When I lost my friend, I lost the one person I could text at any time; even if I didn’t know what to say, we would start a conversation. I lost the one who understood when I was sad but would also make me smile, and I missed the way we could communicate with just a look.
In this era of the Internet and social media, we’re able to stay connected with our brothers and sisters all over the world. We may be in different locations, but we’re all connected under one body in Christ and in the experiences that we share. And these experiences can either be expressed in words, pictures, or even memes.
So, how do we avoid “abandoning ourselves to despair,” especially in this time of celebrating Christ’s resurrection? How can we truly live the Christian message of joy every day when there are so many things to be sad about?
This is what I find most inspiring about Patrick: he returned to the land of his captivity, to the very people who mistreated him. But instead of holding a grudge or seeking vengeance, he showed them love and mercy.
Loving God and loving neighbor will look a little different during this season than it has in the past. It’ll involve a lot more social distancing and a lot fewer liturgical gatherings. But just because it will look different doesn’t mean the commandment has changed.
If you’re scared, uncertain, overwhelmed, concerned, any or all of the things, at different times, or all of them at once — hi, welcome to the human experience, it’s good to have you here.
The biggest lesson that Jesus is trying to teach here is that loving anything more than God, including money, will make it extremely difficult to enter Heaven. That said, we can’t ignore that Jesus specifically called out and focused on a love of money on many different occasions.
During the peak of the pandemic, with a mask on as her main weapon against COVID-19, Trish Vega would brave the streets of New York, walking from West to East Village once a week, just to check on me and teach me the four habits of discipleship.
Sometimes praying directly about our vocations can actually distract us from discovering them, or from allowing God to bring us to them in His time. If we’re always asking God to “please-please-please show us which vocation we’re supposed to choose,” then we risk the chance of missing the meaning of the experiences we’re having in the present that will inform our vocations in the future.
