14th Sunday in Ordinary Time - Year B - 8th July 2018
‘Rejoice And Be Glad’ (Gaudete Et Exsultate) is a book by Pope Francis on the call to holiness in today’s world. It is a personal letter from the Holy Father to each of us inviting us to put God not ourselves at the centre of our lives. He wants us to be saints and show the call to holiness in a practical way for our own time.
Paragraph 3 ‘The letter to the Hebrew lists a great number of witnesses who are an example for us. These witnesses may include our own mothers, grandmothers or other loved ones. Their lives may not always have been perfect yet even amid their faults and failings they kept moving forward and proved pleasing to the Lord.’
7. ‘I like to contemplate the holiness present in the patience of God’s people; in those parents who raise their children with immense love, in those men and women who work hard in support their families in the sick, in the elderly religious who never loose their smile.’
14. ‘To be holy does not require being bishop, a priest or a religious. We are frequently tempted to think that holiness is only for those who can withdraw from ordinary affairs to spend much time in prayer. That is not the case. We are all called to be holy by living our lives with love and by bearing witness in everything we do, wherever we find ourselves.’
12 ‘ This holiness to which the Lord calls you will grow through small gestures. Here is an example: a woman goes shopping she meets a neighbour and they begin to speak and the gossip starts. But she says in her heart : ‘No, I will not speak bad of anyone.’ This is a step forward in holiness. Later, at home, on off children want to talk to her about his hopes and dreams, and even though she is tired, she sits down and listens with patience and love. That is another sacrifice that brings holiness. Later she experiences some anxiety but recalls the love of the Virgin Mary, she takes her rosary and prays with faith. Yet another path to holiness. Later still, she goes out onto the street, encounters a poor person and stops to say a kind word to him. One more step.’
Fr Ray Armstrong,CM