The Way of Holiness

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The Christian Community is made up of people from all gender, class, race or culture, but they have something in common: they have been chosen by God to be a holy nation and a royal priesthood.

One requirement is only required to be part of that community, believing that Jesus Christ is the Messiah and Son of God. And, unfortunately, both the biblical readings as our everyday experience, demonstrate that faith is not of all, and disbelief is accompanied by a more or less open hostility against believers .

 When it comes to finding reasons to Faith ,  the Gospel we shared brings us two :

• The miraculous events ( unmatched ) performed by Jesus.
• Compliance of the prayers, that are rised in His name, to the Father.

A third reason that, personally,  is the most convincing for me, can be found in John 7 : 17 : "anyone who wants to do God's will, shall know whether the teaching is from God or whether I speak of myself ."

Ie : a person who honestly seeks to do good,  will feel attracted to Jesus and moved to recognize the truth of his teachings. This person is no longer under the "domain" of social or cultural conventions. Know the truth and be set free from all bondage .

However there are other requirements that must be taken into account:  following Jesus requires that we shed a number of "carnal ties ", such as: malice, deceit, hypocrisy and envy and all slander (1 Peter 2: 1) and we want to know about all things pure and original Will of God, specific for each of us.

Thus, the believer in Christ can live a full of optimism life (even in the midst of suffering and persecution ) because he knows that "all things are yours and you are Christ's and Christ is God's" (1 Cor 3: 23 ).

Author: José Luis Mira Conca

Christian Community around Jesus

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Easter is the great feast of Christian Community. The traveling group who accompanied Jesus on the roads of Palestine, becomes an expanding charismatic community, driven by a simple and generous enthusiasm,  result of his repeated close encounters with the Lord Jesus.

The simplicity and generosity are two main characteristics that identify the true followers of Jesus. A simple faith is not necessarily a faith which does not ask itself questions, or even come to doubt (Thomas, the disciples of Emmaus , Peter, ourselves ...) but above questions, which are not always answer in this life - it moves in a climate of trust, generated by the proximity of Christ.

Of course we, distant and befallen disciples, not always have been fortunated to experience a face-to-face encounter with Jesus ... but readings in Acts and 1 Peter, showed us that many believed by the Word that was preached to them and the example of joy, simplicity of heart and generosity that came off the apostles and those who "had seen and touched Jesus". This relationship was finally sealed by the sacraments of Baptism and Eucharist.

Therefore, it is wrong to think that Christianity can be lived "alone".  Cristianism is the coming and the growth of the Kingdom of God within us and without us, and it is impossible outside Christian Community.

Author: José Luis Mira Conca