5th Week in Ordinary Time 2025 - Wednesday - Achieving inner integrity

 There appears to be a bit of a contradiction in our readings today. In the first reading, for eating the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, God say, the consequence is death: “the moment you eat from it you are surely doomed to die”.

On the other hand, the Lord Jesus, speaking to a crowd says that “nothing that enters one from outside can defile that person”. Nothing you eat can corrupt your soul.

How do we reconcile what God says in the first reading and what he says in the Gospel? Well, in the first reading, it was not the fruit itself that was somehow spiritually poisonous. It was not as if this was some mystical fruit that had the power to corrupt man’s nature. What was spiritually deadly, wasn’t the fruit, rather, what was spiritually deadly was the decision to disobey God. And that decision is made in the soul, from within.

As the Lord explains in the Gospel, “from within the man, from his heart, come evil thoughts, unchastity, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, licentiousness, envy, blasphemy, arrogance, folly. All these evils come from within and they defile.”

Our decisions--—our deliberate actions—matter. Our use of our free will has spiritual consequences. When we use our free will to act in accordance with the divine will of God, we grow in virtue—we habituate ourselves to what is good—to goodness itself.  The Catechism says, “The virtuous person tends toward the good with all his sensory and spiritual powers; he pursues the good and chooses it in concrete actions. The goal of a virtuous life is to become like God…The virtuous man is he who freely practices the good. The moral virtues are acquired by human effort. They are the fruit and seed of morally good acts; they dispose all the powers of the human being for communion with divine love.(CCC 1803-1804)”

On the other hand, when we misuse our freewill to act in discord with the divine will, contrary to the purpose for which we were made, our souls are corrupted—we are habituated toward what is harmful to our minds, bodies, heart and soul. Choosing evil allows the powers of death to continue to pervert our natures meant for divine life. 

Even with the help of grace, the example of the saints, the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ, our life is a constant battle. One of the great lines out of Vatican II reminds us, “Finding himself in the midst of the battlefield man has to struggle to do what is right, and it is at great cost to himself, and aided by God’s grace, that he succeeds in achieving his own inner integrity.”

But inner integrity and sanctity can be achieved through effort, through faithfulness, through love. May we allow the victory of Christ to achieve victory in us today, in our decisions, our deliberate actions, in our struggle to do what is right, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

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With confidence in God’s grace and a desire to grow in virtue, we bring our prayers before the Lord.

For the Church: That she may faithfully teach and inspire all people to choose good over evil, and to live in accord with God’s divine will.

For those in positions of leadership—civil, religious, and community leaders:

That they may govern and guide with integrity, promoting what is just and right, and resisting the corruption of selfish or sinful motives.

For all who struggle with temptation or with persistent sins: That they may be strengthened by God’s grace and the support of the Christian community, and find the courage to choose the path of virtue.

For those who have been hurt by their own or others’ misuse of free will: That God’s healing mercy will restore them, renew their hope, and guide them toward forgiveness and reconciliation.

For those who suffer in body, mind, or spirit: That the Lord will bring them comfort, and that our loving actions may be a sign of God’s care and compassion in their lives.

For our beloved dead: That they may be granted eternal rest and behold the face of God in the heavenly kingdom.

Merciful Father, you have given us the freedom to choose good and the grace to follow your will. Hear the prayers we offer you this day and help us to grow in holiness. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

December 20 2024 - The choice for God (school mass)

 This morning’s Gospel should sound familiar to all of us. We heard it just last week, when we were all gathered together for the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. 

In the Gospel, Mary of Nazareth is visited by the archangel Gabriel. She is called “full of grace”. Hail Mary full of grace, we pray, echoing the words of the angel. These words signify how God had prepared Mary by his grace from the moment of her conception. 

And now she is presented with a choice: will she consent to God’s will and become the mother of Jesus or not? Of course, Mary chooses God’s will because she has always chosen God’s will in her life. “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord”—she has served God in every way she could from the moment of her existence, and now she will continue to serve God. Thanks be to God that Mary made the best choice she could possibly make in that pivotal moment.

Like Mary, each one of us is given a choice, every day. Will I choose to follow God’s will or not?

Will I treat others in a Godly way, or not. Will I pray today as I should, or not. Will I respect my parents, or not. Will I refrain from what is harmful to my mind and my body, or not. Will I use the time I’ve been given to cultivate my intellect, or not. Will I help others who are in need, or not. Will I do what I can to make the world a better place, or not.

Choice. Each of us, every day, are given choice. Our students might not feel like they have a lot of choices about a lot of things. But you do. Will you be kind, or not. Will you be patient, or not. Will you use your gifts and talents in a constructive way, or not. 

Mary trusted God, that choosing God’s will is always what is best. And so, we have this example of the blessed Virgin choosing God’s will just days before Christmas now to remind us of the importance of making good choices, godly choices, with the time we have before Christmas, and the time we are given every day.

We might not be able to control a lot of things about our world and our families or our places of work, but, we always have a choice to grow in holiness or not, to seek God’s will or not, to go through our day prayerfully or not.

May your Christmas break be filled with holy choices—choices to seek and surrender to the Holy Will of God in the circumstances of your life for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

31st Week in Ordinary Time 2024 - Wednesday - Grace, Free Will, and the Cross of Discipleship

 Today's readings highlight a profound mystery of our faith – the dance between divine grace and human free will, and the true cost of following Jesus.

"Work out your salvation with fear and trembling," St. Paul tells us today, "for God is the one who, for his good purpose, works in you both to desire and to work." 

At first glance, this might seem paradoxical. Are we to work out our salvation, or is it God who works within us? The answer is both. 

God's grace is the initiating force—the unmerited gift that empowers us to seek Him. It's His grace that stirs our hearts, giving us both the desire and the ability to do what is good. Yet, He doesn't override our free will. We are invited to cooperate with His grace, to actively participate in our own salvation. This cooperation involves effort on our part—hence Paul's exhortation to "work out your salvation with fear and trembling." This isn't a fear born of terror but a reverent awe at the magnitude of God's gift and our responsibility in responding to it.

In the Gospel, Jesus presents a stark message about the demands of discipleship: "Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple." 

To apply the lesson from St. Paul “carrying our cross” involves both human effort and reliance on God’s grace. The choice to carry our cross is ours, and our human strength is involved, but that feeble human effort is sustained and strengthened by God’s grace. We aren’t carrying our crosses alone. God is with us at every step.

Let us pray for the courage to embrace the cost of discipleship, trusting that God's grace will sustain and guide us. May we respond generously to His call, allowing His grace to work through our free will, and thus become true disciples who reflect His love to the world, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

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I would like to share a message from our bishop, which he posted online this morning, in light of yesterday’s election. His excellency writes:

“We are truly blessed to live in a democratic nation where we can participate in free elections to choose our government leaders. So many people across the globe do not have the opportunity to do so, and we should never take this fundamental right for granted.

Whether your chosen candidates won or lost, never forget that we are all brothers and sisters, created in the image and likeness of God. We are all neighbors, who more than ever, need to come together, united in peace. We must work for the common good, prayerfully, respectfully, and thoughtfully. We must put divisiveness behind us and move forward, together. May we approach one another with open hearts and minds, listen more, and talk less. It is only then that we can engage in meaningful, honest, and civil dialogue with our neighbors, friends and families, who might have opinions different from our own.

Please join me in praying for our newly elected leaders, asking that God grant them wisdom and courage to lead with compassion and justice. Let us pray that they demonstrate respect, kindness and generosity to all people. Let us pray that they uphold the God-given rights we are privileged to possess as U.S. citizens, especially the most fundamental right to life. And let us ask, through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary, Queen of Peace, that our Lord fill us with a spirit of faith, hope and love, that we may be peacemakers in our homes, in our communities, and in our great nation.”

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For the Church, that we may faithfully respond to God's grace as we carry our daily crosses, cooperating with His divine will in building up the Kingdom. Let us pray to the Lord.

For our newly elected leaders, that God may grant them wisdom, courage, and compassion as they serve the common good of all people. Let us pray to the Lord.

For our nation in this post-election period, that we may heal divisions, engage in respectful dialogue, and work together as brothers and sisters created in God's image. Let us pray to the Lord.

For those struggling with the demands of discipleship, that they may find strength in God's grace and support in our Christian community. Let us pray to the Lord.

For those facing heavy crosses of illness, loneliness, or hardship, that they may experience God's sustaining presence and our compassionate care. Let us pray to the Lord.

For our parish community, that we may grow in our ability to recognize and cooperate with God's grace in our daily lives, becoming true disciples who reflect Christ's love to the world. Let us pray to the Lord.

We pray in a special way during this Month of November for all of the faithful departed; for the deceased members of our family, friends, and parish, for deceased clergy and religious, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom, that they may experience the fullness of God's grace in eternal life. Let us pray to the Lord.

Merciful Father, you call us to discipleship and provide the grace we need to follow your Son. Hear these prayers and help us to respond generously to your call. Through Christ our Lord. 

32nd Sunday of Ordinary Time 2023 - The Kingdom of Heaven

 Throughout the Gospels we can find the Lord giving teachings and offering parables about the kingdom of heaven. 

“The kingdom of heaven” is a phrase appearing over 100 times in the New Testament—30 times just in Matthew’s Gospel.

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” “You are Peter, I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. “Truly I say to you, unless you are converted and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. “Truly I say to you, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.” “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, a pearl of great price which a man…sells all that he has to purchase. “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed” “The kingdom of heaven is like what happens to these 10 virgins” in the Gospel today.

The kingdom of heaven stands at the very center of the Lord’s preaching. After emerging from the desert after 40 days of fasting and withstanding the temptations of the devil, the very first words Jesus proclaims are “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” “Metanoeite ēngiken gar hē basileia tōn ouranōn” in St. Matthew’s Greek. 

What does he mean, the kingdom of heaven? The kingdom is the realization and fulfillment of God’s kingship—God’s sovereignty, God’s will for creation. “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done”. 

The fall of man occurred when we set our wills against that the will of God, thus introducing disorder, suffering, and death into the world. But the kingdom of heaven involves a turning away from disorder and evil, toward the goodness of the will of God. Our feelings, our opinions, our sentiments, and our choices are disordered when they fail to conform with the will of God. So to be part of the kingdom is to allign your mind, your heart, and your will in union with the will of God.

Second, every kingdom has a throne, and the throne of God’s kingdom, is in heaven: “thy kingdom come…on earth as it is in heaven.” From heaven Christ the King descended from the bosom of the Father, he established the Church as the beginnings of his kingdom on earth, and that kingdom will have its final consummation again in the eternal kingdom of heaven. 

Thirdly, this kingdom isn't simply God's reign over individual people. God’s kingdom involves a communion of people—a gathering together of a people in the Spirit—a people of faith—a community of sons and daughters. Creation is brought into a beautiful and heavenly harmony when we join together as willing subjects and servants of our God and King.

During this life of ours, we are given a choice—of which kingdom will we pledge our loyalty, our lives. Will we follow serve the fallen kingdom by simply giving into the passions of our fallen nature, or will we choose to ally and exercise our wills with God through discipleship of Jeus Christ. 

And this choice isn’t simply about giving God lip service. God sees through our lip service. For "Not every one that says to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven: but he that does the will of My Father who is in heaven"

In the Gospel, the Lord offers a parable illustrating the great choice, the most important choice: will we choose to be like the wise virgins, who are prepared for the coming of the bridegroom, or like the foolish virgins who are locked out of the heavenly banquet forever. This is the most important choice, because it is the choice between heaven and hell. 

This choice for heaven or for hell is one that is made in the many choices of our life, a choice that is finalized at the moment of our death, when each of us faces our particular judgment. The Catechism says, “Each man receives his eternal retribution in his immortal soul at the very moment of his death, in a particular judgment that refers his life to Christ: either entrance into the blessedness of heaven-through a purification or immediately, -- or immediate and everlasting damnation.” 

This judgment will take into account the state of our souls at the time of death—did we die in a state of grace, or with our souls devoid of grace because of sin. Did we accept or reject grace, truth, faith, and love? Did we harden our souls toward God through pride, or open them up to the life of God through humility? Did we seek to live by wisdom or to abide by foolishness?

Heaven is at stake for us. But heaven is promised to the wise. But what is heaven? It is peace and joy and life forever. Catechism says, in heaven the blessed will not be wounded any longer by sin, stains, or self-love, that destroy or wound…The beatific vision, in which God opens himself in an inexhaustible way to the elect, will be the ever-flowing well-spring of happiness, peace, and mutual communion.”

In heaven, God “will wipe away every tear from our eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain any more, for the former things have passed away.”

Scripture speaks of heaven in so many images: life, light, peace, wedding feast, rich wine, banquet, rooms in the Father’s mansion, paradise: "no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man conceived, what God has prepared for those who love him."

Unsurpassable joy will be experienced in the participation in God’s eternal “kingdom of justice, love, and peace.” The blessed will be raised to the resurrection of life, and the wicked to the resurrection of eternal condemnation.

Heaven is the greatest reward for those who finish the race, and the loss of heaven is greatest tragedy for those who run away from it. The parable shows us that spiritual preparation is rewarded and spiritual procrastination—putting of repentance, putting off conversion, putting off faith, is perilous. 

So, the Lord warns us, “stay awake”. There are so many forces in our world that seek to lull us to spiritual sleep, so many voices seeking convince us that taking religion seriously is only for silly fundamentalists and scrupulous fanatics. The world says, everybody goes to heaven anyway, so why put forth any effort. These are lies. Heaven is not a guarantee. If it were, why would the Lord so often stress the importance of choice: the choice to believe, the choice to live, the choice to forgive. The path to heaven begins here with the choice of Christian discipleship until our last mortal breath. 

May each of us, with the help of God, exercise that personal responsibility for our souls, that requires us to seek and live according to the wisdom of God, Jesus Christ the Lord, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

5th Week in OT 2019 - Wednesday - The choice

Monday and Tuesday, we heard of how God brought creation into existence out of nothing. Unlike many pagan creation myths, material creation in the book of Genesis is ordered according to the divine plan and pronounced very good. And that goes especially for human beings—created in the image and likeness of God.

And today, we read the more detailed account of the creation of man and woman in the second chapter of Genesis.  God forms man from the dust, and settles him in the garden of Eden to cultivate and care for it.  God breathes into the man, the breath of life, and immediately gives him a job: to work the garden, to care for it, to guard and protect it—to maintain the Order God has created.

Along with this job, God also issues a command:  “You may eat of every tree in the garden, but of the tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, you will not eat, for on the day you eat of it, you will die.”  So what’s at stake at the very beginning?  Life or Death.  Obedience brings life, disobedience brings death.  God’s not lying about this—He’s not just trying to scare Adam.  Obedience brings life, disobedience brings death.  Here’s the choice given to every human being.  What’ll it be?  Will you exercise your will according to the knowledge given you by God? Will you trust God? Or will you turn your will and mind against God? 

These theme will play out over and over again throughout the Scriptures.  Adam and Eve are given a choice. Noah, Moses, the Israelite people, the judges, the kings, the prophets and those who hear the prophets. Obedience—trusting in God—brings life; disobedience—trusting in yourself or the cunning lies of serpents—brings death.

In the Gospel today, Jesus lists actions which cause defilement and death: unchastity, theft, murder,
adultery, greed, malice, deceit, licentiousness, envy, blasphemy, arrogance, folly.  He says all these evils come from within, not from without.  Meaning, you can’t claim the “devil made me do it” or “the culture made me do it”, these are actions that people choose freely, they are contrary to the divine will, and they bring death. Moral choices have eternal ramifications.

May we use the breath of life that comes from God, to choose the good. May we trust him when we are tempted. May we repent of the evil we have done through our own fault. And, through our obedience to the Divine Will, may the Holy Spirit renew the face of the Earth, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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For the Holy Church of God, that the Lord may graciously watch over her and care for her.
For the peoples of all the world, that the Lord may graciously preserve harmony among them.
For all who are oppressed by any kind of need, that the Lord may graciously grant them relief.
For ourselves and our parish, that the Lord may graciously receive us as a sacrifice acceptable to himself.
For the dead, for all of the souls in purgatory, and for X, for whom this Holy mass is offered.
O God, our refuge and our strength, hear the prayers of your Church, for you are the source of all goodness, and grant, we pray, that what we ask in faith, we may truly obtain. Through Christ our Lord.

5th Week in OT 2019 - Tuesday - Made in the image and likeness of God

For the first four weeks of Ordinary Time, our weekday readings have all been taken from the New Testament letter to the Hebrews. Well, for some reason, our readings up until Ash Wednesday will be taken from the Old Testament. We’ll hear for two weeks from the first 10 chapters of Genesis and then from Sirach. We’ll hear of the creation of the world, the creation of the first humans, Adam and Eve, who God made for each other, who cling to each other as husband and wife. We will then hear of the fall of mankind, the story of Cain and Abel, and how at the time of Noah, wickedness had so filled with earth, that God sends a cleansing flood.

These ancient stories contain time truths that we do well to reflect upon and learn from.
Today we hear of the fifth, sixth, and seventh days of creation, particularly the creation of Man. Man is created on the sixth day, the same day as the beasts. The number six in the bible is often associated with the bestial. The number 666 is the number of the Beast in the Book of Revelation. What separates man from beast? Well, the biblical understanding of the human person is based on the words we read today: “God created man in his image; in the divine image he created him; male and female he created them.”

To be created in the image and likeness of God means, we have an intellect.  We can reason, we aren’t like the beasts which are directed by instinct alone.  We have a free will. 

One biblical scholar said, though both the beasts and man are created on the sixth day, man is created create FOR the seventh day. And what does God do on the seventh day?  He rests, and he reflects.  Animals do not have the capacity for self-reflection.  Animals cannot write poetry and “War and Peace”.  Animals do not have the capacity to reflect on their call to holiness.  They do not care for what is true, good, or beautiful. They do not gather in worship, they do not celebrate the mysteries of salvation, they do not reflect upon the Word of God.

We will hear in chapter 3 just what happens when humanity gives in to listening to the beast instead of listening to God. The sad history of sin, violence, and division comes from living for the sixth day rather than for the seventh. So may we cultivate what is best in us, may our lives reflect our divine pedigree, by living not for what is base and fallen, but for what is true, good, and beautiful for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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For the Holy Church of God, that the Lord may graciously watch over her and care for her.
For the peoples of all the world, that the Lord may graciously preserve harmony among them.
For all who are oppressed by any kind of need, that the Lord may graciously grant them relief.
For ourselves and our parish, that the Lord may graciously receive us as a sacrifice acceptable to himself.
For the dead, for all of the souls in purgatory, and for X, for whom this Holy mass is offered.
O God, our refuge and our strength, hear the prayers of your Church, for you are the source of all goodness, and grant, we pray, that what we ask in faith, we may truly obtain. Through Christ our Lord.

2nd Sunday in OT 2019 - Buddhist Detachment & Christian Morality

I was watching a documentary last night that contained an old Buddhist story, I think you might like. There was an old farmer who had a prized horse. And one day the horse ran away. And the farmer’s neighbor comes over to commiserate—to offer his condolences. He says, “I’m so sorry. I heard about your horse.” And the old farmer says, “who knows what is good or bad?” And the neighbor is confused because this is the farmer’s prized horse, after all. So the neighbor bids his farewell. Well the next day, the horse returns and he brings with him 12 wild horses from the countryside. Now the farmer is rich in horses. And the neighbor comes over and says, “Congratulations, you have all these horses.” And the old farmer says, “Who knows what’s good or bad?” And the neighbor is confused again. And then the next day the old farmer’s son is taming one of the horses and is thrown off the horse and breaks his leg. And the neighbor comes over again to commiserate, and the farmer says, “who knows what’s good or what’s bad”. And then the next day the army comes through the countryside and they are conscripting able-bodied young men to go off and fight in the war, and the farmer’s son is spared. And this story can go on and on and on.

Though this is a Buddhist story, there is some Christian truth. The Christian is to be detached
in a sense. We don’t know what the events of our life will hold. As they say, when God closes a door he opens a window. Being fired from one’s job, for example, might open up a new opportunity that is in the end more lucrative or more meaningful and fulfilling. The Christian martyrs, like our own St. Ignatius, they saw meaning behind what most people would consider evil: their suffering. St. Ignatius even told the Christians of Antioch not to try to rescue him from being brought to Rome for his martyrdom, so confident was he, that God could bring about something good through his suffering, just as God brought about the greatest good through the greatest suffering, our human salvation through the suffering and death of Jesus.

So, like the old farmer, Christians are called to practice a certain level of detachment. We aren’t to curse God when things don’t go our way. We are to trust God’s providence. Like Old Job would say, “the Lord giveth, the Lord taketh away, blessed be the name of the Lord.”

The Buddhist story however seems to only give insight into the events that happen around us. What it doesn’t address is human choice, human free will, that choices that I make. “Who knows what’s good or bad” applies to the events that happen to us and around us. The farmer had no choice that his horse ran away—so who knows if it was good or bad. However, the choices that we make, the exercise of free-will, that’s different. The Judeo-Christian tradition, our scriptures, the teachings of our Lord and the theologians are very clear that choices are either good or bad, and we can know the difference.
Some choices are so clearly in violation of the natural moral law, they are called objectively evil, objectively sinful: it doesn’t matter who does them, or the circumstance, they are always evil. One example, is the intentional destruction of innocent human life in the womb. And thousands and thousands and thousands of Christians and people of good-will marched upon our nation’s capital on Friday to bring an end to this national tragedy—this embarrassment to history--the legal allowance to murder unborn babies because they are unwanted by their parents. Christians are called to be the moral conscience of a place.

So some choices are clearly wrong. Sometimes it’s not always easy to know what is right or wrong. So God has given us through the Scriptures and through the teaching of his own lips, clear moral teaching. The 10 commandments, the sermon on the mount help to illuminate for us the right way to live, the way that leads to the flourishing of the human soul, the way that leads to everlasting life.

Our Gospel today contains some very important moral teaching from the lips of our blessed mother. Mary doesn't speak often in the Sacred Scriptures, but every time she does speak her words overflow with wisdom: "Do whatever he tells you." That is what is good, always. The teachings and commandments of Christ are always good. They aren’t always easy, but they are always good.

In the case of the wedding at Cana, the command was to bring Jesus jars of water, a strange request. But, when happened when the stewards were faithful to the command of Christ: goodness and power and glory were manifest.

“Do whatever he tells you” means that we can have unbounded confidence in Jesus. His teachings flow from a heart full of goodness, mercy, and love that understands humanity better than we understand ourselves. He wants what is best for us——he came to reconcile sinful man with God, to save sinful man from error and death. And when you trust him he will lead you to all truth. The compelling thing about Christian truth, besides the fact it comes from God himself, is that it is logically consistent, it holds up to greatest rational scrutiny. It is truly Catholic—universally intelligible to all people of all places of all times.

So we trust in Christ and those who he has established to speak and teach in his name. We are to have unbounded confidence in Him and in the teachings of His Church. For he himself said, “he who hears you” speaking to the Apostles, “hears me”. And “he who rejects you rejects Me.” He’s given His authority to the church in matters of faith and morality. And so when the Church clearly teaches that a particular human action is a sin, we trust that teaching and adapt our lives accordingly.

The true test of our confidence in God's goodness and power is our obedience to his will. To “do whatever he tells us”. And what does he tell us? To feed the hungry, to clothe the naked, to carry our crosses, to love our enemies, to forgive unreservedly, to build our lives and families on the solid foundation of his teaching, to believe in all the all the truths which the holy Catholic Church teaches, because God has revealed them, who can neither deceive nor be deceived.

Believing in good and bad is becoming increasingly unpopular. Naming actions as good or bad is labeled as intolerant or bigoted. But our Gospel today shows us, that when we say yes to Jesus, as incomprehensible as that is to the world, bringing 80 gallons of water to be changed into wine, when we say yes, to whatever he tells us, he does something amazing, something that reveals the goodness and power and glory of God that leads hearts to salvation through belief in Him.

May we be faithful to all the Lord and His Holy Church teaches and commands, may we do “whatever he tells us” for the glory of God and salvation of souls.