Caging the Beast.

Our society has done a fantastic job of convincing us that we are created to be a sinful and vice-filled people.   "I'm a Christian, but I cuss a little."   "He's a good person; he just does some drugs on the weekends."   "No one is perfect."   All of us have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.   That's the truth.   That is not who you are.  You were not created to be a sinner; you were designed to be a Saint.  Our concupiscence is a reality that we must learn to live with, but it's also something we must put in a cage. 

There is an old Indian tale about a man who was watching two wolves fighting with his son.   The father looked at the son and said: "There are two wolves at war inside you as well.   The one that wishes for the good, and the one that wishes for evil."  The son asked in fear "Which one will win?"  The father replied, "The one you feed." 

We all have that same war going on inside of us, but the truth that we must realize is that one voice is our authentic self and the other are doubts brought to us by those who wish to keep us from ever achieving it.  The Scriptures today remind us of that calling from God to become Saints.   We are the temple of God.  We are created for virtue and not vices.   Work to silence that voice, to cage those personal demons that keep making excuses.  Then live a sacramental life. 

I am far from perfect.   I make mistakes, and yes, I often fail to silence those voices.    That is why God has given us so many opportunities for grace in His Church.   Take advantage of them as often as you can!  A life of virtue is not a boring one as the secular world would have you believe!   It is instead a life filled with the fullness of what it means to be alive, the fullness of what it means to be human.   That is to be more like Christ, and much less like our flesh would convince us we are supposed to be. 

This is a reflection on the readings for Wednesday, January 14th, 2018: The Second Sunday in Ordinary Time.