Today begins with good advice from St. Paul in 1 Thess. 4:9-11 to Catholics who have risen to “help their brothers and sisters progress even more, and aspire to live a tranquil life, mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you.”
Psalm 98:1,7-10 reminds us that “The Lord comes to rule the earth with justice” and that Jesus is: “His right arm has won victory for Him.” Catholics know Jesus is “the right arm of God”. We know: “He will rule the world with justice and the peoples with equity.”
God’s “rule” describes His relationship with The Church-Creating Word that He Who Fulfilled the Prophecies Spoke to His First Catholic Pope: “And I say unto you thou art Peter and on this rock I build My Church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. I give you the keys to The Kingdom of Heaven.”
The Catholic Church is “the right arm of God” on earth.
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Those who are part of “the right arm of God” obey The Direct Order Jesus gave us in John 13:34: “I give you a new commandment: Love one another as I have loved you.” For 2,000 years, His Catholic priests and religious (God’s “hired hands”!) have loved God and neighbors enough to take Holy Vows of Celibacy, Poverty, and Obedience to help us have “the keys to The Kingdom of Heaven”. Those “keys” include Catholic Teachings and The Seven Catholic Sacraments.
Then, “The Right Arm of God” describes the gifts He gives every Catholic in Mt. 25:14-30: “A man (Jesus) going on a journey (Jesus would soon Ascend into Heaven) called in His servants (Every Catholic on earth) and entrusted His possessions to them. To one, He gave five talents; to another, two, and to a third, one: to each according to His Ability.”
Catholics know: Each of us was given abilities in the form of “talents”. Each “talent” represented the weight of gold or silver that equaled 20 years of work for a laborer. Today, the “talent” in some countries is $60,00o/year times twenty years, equalling $1,200,000.) “according to our ability”!
Those who use our “talents” (There has never been a better name for “money”!) wisely are rewarded. When ‘The Master came back and settled accounts with them (Judgment Day!), the servants were rewarded according to what they had done with the “talents” they had been given. Those who used their “talents” wisely were rewarded.
Then, Jesus told us what would happen to those who hid the “talents” they were afraid, or too lazy, to use: “And throw this useless servant into the darkness outside, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.”
May we all be blessed to use our God-given “talents” well! For many Catholics, that means: “Have as many children as you can and teach them to love God and fear His Judgment.”
May God bless us all to use our “talents” well enough to be pleasing to God at His Judgment.
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Today’s Simple Rhyme: “Work hard. Do well. / Keep your soul out of hell.”
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