"I shall not fear anyone on earth. I shall fear only God. I shall not bear ill will toward anyone. I shall not submit to injustice. I shall conquer untruth by truth and in resisting untruth, I shall put up with all suffering."
-- Mohandas Gandhi
One of the most popular hymns we have is "Amazing Grace." When people are asked for a choice of hymn, this is the one most asked for. I think that somewhere in our being we know and have learned by our life experiences that to live as Jesus asks is something we can't do by ourselves. Jesus tells us three times, even in this short passage from Matthew's gospel this week to "have no fear," "do not be afraid."
Jesus tells us that if we live his way -- speaking truth to untruth, fearing no one but God, seeking justice for all -- we will suffer. But he also says the loving presence of God will always be with us. God will give us the grace to accept whatever happens, knowing we are living his way. Jeremiah and Paul spoke to the people of their time and witnessed it by their lives. In our time, Jesus calls each of us to live his way of love, truth, and forgiveness and promises to be with us.
As human beings, we have yet to learn that what is best for each individual is what is best for all. Someday the world will be populated by people who live in peace and justice because they will finally have learned that God's way for his creatures is the best. It is our mission to do in our time what we can to spread Jesus' message.
The following prayer is from the Catholic Youth Bible, p. 917:
"Forgiving God, Help us to hear the prophets in today's world who call us to own our sin; the prophets who call us to end discrimination, who call us to care for the needy, to care for the earth, to end violence; who call us to healthy relationships, to be people of integrity, avoiding sin in all its forms. May we be humble enough to admit our faults and courageous enough to do something about them."
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