Blessed Francisco Bejarano Fernández was a Catholic priest of the diocese of Córdoba, Spain. He dedicated his life to serving the community of Añora, where he was born on June 1, 1877. He was known for his holiness as a priest and his dedication to his parish and to his ministry. He died in the Spanish Civil War while in prison on February 26, 1938. Many priests and bishops were martyred during that war. He was beatified by Pope Francis in the cathedral in Córdoba Spain in 2021.
"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.” We hear this famous verse as a part of the Gospel from St Matthew this afternoon. When we see an image of a door as a symbol of our faith, we can picture that door either open or closed. It can a door that is inviting us in or a door that closing us off from our faith. In 2011, Pope Benedict XVI wrote an apostolic letter Porta Fidei - The Door of Faith – a letter that declared the year of faith for us in the Catholic Church. Pope Benedict declared that “door of faith” is always open for us, that it ushers us into the life of communion with God and offers us entry into his Church. He said that it is possible for us to cross the threshold of the door of faith when the word of God is proclaimed and our heart allows itself to be shaped by God’s transforming grace. Pope Benedict went on to say that to enter through the door of faith is to set out on a journey that lasts a lifetime. Yet, we can be afraid to open the door of faith. Sometimes, we fear what will happen next in our lives. Sometimes, it is difficult taking that first step or taking a risk. The Lord tells us to knock at the door. We have to be willing to take that chance no matter how frightening it may seem.
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