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loving | Deacon Allen Tatara Catholic Speaker

loving | Deacon Allen Tatara Catholic Speaker

On the Inside; On the Outside


 
Aug 23 2018
Love0

Save the Date!

Posted by | Everyday Life | No Comments

My son and his fiance came to visit us last weekend and they were joyfully telling us of how their wedding plans are progressing and how “ahead of schedule” they were in a number of things. They also stated that the “save the date” cards were ready to be mailed. This is something that Stephanie and I didn’t have to do when we got married. Back then, we just sent out our wedding invitation and that was it. Nowadays, it’s proper etiquette to notify people ahead of time so that they have time to prepare and put it on their calendars.

In today’s Gospel (MT 22:1-14), Jesus tells us about how the kingdom of heaven is like a wedding feast, and how each of us has received a “save the date” announcement. Each of us is invited to participate, but we often don’t respond. Sometimes we have too much to do, or it’s not high on our list of priorities, or we may not even care to celebrate with this particular group of people. We often find an excuse just so we don’t have to go to the party.

But what if we received a “save the date” announcement from Jesus? What if we had plenty of time to prepare? What if we were warned? Perhaps if we knew the date of our entrance into heaven, we’d better prepare ourselves and perhaps live life differently.

This is the message for us today. We have been invited. We have been notified. We have been warned. Entrance into God’s kingdom is not automatic. We need to take action and respond. This means that we need to take responsibility for how we are living. Are we treating others with dignity and respect? Do we forgive others instead of holding grudges? Do we love unselfishly and put the needs of others before our own? Do we love our enemies as we do ourselves?

It’s time we start living the way that God intended us to live – by truly loving one another, helping one another and being a witness of Christ to everyone we encounter.

The venue is ready, the party is planned, and the table is set. But are we really prepared to “save the date” and accept God’s invitation to partake in the heavenly feast? Let’s hope so, for our eternal life depends on it!

Jan 05 2017
Love0

The Book of Your Life: Fact or Fiction?

Posted by | Everyday Life | No Comments

What if someone were to write a book about your life? What would they say? We all like to think that it would be something like: he loved his family; she was so self-sacrificing; or he made such a difference in the world.

But what if the story they wrote about your life sounded more like this: he worked really hard all his life to make himself happy and to have good things and to retire in order to do whatever he wanted; she was so focused on having the perfect house that she didn’t spend much time serving other people – but the house was really beautiful! Or success consumed her so much that she would do whatever it took to become a success and to look good in the eyes of others. Is that the type of book that you would want written about yourself?

Our first reading today from St. John (1 John 3:11-21) gives us a definition about what the book of our lives should be about. Here are some key points worth noting:

  • “Love one another” is not only a prescription and description of our Christian life, but it’s also one of the tests of our Christian life. Love one another and you will be happy. It’s as simple and as difficult as that.
  • It’s impossible to say that you hate your brother or sister and remain in fellowship with God. We must love everyone!
  • As Catholic Christians, we constantly move from death to life, and even our desire to love is affected by that. Each of us angels only have one wing, and we can only fly by embracing one another.
  • Loving one another is not overlooking someone’s sins and letting them live however they want. Loving one another is acknowledging their brokenness and helping them find righteousness, like Jesus did for us.
  • God expects us to forgive and love others in the same way that He forgives and loves us.

In our book of life, the answers are never in the back. You will always find the answers within. Let us pray that our eyes be opened to see how God would have us humbly, practically and sacrificially love another person this week – especially those who have hurt us. Let our lives be an open book so that we can truly love one another; for where love is, there God is.