The Lord Hears The Cry of the Poor

When I woke up today, the first thing I saw on the news was that we could very possibly enter into a war with North Korea, and this could very well involve nuclear weapons:

The top American general in South Korea said Wednesday that self-restraint was all that kept the United States and South Korea from going to war with North Korea, as the South’s defense minister indicated that the North’s first intercontinental ballistic missile had the potential to reach Hawaii.  

News like this does not exactly put a bounce in my step. Our world lives on the edge, and we never know when it is going to tip so far over there is no going back. But for those who trust in the Lord, who have experienced the peace that surpasses all understanding which comes from being the recipient of His great love and mercy, even news of a potential nuclear war does not disturb our inner peace.

Is Anything Too Marvelous For The LORD To Do?

I believe one of the greatest sins we can commit is to limit God. What does that mean? To limit God is to believe that God thinks and views reality as you do. It is to believe that you, despite being a sinful, fallen human being, have the mind of God, and therefore, your views and opinions are on a par with the Mind of God. If you believe something is wrong, then it is wrong, If you believe something is right, then it is right. If you believe something can't be done, then it can't be done. Limiting God actually breaks the First Commandment - have no other gods before me - because you are making yourself into God.

Limiting God is the exact opposite of faith. Those who limit God say this is what God thinks and this is what God does, no more and no less. Faith says God is so far beyond my comprehension that I can't begin to fathom how He thinks. Faith says I am a sinner with a twisted, distorted and microscopically small view of reality. I am like an ant crawling on the ground with an ant's view of the world and the universe. An ant believes the only way to do things is the way he does them, by crawling around on the ground. Likewise, one who limits God, i.e. a faithless person, believes his way is the only way. If something doesn't fit into his understanding, then it can't be done. End of discussion.

Daily Meditation: The Miracle of Conversion

Today is the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul.  It is a miracle any time a sinner turns away from his sins and accepts the grace and salvation of Jesus Christ.  But one of the greatest conversion stories in history - and probably the greatest conversion story of all - is that of Saul of Tarsus a/k/a St. Paul.  It is so great that Holy Mother Church has actually made a feast day commemorating Paul's conversion.

Daily Meditation: Bringing Light to a Darkened World

Today's readings mirror, in many ways, the re-creation of the world.  In Genesis 1, we are told that the first creation of God was light:

Genesis 1:1-4:

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.

And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness.

Just as God's first act of physical creation was to bring light to a darkened world, so in bringing us to eternal redemption, the first thing Our Lord does is bring light into our darkened lives.  

Daily Meditation: Playing The Fool For Christ

We are made to be social creatures. We all want to belong, we all want to be regarded highly by other people. We all want to be "cool". When I was a child in the 1960's, it was "cool" to be counterculture, to reject the values of our parents and society in general and find our "own way", and "do our own thing", which actually boiled down to throwing off all moral constraint. But "doing your own thing" really meant following everyone around you. We tried to pretend we didn't need others, but in reality, we could not reject our own need for social acceptance.

Daily Meditation: Mercy Is Front and Center

Jesus Christ came to this earth with a message of compassion, love and mercy.  Many say that the Gospel of Love does away with the law, but that is not what Our Lord said,  He told us he came to fulfill the law (Mt. 5:17).  How did our Lord accomplish this?  Today's readings give us a vivid illustration of this great message.

Daily Meditation: Do As He Says, Even When It Makes No Sense

I don't know if I will be successful at this, but I would like to try to do a small meditation on each day's readings.  I am doing it much more for myself than anyone else, but if others can benefit - either from agreeing or disagreeing with me - then so much the better.