The Only Way to Receive the Blessings of God is to Follow His Words Into Them!

The Only Way to Receive the Blessings of God is to Follow His Words Into Them! Today the Church celebrates the Memorial of St. Anthony of Padua. Most of us are familiar with St. Anthony. We often see him depicted holding the Christ Child. But what many do not realize is where that tradition comes from! Why is he holding the Christ Child? The Homily explains why he is holding the Christ Child. The story is remarkable because we hear that sacred scripture obtains its power, because it is one place where we go to meet a person. The scripture is not a collection of statements about God. It is a collection of statements by God! When we read it well, we are engaging in conversation with another person. We engage with God! Ordinary Time The Church is in Ordinary time. We recently finished the Gospel Readings of St. Mark. Now, the Gospel Readings are from St. Matthew. St. Matthew’s account of Jesus’ public ministry begins with the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus gives us the new law . . . the fuller and true law. He gives this to us so we may come to know the Lord. Hear more in the Homily! The Only Way to Receive the Blessings of God . . . We also hear about the First Reading and a prophesy of rain after years of no rain. Yet, we not only hear about the story, but we hear that the Word of God is always out in front of us! We do not know the timing. It is a lesson for all of us. We often speak of following the Word of God. The only way to receive the Blessings of God is to follow His Words into them! What does that mean? Listen to this Meditation Media. Listen to: The Only Way to Receive the Blessings of God is to Follow His Words Into Them! ---------------------------- Image: The First Will Be Last and the Last Will Be First: French Artist and Painter: James Tissot: 1886 ---------------------------- Gospel Reading: Matthew: 5: 20-26 First Reading: 1 Kgs 18:41-46