Dear Parishioners,
“In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.” (John 1:4)
In today’s gospel Jesus said, “You [plural] are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be
hidden (Matthew 5:14).” But He also said, “I am the light of the world” (John 8:12). So, who is the light of the world: are we, or is Jesus? Both. Jesus is the source of light itself, and we, when we cooperate with His grace, reflect Jesus’ light, like the moon does for the sun.
In a similar way, every created being (plants, animals, …) has an implanted “nature” that reflects or reveals in some small but real way an attribute of God’s goodness and majesty. What is so amazing is that not only did God design each species of creature—a seemingly limitless number—with distinctive and complex qualities and a beauty and grandeur all its own, but that all these creatures were designed to live in harmony and order in the whole that we call “creation.” This is no accident.
Seeing how God has magnificently designed His creation reveals how he intends “his city” to live. The
“city set on a mountain” (Matthew 5:14) is the Church, established by Jesus on Peter (Matt 16:18). You and I are “living stones” (1 Peter 2:5) in this city of God, the Catholic Church. When each of us cooperates with the grace of the Holy Spirit, our light shines “…through your good deeds that glorify your heavenly Father (Matthew 5:16).” It is through the abundance of this light of Jesus that shines through us and gives light to the world.
Each of us is uniquely created… not only from our natural mother and father, but from God Himself.
When each of us was conceived, God created out of nothing our soul and infused it into our material being. Our personality traits, capabilities, and body come from a unique combination of genes from our parents, but our soul comes from God himself. When we’re baptized, our souls are forever changed; we are configured to Christ, and we are infused with the grace of the indwelling Trinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. When we live our lives cooperating with this baptismal grace, and the graces God sends us through the sacraments of Reconciliation, Eucharist, and Confirmation and through other people, we become a reflection of Jesus’ light to the world.
Similar to each created species of creatures, each of us has been given a unique set of gifts and charisms that are intended to harmoniously balance with the other lights of the Holy Spirit (other Christians) such that we, the Church, collectively become “the light of the world.” God has a brilliant plan to accomplish His will with your light. And if you’re a parent or godparent, remember the responsibility with which you were charged at your child’s/godchild’s Baptism as you were given his/her baptismal candle: “Parents and godparents, this light is entrusted to you to be kept burning brightly.”
Peace in Christ,
Father Jim
