Freedom ...

Compare the stages of your personal sin with the stages and effects of the original sin. Exactly the same ... shockingly the same.

Why the sin, each sin has such a dramatic and traumatic effects? Because turning your back to God you are going away from Life, from Love, from the Source of existence, from the Existence itself, and so you are choosing the destruction, the death, the disorder ... And this is causing in you the deepening feeling of lost, of sadness, depression and anger, and nihilism.

Individually and on the social level. What is going on in the Western societies? Increase of sin, folly of perversion, catastrophic growing of lust, greediness and pride and at the same time increase of suicides and overwhelming sadness and depression.

Humanity is going nowhere, is sliding rapidly into the abyss of Hell which is the absolute "freedom - anarchy" of choice and at the same time the total chaos, madness of evil, sadness and dying without death. People in Hell would like to die, to stop to exist and they cannot ...And this is increasing their suffering caused by the Absolute Absence of God, by the total absence of any, even the smallest good. They are aware of the fact that it is their free choice, and that they are there not because of God's punishment but because of their free will, this is their choice, their freedom. They "liberated" themselves from "the tyranny" of God's commandments at the same time liberating themselves from good, from love, from life ... And so they are FREE!!

It's frightening, it's terrifying ...

Almighty God free me from my stupid freedom!!!

While Rome Burned

32 – Sunday in Ordinary Time – B

Only Jesus Christ appreciated very much the widow's offering. Only He respected her by saying: “For all of them have contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”

Here we can see that our way of seeing and assessing somebody's value certainly differs from the way of God. By these words from today's Gospel Jesus is teaching us that even the smallest act done out of God's love is much more precious than the biggest achievements done out of selfish desires.

But first we have to ask more fundamental question: whether we are still able to offer something, to share, to give without thinking about getting back?

We certainly know the golden rule cited by St. Paul in the Acts of Apostles (20:35): "There is more happiness in giving than in receiving".

But do we practice this in our daily life?

What kind of giver am I?

Do I give because I must or I have to?

Do I give because it is requested or because it is noble or trendy?

Or, am I a joyful giver? I give out of my heart not counting on being appreciated?

One of the Russian writers said: "Nobody is too poor to not give and share, to not be able to help others."

We have also to remember that very often others don't ask or expect the material help, that very often much more important is spiritual help, few friendly words of consolation, a prayer or time we are able to give. It is quite easy to give money; it's much more demanding to share joy, to give a little bit of time, to give a good and constructive word, to be with a needy person. In giving we can quite easy "get reed" of a problem or we can create a durable lifelong relationship.

Francis Balfour wrote:

The best gift we can offer to our enemy is the gift of forgiveness,

the best gift we can offer to our friend is faithfulness,

the best gift we can offer to the child is a good example,

the best gift we can offer to the father is honour him as a Father,

the best gift we can offer to our mother is our heart,

and the best gift we can offer to our neighbour is our supporting hand.

Catholic Dignity

31 Sunday in Ordinary Time - B

Spend all my goods and possessions to help poor and needy,

Become a servant of all, and the slave of my brothers and sisters,

Forgive all and everybody, forget all offences, and be ready to show the forgiveness at all time,

Love neighbour and even my enemies like God loves them ...

Is it not exactly what God expects from me?

Is it not the concrete realization of the most important commandment "love God and your neighbour"?

But immediately come some question:

- is it not too much?

- How could it be possible today to practice such a radical understanding of the teaching of Christ in the 21 century, in our technicyzed world?

- can Jesus ask us such a deep radicalism in our already burdened and heavy stressed life?

Shouldn't the church adjust her teaching and update a little bit the traditional approach to the Gospel? Should the teaching of the church not amend and adjust the teaching of Christ to the contemporary reality, so to become more realistic and simpler, easier to live?

We would like to be faithful, we would like to love God, we would like be honest but those impossible to keep requirements and unrealistic expectations are a big obstacle. If God would like us to be in heaven He has to help us by adjusting His commandments and be a little bit more realistic. And it is true not only in these issues but also in the case of a very restrictive and difficult moral commandment especially in the matter of marital life.

We cannot be idealistic; we cannot live today with the fifteenth century mentality.

I cannot give up everything what I have - I have to assure my future and my retirement plan.

I cannot be a naive servant ready to help everybody - it's a risk of ridiculing my life.

It's naive and unrealistic to forgive and forget all the time and even sometimes is dangerous.

It is impossible to love the neighbor in this way, because it is naive and certainly nowadays it is stupid to love and enemy in this way because it is dangerous.

I cannot resign from my live and be naive. I have to assure the security of my live.

What matters in those entire unrealistic God's commandments? What is finally the meaning of Love ?

God is Love - it's true but we have to know also that God is One, or Oneness.

This is showing immediately that to gain or achieve oneness we have to struggle for it and to sacrifice something. The true love is always demanding, and always sacrificial. This is what Jesus is showing in His the passion and death. It was not a theatre; it was not a sentimental performance. It was the real and very brutal death on the cross out of love for us and for our salvation. He paid this price in full and He knows what He is talking about, remaining us the commandments.

Our wealth, our luxury life, our selfishness, our lack of mercy, our hate, envy, or negligence are always against God, and against the children of God.

Therefore:

- Let us help others with our wealth and richness,

- let build up the unity in our families and in our life by serving and helping others,

- Let us forgive each other,

- Let us be merciful,

- Let us build up the culture of mutual understanding and sharing, the culture of help and love even if it should costs us, because God gave us not only the commandments but also all necessary graces to be His children and mutually brothers and sisters.

This is the direct and the straight way to God, Who calls us to be His children and to be holy as He is holy.