Refrain form Displeasing God

A quote from Catherine McAuley;

Through love of God, we should refrain from saying, doing or thinking anything which we know to be displeasing to God.

That is a tall order in this cynical world of backbiting politics, rampant hatred of immigrants, crazy stuff on the Internet, and even outright lies from governmental leaders. How do we be people of integrity with all that is around us? Won't it taint us as well? What are we to do and how do we live in this sort of world? Catherine did not have such stuff to deal with, did she?

Most likely she did. People are people. She had to deal with bigotry, of oppression because of her Catholic background, of being a woman in a man's world , much less a woman in the Church of the mid-nineteenth century. Then there was the whole issue of how to govern, teach and still maintain her integrity, her humor, her patience and her spirit while forming young women into what she wanted her Sisters to be. Yes, she saw it all, from the dirty hovels in the alleys,the poor conditions in the prisons, the sickness and poverty that kills the spirit. There were no self help books then, no therapy sessions, no Prozac, or even books to read on the subject. She did it the hard way, through prayer, deep faith and a sense of what is right for others.

So, today when we get those negative thoughts about others, let us offer up a prayer for them. When we are tempted to retaliate, let us remember to "walk a mile in their shoes". When we want to join in on dissing someone, let us refrain or better yet, uplift the person, knowing full well we might be the next victim. It will do our heart, our spirit and our faith good to have to struggle now and then in order to be in union with God.

Blessings today!
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