Our Lady of La Salette Welcomes You to Her Shrine! Come...Be Blessed!: Lent Reflections Sixth Day..."GO FORTH" CHRISTIANS! Monday, February 23, 2015

2/23/2015

Lent Reflections Sixth Day..."GO FORTH" CHRISTIANS! Monday, February 23, 2015

“Go forth” Christian!

“The Church which “goes forth” is a community of missionary disciples who take the first step, who are involved and supportive, who bear fruit and rejoice.

An evangelizing community knows that the Lord has taken the initiative, he has loved us first (cf. 1 Jn4:19), and therefore we can move forward, boldly take the initiative, go out to others, seek those who have fallen away, stand at the crossroads and welcome the outcast.

Such a community has an endless desire to show mercy, the fruit of its own experience of the power of the Father’s infinite mercy.

Let us try a little harder to take the first step and to become involved. Jesus washed the feet of his disciples. The Lord gets involved and he involves his own, as he kneels to wash their feet.

He tells his disciples: “You will be blessed if you do this” (Jn 13:17).

An evangelizing community gets involved by word and deed in people’s daily lives; it bridges distances, it is willing to abase itself if necessary, and it embraces human life, touching the suffering flesh of Christ in others.

Evangelizers thus take on the “smell of the sheep” and the sheep are willing to hear their voice” (The Joy of the Gospel: #24 Pope Francis).

I propose this text for our reflection today as it speaks clearly of the need to care for the neighbor as our way of sharing the infinite mercy of God shown to us.

We can’t be mere onlookers in the church today but active agents of God’s love and mercy to those in need.

Those needy individuals are found right at our door steps needing a warm embrace, a bit of understanding, a binge of listening, a moment of listening, an iota of consolation and much more.