SETTING THE WORLD ON FIRE - 8/14/22 (Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time)

Luke 12:49

Jesus said to His disciples: “I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing!” 

For the full readings, click here: 

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/081422.cfm

Blessed Sunday! The words of Jesus Christ are clear. He wants to set the world on fire and make it blazing. Why does our Lord mean after saying those words? Surely, this doesn't mean that we should start a physical fire. Rather, the fire that our Lord refers to here is the fire of His mercy and love that purifies us and the whole world. It is the fire of His love that consumes all of our sins. Jesus desires for us to cooperate with Him in bring more people to His love. We may not directly influence everyone in this world, but we can always start with ourselves and with the people who are close to us, especially our family members. 

We cannot help save other people if we are not yet saved and if we are not in the state of grace. As such, this means that we should allow God's mercy to purify all of the impurities in our hearts, even if it will cause us sufferings for His sake. However, we should cooperate with God, and this happens if we become aware of our own sins. One way of doing this is examination of conscience. Every night, before going to sleep, we can ponder on God's blessings during the day, and we can also remember in our prayers the times that we do not act in accordance to God's will due to our own sins. Below, there is a link that provides an examination of conscience which we can prayerfully ponder every night based on the ten commandments and seven capital sins. This will help us to persevere in our spiritual journey, especially in preparation for the sacrament of confession which purifies our hearts from all sins, both small sins and grave sins. Our faith will surely be on fire when we practice frequent confession. Frequent confession is highly recommended  by the Church even if we only committed small sins or venial sins, and this can be done by participating in the sacrament once every month, once every two weeks, or even once every week as practiced by St. John Paul II and other saints. Speaking to the priest, who are our confessors, will help us in discerning how we can apply frequent confession in our own lives. 

Once we persevere in being purified, even if it's difficult at first, will surely have a tremendous effect in our lives. We can experience a true change and a radical transformation because we choose to follow God's will and not our own wants. At the same time, our Lord desires for us to share the overflowing love of God for other people. Sometimes, our family members and other people will react negatively at us. If some do not want to change their ways, we may receive negative words from them, even lies from them. Jesus teaches us, through His passion and death on the Cross, to persevere and to continously pray for them. But, it's also important for us to know the practical ways that we can do to raise a faithful Catholic family. 

August 14 is a Memorial for St. Maximilian Kolbe, but since today is Sunday, we do not celebrate this memorial. Still, we can learn a lot from the example of this saint. Through the reflections of St. Maximilian Kolbe, he rediscovered what other saints promoted as well, and thay was about Mary being the fastest, easiest, and sweetest way to Jesus Christ, our Lord. This means that we should promote Marian devotions and Marian consecration because by accepting the Blessed Virgin Mary as our Mother, she will easily and quickly bring us to the mercy of Christ. According to St. Maximilian Kolbe, many people around the world can be saved by promoting the importance of devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. In the same way, by practicing the Catholic faith and by teaching the children about prayers, especially Marian prayers, our families will be protected by the maternal care of our Mother. There is a YouTube vlog below this reflection that gives a guide to Catholic parents on raising children through the sacraments, rosary and other prayers in today's culture that is anti-Catholic. By being on fire in our faith, we can be able to love God in all things and receive the joy that He prepares for us. 

Amen +

Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, be with us always until the hour of our death. Amen. +

 

May the Lord + bless us, protect us from all evil and bring us to everlasting life. Amen. +  

Reflection by: Dominic

Ultimate Catholic Parents Guide:

https://youtube.com/watch?v=Ls6IcexZAls

Summary of the Teachings of the Catholic Church:

https://www.catholic.com/tract/pillar-of-fire-pillar-of-truth

How to Pray the Rosary:

https://mycatholic.life/catholic-prayers/the-most-holy-rosary/

Examination of Conscience and Guide to Sacrament of Confession:

https://mycatholic.life/catholic-prayers/examination-of-conscience/