Taking a child and putting his arms around it, he said, “Whoever receives one child such as this in my name, receives me; and whoever receives me, receives not me but the One who sent me.”
When
I was a child, my mother told me to say
my prayers or the devil would come and pull my toes while I slept. There was truth in her words. I am 57
years old and I still cannot sleep with feet out from under the covers.
Friends,
we are made my God for good things. One of the good things we are made for is
to be a Church of powerfully holy people. Holy people live as Jesus taught, “If anyone wishes to be first, he shall be the last of all
and the servant of all.”
That
is not what most tends to do. Most don’t want to be told what they do is wrong.
In all their malice, they would rather argue who or what is the greatest.
If
we are good and holy people, we fight evil. We recognize what is wrong and hold
people accountable. We share the gospel, because evil does not like Jesus’s
words.
The
wicked say: he is obnoxious to us; he sets himself against our doings, reproaches
us for transgressions of the law and charges us with violations of our training.
Evil
has invaded the Church in some. It grows in the secrecy, ineptitude, unaccountable, and lackluster preaching and teaching.
Manifest in our midst, evil robs many of their faith. It must be confronted.
But
this evil is nothing new, St. James wrote
“Where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and
every foul practice.” It sounds
familiar.
The
humanity of the Church is wounded and hurt. The scandals of abuse and cover-up make want to run from the Church and in doing so, many will loose their faith. Abuse and cover-up is sinful, evil and wrong; but, it is not a reason to run from God.
The
holy people of God realize all that has happened is an attack of evil on the
Church. They stand strong who follow the LORD.
These
must pray for the healing of the battered Bride of Christ: O God, by your name save
me, and by your might defend my cause. Haughty men have risen up against me, the
ruthless seek my life; they set not God before their eyes. God is my helper; the
Lord sustains my life. Freely will I offer you sacrifice; I will praise your
name, O LORD, for its goodness.
We
pray because, despite all our human weaknesses, God has entrusted us, the people
of His Holy Catholic Church with the gospel of Jesus Christ; the good news that
He comes to rescue the world from sin and death.
As
a people searching for holiness, we still need God’s priest that were given to
us and empowered by Jesus to bless us and place the body of Christ on our
tongues. That is enough to ignite hearts and strengthen shoulders to carry the
burdens of this world.
The
faithful are challenged. We are challenged by scandals and the encumbrance of
living in a toxic and often evil culture. In this challenge, the Catholic
Church needs priests and laity willing to travel the path of holiness to heal
from the darkness of sin and broken trust.
Becoming
holy is not instantaneous but is growing in the wisdom from a lifetime of humility
and a willingness to suffer. Wisdom from above is
first of all pure, then peaceable, gentle, compliant, full of mercy and good
fruits…
It
is hard for us and priest to realize this holiness and wisdom.
That
is how the devil sneaks into our rooms. He pulls our toes to make us think that
by human scandal the Church will fall apart.
Friends,
in God’s grace and by faith realize is that the Church is not the clergy but
each and every holy one of you. The clergy and rest of the world need to
realize that as well.
“Whoever receives one such as this in my name, receives me; and
whoever receives me, receives not me but the One who sent me.”
Pray for our Priests, Bishops, Cardinals, and our Holy Father Pope Francis. Pray for the Church, the powerfully holy people that bring Christ to
the world.
God
created us for good things. The devil knows and is trying to sneak in to pull
our toes.
Be
good, be holy and preach the gospel of a powerful holy people of God, by the
way you live and love one another. Amen
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