In our reading from the letter to the Romans today, St Paul makes some very bold statements, as he states: “If we live, we live for the Lord, and if we die, we die for the Lord.” As modern day disciples of Christ, what does that statement mean to us? Do those words inspire us or influence us in the way we live out our faith each day? As the vicar general of the Diocese and as the pastor of two parishes here in the Jackson area, I see the sacrifices we have to make for our faith. Some parishes in our Diocese are struggling to survive and to maintain a vibrant parish life. Some have decreased greatly in membership. There are some small parishes who do not understand why they cannot have a mass at 10:00 am or 10:30 am on Sunday for less than 10 people when the priest assigned to them is trying to serve several communities and meet the needs of all.
How does all of this interplay with the statement that Paul makes today? How do we understand our responsibilities and our obligations as disciples of Christ? As the world becomes more secular, the freedom to live out our faith and to attend Mass might become something that will become more difficult and more of a challenge. We might look back at these days when a parish has many different masses on a weekend as a reality that is not possible anymore. What does it mean to make sacrifices for our faith? I think we all have to ask ourselves those questions.
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