"STEADFAST FAITH IN GOD"

   21^th February, 2022:

Monday, seventh week in ordinary time (C)

(James 3:13-18); (Mk 9:14-29)

"STEADFAST FAITH IN GOD"

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we have listened from the Word of the Holy Scriptures, we are totally reminded as Christians that we should be more unassuming and be more able to pay attention to the Lord, to reveal in His Wisdom and judgment, and not to permit our aspirations, our human cravings, the desire and dread in our souls and brains from misdirecting us down some unacceptable way. We should be careful in case we wind up permitting those things from prevention us in doing the desire of God and complying with Him earnestly as we ought to.

In the first reading today, we heard from the Letter of St. James the Apostle in which the Apostle discussed the significance for us all as Christians to be modest and be excellent in our lives, opposing the allurements of pride, self-image and envy, of human ambition and the longings of common brilliance. He reminded all Christian devoted to free themselves of this multitude of things which could lead them to sin against God since this made them carry hurt to other people, in doing things that were intended to safeguard their own personal circumstances, which are all in opposition to the lessons of the Lord.

That is the reason, St. James advised them and us all to place our trust rather on the Wisdom of God, truth and the ethics that came from God, and which He has openly offered and given unto us. In the event that we rely entirely upon our own solidarity and power, rapidly we will understand that we will effectively fall into the numerous allurements present surrounding us. For that reason we need to regard the Lord's words and calling as He calls us to turn our backs against the appeals of transgression and evil, and to embrace His adoration, His reality and insight.

In our Gospel episode today, we heard the Lord addressing His followers and people in regards to how His followers couldn't drive away the evil spirits from the child of a man who carried him to the followers to be healed. The Lord had to be sure sent His devotees to go before Him and do His works. To them the Lord had endowed the power and power significantly over devils and abhorrent spirits, the capacity to direct wonders and to recuperate people from their physical and otherworldly torments.

Notwithstanding, as suggested from the records of the Gospel, all things considered, the followers to whom the man had depended his shrewd spirits had child had developed glad for their accomplishments and works, and they could have believed that their marvels and every one of the miracles that they did were their very own result significance and power. Accordingly, through pride and inner self, they had fallen into the snares of Satan, and became insatiable and neglected to disclose in the Lord in Whose Name they were doing their works. Thus, that was the way they probably neglected to project out those malicious spirits.

The Lord helped all to remember them and us too, that all that we have come from the Lord, every one of the graces and endowments, all power and may, and subsequently, we need to lower ourselves and ask Him for His direction and strength, rather than being glad and feeling that each achievement we have accomplished, we have done it without anyone else. The fact of the matter is without a doubt that for each achievement we have accomplished, it was all since God was next to us, directing us and fortifying us en route, regardless of whether we might not have acknowledged it, and regardless of whether we have neglected to see the value in His favors and direction, and overlooked Him.

Today, we all are called to develop our faith in the Lord and restore our relations with Him. The Lord Himself said, that they needed to ask and allow to appeal, since it implied that those followers had not been on top of the Lord, and had not really fostered a solid and certifiable relationship with God. The Lord has reminded all of us to keep up with that relationship that we should have with Him so we may not wind up losing our way throughout everyday life and falling increasingly deep into wrongdoing and fiendishness.

To that end today we should notice the genuine models set by our blessed ancestor, whose feast we are celebrating, in particular that of St. Peter Damian, blessed minister and Doctor of the Church. St. Peter Damian was an eminent Benedictine priest and an incredible reformer of the Church, who was designated as a Cardinal of the Church and as a nearby partner and associate of Pope Leo IX. He was endowed with the undertaking of changing the Church along with different heads of the Church, opposing the enticements of the world to ruin the pastorate and the people from the Church. These were similar defilements brought about by pride, inner self, aspiration and covetousness referenced by St. James in our first understanding today.

To that degree, he fragmented away at books and assets that roused the battle and endeavors to change the Church, purging it from the many gathered long periods of simony and other egregious and mischievous activities of the pastorate and people the same, cleansing the Church from many degenerate impacts. He worked among numerous mainstream and strict pioneers to guarantee that the change endeavors could continue and extend, notwithstanding the many difficulties and resistance that he and the Pope and different pioneers needed to look in the changes they had persisted through.

Brethren in Christ, let every one of us be roused by the extraordinary faith and fortitude that St. Peter Damian and numerous other of our blessed ancestors had shown. Allow every one of us to give our time, exertion and thoughtfulness regarding carry on with our lives perpetually commendably of God, and confidence in Him more. We need to develop our relationship with God, investing more energy with Him, be more unassuming and pay attention to Him more as opposed to paying attention to the impulses of our pride, self-image, desire and arrogance. Those will just prompt our defeat, and we ought not to permit ourselves be deluded by them.

May the Lord keep on directing us and fortify us, and may He enable every one of us to live perpetually dependably and to be ever more prominent instances of ideals and confidence throughout everyday life. May we all attract nearer and nearer to Him and develop perpetually in our confidence in Him, presently and consistently, forevermore. Amen.