And they'll know we are Christians by our love. That verse is one of the strongest memories I have of attending Catholic elementary school. It was a part of a song that we seemed to sing quiet frequently. But the true meaning of the song still resonates with me. Amid all of the rudeness and incivility among and between people of all faiths (and no faith), this is an idea who's time has come again. Do people know that you are a Christian by the way you respond to life's daily trials? Do you set the bar when it comes to acting like Jesus in your workplace? What about the example you set for your children or others who look to you for guidance? The song goes on to say "We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord." Another salient point that should be reemphasized at a time when it feels like Christians have been divided in order to be conquered. I am challenging myself to live the words of this song. I am committing to being someone who acts out of love. How that looks for each of us may be a little different but loving thy neighbor is a fairly clear concept. Now is a great time to recommit yourself to living a life of love. Start by answering this question. Will people know you are a Christian by your actions?

If divorced-and-remarried Catholics should receive communion, as Cardinal Walter Kasper and many of the German bishops suggest, does that mean St. Thomas More and St. John Fisher died for nothing? In his latest column Archbishop Samuel Aquila of Denver asked this question and pointed to similarities between Cardinal Kasper’s push for allowing remarried Catholics to receive communion and English bishops granting Henry VIII’s “annulment.” “As with those who advocate for communion for the civilly remarried, the English bishops were uncomfortable with embracing divorce and remarriage outright,” he said in his Oct. 19 column. “Instead, they chose to bend the law to the individual circumstances of the case with which they were confronted, and King Henry VIII was granted an ‘annulment’ — on a fraudulent basis and without the sanction of Rome.” The case for Henry VIII’s divorce came from a “strong utilitarian argument”: the king’s personal happiness and the well-being of the country. Similarly, Archbishop Aquila said, some of the German bishops at the Synod on the Family “are pushing for the Church to allow those who are both divorced and remarried to receive communion, while other bishops around the world are insisting the Church cannot change Christ’s teaching.” Two men we now recognize as saints, Thomas More and Bishop John Fisher, refused to join England’s bishops in recognizing the king’s divorce and remarriage. Both men were beheaded and later canonized. Now similar arguments are being heard in Rome as some of the German bishops are calling for divorced-and-remarried Catholics to be able to receive communion, the archbishop observed. “And this begs the question: Do the German bishops believe that Sts. Thomas More and John Fisher sacrificed their lives in vain?” In contrast to Cardinal Kasper’s comment that “heroism is not for the average Christian,” Jesus tells us plainly that “Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me,” the Denver archbishop said. While those who find themselves “on the margins of the faith” must be welcomed with mercy in the Church and parish life, he noted, we must also remember that “mercy always speaks the truth, never condones sin, and recognizes that the Cross is at the heart of the Gospel.”

As reported by Yahoo news, "One of the participants in the synod, the Rev. Antonio Spadaro, tweeted earlier this week that Francis had warned the prelates against falling into a "conspiracy" mindset as they discuss how the church can better minister to Catholic families, gays, divorcees and couples in civil unions. But in his briefing to reporters Tuesday, the Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, didn't quote Pope Francis as making such an explosive and critical admonition. His summary of Francis' remarks was more generic, and a text of Francis' remarks was never provided to the media. Lombardi confirmed Thursday that the pope indeed uttered the words but said he wasn't obliged to make public everything that everyone says." I guess it is all about the clicks even when it comes to the Catholic Church and Pope Francis. Yahoo posted the following story on its news page in order to ramp up the visits to it pages. That is the way the online economy works. The more clicks you can claim, the more advertisers will pay for their propaganda. So let's look at the message. It appears to me that Pope Francis is trying to tamp down the divisive arguing that has been going on for the past two years as we prepped for the synod. Keeping an open mind is integral to any relationship, especially with God. As the members of the synod prayed for the guidance of the Holy Spirit, it is natural for the Pope to remind participants to avoid conspiracy thinking. Conspiracy can mean attempting to do something illegal or harmful and it can mean plotting or conspiring. That Pope Francis wants to have a civil discussion that produces positive results for the future of the Catholic Church goes without saying. The other thing that we need to remember is that English is not the Pope's native language. The word he used could have been something different depending on the language he used. Rev. Lombardi appears to be doing his job as well, namely keeping the synod proceedings above the fray of a HuffPo-style media frenzy that typically dwells on the vulgar and obnoxious. At the end of the day, the participants must allow the Holy Spirit to work within them. At this very important meeting, they are the instruments of God on earth. Pope Francis developed his spirituality as a Jesuit. The examin of conscious and actions is integral to the life of a Jesuit. In the end, it seems that is what Pope Francis is asking for from the synod.

The world Synod of Bishops on the family is not a parliament where participants will negotiate or lobby, Pope Francis said, but it must be a place of prayer where bishops speak with courage and open themselves to "God who always surprises us." Opening the first working session of the synod Oct. 5, the pope said the synod's 270 voting members need courage, "pastoral and doctrinal zeal, wisdom, frankness and to keep always before our eyes the good of the church and of families and the supreme law -- the salvation of souls." Arriving about 15 minutes before the session began, Pope Francis welcomed to the synod hall the members, delegates from other Christian communities and the men and women who will serve as experts and observers. The synod is not a convention or a parliament, Pope Francis said, "but an expression of the church; it is the church that walks together to read reality with the eyes of faith and with the heart of God." Synod members must be faithful to church teaching, "the deposit of faith, which is not a museum to be visited or even simply preserved, but is a living spring from which the church drinks to quench the thirst and enlighten" people, he said. The synod hall and its small working groups, he said, should be "a protected space where the church experiences the action of the Holy Spirit." In a spirit of prayer, the pope said, the Spirit will speak through "everyone who allows themselves to be guided by God, who always surprises us, by God who reveals to the little ones that which he has hidden from the wise and intelligent, by God who created the Sabbath for men and women and not vice versa, by God who leaves the 99 sheep to find the one missing sheep, by God who is always greater than our logic and our calculations." Synod members need "an apostolic courage that does not allow itself to be afraid in the face of the seductions of the world" that are attempting "to extinguish in human hearts the light of truth" and replace it with "little and temporary lights," he said. However, at the same time, Pope Francis said, apostolic courage does not tremble in fear "before the hardening of certain hearts that despite good intentions drive people further from God." Evangelical humility is "emptying oneself of one's own convictions and prejudices in order to listen to our brother bishops and fill ourselves with God," he said. It is a humility, "which leads us not to point a finger in judgment of others, but to extend a hand to help them up again without ever feeling superior to them." Trust-filled prayer is an attitude of openness to God and silencing one's own preferences "to listen to the soft voice of God who speaks in silence," Pope Francis told the synod members. "Without listening to God, all of our words will be just words that don't quench or satisfy." Without prayer, "all our decisions will be just decorations that instead of exalting the Gospel cover and hide it."