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| self portrait in Autumn shadows |
“And what else are we doing when we leave behind the language of
the world for the words of the sacred mysteries, when we express as best we can
the praise and power of our Creator, if
not speaking in new tongues? When we remove malice from another’s heart by
our good word are we not, so to speak,
picking up serpents? And when we hear the wisdom of the world, but choose
not to act on it, surely we have drunk
poison and survived. As often as we
catch sight of our sister or brother stumbling on life’s path, and we gather
round them with all our strength, and support them by our presence, what are we doing but laying our hands upon
the sick to heal them? Surely these
miracles are all the greater because they are spiritual; they are all the more
significant since it is the hart and not
the body which is being restored.”
~Saint Gregory the Great († 604),
in
today’s Magnificat Magazine reflection
I’m thinking of my daughter and daughter in
law wiping toddler noses, helping each other, and making meals for a new mother…
they are, daily, laying hands upon the sick and needy and healing them with their
loving touch.
I’m thinking of a sister in law who with generous
love and reflective action continues to support her ex-husband and father of
her son in his struggle and fight with addiction… she is picking up serpents!
I’m thinking of my doctor friend who is
fighting in word and action for her 12-year-old patient in the face of disputing
parents who use the child as a pawn against each other… she is speaking in new
tongues.
I’m thinking of my mother-in-law and friend,
who not only refuses to give into bitterness in spite of the injustices and
unfairness she’s faced in her academic profession, but instead chooses to “pay
it forward” by establishing a scholarship… she has drunk the poison and
survived!
Saint Gregory the great, pray for us!
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Still expecting our new grandbaby--and waiting for our world to change!
Please
pray for his parents and siblings?
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