We are saved by this grace because without it, we die

Today at Holy Mass in the Gospel of St Matthew Jesus cleans a leper of his disease….But before he does this, the leper addresses Jesus with full faith and confidence - Remember, Leprosy, known today as Hansen's disease had no cure - It was in a sense a death sentence, not just physically but socially - A leper during Jesus’ day was banished from society and forced to live on the margins……”“Lord, if you wish, you can make me clean”…..This statement made by the leper, in so many ways, “made no sense” - There is no hope for such a person - Right?…..Jesus saw it differently……“I will do it. Be made clean”……This exchange between Jesus and the leper can teach us something today….Each of us have sins, which we repeat over and over again…..These sins seem to have complete control of us….How can we “break the bonds” of these sins, which seem impossible to overcome?…..The answer - GRACE……When we establish the practice of going once a month, as the saints recommend, to a Priest for a Sacramental Confession - Not only are our sins forgiven, but we are given grace by God to overcome our sins - And in time, we will find that “those sins” will be overcome and no longer plague us….Do we fully understand the power of God’s grace? - He is the King of the Universe! - And he loves us personally…All we have to do is ask for help - And we ALL need help to overcome our faults because we all have them!….God is more than willing to help us!….Why do we hesitate to confess our sins? - As if God does not know what we have done!…..God is waiting for us…….Give God the permission to help you - Its not a “sin” to ask for help!

“His leprosy was cleansed immediately. Then Jesus said to him, “See that you tell no one, but go show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses prescribed; that will be proof for them”

There are no perfect people!….God knows this but do we?….Jesus walked among us for one reason - To forgive our sins - But if we do not allow him to do this - Frankly, everything we say we “believe” is in vain…..Before we can understand the Gospel - We must Repent of our sins and the ONLY way to do this is to confess our sins Sacramentally…..Jesus gave the Church authority to forgive sins and that authority rests with Catholic Priests to this day….."I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven”…St James also tells us in the pages of Scripture that we must confess our sins - For those who claim there is no need to Sacramentally confess our sins…."Therefore confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed”…….Our sins wound us and time does not heal these wounds - Only God can heal us and if we do not give Jesus permission to heal us - Our wounds fester and if we “wound” ourself mortally, by committing a mortal sin - We die!……I work in New York City and for a time I would go to afternoon Mass on Friday’s at St Patrick’s Cathedral…..For those who have not been to St Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City, its a magnificent Church in the middle of the city where all walks of life attend Mass daily….Before I would go to Mass, I would usually go to confession and I would marvel at the line - It was usually very long and every type of person one could imagine was on that line - Rich and Poor alike!…As I would wait on the confession line, I would think to myself….This “line” to confess is a great sign of hope for the world! - If only every Catholic Church had a long line of people confessing their sins each day before Holy Mass - The world would change tomorrow! - Its really that simple! - Confess your sins regularly and receive the Blessed Sacrament in the state of grace on Sunday - Simple! - That is how we change the world, beginning first with changing our self

“Christ took away our infirmities and bore our diseases”

Today Jesus and a leper in the Gospel give us an example of why God the Father sent Jesus Christ to mankind - To save us from our very self! - To forgive our sins……Why do we hesitate to confess our sins to a Catholic Priest?…..This “hesitation” is used by the devil to keep us from living a life of joy and peace…Everyone in this world wants to be happy - RIGHT?!? - But here is the reality about being “happy” - We will NEVER have authentic happiness unless we confess our sins - Our sins “weigh us down” - Our sins wound us, whether we acknowledge those “wounds” or not - No matter - They exist!!!! - And the ONLY way the wounds caused by sin can be healed is through Sacramental grace - For those who have ears - Let them hear!……”Repent and Believe the Gospel” - The great John the Baptist showed us the way forward…..To find our joy and peace - We must confess your sins!……When we hold nothing back from God - God floods us with his grace………We are saved by this grace because without it, we die………JMJ