Reflection by Msgr. Andrew Vaccari
"Preparation Heaven!":
Our citizenship is in heaven, the Scriptures tell us. That is our true homeland, the goal and destination of our lives. For all the efforts we make to improve the life of this world, and to help the neediest and most defenseless among us, our ultimate goal is in heaven with the Father. And for all the effort we make to reach that heavenly homeland, it does not reduce our Christian effort to improve the conditions of this world. This is what it means to work for the Kingdom of God while we are here on earth - to usher it in, to make it as real as possible in this life, so we will be more prepared to enter it in the life to come!
Reflection by Teresa Monaghen,
"A GPS in our SOUL":
When the Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI was asked to give a lecture in the USA a few years before he became Pope, he responded "I am getting older now and my days of travel are over." Huh! Little did he realize that his traveling days had just begun and that the Holy Spirit had a whole other plan for his life. Yes, the Holy Spirit has a whole other plan for each of us. We are not here for ourselves we are here for God and he leads us through life and shows us the path if we pay attention to the "inner mapping" system that he gave us called "affective movements - consolation, desolation, interior peace..."
Being attentive to these rich mechanisms of the inner life is like having a GPS in our soul; it guides us on our sojourn though this life to the next. We can receive the Lord's messages in our heart and allow him to lead us if we will just pay attention. The Holy Father had a complete change of plans that he never would have anticipated, but even more important the Holy Spirit gave him peace to accept the change and that has made all the difference. What a tremendous example of docility and hope he has been for us these past few days. May we learn from him to follow our inner GPS system! Amen.
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