Reflections
Saint Josephine
Josephine Release: Saint Josephine Bakhita born in 1869 in Sudan and was kidnapped as a young child and she was sold into slavery. She was passed from one master to another, with everything being taken from her, even her name. But after being brought to Italy, she encountered Christ and discovered a Lord who would not possess her, use her, or wound her, but instead loved her and called her His daughter. She eventually gained her freedom and entered religious life, carrying no hatred toward those who had harmed her. Josephine’s freedom began long before the law recognized it. It began when she discovered that the deepest part of her could no longer be owned by anyone but God. She remained with Christ, and His love slowly reached every place where cruelty had tried to leave its name. In Him, she was no longer what had been done to her. She was beloved. She was free. She was home. Peace be with you,Andy Preach the Gospel at All Times, Use Shirts when NecessarySubscribe to the Catholic T-shirt Club, and we’ll deliver an inspiring Catholic tee to your door every month! We design each shirt to help you wear your faith proudly and evangelize without saying a word. With powerful themes and exclusive designs, it's the perfect way to share the Gospel in your everyday life. Join us today and let your wardrobe become a witness to your faith! SUBSCRIBE NOW!
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Saint Catherine
Ready for the Next Theme? We hope you enjoyed the new Saint Catherine of Siena theme: All the Way to Heaven Is Heaven. Saint Catherine had a lot to say, so it was challenging to decide exactly how to approach this theme. But as I read her book, The Dialogue, I noticed that above everything else, Saint Catherine was describing a real, lived experience of God. She was not describing the mystical joy she experienced as something she hoped to receive only after she finally “got to heaven one day,” as we can sometimes be tempted to think today. Catherine was completely enveloped in God’s love during her life here on earth, nearly 700 years ago. She was fully immersed in God’s eternal life as she continually abided in Christ, grew in her knowledge of the Father, and trusted in His will for her life. In fact, she describes this present life with God through three powers of the soul: memory, understanding, and will. “The memory holds on to my blessings and my goodness to the soul. Understanding contemplates the unspeakable love I have shown you through the mediation of my only-begotten Son, whom I have set before your mind’s eye for you to contemplate in him the fire of my charity. The will, finally, is joined with them to know and desire me, your final goal. “When these three powers of the soul are gathered together, I am in their midst by grace. And as soon as you are filled with my love and love of your neighbor, you will find yourself in the company of the multitude of solid virtues. Then the soul’s appetite is ready to be thirsty, thirsty for virtue and my honor and the salvation of souls. Every other thirst is now exhausted and dead, and you travel securely, without any slavish fear. You have climbed the first step, that of desire. Once desire is stripped of selfish love, you rise above yourself and above passing things. What you decide to keep, you love and hold not apart from me but with me, that is, with true holy fear and love of virtue.” —The Dialogue, p. 108 All I can say is “WOW” every time I open this book. Saint Catherine is describing exactly what it feels like to be filled with God’s love, and the powerful joy and virtue that begin to grow within us when we decide to follow God’s commands and live in the eternal life of Christ. You see, the point is that we have to move beyond the mindset that the entire goal of being Catholic is simply “getting to heaven one day when we die.” The goal of the Catholic Christian life is to know God, love God, and serve God in this life. Heaven is not a separate goal from knowing Him now. It is the complete fulfillment of the life with God that begins within us here. Jesus says, “And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent” (John 17:3). If eternal life is to know the Father, then eternal life is not merely waiting for us after death. By God’s grace, it begins within us now as we come to know Him, love Him, and abide in Christ. Jesus also says, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him” (John 14:23). When you weave all of these ideas together, they begin to paint a beautiful picture that makes the Gospel truly good news. We are not here to grind through life in painful sacrifice without love, nor are we called to glide through life in blissful ignorance while continuing to live in sin. God calls us out of both of these ways of thinking and invites us into His eternal life. Right here. Right now. When we truly love God, desire His presence in our hearts, keep His word, and surrender our will to His, He makes His home within us. The joy that comes from living in that union is indescribable. The saints lived it, and each of us is called to live it too. Peace be with you,Andy Preach the Gospel at All Times, Use Shirts when NecessarySubscribe to the Catholic T-shirt Club, and we’ll deliver an inspiring Catholic tee to your door every month! We design each shirt to help you wear your faith proudly and evangelize without saying a word. With powerful themes and exclusive designs, it's the perfect way to share the Gospel in your everyday life. Join us today and let your wardrobe become a witness to your faith! SUBSCRIBE NOW!
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What is Eternal Life
What is Eternal Life Whenever we start discussing Eternal Life, or everlasting life, we typically equate it with being "raised up on the last day" or simply the life we will live in heaven one day after we die, and honestly, that is a completely understandable connection. But the bible actually describes two different events: Current life in Christ by allowing Him to live his Life through you, and the end times-second coming of Christ, to bring about the New Heaven and New Earth at the end of time. The issue is, we tend to combine them into a single salvation meaning and event. That when someone dies, they enter Eternal Life (after purgatory, and hopefully if we dodged hell), and then one day later, we will all enjoy this Life in the new earth, but after we die. The issue is that we as a society have accepted that there is no way out of our sinful nature to truly live happily with God unless we die and are taken to heaven. Some might say "Jesus covers my sins so I can go to heaven". but again, is simply "going to heaven one day" really the goal of the Christian Life? Or is there more to be revealed? The beautiful thing is that we do not have to guess what Eternal Life is because Jesus Himself gives us the definition. At the Last Supper, just before His Passion, Jesus lifts His eyes to Heaven and prays: "As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he may give eternal life to all whom thou hast given him. And this is eternal life: that they may know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent." (John 17:2-3). This verse should stop us in our tracks because Jesus is not speaking vaguely here. He is literally defining Eternal Life for everyone here. What isn't Eternal Life He does not say that Eternal Life is Heaven. He does not say that Eternal Life begins after death. He does not say that Eternal Life is simply living forever. Instead, He tells us that Eternal Life is to know the Father and Jesus Christ whom He has sent. Not simply to know facts about God, but to know Him personally. To dwell with Him. To walk with Him. To live in relationship with Him. Eternal Life is not merely something waiting for us in the future. It begins the moment we truly enter into the Life of God. What do the Saints think? This is why the saints speak so often about union with God. They were not merely waiting to begin living when they died. God's Life had already begun transforming them here on earth. They discovered that the Christian life is not simply about avoiding hell or "earning" Heaven someday. It is about allowing Christ to live His Life within us right now. The closer they drew to Him, the more and more they experienced the reality of Eternal Life long before they died and entered Eternity. Saint Catherine of Siena captured this mystery beautifully when she wrote, "All the way to Heaven is Heaven, because He said, 'I am the Way.'" She understood that Christ is not merely the road that leads us to Eternal Life. Christ is Eternal Life. The more deeply we abide in Him, the more we begin to participate in that Life even now. This changes the way we read the entire Gospel. Christianity is not primarily about surviving this life so that we can finally be with God after we die. It is about entering into His Life today. It is about allowing Christ to dwell within us, transform us, and draw us into deeper union with the Father. Eternal Life is not something we achieve through our own effort. It is the very Life of Christ shared with those who abide in Him. "Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abide in the vine, so neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you the branches: he that abideth in me, and I in him, the same beareth much fruit: for without me you can do nothing." John 15:4–5 Wear The Reminder The Abide tee is a simple reminder to carry the invitation to abide in Christ with you throughout your day. Every time you see the word abide, remember His words: "Abide in me, and I in you." Let it call your heart back to Him again and again. The front is just for you. The back of the shirt is for everyone else. Let them know quietly what is on your heart, and if they ask, you get a perfect opportunity to share the depth of your faith journey with another human being, just like God calls us to do. Grab your Abide tee and join us on the journey. GET YOUR abide TEE HERE! Are You Ready to Live a Life of Sanctifying Grace? When Jesus gives us the definition of Eternal Life at the last supper, He says something remarkable: "As thou hast given Him power over all flesh, that he may give eternal life to all who thou hast given Him. And this is eternal life: that they may know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent." (John 17:2-3). So Eternal Life is not merely a future reward waiting for us at the end of our lives if we tried hard enough to be good. It begins the moment we truly come to know God. Not simply know facts about Him, but know Him personally and dwell in relationship with Him. This changes the way we read the entire Gospel. Christianity is not primarily about surviving this life so that we can get to Heaven one day. It is about entering into the life of God today. It is about Christ dwelling within us now. This is why abiding matters so much, because abiding in Christ is how we begin to live the Eternal Life that He came to give us. Preach the Gospel at All Times, Use Shirts when NecessarySubscribe to the Catholic T-shirt Club, and we’ll deliver an inspiring Catholic tee to your door every month! We design each shirt to help you wear your faith proudly and evangelize without saying a word. With powerful themes and exclusive designs, it's the perfect way to share the Gospel in your everyday life. Join us today and let your wardrobe become a witness to your faith! SUBSCRIBE NOW!
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What does it mean to abide?
Eternal Life is not merely a future reward waiting for us at the end of our lives if we tried hard enough to be good. It begins the moment we truly come to know God. Not simply know facts about Him, but know Him personally and dwell in relationship with Him. This changes the way we read the entire Gospel. Christianity is not primarily about surviving this life so that we can get to Heaven one day. It is about entering into the life of God today. It is about Christ dwelling within us now. This is why abiding matters so much, because abiding in Christ is how we begin to live the Eternal Life that He came to give us.
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