ELISHEBA BLOGLaura, Ivonne, and Rick
write about their lives in the Eucharist. |
ELISHEBA BLOGLaura, Ivonne, and Rick
write about their lives in the Eucharist. |
During the period of the Epiphanies, I like to meditate on the lives of the Holy Family. I imagine Jesus, Mary, and Joseph in their togetherness, one entity, sharing upon each other gifts, living their love and hope daily... For Jesus and Mary, doing this must have come naturally, for they are, after all, perfect and full of grace... but what about Joseph? There is a light-hearted comment I make about my family that I am sure some of you have heard me say before. “I have only known of three people who were ‘Perfect’. These are: 1. Our Lord Jesus, God incarnate, Son of the Father. 2. Mary Most Holy, Mother of God and Full of Grace. And... 3. My Grand Uncle, whose name is ‘Perfecto’ (Perfect in Spanish).” I often wonder about Perfecto. Being named that must have been tough on him to a certain level. Can you imagine the expectations? I never knew him, but listening to what my family has to say about him, I can say with conviction that he tried hard to live up to his name. He was faithful, kind, and compassionate. He was loving, caring, and hopeful in thought and action. I am sorry I never met him because he sounds just like a person we are called to emulate, not perfect, but perfect for the job at hand, perfect for the time. Does he not sound a bit like Joseph? Joseph was neither divine nor conceived without sin. He was a normal human being, the same as you or me. He had strengths, weaknesses, and a past but unknown history. Despite his ordinary humanity, he was selected for a higher mission… a mission of faith and courage… a mission of mercy and hope. By Joseph’s yes to the call to serve the mission of mercy and hope, a fiat, he was equipped with the grace needed for every day. I believe with great conviction that he tried hard and with great love to live up to this mission daily. By faithfully completing his required tasks, Joseph helped ensure that Christ’s mission on earth continued.
Would the history of Jesus and Mary among us be the same if not for Joseph’s humility, hope, and obedience? We know the story of Joseph receiving a command from an angel in a dream to take the Holy Family and evade the murderous King Herod. Joseph’s courage, obedience, and humility allowed him to flee Egypt without a doubt. He obeyed with hope. Joseph’s connection to the Holy Spirit made him decisive in his obedience and perfect in his hope. But even then, was Joseph perfect? No, neither of state nor of name... but he was the perfect person for the task at that most crucial time in history. For his myriad virtues exercised into practice, Joseph is a Saint! And he has been given to us as a perfect foster father and model to follow.
With his example, the light of the life of Joseph illuminates the area around Mary and Jesus and points us towards them, still to this day. In him, we find a perfect example of hope, humility, and courage... if we only look.
Oh, to be faithful, courageous, and hopeful as Joseph! We are all called to live up to that perfection required in the present moment, in the moment of requirement, that we may surrender ourselves in the service of the highest call, and that we may do it faithfully, courageously, mercifully, lovingly... and most of all with a heart full of hope! The story of my great-uncle Perfecto will likely not make it to books, stories, or traditions like the life of Saint Joseph, and neither likely will ours… but let us emulate the good examples of those who have lived saintly lives before us and try to become the best that we can be in service of others, just like Perfecto did emulate Joseph. May we live our lives in that same service of mercy and with the fullness of hope, perfect for the requirements of the moment, in Christ’s name. Let us pray: Saint Joseph, be our protector, model, and father in the service of Jesus Eucharistic. Intercede for us, our most Saintly Foster Father, that we may hold on to our hope, live our love, and walk our faith. Amen.
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By: Rick Hernandez I have often been asked, “Where does your Hope come from?” No doubt in my heart. Hope is a gift… received at the feet of my Master. As personal relationships go for most people, our loving Master is mostly unseen, mostly unheard, mostly unknown. It can be difficult for some, swamped by the pressures of the world, to believe in anything that requires faith. We can become so immersed in the struggle of daily living that we only have time to come up for air every once in a while. It can be a challenge to believe in a higher power and, even more, to invest time in someone who is not tangible, that is, up until the moment when the world’s answers to life questions become truly lacking. When life feels suffocating, hope might be scarce, but I say without a doubt that hope is the one thing we must always hold on to. I read this story online a few years ago:
Mostly unseen, mostly unheard, and mostly unknown, that is, until the moment we open our hearts and ears and listen to His loving call to relationship. We are all on a journey to meet Christ, and that journey is individually ours. Relationships are personal, which means we are directly involved. Jesus awaits us personally, and He is all in, so it is on us to give of ourselves in the same way.
But while on our journey towards Christ, we may not always feel as we think we should. Not having the happy or fulfilled feelings that we expect while living a good Christian life does not make us impostors, posers, or hypocrites. What it makes us is seekers. Ones who search. That is how we come to see the mostly unseen, hear the mostly unheard… It is how we come to know the mostly unknown. When we ask God for more of Him, He has many ways to accomplish that for us. We must not shy away from asking of God. He wants to hear us! This is our leap of faith, a humble gift of self, to be in relationship with our Master, whose Love is to be both received and shared. We look at our lives, even when they are difficult, and we sometimes think, “I am afraid to die. Tell me what lies on the other side.” Another leap of faith, to move forward, we live, love, and hope…
We fight against despair with Hope. We fight against the storm in our souls with the gift of self. And as I wonder upon the love our Lord and Master has for us, I do wish eagerly for a little more time with Him in His Blessed Sacrament, where we can be together in silent recollection, sharing a bit more in the discovery of who we are together. May we be reassured of being the beloved of Christ, that it may help us to dwell restfully in the love of our Lord and Master, but that our hearts be lit on fire…
We hear it in our souls.
May we continue to live in the fullness of Hope, learning at the feet of our Master. Amen.
Many decades ago, I was going through some difficult times, and no matter what I did, I felt empty and aimless. I was angry and selfish and felt isolated and lonely, yet I could not identify how the latter was a consequence of the former. I was indeed isolated and lonely among many people because I lived mainly in my own head, and because of that, I could not empathize and connect with others correctly. I could not feel love as it was meant to. I always had the gift of disposition toward helping others, but it was, for me, an extension of my own thoughts and needs, as opposed to a conscious show of love and compassion. I did not understand how much my innate love for God and people had been corrupted by anger and selfishness until I found, during self-examination, that I did not care for anything other than myself. And at the time, even this caring for self was up for debate. Where had my love gone? Where was my gratitude? Why didn’t I care? To live unable to feel love for others is a sad and unfulfilling life. Like muscles that have not been used in a long time, my love and appreciation had atrophied over the years, and I had not even noticed until I had a real need for them. I needed to remember what I already knew but had forgotten.
There and then, I made my decision. I prayed to God for the first time in a while and promised to learn again to be loving, kind, grateful, and faithful. I was convicted to become a better person, but I told Him unequivocally that I would need His guidance, for I did not know the way...
I will not lie and say that this miraculously happened overnight or that my life changed immediately. No, too much self-damage had been done over too long a time, and this was no “Road to Damascus” miracle like it was for Saint Paul. Sadly, those miraculous shortcuts were not made available to me. The road to faith and kindness is as full of frustration and failure as it is full of fulfillment and success, and for us believers, it has to be transited, one day at a time. We must remember that the road is difficult but not impossible. The Father will provide what is needed, and the Holy Spirit is within us, so let us lean on the One who loves us.
To become the people of God that Christ calls us to be means we are sent to walk on the road of life daily. We need to experience the many little wins and losses, learn from every interaction, and share all of those with Christ. Every success and every failure is a pleasing offering to our Lord.
Eventually, with every affirmation of our goal, with every decision we make to be faithful and kind, our hearts are reforged, our faith enkindled, and our love mended. Patience, Kindness, Goodness, and Joy come forth as fruit of the Spirit and take hold of us. I am no saint; that is clear to me, but I want to grow to be one, and every affirmation of faith, love, and kindness gets us a little closer. It sometimes costs us some to be loving and kind, but Jesus also paid a price to love and save us. Would it not be fair then to, in gratitude, do as He did for us?
I pray daily that my life may emulate Christ’s, even if only a little bit. I pray that I may grow in kindness, love, charity, hope, and faith and go out into the world to do God’s will. After my day is over and I go to bed at night, I often think about my day, the many wins and losses, and the opportunities I had to grow closer to the goal of faithfulness, kindness, and goodness. I offer a prayer of thanks to God for the opportunities given and think of what I did with those opportunities. There is growth to be had that can help us advance on the goal of Heaven. We look back at our actions, but only to see what we can do better and whether there is any insight to be had. We must remember to be kind and gentle to ourselves. How can we grow to be gentle and kind to others if we do not afford ourselves the same? We are all a work in progress on our journey home.
The road to faithfulness and kindness is long and arduous, but it starts like any journey… with the first conscious step. Let us consciously invite Christ to walk with us. May we all be blessed with a fruitful road to Heaven. Let us pray: Lord, you know our lives, thoughts, and feelings. Please, let us see You as You walk with us in friendship toward the goal of eternal life with You. May we grow daily to be more faithful, kind, loving, patient, and joyful so that our brothers can see You in the way we live our lives. Amen.
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AuthorsWe are Ivonne J. Hernandez, Rick Hernandez and Laura Worhacz, Lay Associates of the Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament, and brothers and sisters in Christ. |