In the Gospel today, Jesus is asked: “Lord, will only a few people be saved?” The answer to that question falls at our feet. Last weekend, the Gospel spoke about division and the difficulty we may encounter in answering the call to holiness. We reflected that Christ was seeking to divide the kingdom of satan. Christ desired to set ablaze the world; that is, to purify the world. This purification is possible only when the Seven Deadly (Capital) Sins are divided from our lives. He came to root out from our hearts and lives pride, lust, envy, anger, greed, gluttony, and sloth. In their place, He offers humility, purity, kindness/fraternal love, meekness/patience, charity/generosity, temperance, and diligence. In doing so, Christ is now providing us with a road map forward. Living these virtues along with the reception of the Sacraments and prayer lead us to the kingdom of God. Salvation is held out to each of us. We need to make an effort to clasp the hand of Christ. His death and Resurrection was for our salvation, but as St. Augustine would remind us: “God created you without you, but He will not save you without you.” This simply means that God will not save us without our cooperation because He will not force Himself upon us. In other words, we need actively to participate in answering the call to holiness. How? Well, here at St. Mary’s there are a host of spiritual and educational activities to assist us. We have numerous opportunities to attend Holy Mass; the Adoration Chapel is open daily from 6:00 am to 11:00 pm; we have expanded hours for Confession, Gospel Studies,
Catholic Book Clubs, Prayer Groups, Wednesday Evening Prayer, and daily Rosaries. Please take time and look thoroughly through the bulletin and parish website so you do not miss an opportunity to be with our Lord and answer the call to holiness. It makes little sense not to spend the time with the very person who can actually save our souls!
Sincerely Yours in Christ,
Fr. Wayne