YOUR HERITAGE: Wise Sayings

Scriptures, according to John 20:30-31 exits for us to assimilate the energy of God in order to come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah and that believing, we might have lift in his name. God communicates through authors using the Scriptures as accounts of Israel, the Life of Christ, and the Evangelization of the Good News. The format takes on a variety of literary forms, including wise sayings, similes, parables, and the four approaches to what the life of Christ means to the authors, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. There are over twenty Gospel writings that we know about but only four are canonical (authorized by the Church).

All of this is our heritage, designed to help us move from our false self (the world) to our new life in Christ.

Let me reiterate the five steps of growing deeper in Christ that I use when reading Scripture (capacitas dei).

• Read or Say the Word
• Pray the Word
• Share the Word (with Christ in the silence of the Holy Spirit)
• Become what you read, pray, and share
• Wait in the presence of Christ and enjoy the moment (contemplation)

What I read, I do very slowly, usually pausing for ten minutes after the reading to reflect in silence. This means I might read the passage (usually short paragraphs or, in the case of proverbs and wisdom literature) one time for each of these steps. This reading might be all in one sitting, as a method of reflection before the Blessed Sacrament, or in five separate sittings. The fifth level of spiritual awareness is just to WAIT for the Lord and listen with the ear of the heart (St. Benedict’s RB Prologue).

Waiting requires spiritual energy to have profound focus. The profound focus has to do with my reliance on the power of the Holy Spirit to blanket me with the energy of Truth so that I might continue on the Way, and sustain the Life of God in me, a strength of my adoption as the son (daughter) of the Father. Profound means I realize that God is God and I am to love others, as Christ loves me. Read Chapter 7 of the Rule, Step One. http://benedicteen.blogspot.com/2013/09/chapter-7.html

I offer you three readings that I myself use in my ever-deepening awareness of The Christ Principle.

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/sirach/5