This will keep you humble and this will also make you holy

Today at Holy Mass we hear in the Gospel of John a sentence that is widely repeated…….”For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life”…….This is not statement I would like to focus upon for this reflection…Its the next sentence…”For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him”…In our heart of hearts, do we share this sentiment? - To NOT condemn but to save?…..Everything Jesus did was focused on saving others…..Jesus had every right to condemn, he was without sin - He was PERFECT - yet that was not his aim…It was to save…..Clearly our world is troubled - Clearing its VERY EASY to see the flaws and sins of others….But how do we save them and more importantly - Are we even interested in saving them?…Because if we are NOT - We do not share the heart of Christ……But let’s circle back - How do we “save others”….The answer is - We can not…..The only thing we can do is cooperate with God’s grace and allow God to save ourself….As far as others, the witness of a holy life is attractive…If we draw closer and closer to God each day, the reflection of Christ in our life will “spark” the Holy Spirit with in the soul of those we encounter each day - From that “spark”, its then up to them - To begin the process of conversion - Which is a daily and ongoing process - I know, because I am still being converted….Stay focused on “Our Job”, which is to save our self - Why? - Because that is a “full time job”….And make no mistake….If you make it your top priority, to become holy - Your example will impact those around you….This is why only saints change the world - The rest of us just make “noise”

“We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you, because by your Cross you have redeemed the world”

For seven years before I was married I was the driver for the Missionaries of Charity every Saturday in Manhattan…I learned more in those seven years then I did in all the years of me schooling….I would always marvel at how people, all kinds of people, would be drawn to the sisters….The rich and the poor alike….Why? - Because a holy life attracts others…..The sisters did not “preach” - They did not write books - They did not have a “podcast”…They lived the Gospel - To this day - I have never seen the Catholic faith lived out in a more profound way then the Missionaries of Charity…Another thing the Missionaries of Charity DID NOT do is condemn others….While Mother Teresa’s sisters were unapologetically Catholic, they loved people as they encountered them - And because people could recognize Christ in them, many converted and experienced a change of heart - Many of those people were hardened sinners…I have seen this with my own eyes time and time again…..St Paul in the second reading today from Mass gives us a glimpse into the Missionaries of Charity’s secret….”Christ Jesus, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God something to be grasped. Rather, he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness; and found human in appearance, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross”…Authentic humility witnessed attracts others while arrogance and pride repel others…..You do not have to have a PhD to recognize a sincerely humble soul…And this is what the Missionaries of Charity are - If anything else - Humble…And so was Christ - As St Paul articulated for us today…Here is the question - Are we?….True humility does not condemn, it recognizes who we truly are under all the “noise” - Sinners - In need of a Savior….Does any of us really have a right to condemn anyone?….If this is something you grapple with - Here is a suggestion…Go to confession once a month - And try to go to the same priest each time you do….Even if you live a “good” and “upright” life for the world to “see”….That priest knows your sins - He knows who you really are - A fallen person indeed of God’s mercy and grace…This will keep you humble and this will also make you holy……..JMJ

“Because of this, God greatly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father”