The Reading
Judith 8:25-26,27
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God who, as he tested our ancestors, is now testing us. Remember how he treated Abraham, all the ordeals of Isaac and all that happened to Jacob. For as these ordeals were intended by him to search their hearts, so now this is not vengeance that God exacts against us, but a warning inflicted by the Lord on those who are near his heart.
My Thoughts +++
He was born in Antioch. After a thorough education, he took up the ascetic life. He was ordained to the priesthood, and became a fruitful and effective preacher.He was elected Patriarch of Constantinople in 397, and was energetic in reforming the ways of the clergy and the laity alike. His sermons and writings did much to explain the Catholic faith and to encourage the living of the Christian life: his eloquence earned him the surname “Chrystostom” (the Greek for “golden mouth”).
St John called upon sinners to repent. How do we do that? We begin by searching our hearts. Deep within each of we have an innate knowledge of God. We search our hearts to see what it is we place as being more important than God and thus identify our own sin. We can then call upon God’s power to help us set that sin aside and transform our lives more fully into what God calls us to be – heralds of his love to the world.
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