Don’t you realize - Its through our wounds that the light enters

Today at Holy Mass as Advent moves forward……We hear once again from the Prophet Isaiah…..There are many voices clamoring for attention in our society today….Some of those voices are worth listening too - Others are not….To this very day - The voice of Isaiah shakes the foundation of the world - Speaking personally, whenever there is a reading at Mass taken from the Book of Isaiah, I am all ears….We are told today…..”On the day the LORD binds up the wounds of his people, he will heal the bruises left by his blows”……..God is not an ogre!…..Jesus came among us to heal us - Heal us from what you may say? - From our sins!…..Does our world today even believe in sin any more?……This is why Christ came - He is the Divine Physician!…..Isaiah continues…..”He will be gracious to you when you cry out, as soon as he hears he will answer you. The Lord will give you the bread you need and the water for which you thirst”…….Before this all happens, we must acknowledge our need for God - That we are sinners in need of a savior…That our “flesh is weak”……..That we are in need of grace…..In order to receive that grace, we must open our hearts to it…..Grace like rain is constantly falling from the sky, we need to “put down our umbrella” and allow that grace to cover us from head to toe…..This is how we are healed….This is how our wounds will be “bound up”…..Outside of that grace, we walk around wounded......….”At the sight of the crowds, his heart was moved with pity for them because they were troubled and abandoned, like sheep without a shepherd”………..A father sees the struggle of his children and he “does something about it”…......This is the job of every baptized Catholic…....This is why Jesus founded a Church….."The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest."

“The LORD is our Judge, our Lawgiver, our King; he it is who will save us”

Many years ago during Advent I traveled to Kolkata, India with a group of Americans from New York. On this particular trip, a Franciscan Priest, Fr Leo Fischer CFR, came along…..Fr Leo was a Texan, who almost made it to the major leagues as a second basemen…He never told me how he heard his call to the priesthood, but I am sure it was a no small occurrence for such a big change in one’s life….Fr Leo was a great guy to travel with…….Super low key and we shared many good laughs……After each day of serving the people of Kolkata with Mother Teresa’s sisters, all the sisters and volunteers from around the world would head to the main chapel for Eucharistic Adoration…..Unannounced, Fr Leo would sit in the corner of the chapel and make himself available for confession….I would always marvel at who would get up and go to give their confession…..Nuns and volunteers alike…One particular person caught my eye this one evening…..She was a volunteer, I believe from Australia, a young woman with dreadlocks and all kinds of tattoos……By the looks of this young girl, one would think she would have been the last person to go to Confession…..I always will remember this sight because it brought me a tremendous amount of joy - It was the strangest of sights too - A priest with a robe and long beard talking to this girl who looked like she just got out of a Grateful Dead Concert…..Jesus tells us in St Matthew’s Gospel……“Amen, I say to you, tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God before you. When John came to you in the way of righteousness, you did not believe him; but tax collectors and prostitutes did. Yet even when you saw that, you did not later change your minds and believe him”…......How quick we are to assume certain people are “hopeless”….....How quick we are also to assume that we will enter into the Kingdom of Heaven - Convinced of our own rightnesses!!!…..People sometimes surprise us - Allow them to surprise you!…..And in the meantime - Our Lord waits patiently……As we saw in this reflection - God turned a Texas baseball star into a holy priest and a crazy tattooed hippie back to the state of grace…....What does God have in store for you this Advent?…Miracles happen - Be one!

“He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. He tells the number of the stars, he calls each by name”

Today at Holy Mass we are reminded of Jesus’s primary role - To heal mankind…To forgive our sins…To restore us back to the purity of our Baptism…..This does not happen “magically”…….We must cooperate with God and if we do, then and only then will we be transformed……..Once again, the Prophet Isiah reassures us…......”Come now, let us set things right, says the LORD: Though your sins be like scarlet, they may become white as snow; Though they be red like crimson, they may become white as wool. If you are willing, and obey, you shall eat the good things of the land”…….Why are we so afraid to admit we are sinners? - Don’t you realize - Its through our wounds that the light enters…………….JMJ

https://www.holywaterbooks.com/catholic-men-will-save-america.html