The WORD in LENT - Third week, Saturday
March 18, 2023: Hosea 5:15 - 6:6; Luke 18: 9-14
Peace is a fruit of growing to be truly spiritual. At times being spiritual is confused with being self-righteous! Being self-righteous involves a large dose of judgement of the other. When you judge, you do not love. So being self righteous you begin to love the other lesser and lesser, and yourself more and more! It is a kind of narcissism (a pitiable condition of excessive self love). Whereas today the Word invites us to love more than to sacrifice, to get to know who the Lord is and who we are in relation to the Lord, than making our spiritual efforts mere rituals.
Being spiritual truly should mean growing more and more loving. More loving towards God and more loving towards those around us... and certainly that would lead to peace. Growing more loving means, that we grow more and more open, to appreciate the other sincerely, to sensitively confront the other in their shortcomings, to readily accept my own limitations with gratitude when pointed out, to reach out to the other in whatever way I can even if it costs me a bit.
Being Spiritual means to understand within me what the Spirit of the Lord wants of me and to lead my life in the Spirit's path - in peace with myself, with the others and with my Creator. The Spirit of the Lord wants us to grow more and more loving and less and less judgmental. The Holy Father seems to be repeating this time and again and infact this is one of fundamental ingredients of true peace.
The reminder therefore today is: Relate lovingly, become conscious of your tendency to judge and grow more and more spiritual - and you will have peace!