Truth is always vindicated in time and suffering is temporary - “Do your time”…..And look to the East

Today at Holy Mass we hear in the Gospel of Luke Jesus addressing the idea of Light….Clearly we all know that without light, we can not see, especially at night…..Jesus however is not talking about physical sight when he references "Light" in this text….And the "Light" Jesus addresses in this passage is tangibly felt even by those who oppose and deny the very exist of Christ - To this very day….....Why?…....Because when the Light of God is witnessed…Its blinding - More so then the sun…The hardest of men and the darkest of hearts can not deny it…..”Jesus said to the crowd: "No one who lights a lamp conceals it with a vessel or sets it under a bed; rather, he places it on a lamp-stand so that those who enter may see the light. For there is nothing hidden that will not become visible, and nothing secret that will not be known and come to light”….This Light Jesus communicated to us today at Mass is what our world desperately thirsts for - Whether it is realized or not…So much so, that the secular world has tried to create substitutes for this Light….But just as the dew of the morning is dried up by the rising sun…No substitute compared to the Light of God can measure up or can satisfy the human heart….We as Catholics, through Sacramental grace, daily prayer and fasting have the opportunity to be filled with this Light - What a privilege has been given to us!…..And when this Light is witnessed by the world….Such a witness can not be overcome nor can it be denied…..”You tell a tree by the fruit it bears”…..This "Light" Jesus addresses to the crowd speaks for itself…….We must give God permission to give us this Light…..St John tells us very clearly in his Gospel….”The Light shines in the darkness - And the darkness could not overcome it”……To not believe that, is to not believe reality…The pages of history echo this reality time and time again…In the end, the Light shines….And the darkness runs for cover.

“Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father”

When the darkness of this world appears to win…Know this - The win is temporary and will not last…..To understand this reality can enable a person to endure anything…..In time, the darkness will flee…Man will have his hour - But God will have his day - Bank on that………..What keeps us from fully embracing this Truth? - We are unwilling to endure the trials that come before Truth wins the day…....Endure whatever comes your way - Endure it with gladness and pride - That God considered you worthy to suffer for his name…..”Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of evil against you falsely because of me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven. Thus they persecuted the prophets who were before you”…….How many people in history were considered fools - Only to have their life’s witness vindicated in time…The list is so long I could fill one hundred books…..Joan of Arc, Thomas More, Edith Stein, Oscar Romero to name a few....…I could rattle on all day!….What separates these people from the rest?….Their rock solid Catholic faith in God...…These men and woman saw passed the “noise” of their day...….We must do the same…And in order to “see” in this manner, we must fortify our self with daily prayer and Sacramental grace….This kind of “vision” is very real…This is how the saints and the prophets, that echo throughout the pages of history "shine a Light" that could not be extinguished…..Once again - For this to happen, we must be willing to endure hardship…....And that is where the rubber meets the road - Where the sheep are separated from the goats……Jesus ran towards the trials of mankind, not away from them…And so must we……”Do your time” and do it well……What we endure in this life is only a moment

“Although they go forth weeping, carrying the seed to be sown, They shall come back rejoicing”

Today we are reminded by St Luke - He tells us that the Truth wins…I think we all know that…But before it wins there is a cost to pay…Jesus showed us this in the most radical way…And each of us, to one degree or the other - Will also have to “pay a price” - Do not run from suffering - Endure it willingly and with joy…..”For there is nothing hidden that will not become visible, and nothing secret that will not be known and come to light”…..Truth is always vindicated in time and suffering is temporary - “Do your time”…..And look to the East……………..JMJ