I Glorify You on Earth

May 26, 2009

Memorial of Saint Philiph Neri, priest

By Beth DeCristofaro

I served the Lord with all humility and with the tears and trials that came to me
because of the plots of the Jews, and I did not at all shrink from telling you what was for your benefit, or from teaching you in public or in your homes. I earnestly bore witness for both Jews and Greeks to repentance before God and to faith in our Lord Jesus. (Acts 20, 19-21)

Jesus raised his eyes to heaven and said, "Father, the hour has come. Give glory to your son, so that your son may glorify you, just as you gave him authority over all people,so that your son may give eternal life to all you gave him. (John 17:1-2)

Piety

Thank you Lord God, for my personality, my quirks, my strengths and yes, my weak-nesses in which I can find common ground with others. Thank you, God for taking on my burdens, my sorrow and my fears. Thank you, God, for offering me salvation in a finite and inadequate world. My God, direct my life and direct my death. (From Psalm 68)

Study

(Jesus) raised his eyes to heaven and said …

… I do not pray for the world but for the ones you have given me, because they are yours, and everything of mine is yours and everything of yours is mine, and I have been glorified in them. (John 17:9,10) The June issue of Catholic Digest has an article about disabled musician, Patrick Henry Hughes, who states “My father is my hero.” The interview details Patrick’s struggles and triumph over numerous physical ailments encouraged by his dad. In turn his father, Patrick John Hughes, speaks about his wife’s patience as he learned to be an unselfish husband and parent to their three sons.

…I glorified you on earth by accomplishing the work that you gave me to do. (John 17: 1, 4) This faith-filled family is remarkable in many ways while being so very average at the same time. Their love, hope and mutual support gives them the ability to persevere. Their lives give glory to God and reflect the relationship of indomitable love between Jesus and his Father and the incredible impact that love had on Creation. In fact, the Hughes family is one of many families called upon to deal with unexpected and undeserved adversity. Their reliance on God is what Jesus lives and what He asks of his friends and of us. The Hughes family belongs to God who shares their burdens.

… I revealed your name to those whom you gave me out of the world. They belonged to you, and you gave them to me, (John 17:6) Jesus invites us to share in this relationship of love. He reveals to us that we are God’s just as He, himself, is of God. God knows us, before we are. Who we are and what we are is rooted in this outpouring of divine love. Jesus spent his ministry teaching and preparing his friends to continue this outpouring. If we want to be his friends it is our holy burden and sacred responsibility to do the same. In accepting the task we become part of this divine relationship, fueled by the indwelling Trinity which transforms the universe, the world and ultimately us. In accepting this task we can transform our lives, glorifying God.

Action

… I pray for them. I do not pray for the world but for the ones you have given me, because they are yours, and everything of mine is yours and everything of yours is mine, and I have been glorified in them. (John 17:9-10) Whether disabled, “normal”, troubled, gifted, happy, sad, fearful, or gutsy, Christ calls us to be one with Him and God. Can I look at my life and say that I glorify God in my thoughts, my heart, and my actions? Mother Theresa is said to have stated: “It is not enough to believe in Jesus, you must be Jesus.” How am I Jesus to those I love and to those I struggle to tolerate?