From our Pastor’s Desk

Dear Family:

“Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” (Mk. 10:17) What was the man asking Jesus during today’s Gospel Reading? Was he asking how to obtain eternal life, or how to enter the Kingdom of God, or how to be saved? When Jesus said, “How hard it will be for those who have wealth to enter the Kingdom of God!” (Mk. 10:17), our Lord was certainly referring to the Kingdom of God. When the disciples asked, “Then who can be saved?” (Mk. 10:26), they were certainly referring to salvation.

In the Divine progressive Plan of Salvation, it is important for us to know the difference between obtaining the gift of eternal life versus the gift of salvation. Those who are in Hell have eternal life, but they do not have salvation. Surely, eternal life alone is not what the man was asking Jesus. Having improperly expressed himself as we frequently do, he asked the wrong question but got the right answer. For Jesus knows the hearts of all and He knew that the man was asking how to inherit the Kingdom of God, thus embracing salvation.

There are several steps in this Divine progressive Plan: First, by the grace of the heavenly Father through the power of the Holy Spirit, we are called towards the Lord Jesus (Titus 2:11). There is salvation in no one else but Jesus, for, “There is no salvation through anyone else, nor is there any other name under heaven given to the human race by which we are to be saved.” (Acts 4:12). We cannot be saved by only living a good life. Nor can we be saved by praying to one or more of the saints. None of them have the power to save us. Nor will anyone be saved by bypassing Jesus to go straight to the Father. God the Father has commanded that we be drawn to His only begotten Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Second, once we have accepted Jesus in our lives, we are called to be baptized so we may become members of the Body of Christ on earth. Before receiving the Sacrament of Baptism, if we are of age, we are called to sincerely repent of our previous sins. Through the Sacrament of Baptism, in the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, God knowing and judging our thoughts and intentions of the heart, His Word that is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, pierces until it divides our soul from our spirit (Heb. 4:12). So powerful is the Word of God, that during the Sacrament of Baptism, it separates the soul from the human spirit.

At that moment, in fulfillment of the Old Testament promises of God the Father that we read in the book of Ezekiel, we are born again of water and Spirit (Jn. 3:3, 5). Our old spiritual nature dies, is buried with Christ and is replaced by a new creation. Then, we are raised with Christ in the newness of life (Rom. 6:4; Col. 2:12). The new creation that is received bears the seed of God (1 Jn. 3:9, 5:18). The new creation is everything! (Gal. 6:15). So, if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation; everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new!” (2 Cor. 5:17). Through the Sacrament of Baptism, the new Christian receives the hope of salvation through Christ and eternal life in the Kingdom of God.

If the Christian was to immediately die after having received the Sacrament of Baptism, being in a state of grace, his soul would immediately enter the Kingdom of God to enjoy the eternal beatific vision of God.

Third, having become a new creation, after having received the Sacrament of Baptism, the Christian is called to live a newness of life in Christ. In other words, by the grace of God, baptized Christians are called to live their faith in Christ by shining in an abundance of fruits. They must perform works that are worthy of being called Christians. For faith without works is dead (Jas. 2:26). They are called to obey Jesus through the authority of His Church that He has instituted on earth, doing so in humility and servitude. When we live our faith in Christ, we know the Commandments. We do not murder. We do not commit adultery. We do not steal. We do not bear false witness. We do not defraud. We honor our father and mother. We also share our wealth with the poor. We feed the hungry, tend to the sick, visit the prisoners, forgive our neighbors, do not judge others, etc... We live for Christ, with Christ and in Christ. We become as a shining light in the world (Mt. 5:14, 16).

Fourth, because we still have the worldly nature within us, we must continuously repent of our sins so we can maintain our righteousness in the eyes of God. How do we do that? It is through the Sacrament of Confession! Through the forgiveness of sins in the Name of the Father, and the Son and the Holy Spirit, we as sinners regain the righteousness that we enjoyed when we received the Sacrament of Baptism. “If we say that we have not sinned, we make Jesus a liar, and His Word is not in us” (1 Jn. 1:8).

Fifth, being in a state of grace, we are called to receive the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist. Jesus said, “I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world” (Jn. 6:51). Affirming this truth, He added, “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him.” (Jn. 6:53-56). The Holy Eucharist in which dwells the Divine Presence of the fullness of God in Jesus is the Bread of Life. To have life in us as sons and daughters of God, we must partake in the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist on a regular basis.

Having done all this, we reach the sixth and last step. We depart from our mortal physical bodies to be judged by God for all our thoughts, words and actions. For those of us who have received the Sacraments of Baptism, Confession and the Holy Eucharist, and have persevered in our living faith through good works that are manifestations of the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit, we finally reach our blessed hope. We are blessed with the gift of salvation which qualifies us to inherit the Kingdom of Heaven as children of God.

Dear family, there is no other way to obtain our salvation! Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the Kingdom of God. For the riches of this world draw us away from our spiritual obligations towards God, towards others, and towards our own souls, away from the Sacrament of the Holy Catholic Church. By following these six steps we will become One Body, One Spirit, One Family!

Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint Katharine Drexel, Saint Michael the Archangel, Pope Saint Pius X and Blessed Dr. José Gregorio Hernández, pray for us!

Yours in Christ Jesus!
Fr. Omar