in this life it’s not always total, and it can still be addressed by grace.

When can “stubbornness” be a virtue?

Sometimes what people call “stubbornness” is actually fortitude or perseverance –a firmness in doing good.

That “stubbornness” ensures firmness in difficulties and constancy in the pursuit of the good. Enriched by perseverance and patience, one develops an inner strength that allows one to keep doing good amid setbacks and hostility.

That inner fortitude is love readily bearing all things for the sake of the loved object.

So, if “stubbornness” means refusing to quit in prayer, refusing to abandon the good, refusing to let fear or pressure force you to betray conscience, it becomes a virtue rather than a vice.

A practical rule of thumb:

Stubbornness is a virtue when it leads to firmness for the good, patience under difficulty, and loyal persistence to truth and duty.

It is sin-leaning when it becomes a willful refusal to yield to lawful authority or correction –especially when it becomes a hardened resistance to God’s truth and grace. 

In short, stubbornness is sinful when it is obstinate resistance to what you are morally bound to accept (God’s truth and lawful authority); it is virtuous when it is firmness in the pursuit of the good under hardship. 

Jul 26 Sun - How do I know what God wants me to do?

 

Jul 26 Sun

How do I know what God wants me to do?

The man who discovered a treasure buried in a field could not ask other people what to do, so he had to counsel himself.

- Judgment means to decide what among the many possibilities is best, meaning what will be both moral and likely to be effective. In some cases, the prudent thing will be to do nothing. 

The man who found the treasure reasoned that the best course of action was to sell everything he had and buy that field.

- Decision means to finally take action. Based on what your reason tells you is best, you then tell your will to do it. 

The man did sell his worldly possessions and bought that field, and so got the treasure.
The Lord says he will give Solomon anything he asks for. Solomon does not ask for a long life, or riches, or the life of his enemies, or any of the other valuable things people want. 

Instead, he asks for prudence so he can govern Israel. That is what he means by “an understanding heart to judge your people and to distinguish right from wrong.” He means practical wisdom; this is the cardinal virtue of prudence.

Prudence, or practical wisdom, or sound decision-making, is the ability to know what to do in any situation and to act on that knowledge.

Prudence leads us to choose what God wants. At first, virtually no one fully welcomes God’s will. The reason is our concupiscence or inclination to sin. This attraction will put us in conflict with God’s will. Therefore, the first victory of the human being over himself is to say yes to the will of God. That is the first positive level of the spiritual life, and it is good. It is good to say yes to God’s will and no to your own when the two conflict.

But we must not only accept God’s will, but love it. We must see God’s will as not only right because God commands it, but also precious, a delight, desirable, and wonderful.

To realize that God will judge me for the good and evil I do in this life is the beginning of prudence if it moves 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 deliberate about 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 course of action. 

Prudence is necessary for us to be good citizens of this earth and to prepare to be good citizens of heaven. 

We are faced with choices every day and from time to time with very big decisions. 
- The most prudent thing children can do is obey their parents and teachers.
- The most prudent thing a teenager can do is to have a close relationship with God and to discover one’s divine vocation.
- The most prudent thing an adult can do is always to ask, “What does God want me to do?” God will always want what is moral and what will be effective. 

Jul 25 Sat - Does Christian life imply doing weird things and obeying orders beyond your understanding?

 

Jul 25 Sat

Does Christian life imply doing weird things and obeying orders beyond your understanding?

And getting into a boat, Jesus crossed over and came to his own city. And behold, they brought to him a paralytic, lying on his bed.

This paralytic sets us a good example of docility. Lying there on his stretcher, with an expression of quiet supplication, he is used to being moved around and doing what other people tell him. On being brought before our Lord, he abandons himself completely into his power. He has been eagerly awaiting this meeting, and now that he is face-to-face with him, he doesn't ask him for anything. He simply looks at him, trusting in his mercy.

Our Lord knows us inside out. He takes everything in at a glance: the malice of the scribes, whose only interest in the scene is to see if they can undermine his authority, and the faith of the paralytic and his companions. All of it lies open to Christ's gaze.

Have courage, my son; your sins are forgiven. This is Jesus Christ's merciful response to us. Our Lord treats us as little children. 
During the Last Supper, his heart was moved at the thought of having to leave the Apostles, and He called them "little children": very small children of a divine Father.

We need to become children and touch God's heart by the trusting abandonment with which we seek him. Our Lord is there in Holy Communion, as He was at the Last Supper, waiting for us as a father awaits his child. We need to become very little so we can be docile and allow ourselves to be guided towards Jesus in spiritual direction. We need to let ourselves be led; to ask to be brought to Jesus, and not put up any resistance. We need to be the ones who facilitate the task of those who guide us, taking good note of what we are told.

We should be docile and confident in spiritual guidance, like a sick man who seeks out the people who can cure him and then places himself in their hands. We should trust the person who is leading us along our path to sanctity. By being docile to the advice we are given, we will become children again of our Father God.

But do not think that spiritual life consists of blindly obeying and doing complicated things indicated in spiritual direction.

“Some people could perhaps imagine that ordinary life contains very little that can be offered to God: it's made up of trifles or worthless things. Yet small children who want to please their parents give them whatever they've got: a lead soldier with its head missing, an empty cotton reel, a few colorful pebbles, a couple of buttons: everything they value, their "treasures". And a father doesn't consider how babyish the present is: he thanks his child for it with the tenderest of hugs. Let's act in the same way towards God, because these silly little things become great deeds when our love is great. That is what we are here for, to make something heroic out of the little details of every day and every moment, by our Love." 

Jul 24 Fri - Should I examine my conscience daily?

 

Jul 24 Fri

Should I examine my conscience daily?

Why should I foster a spirit of examination? 

“Rectify. A little each day. This must be your constant task if you really want to become a saint." A sure way to advance is trusting God more and trusting ourselves less. 
To fall is not a failure; failure is to remain where you have fallen.
The examination of conscience is a powerful weapon for acquiring serenity and proportion, for coming to know ourselves better and coming to know God better.

We do love our Lord, and we are full of the desire to love him more every day. But those desires are not enough. Love means deeds! We must make sure that our actions match our desires.

This is why we struggle, and this is why we need the examination of conscience. It is indispensable. 

To carry out great projects, we must tackle the little details that ravage our lives: small failures in sincerity, love, or sacrifice. And is there any business more important than the business of eternal life?

This is what we aim to do when we examine our conscience: to discover the small faults that hold us back from total service to God and souls. 

Our examination of conscience makes us see what God wants of us day by day. Our spirit of examination leads us to ask ourselves repeatedly: "Am I doing what God wants me to, now, and in the way He wants me to do it?" This attitude is a natural one because love motivates us. If we are aware of being in God's presence and are trying to please him in everything, a spirit of examination is simply a manifestation of our love. 

Our spirit of examination reflects the sensitivity of our love, together with our ever-present concern to improve how we do things, aiming to have pure intention in everything. Then we can really understand the words of Jeremiah: When men fall, do they not rise again? If one drifts away, does he not turn around? 

We spend time examining our conscience every day. At the end of each day, we stop for a few minutes before God. We ask the Holy Spirit for light, and in a calm, humble dialogue with our heavenly Father, we look and see what our service has been like today. Two or three minutes are enough:
- 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 and examine your conscience with sincerity:
"What have I done wrong? Forgive me, Lord. 
What have I done well? Thank you, Lord. 
What could I have done better?" – followed by a resolution. 
It just takes two minutes, or half a minute. 

- Then, sorrow. Make an act of contrition, asking our Lord’s pardon. 
- Resolution. Make a specific resolution for tomorrow.
- Pray three Hail Marys to the Virgin Mary, asking for the virtue of purity for yourself and your loved ones.

And that's it. 

Jul 23 Thu - In the Mass, what is the Prayer after Communion?

 

Jul 23 Thu

In the Mass, what is the Prayer after Communion?

After Communion, the priest returns to the altar. He either completely consumes any consecrated hosts that remain or carries them to the tabernacle. He then collects any remaining particles, and standing at the side of the altar or at a side table, he purifies the paten or ciborium over the chalice, and then the chalice itself, drying it with a purificator. 

The vessels are then taken to a side table by a server. It is also permitted to leave them, properly covered and on a corporal, either at the altar or at a side table, and to purify them after the Mass. 

Afterward, if circumstances allow, the priest and the people may spend some time in silent prayer. If desired, the entire congregation may sing a hymn, psalm, or some other song of praise.

At this moment, we can tell our Lord how much we love him. At other times, however, we will feel as if God is hiding from us. In such moments, we will have to advance like blind men feeling their way, like little children learning to walk. Sometimes, it will be our own fault, even though our mistakes may seem to us to be nothing at all. Our pride then leads us to justify what has no justification. 

Then, standing at the altar or at the chair and facing the people, the priest, with hands outstretched, says, “Let us pray.” There may be a brief period of silence, unless this has already been observed immediately after Communion. The priest recites the Prayer after Communion, at the end of which the people respond, “Amen.”

In the Prayers after Communion, we find the characteristic features of the Roman Collects: a restrained style and an unobtrusive and quietly lyrical quality. From them, a theology of the effects of the Eucharist can be compiled: graces for the soul, an increase in the theological virtues, and in the gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit; a remedy for the body; the unity of the Mystical Body; and eternal life. The expressions used (“bread of life,” “life-giving food,” “spiritual food,” etc.) formally state the doctrine of the real presence of our Lord in the Eucharist.

We have been nourished with the “bread of life,” the food that is the source of our fortitude. This virtue of fortitude enables us to sustain the daily combat against our passions and weaknesses. 
According to the teachings of St. Thomas, the virtue of fortitude is found in one: 
- who is ready to face danger;
- who is ready to put up with adversities for a just cause, for truth, or justice. 

The Gospel often repeats: “Fear not.” It teaches man that, for a just cause, for truth, for justice, one must be able to “lay down one’s life.”

We can profit a lot from these Prayers by using them as inspiration for personal reflection during the course of the day.

When it seems fitting, some brief concluding words can be addressed after the Prayer after Communion. 

Jul 22 Wed - How did the first generation of Christians live their faith?

 

Jul 22 Wed

How did the first generation of Christians live their faith?

"We must get to know and imitate the life of Jesus' disciples, of those who knew Peter and Paul and John, and who were close witnesses of the Master's Death and Resurrection." Among these, many first-generation Christians were chosen by God to bear the supreme witness of martyrdom; they paid with their blood for their faith in Christ.

The early Christians did not live in the catacombs, except occasionally, perhaps during an attack. They were ordinary people and citizens of the capital of the Roman Empire who lived in ordinary houses and walked along the streets. Each family was an "ecclesia domestica", a part of the Church.

They lived faithfully to our Lord in the midst of earthly affairs. Each community of the faithful gathered people from all social strata and all backgrounds. They were people converted to the faith of Christ, which kept them together. All professions were represented in these communities: there were doctors such as Luke; lawyers such as Zenas; financiers such as Erastus; academics such as Apollo; craftsmen such as Alexander; businessmen, small and great; jailers and their families; soldiers and officials; a proconsul, Sergius Paulus, etc. They were poor and rich; slaves and freemen; civilians and military men, like Sebastian.

A great diversity of personal circumstances enriched the Christian communities from the first moment. Upon contemplating this reality, St. Josemaría wrote: “How clear was that general calling to sanctity, within one's profession, without leaving one's own environment!” 

“Nevertheless, for centuries, the majority of Christians did not understand this: the ascetical phenomenon of many people seeking sanctity without changing their professional situation; rather, sanctifying their profession and sanctifying themselves by means of their profession. And very soon the doctrine was forgotten, on account of not being lived."

Yet “By raising up his Work in these times, the Lord has willed that the truth about everyone having the duty to reach holiness would never again be unknown or forgotten... and that the majority of Christians should sanctify themselves in the world, through ordinary work."

“Opus Dei’s spirit is both as old as the Gospel and, like the Gospel, new. The very nature of our vocation prompts us to speak of divine things in the very language of men, to uphold the same wholesome social customs as everyone else, and to share the same honest mentality. We see God from the same secular and lay viewpoint from which others see the more transcendent questions of their lives. God can never be a cold or distant model, to be admired but not loved."

The members of Opus Dei work like everyone else and live in the midst of the world, just as they did before they joined. 

Thank God, it is becoming ever clearer in new environs that, “to follow the footsteps of Christ, the modern apostle does not come to reform anything nor much less to separate himself from the historical reality surrounding him... It is enough for him to act as the first Christians did, enlivening their own environment."
Quiet and modest, but vibrant with divine impetus, let us walk in the newness of life. 

Jul 21 Tue - Can I encounter God when I am tired or discouraged?

 

Jul 21 Tue

Can I encounter God when I am tired or discouraged?

These words marked the beginning of their life as apostles: “Put out into the deep, and let down your nets for a catch.” Jesus called them in the midst of their work, and not on just any day. It was the end of a shift marked by failure: they had labored through the night and caught nothing.

Jesus did not wait until they were rested, self-assured, or filled with enthusiasm. He stepped into their boat, into their weariness and their work, and from there called them to a divine adventure.

Saint Josemaría taught that the tiredness and fatigue that come with work can also be a place of encounter with God. Not because the weariness disappears, but because we have the certainty that the Lord sees us, accompanies us, and is by our side. “If we ever experience lack of peace or anxiety or restlessness, we go to our Lord and tell him that we place ourselves in his hands, like a small child in the arms of his or her father.”

The certainty that we have a God who is Father — who cares for us and sustains us — fills our daily struggles with hope, even when the tiredness of work weighs us down, as it did the apostles.

It is there, in the middle of the world, in our daily tasks and struggles, with their successes and their failures, that we are called to bring the message of Christ: in the honest fulfilment of our work, in service to those around us, in care for our family and for those who share our lives, in the way we face ordinary difficulties… When we do all of this out of love for God, we are sowing the Good News of the Gospel in every environment. We are fulfilling the divine commission to cultivate the earth and care for it.

We must be sowers of peace and joy. Recently, the Pope invited us to be “witnesses and prophets of unity, of welcome, of harmony and of peace, even at the cost of sacrifice and renunciation.” Let us never see ourselves as enemies of anyone. Those who know themselves to be children of God cannot look upon others as adversaries, because they see them as brothers and sisters and recognize the love that the Lord has for them.

In an often-fragmented world, all Christians are called to rebuild bonds with their brothers and sisters, beginning with those closest at hand. And this can be done by recognizing, first of all, that what unites us is far more decisive than anything that might divide us.

The first Christians were mistreated, persecuted, and put to death. Yet there are countless testimonies of love not only among themselves, but toward their persecutors as well. And it was thus, through charity, through a love capable of reaching even an enemy, that they helped to transform the structures of society.

Let us ask the Virgin Mary to help us allow Jesus into our boat. May she teach us to live with the confidence of children of God.

Excerpts from Prelate of Opus Dei, Msgr. Fernando Ocáriz 

Jul 20 Mon - What about tattoos?

 

Jul 20 Mon

What about tattoos?

In the past, some people disliked tattoos because they viewed them as defacements, a form of body modification that detracted from natural beauty. Aesthetically, I must admit I agree. The prevalence of tattoos, especially among women, is something I find particularly unattractive.

Aesthetics should not dictate ethics. When considering the permanent and real mutilation that individuals undergo, whether through contraceptive sterilization or gender-based genital mutilation, I am less inclined to criticize tattoos.

Yet, there is another type of permanent marking: The three sacraments. Baptism, Confirmation, and Holy Orders imprint a spiritual "character" on the soul that cannot be erased. Consequently, these three sacraments are unrepeatable.

Furthermore, if I were to have something etched into my body, should it not be a well-considered decision rather than something randomly chosen from a tattoo parlor catalog after consuming excessive amounts of alcohol? If I am going to carry a tattoo on my skin for several decades, should it not express something vital about my identity?

This brings me back to the sacramental characters. Though they are not visible, they are no less real, effective, or permanent.

Yet, how many Catholics take their sacramental characters as seriously as they do a Mandarin character, such as 和平 (peace), which they tattoo on their bodies? Sacramental characters, after all, entail a lifelong role within the Body of Christ: being a child of God, a soldier of Christ, and an 'alter Christus'. For instance, the baptismal character is why a Catholic marriage must be a sacrament, and any attempt to marry outside the Church (without dispensation of form) is no marriage.

Maybe we can draw a parallel from that old tattoo. Although I got it without much contemplation, as it was "a dare" or because my friends were doing it, the 和平 no longer holds any meaning for me. Nevertheless, it has not disappeared; the fading and wrinkling ink remains, even if I no longer attribute the same significance to it as I did in my twenties. Is this not often the case with the sacramental character of Confirmation, for example?

The sacrament intended to complete full incorporation into the Church often becomes the last "sacrament" … until the wedding or the baptism of a first child arises. Moreover, I likely spent more time preparing to receive that character than the average person spends considering a Chinese character tattoo.

Or have I superficially regarded both equally?

Our actions and what society deems "beautiful" often reveal more profound underlying assumptions and values. Could the proliferation of tattoos, which often lose meaning over time, even though they continue to increase in popularity, indicate that many individuals are desperately searching for anything that may provide a sense of permanence and meaning of life? 

Jul 19 Sun - Will God ever abandon us to our weakness? Will He always be there for us?

 

Jul 19 Sun

Will God ever abandon us to our weakness? Will He always be there for us? 

One way God shows his power is by condemning sin. He is just.

Yet God’s power, justice, and mercy are one, so He judges with clemency and governs with compassion. “Love and truth will meet; justice and peace will kiss.” God accepts our sincere repentance.

We, too, ought to practice a similar quality: to be just, one must also be kind.

We sin, and so we need God’s “pity;” we are weak, and so we need God’s “strength.”

God wants what is best for us. When we want what God wants, 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.

And yet there is evil. One reason God permits ongoing evil is that those who do evil or cause others to sin can repent.

At the moment of death, everyone will receive “his eternal recompense in his immortal soul.” This is the PARTICULAR JUDGMENT by Christ.

Following the example of Christ, the Church warns the faithful of the sad and lamentable reality of eternal death, also called ‘hell’. The burning and wailing and grinding of teeth are 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.

But both the Church and Christ want no one to be lost, and for God, all things are possible. Who can oppose His actions? Will He, who is all-powerful and good, ever abandon us to our frailty and leave us to wander at the mercy of our unfaithfulness?

Just as rain waters the earth, so God, through His grace, restores strength to those weighed down by the burden of sin and death. He is faithful and always keeps His word.
No power can stop the irresistible force of His mercy.

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. This is the general or LAST JUDGMENT.

The future Last Judgment calls us to conversion now, since everyone who hears about it, as Christ told the crowd in the parable of the weeds, still has time.

Right now, therefore, this is the acceptable time, the day of salvation for us. 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 align our lives with the Gospel as soon as possible.

We must become fertile soil—free of thorns and stones, carefully plowed and weeded. It is up to us to be the good soil in which “one yields a hundredfold, another sixty, and another thirty.”

The world cries out that it thirsts for Christ. It calls for peace, but does not know where to find it. Only God can transform this arid, stony ground, full of thorns, into a fertile field, and the rain and snow of His help will fall from above.
Pic: Medieval parchment of the Final Judgment. 

The tryptic of true Love

 

Jul 18 Sat - What does true Love look like?

 

Jul 18 Sat

What does true Love look like?

Most people think more readily in pictures than in abstract concepts, and stories move and transform us more than logical arguments do. God, who, of course, knows this, has revealed Himself to us by becoming part of our story and, over the centuries, giving us a series of vivid images that are worth thousands of words.

Three of these images, or pictures, are closely related. The first and most ancient is the CRUCIFIX, a reminder of God’s willingness, out of incomprehensible love, to accept pain, and even death, to bring us out of eternal damnation. 
This is a symbol of God’s inexpressible love and mercy, and our horrifying sin. Can we learn more about God and human nature by contemplating the Crucifix than by reading dozens of theology and psychology books?

But God is also aware of our fathomless capacity to take even the best gifts for granted and to trivialize even the most sacred and profound things. Many centuries after Christ was crucified, He revealed to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque the image of His SACRED HEART, ringed with thorns, cross-crowned, a gash—the result of the centurion's spear—all aflame with love. 

Jesus’ Sacred Heart reveals his willingness to be despised and insulted, out of love for us, only to move us to go back to Him.
It directs our attention to Christ's sacrifice as an act of love, taking pity on humanity's rebelliousness and insensibility.

In the 20th century, God painted a third picture revealing His love and mercy, the DIVINE MERCY.

Harsh wounds do not appear in the Divine Mercy image, and the brutality inflicted on the Lord is only implied in a full-figure picture of Jesus pointing to His Heart. Two beams of light radiate out—one red, one white—representing the blood and water that flowed when the Roman soldier pierced Christ's heart as He hung on the Cross, representing also the sacraments of baptism (the water) and the Eucharist (the blood) as well as the love and mercy of God falling on us in a heavenly shower.

Inundated as we are with an ocean of Internet pornography and an endless barrage of advertising, how helpful to be washed in the rain of Divine Mercy by a picture painted by God Himself for His beloved children.

The Crucifixion happened 2000 years ago. The resurrected Christ has seen to it that it remains with us in these three vivid images: the most literal, the Crucifix itself; the second, the image of His wounded Sacred Heart; the third, a portrait of Himself pouring forth from that Heart what He will not keep to Himself: His infinite compassion and kindness, fathomless mercy, and love.

Each of those images speaks thousands of words, each word an expression of the Word that was from the beginning, that was with God, that was God, that became flesh and dwelt among us, a living picture of God, who is Love.

Put together these three images, and there you have what true Love is all about. 

Jul 17 Fri - Why do I desire to be happy?

 

Jul 17 Fri

Why do I desire to be happy?

In the depths of the human spirit, we find a longing for happiness that points to the hope of a home, of a definitive homeland. We are earthly, but we long for the eternal; we long for God —a God whom we can know with certainty as the origin and end of the universe and as the supreme good, starting from the world and the human person.

“Man is made to be happy as a bird is made to fly.” All men and women seek happiness, their own good, and direct their lives in the way that seems best-suited to achieve it. Being able to enjoy human goods that perfect and enrich us makes us happy. 

But in this life, happiness is always marred by a shadow. Not only because after obtaining something good we can get used to it, but more basically, because no created good is capable of fulfilling our longing for happiness and because all created goods are short-lived.

Growing in our knowledge of the world does not exhaust our capacity to know or our questions; we can always come to know new things and understand them in greater depth. 

And something similar happens with our capacity to love: no created good satiates us completely and forever; we can always love more deeply and love better things. And somehow, we feel spurred towards this: achieving new goals makes us happy. 

We try to attain this in our own lives and get depressed when we don’t achieve it. We have a “longing for complete fulfillment.” All this is a sign of greatness, of the fact that there is something infinite in us that transcends every concrete reality that is part of our life.

The world, however, is temporary. Deep down, we realize that material goods sometimes promise us happiness that they can only give for a while. 

We find, then, two different types of human longings that point to our “hunger for transcendence.” Our experiences of a transcendent good awaken in us a “longing for plenitude” (of being, truth, goodness, beauty, love). 
And our experiences of evil, of the loss of these goods, awaken in our heart a “longing for salvation” (survival, righteousness, justice, peace). These experiences of transcendence leave a longing for a reality beyond this world. 

Therefore, in the depths of the human spirit, a dissatisfaction is present, a longing for happiness that points to a secret hope: the hope of a home, of a definitive homeland in which the dream of eternal happiness, of a love that lasts forever, will be fulfilled. We are earthly, but we long for the eternal.

This longing does not in itself form the basis of a natural religion, but is rather a “pointer” to God. The desire for God is written in the human heart, because man is created by God and for God; and God never ceases to draw man to himself. Only in God will we find the truth and happiness we can never stop searching for. 

Jul 16 Thu - Is Mary the “Mother of God”?

 

Jul 16 Thu

Is Mary the “Mother of God”?

This is what early Christians believed; from a letter by Saint Cyril, bishop of Alexandria in Egypt from 412 to 444 A.D., written more than 300 years before Islam appeared.

"That anyone could doubt the right of the holy Virgin to be called the Mother of God fills me with astonishment. Surely, she must be the Mother of God, if our Lord Jesus Christ is God, and she gave birth to him!

Our Lord’s disciples may not have used those exact words, but they delivered to us the belief those words enshrine, and this has also been taught to us by the holy fathers.

The distinctive mark of holy Scripture is that it was written to make a double declaration concerning our Savior, namely,
– that He is and has always been God, since He is the Word, Radiance, and Wisdom of the Father; and
– that for our sake in these latter days He took flesh from the Virgin Mary, Mother of God, and became man.”

There have been many holy men, free from all sin. Jeremiah was sanctified in his mother’s womb, and John, while still in the womb, leaped for joy at the voice of Mary, the Mother of God.

The divinely inspired Scriptures affirm that the Word of God was made flesh, that is to say, He was united to a human body endowed with a rational soul. He undertook to help the descendants of Abraham, fashioning a body for himself from a woman and sharing our flesh and blood, to enable us to see in him not only God but also, because of this union, a man like ourselves.

Thus, there are in Him two entities, divinity and humanity. Yet our Lord Jesus Christ is nonetheless one, the one true Son, both God and man; not a deified man on the same footing as those who share the divine nature by grace, but true God who for our sake appeared in human form. We are assured of this by Saint Paul’s declaration: “When the fullness of time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law and to enable us to be adopted as sons."

We should express amazement at the wonders God has worked. Filled with immense joy, we must exclaim with the Church: ‘Mary gave birth to the King whose name is eternal; she united the joy as a Mother with the honor as a Virgin; such as this has never happened before, nor will it happen again.

Mary's divine motherhood is a dogma of our Catholic faith. It was solemnly defined early in the Church's history at the Council of Ephesus, in AD 431.

Blessed are you,
who love,
who serve,
who accept,
who laugh,
and weep.

You, who are not afraid
to stake everything
on God's card.

Blessed are you, 
who sing that greatness
etched
in small things.

Who risk
honor, history
and joy
by making
possible
the unthinkable.

Blessed are you,
Who turn
the wasteland
into a palace,
and the street
into a home.

You, who will make
of the womb 
a cradle,
and of your heart
a forge.

Blessed,
Mother
of hope
and love.

José María Rodríguez Olaizola 

Jul 15 Wed - In the Mass, should I join the singing?

 

Jul 15 Wed

In the Mass, should I join the singing?

The Mass is the center of our inner life, nourishing our piety. Our participation in the liturgical celebration effectively links us 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. 

In the liturgy, singing expresses the love and joy in our hearts. The Church offers us a very human way to express what we feel: singing. It is a need we feel, because as St. Augustine says, singing comes naturally to people in love, and we are in love.

Singing is an expression of joy, the genuine fruit of love. That is why our life, a life of love, needs to break out into songs of happiness. The full, ringing tones of our songs come from a heart is dedicated to God. 

The Second Vatican Council's documents emphasize the integral role of music in the liturgical celebration, highlighting the importance of the Church's musical tradition.

“The musical tradition of the universal Church is a treasure of inestimable value, greater even than that of any other art. The main reason for this pre-eminence is that, as a combination of sacred music and words, it forms a necessary or integral part of the solemn liturgy.” Song and music are closely connected with the liturgical action. The criteria for their adequate use are their expressive beauty as prayer, the assembly's unanimous participation, and the celebration's sacred character.

The documents encourage the preservation of inherited liturgical music traditions while also inviting composers and poets to create new sacred music that reflects the faithful's cultural traditions—music that fosters community, promotes understanding, and leads to deeper communion with God. The overarching aim is to ensure that the whole body of the faithful can actively participate in the liturgy, making it a more noble and expressive form of worship.

Still, Gregorian chant should have a place in liturgical acts together with vernacular songs, as we usually sing at solemn Masses, at Benediction, and at other ceremonies.

"Have veneration and respect for the Holy Liturgy of the Church and for each of its 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?"

“The Church sings, it has been said, because speech alone would not suffice for its prayer. You, who are a Christian, should learn to sing liturgically." Thus, we must put loving care into singing as an expression of piety.

We can use the songs and chants of the liturgy for our prayer, because they are rich in doctrine. In the Creed, we proclaim our faith in God, One and Three, in God the Creator of all things, in Jesus Christ the Son of God. We praise him when we sing the Gloria; we acknowledge his supreme majesty in the Sanctus; we beg him to wash away our sins as we sing the Agnus Dei. 

Jul 14 Tue - Were the Apostles expecting the resurrection of the Lord?

 

Jul 14 Tue

Were the Apostles expecting the resurrection of the Lord?

Even when Jesus spoke directly about his upcoming death and resurrection, the disciples still tended to focus on his suffering and did not attend to the “third day” rising as they should have; their expectation was weak or confused

Origen describes this explicitly:

- “When the Savior mentioned his impending death, they were exceeding sorry, aware that He was about to be taken away, and that He would be killed, but not attending to the fact that He would rise on the third day…” 

It is interesting to consider that Jesus was the One responsible for revealing himself to the disciples. He made himself visible and came out to meet them. The appearances were neither the result nor the effect of the Apostles’ faith, of hope, or of a strong desire to see the Master.

It is not faith that produced the presence of Jesus. Rather, it was the Risen Lord who took the initiative, who chose to appear and then disappear again on each occasion.

Moreover, what can be concluded from the Gospel accounts is the continuity between the crucified Jesus of Calvary and the Risen Jesus who appeared in Jerusalem and in Galilee.

It is the same Jesus recognizable when He spoke and when He broke the bread. That is, the same man was manifest even in a physical aspect. Thus, Jesus asked Thomas to confirm this by letting Thomas touch him.

Jesus showed the wounds on his hands and his open side. One of these appearances took place on a mountain in Galilee, at the place Jesus had explicitly indicated to them to go. There, upon seeing him, they worshiped him as their God.

Adoration is recognizing that Jesus is my Lord, that Jesus shows me the way to take, and that I will live well only if I know the road that Jesus points out to me, and follow it. 

Therefore, adoration means saying, Jesus, I am yours. I will follow you always.
I never want to lose this friendship. 
Adoration is, essentially, an embrace with Jesus, in which I tell him, I am yours, and I ask you, "Please stay with me always.”

If people do not worship God, they will worship themselves in the various ways shown throughout history: seeking power, pleasure, wealth, science, beauty, without realizing that everything unconnected to the ultimate foundation that is God is short-lived.

Without the Creator, the creature would disappear. For that reason, in the task of the new evangelization, it is of primary importance to help those who live with us to rediscover the need and significance of adoration. 

Jesus came to them and dispelled the hesitation that may have still been present in their hearts, and gave them the command to spread the Christian faith to the whole world. “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me... Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations."

And he added these words, which would be of great comfort to his disciples throughout the ages. “And behold, I am with you always to the close of the age." 
What an ending for all that the gospel tells us about the Lord. 

Jul 13 Mon - What are the differences between ordinary Christian people, priests, and the religious?

 

Jul 13 Mon

What are the differences between ordinary Christian people, priests, and the religious?

In the Church, there is both a radical equality of dignity and a diversity of function among the faithful: a unity of mission and a diversity of ministries. These differences in the faithful, established by the Lord, achieve the unity and mission of his body. 

All baptized persons (the faithful) are equally called to the fullness of sanctity; they all enjoy equal dignity in the Church as God’s children born of Christ. All of them are equal in dignity and duties. All are equally called to seek sanctity and apostolate—this call is their unity or principle of equality.

Furthermore, “to shepherd the People of God and to increase its members without cease, Christ the Lord set up in his Church a variety of offices, which aim at the good of the whole body.” In the Church, there is a diversity of ministries sharing in the same mission: the laity, the religious, and the clergy.

- THE LAITY
Everything that is said of the People of God applies equally to the laity, the religious, and the clergy. Specifically, the Second Vatican Council described the laity:

“By reason of their special vocation, it belongs to the laity to seek the kingdom of God by engaging in temporal affairs and directing them according to God’s will. They live in the world, that is, they are engaged in each and every work and business of the earth and in the ordinary circumstances of social and family life, which, as it were, constitute their very existence."

To spread the divine message of salvation, laypeople do so either individually or by forming associations.

- THE SECULAR CLERGY
“Secular” (priests and laypeople) usually means “this person is not a religious.”
Secular clerics (usually diocesan clergy) are ordained but do not make a religious profession in an institution. They retain their own property (unlike religious, who renounce in the sense proper to vows), and their obedience is to the bishop in the way proper to clerical discipline. The priests of Opus Dei are included here.

- THE RELIGIOUS
Religious are Christians who belong to a Religious Institute (an order or congregation), such as a Dominican, Franciscan, or brother of La Salle; this also includes nuns. They are consecrated to God by vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience, abandoning the world for love of him. 

They serve the Church through apostolic works like catechesis, education, and assistance to the sick. The religious life is a wonderful witness before the whole people of God to the supremacy of heavenly values.

Yet the words “religious” and “secular” don’t mainly mean “good vs. bad” or “pious vs. worldly.” They refer to different kinds of Church life and different canonical states—especially regarding consecration, vows, and how one lives in the world. 

To keep it clear:
Religious (in the usual sense) means belonging to a vowed, canonical, consecrated life; secular means living outside religious profession (either as diocesan clergy or as lay faithful), though all can be holy and both serve the Church. 

Jul 12 Sun - How should I take God’s inspirations?

 

Jul 12 Sun

How should I take God’s inspirations?

It sounds as if Our Lord speaks in parables so that people will not understand him. In fact, He speaks in parables so that He will be better understood. 

Our Lord speaks to his disciples directly, and little by little they come to understand who He is, what He is going to do, and what He wants of them. 

In his parables, Our Lord illustrates truths in stories so these truths can be easily remembered and understood, and thus affect our lives.

The parable of the sower seems to be describing types of men. Don’t we dread the prospect of losing the salvation God offers us through our own negligence? Can’t we easily imagine that such men exist?

The parable can also be understood as describing each one of us. With the Gospel, we can be:

- oblivious to it,
- enthusiastic about it until it costs us something,
- choked with anxiety about getting by in this world, filled with desire for material goods, so the Gospel bears no fruit in our lives.
- We can also be fruitful.

These contradictory and conflicting states, in part, explain the groaning in expectation that St. Paul describes as our condition.

The parable of the sower illustrates the truth that St. Augustine articulated this way: ‘God who created you without you, will not save you without you.’ Our salvation is up to God and us. God always says yes to our salvation. We can say yes and no.

Christ’s invitation is like an invitation to a feast; thus, it can be refused.
If accepted, it requires “a radical choice: to gain the kingdom, one must give everything.”

This giving is not just verbal assent: “Words are not enough; deeds are required.”

The Catechism says the parables “are like mirrors for man: will he be hard soil or good earth for the word? What use has he made of the talents he has received?”
 
If we find a parable hard to understand, the reason may be that we have not yet become enough of a disciple of Christ: “For those who stay ‘outside,’ everything remains enigmatic.”

Whatever we give to God, we get back in abundance. When we give God our freedom, we are making it possible for him to free us from sin, and also to enable us to blossom and do our best.

Recite daily after Communion this prayer of St. Ignatius of Loyola. It can help us to accept God’s Will fully:

    Take, Lord, and receive all my liberty,
    my memory, my understanding,
    and all my will.
    All I have, you have given to me.
    To you, Lord, I return it.
    Now, everything is yours; 
    do with it whatever you will.
    Give me only your love and your grace.
    That is enough for me.

Moreover, we are children of God; this is incompatible with fear and cowardice. 
We must have confidence in God, our Father, and obey with docility the suggestions of the Holy Spirit in our souls. 
Then, we must go to seed the good doctrine of Christ all around us abundantly. 

Jul 11 Sat - Should I fear God?

 

Jul 11 Sat

Should I fear God?

What is the meaning of "the fear of the Lord"? 

We must look for wisdom to learn and acquire the fear of the Lord. 

“Fear” must not be taken in the sense that common usage gives it, servile fear. We are afraid because of a guilty conscience, or an attack from one who is stronger, sickness, or encountering a wild beast. This kind of fear is not taught: it happens because we are weak. We do not have to learn what we should fear: these objects of fear bring their own terror with them.

However, the real fear of the Lord must be acquired by obedience to the commandments, by holiness of life, and by knowledge of the truth.

“For myself, the only fear I can imagine is that of turning away from Love. 
God Our Lord certainly does not want us to be inhibited, timid, or lukewarm about our dedication to him. He wants us to be daring, courageous, and refined. When the sacred text speaks of fear, I am reminded of a complaint we find elsewhere in Scripture, 'I searched for my heart's love, but found him not.'"

So, there is a difference between:
- Fear that treats God like a threat (or like a boss you obey only to avoid punishment), and
- Fear that is reverence and love, a fear of offending God’s love and of turning away from what is good.

The fear of God consists wholly in love of God, who wants us to obey his commandments. Man realizes the enormous difference between the Creator and the creature, between the divine holiness and the human fragility. Our love for God is entrusted with its own responsibility: to observe his counsels, to obey his laws, to trust his promises. Thus, we must learn to have fear of cutting our link with God by sin. 

So, the fear of offending God gives us prudence –to seek the right way of acting– and serenity. It is a gift of God to fight against sin.

“He who continues to delight in wickedness, what wonder is it if he fears death and judgment? Nevertheless, it is good that, if the love of God does not restrain you from sin, the fear of hell at least should restrain you. For he who sets aside the fear of God cannot continue in a good life for long, but will rapidly fall into the snares of the Devil." (The Imitation of Christ)

 “Show us, O our good Master, some way in which we may live through life’s most dangerous warfare without frequent surprise. The best way that we can do this, daughters, is to use the LOVE and FEAR given to us by His Majesty. For love will make us quicken our steps, while fear of the Lord will make us look where we are setting our feet, so that we shall not fall on a road where there are so many obstacles. Along that road, all living creatures must pass, and if we have these two things, we shall certainly not be deceived." (St Teresa) 

Jul 10 Fri - Do I have true friends?

 

Jul 10 Fri

Do I have true friends?

True friends are those who remain by our side through thick and thin.

"Friendship is a rich human reality: a form of reciprocal love between two people built on mutual knowledge and communication." These wise words from Aquinas advise us to get to know each other, interact, and communicate—in short, to step outside ourselves—to forge bonds of friendship.

“You cannot just be passive. You have to become a real friend of your friends by helping them. First, with the example of your behavior, and then with your advice and with the influence that a close friendship provides."

True friendship is loyal and sincere. It is genuine, two-way communication where experiences are shared and we learn from one another. Good communication, shared aspirations, mutual confidences, appreciation, admiration, and respect create strong bonds of friendship that endure despite distance and time.

True friends share joys, dreams, plans, and also sorrows. Friendship is a type of love that flows in both directions and desires the best for the other person, a love that produces unity and happiness. Some classical thinkers pointed out that to be happy, it is necessary to have friends.

One manifestation of friendship is the willingness to help others, out of pure generosity, and without giving up in the face of difficulties. True friends are those who lift you up when others haven’t even noticed you’ve fallen. 

Another great manifestation is understanding, which, although not easy, enriches us by allowing us to perceive reality differently from our own and also broadens our perspective. To love others means recognizing them as they are, with their virtues and flaws. We must look at them with affection, without prejudice, seeing the good in each person, and we must relinquish the desire to mold them in our own image.

Friendship involves the free endeavor to discover and desire the good of the other, to make their life more pleasant. Friendships arise between people who strive to be welcoming, kind, patient, cheerful, and so on; all these virtues make living together easy and enjoyable. Friends require time and proper attention, which often demands setting aside our own preferences and comforts.

On the other hand, friendship carries the risk of not being reciprocated, but without fear, one must continue to take risks and seek opportunities where new friendships can arise. 

Furthermore, experience shows us that sometimes friends are lost, however, their recovery is always possible if both parties desire it, as Saint Bernard advises: “When you see something wrong in your friend, do not judge him immediately; on the contrary, try to excuse him in your heart; excuse the intention, think that he did it out of ignorance, by surprise, or unfortunately.”

A true friend does not betray; he never speaks ill of his friend, nor allows him to be criticized, nor does he abandon him in times of trouble. True friendship is selfless, for it consists more in giving than in receiving; it does not seek personal gain; it asks for sacrifices, integrity, and the exchange of favors, of noble and lawful services. And, finally, like almost everything in this life, friendship is strengthened in adversity.

From Tomasa Calvo, Exaudi 

Jul 9 Thu - Should I attend the Mass as if it were “a presentation”?

 

Jul 9 Thu

Should I attend the Mass as if it were “a presentation”?

Pope Leo XIV called on the faithful not to be passive spectators at Mass, but to offer themselves in union with Jesus Christ.

At the Last Supper, on the night when He was betrayed, our Savior instituted the eucharistic sacrifice of His Body and Blood. He did this to perpetuate the sacrifice of the Cross throughout the centuries until He should come again, and so to entrust to His beloved spouse, the Church, a memorial of His death and resurrection.

He underlined:
When St. Augustine seeks to explain the mystery of the Body of Christ to the newly baptized, he mentions the passage from St. Paul: “You are the body of Christ, and each of you is a part of it.”

And he added: You receive the mystery that is yourselves. To what you are, you answer ‘Amen,’ and by responding thus, you affirm it. 
So, you hear: ‘Body of Christ,’ and you respond: ‘Amen.’ 

Be a member of the Body of Christ, so that your ‘Amen’ may be truthful. Be what you see, and receive what you are. 

For Christians, taking part in the Lord’s table means being ‘instructed by God’s word and nourished, giving thanks to God.’ 

These two parts of the Mass—the Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist— are so closely united that they constitute a single act of worship. 

Concerning the Word of God, it is important to remember that it is not merely a matter of acquiring intellectual knowledge of the Scriptures, but of receiving the Word that is “living and effective,” spoken by God to everyone and at the same time to each individual. 

This Word nourishes and sustains us together with the Eucharistic Bread and leads us from the decay of sin to new life in Christ.

By receiving Him in His Word and in the Eucharist, we become what we receive. We become the Body whose Head is the risen Christ, seated at the right hand of the Father, who prepares a place for us in heaven. 

The Eucharist is thus the sacrament of the Kingdom to come. It is the Bread for the journey, which leads us toward our heavenly homeland, until that blessed day when “God will be all in all.” 

The liturgical assembly offers the Sacrifice “not only through the hands of the priest, but together with him.” From this perspective, the Eucharist is the form of the spiritual sacrifice of Christians, as the path to union with God and mutual union.

By incorporating us into Christ, the Eucharist teaches us to adopt the very style of life of the Lord Jesus, which was marked by the gift of Himself. This gift draws us into the dynamic of unity, offering a powerful antidote to the forces of division that undermine our world, our communities, our families, and our hearts.

Dear brothers and sisters, let us draw with faith from this source of divine life and allow ourselves to be transformed by the mystery we celebrate. 

Jul 8 Wed - Could joy and humor be included in schools? How can this be done?

 

Jul 8 Wed

Could joy and humor be included in schools? How can this be done?

It’s not so much about constantly making people laugh or anything like that; rather, it’s about keeping a positive attitude in the face of adversity. 

What are the benefits of accepting life with a good sense of humor?

Good humor generates stability, peace, tranquility, and mental health. A person in good spirits inspires confidence, makes life more pleasant for others, and reduces stress levels. It’s not about having to smile as if it were an obligation; good humor arises in people who have found a good reason to live and strive.

What are the keys to not losing that sense of humor?

We must try to distance ourselves from negative news, which sells the most and fills the news broadcasts. Turn off your phone, and connect with life. Have a plan that motivates you, dedicate your time to making life more pleasant for others, and don’t waste a single second of your precious time spreading slander.

What key points should parents keep in mind when raising their children?

The most important thing is knowing what is right and not letting our children be the ones in charge at home. The home is the first place where children learn to obey and be disciplined. Parents are the ones who know what needs to be done. A family is not a democracy.
Parents must know how to exercise authority appropriately.

How can you deal with a tantrum, five failing grades, or a serious problem with good humor?

The most important thing is to analyze the causes of the failure. Giving a severe scolding or imposing excessive punishments is usually of little use. 
Is the failure a personality problem? Do they have learning difficulties? Are they having relationship problems? 
There are a thousand possibilities. That’s why we must coordinate our parenting with our child’s teachers, who can provide important clues to pinpoint the problem. 

Is this generation of parents prepared to face these difficulties?

The problem is that some fathers want to remain perpetual teenagers and have serious difficulties taking responsibility. Being involved in the family from the beginning prevents all sorts of serious problems in the future.

What is the role of parents and families in the education of their children?

We are the protagonists, the ones responsible, and the ones who must lead the way. If a family instills values, the child will grow up well-mannered, even if they don’t attend the best school or have a less-than-ideal teacher.

What values, knowledge, skills, or abilities should students have at the end of their educational stage to speak of an adequate educational system?

Tolerance, reflection, the ability to exercise abstraction and imagination. Emotional intelligence, respect for differences, problem-solving skills, and self-awareness. Everything that fosters critical and rational thinking (not criticism), everything that no screen will give us.
Also, we must support vocational training. We must respect the teacher’s judgment and guide specific students toward a professional future that aligns with their psychological and mental capabilities.

What measures could be taken against school failure?

Creating a study environment in the family, allowing teachers to guide the student, and motivating students to discover the joy of knowledge.

Pic: Our Lady teaching the Child Jesus to write. 
Answers from Luis Gutiérrez Rojas, Exaudi