“Do not give what is holy to dogs; and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under foot and turn and maul you.
“In everything do to others as you would have them do to you; for this is the law and the prophets. “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road is easy that leads to destruction, and there are many who take it. For the gate is narrow and the road is hard that leads to life, and there are few who find it.
New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989, by the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. USCCB approved.
Jesus invites us today to reflect on three important points. The first is to recognize that there are things in this world that are holy or sacred and, therefore, worthy of reverence and respect. God, of course, is the holy of holies, and we are created in his image and likeness, which means we share in his sacredness too. This leads to our second point. As temples of the Holy Spirit, we are called to treat ourselves and others with the dignity and respect we deserve, the dignity of the children of God. Third, Jesus invites us to acknowledge that, at times, we struggle to see others in this way, we prefer the easy way. But Jesus shows us that the way is often difficult to follow, and yet, it is only there where we become witnesses of this great truth: that we are made holy, made to love and to be loved. This path, however hard it may feel, is a life-giving path because it is the one Jesus himself followed.
—Bryan R. Torres Santiago, SJ, is a Jesuit scholastic of the Central and Southern Province studying philosophy at the ITESO, Universidad Jesuita de Guadalajara in Guadalajara, Mexico.
Good and gracious God, you have created us in your image and likeness so that we may be temples of your Holy Spirit. Help us to see ourselves and everyone around us as your beloved children, brothers and sisters of Jesus, so that we may truly follow in your footsteps. Amen.
—The Jesuit Prayer team
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