On the Human Side what is the purpose of the Church.?
"Go therefore and teach all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit" Matthew 28.
But for what purpose. Is it not just about being close to Jesus, going to Church on a Sunday, then spending the rest of our lives in worldly pursuits? We cannot be perfect as our Heavenly Father is perfect so just live your lives as best you can and all will be well. Does Jesus really expect more of us?
Well certainly such a statement would meet with approval in many of our Churches. We do not want to fast, make sacrifices, or follow the boring rules that Jesus made. Just follow your conscience and it will all be well when you reach heaven.
The problem is that Jesus laid down his rules in order to make the world a better place to live in, a world which was again his Kingdom. Remember the Our Father "Thy Kingdom come, they willl be done on earth as its is in Heaven..." So we pray this at Mass every Sunday and those who give the matter any thought and they are few will ask "Why have you failed to give us your Kingdom on Earth? For anyone who is interested the answer of Jesus would be "Because I left you to build it, and you have not taught people to observe my teachings"
What do I mean. Just think of a world where every child is born into a family of a Father and a Mother who love each other, who grow up in the warmth of that love with their other siblings whom they learn to love and respect. Then think of a world where there are millions of Children who do not grow up in such a home but experience the hurt of rejection by the father or mother. Then examine the background of children who are on drugs, prostitution, self harming, and commit suicide. Now I am not saying that all children who are deprived of a normal family life all fit into one box but I would venture to say that experience show us that far too many do, and the rejection of the model Jesus gave us by society is making these problems worse.
So what must we do for our children? Parents, priests and teachers are called to perfect their human nature as children and indeed the Kingdom will be one where all human nature has been perfected. And when all human nature is perfected then there will be a world of peace. Yes, you can join this or that Party, you can demonstrate in the street, you can talk about counselling and programming, but can you help someone to live as Christ wanted him or her to live. That is why loving Jesus must come before love of neighbour for unless we are living the way he wants us to live we can never perfect his or her nature. Calling people to Christ is a glorious task and we have failed utterly to convince young people that this is true. Being an apostle with other apostles and sharing that love of Jesus is a pursuit that can only bring happiness, for it is founded on Jesus, the only person who can fulfill us completely. When you know that all the politics and ideologies of mankind has never been successful and you experience the power of the love of Jesus you know what the world really needs.
"Be ye perfect, as your Heavenly Father is perfect" is not just an ideal it is something we can do if parents, teachers, and priests work with children on this.
But for what purpose. Is it not just about being close to Jesus, going to Church on a Sunday, then spending the rest of our lives in worldly pursuits? We cannot be perfect as our Heavenly Father is perfect so just live your lives as best you can and all will be well. Does Jesus really expect more of us?
Well certainly such a statement would meet with approval in many of our Churches. We do not want to fast, make sacrifices, or follow the boring rules that Jesus made. Just follow your conscience and it will all be well when you reach heaven.
The problem is that Jesus laid down his rules in order to make the world a better place to live in, a world which was again his Kingdom. Remember the Our Father "Thy Kingdom come, they willl be done on earth as its is in Heaven..." So we pray this at Mass every Sunday and those who give the matter any thought and they are few will ask "Why have you failed to give us your Kingdom on Earth? For anyone who is interested the answer of Jesus would be "Because I left you to build it, and you have not taught people to observe my teachings"
What do I mean. Just think of a world where every child is born into a family of a Father and a Mother who love each other, who grow up in the warmth of that love with their other siblings whom they learn to love and respect. Then think of a world where there are millions of Children who do not grow up in such a home but experience the hurt of rejection by the father or mother. Then examine the background of children who are on drugs, prostitution, self harming, and commit suicide. Now I am not saying that all children who are deprived of a normal family life all fit into one box but I would venture to say that experience show us that far too many do, and the rejection of the model Jesus gave us by society is making these problems worse.
So what must we do for our children? Parents, priests and teachers are called to perfect their human nature as children and indeed the Kingdom will be one where all human nature has been perfected. And when all human nature is perfected then there will be a world of peace. Yes, you can join this or that Party, you can demonstrate in the street, you can talk about counselling and programming, but can you help someone to live as Christ wanted him or her to live. That is why loving Jesus must come before love of neighbour for unless we are living the way he wants us to live we can never perfect his or her nature. Calling people to Christ is a glorious task and we have failed utterly to convince young people that this is true. Being an apostle with other apostles and sharing that love of Jesus is a pursuit that can only bring happiness, for it is founded on Jesus, the only person who can fulfill us completely. When you know that all the politics and ideologies of mankind has never been successful and you experience the power of the love of Jesus you know what the world really needs.
"Be ye perfect, as your Heavenly Father is perfect" is not just an ideal it is something we can do if parents, teachers, and priests work with children on this.
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