“I prayed, and prudence was given me; I pleaded, and the spirit of wisdom came to me.” Wisdom 7:7
“For human beings it is impossible, but not for God.” Mark 10:27
Piety
http://www.usccb.org/nab/101506.shtml
God, we have learned that only you are good and only you can do the impossible. Even though we are weak, you can help us meet the standards set by Jesus for entering the Kingdom. Help us to give up what is not needed for the sake of your Kingdom.
Free us from earthly attachments that force us to protect what we possess instead of aspiring to your Goodness. Help us to enter through the narrow gate. Amen.
Study
By Rev. Joe McCloskey, S.J.
What I am willing to give up for the sake of the kingdom of heaven is not as simple as I once thought. Christ gave up heaven to be one of us.
He emptied himself out of his goodness to be human. He who is God became a slave for all of us. God has shown us how to love. And the question of how to respond is more than just the keeping of the commandments even if Christ said; "If you love me, keep the commandments."
Following Christ is an invitation to be just like him. Love goes toward unity. Closeness to Christ is learned by following in his footsteps. The young man of our gospel wanted to know what he needed to do to inherit eternal life. He had kept the commandments from his youth. Jesus saw him as a good man and invited him to something more. The invitation to sell what he had and give to the poor and then to come and follow Jesus was asking too much of the young man because he would have to give up a lot.
Genuine, permanent happiness is had in following the Lord. The young man went away sad. He was too attached to what he had.
Discernment of what the Lord is asking of us needs freedom from earthly attachments. Many of our decisions in life are made trying to protect what we have. It takes prayer and more prayer to hear what the Lord is asking of us. We have to get by our likes and dislikes. The grace of indifference is the beginning of wisdom. God will teach us what we need to know to get into heaven by the narrow gate. The "eye of the needle" of our gospel story is a gate within a gate which a camel can enter when it kneels down and pushes itself forward by inching along. We too need to do some kneeling to find out what God is asking of us.
Action
Instead of filling our households with more excessive consumer products, let us follow the Psalmist’s advice and plead:
Fill us with your love, O Lord, and we will sing for joy! Psalm 90
If we get what we ask for, maybe we should be asking for more of the qualities sought in the Book of Widsom.
1 comment:
Hello LK,
You are on the right track with this article, but there are some key errors. Be patient with what I have to say...
Two Ways, Paths, and the Narrow Gate
Be aware that what I say is intended to make people uncomfortable with the status quo so we can finally forge that long promised new path to the future. Here is the chance to truly understand the Creator’s expectations. The truth will be a bitter pill to many, so remember that patience and humility are wise virtues and scoffing causes blindness.
Many Christians speak of the straight and narrow gates, doors, or paths without comprehending the true meaning of this symbolism. Thanks to historical and doctrinal errors resulting in confusing language in the New Testament and other sources, the true meaning of these verses and other philosophical discussions of dualism are so poorly and vaguely presented that people have been forced to rely on the interpretations of religious leaders, that have unfortunately been the primary sources and perpetuators of confusion.
Christians often quote things like "know them by their fruits," yet after millennia of being duped into abetting blatantly evil scoundrels, many still don't understand the meaning or import of much of what they read. The same canon paradoxically propounds "faith," which means the complete opposite of "know them by their fruits," i.e., to discern the truth by analyzing deeds and results (works) and to weigh actions instead of merely believing what is said.
What then is the purpose of "faith" but to prevent otherwise good people from seeking to understand truth and wisdom?
Read more....
Doctrine of Two Spirits
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