Jesus — The Pearl of Great Price

When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth…Jn.16:13

I spent time at almost all the Divine retreat centers and God had a plan for me at each one.

In Tabor Ashram, the Lord brought me to understand how sinful living had deeply affects our relationship with him. It was in the silence one morning before the Blessed Sacrament that a memory was brought to my mind by the Holy Spirit where the person who abused me as a child had asked for my forgiveness, in that memory I remember that in anger I had just walked away never to forgive.

The Holy Spirit showed me that my lack of forgiveness was a sin and the key to my problems. Shock! It was from the preaching of the Word of God that this clear message could come to my consciousness!

The damage of resentment and anger was worse than any molestation. I began to forgive and love. I went to confession continually while at Tabor to empty out all the memories of sinful activities that I had never considered sin. In the USA people are very lax about morals, faith and spiritual practice; “sin” is not an important issue. The Truth was setting me free as all of the sinful areas of my life were exposed.

If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples; and you will know the truth and the truth will make you free.

I read the Bible continuously, eating it in hunger before the Blessed Sacrament at Tabor for hours, days, months. I was shocked; does anyone read this book at all? Fr. Mathew Elumvunkel’s preaching was like sharp daggers coming from the mouth of Jesus to cut away the darkness.

Does anyone care, or even know, what God thinks? The Bible, the Word of God, became my health, comfort, strength and guide. It was only with the help of the Holy Spirit that I was able to understand the messages given.

Jesus was making me new, a new creation, and now He is my everything, my all; to suffer for him, to be with him in heaven and serve him on this earth is what I live for now. Everything else is only rubbish to me now…all the traveling, pleasures, people, honors, money, jobs. I understand St. Paul when he says,”For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and I regard them as rubbish in order that I may gain Christ” Phil. 3:8b

Like the Samaritan woman at the well, when Jesus came fully and personally into the wounds of my life I realized that, even in sin, I was only seeking Jesus Christ. He is the most beautiful man who has now saved me from death and darkness.

I have found my pearl of great price.

Peace be with you!

Greetings in the precious name of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace.

As I write this, I pray for all our families that we be open to the Holy Spirit, to melt us, mould us and fashion us, modelled on the Holy Family of Nazareth.

“Let the peace of Christ reign in your hearts” exhorts St Paul to the Colossians (3:15) in today’s second reading. How true! If we have to have peace in our world, in our country, in our city, in our neighbourhood, in our housing society, in our home… it must first start in the hearts of you and me. For too long many of us have put on masks that ‘all is well’, but deep down in our hearts we harbour pain, hurt, anger and unforgiveness. May the Child of Peace, with His gentle touch restore our peace.

Pope Benedict XVI in his Christmas midnight Mass homily echoes this sentiment, “God has appeared – as a child. It is in this guise that he pits himself against all violence and brings a message that is peace. At this hour, when the world is continually threatened by violence in so many places and in so many different ways, when over and over again there are oppressors’ rods and bloodstained cloaks (Isaiah 9), we cry out to the Lord: O mighty God, you have appeared as a child and you have revealed yourself to us as the One who loves us, the One through whom love will triumph. And you have shown us that we must be peacemakers with you. We love your childish estate, your powerlessness, but we suffer from the continuing presence of violence in the world, and so we also ask you: manifest your power, O God. In this time of ours, in this world of ours, cause the oppressors’ rods, the cloaks rolled in blood and the footgear of battle to be burned, so that your peace may triumph in this world of ours.”

And so this month, we focus our prayer on this one aspect of the fruit of the Holy Spirit – PEACE – as we pray for the peace which the world cannot give (Jn14:27), which is endless (Isaiah 9:7) and which surpasses all understanding (Phil 4:7).

1st January is also the World Day of Peace. The Pope in his message for this day writes, “I would like therefore to devote this message for the XLV World Day of Peace 2012 to the theme of education: “Educating Young People in Justice and Peace”, in the conviction that the young, with their enthusiasm and idealism, can offer new hope to the world.” He specifically focuses on the family and educational institutions. “We are living in a world where families, and life itself, are constantly threatened and not infrequently fragmented”, he adds.

The world, the flesh and/or the devil seem to be stealing our peace… BUT, Psalm 29:11 assures us “The Lord will bless his people with peace”. May we not lose hope but trust in His mercy as we pray ‘earnestly’ and ‘fervently’ for peace, especially in our homes and our hearts. We pray also for peace among believers in Jesus Christ, especially during the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity that we “may be one… so that the world may believe” in Jesus by our witness (Jn 17:21).

May the Prince of Peace whose Birth we celebrate and for whose return we hope, lead us (Is 11:6). May Mary, Mother of God and Queen of Peace, accompany us.