“For just as a body without a spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead”……This is where the “sheep are separated from the goats”

Today at Holy Mass we hear from the Gospel of St Luke…Jesus boils down what it means to be a Catholic in one sentence…To hear and then to act…..“My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and act on it”…Somehow in our self-rationalizations we “think” we do not have to act on the words of Christ…..Its one thing to listen and its completely another thing to hear…When we hear something we digest the meaning deep within us and we make it our own…And then we act upon it…Do we do what Christ asked of us perfectly?…Of course not…We all have a fallen nature and are sinners by birth…But the question is…Do we aspire with our entire heart, soul, mind and all our strengthen to put Christ’s words into action in real time each and everyday?…Even when that may cost us?…There is the catch - As you know there is always a catch…Acting on Jesus words will cost us…Are we willing to accept the cost?…This is where the “rubber meets the road”…This is where the “sheep are separated from the goats”

“All the ways of a man may be right in his own eyes, but it is the LORD who proves hearts”

There is a reason why the story of Adam and Eve is one of the first stories of the Old Testament…Their story plays out to this very day…Adam and Eve ate from the “Tree of Knowledge”…God said that he determines what is good and evil not Adam and Eve…By eating from the “Tree of Knowledge” they said to God by their actions…”No, I determine what is good and evil, not you”…..And once that happened the paradise, which Adam and Eve lived in was lost…So it is to this very day…We tell God the same thing…”I know what is best…I determine what is right and wrong for me, not you”…..Jesus addresses this mindset today in the gospel and tells us point blank..Its not enough to confess our belief in Christ with mere words…We have to act upon those words

“To do what is right and just is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice”

As Catholics we are called to be open to life…When we are married in a Catholic Church by a Priest part of our wedding vows before God is to be open to children and raise them in the faith…That means VERY clearly we are not to use contraception…..Are you aware that Catholic couples that do not use contraception, go to Mass on Sunday and pray together only have a 3% divorce rate…..The facts are the facts - What I just told you is not some “dogma”, which is far too easily dismissed but social statistics, which should tell you everything you need to know…Yet still a large majority of Baptized Catholics choose to do it “their way”…Ignore their wedding vows and the result is over 50% of the time “their way” results in divorce - Again, social statistics that should tell you everything you need to know….When we choose that path, to "hear" but not act, we are echoing the actions of Adam and Eve…We are saying to God…..”I know better then you do”….And the outcome is exactly the same as the outcome of our first parents in the Garden of Eden…..Paradise lost!

“Make me understand the way of your precepts, and I will meditate on your wondrous deeds”

Getting back to our Gospel today from Mass…Jesus tells us very clearly that hearing what he said is not enough…We have to act upon his words….In order to do this we need grace…And if we rely on our own strengthen we will surely fail…This is why Jesus gave us a Church…This is why Jesus gave us the Sacraments…This is why we must pray daily and fast weekly…These practices give us the needed grace to do what Jesus said…And not just give lip service to his words…..St James tells us very clearly in Scripture….”What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him?…..For just as a body without a spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead”……This is where the “sheep are separated from the goats”