Dear Parishioners of Our Lady’s, St Anne’s and St Jerome’s.
The opening line of the second reading at Mass on Sunday speaks directly to our current experience; ‘There is no need to worry’. We might be tempted to disagree and to present a long list of worries. St Paul, speaking to the first Christian community in Phillipi, explains himself; ‘if there is anything you need (or are worrying about) pray for it, asking God…’
Anxiety and worry are part of human experience. But St Paul seems to suggest that they should not form a significant part of a Christian’s life. When we think about this, it makes sense. The prayer we pray each time we celebrate Mass, the Our Father; “give us this day our daily bread’, makes clear that we depend on God for everything. Every breath, every move is made because He wills it. Nothing can happen without Him, His Power, His Providence.
This changes everything, or should! God is not just to be turned to for favours, a helping hand, a particular need. God is the ground of our very being, our existence. St Paul understands this deeply and points out to us the futility of worry, of anxiety. Worry achieves nothing. A complete dependence on God for everything we need releases us from anxiety. Everything we need will be given to us; no more, no less.
God wants to help us see this crucial truth today especially. In the midst of so much anxiety, worry and fear about the future, we are being invited to see that everything and everyone are in the hands of God. To trust that our Father God will make all things work for our good, even in these days, is a sure path to inner peace and joy.
May God bless you and your loved ones.
Father John