Time to walk the walk….There is power in “the walk”

Today at Holy Mass in the first reading we hear from St Paul…Paul is writing a letter to his friends to encourage them…In it he says……”Join with others in being imitators of me, brothers and sisters, and observe those who thus conduct themselves according to the model you have in us.”…In this one sentence St Paul is teaching us what it means to communicate the message of the gospel, not with words but with the “message of our life”…Listen, speaking the truth is important, we must do that…We must speak clearly, boldly and with love…However, NO ONE WILL LISTEN TO YOU…If your life does not reflect the words you speak……As Paul tells us…And I am going to “break it down” like an Italian from Northern New Jersey….”Watch what I do, then listen to what I say”…..The witness of a holy person is the greatest “argument” there is for the Truths contained in the Catholic Church….If you are Catholic and you want to world to think like you…..Time to get down to the business of living a holy life!…As they say in the great state of New Jersey…..Time to walk the walk before you talk the talk!

“Whoever keeps the word of Christ, the love of God is truly perfected in him”

Why is there power in a Christian witness?…Because deep within ALL our hearts the Natural Law is there…And when a person sees the life of a holy person, its like a mirror is placed before that person’s eyes…They for the first time see themselves as they truly are….The “mask” comes off….This type of encounter can serve as spark for change…I am speaking from experience here because for seven years I was a driver for the Missionaries of Charity in Manhattan and I have witnessed countless times their impact on all kinds of people…From Hollywood star Hugh Jackman to someone who was a drug addict living on the street…..The witness of a holy life is the only thing that can “break through” the hardness of the world…..I will tell you one such story…..Years ago I was working the grill on the side walk in Lower Manhattan for Mother Teresa’s sisters at a BBQ on Labor Day…This huge guy comes over with no shirt, the dude is covered in tattoos…I am like to myself - ”Here we go”!……One of the sisters approaches him and the guy starts telling the sister the following…….”I used to be Catholic, now I just believe in Jesus”….The sister listening to this man weighed probably 110 pounds and was five feet tall….She continued to listen to him and after he was finished talking sister tells him straight to his face…..”You are Catholic, go into the Chapel and sit before Jesus”…..I am watching this scene play out and when I heard sister say this to this dude, I am like again to myself….”Here we go”…..But to my surprise, this monster of a man with all his tattoos, goes into the chapel….Why did he listen to one of Mother Teresa’s sisters?…Clearly, if I would have told him that I may have been punched in the face…This little nun told him something that challenged him and he responded…......Why?…I will tell you why - Because Mother Teresa’s nuns LIVE the gospel - Period….Point-Blank!…And there is POWER in such a witness!…This is what we must do…Our life must scream of the gospel message and trust me, when people see such a witness, as we say in New Jersey once again, "it leaves a mark”

“Therefore, my brothers and sisters, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, in this way stand firm in the Lord”

Getting back to Paul today from Mass and his letter…Paul “rolled up his sleeves and got into the weeds”…….Paul did not just “talk a good game”….....Paul “walked the walk”…He was like (I am getting into New Jersey mode again - Bear with me, I can’t help it)…........”Listen, watch what I am doing, then listen to my words”…......One may read this and say to themselves….How do I know what you are telling me is true?….....I will tell you how…Because you “tell a tree by the fruit it bears”……If you live as the gospel asks you to live….If you live a Sacramental life…Your life will “bear fruit”….....Your life will speak for itself…This is the power of the Gospel…This power is at our disposal…I invite you to utilize it!

Time to walk the walk….There is power in “the walk”