“Plucking out sin at the very first instance of its appearance, and cooperating with the Grace of God to live in holiness!”

(Based on Num 11:25-29, Jas 5:1-6 and Mk 9:38-43,45,47-48 – 26th Sunday in Ordinary Time)

A catechism class teacher was explaining about the reality of sin, to her 5th Standard (Grade) students.

She said: “Children, how does a worm get inside an apple?”

The question interested the students, and they keenly listened to the teacher, as she continued:
“Perhaps you think the worm burrows in from the outside?

No!

Scientists have discovered that the worm comes from the inside.”

One of the students then asked: “But, how does the worm get in there?”

The teacher with a smile said, “Simple!
An insect lays an egg in the apple blossom (bud).

Sometime later, the worm hatches in the heart of the apple…
… then eats his way out.”

She then continued: “Children, remember….
… Sin, like this worm, begins in the heart and works out through the person’s thoughts, words and actions.

That’s why make sure you root out sin at its very beginning…
… and pluck it out, at the very first instance of its appearance!”

The Gospel of the Day presents Jesus making a strong exhortation on the dangers posed by sin…
… and the intense need to overcome anything that comes in the way of holiness.

Jesus says, “If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off…

If your foot causes you to sin, cut it off…
If your eye causes you to sin, pluck it off…” (Mk 9: 43-47)

These are very strong and powerful words of our Blessed Lord.

Our Lord came to the World as a Saviour – to redeem the world from sin.

It is sin that causes separation of human beings from God.

Therefore the Lord clearly asks to us make choices and radical decisions to let go of anything that can cause us to sin or move away from His Holy Will.

We need to examine our lives and check…

… My hands:

Do I engage in activities which are uncharitable and which causes pains and hurts to others?
Do I fail to extend my hand to those in need and those whose lives can be bettered by my helping hand?

… My feet:

Do I stray away into paths of immorality, injustice and indifference?
Do I fail to direct my ways on the path of righteous living, holy conduct and true worship?

… My eyes:

Do I direct my eyes into things which are unbecoming of my way of life and with an intention to fulfil my sinful inner cravings?
Do I move away from seeing the suffering and miseries in the world and become closed to discover the spark of Divinity in the other?

Jesus wishes that our Christian lives, not become a scandal or a stumbling block to the other…
… Rather, He desires that we be honest to our calling as a Christian
… and walk firmly and with courage, in the path of perfection with Him and towards Him!

Are there sins in our life that are occupying large areas in our hearts?

Are there tendencies that are causing us to move away from a life of holiness?

The Lord says, “Have the courage to root them out completely!”

To cut off from sin…
… will surely be difficult
… will indeed be hard

But if we are ready to cooperate with the Grace of the Lord, then our Blessed Saviour will root them out completely from our hearts!

What is needed is our “readiness to pluck out sin completely!”

As the Psalmist prayed, we need to echo the phrase: “Create in me a clean heart, O God!”

Let’s understand that “sin, like a worm, begins in the heart and works out through the person’s thoughts, words and actions.

Lets make sure that we root it out at its very beginning…
… and pluck it out, at the very first instance of its appearance!”

God Bless! Live Jesus!

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Discovering the beauty of the Catholic Church through the Catechism

Mary, the all-holy ever-virgin Mother of God, is the masterwork of the mission of the Son and the Spirit in the fullness of time.
For the first time in the plan of salvation and because His Spirit had prepared her, the Father found the dwelling place where His Son and His Spirit could dwell among men.
In this sense, the Church’s Tradition has often read the most beautiful texts on wisdom in relation to Mary.
Mary is acclaimed and represented in the liturgy as the “Seat of Wisdom.”
In her, the “wonders of God” that the Spirit was to fulfil in Christ and the Church began to be manifested
The Holy Spirit prepared Mary by His Grace.
It was fitting that the mother of him in whom “the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily” should herself be “full of Grace.”
She was, by sheer Grace, conceived without sin as the most humble of creatures, the most capable of welcoming the inexpressible gift of the Almighty.
It was quite correct for the angel Gabriel to greet her as the “Daughter of Zion: Rejoice.”

It is the thanksgiving of the whole People of God, and thus of the Church, which Mary in her canticle lifts up to the Father in the Holy Spirit while carrying within Her the Eternal Son. (Cf. CCC # 721-722)