2nd Sunday of Advent Year C 2018

2^nd. Sunday of Advent (C)

(Baruch 5:1-9; Philippians 1:3-6, 8-11; Luke 3:1-6)

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John the Baptist, some two thousand years ago, called upon his Jewish compatriots to prepare themselves for the fulfilment of their vocation as God’s Chosen People, by preparing the way for the coming Messiah: a Lamb-of-God Man recognized as such by John, Who would be born of their own immaculate virgin Mary as Jesus of Nazareth, the One now recognized as Jesus Christ, the Lord, God, and Saviour of all mankind.

Today Mother Church recommends that we, her modern-day children, carefully reconsider John’s inspired proclamation because of its great significance for us who, by our Advent discipline and devotion, are now preparing to invite and welcome the same Lord, God, and Saviour, into our very own hearts and minds anew this Christmas.

Some 700 years before John, the prophet Isaiah had spoken of the messianic times to come in Judah by evoking:

The voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord, make His paths straight.   Every valley shall be filled, every mountain and hill brought low. The crooked places shall be made straight, and the rough ways smooth.

For our evangelist St. Luke, John was that voice crying in the wilderness, and John -- the greatest of all those born of woman, as Jesus said – taking up that prophecy of Isaiah, insisted that all those awaiting the imminent coming of the Messiah had to do something to further both the advent of the Messiah in their days and the fulfilment of Isaiah’s prophecy.  And Mother Church, setting Luke’s Gospel message before us today, suggests likewise that we -- each and every one of us who believe in Jesus and  anticipate His Advent blessing this year – do something in accordance with John’s inspired proclamation that we alone can and should do: first, acknowledge with sincere sorrow our too-many personal sins, and accompany it by fruits expressive of such repentance; but above all, however, by awaiting the Coming One with hearts full of gratitude eager to receive and embrace Him as the Only-begotten Son of God, sublimely gifted to us as One of us, the One Who can uniquely enable us, to live fuller and better lives as adopted children of God, His own brothers and sisters.

It is common among practicing Catholics these days to more or less forget about this obligation to open up the way for the Lord in their own hearts and minds, and consequently their lives as Catholics and Christians can so easily settle DOWN and become somewhat stagnant:  too many basically faithful children of Mother Church limit themselves to holding firmly to the Faith they were originally taught, taking care they do not betray or fall short of it.  In fact, however, since Jesus the Prince of Peace and Light of the World, is wanting to come anew into their refreshed lives this Christmas, they should desire above all to grow in that Faith and embrace anew the Love that enwraps it: Jesus’ Own love for us all, and the love of many martyrs, confessors, and fellow faithful Catholics who have treasured and handed the Faith down to us over centuries.

Again, many devout Catholics are regular in their observance of Sundays and holydays, and they intend to receive the sacraments well.  However, though they do these things regularly, which is good, they also tend to do them routinely, which is not so good.  For, having done these practices, which they often call duties -- duties which can be counted and ticked off as having been done for this week or for this month -- they then tend to wait for the Lord.  They do not often think to undertake more personal heart-and-mind approaches, which are not things that can be called duties, but are endeavours to respond to God’s secret invitation, to answer God’s Personal call, to them personally.

In such ways, far too many Catholic disciples of Jesus hear Mother Church calling them in the name of God, from without themselves, but do not seem to hear God Himself whispering within themselves, from that secret and most holy sanctuary which is their own soul.  Thus, they confine themselves to mediocrity: because they are, in fact, coming to a halt, settling for obligations and duties -- long known and recognized -- being faithfully observed each year, but going no further, no deeper. Now such a ‘coming to a halt’, at whatever level, is mediocrity for one called to let the Holy Spirit lead him or her throughout their life to become more like Jesus, ever more truly a child of God.

Other people might think highly and speak well of such a person, because he or she may have stopped at, and apparently remained at, a relatively high level, so to speak, when compared with others.  But that’s just it, God doesn’t compare one with another: if you stop, at whatever level, you will begin to stagnate, and that is, for you -- in the eyes of God the Father Who is calling you and the Holy Spirit Who wants to lead you further along the way of Jesus -- settling for mediocrity, settling for something less than God wants of you, than what God wants FOR YOU.

Paul was very proud of his converts in Philippi and he acknowledged that not only were they indebted to himself, but that he too was indebted to them for the assistance they had given him in his need.  He prayed for them as special friends:

And this I pray: that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment.

Now, that should be the programme for all of us: for our love can abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight.  Don’t think that is not for you, that you can’t do that.  Of course you can’t!!  But God can and He does want to do it for you, to bring it about in you.  You might not, indeed, be the reading, the studious, type, you might not be a deep thinker, but that does not exclude you from taking up God’s invitation: because it is a special invitation to you by Him Who knows you best of all; it is an invitation to lead you to the fullness of your vocation, to give Jesus all your love, in your uniquely personal way.  If you are not a reader, not a deep thinker, O.K., don’t feel any need to force yourself into long periods of tedious and fruitless study or reading.  Do what you do best.  Perhaps you like to be with people rather than with books: try, then, to do your best to be with Jesus more.  I don’t necessarily mean kneeling in Church, you might have too many duties and tasks for that: then, just try to be more with Him in your mind and heart: just as you are so often with your children or your grandchildren in your mind and heart.  If your life seems burdened with other people’s troubles, then mention those troubles to Jesus, ask His help, ask Him to bless yourself and those in need.  Some people find they can’t keep their attention on prayers which tend to become just empty words: among them, however, some might find great peace in just being in Jesus’ presence in the Church without saying anything: content and happy simply to know that He is there and they are in His presence.  I can’t go through all the ways of deepening love for Jesus here, that is spiritual direction, much ignored today, but be quite sure of this, you are invited, called, urged by God the Father, Who wants to help your love for Jesus, His Son, to abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight: not knowledge of facts or insight into problems, but personal knowledge, awareness, appreciation, of the Person of Jesus, that is, understanding of, and empathy with, commitment to, Him.  Knowledge and insight of this sort will enable you to grow just as St. Paul wanted his beloved Philippians to grow:

That you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ.

Some people, even some good Catholics and Christians, try to set good works for others at variance with, or as a substitute for, deep personal holiness, oneness with Jesus.   They tend to think that they ought to be doing something for Jesus, some good work, some visible, tangible, work that helps to free at least one corner of the world from its overwhelming burden of suffering and sin: work of that nature, they feel, is much better than just ‘becoming holy’.

Of course, when they put it in that way to themselves, they are loading the dice for their own purposes, because, comparing supposedly generous works for others with the implied selfishness of oneself trying to become holy before God is totally wrong.  True holiness is the most unselfish state possible, it is entirely God centred: true holiness is love of God that leads to total forgetfulness of self, and such self-sacrifice in the likeness of Jesus, is only authentic and true when it is a spontaneously free gift, brought about indeed by the Holy Spirit, but allowed, accepted, embraced, and whole-heartedly followed, by the recipient. Such holiness is most un-common and no easy option.  True holiness, it was, that sustained the early martyrs suffering persecution under the Roman Empire; and still today continues to manifest itself in the lives of those enduring and dying for Jesus under modern fanatical or totalitarian regimes, or those saddened and oppressed by their own compatriots’ rejection of Jesus’ demanding love for easier and more pleasing worldly and/or fleshly options:

The time will come when people will not tolerate sound doctrine but, following their own desires and insatiable curiosity, will accumulate teachers and will stop listening to the truth. (2 Timothy 4:3–4)

God can always find many people to do things for Him; for many there are, who will do good things for motives that are not so good, such as self-approval or public appreciation; frequently, the very relief of working at something that occupies their mind and distracts their heart is enough for them.  Indeed, there are those to be found, as St. Paul himself experienced (Philippians 1:15–18), who will even do good things for evil reasons: 

Of course, some preach Christ from envy and rivalry, thinking that they will cause me trouble in my imprisonment.  What difference does it make, as long as in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is being proclaimed? In that I rejoice. Indeed, I shall continue to rejoice.

Therefore, let us turn back to our second reading where St. Paul spoke to the Philippians of:

Their fellowship (with him) in the gospel from the first day until now.

In that spirit of loving appreciation and gratitude he prayed most especially that:

(Their) love (might) abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment.

Dear People of God, our fellowship with St. Paul in proclaiming Christ in today’s hostile world requires that work of us which he so persuasively urged his friends at Philippi to undertake in all confidence.  It is, precisely, our essential part in the missionary work of Mother Church today; and ultimately, only such a partnership of the whole faithful Christian people in the Church’s proclamation of the Gospel will lead to the fulfilment of Isaiah’s prophecy:

All flesh shall see the salvation of God.   

1st Sunday of Advent Year C 2018

1^st. Sunday of Advent (C)

(Jeremiah 33:14-16; 1Thessalonians 3:12 - 4:2; Luke 21:25-28, 34-36)

Our readings today are all concerned with the coming of Our Lord Jesus Christ at the end of time, to do away with sin and subject all things to Himself for the glory of His Father. 

Now, it is not possible to speak of the events of those latter days using ordinary language, for they will be events unseen before and beyond all human anticipation and imagination; that is why, in the Old and New Testaments -- even when Jesus Himself is speaking  -- the language used is of a special character, called apocalyptic language, full of strange and extreme events: cosmic at times in their size and impact, always awesome and usually terrifying for mere human beings.  Therefore, because those times will be, so to speak, divine times, when the divinity of Jesus and the supernatural majesty and power of the all Holy God are revealed, they will be – for the ungodly -- times of deep darkness and great distress, such as only nature’s primeval powers can now inspire:

There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars; on the earth nations will be in dismay.   People will die of fright in anticipation of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.

In the first reading, we heard:

In those days Judah shall be safe, and Jerusalem shall dwell secure; this is what they shall call her: ‘The Lord our justice.'

Jerusalem will be safe because her inhabitants will be clothed with justice -- the supernatural God-given gift of righteousness -- says the prophet Jeremiah.  That is what St. Paul had in mind in our second reading taken from his first letter to the Thessalonians:

Finally, brothers and sisters, we earnestly ask and exhort you in the Lord Jesus that, as you received from us how you should conduct yourselves to please God – and as you are conducting yourselves – you do so even more. For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus.

Mere human beings, who have refused to live in a way pleasing to God, and who consequently, are not clothed with the righteousness of the Lord, will be unable to survive the manifestation of divine holiness on the day of His coming.  We are forewarned about this, dear People of God, every returning summer for, whether we have good eyes or weak eyes makes no difference, all of us can be blinded by the direct glare of the noon-day sun.  Likewise, immediately before the coming of the Lord, personal confidence, courage, riches or ability, self-pity or overflowing rage and anger, will be of no comfort when primeval, instinctive, terror strikes the human heart at the sight of the tumultuous seas, mountainous waves, or rivers of flaming volcanic lava in full spate.

Only those prepared by sincere conversion and divine endowment, fortified by prayer and personal love of God, will find themselves able to survive those days, as Jesus warned us:

Be vigilant at all times and pray that you have the strength to escape the tribulations that are imminent, and to stand before the Son of Man.

Since this will be the situation when God comes to bring time to a close and to destroy sin from the face of the earth; and most especially, when you think that we only have one life, that is one chance, and whoever gets it wrong cannot come back and try again, it is surely amazing that many put their trust in merely human self-appointed and self-opiniated, teachers, gurus, prophets, and guides!  Divine holiness, majesty and power will be manifested; all-seeing knowledge and inscrutable wisdom will be deployed; and yet, you find some devilishly proud and presumptuous people saying to others who are, incredibly, foolish enough to listen to them: “Follow me, do what I am doing, see how I am enjoying myself!  It won’t be that hard at the end … you just go to sleep, that is the end of everything, there’s nothing after that!”  Issues that have exercised human minds and involved human hearts and consciences from man’s beginning, which have provoked a morally unanimous religious awareness, appreciation, and response from humankind, are challenged and called into question by individuals whose pride is overwhelming and whose life but a fleeting shadow.  They come out with teachings which, seemingly human, are ultimately devilish: sexuality is not something given by nature but something to be 'more or less' genetically arranged according to personal preference; homosexuality is an equal option for life alongside marriage between a man and a woman; or again, there is no right and wrong, there is no truth, it is only a matter of social or political correctness and human upbringing; what used to be called ‘sin’ is but the result of genetic disturbance; and human life has no other dignity than what we accord it.

Dear People of God, life for us believers, is a wondrous mystery:  what is its true meaning; has it an ultimate purpose?  Mysterious too are the essential elements of life as we experience it:  what is love; how can one find happiness and peace of heart; why is life so tasteless without hope; what is justice, where is truth??  Again, why do we feel, inside, that some things are wrong; and why – having done such things, even though in secret -- do we feel disturbed, ill at ease, indeed, under threat???  Such mysterious questions as these are of vital importance, because both reason and experience teach us that life is problematical: money cannot buy happiness, worldly success or renown cannot guarantee peace of heart, nor can present pleasure foster future hope.

Here then, as we begin the season of Advent, we are urged by Mother Church to do some serious thinking.  We are bid look into our hearts to sound those hidden depths that we so rarely penetrate in our everyday life and activity, for only there can we find some appreciation and understanding of the mystery of our make-up as persons, as individuals who have been made divinely special.  For all of us do believe that we are special: none of us can tolerate injustice done against us, and we all hate lies and love truth as they affect our lives.  Who is there that does not know that life inspires hope, while death, on the other hand, provokes despair?  Inexplicably, we feel ourselves made for life, even though all things else are made and are content to die.

People of God, we Catholics are Christians -- the original and authentic Christians -- called to bring the Gospel, the Good News, to the whole world, throughout time.  And the message we are commissioned to bring is that Jesus Christ is the only answer to the mystery of human existence and the supreme hope for our human destiny: He alone can bring peace and hope into our hearts and minds, together with the strength to live and love aright both in society and as individuals.  Above all, we are to proclaim Jesus Christ as the only One Who can raise us up to aspire to a heavenly destiny; one that will be truly ours -- in and with Jesus, by His Spirit -- a destiny before God the Father which will be the glorious and eternal fulfilment of all our possibilities, powers, and longings.  Our teaching is certain and clear:

Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. (John 14:6)

I and My Father are One. (John 10:30)

How those who say: “follow me; do what I am doing; listen to me, I know”, how such people despise their brethren!  Why do I say despise?  Because they dare to imagine that the miserable prospects they offer can possibly fulfil a human being: pleasure, usually basic or even animal; success, though, even at its highest, is only for a very short time and, of itself, has no moral value; popularity, which -- basically shallow -- can only be sustained by craven conformity.

Jesus alone fully loves and truly appreciates us: He raises us to a life that is eternal and sublimely beautiful, a love that is fulfilling and divine. Indeed, He offers us a fulfilment that can penetrate to and transfigure the hidden and most intimate depths of our human and personal being.  That is why Catholics offer their whole selves to Jesus with no if’s and but’s: for example, when they marry, they offer the whole of that marriage – for better for worse, humanly speaking -- to Jesus, in the belief that, through Him and by the grace of His most Holy Spirit, their faithfully-lived Christian union will serve their own eternal destiny, mankind’s continuity and growth, and God’s loving plan of salvation for the world:

All things have been delivered to Me by My Father.  No one knows who the Son is except the Father, and no one knows who the Father is except the Son and those to whom the Son wills to reveal Him. (Luke 10:22)

Because the Father Who calls us to Jesus has committed all things to Him, so we too, who answer the Father’s call and come to Jesus as His disciples, commit all things to Him: there is nothing secret in our lives where He cannot enter, where He does not rule.  All ‘ours’, all of ‘us’, is for Jesus so that in Him we might be totally for the Father, and that we might thus come to find our eternal fulfilment in the glory and joy of His kingdom truth and love.

To that end we live in accordance with the teachings of Jesus and by His Spirit given us in Mother Church; for the Good News of Jesus comes down to us through her proclamation and teaching in all its original fullness of integrity and purity; and by her sacraments the Spirit of Jesus is sprinkled in blessing upon all that we do and are: body and soul, mind and heart, work and aspirations, yes and even our humiliations and sufferings endured for love of Jesus.

In all such ways does God’s Providence and Love govern, sustain, and guide our lives that we might ultimately be made able to humbly accept and whole-heartedly embrace what is sure to come:

(You) will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near.   

Christ the King Year B 2018

Christ the King, Year B (26.11.00)

(Dan. 7:13-14 / Apoc. 1:5-8 / John 18:33-37)

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Today, dear People of God, we are gathered to celebrate Jesus Christ our King, Son of God, Lord of Creation, and Our Saviour.   And today, Mother Church reminds us how Jesus replied to the questions of Pilate -- then Roman Governor in Judea -- regarding His Kingship:

"You are a king, then!" said Pilate.  Jesus answered, "You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to Me."

           

Jesus is King, and as King He bears witness to the truth; indeed, bearing witness to the truth is the distinctive sign and ultimate purpose of His Kingship.

Now, that gives us something to ponder; because we are, or want to be, disciples of Jesus, and He has told us: 

Everyone who is fully trained will be like his teacher. (Luke 6:40)

As Christians and above all as Catholics, we are very much aware of truth because we believe that there is a definitive truth about Jesus – sent by His Father for mankind’s salvation – a truth, about His Person and His Good News of salvation, to be learned and passed on to future generations; just as it has been handed down to us, by Mother Church, from past generations and ultimately, indeed, from Jesus and His Apostles themselves. 

Jesus is the Truth and He became incarnate, became a man, in order to bear witness to that Truth which He was and which He proclaimed.  That being the case, we can -- with gratitude and admiration -- recognize that Jesus’ Church’s cannot change Gospel Truth, the Good News, to suit changing worldly preferences or satisfy popular demands.  You will remember that, when Jesus established Peter as the rock on which He would build His Church, He said that:

            The gates of Hades will not overcome her.

What did He mean by that?  How could the gates of Hades, Satan’s dominion, overcome her?  Listen!  Jesus once told us about Satan, the devil, when speaking to some Jews:

You belong to your father, the devil. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a LIAR and the father of lies.  (John 8:44)

So you see that “the gates of Hades”, the kingdom of the devil, the father of lies, could only attempt to overcome Jesus’ Church -- our Mother -- by leading her away from Jesus the Truth into falsehood.  That can never be!  Mother Church was established by Jesus to proclaim and bear witness to His truth and to nourish with His food her children, those called by the Father to become disciples of Jesus, and those whom Jesus Himself characterized by the following words:

Everyone on the side of truth listens to Me. (John 18:37)

Jesus is the Truth; Mother Church proclaims and protects the truth about Jesus our Lord and Saviour; we, children of Mother Church, who listen to Jesus’s teaching and eat His Food and drink His Blood, are on the side of truth.

Pilate said to Jesus. "What is truth?"

In our modern society there are many who deny that there is such a thing as objective truth, all is relative to current political attitudes and our personal needs and desires.

There are many, many more who, like Pilate, don’t know what truth is and don’t bother themselves about the question, trying to fill their lives with pleasure and activity of all sorts; and they act in full accord with the devil’s constant endeavour that the question of truth should never be allowed to impinge itself on our human, God-given, conscience, lest thereby God Himself gain entrance into our lives.

Let us now think of Jesus as revered and foreseen in a vision by the prophet Daniel as you heard in our first reading:

He – One like a Son of Man -- approached the Ancient of Days and was led into His presence and was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all peoples, nations and men of every language worshiped Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and His kingdom is one that will never be destroyed. (7:13-14)

That same Jesus, we learnt from the second reading, is also:

The Alpha and the Omega, Who is, and Who was, and Who is to come, the Almighty.

Jesus -- the coming Lord of Glory -- is Truth, and His Kingdom, in all its majesty, power, and authority, is founded on truth; and we too, His disciples, have all been drawn to Him by the Father of all Good that we might learn of and be formed by the truth of Jesus and -- in our turn and by His Spirit -- ourselves become witnesses to the ultimate truthfulness  of God, to the beauty of His creation and the loving wisdom of our salvation.

Truth is our life as Christians and Catholics.  How do we live it?  Is it just a matter of trying not to tell lies?  That, of course, is absolutely essential.  The devil is the father of lies, we cannot serve him.  But we can only come to share in the Kingdom of God with Jesus our King if truth rules in each and every aspect of our lives as Catholics. 

When God chose some slaves to become His own Chosen People to fulfil His purposes on earth, He recued them from the objective evil of slavery and oppression and gave them a Law of objective truth to form them aright for His purposes through His servant Moses.   That Law demanded that the Chosen People learn -- first and foremost -- to practice OBEDIENCE, religious fear and awe, vis-a-vis their ‘Choosing God’, and also to gradually learn, as His Chosen People, to trust Him Who was leading them through desert wastes towards the Promised Land.

On being given that land -- their own, Promised Land -- the Chosen People (Luke 1:74-75):

Being freed from the hands of their enemies might serve the Lord their God without fear, in holiness and righteousness before Him all their days.

That initial and salutary obedience, that modicum of growing trust – having been learnt though painfully at times -- enabled them to:

Serve the Lord their God without fear, in holiness and righteousness before Him all their days.

Notice the change: they are now to SERVE; no longer ‘obey’ first and foremost, but serve wholeheartedly, which is, indeed, a far, far, better form of obedience:

in holiness and righteousness before Him all their days.

Moreover, the written Law was no longer their only approach to God; in their own Promised Land they were given Judges and Prophets to protect them from their enemies and to inspire them in their understanding of and response to the God Who was calling them to become ever more truly His Chosen People for His purposes and their well-being.

So, we are far from the original Chosen-People-making, Obedience-above-all, disciplinary relationship with the One Who was calling them; now they were expected, being helped and inspired, to Serve Him with ever deeper understanding and appreciation, with an ever more grateful and confident – yes, self-sacrificing when necessary -- trust.

Fleeing slaves having become God’s Chosen People were still being called by their God to become what???   Children of God!!!  Yes, adopted children of the omnipotent, all-holy, all-knowing and eternal God, through the gift of His beloved and only-begotten Son to His Chosen People’s supreme flower, the Virgin Mary of Nazareth, to become Jesus, Son of God and Son of Man, for the salvation of all mankind:

For this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to Me."

All peoples, nations and men of every language (will) worship Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and His kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.

Now, if we are to be authentic disciples of Jesus, we have to endeavour to understand the ramifications of truth.  For example, can anyone who is always worrying about self be recognized as an authentic disciple of Jesus?  To love Jesus means also, surely, to trust Him.  Again, if, when trouble comes along, a disciple repeatedly turns to human beings for help and consolation without recourse to Jesus in prayer, can such a disciple be considered an authentic disciple?  We have to be true disciples.  Again, if we never speak up for Jesus, His teaching, and His Church, no matter what people say against Him, can we be considered authentic and true disciples?  Can parents who leave the teaching of their children exclusively to the school, without ever themselves speaking of Jesus with their children, be regarded as authentic Catholic, Christian, parents?

We have to serve Jesus sincerely, seeking Him first and foremost, we cannot allow worldly riches and prosperity, human popularity or approval, personal pride or idle indifference to rule and determine our lives.  Trying to be authentic, treasuring and seeking the promise of heaven above all, we should allow the Holy Spirit to authoritatively guide our lives and resist the corrosive influence of the spirit of the world around us.

People of God, Jesus is King and He is calling us to share with Him in the joys of His Kingdom and that ultimate aspect of Jesus’ truth for us, DELIGHT IN HIM, needs expression in our lives.  We are not just to speak the truth, to witness to the truth, we must love the truth of Jesus, and that delight in God must begin to shine in our lives here on earth if we are to eat with Him at His Father’s banquet in the Kingdom of Heaven as children of light.  Each and every one of us must think for ourselves: is Jesus indeed my King, first and foremost in my life?  Does His will rule me?  Do His love, His goodness, His beauty and truth, DELIGHT ME?     

You have been called by the Father, because you have come to Jesus in the Church.  However, the way we all have to travel is long and it can be steep and hard in places, and we, in our frailty and weakness, can so easily begin to slumber along the way; forgetting our original calling, we can begin to find our delight in present, worldly, experiences and pleasures.  Future heavenly promises can then come to seem unreal and our faith unrewarding.  That is the devil’s work.  He is THE liar.  The pleasures you are turning to are only for a time and they become inevitably less and less delightful as the years go by, and you can be robbed of them by so many unforeseen events and circumstances.  Heavenly promises, on the contrary are eternal, they seem small, like the mustard seed, to begin with, but grow ever more wonderful over the years and ultimately not even death itself will be able to rob you of them.

Look to yourselves, therefore, dear People of God: take legitimate pride in your calling, but above all, in your King.  You are called to become like Him Who is the Truth: so, persevere in truth, be His true disciples and the truth will make you free and you will be enabled to dine and to reign with Him in His Father’s heavenly Kingdom.