Monday, April 12, 2010

Divine Mercy


Every week I get an e-mail from this site. As well as giving ideas for meals it can also provide a little 'food for thought'!
Fr. Leo Patalinghug describes a conversation initiated by a stranger at a busy train station:
"Without breaking the seal of the confession, I can say this pastoral moment was a unique outpouring of God’s infinite goodness. This man, who seemed to have it all, internally was “begging” to be welcomed back to the Father’s House. He was baptized Catholic, but stepped away from the Church at a very young age. He claims it was because he was disappointed in the hypocrisy he saw from leaders and the people in the pew. While that may seem like a legitimate reason, I don’t buy it, and neither did he. He eventually admitted that his departure from church and religion in general (like the majority of people who leave the Church) was simply because he wanted to live his life precisely the way he wanted to live it – without anyone else having any say how. By leaving the Church, he could make up his own rules, his own morals, and his own destiny – without any moral consequences.
It’s true, hypocrisy in the Church is frustrating and discouraging. But there is no perfect church because it is full of people who are sinners. People who go to church, including priests and nuns, aren’t there because they are perfect. People should go to church because they recognize that despite their sins, God forgives and helps us to be better. When people start accepting the humanity of the Church, they will begin to see the divinity of our calling and go to church more faithfully
"
This happened on Divine Mercy Sunday.

1 comment:

Therese said...

Fr. Leo's ministry is such a wonderful gift. I love getting his emails and trying his recipes.