Uniting Ourselves to Jesus

By -

 

 

 

The other day when I wrote about pain ("Are you in pain?"), I talked about how we can connect to Jesus on the cross by offering up our pain. You will recall me talking about how he suffered on our behalf and that is something we, too, can do for others.

There are other ways that we can connect in this spiritual way to Jesus, as well.

When adult children disconnect from their parents, no matter the reason, parents might want to consider this as another avenue to connect to the Father.

Every day, God our Father, whose unlimited love for us is constant, must also experience (to put it in human terms) the pain of losing his children, whenever we ignore, reject, or deny his very existence.

Consider how he responds to us when we do that.

He doesn't walk away, he waits.  With unconditional love, he waits for us to open our eyes, and our heart, and return to him.  When we do return (however long it might take), he is there, ready to pour out his love and forgiveness.

In this same way, we can, in imitation of the Father, respond to others whenever we are ignored or rejected. Yes, it hurts at the time, but there is always hope that reconciliation is possible, even in the toughest of circumstances.

To put a finer point on it, hopefully thinking along these lines, you might want to reflect on your own relationship with God, our Father, and see if your behavior towards him is in need of any improvement.

If the rope connecting you to the Father, or others, is fraying, never give up hope.  As long as we are alive, there is potential for the bonds of love to strengthen it.

Janet Cassidy

Email me at:  jmctm2@gmail.com

janetcassidy.com
https://www.facebook.com/reflectionsinfaith/
https://www.youtube.com/@janetcassidy



 




Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Memorare

By Helen Gonsalves -
Image
This popular prayer, a favorite of many Catholics, dates back to the 15th century and takes its name from the first Latin word of the prayer, "memorare," which means "remember." The Memorare is of unknown authorship, although it has been attributed to St. Augustine (354-430), St. John Chrysostom (c. 347-407) and, with more reason, to St. Bernard of Clairvaux (c. 1090-1153). St. Bernard's sermons on Mary were famous, and it was his Cistercian monks in the monastery of Citeaux in the 12th century who popularized the name "Our Lady" for Mary. The Memorare has also been attributed to the French cleric Claude Bernard (1588-1641), known as the "poor priest" of Paris, whose homilies contain passages that echo its words. No matter who wrote this prayer, it was Father Bernard who did much to popularize it, teaching it in hospitals and prisons, where Mary's intercession was effective in working miracles of grace. The first manuscript of the Mem
Read more

'Greater Love: Richie Fernando SJ', a joy-filled Filipino missionary

By -
Image
 I haven't been able to post for more than a week as I was giving an eight-day directed retreat to eight sisters of the Missionaries of Charity near Manila. While I had some access to the internet it was rather slow. I had intended to make a post here on the murder of Fr Fausto Tentorio PIME , a 59-year-old Italian priest, in the Diocese of Kidapawan, Mindanao, on Monday 17 October. I will save that post for a later date. As I was looking for a video about Father Fausto I came across one about Brother Richard Michael 'Richie' Fernando SJ, a Filipino Jesuit scholastic who died while trying to prevent a troubled and disabled young man in Cambodia from throwing a grenade. That was in 1996 - on 17 October. Father Fausto gave his life exactly 15 years later. I remember the mixture of sorrow and pride I felt when I read of the death of Brother Richie, pride as a missionary in the Philippines that a young Filipino seminarian had given his life so spontaneously in order to sav
Read more

Why Modesty Is Not Subjective

By -
Image
Hi there, ya'll!  The modest fashion world is one very diverse place.  Even among Catholics, the definition of "modest apparel" can vary greatly from person to person.  Recently I joined a Facebook group that advertised itself as a haven for Catholic women of all ages to share ideas for modest style and makeup and was hoping to learn more about modesty from my fellow Catholic sisters.  After a few days of being a member, though, I sadly left the group feeling a bit discouraged.  No two members seemed to agree on ANY aspect of modesty whatsoever, and the prevailing theme of the whole group was that modesty is subjective, it means something different for each woman and each woman gets to decide what she considers is "modest".  One woman very emphatically declared that she wears bikinis every summer to the beach and doesn't feel that this violates the virtue of modesty in the least.  The same woman also announced that she was never going to caution her d
Read more