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A child who has a mother and a father who are married to one another, in a stable marriage, has an admirable start in life. There is 'imprinted' in the child the idea of family life, as God Wills it; and it is therefore easier for the child to appreciate the Will of God for society - and related teachings of the Church.
In no other way can I fulfil the will of God for me except by following in Christ's footsteps in obedience and patience. But Christ and His mother look with sympathy on us in our sufferings.
There is no greater way of showing love and honour towards God than by sincerely saying to Him: "What would you like me to do?" meaning "Here I am Lord; I come to do Your Will, not to fulfil my ambitions". God's Will includes the fulfilment of the duties of our state of life - out of love for Him and for His for our Saviour.
When Moses was leader, he looked on as wicked men fell down to Hell, underground; the people were being shown in a physical way what happens in a spiritual manner to people who disobey God and act against His Will.
No-one can understand the Mind of God - or understand the whole of His Creation. But He created the world and everything on it, in His wisdom and power. He created the first man and woman, though some dispute this. He asks: Why should He not have made animals - including ape-like creatures of high intelligence - whilst making, in another part of the world, human beings with immortal souls? Truly, as the Church says, God created a man, then a woman.
A priest deserves honour in the Church. It is the Will of Christ that we treat with special devotion and respect those 'other Christs' in our midst, who remain worthy of honour even if sick, disabled or old. Christ has chosen them for their elevated state, which is recognised even by the Angels.
It is the Will of God to draw us up, to share His Divine life, so that each of us, after death, might live eternally within the interpenetration and communion of the Three Divine Persons in the ecstatic Unity within the Godhead. Yet this is not possible for those who oppose His Will or refuse to believe in the Son Who died to save us.
Do you live in an 'ordinary street', in an ordinary town? Whether we come from poor and humble backgrounds, or rich families, from terraced houses or mud huts or palaces, we are all called to be Saints. We can achieve this by loving Jesus Christ and doing His Will. The Church tells us what is His Will; and she gives us all we need to be obedient and faithful.
It is true that Jesus healed everyone. But we cannot accuse sick people who fail to improve, after prayer, of having little faith. The Lord permits some people to bear sufferings so that - just like Him, on the Cross - they might do penance for the sins of other people. Others are allowed, by the Lord, a time in which to reflect on their lives and to amend their sinful ways. Others, by patience in sickness, set a good example.
It is the Will of God that people act with reverence and respect in church, in the Presence of the Blessed Sacrament, in a sacred space consecrated for prayer. By noisiness and disrespectful behaviour, people give no honour to God and make it difficult for fellow-Catholics to pray.
It is possible in the world to follow the inspiration of God; yet those who are transformed by Baptism are full of Divine Life of the Blessed Trinity. Only God can see who loves and serves Him and is on the Way to Heaven; but, outside the Church, it is difficult to live as a Saint among sinners if a person is ignorant of what God's Will really is, and does not have the ordinary channels of grace given unfailingly through the Church. All the more reason why we should spread the good news about Christ: the Way, the truth and the life, Who promises Heaven to forgiven sinners.
Every inspiration or movement which goes against God and the Father's Will by corrupting or destroying innocent life is Satanic in origin, even if people in embryo experimentation and related matters believe they are doing good and do not recognise that anti-life actions are evil.
The pro-abortion movement is of Satanic origin. Even if some individuals believe that they are helping and not harming women, they are most certainly acting against God the Father's wishes in killing unborn babies, or arranging this.
In the Lord's Eternal life, He sees every event that has ever occurred or ever will occur, as if in a river or torrent of events which flows past Him all-at-once. When He Wills, He has sometimes chosen and 'frozen' a frame of that scene of future events, to insert it into the mind of one of His friends at prayer, as a gift, and a promise of future joy.
The Lord said that if we looked all over the entire town we would find only a few souls who would act in obedience to Him, in something uncongenial, just because He had requested it. Most do His Will only if it corresponds with their own desires.
Those people who disbelieve in the Church's teachings will find out, after death, the truth of every aspect - whether matters of sexual morality or the Primacy of the Pope. What sadness they will feel, seeing how blind and disobedient they have been, ignoring the wishes of their God and Saviour.
Whether he is speaking to fellow-Catholics, or with atheistic government men, a Bishop is meant to speak as a mouthpiece for the Will of God. He should know God's will for human beings, and not be afraid to speak frankly about it, and to be fearless when challenged.
It is said that Catholics in a discussion group must not dispute what is said in the course of the meeting. This is only a man-made rule. It is God's Will that if we hear someone lead others astray by false or distorted versions of the Faith, or by outright denial of truth, we speak to defend the Faith, and to aid confused souls.
Christ is Really Present in our church. He delights in our visits. When I was on retreat at Douai Abbey, Christ spoke to me, on Good Friday, about His delight that I had kept Him company in His Passion. He was even more pleased that I had offered my whole adult life to Him, for the doing of His Will; and so He gave me reassurance and comfort.
The Lord wants us to look at the reality behind all the new procedures by which some people fertilize human eggs outside the body, and manipulate human embryos in all sorts of ways. At every such conception, a miniature human person is created into whom God infuses an immortal soul, even though it is God's intention the babies be conceived through the marriage act, and not in laboratories; nor should tiny babies be thrown away.
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