Reflections of a beloved son

It is the clean of heart that will see God.  What does that mean?  Have you ever felt so disgusted by someone or something because of what they may have done or said that you couldn’t bear to look at them? I know I have.  Those are the moments when I have failed to see God.   You see, seeing God and Christ in others has nothing to do with what they do or say, even if it is the most horrendous or disgusting thing. They and we will have to face the appropriate consequences for our actions and words, but if we have failed to see Christ in the other, it is our problem.  “ Blessed are the clean of heart, for they shall see God.”  I have failed to see God in the other because of my tainted heart – my pride, my ego, my jealousy, my envy, my attachment to the world. All people are made in the image and likeness of God, and so no matter what someone may say or do, they remain a child of God, they remain a beloved son or daughter of the Father. Jesus came for the sin...

This year we step into a new decade.  We've stepped into the year 2020.  The first thing that came to my mind (and perhaps for many others) when I think of "2020" is 20/20 vision.  So, let us see clearly in this new year.  But much more so than our vision -- let us see clearly through the eyes of faith and the eyes of our hearts. As St. Paul wrote in his letter to the Ephesians, may the eyes of our hearts be "enlightened," and as a result we may know the hope that comes with Christ, the identity that is given to us - sons and daughters of the Father.  May this year be about seeing the truth and not clouding it and not dressing it with anything.  Let us proudly live and proclaim the truth, seeing clearly and inviting others to this perfect vision. Like the gift of vision, we do not and cannot do anything to earn this truth, it is simply given. But whether we choose to accept it and how we use it is up to us.  When Jesus saw a man with a withered han...