Lenten reflection 10: To follow Christ

12 March 2017

To follow Christ

In the first reading of Dt 26:16-19, Moses advised his people to observe God's laws and commandments with "all your heart and all your soul".

The Psalmist in Ps 119 confirmed with his song:
                          Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord.

In the Gospel of Mt 5:43-48, Jesus went one step further, to ask us to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us. In short, to be perfect just as the Heavenly Father is perfect.

To follow the law of the Lord and be perfect like the Heavenly Father, requires a change in the interior of ourselves, our attitudes and our lives. It requires us not to think of ourselves but to give ourselves totally to another, for truth, for love, for God, who in Jesus Christ shows us the way. It requires us to carry our cross and follow Him with humility in service and love for others, including our enemies. It requires us to forget about the worldly expectations of gain, usefulness, and success and instead work for what the world cannot give us: peace and freedom.  

                           The story of Mary of Magdala reminds us all of a 
                           fundamental truth: A disciple of Christ is one in
                           the experience of human weakness, has had the
                           humility to ask for his help, has been healed by
                           him, and has set out following closely after him,
                           becoming a witness of the power of his merciful
                           love that is stronger than sin and death.

                                                    - Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI -