Where your treasure is

-
In the scouting movement there is a saying “be prepared.” It is a good subheading for today’s readings.  That is what we must always try and be prepared for the Kingdom of God. But it is not like a readiness when we are going out or going on holiday. IT is a different kind of readiness. We get a clue what kind it is by the phrase “For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”

Our treasures are not whether we have the latest TV or a nice house they are things that only last in this world. We cannot take them with us when we go. So how do we get this treasure how do we achieve it? The Gospel gives us a few clues on how to do this.
The first thing we can do is “give alms” help others. When we have our own processions we hold on to them and sometimes want more. I think that sometimes it is important to give the treasure of time rather than money sometime.

Then we have to be people of action. Ready prepared awake and alive with the love of Christ in our hearts. Dressed for action. Ready to serve our brothers and sisters.

So are we ready for the Kingdom of God? We can become more ready by the coming to Mass at the weekend to pray and receive the Lord in the Eucharist. We can be ready by prayer and listening to the Lord in prayer. And these two things lead to Christian charity which is an outward sign of our interior life. In means not being afraid to proclaim by our actions the love of Jesus. We are the ones who can bring this Kingdom here on earth. We are the ones with the treasure to proclaim and to build. To build his Church here on earth is our tasks as baptised Christians. This was one of the most important teachings of Vatican II. 

 We all have a responsibility to be ready and build the Kingdom by who we are and what we do. We need to rediscover this important teaching we are in it together. So let us pray that each of us through our charity our prayer and faith in Jesus may bring the Kingdom of God here on earth

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A Year of Service

-
Image
  This last weekend I was able to look back with friends at the wonderful year I had with the Vincentian Volunteers. Looking back I can see that there are many elements to this year that have remained always with me. These I can now see and after reflection have shaped my life since this most formative year. From this year I went on to train for the priesthood and became a priest. After 16 years I left ministry and now try my best to live my Christian values and life in the world. In a recent upgrade to my CV I realised that my whole adult life has been in some sort of service to others and usually to the most vulnerable and those on the fringes of society. From working in Top Shop to ministry to the Hospital to the work I now do in education. This all stems from this year I had with the community and putting Love in action. Yes I have made mistakes on the way and my human frailty has been evident but this life was never going to easy and straight forward.  When I look back on that yea
Read more

Easter

-
Image
  Over the last few years I have had major issues with the Catholic Church. I think that my issue is the authority of the Church and how many clergy, not all, use and abuse their power and class the laity as stupid idiots. I can say this as for 16 years I was a priest and caught up in the system. When you're in the middle of it you can't aways see what is going on around you. I could not see what the Church as a structure was doing to peoples lives. Until I was out I realised that the Church and Im talking about the Catholic Church here is full up of repressed men who are scared of change scared of themselves and scared of the laity. Those who speak out especially clergy who want significant change are laughed at by others and classed as trouble makers. This includes Pope Francis himself who wants change but sometimes can't get it because of what he has inherited. It is an issue that has gone on your centuries.  This does not allow for a healthy functioning Church. There ne
Read more

What have we learnt? Covid and the last year.

-
Image
Over the last year since the start of the Covid pandemic there has been much in the press about the affects on society. We have seen that there are many people who are anxious, feel alone and worried about the future. So I looked on the Internet for the Christian response to the Pandemic. I was not surprised to see that there were many articles to suggest that the Christian Church as a whole has failed in this time.  In the first Lockdown the Churches were asked to close and there was no public worship. As the infection rate went down the Churches could open for private prayer. In the recent lockdown many places of worship have remained open although the infection rate being a lot higher. I have maybe been a thorn in peoples sides by asking why. I even wrote to the Cardinal  to ask him why. I argued that they should be left shut because of the demographic that tend to go. I got a standard reply back. When I looked in newsletters I read many times about how to give your collection and t
Read more