Range of Beliefs

        Many Christians claim that they believe in God, but what does that mean? 

        Some merely believe that Jesus existed as a historical figure.  Some want to follow him, but they don't have the time to pay him much attention.  Some attend church regularly, but nothing happens much to them spiritually; they continue to "do their own thing" in life.  Some pray to God only when they face a crisis or just have a need to fulfill.  Some believe sincerely, but when they face a test, they give up.  Some only accept the teachings of the Church they like and reject or at least not try to face those they don't feel comfortable with.  Some only attend Mass for Christmas and Easter yearly, thinking that maybe this is sufficient to keep God happy.  Some believers always have questions about their faith.  Then there are those who study and know a lot about Jesus, but don't know him personally.  This reminds me of a non-Christian tour guide in Holy Land whose knowledge of Jesus was most impressive.  There are others who find one priest or fellow Christian offensive or just unfriendly to them and leave the Church.  Some never bother to take the time to study or learn the teachings of the Church.  Some think that they are good enough believers, compared to others.  Since the word "sin" is rarely heard in homilies nowadays, some have forgotten about the importance of repentance as a precondition for growth in holiness.  

        The above is not meant to criticize anyone, it's just assessed reality and we can certainly and should do better with prayer and God's help.         

   

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Be Hidden in Christ

        The Gospel Reading for Mass two days ago: Matthew 6: 1-6, 16-18.  It's so beautiful to be hidden in Christ so that when others see you, they see him.  In him alone, there is true freedom.  Experience it in this life and your admission to the next life will be free.  Alleluia!

The Pure Shall See God

        Yesterday the memorial to the Immaculate Heart of Mary was celebrated at Mass.  When we think of the Blessed Mother, purity of heart comes to the mind.  The homilist pointed out that only the pure can be humbled and will remain strong.  Mary is our perfect example.  The world is not happy and is afraid to approach God, because it is impure.  When you are pure, you feel light and know that you are with God.  "Blessed are the clean of heart: for they shall see God."  What a wonderful feeling!   

New Awareness of Intimacy

        The day before yesterday the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus was celebrated at Mass.  We know that St. John, the beloved apostle of Jesus, reclined next to Jesus at the Last Supper.  I am sure that all of us who love the Lord would love to do that too, a chance to touch him in whom we trust.  That would give us such a comfortable and secure feeling.  As this thought surfaced during Mass, the Lord suddenly let me see that receiving the Holy Eucharist is receiving his body, blood, soul, and divinity, all of him, and nothing can be more intimate than that.  This was not exactly news to me, but at that moment, it struck me so hard that I became sharply aware of this fact more than ever.  Just thinking about how he loves us by giving himself to us in this way is overwhelming!  It's a tremendous blessing to know that he remains within you as you go about living your daily life.  Indeed, when you have him, there is nothing else you will want.
        Lord, who am I that you should choose to receive this most precious gift from heaven?  I thank you with all my heart.
  

The Ways of the Lord

        Pope Benedict XVI: "The ways of the Lord are not easy, but we were  not created for an easy life, but for great things, for goodness."  Amen. 

Church Under Attack

        Today, the Mother Church is coming under "attacks" in all forms from both within and without.  To all Catholics, religious or lay, who do not agree on any issue with your bishops, or any guidance or teaching of the magisterium and feel like speaking out, please realize that anything you say that would result in confusing the faithful or disunifying the Church in any way can not have come from the Holy Spirit ~ God will never ask you to disobey the very Church he has established for us.  No matter how urgently you feel like speaking out, this is the ultimate test.  If you do not pass it, the voice is your own and not that of the Holy Spirit.   

        The Church is being ridiculed, laughed at, belittled, insulted, slandered, stepped on, and accused for just about anything not pleasing to the attackers nowadays ~ this is because we do have the true church!  Look at what the Lord himself went through on earth ~  how can you expect the Church, being the Body of Christ, not to suffer likewise?  The good news is that the Lord guarantees that the gates of hell shall not prevail against his Church.  Rejoice that we are being persecuted for Christ's sake.  This is the perfect time to practice what he taught about forgiving others and loving your enemies.  Pray extra hard and love the Lord even more fervently.  Seek total union with him first before all else.   

How Oppression Works

        Found on one webpage: "Everyone who supported slavery was free. Everyone who supports abortion was born. And that, my friends, is how oppression works."

Values Worth Dying For

        A thought from Pope Benedict XVI:

        "Where there is no longer anything worth dying for, life is no longer worthwhile."  Amen.

       

First Beatitude

        The first Beatitude:  "How blest is the poor in spirit: the reign of God is theirs."

        What does 'poor in spirit' mean?  I wasn't sure until I came across Erasmo Leiva-Merikakis' beautiful explanation.  Note that this Beatitude is in the present tense. 

        In essence, he explains:  "The poor in spirit are those who literally 'beg for their life's very breath' ~ those who depend upon God the way we all depend upon air to breathe.  Poverty of spirit is the grace of those who have emptied themselves of everything but the desire for God's presence.  And those who achieve poverty of spirit have their reward in the present as well as the future, for to live in poverty of spirit is indeed to live in God."

        Praised be Jesus.  

Two Become One

        I used to pray to God, seeing him as a separate being in front of and high above me.  Now I realize that he dwells in me and we are now one, inseparable.  In such an intimate union, we know each other so well that he makes his will clear to me.  It's no longer going out of myself to seek another for answers.  God simplifies everything and simplicity leads to freedom.  How glorious is his love!    

The Ego

        The ego is an ugly thing.  It gets in the way as we journey toward God.  Again, it boils down to Us vs. God.  Therefore, the ego's gotta go.  And, with God's help, it can indeed vanish, liberating us.  God must increase and we decrease.  In fact, we should die completely to ourselves so that we become Christ-like.  Then we shall be free and see others and the world as he does.  

Unbeatable Bargain!

        From St. Bernadette: "If we receive Jesus with love and make sure that he dwells happily within us, he is bound to pay us rent."  I love this saying of hers.  Then I remember that Jesus also told his disciples that he's going to prepare a mansion in heaven for them.  Now, our life, compared to eternity, is practically of zero duration.  So, if we just let Jesus dwell in our heart for the few years of our short life, we get to live in his mansion later for all eternity ~ can you possibly think of a better bargain?  What a deal!  I am going to take it. 

Beautiful Paradoxes

        Here are two beautiful paradoxes:

        (1) The more you acknowledge your own helplessness, the more God reaches down to help you.

        (2) The more you surrender to God, the more you become free.

       

Biggest Fool of the Universe

        If you want to be the biggest fool of the universe, that's easy.  All you need to do is to believe that God does not care about what you are doing or that you can get away by doing certain things.  In other words, the biggest fool is the one who thinks that he can fool God.  Naturally, he ends up fooling only himself.
        The smart person is the one who realizes that the God knows all things anyway, so you might as well let him in on all things.

God the Psychiatrist

        God is the greatest psychiatrist in the whole universe.  He knows and understands everything about us, our problems, our needs, our desires, etc.  After Holy Communion, I go before the Lord letting him see everything that's in my heart.  If there's something that bothers me, I simply open myself up to him without reservation (this may require some effort on my part as I search and reflect hard).  The Lord now will help me see deep down exactly what is bugging me.   It's like God holding up a mirror and I see the interior of my heart in it.  Often what we think the cause is is not necessarily the true one, for we are complicated creatures.  Once I see clearly what made me lose my peace, I become instantly relieved.  If healing is needed, the Lord will do just that then.  The resulting feeling is exhilaration.  Truly, self-understanding is the key to freedom of the heart.

Successful Self-Transformation

        The "secret" to transforming yourself successfully is really simple.  You might even say obvious.  It's letting the Lord do the work. Jesus told us that apart from him, we can do nothing.  This is absolutely true.  I am talking about doing things that truly give honor and glory to God. 

        When you receive the Holy Eucharist, you become mystically united with Jesus, who is the source of all the graces that can benefit you.  This is the time to "get greedy" and ask for all the graces he can possibly give you to make you holy.  If you are in good grace and really mean it, how can he refuse you, as he loves you so much?  If you strive to become holy on your own, you'll find it about as effective as making a New Year resolution stick.  But if you put your trust in God and let him do the work, everything becomes automatic over time.  The Holy Eucharist is the Lord himself, transforming you. 

What Holds Us Back?

        Why is it difficult to surrender ourselves to God?  If God is love and loves us, why should we hesitate?  The answer is "fear."  It involves a basic struggle between letting God be our lord and retaining our role as master of our own life.  Many of us think that we can manage our lives and really don't need God.  God sees this and leaves us alone.  We also have many worldly goals to achieve, such as owning a fast car, making a lot more money, achieving great fame, etc.  If I let God into my life, does that mean that I will not be able to do any of these things anymore?  Worst yet, does it mean that I must now become a missionary in some poor country?  These are real concerns ~ that last thought was what I had once. Since we cannot serve two masters, it boils down to pitting myself against God.

        The reality is that once you have decided to let God into your life, all the fears become baseless.  God will either take your desires away or still let you enjoy the many good things, which came from him anyway, but in complete freedom.  You'll feel that the things in the world no longer shackle you.  How fast this transformation can proceed depends upon how much you let go in God.  The important thing is to take that first step.  Yes, you'll have nothing to lose, but all things to gain.   

        This is a good place to mention that letting God transform you can be a most exciting and rewarding experience.  We all feel good when we successfully complete some project in our life.  Now, consider transforming yourself into a more saintly person before God to be a project.  When God works on you and you actually see that you are becoming a better, holier person, you'll experience the satisfaction no other accomplished projects in this world can possibly give.  For this is transformation at the deepest level that involves your innermost self.  You'll be really happy with yourself because you are now a more beautiful person before the heavenly Father.

Heading Which Way?

        Imagine a horizontal line segment.  Let's label the left endpoint W, standing for the World; and the right endpoint G, standing for God.  A person at point W is one who belongs totally to the world.  He plays god, lives for himself only and even hates God.  To anyone at the other extreme, point G, God is all.  He lives for God alone and is ready to deny himself for doing his will.  He is in the world, but no longer of the world.  Mathematically speaking, this line segment is a set of points, and every one of us  inescapably occupies a point somewhere on this line.  As we move toward point G, we improve our standing before God.  The result (reward) is that we will experience more freedom, giving us peace and joy.  Only God alone can give us this freedom of the spirit. 
        By the way, the Holy Father Pope Benedict likens this journeying toward God to climbing a mountain.  Sometimes the path may be steep, but the higher you go, the better the view.  Naturally, when you reach the top (endpoint), you get to see the most magnificent view.
        If you approximately know where you are situated on this line segment, would you backslide toward point W, stay put (be just lukewarm), or move toward point G?  The wise and sensible choice should be obvious.  As long as you make your desire known to the Lord, he will draw you toward him so that you don't have to struggle on you own. 
        Last, once your journey starts, remember from Luke 9: "Whoever puts his hand to the plow but keeps looking back is unfit for the reign of God."  Happy plowing!