by Grace WildeI am in 8th grade, and I had an assignment in history, to write an essay on “how to become prosperous?” Many could say this is a simple and easy assignment. But, I do not think we should be rich or even try to be. What benefit would it give you now, and more importantly in heaven? Jesus does not call for prosperity but Poverty. Instead I changed the question to “how to be poor” for that should be our real goal. And that is what I am going to talk about today. Apart from the cross, there is no other ladder by which we may get to heaven. (Saint Rose of Lima) What is Poverty? What do you think when you see the poor? In our society today we think two things. They made themselves that way, and that they are suffering. Those thoughts are not all completely true. They did not make themselves that way. A lot of the time they were born that way. They were kicked out of their homes because they could not pay to live there, or they were just different. Sometimes they are poor because of something we did that hurt them. They are suffering, but God always uses that suffering as a power. Someone can come to that suffering person and bring them to Jesus. If they were not poor, they would not have met the Lord in the first place. As a result of that power, the suffering person can be united with other people’s suffering in love and community. We can live in this suffering too! Poverty is a gift of suffering and freedom from God to man. The community of believers were of one heart and mind, and no one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they had everything in common. (ACTS 4:32) Why should we be poor? Sell your belongings and give alms. Provide money bags for yourselves that do not wear out, an inexhaustible treasure in heaven that no thief can reach nor moth destroy. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be. (Luke 12:33-34) We know that poverty is a gift from God. But, why should we be poor? First of all, let us see why it is bad to be rich. Let me specify that possessions are not bad. It is our consumption of things which make us self reliable to the point that we have no need to trust God. This leads us into a place where we cannot find the hope of heaven. This consumption that we do which consumes us is called prosperity. The definition for prosperity is “the state of being “successful in the worlds eyes” unusually by making a lot of money.” Successful!?! That is what our society thinks of prosperity, successful. I do not think this is at all accurate. Just look at what prosperity does to the world. All of the selfishness, all the sadness, all the pain, is caused by that desire for more money, more food, more clothes, more and more and more prosperity. And when we consume the world's resources and half of what we own are for nothing, and just end up in a dump, how do we feel? We feel empty. Because when we fill the holes in our hearts with this world and all that is in it, Jesus gets pushed out of our everyday life. We even find it hard to just go to Mass on Sunday. When we are poor we have nothing but the LORD. But, when we are rich, we have everything, but HIM. Now, don’t feel self conscious, we all fall prey to prosperity, even me. So we MUST all live a little poorer for Him. “Again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for one who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” (Matthew 19:24) How to be poor? Poverty is a grace and we must live in it. How are we to do it? Instead of filling the holes in our hearts with things instead of Jesus so as to become rich, we need to tear those things out and give everything to the Lord in others. For when we decrease our belongings, possessions, and reputation in humility, we help others in need. As well as we embrace the Lord and embarking on a true relationship with Him. For when we have become so small and so humble, we do not need to push ourselves into heaven with all of our belongings along with us. When we are humble, Jesus can fill our hearts with him, pick us up, and lift us up Himself. Then in our poverty and humility, in every moment of every day we can ask Jesus, “How can I serve you in this moment, in my poverty, in my humility.” Listen to what he says, then ACT. Never be afraid of what another person may think because when we have given up all that we are attached to in this world, we have become not a part of the world. People will oppose because they do not see the world in the lens of the Father. But, never listen to them and teach them through quiet actions, the truth of the blessing of POVERTY. Oh, how I would like a poor Church, and for the poor. (Pope Francis) Today, Jesus calls for us to live the grace of poverty. It is a hard task in the world that seems like a burden. And even though society thinks of it as a suffering and hardship, it is truly a gift. And when you choose it you can never turn back even though you may try, for when you choose it your eyes are opened and you can embark on that relationship with the Lord with nothing of the world in the way. But, I can not tell you what to give up to the Lord for God calls us all in different ways to poverty and he chooses what we give. Remember that our possessions are not bad. They are our gifts from the Father to give to others. It is our selfishness and greed over those things that is bad. Today, let us pray through the intercession of St. Francis of Assisi the patron of the earth and a beautiful example of poverty. Let us pray through his intercession for the world to embrace and choose this beautiful gift of the poverty of the Gospel. Let us also pray that we may find where to put to use the gifts that God has given us. Remember that when you leave this earth, you can take with you nothing that you have received only what you have given: a full heart enriched by honest service, love, sacrifice and courage. (St Francis of Assisi)
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by Jason WildeEvery time I hear the story of Zacchaeus, I can’t help but think of this image of my friend and brother in Costa Rica who climbed to the top of a ladder in the middle of a street in order to tell the story of how we all need to be following Zacchaeus into that tree, looking for Jesus. Luke portrays three kinds of followers in his Gospel, and it is appropriate because when we know Jesus is coming, there are only three possible responses to His presence. The first, and the preferred response, is that of Zacchaeus. He was the worst kind of sinner in the Jewish community - akin to anyone whom the crowds label as a sinner today - a criminal, an intoxicated beggar on the street corner, an LGBT brother or sister, a Hollywood atheist, or even your least favorite politician. But, Zacchaeus, even in his sinful life, was so much more curious about Jesus’ presence that he climbed a tree just to catch a glimpse. Like him, we should all see our own sinfulness and recognize that we should join Zacchaeus in that tree - if not in curiosity, then instead seeking God’s mercy. We should be standing shoulder to shoulder in solidarity and in awareness of our own faults. The second response is that of the crowd, who all knew Jesus was there, but just stood by, following others around them. There was no awareness of the need to reach out and see Jesus, but just knowing that He was there was enough. In many ways, this is a group of people who feel self-sufficient, “(asking) nothing from the Lord because he does not feel needy or in debt, but he feels that God owes something to him. He stands in the temple of God, but he worships a different god: himself. And many “prestigious” groups, “Catholic Christians”, go along this path” (Pope Francis, Mass for Closing of the Amazon Synod). I have been in this group before, not really looking for Jesus, but rather looking at the backs of people around me, the world, and just trying to follow what the world asks of me. I would seek out the group that I felt had the right political views and follow them, hoping they were headed in the same direction I should be going. I followed those who had wealth and power and wanted to imitate them because I had lost sight of Jesus. The third group of people in the Gospel are those who stand at the front of the line or the front of church every day, but don’t seek Jesus at all - instead they grumble and try to condemn Him when He meets with Zacchaeus, for “He has gone to stay at the house of a sinner.” (Luke 19:7) They affirm that Zacchaeus is a sinner, but aren’t really caring much for him, but rather to pin Jesus for a social crime. This is because in many ways, “we are presumptuous, able to justify ourselves, masters of the art of self-justification” (ibid). We forget that we are sinners altogether and instead seek to destroy the good that Jesus seeks out. How many times have we tried to argue that Zacchaeus doesn’t belong in the Church in our own justification of the Gospel message? How often do we try to criminalize clergy, bishops, or the Pope for accepting those who bring in different views, or even welcoming the outcast? How often do we applaud the ones who withhold Jesus from our perceived enemy? But even worse, are we doing it out of humility and holiness, or out of a desire to point fingers and de-legitimize the merciful one? Like my brother, I would rather leave the crowd, acknowledge my sinfulness, and seek Jesus’ mercy in ways that no one else does. I call myself a “misionero loco” and will do whatever it takes to be in that tree with the sinner and the poor in spirit - because that’s who Jesus will be calling for. “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save what was lost.” (Luke 19:10)
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On a MissionTwo passionate parents and their four children are excited to bring His Word to everyone in need while living a life of Gospel poverty as missionaries. They invite you to join them on a journey to encounter our global neighbors that Jesus commands us to love through works of charity and service. Archives
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