Life's Big Questions

By -

 

 


Forever, man has been asking big questions about life, and one of the biggest, I think, is "Why am I here?" 

The answer to why we are here is not as mysterious as we might imagine.

We can get lost thinking that our purpose comes from our activity, or our acquisitions or even our physical or intellectual achievements.

But we would be wrong.

When I was working on my master's degree, my theology teacher drew our attention to the very first line in the Prologue of the "Catechism of the Catholic Church."

Beautifully written, I have always been pulled in by this line. Each time I reflect on it, I feel I get a little closer to understanding it.

"God, infinitely perfect and blessed in himself, in a plan of sheer goodness freely created man to make him share in his own blessed life."

It goes on:

"For this reason, at every time and in every place, God draws close to man." 

And then it points out, in this first paragraph, that God sent Jesus to call us together as we are divided by sin, and when the time was right, Jesus came as our Redeemer and Savior.

In these words, we can discover our purpose in life. The Why, our Purpose. 

Do you see the answer? If not, try reading it again.

Because God is love, he wants to share himself--love--with us. But, because of sin, he sent Jesus to save us so that we can once again be united to God.

If you are plugging along every day, seemingly doing fine, but unaware or ignoring Jesus, you are missing out on the opportunity to be close to your Creator, the Love he is calling you to, and well, a "blessed life."

Sharing in God's "own blessed life," is way, far beyond the love you can know without God. His desire is for you to know just how amazing life with Love is. That's what he wants for us.

Naturally, once you experience it, you innately desire to share it. 

No matter what you are doing in this life, if you are doing it without knowledge of God, you are missing out.

Lent is a great time to reflect more deeply on what you are missing. Do not be afraid to let loose the chains that are holding you back, whether it is your preconceived ideas about faith, your hyper-rationale or your plain old obstinacy.

Start asking questions and you will find joy beyond what you can imagine.

Pray for peace and an end to war.

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

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 g...
Read more

SAINT ELIZABETH, MOTHER OF JOHN THE BAPTIST- Feast: November 5

By -
Image
Elizabeth appears in the Gospel of Luke, where she is described as “righteous in the eyes of God, observing all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blamelessly,”.  I imagine that she was warm, loving and obviously a safe harbour for young Mary, who was not married when she conceived.  When Mary came to visit her, Elizabeth was pregnant with St. John the Baptist and in her sixth month: “Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. And how have I deserved that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, the moment that the sound of thy greeting came to my ears, the babe in my womb leapt for joy. And blessed is she who has believed, because the things promised her by the Lord shall be accomplished.” 
Read more