5th Sunday, Ordinary Time, 2023 - Fr. Leo
There is a song with the lyric “This little light of mine, I’m going to let it shine.” The upbeat music allows the singer to celebrate his/her being the light of Christ for others. For the song to resonate in the singer and listener, there must be a deep connection with Christ whose light we called our own. To know this light, we simply draw near and let ourselves be drawn into the heart of Christ.
The beatitudes from Matthew’s gospel we heard last week, sums up what it means to be light. When we embrace Christ’s meekness, humility, compassion and loyalty to the truth and love of the Father, we can become channels of God’s light to the world, the church and each other.
So it isn’t really “This little light of mine,” it is, “This little light of Christ placed in my heart.” To become Christ, isn’t an ego trip, it is a love of Christ so deep that we share his humility, compassion and love. Being light requires us to be obedient to the spirit of the Father that allows us to live with hearts united to him. We pray to the Father to send the Holy Spirit upon us that we may be one with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
As light on a lamp stand, we are to be active in expressions of love. Embracing the marginalized is not to be a nice thought, but something we do. For this, our comfort zone will be challenged, for we may need to seek opportunities for hands on charity. If our time in contemplation is to bare fruit, the love that is enkindled there will need to inform our behavior.
This week let us pray for the marginalized and ask the Lord to lead us to some kind of action that will build the kingdom of love we all profess to desire.