Lord, teach me not to hold on to life too tightly. Teach me to take it as a gift. To enjoy it, to cherish it while I have it, but to let go gracefully and thankfully when the time comes. The gift is great, but the Giver is greater still. You are the Giver and in You is a life that never ends. Amen. Such a simple prayer but it helps to maintain our focus throughout our days on this earth. Our obsession for created things very often is the biggest obstacle to a more fulfilling relationship with God. How often do we cling to things that will certainly go away when we have died? It is the gift of everlasting life that is most important. It is the time we will spend in eternity with God that should drive our passions. God does not want us to be destitute, merely to realize the place that created things have in our lives. As we approach the Lenten season, it is a great time to focus on the Giver. I hope the prayer above brings you as much comfort as it has given me over the years.
Jesus Came to End Death and to Build a Church
The twelve apostles chosen by Jesus formed the bedrock of the early Church , and their Catholic identity is deeply rooted in their direct relationship with Christ and the mission He entrusted to them. The Catechism of the Catholic Church highlights this foundational role, stating that Jesus "instituted the Twelve as 'the seeds of the new Israel and the beginning of the sacred hierarchy'" ( CCC 860 ). These men were not simply followers; they were handpicked by Jesus, lived intimately with Him, witnessed His miracles and teachings firsthand, and were specifically commissioned to preach the Gospel to all nations ( Matthew 28:19-20 ). Their unique position as eyewitnesses to the life, death, and resurrection of Christ, and their reception of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, established them as the authoritative leaders of the nascent Church, a reality echoed in the writings of early Church Fathers like Ignatius of Antioch, who emphasized the apostles' authority as repre...
