I am well aware, almighty God and Father, that in my life I owe you a
most particular duty. It is to make my
every thought and word speak of you. In this matter the declaration of my
intention is only of limited value. For
the rest, I need to pray for the gift of your help and your mercy.
As we spread
our sails of trusting faith and public avowal before you, fill them with the
breath of your Spirit, to drive us on as we begin this course of proclaiming
your truth. We have been promised, and
he who made the promise is trustworthy: Ask,
and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be
opened to you.
There is an inertia
in our nature that makes us dull; a laziness in our habits and in our attempt
to penetrate your truth we are held within the bounds of ignorance by the
weakness of our minds. At least this is
our excuse for not studying your word. Yet
we do comprehend divine ideas by earnest attention to your teaching and by
obedience to the faith which carries us beyond mere human apprehension. This is the mystery of our faith taught by
our Church through our deacons, priests, and Bible teachers.
This Lent, let us
study more, attend Mass more often (for it is a mortal sin not to keep holy the
Sabbath Day), and teach our children by words and example, bringing them to
Faith Formation and then to Mass with us.
Our behaviors teach more than our words.
If we value our faith, and become one with the Church and its offerings,
then our children will see its value too.
We will pray for
our needs. We will study the sayings of
your prophets and apostles with unflagging attention, and knock for admittance
wherever the gift of understanding is safely kept. But yours it is, Lord, to grant our
petitions, to be present when we seek you and to open when we knock.
Through the
prophets and apostles we know about you, the one God the Father, and the one
Lord Jesus Christ. Impart to us, then,
the meaning of the words of Scripture and the light to understand it, with
reverence for the doctrine and confidence in its truth. Guide us to attend instruction and Bible
Study. Teach us that we may encourage
our children in seeking to know you more.
Grant that we may express what we believe, and act as though we truly
believe. Kvs with St. Hilary, bishop
No comments:
Post a Comment