Our life “begins” on the “other side” of this change - When we touch “lightning”

Today the Universal Church commemorates the life of Mary Magdalene, who Catholic tradition calls the apostle to the apostles……The life of Mary Magdalene should serve as an example of how Christ can transform a person into a new creation…Scripture tells us that Mary Magdalene was a woman possessed by seven demons…But somehow she was able to change - What about us?…..Nothing is impossible for God and even the worst person we have ever encountered in life can change…But how?….Only God can change people - We “think” we can people and sadly we try to change people all the time - This is a waste of time!…All we as Catholics can do is give a grace filled witness to the world - That witness must be consistent - Day in and Day out - And if we do this - In time - The Holy Spirit works in the hearts of the people close to us - And some of those people, by God’s grace will change, as a result of the Holy Spirit, not us…If you look closely at Catholic social media today, which I do because of my role as a co-host of a Catholic radio show in New York - People are constantly trying to “change others” - I know this because I was one of those people!…But I have learned that changing others is impossible - Our “job” is to change ourself…With that said - The closer we get to Christ, the more others will be attracted to us - And the more we witness a life of holiness - The world around us will be transformed….Mary Magdalene was truly transformed - And as a result her life’s witness shook the foundations of the world….This is the impact of a saint….And each baptized Catholic is called to be saint - Why do we “sell ourselves short”? - Aspiring for material things and achievements that in the end will mean nothing…..Inside of each of us is a saint - It should be our number one priority to become who we were ALL born to be - A saint!

“So whoever is in Christ is a new creation: the old things have passed away; behold, new things have come”

When a man becomes the Pope, he takes a new name - There is great symbolism in that new name - The Pope is now beginning something completely new in his life….The same goes for Catholics when we receive the Sacrament of Confirmation, we take a new name - Why? - Again, because something new is about to begin on our life…..Scripture tells us….”I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh”…..This is a process that does not happen over night - Have we started this much needed process?…..Before we stand before God, our hearts must be purified…This happens as we live now but if we do not complete what needs to be completed, the remaining “work” is done in Purgatory……When I was a young man I was a very different person then who I am now…..The people I lived with in college and were at the time very close to me, seem to me a stranger now….One of my roommates from college recently passed away…I lived with Jude for three years and he was a big part of my young life….Because of his death, a number of people from my university got together to celebrate Jude’s life…..I attended this event with my youngest son Gerard….Seeing and speaking with the people I once knew at this event was a strange experience - We no longer had much in common and frankly I felt like a stranger among people I once knew very well…..This is what happens when we give our life to God - We change!……”So whoever is in Christ is a new creation: the old things have passed away; behold, new things have come”……Our world today lives under a great misconception - We do not just “float” into heaven when we die - We must be transformed and in order to be transformed - We must cooperate with Sacramental grace….God will not force us to change - We must desire it and when we desire it, we must strive each and every day to “carry our cross”, allowing God to work in our life….Mary Magdalene is a great example of this…And if I were to be honest, so am I, while not a saint like Mary Magdalene…God took a “wild young man”, who was always the life of the party, caught up in nothing but himself and God transformed that man - That young man was me!

“I will put my spirit within you so that you walk in my statutes, observe my ordinances, and keep them. You will live in the land I gave to your ancestors; you will be my people, and I will be your God. I will deliver you from all your impurities. I will summon the grain and make it plentiful; I will not send famine against you. I will increase the fruit on your trees and the crops in your fields so that you no longer endure reproach from the nations because of famine. Then you will remember your evil behavior and your deeds that were not good; you will loathe yourselves for your sins and your abominations. Not for your sake do I act—oracle of the Lord GOD. Let this be known to you! Be ashamed and humbled because of your behavior, house of Israel. Thus says the Lord GOD: When I cleanse you of all your guilt, I will resettle the cities and the ruins will be rebuilt. The desolate land will be tilled—once a wasteland in the eyes of every passerby. They will say, “This once-desolate land has become like the garden of Eden. The cities once ruined, laid waste and destroyed, are now resettled and fortified.”

The life of Mary Magdalene should inspire us…..She is an example of the transforming power of God….If we read the lives of the saints, there are many examples similar to Mary Magdalene…The saints are people who encountered the “Living God” and because of that encounter - They radically changed…..If we are honest, that is something we all must experience, an encounter with the “Living God”….Until we know deep within our hearts that God is real - That Jesus is fully present in the Blessed Sacrament - Our Catholic faith in many ways is just about “ticking boxes” - We simply go through the motions…..But when we encounter the Lord - Everything changes….The great Boston College philosopher Peter Kreeft wrote a book entitled “Jesus Shock”, in it this is what he wrote….“If anyone claims to have met Him without being changed, he has not met Him at all. When you touch Him, you touch lightning”….Have you touched “lightning” yet? - That is the question! - Because if you have, you know it - And you are changed as a result…..Mary Magdalene experienced such an encounter with this so-called “lightning” Peter Kreeft wrote about in his book - Have you?…….If you have not changed your life know right now - Something is missing!……Our life “begins” on the “other side” of this change - When we touch “lightning”……..JMJ