Everyone has a vocation

"The garden of the Lord, brethren, includes – yes, it truly includes – includes not only the roses of martyrs but also the lilies of virgins, and the ivy of married people, and the violets of widows. There is absolutely no kind of human beings, my dearly beloved, who need to despair of their vocation; Christ suffered for all. It was very truly written about him: who wishes all men to be saved, and to come to the acknowledgement of the truth."

A sermon preached by St Augustine on the feast day of St Laurence

Lay people don't need a pilot

Lay people with an authentic Christian formation, shouldn't need a pilot Bishop or a pilot Monsignor, or a clerical presence to take on responsibilities on all levels. From the political to the social. From the economic to the legislative.

"All of us have been made priests of our lives" -- St Josemaría and the Sacrifice of the Altar

(Fr José Mario O Mandía, Homily, June 2008)

"All of us have been made priests of our lives."

(St Josemaría, "Christ's Death is the Christian's Life," Christ is Passing By, 96)

YOU AND I CAN BECOME HOLY

Good evening, my dear brothers and sisters.

As many of you probably know,

Saint Josemaría's message was to remind everyone

that God wants all of us, you and me, to be holy,

whatever our job or occupation may be.

Carpenters, doctors, housewives, nurses,

students, teachers, plumbers, hairdressers,

vendors, businessmen, lawyers, streetsweepers,

farmers, construction workers, journalists, fishermen,

sick or healthy, young or old...

God invites everyone to His great feast in heaven,

He wants us all to experience and enjoy forever

what Pope Benedict calls the "supreme moment of satisfaction" (Spe Salvi, no 12).

"[H]e will wipe away every tear from their eyes"

the book of Revelation says of heaven,

"and death shall be no more,

neither shall there be mourning

nor crying

nor pain any more,

for the former things have passed away.

And he who sat upon the throne said,

'Behold, I make all things new.'" (Rev 21:4-5)

HUMAN WORK ON THE ALTAR OF SACRIFICE

During the sacrifice of the Mass,

as the priest offers the bread and wine,

he praises God, the Lord of all creation,

for the bread "which earth has given

and human hands have made";

he also thanks God for the wine

"fruit of the wine

and work of human hands."

Saint Josemaría echoed these words in his teaching,

because he taught that all honest work,

our family and social life,

our joys, sorrows, successes and failures

are the offering God asks of us at Mass,

so that Jesus Christ may present these to the Father,

together with His Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity.

The Holy Spirit blesses these offerings,

He makes them holy,

He sanctifies them,

so that the same job that buys us a meal on earth

can also buy for us a banquet in heaven.

Work can buy us a passage to heaven--

work can make saints of us!

OFFERING THE BEST

When you and I commit ourselves to offer God our work in the Holy Mass,

we also commit ourselves to do our very best,

to execute it as perfectly as possible,

just as God commanded in the Old Testament

that all offering should be without stain, without blemish

(the book of Leviticus repeats this at least twenty-six times!)

Slipshod work and sloppy jobs

have no place on the altar of sacrifice.

But doing our work as perfectly as possible

does not only require

that it be materially complete and thorough.

It also requires that our intention

be purely and exclusively for God's glory.

"Not to us, O LORD, not to us, but to Your name give glory" (Ps 115:1),

Saint Josemaría would often exclaim,

repeating the words of the Psalm.

If our motives are stained by self-seeking,

blemished by selfishness,

tainted with pride,

we cannot say that we are giving God our all--

our offering is not perfect.

Participation at Mass, therefore,

makes us more attentive and caring at home,

more conscientious in our job,

more ambitious to be of service to others.

It makes us more aware

that our all-knowing, all-loving, all-powerful Father in heaven

is interested in the tiny little details of our life,

that He truly cares for you and me.

That's why He wants our daily occupations

to yield much more than just the few dollars

that provides clothes on our back,

food on the table,

a roof over our heads,

or schooling for the kids.

In the Holy Sacrifice of Jesus' Body and Blood

God makes use of our modest contribution,

to make Food and Drink

for many hungry and thirsty souls

(that includes our own

and the souls of the people we love).

WORK OF MAN BECOMES WORK OF GOD

In the Mass, Jesus makes our work His own,

He takes it into His own sacred Hands,

and offers it to His Father.

He transforms humble human work

into God's glorious Work.

Let us thank the Lord for His great mercy.

Let us thank Him for His love.

Because He makes it possible for us

to turn every single situation,

every single event

of every ordinary day

into an occasion for loving Him,

for serving the Church and all souls

in joy and in simplicity.

The message of Saint Josemaría

helps us to convert what other people might consider liabilities

into spiritual assets.

CENTRE OF CHRISTIAN LIVING, ROOT OF CHRISTIAN LIFE

Since the founding of Opus Dei in 1928,

Saint Josemaría had always taught

that the Mass

is "the centre ... of Christian living",

because no matter what we may be doing,

our whole day ought to revolve around the altar,

so that Jesus Christ can offer us and our work to our Heavenly Father.

Moreover, Saint Josemaría considered the Mass not only as the centre

around which our life gravitates,

but also as the root which feeds our spiritual life,

the source from which we draw strength.

When we receive Jesus' Body and Blood,

He makes us grow,

He transforms us into Himself,

He makes us more and more like Him, more Christ-like,

He makes us see with His eyes,

speak with His words,

and love with His heart (cf St Josemaría, Meditation, 19 March 1975).

He makes us behave more

like authentic children of God,

so that when others look at us

they only see Jesus.

Yes, this conversion is possible!

PRAY FOR PRIESTS

Finally, an appeal to all of you.

Saint Josemaría once wrote:

"I ask all Christians to pray earnestly for us priests

that we learn to perform the Holy Sacrifice in a holy way.

I ask you to show a deep love for the Holy Mass

and in this way to encourage us priests to celebrate it respectfully,

with divine and human dignity:

looking after the cleanliness of the vestments

and other things used for worship,

devoutly, without rushing.

Why the hurry?

Do people in love hurry when they are saying goodbye?

They seem to be going and then they don't go;

they turn back once and again;

they repeat quite ordinary words

as if they had just discovered their meaning ..." (St Josemaría, Homily A Priest Forever)

The Blessed Virgin Mary and Saint Joseph

lived only for Jesus.

May we, also, live only for Him

as we carry out the commonplace tasks

of every single day.

SENT OUT TO THE WORLD

One of the Cardinal’s best-loved meditations includes the words, “God has created me to do him some definite service. He has committed some work to me which he has not committed to another” (Meditations on Christian Doctrine). Here we see Newman’s fine Christian realism, the point at which faith and life inevitably intersect. Faith is meant to bear fruit in the transformation of our world through the power of the Holy Spirit at work in the lives and activity of believers. No one who looks realistically at our world today could think that Christians can afford to go on with business as usual, ignoring the profound crisis of faith which has overtaken our society, or simply trusting that the patrimony of values handed down by the Christian centuries will continue to inspire and shape the future of our society. We know that in times of crisis and upheaval God has raised up great saints and prophets for the renewal of the Church and Christian society; we trust in his providence and we pray for his continued guidance. But each of us, in accordance with his or her state of life, is called to work for the advancement of God’s Kingdom by imbuing temporal life with the values of the Gospel. Each of us has a mission, each of us is called to change the world, to work for a culture of life, a culture forged by love and respect for the dignity of each human person. As our Lord tells us in the Gospel we have just heard, our light must shine in the sight of all, so that, seeing our good works, they may give praise to our heavenly Father (cf. Mt 5:16).

--Benedict XVI, Speech at Hyde Park, 18th September 2010

CHRISTIANITY IN EUROPE, THANKS TO A LAY WOMAN

"13 and on the sabbath day we went outside the gate to the riverside, where we supposed there was a place of prayer; and we sat down and spoke to the women who had come together. 14 One who heard us was a woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple goods, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to give heed to what was said by Paul. 15 And when she was baptized, with her household, she besought us, saying, 'If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay.' And she prevailed upon us." (Acts 16:13-15)

It is worth reflecting on the fact that Christianity began in Europe through this lady's response to God's calling. Lydia set about her mission to Christianise the whole world from within, starting with her own family.

--Commentary of the Navarre Bible

FAITHFUL: PRIESTS, PROPHETS AND KINGS

Although the universal Church of God is constituted of distinct orders of members, still, in spite of the many parts of its holy body, the Church subsists as an integral whole, just as the Apostle says: We are all one in Christ. No difference in office is so great that anyone can be separated, through lowliness, from the head. In the unity of faith and baptism, therefore, our community is undivided. There is a common dignity, as the apostle Peter says in these words: And you are built up as living stones into spiritual houses, a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices which are acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. And again: But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people set apart.

For all, regenerated in Christ, are made kings by the sign of the cross; they are consecrated priests by the oil of the Holy Spirit, so that beyond the special service of our ministry as priests, all spiritual and mature Christians know that they are a royal race and are sharers in the office of the priesthood. For what is more king-like than to find yourself ruler over your body after having surrendered your soul to God? And what is more priestly than to promise the Lord a pure conscience and to offer him in love unblemished victims on the altar of one’s heart?

--Pope St Leo the Great

WHO IS GOING TO DO THE WORK?

Andrew Carnegie was a fabulous little Scotsman. He started in poverty and built one of the world's greatest business empires. Once, someone asked him what he believed about the future of his businesses.

He said, "You can take from me all my plants. You can take from me all my money. You can take from me all my equipment. But if you leave me my men, I will build it all again." Carnegie's genius was that he knew an organization is not finances or techniques or equipment. It is human resources.

God's method is always a person. When God chose to speak to human history decisively, to get under the load of human weakness and sin, his method was a person, Jesus Christ, God in flesh and blood.

But the principle of incarnation was not just used during the lifetime of Jesus on earth. It is the principle by which the church operates today. The church is the body of Jesus Christ. God works through flesh and blood, men and women who are committed to his cause. This is the reason that the laity is called today to be God's people wherever they are, whatever they are doing.

One of the critics of Abraham Lincoln's administration of the Civil War once said, "Mr. Lincoln you must throw General McClellan overboard." Lincoln asked who he should put in General McClellan's place, and the critic said, "Anybody." Lincoln coolly replied, "Anybody will do for you. But I must have somebody."

Who is going to do the work of Jesus Christ in deed and in word? You might say that anybody can do it. No, my friend, God must have somebody.

And God intends that somebody be you and me.

--Howard Butt, http://www.thehighcalling.org/Library/RecentBlogs.asp?CategoryID=2&BlogID=610&WID=411&T=H&SID=12675

What lay people can do

"The laity can accomplish their proper vocation in the world and attain holiness not only through their active involvement in helping the poor and needy, but also by imbuing society with a Christian spirit as they carry out their professional duties and offer an example of Christian family life. Here I am thinking not only of leaders in public life but also of the many people who can transform their daily life into prayer, placing Christ at the centre of their activity. He will draw them all to Himself and satisfy their hunger and thirst for righteousness (cf Matt 5:6)

(John Paul II, Rise, Let Us Be On Our Way)

Christians are indistinguishable from other men either by nationality, language or customs. They do not inhabit separate cities of their own, or speak a strange dialect, or follow some outlandish way of life. their teaching is not based upon reveries inspired by the curiosity of men. Unlike some other people, they champion no purely human doctrine. With regard to dress, food and manner of life in general, they follow the customs of whatever city they happen to be living in, whether it is Greek or foreign.

And yet there is something extraordinary about their lives. They live in their own countries as though they were only passing through. They play their full role as citizens, but labour under all the disabilities of aliens. Any country can be their homeland, but for them their homeland, wherever it may be, is a foreign country. Like others, they marry and have children, but they do not expose them. They share their meals, but not their wives. They live in the flesh, but they are not governed by the desires of the flesh. They pass their days upon earth, but they are citizens of heaven. Obedient to the laws, they yet live on a level that transcends the law.

Christians love all men, but all men persecute them. Condemned because they are not understood, they are put to death, but raised to life again. They live in poverty, but enrich many; they are totally destitute, but possess an abundance of everything. They suffer dishonour, but that is their glory. They are defamed, but vindicated. A blessing is their answer to abuse, deference their response to insult. For the good they do they receive the punishment of malefactors, but even then they rejoice, as though receiving the gift of life. They are attacked by the Jews as aliens, they are persecuted by the Greeks, yet no one can explain the reason for this hatred.

To speak in general terms, we may say that the Christian is to the world what the soul is to the body. As the soul is present in every part of the body, while remaining distinct from it, so Christians are found in all the cities of the world, but cannot be identified with the world. As the visible body contains the invisible soul, so Christians are seen living in the world, but their religious life remains unseen. The body hates the soul and wars against it, not because of any injury the soul has done it, but because of the restriction the soul places on its pleasures. Similarly, the world hates the Christians, not because they have done it any wrong, but because they are opposed to its enjoyments.

Christians love those who hate them just as the soul loves the body and all its members despite the body’s hatred. It is by the soul, enclosed within the body, that the body is held together, and similarly, it is by the Christians, detained in the world as in a prison, that the world is held together. The soul, though immortal, has a mortal dwelling place; and Christians also live for a time amidst perishable things, while awaiting the freedom from change and decay that will be theirs in heaven. As the soul benefits from the deprivation of food and drink, so Christians flourish under persecution. Such is the Christian’s lofty and divinely appointed function, from which he is not permitted to excuse himself.

(From A Letter to Diognetus)