October 4: Preparing to Celebrate Sunday’s Mass / Preparándonos para Celebrar la Misa Dominical

How much time and energy do we give to questions like these: What would people think if they saw how I behaved in various circumstances? What would they think if I were generous … or mean? Many of us feel like we need the opinion by others, especially in order to be valued or praised. Taken to the extreme, we sometimes think that, unless there’s an audience of some kind to validate us, it is hardly worthwhile to make an effort. How often are we tempted to dress things up with a veneer of virtue, as opposed to the real thing? Yet, God sees our hearts and knows our thoughts.

The opinions of others do matter to some extent. But what counts in the long run is not human opinion, but how God sees us. Nothing compares with that judgment. The basic issue which this weekend’s Scripture readings present us is whether we are living in an authentic way – both as human beings and as children of God. The Word says that “because of fidelity, the righteous will live.” Living in the state of grace, therefore, does not depend on social reputation, but on our inner quality and disposition.

Are we willing to trust in God’s mercy, while always making an honest effort to do what is good and right? Are we planting now in anticipation of the harvest that awaits us? If we are, then this principle applies: “For those who love God, all things work together unto good.”

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Afirmaciones bonitas sobre nuestra fe pueden impresionar a otros y quizás a nosotros mismos, por un momento, pero no nos cambian. La inspiración para cambiar y convertirnos al Evangelio procede de testigos vivientes, que nos inspiran sobre todo por la forma como viven. 

Con frecuencia los primeros discípulos de Jesús ni siquiera entendieron a Él en su predicación, pero veían lo que hacía, y cómo vivía. Ellos le admiraban, y por eso le pidieron: “¡Señor, aumenta nuestra fe!” 

La gente de nuestro tiempo nos considera a nosotros católicos practicantes, pero el meollo de la cuestión, según las Escrituras de la Misa dominical, es a ver si de verdad somos creyentes, personas de fe, cercanos a nuestro Señor, y que vivimos con coherencia conforme a lo que creemos. Pidamos también nosotros: “¡Señor, aumenta nuestra fe!”