|
|
“If you don't behave as you believe, you will end by believing as you behave.”
― Fulton J. Sheen
(Orthodoxy and orthopraxy go hand-in-hand. How can you better "walk the walk" this day.)
|
|
|
1 TM 6:2C-12; PS 49:6-7, 8-10, 17-18, 19-20
LK 8:1-3
Jesus journeyed from one town and village to another,
preaching and proclaiming the good news of the Kingdom of God.
Accompanying him were the Twelve
and some women who had been cured of evil spirits and infirmities,
Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out,
Joanna, the wife of Herod’s steward Chuza,
Susanna, and many others
who provided for them out of their resources.
USCCB lectionary
|
Reflection on the Scripture
|
"For when he dies, he shall take none of it; his wealth shall not follow him down." —Psalm 49:18
According to Sirach in the Old Testament, "life's prime needs are water, bread, and clothing, a house, too, for decent privacy" (Sir 29:21). The New Testament may indicate that the basic needs of human beings have been reduced by Jesus' coming (see Lk 9:58), for "if we have food and clothing we have all that we need" (1 Tm 6:8). Basic needs, according to the Bible, are very different from what most people today call basic needs. Today, in industrialized countries, transportation (like a car) and
entertainment (a TV) are considered basic needs. Even the poor expect to eat more than bread and water. And items such as meat, sugar, and coffee are considered as the barest necessities!
Even if we don't think the Lord wants us to take literally these Biblical passages, He is at the least commanding us to drastically simplify our lives, to reappraise as loss those things we used to consider gain (Phil 3:7). "The world with its seductions is passing away but the man who does God's will endures forever" (1 Jn 2:17). The Lord is calling us to "have no love for the world, nor the things that the world
affords" (1 Jn 2:15).
Pope St. John Paul II has warned us: "We need to turn to a more austere way of life...I therefore exhort the disciples of Christ and all Christian communities...to carry out a sincere review of their lives regarding their solidarity with the poor" (Mission of the Redeemer, 59, 60). In love for Jesus, let's be among the first in our society to align our ways of living with the truth of God's Word.
Prayer: Father, although my lifestyle doesn't make sense in our secularized culture, may it make sense on Judgment Day.
Promise: "We brought nothing into this world, nor have we the power to take anything out." —1 Tm 6:7
Praise: St. Andrew and his companions, of all ages, were martyred during several persecutions in Korea.
Presentation Ministries
|
|
|
Abandonment to Divine Providence
- by Jean-Pierre de Caussade
BOOK II,
CHAPTER I. ON THE NATURE AND EXCELLENCE OF THE STATE OF ABANDONMENT
SECTION IV. Abandonment: A Source of Joy
The life of faith, and the instinct of faith are one and the same. It is an enjoyment of the goods of God, and a confidence founded on the expectation of His protection, making everything pleasant and received with a good grace. It is indifference to, and at the same time a preparation for every place, state, or person. Faith is never unhappy even when the senses are most desolate. This lively faith is always
in God, always in His action above contrary appearances by which the senses are darkened. The senses, in terror, suddenly cry to the soul, “Unhappy one! You have now no resource, you are lost,” and instantly faith with a stronger voice answers: “Keep firm, go on, and fear nothing.”
|
|
Paperback, Hardback, Kindle
|
|
Please support this outreach with a tax-deductible donation.
|
|
|
