Basic HTML Version
heaped upon us by the world. There are many “Pharisees” out
there, at work, in our families, on the freeways. People who
don’t even know us judge us constantly. We are asked to tes-
tify on our own behalf every day. And it’s easy to feel ganged
up on and overwhelmed by the Pharisees in our midst.
In this Gospel, Jesus said “I am not alone, but it is I and the Fa-
ther who sent me.” The same is true for us, today. We are not
alone, helpless and friendless. Like Jesus, each of us knows
who we are and where we are going. We are created by God the Father and we are
going to join him in Heaven one day. That’s it. Let the Pharisees judge. We have the
light of life in us.
P
RAYER
Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for creating us in your image. Thank you for loving us
unconditionally, no matter what we do, and for always forgiving our sins. Help us to
remember that this love allows us to fully love ourselves, and give us confidence to
overcome the judgment of others. Amen.
_______
D
AMON
F
ELDMETH
Parishioner
This Gospel about God’s love reminds me of a favorite hymn, O Love That Wilt Not Let
Me Go. The writer of the hymn, a blind Scottish minister named George Matheson,
was said to have written it in a state of deep despair. He was engaged to be married,
but when his fiancée found out he was going blind, she called off the engagement.
The hymn became the fruit of his suffering, and according to his own account he wrote
it in five minutes. I find the first and fourth verses the most meaningful:
O Love that wilt not let me go, I rest my weary soul on Thee; I give Thee back the life I
owe, that in Thine ocean depths its flow may richer, fuller be.
O Cross that liftest up my head, I dare not ask to fly to Thee, I lay in dust life’s glory
dead, and from the ground there blossoms red life that shall endless be.