In the French Revolution, the reformers promoted life, liberty and fraternity without God. They persecuted the Catholic Church, clergy, religious and laity, and destroyed many churches, statues and paintings. At the same time, Jesus revealed to Saint Margaret Alacoque to blessings of mercy, love and peace flowing from his Sacred Heart. Our Blessed Mother appeared to Saint Catherine Laboure promising miracles of faith, hope and love by wearing a miraculous medal. In Lourdes Our Blessed Mother appeared to Saint Bernadette calling us to renew our Baptismal commitment to be the priest, prophet and king of our family and friends like Jesus.
In our troubled times, we find healing and holiness in the visitation of Jesus and Mary to Elizabeth Kindelmann. When Communism and Secularism tempt us to instant gratification, the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary fill our hearts with divine mercy, peace and joy. Her journey of listening and obeying the messages and patiently putting them into practice reveals how all can develop a personal intimacy with our Lord and our Blessed Mother. In turn, like Saint John Paull II, this poor widow inspires to overcome our fear and promote faith, hope and love Heart to Heart.
Jesus opens the eyes of the blind Bartimaeus crying out for mercy. In thanksgiving for his healing, Bartimaeus obediently follows Jesus to Jerusalem to sacrifice his life. To enjoy resurrection and new life, we too must take up the cross of Christ and work for justice and peace, especially for the poor. Kindelmann intensified her devotion time and received the approval of the priests before sharing the revelations. We praise God for the grace and guidance of the Holy Spirit for the teachings in our cenacles and conferences. Above all, the best way to evangelize is by witnessing how Jesus and Mary live and love through us,
By washing the feet of the disciples and becoming the Lamb of God slaughtered for our sins, Christ’s earthly life was an example of serving, giving, and thinking of others. The word ransom only occurs in these two verses in the New Covenant. It means the price of release, and refers to a payment to achieve the release of slaves or captives from bondage. We are captives under the power of sin and death (Romans 5) from which we cannot free ourselves. Messiah’s substitutionary death redeemed us and set us free.
The climax of Christ’s service was His death, which redeemed from the devil and renewed our dignity as precious children of God. Jesus did this voluntarily, sacrificially, and obediently. Of course, there is one condition for anyone (including us) to enjoy the benefits of that ransom. We must be willing to accept the gift of Jesus. God’s love will only be experienced by our reciprocal faith and trust, as Jesus verified in His conversation with Rabbi Nicodemus: For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16). One of the incredible abilities of Jesus was to stay on target. Because Elizabeth Kindelmann grew in her commitment to Jesus and Mary, she inspires us to become trustworthy stewards for those we serve.
Are you grateful for the gift of salvation by practicing and passing on your faith? Is your heart faithful, forgiving, forever and fruitful in bringing others to Jesus and our Catholic faith? Are you offering your time, talents and treasure to your parish family to build a family of faith in Jesus Christ through Catholic worship, education and charity?