May the Light of Christ fill you!
Jesus tells us that a candle is not lit to be put under a bushel basket. It is lit and put up high in order to give light. A Christian community is evangelized in order to evangelize! That is what a true community is like: it is a group of men, women and young people who have found the truth and joy of Christ and the Gospel and they sincerely try to follow it and share it with others. When they assemble for the liturgy, they experience God’s action of grace: a purifying renewal, they are strengthened in purpose and vision and support each other. They carry on the mission together. It has never been an individual journey or conversion. It has always been and will always be a community pilgrimage and conversion. It is a family of faith that believes in God and accepts God. In this family setting each one finds friendship, brother or sister as a source of strength and in moments of weakness they help one another. Although different, they are united in faith. By loving and supporting one another they give light and example. Christians preach by their own lives. They avoid harboring grudges and harsh judgements toward others because they know this is a sin against the Body of Christ and the unity that we are called to. Everyone who loves God and accepts his word hears the call to follow him in a new way each day. Our nation and our towns need to be guided by the light of the Gospel. Each person has some positive thing from God to contribute and promote what is good! This is a reality that God makes happen in his people’s lives. One day when the mailman delivered the mail, I smiled and waved saying “thank you! Have a good day!” He responded: “thanks for saying that. I was just chewed out by someone a few minutes ago.” I had no idea what he was going through but the simple word and gesture became a light to dispel the darkness and gloom. God is always at work to help his people!
May his blessings always be with you! +++ Fr. Peter