Ah home, I'm quite happy to be here, in spite of the coolness, rain, and chores. Things have changed a little bit since the last time I was here, as they are wont to do when one returns only three times a year, but they're nice changes. Except for the bat signal in the china cabinet, that's just my parents' weird sense of humor. I wanted to write today about the parting message I heard in the Mass readings for the Ascension, which I thought would be a great message for pretty much everyone, so listen up!
In the second reading from the letter to the Ephesians, Paul says, "I, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to live in a manner worthy of the call you have received, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another through love, striving to preserve the unity of the spirit through the bond of peace..." We're coming off a great year for Catholics, what with making our presence known and felt with Komen and the HHS Mandate, and I know things only going to get bigger from here on out. Now more than ever, it's important for us to continue to live as Christ commands us to, not only because now we've made a name for ourselves, but because summer is a time where we typically get a little bit lax because we have less to do (or at least we students do). I know that definitely happened to me last summer, but this year I hope every Catholic can keep the momentum rolling all through the summer, so that we can come back as the true tour de force that we are.
Relating to this passage, My school's chaplain mentioned in his homily that it is the joy and forgiveness of the Christian which draws people to him. Even if we're not all able to make it to daily Mass and Adoration (I definitely won't be able to at home), these are things we should be cultivating interiorly in preparation not only for this coming year, but for life in general. Nobody will want to come to Christ if they see gloomy, boring Christians, and that's exactly what we aren't! If we can draw people to Christ through our joy and forgiveness, then we will be doing more good than a thousand campaigns and lawsuits ever will.
In the Gospel, Christ says, "Go into the whole world and proclaim the gospel to every creature." This is called the Great Commission, and it applies just as much today as it did when He gave it two millennia ago. However, I'm also keeping in mind a quote from St. Francis of Assisi, "Preach the Gospel at all times, and when necessary, use words." I'm sure we've all been approached at some point by a well-meaning person wanted to tell us about Jesus, and were not really so keen on hearing what they had to say. Our thought has always been about presenting a message by the way we live and by the people we are, and that's worked really well. We should always remember that even though people may know us, we still need to be preaching the Gospel by our lives. The world still needs our witness!
Finally, and having nothing to do with the Ascension or preaching the Gospel, I have a great blog recommendation! If anyone is getting tired of reading my forceful, though attempting to be poetic, drivel, my friend Joe has an amazing blog called A Voice Cries Out: A Catholic's Journey in Faith. He is a great writer (much better than I am), and full of faith and common sense. He's a fantastic person to know, and his blog gives a glimpse of his stunningly beautiful faith. I hope you'll like his blog as much as I do, if you haven't already discovered it.
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