Once we begin to change our perspective through the renewal of our mind, then we will be better enabled to “judge what is God’s will, what is good, pleasing and perfect.” This was the model Jesus left us. In his humanity, he made the will of the Father the foundation of all he did and said. “I have come to do the will of him who sent.” “My food is to do the will of him who sent me.?
In his teachings he directed us to follow his example. "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.” (Mt 7:21) “But seek first the kingdom (of God) and his righteousness,” (Mt 6:33)
Since the will of God is so essential for us to know and to follow, God doesn’t want us to be left in a hit and miss situation. That is why he has given us the Spirit of Truth so that we can come to the correct knowledge of truth as well as to have the courage to act on this truth. In baptism and confirmation we have been given the Spirit to dwell in us and to empower us. With the Spirit comes all the gifts of the Spirit we need to come to clarity of God’s will for our sanctification: wisdom, knowledge, understanding, right judgement, fortitude, piety and fear of the Lord. The same Spirit anoints us with the gifts for service and ministry for the up building of the Body of Christ. (To be continued)
In the transformation process, conversion is the first step: turning away from sin and turning back to God. Conversion presumes true initial and on-going repentance for sin. Conversion opens us to the life of sanctifying grace, which is sharing God’s life as adopted sons and daughters. Initial conversion must be sustained by further purification of areas of sin in our lives which limit the depth and intensity of our life with God. This purification takes place through the healing of memories, scared by previous sins–our own and those of others. The focus is the uprooting of sin from our lives.
There is a point in our journey when, while we continue to deal with sin, it is not the focus of our efforts. We become more concerned about replacing the negative influence of sin with the positive influence of life in Christ. This process is described by Paul in this way: “You must lay aside your former way of life and the old self which deteriorates through illusion and desire, and acquiring a fresh, spiritual way of thinking. You must put on that new man created in God’s image, whose justice and holiness are born of truth.” (Eph 4:22-24)
It is the call to put on the mind of Christ. To think as Christ would think; to choose as Christ would choose; to be renewed in our minds. Where to begin? Paul says that we are to grow in our ability “to bring every thought into captivity to make it obedient to Christ.” (2 Cor 10:5) We have no control over what comes into our mind, the thoughts we think. But we do have control of what we do once we become conscious of our thoughts. The rule of thumb we are to follow is spelled out by Paul: “Your thoughts should be wholly directed to all that is true, all that deserves respect, all that is honest, pure, admirable, decent, virtuous, or worthy of praise.” (Phil 4:9) What is not, is to be filtered out. We know what would happen to the air in our house if it is not filtered. The same is true with the air of our spiritual life. If we don’t take captive the thoughts which are not in harmony with our relationship with Christ, then we will become captive by these thoughts and their consequential actions. (To be continued)
“Do not conform yourselves to this age but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, so that you may judge what is God’s will, what is good, pleasing and perfect.” (Rom 12:2)
The word “transformation” in its literal meaning indicates a change of the form or makeup of something. Given that understanding, spiritual transformation calls for the change of the way we view things, the way we make choices, the way we understand things. We have been formed in our thinking and willing by our environment, by the morals of society, by the shifting of opinions. Years ago, prayer was part of our public life, whether in school or at home. Today prayer is relegated to a private matter. Over two centuries ago this country was founded on the principles of religious freedom; God was part of our public life. Today, separation of church and state is interpreted as to mean no mention of God in schools or public places; prayer is to be non-descript at least and non-existent at best. By the effort of a small minority, we are being transformed from a God-fearing nation to a God-absent nation. We are gradually becoming more pagan and immoral than ancient Rome and Greece; more barbarous and violent than the worse times in the Dark Ages; we have aborted more children than all those killed in the Holocaust.
Transformation is the answer. It is the revelation of the Word of God to us. This transformation is at the heart of our spiritual journey to holiness. Permit me to quickly sketch out the steps to the holiness God desires for us. Each of these steps is prepared for and experienced as a result of the gift of grace from God. It is this initiative of God, who loves us first, which enables us to respond to the call of God to be holy. (To be continued)
Solemnity of the Birth of John the Baptist
When the time arrived for Elizabeth to have her child she gave birth to a son. Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown his great mercy toward her,
and they rejoiced with her.
· The great mercy: she had been barren for many years and was past child-bearing age when she conceived.
· How has God shown his great mercy to you?
When they came on the eighth day to circumcise the child, they were going to call him Zechariah after his father, but his mother said in reply, “No. He will be called John.” But they answered her, “There is no one among your relatives who has this name.”
· Through circumcision the male child became covenanted to Yahweh and was incorporated into the People of God.
· Baptism for us goes beyond circumcision. We share the very life of God as his son or daughter and are freed from all sin and alienation from God.
· “John” was the name given to him by God through the angel, when his conception was prophesied.
So they made signs, asking his father what he wished him to be called.
· Remember Zechariah has been unable to speak once the angel revealed God’s plan and seemingly Zechariah had some doubts.
He asked for a tablet and wrote, “John is his name,” and all were amazed.
· It was the role of the father to name the child. He confirmed Elizabeth’s decision, However, the people were amazed because he who was mute before the conception of the child is now able to speak after the birth of the child.
Immediately his mouth was opened, his tongue freed, and he spoke blessing God.
· Zechariah’s faith and obedience to God led to his healing.
· How submissive and obedient are we to God’s plan in our life?
Then fear came upon all their neighbors, and all these matters were discussed throughout the hill country of Judea. All who heard these things took them to heart, saying, “What, then, will this child be?” For surely the hand of the Lord was with him.
· First, the conception was a miracle. Second, the freedom from muteness was a miracle. No wonder the people were amazed and questioned the future of this child in God’s plan.
· Where do we see God working in our lives and in the lives of others?
What does this culture of death look like? It is an attempt to capture the mind and will of people and to shape the moral values not according to the Gospel of life but the gospel of profit, not according to the Gospel of truth but the gospel of deception, not according to the Gospel of the Commandments but the gospel of pleasure and satisfaction, not according to the Gospel of faith but the gospel of feelings, not according to the Gospel of the one true God but the gospel of the gods secularism and materialism.
What are the slogans of the culture of death and the gospel of the world? Might makes right; me first; if it feels good, it must be good; everybody is doing it; there is no objective truth or morality, everything is subjective and relative; the rights of the individual is supreme over all other rights; it is a woman’s right to choose to conceive or not, to abort or not; it is a dog eat dog world.
What are some of the fruits of this culture of death and the gospel of pleasure and satisfaction?
1) Millions of abortions performed each year.
2) Over 1 million children have been abused each year.
3) Each year several million of teens infected with a sexually transmitted disease each year
4) Over 10,000 people between the ages of 16 and 24 die each year in alcohol-related accidents of various kinds.
6) More than one million divorces occur per year in the US; A steady rise in the number of single-parent householders; one third of all school-aged children live with one parent; in more than 50% of all households, both parents must seek employment outside the home; mobility: more than 20% of American families change their residence annually or more often.
7) It is estimated that right now around the globe, there are 170 million drug abusers.
This is just the tip of the iceberg.
What is the answer? “Do not conform yourselves to this age but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, so that you may judge what is God’s will, what is good, pleasing and perfect.”
Today, we will begin a reflection on Romans 12:2.
“Do not conform yourselves to this age but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, so that you may judge what is God’s will, what is good, pleasing and perfect.”
If we are looking for a way to grow in the life of God, this passage from Rom 12:2 is a good place to start.
Paul was well aware of his own era and the difficulties it presented to the baptized Christians, who had died to sin and lived in Christ through Baptism. It was an era which he described thus: “The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against the irreligious and perverse spirit of men who, in this perversity of theirs, hinder the truth....They certainly had knowledge of God, yet they did not glorify him as God or give him thanks; they stultified themselves through speculating to no purpose, and their senseless hearts were darkened. They claimed to be wise, but turned into fools instead; they exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images representing mortal men... In consequence, God delivered them up in their lusts to unclean practices; they engaged in the mutual degradation of their bodies, these men who exchanged the truth of God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator...They are filled with every kind of wickedness: maliciousness, greed, ill will, envy, murder, bickering, deceit, craftiness. They are gossips and slanders, they hate God, are insolent, haughty, boastful, ingenious in their wrongdoing and rebellious....One sees in them men without conscience, without loyalty, without affection, without pity.”(Rom 18-31)
How different is our culture and environment today? Not much, maybe worse. Paul sought to change the culture he lived in; but was more concerned with changing the response of the true believers and followers of Jesus to the culture. In the thoughts of John Paul II, we are to evangelize the culture rather than to let the culture influence and change us. Like Paul and the early Christians, we are faced with a culture of death; we are to create for ourselves and live in a culture of life. (To be continued)
The purpose of each of these oases of deep spiritual springs in the desert journey is to enable us to confront sin in our lives. It is only when we are ready to let go control of this area of our life, to allow God through his power to crush the hardness of our heart, to yield to the Lord's timing and process, that a break through can take place and we can be transported to new spiritual heights. Only then can the desert journey end for the time being until God calls us once more to grow into greater holiness.
It is God who leads us into the desert. Listen to the words of the prophet Hosea concerning the infidelity of Israel: "So I will allure her, I will lead her into the desert and speak to her heart" (Hosea 2:16). And when we are ready to respond to the Lord again with our whole heart, it is God who leads us out of the desert. Again, listen to the joyful words of God through the mouth of the same prophet: "I will espouse you to me forever; I will espouse you in right and in justice, in love and in mercy; I will espouse you in fidelity, and you shall know the Lord....I will say...'You are my people,' and (you) shall say, 'My God.'" (Hosea 2: 21-22, 25) (Concluded)
