THE GOOD NEWS
ARCHBISHOP BELTRAN
| PAST HOMILIES |
| OKLAHOMA CITY ARCHDIOCESE |
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November 8, 2009 The Good News... ...Faith in Jesus Region X Hispanic Conference My dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ: I welcome you, the faithful leaders of the Hispanic committees of Dioceses throughout Region Ten. I am very pleased that you have come here to our Archdiocesan Catholic Pastoral Center. I hope your conference is enjoyable and productive. Can you imagine how the blind man in today’s Gospel felt? There he was, at the side of the road, begging for money and he hears that Jesus is passing by. Naturally he shouts out: “Jesus, Son of David, have pity on me.” When told to be quiet, he shouts even louder. Then Jesus calls for him and asks what he wants. The blind man replied: “Lord, I want to see.” And Jesus says: “Go on your way, your faith has saved you!” To every one of us here today, Jesus asks that same question — what do you want Me to do for you? Have you heard Jesus calling you? Have you begun to respond to Him yet? Do you believe that He will truly help you? Faith in Jesus is the essence of our Catholic religion. We believe that He is the eternal Son of God and that He is truly our Savior. Therefore, we have a serious obligation to listen to Him and to accept all that He teaches, all that He has revealed to us. Jesus revealed to us that we have been created in the image and likeness of God. He made us out of love. It is His plan that as His creatures we are able to receive His love and to love Him in return. He has a purpose for us. He wants us to share in His life and love forever. The only obstacle to life everlasting in heaven is sin. Sin is disobedience to God. Sin is the turning away from the beautiful plan of God. Sin is placing ourselves ahead of God. Therefore, sin is always evil and always effects us negatively. God, on the other hand, offers us peace and joy and love and life everlasting. All these gifts of God are given to us through His Son Jesus. God so loved the world that He sent His Son Jesus to save us. Jesus loves us so much that He gave Himself up for our salvation. If we really believe in Jesus, we are eager to listen to Him and to follow Him. Through the Catholic Church, which Jesus established, we learn more about God and grow in faith. The Catholic Church has been directed by Jesus to teach authentically in His Name. Moreover, the sacraments that Jesus instituted have been entrusted to the Church. Therefore, it is through the Catholic Church that we are enabled to live a sacramental life. In this way, we are reborn. We are forgiven and healed. We are fed and nurtured and sanctified by the Body and Blood of Jesus. We are anointed and sealed with God’s Holy Spirit. Through our Catholic faith, we are actually sharing in the life of Jesus even now on this earth. It is true that it is only a beginning and therefore this life of grace must continue to grow through prayer, study and sacrifice. The more we learn about Jesus, the more we are aware of His Presence and love, the more do we appreciate the reality of who we are as human beings. We are God’s loving creatures, made in His image and likeness. Therefore, we recognize our own dignity and purpose in life and the dignity of all our brothers and sisters. It is this realization that impels you and me to be leaders in the Church. It is this acknowledgement of God’s call that urges us to share the Good News of Jesus with others through ministry. It is this spiritual and evangelical attitude that unites us here now for this conference. But even more importantly, we gather here in faith right now to celebrate the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. This Eucharistic celebration is a sharing in the life of Jesus. He says to us, “Take My Flesh and eat It. Take My Blood and drink It and you shall have life everlasting.” Yes, Jesus is our Lord. He is our Savior. This we believe. This we proclaim and this we celebrate. Amen. |