{"id":7446,"date":"2024-06-10T20:47:57","date_gmt":"2024-06-11T01:47:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/labmind\/?p=7446"},"modified":"2024-06-10T20:47:57","modified_gmt":"2024-06-11T01:47:57","slug":"that-the-world-may-be-saved","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/labmind\/2024\/06\/that-the-world-may-be-saved.html","title":{"rendered":"That the world may be saved"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Imagine a group of boys playing soccer in the neighborhood.\u00a0 One of them kicks the ball, and the next thing you hear is broken glass.\u00a0 An upset mother walks out the front door after thirty seconds fuming, going toward the boys who are standing there stunned, silent, because they had been told to play in the park, and not near the houses. \u00a0The mom, visibly upset asks, \u201cwho did this? Who broke the window?\u201d\u00a0 The boys just look at each other, not wanting to say.\u00a0 Eventually one of them points at the culprit.\u00a0 They all get punished.<\/p>\n

Isn\u2019t this the same thing that happens in the Book of Genesis, the passage we just heard proclaimed?\u00a0 Adam and Eve are told not to eat from the tree, they do, God approaches and they are acting all strange, even God notices it.\u00a0 Eventually Adam blames Eve, Eve blames the serpent, and in the end, everyone gets punished.<\/p>\n

This my friends, is the description of what the Church calls Original Sin.\u00a0 It\u2019s not one particular sin we may have committed, but it\u2019s our human inclination to disobey, to stray from what is right and true. \u00a0It describes an inner disposition, which Saint Paul quite accurately described when he wrote, \u201cwe have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.\u201d<\/p>\n

When I was in catechism for my first communion, I remember this point was made quite clear to us by our teacher: we are sinners, and my relationship with God is broken.\u00a0 However, what was not very much emphasized was the Good News of the Gospel!<\/p>\n

We heard from Saint Paul\u2019s Second Letter to the Corinthians:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe one who raised the Lord Jesus, will raise us also with Jesus, and place us in his presence.\u00a0 Everything indeed is for you, so that the grace bestowed in abundance on more and more people, may cause the thanksgiving to overflow for the glory of God.\u00a0 Therefore, we are not discouraged, our inner self is being renewed day by day.\u201d<\/p>\n

This is the heart of the Good News: though we are sinners, God has sent Jesus his Son to bring reconciliation.\u00a0 We can face each day with hope and encouragement, because despite our struggles, we have a God who longs to be with us.<\/p>\n

Jesus says in the Gospel, \u201call sins and all blasphemies that people utter will be forgiven them.\u201d\u00a0 No matter how far we have strayed, no matter how guilty we may be, no matter how heavy our consciences may be, Jesus always extends a hand for us to be reconciled.<\/p>\n

Jesus does say that \u201cwhoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never have forgiveness, but is guilty of an everlasting sin.\u201d\u00a0 What does this mean?<\/p>\n

The Holy Spirit has been sent for us to experience forgiveness.\u00a0 The unforgivable sin is either to believe that my sin is unforgivable, or that I don\u2019t believe I need forgiveness.<\/p>\n

If I don\u2019t believe that I can be forgiven, or that I have no need to be forgiven, then we do not allow God to do what he does best: to grant forgiveness.<\/p>\n

This echoes the passage from Scripture when Jesus went to Nazareth and was unable to perform miracles because the people lacked faith, and their lack of faith did not permit Jesus to work great deeds.\u00a0 Likewise with us, if we think we are unforgivable or don\u2019t need forgiveness, we prevent God from doing his work in us.<\/p>\n

As a priest, I have heard many people say both, \u201cwhat I have done is unforgivable\u201d and \u201cI don\u2019t need to ask for forgiveness.\u201d\u00a0 Pope Francis reminds us of the right way to think: \u201cGod never tires of forgiving us, it is us who get tired of asking for forgiveness.\u201d<\/p>\n

God does not want souls to be lost, he wants us to be saved.\u00a0 Saint John reminds us in his Gospel, \u201cfor God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pope Francis in 2017 reminded us that \u201cChristians have good reason to be joyful and should let it shine in their faces rather than sport sad, pessimistic looks. The root of Christian joy lies in the fact that Christians are forgiven and redeemed.\u00a0 If you have a face of a funeral wake, how can they believe that you are redeemed, that your sins have been forgiven?\u201d<\/p>\n

We pray today, that we may be people who have experienced the saving power of Jesus.\u00a0 May we live filled with hope for tomorrow, because in Christ we always have a new opportunity to get things right with God. \u00a0May we rejoice that Jesus has come into the world to bring salvation.<\/p>\n

Picture from public domain<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Imagine a group of boys playing soccer in the neighborhood.\u00a0 One of them kicks the ball, and the next thing you hear is broken glass.\u00a0 An upset mother walks out the front door after thirty seconds fuming, going toward the boys who are standing there stunned, silent, because they had been told to play in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2533,"featured_media":7449,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[81],"tags":[244,320,2286,780],"class_list":["post-7446","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-homily","tag-forgiveness","tag-homily","tag-redemption","tag-salvation"],"yoast_head":"\nThat the world may be saved<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Imagine a group of boys playing soccer in the neighborhood.\u00a0 One of them kicks the ball, and the next thing you hear is broken glass.\u00a0 An upset mother\" 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