Welcoming the Holy
Here we invite you to take time for yourself in personal prayer. The following spiritual reflection offers words and images which we hope will evoke for you an experience of God.
By: Sister Ruth Maier
“The one who does justice will live in the presence of the Lord.”
Opening Prayer
Lord God of justice and truth, nothing is good which is against Your will, and all is of value which comes from Your hand. Place in our hearts a desire to please You and fill our minds with insight into love, so every thought may grow in wisdom and all our efforts may be filled with Your peace. We ask this through Jesus, the Christ. Amen.
Scripture
James 1: 17 -18, 21 – 22, 27
Dear brothers and sisters: All good giving and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of Lights, with whom there is no alteration or shadow caused by change. He willed to give us birth by the word of truth that we may be a kind of first fruits of his creatures.
Humbly we welcome the word that has been planted in you and is able to save your souls.
Be doers of the word and not hearers only, deluding yourselves.
Religion that is pure and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to care for orphans and widows in their affliction and to keep oneself unstained by the world.
Reflection
For the next few weeks we will be hearing from the Letter of James which is primarily an exhortation for ethical Christian living. To be a true follower of Jesus, we must be “doers of the word.”
James reminds us that our faith is one of transformation. Simply praying, attending Mass, reading the Scriptures is not enough. Honoring God by our actions as well as our lips is critical to bringing our hearts close to the Lord; is necessary to saving our souls.
James discusses how Christian action must be grounded in love and in truth, The Father’s greatest and most perfect gift is the word of Truth, the Gospel planted in our hearts at Baptism.
For James, the life, death and Resurrection of Jesus provides the full interpretation of the Law as is found in the Gospel, the “Word of Truth.”
We are invited to “humbly welcome this word of truth,” to be doers of this word.
True religion obliges us to care for widows and orphans, groups who in Jesus’ day had no one to advocate for them, to care for them. Widows and orphans have come to represent for us all those people on the margins of our society who need us to advocate for their rights and care for their needs.
If we truly hear the Word of Truth, says James, we must put it into practice in our daily lives.
How do I live my faith in what I do in this world?
What actions will I do this week to become a doer of the Word?
How can I do justice?
Closing Prayer
O God, giver of Law and guarantor of justice, guide us toward truth and justice.
Hear our prayer that we may always honor You not only in our thoughts but also by our deeds.
We pray through Jesus, Your Son and our Lord. Amen