Fr Prodencio Bognay, Assistant Priest at St Agnes’ Catholic Parish, reads from the Gospel of Luke (12: 49-53) in which Jesus tells his disciples, ‘I have come to bring fire to the earth and how I wish it was blazing already’.
In a community where there exists an established strong set of beliefs already, Fr Prodencio says, division among believers is unavoidable if a new set of beliefs has to be introduced. This is why Jesus said he brought division rather than peace. From hindsight, Fr Prodencio notes, we realize however, that all that Jesus brought us is the truth that would lead us to our own liberation or the truth that sets us free. It is the truth that could help us find and experience real peace. There is, however, a big difference when we seek the Christ that was manifested in Jesus and when we seek the Christ within us. While it is true that we can be on fire in choosing to be diehard loyal to Jesus who lived some 2000 years ago, we can also be equally on fire when we choose to seek and live the Christ that manifests deep within our own self. Jesus Christ appears to have acknowledged and introduced to us that there is this Christ within each one of us that every single one of us can choose to live. The division appears then to be not only between and among the members of a community but also within our conflicting personal convictions. In conclusion, Fr Prodencio invites us to continue to reflect on how we can be more and more on fire with our spiritual journey as we continue to seek how we can live our Christ identity.
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