St. Augustine of Hippo (one of the patrons of the Confraternity) says in one of his works:
“I implore you to love with me and, by believing, to run with me; let us long for our heavenly country, let us sigh for our heavenly home, let us truly feel that here we are strangers.”
As we draw near to the end of the Church’s Liturgical Year, the readings and prayers have been focused more and more on the last things: death, judgment, heaven and hell, but especially, upon the culmination of all time in the “Parousia,” the Second Coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. This time of year should be a reminder to all of us that we were not, ultimately, created for this world. We are made for heaven, and heaven is our true and final home. Sometimes, as Christians, we feel like we don’t really belong, that the world does not really accept us — and that is good, because the world doesn’t really accept us. If the world fully embraces us, maybe it is because we are not truly living our faith. To feel “not at home,” to feel like we are strangers in the midst of the world, that is NORMAL for the Christian. In point of fact, we can be the very best citizens of our nations, but even more important is to be a citizen of the heavenly kingdom of Jesus Christ. May Christ the King reign in our hearts, our homes, our places of work, and yes, even in the halls of our governments! And may you and I “long for our heavenly country … sigh for our heavenly home, let us truly feel that here we are strangers.”
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