Unity of Life

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees. You cleanse the outside of cup, but inside you are full of plunder and self-indulgence.

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Friends in Christ, The failings of the Pharisees were not just 2000 years ago, but can easily creep into our own spiritual life. We, daily Mass-goers, hope that we are taking our spiritual life seriously, I think this is why we are here.

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But we must keep careful watch that the devil does not try to corrupt our life of devotion. For people seriously trying to do the Lord’s will: praying daily; trying to keep God’s presence during the day – for such persons, the devil does not do a frontal-attack, rather, he tries to corrupt what we already have.

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One must really wonder what the saints would think of our modern spiritual lives today. What would they think of those who seem to be religious, but are always buying luxury items, living in pleasure – a life of ease? Can we really say that we have a serious spiritual life, if vast amounts of our day are spent being entertained?

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Of course leisure is part of a balanced life; but would not St. Philomena laugh at a person who prays the Rosary, goes to daily Mass, then watches 5 hours of tv a day and parties every night?

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We can’t claim to have a serious spiritual life if we waste away our time in frivolous activity. There must be consistency, there must be what we call ‘unity of life.’ We can’t do our prayers and devotions in the morning, then be an unbearable complainer that our food is not just the way we like it at the restaurant.

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If we are followers of Christ, simplicity, an element of sacrifice, must be part of life. Our piety cannot simply be reduced to familiarity with sacred things, or reading prayers – but some sacrificial acts, sometimes saying ‘no’ to luxuries, being satisfied with what we have, not buying the latest fashion all the time.

If our life is not unified, so that it ALL looks like that of a Christian disciple, we will end up being a Pharisee.