Daily Retreat 12/10/08
2008 Dec 10 Wed: Advent Weekday
Is 40:25-31; Ps 102(103):1-2,3-4,8 and 10; Mt 11:28-30
From today’s readings: “To whom can you liken Me as an equal? says the Holy One.... Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits.... Jesus said to the crowds: “Come to Me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest....”
What does "God" mean?
Many who claim to believe in God really only believe in a god. What I mean is, God has revealed Himself to be our Father who is all-powerful, all-knowing, all-good, all-loving, all-merciful, all-just. But for many people, that’s all-together too much! So instead, they believe in a god who is not all those things - rather, in their imagination, their god is limited to only those attributes which they are personally comfortable with ceding to him/her/it.
So, certain libertines believe in a god who is all-merciful and always ready to overlook their transgressions, but their god would never dare to impose uncompromising standards of morality and justice. On the other hand, there are those who have such an overriding preoccupation with divine justice that they leave little room, either with themselves or with others, for divine tender mercy from the One who said, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest.” Then too, some believe in an almighty creator of the universe, who has, however, no personal interest in the individual people on our little planet. But others worship their god as their sympathetic best friend, who just unfortunately can’t always help out as much as needed.
The first reading from Isaiah is one of those succinct, hard-hitting, no-nonsense scripture passages when God does us the favor of blunting reminding us who He is, and what it means that He is GOD, and not just another god. Take comfort in knowing the God in which we believe has more than what it takes to make up for all our limitations, shortfalls, and failings. Alleluia!
Is 40:25-31; Ps 102(103):1-2,3-4,8 and 10; Mt 11:28-30
From today’s readings: “To whom can you liken Me as an equal? says the Holy One.... Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits.... Jesus said to the crowds: “Come to Me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest....”
What does "God" mean?
Many who claim to believe in God really only believe in a god. What I mean is, God has revealed Himself to be our Father who is all-powerful, all-knowing, all-good, all-loving, all-merciful, all-just. But for many people, that’s all-together too much! So instead, they believe in a god who is not all those things - rather, in their imagination, their god is limited to only those attributes which they are personally comfortable with ceding to him/her/it.
So, certain libertines believe in a god who is all-merciful and always ready to overlook their transgressions, but their god would never dare to impose uncompromising standards of morality and justice. On the other hand, there are those who have such an overriding preoccupation with divine justice that they leave little room, either with themselves or with others, for divine tender mercy from the One who said, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest.” Then too, some believe in an almighty creator of the universe, who has, however, no personal interest in the individual people on our little planet. But others worship their god as their sympathetic best friend, who just unfortunately can’t always help out as much as needed.
The first reading from Isaiah is one of those succinct, hard-hitting, no-nonsense scripture passages when God does us the favor of blunting reminding us who He is, and what it means that He is GOD, and not just another god. Take comfort in knowing the God in which we believe has more than what it takes to make up for all our limitations, shortfalls, and failings. Alleluia!
posted by FrPitstick | 12/08/2008
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