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Status is not something to brag about, and a special relationship should not be used to lord it over others. The young and immature Joseph had to learn this the hard way! He had provoked his brothers to jealousy with his superior attitude, and now they were committing a great evil against him. Through his many adventures, he would learn that all we are given is a gift from God and to be used for the good of others and for God's purposes. The parable of the wicked tenants is similar - it was written during the unfortunate time of the split between Christianity and Judaism, and it reflects the spiteful and superior attitude that many Christians at that time had towards their Jewish brothers and sisters. Thankfully, we no longer see them in this light. But the story still has a message for us. We cannot presume that belonging to a certain group, even the church, is enough. God wants to see results: love, humility, service, kindness, and the pursuit of justice. Our faith is a call to discipleship, not exclusive membership! Each day, we should ask ourselves what we have to offer back to God in gratitude for the many graces we have been given. Lord, I offer my life each day to others and to You in gratitude. |
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P R A Y I N G W I T H T H E C H U R C H
| INTENTION : |
For the ecclesial organisations and groups engaged in social
action, that in their testimony they may proclaim strongly and consistently
the Gospel of Love.
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It is the Church's desire that all social-charitable initiatives might
always be inspired, in their implementation, by the immutable principles of
the Gospel. There is danger, however, that professional organisations
engaged in the social field risk losing the fundamental motivation for their
existence: that is bearing witness to Christ's charity which the Church has
the duty to communicate and to share with others. In order to be effective, then, continual spiritual formation is needed for voluntary co-operators who wish to devote themselves to social action. All these initiatives tend to develop the awareness that the foundation and centre of our action is Christ, in whom the God of love revealed himself and gave himself to men and women. Consequently all those who welcome Christ follow him and answer the call to be faithful witnesses to it. This awareness must totally imbue the hearts and minds of individuals so that it also inspires the Communities they set up for organised action in support of underprivileged persons and communities suffering from material and moral poverty. Being thus imbued and formed it becomes necessary that volunteers pray to draw Christ into their midst and have him accompany them. | |
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