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How marvellous it is, that the Father has revealed His nature to us. The Father delights in our prayers, and in our trust in His Son, Jesus Christ. We can picture Him reaching down to each of us as we offer our petitions in the Name of His Son with confidence and faith.

By our own freely-made choices, we alter our destiny. Those who persist in selfishness and sin, despite the help given by God to reflect upon their lives, and to turn to Him in contrition and trust, will find themselves led, at death, into total alienation and spiritual hopelessness, as if through a dark doorway, unlike those who have persevered in faith and love, and who are raised up in the glorious life of Heaven, to share the joy of the Saints, forever.

We must encourage one another really to believe in Jesus Christ. If I am one of those fearful Catholics who constantly feels trapped between the memory of my sins, which we feel will bring us to Hell, and the assaults or temptations of the evil one - like a roaring beast, trying to devour us - I should look away from myself, upwards, to Jesus. If we call on Him, He is powerful enough to help us. But, to call, we first need faith in Him.

It can be tempting, to go from parish to parish, looking for a priest who will really 'understand' our soul, and free us from our scruples. But if we picture the Catholic Church as being like one vast tent, in which we have priests to help us, it can seem rather foolish to go from priest to priest, disbelieving the assurances of one, then turning round to seek opinions from another. Better to trust in Christ, who guides us through His faithful priests and who certainly forgives our sins in each good confession.

If we love Christ and trust in Him, we can hurl ourselves - by His grace - into His loving heart, in prayer, as if into an Abyss of light, in total surrender but real unknowing, and real acceptance of Christ's plans for us, whatever these might be. He is utterly trustworthy, even if He leads us along unexpected paths.

There is something sad about the problem of scruples. Isn't it strange that a person can see it as odd, to go to a Doctor for a proven remedy, but then to believe that she, the patient, will be the only person whom it will not help, but cannot see that it is equally odd to confess to a priest, sincerely, believing in the power of the Sacrament, but then believing that she, the penitent, is the only person who remains unforgiven, and probably estranged from God! This is to have a serious spiritual ailment, and lack of trust in Divine Love.

It is important to remain joyful, and hopeful, trusting in Christ. We might sometimes find our minds dwelling on sad or horrible events of our life, of many years earlier, and we experience heartache, just as we do when we dwell on the sufferings of other people - especially starving children - in the present day. But sad memories should propel us not towards despondency but action, whether thanks to God for His many gifts to us, or help for the needy.

Right from the early times, the Church has honoured the holy Mother of God: Mary. The Church does not teach that Mary won salvation for sinners. Jesus Christ is the only Saviour. By His Passion and Death He won forgiveness for all who repent and put their trust in Him; but Mary suffered, willingly, as she stood beneath the Cross, uniting her prayers and sufferings to His. She had benefited, in advance, at her Conception, from His Redeeming Work; but when she, the Immaculate, stood by the Cross, she had no sin in her. She was one with her Son in praying for sinners. She deserves to be formally proclaimed: 'Co-Redemptrix'.

Even in a vast area of the country, Christ sees that it is difficult to find ten just persons who love Him wholeheartedly, believe in all that He teaches through His Church, and persevere in prayer, and acts of charity. Many Catholics pray when it suits them, attend Mass infrequently, design their own moral code, and yet hope to drift into Heaven when they die. They trust in His love for them, but show little love for Him.

Christ has shown us the Way to Heaven; but many people rush around from one job to another, anxious and tired, forgetting to pause and ask God's help, and some yearning for marvellous spiritual experiences or assurances about the future. The best sort of yearning is directed towards loving and pleasing God. Life becomes simple, if we pray, trust, work, and persevere in all trials.

Nothing can happen to us except what God permits, in this life. Someone who trusts in Christ has no need to panic when illness arrives. There are problems to face, with unpleasant symptoms, procedures - and ways of sustaining the family. But if we are on our way to Heaven, anyway, we are wise if we not only consult doctors, and make day-to-day wise decisions, but also abandon ourselves to God's plans, allowing Him to carry us closer towards Heaven, as if on an escalator.

As a person in a story found herself trapped in a tiny room, we can become trapped, hiding away from God not in sin, but in fear and lack of confidence. It's as if we have fallen by fear or carelessness into a state of inactivity. Our prayers are infrequent and fruitless because we don't want to hear what He has to say, in case He asks us to take risks, in His service.

If we decide, by God's grace, to leave our hiding-places, where we were nearly paralysed by fear at the thought of doing God's risky work, that requires sacrifices, we must perhaps emerge backwards from our hiding-places, in a posture of humility. Then, free from remorse, fear, and all that bound us, we can stand upright, breathe deeply, and find joy in living in the light as confident children of God.

The view from Heaven: Christ, looking down at the world, sees his priests as 'other Christs', each a visible 'embodied' Christ in a particular place on earth, each chosen and made ready to sanctify the Faithful and to teach those who do not yet know Him, each one visible, truth-speaking, kind, prayerful, and trusting in the Father's plans and the Spirit's power.