From Our Pastor's Desk
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From Our Pastor's Desk
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Love More, Love Better
In the second reading of the Mass, Saint Paul reminds us that the earthly man, despite all his miseries, can be transformed into the heavenly man by the power of love. Then, in the Gospel, Jesus specifies that this love is without limits, the one inscribed in every human heart as the golden rule of universal morality: “Treat others as you want them to treat you.” The earth would be a paradise if we all put this teaching into practice! But in our everyday life, things get complicated. If we look around, we realize that most people are driven not by the law of love, but by the law of echo. Yes, “echo”! If you shout into a ravine, you hear your own words repeated. Some people do the same in life: when others are kind and helpful to you, you echo that kindness and helpfulness in return, but if they disturb your peace or threaten your interests, you raise your voice and claim your rights. This does not happen when one lives according to the law of love, because your neighbor becomes your brother. Jesus Christ died for everyone—for that unpleasant neighbor, the indiscreet friend, the authoritarian boss, the annoying coworker. Why do so many people live secretly dissatisfied? Why do so many men and women find life monotonous, trivial, and bland? Why do they get bored in the midst of comfort? We live in a society in which it is difficult to learn to love freely. Almost everything we do we question: What is it good for? Is it useful? What do I gain from it? We calculate everything, we measure everything. Our lives would be transformed if we learned to love freely, without seeking anything in return. The most im-portant things in life—friendship, solidarity, closeness, intimacy—cannot be bought with money. They are freely offered without expecting anything in return. May your relationships with others always shine with a love of gentleness, able to endure insults, injuries, and violence. A love that forgives and helps, just as in the episode from the life of King David recounted in the first reading. The central teaching of this Gospel is fundamental, challenging, and timely. It tells us that there is a rule valid for both Christians and non-Christians: “Do not do to others what you do not want them to do to you.” Or better yet, put positively in Christ’s words: “Whatever you would have men do to you, do also to them” (Lk. 6:31). This is the irresistible force we carry within because it comes from the heart of God! This is the secret weapon that Christ has placed in our hands to transform the world! Source: ePriest.com / Best Practices and Homily Resources for Catholic Priests HAPPY FOREVER
God wants all men to be saved, which is why He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to bring us this good news. Deep within our being, we all carry an insatiable hunger for fulfillment. We seek health, satisfaction, intelligence, love, friendship, joy, perfection, and happiness. Sisters and brothers: 1. It seems that people today only aspire to two things: "efficiency and profit". Jesus came to revolutionize these criteria by changing the hierarchy of values. If we wanted to translate the concept of “beatitude” into a modern term today, we could perhaps refer to the “complete realization of man.” Jesus’s discourse has its central focus on human happiness. Happiness lies in constant growth, in developing freedom, justice, and love—yet through a process of struggle, dying to selfishness, perpetual inner change, and continual self-examination. 2. "Happiness!", that magical word we are all searching for, is at the heart of Jesus’s message. The Sermon on the Mount is stated in striking contrasts: “Blessed are the poor, the hungry, those who weep!” That is, behind the beatitudes there is a hidden moral revolution that involves moving from having to being, from being to giving, from having for oneself to being for others. His code of happiness is tremendously paradoxical, and he, in person, will be the exponent of that paradoxical happiness: through death on the cross, he finds his new life in the resurrection. By discovering the dynamic of this passage, man discovers God’s secret, which also becomes man’s secret: to be for others, to give oneself to one’s neighbor. Those who have taken this message seriously—namely, the saints—have achieved happiness. We must pay attention to these words because they are the “heart” of his message. 3. True happiness is found by taking paths completely different from those that our current society offers us; according to Jesus, it is better to give than to receive; it is better to serve than to dominate, to share than to hoard, to forgive than to seek revenge, to create life rather than exploit. Jesus’s message decisively breaks with the world’s ideas of happiness: Happiness does not lie in power, wealth, or money, but in a way of life whose essence is service to the community. God wants us to be happy. “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice!” (Phil. 4:4). Jesus himself is presented as the source of happiness for those who listen to his word, for those who believe in him, for those who follow him, and await his day. God wants us to be happy forever! Source: ePriest.com / Best Practices and Homily Resources for Catholic Priests THE CALL
God has a personal plan for every man When He thought of you, He entrusted you with a mission. And you will be happy in this life only if you fulfill your task. When men ask themselves: “Why did I come into this world? What am I doing here?” they discover the meaning of their lives. Sisters and brothers: 1. That happened to Peter, as St. Luke tells us in the Gospel. While they were fishing on the lake, Jesus said to him: “Simon, son of John, you will be a fisher of men.” Peter took it seriously, and that is where his apostolic vocation began. What does God expect from you? From all eternity He has called you by your name. The Lord knows you and loves you personally. The Lord is knocking at the door of your heart, let Him in and be generous in doing what He wants. The great Spanish guitarist Narciso Yépez recalls God’s call in this way: “Suddenly I heard Him within me. Perhaps He had called me on other occasions, but I had not heard Him. That day I had ‘the door open’ and God was able to enter. He not only made Himself heard but He entered fully and forever into my life.” 2. We can discover in Peter three attitudes that we should imitate: The first is that Peter was capable of trusting in Jesus, even when He asked him to do something that seemed absurd— like casting the nets after fishing all night. His response, “In your name, I will let down the nets,” reflects a soul that trusts blindly in the Lord. The second is that Peter examined himself and quickly reached a simple but difficult conclusion to accept and confess: “I am a sinner.” Because of this, he was saved. The third is that Peter began living for others. At that moment, Jesus gave direction to his life: you will live for others, you will live for men, you will suffer for them, and you will rejoice for them. When we attain Peter’s humble attitude, we are able to understand others and never judge them. We learn to accept ourselves, to be patient with our limitations, to endure ourselves, and not to be scandalized when we see our own pettiness. 3. The miracle of the miraculous catch also teaches us that when things are done in the name of Jesus, they always succeed. The lake seemed empty, but it turned out it was full. Christ does not rely only on angels or saints to continue His work; He looks for simple, weak, sinful people, willing to follow Him generously. Let us ask Jesus to dispel all our doubts and fears, to help us overcome every temptation. Jesus, from the Tabernacle, is the most understanding friend and the most devoted lover. And don’t forget, today Jesus is calling you by your name. Always say to Him: “Here I am, Lord!” Source: ePriest.com / Best Practices and Homily Resources for Catholic Priests |
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