And This Love Seeks You

…On God’s part, what is it that attracts Him? It is His love for us: we are His children, He loves us and He wants to free us from evil, from sicknesses, from death and take us to His House, in His Kingdom. “Out of pure grace, God attracts us, to unite us to Himself” (Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii gaudium, 112). And there is also love on our part, a desire: good always attracts us; truth attracts us; life, happiness, beauty attract us. Jesus is the meeting point of this reciprocal attraction, of this twofold movement. Jesus: He is God and man. God and man. But, who takes the initiative? It is always God! God’s love always comes before ours! He always takes the initiative. He waits for us, He invites us, the initiative is always His. Jesus is God who became man. He was incarnated and born for us. The new star that appeared to the Magi was the sign of the birth of Christ. If they had not seen the star, those men would not have set out. Light precedes us, truth precedes us, beauty precedes us. God precedes us. The prophet Isaiah said that God is like the flower of the almond tree. Why? Because the almond tree is the first to flower in that land. And God always precedes, He always seeks us first. He takes the first step. God precedes us always. His grace precedes us and this grace appeared in Jesus. He is the epiphany. He, Jesus Christ, is the manifestation of the love of God. He is with us.

The Church is altogether within this movement of God towards the world: her joy is the Gospel, it is to reflect the light of Christ. The Church is the people who have experienced this attraction and carry it within, in the heart and in life. “I would like -- sincerely -- to say to those who feel far from God and from the Church -- to say respectfully -- to say to those who are fearful and indifferent: the Lord calls you also, He calls you to be part of His people, and He does so with great respect and love!” (Ibid., 113). The Lord calls you. The Lord seeks you. The Lord waits for you. The Lord does not engage in proselytism, He gives love, and this love seeks you, waits for you, you who at this moment do not believe or are far away. And this is the love of God.

                -Pope Francis, Angelus Address, Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord

Reject the Seduction of Consumerism

As we enter the Christmas season, which is often inappropriately labeled with the materialism of our culture, let us remember this advice Blessed John Paul II gave to the young people of Cologne in 2004:

"Opening their treasures they offered Him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh" (Mt 2:11). The gifts that the Magi offered the Messiah symbolized true worship. With gold, they emphasized His Royal Godhead; with incense, they acknowledged Him as the priest of the New Covenant; by offering Him myrrh, they celebrated the prophet who would shed His own blood to reconcile humanity with the Father.

My dear young people, you too offer to the Lord the gold of your lives, namely, your freedom to follow Him out of love, responding faithfully to His call; let the incense of your fervent prayer rise up to him, in praise of His glory; offer Him your myrrh, that is your affection of total gratitude to Him, true Man, who loved us to the point of dying as a criminal on Golgotha.

Be worshippers of the only true God, giving Him pride of place in your lives! Idolatry is an ever-present temptation. Sadly, there are those who seek the solution to their problems in religious practices that are incompatible with the Christian faith. There is a strong urge to believe in the facile myths of success and power; it is dangerous to accept the fleeting ideas of the sacred which present God in the form of cosmic energy, or in any other manner that is inconsistent with Catholic teaching.

My dear young people, do not yield to false illusions and passing fads which so frequently leave behind a tragic spiritual vacuum! Reject the seduction of wealth, consumerism and the subtle violence sometimes used by the mass media.

Worshipping the true God is an authentic act of resistance to all forms of idolatry. Worship Christ: He is the Rock on which to build your future and a world of greater justice and solidarity. Jesus is the Prince of peace: the source of forgiveness and reconciliation, who can make brothers and sisters of all the members of the human family.