(Listen to this homily here).
As I have been reading through Sherry Widdell’s book Forming Intentional Disciples, I have
been enlightened of many statistics regarding our Catholic population. One of the most alarming was that
relatively few of us believe in a personal God. When asked, Catholics—less than other brothers and sisters
in other Christian denominations—answer that they have a personal relationship
with God.
True
enough, our faith should not be reduced to only “me and Jesus”. Neither should we lose sight of the
fact that God is all-powerful, all-knowing, ever-present and transcendent. Yet in God’s providence and mystery, He
desires a personal relationship with each of us.
In
the opening pages of the Bible, God takes clay to form and create a man. What powerful imagery of our very
beginnings. Psalm 139 states, “You formed my
inmost being; you knit me in my mother’s womb.” God speaks through
Isaiah, “I have called you by name, you
are mine.” Jesus tells us, “Every hair of your head is numbered.”
One
of the major ways in which God personally invites us to Himself is through the
sacraments. In three of these—baptism,
confirmation and holy orders—He actually seals us for Himself. We receive this sacred character on our
souls which marks us for all eternity as God’s. I’m guessing most, if not all of you here this morning, have
been baptized and confirmed. This
means God has chosen you individually
for His great work!
God
has a personal relationship with you.
Do you have one with Him?
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