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For me, one of the highlights of the Church year was
not liturgical.
It was the
parish fall festival with the freshly harvested fruits and vegetables, with
home-baked goodies, with fun and games, and with a warm sense of family all
around.
The fall
festival was a parochial Linus blanket, and thoughts of it are reminders of a
simpler and more secure time.
Today security is less a sense of home and
community. Security is now a product
that insures our well-being. Our home needs to be as safe as a fortress.
Investments need to be insured. Wages must be guaranteed. In a world in the
wake of events such as the Murrah Federal Building destruction, the attacks of
9/11, or the massacre in Norway, security cannot be left to chance.
Yet, everyone
knows that there are no security systems—no comforting fall festivals—that can
keep out all dangers. Living and growing involves risk. Christ is not the master
insurance broker with the Church as an exclusive agent. Rather, Jesus offers assurance not insurance.
Saint Paul
wrote about those assurances to the Galatians who were on edge to know that
they were justified and that their relationship with God was secure.
Paul was
blunt about those Galatians who would be secure in their salvation: “Remember
that you have been called to live in freedom—but not a freedom that gives free
rein to the flesh. Out of love, place yourselves at one another’s service. The
whole law has found its fulfillment in this one saying: ‘You shall love your
neighbor as yourself’” (5:13-14 NABRE).
Paul then
went on to list a veritable festival of the fruits of the Holy Spirit. This
fruit demonstrates the action of the Spirit in those who would follow Jesus.
“The fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity,
faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (5:22-23).
For every
catechist, the fruit of the Spirit is a good checklist. It can be a good
indicator of just what kind of a harvest to expect—of how you radiate the gospel
to those you teach.
* Love: Does your life reveal love? Love
is a sure sign you are headed in the right direction. The absence of love is a
danger sign.
* Joy: Are you happy? Joy isn’t to be
confused with being entertained, with being “pleased,” or with merely an
absence of sorrow. Joy in the Holy Spirit radiates from the faith-filled person
even in the worst of times.
* Peace: Is your heart restless,
unsettled, confused, bitter, jealous, or angry? Or do you have serenity about
your life—what you have control over and what you cannot control? Peace is a
sure sign of the Holy Spirit.
* Patience: Can you slog through a sea of obstacles
to reach a goal, to love another, to serve, to grow? Patience never demands of
others what it cannot do itself. It is not a sign of the wimp. Patient folk
know that one step at a time is a very good way to travel.
* Kindness: Do you think of
others first and never brutalize others—even with the truth? A person with a
mean streak is not giving witness to the life of the Holy Spirit.
* Generosity: Does the Spirit flow
freely from your open hand?
* Faithfulness: Do you trust
in relationships? As a fruit of the Spirit, faithfulness understands that there
is often more in relationships than meets the eye. Faith can put security on
hold, can trust in promises, and can forgive weaknesses.
* Gentleness: Do you keep your head, remain focused,
and deal carefully with the feelings of others? Gentleness does not scandalize
or shock people. Remember that the Holy Spirit is often experienced in the
gentle breeze.
* Self-control: Are your body
and soul in harmony? Promiscuity, pleasure seeking, and over-indulgence are
escapes from love. When your body is used to running away from love, things get
out of control. The Spirit does not shine through.
These fruits
of the Spirit, in the aggregate, give to others the sense of community and
security found in living the gospel. These spiritual fruits can be planted,
cultivated, nourished, supported, and brought to harvest in the life of a
Christian community.
Jesus said,
“By their fruits you will know them” (Matthew 7:16). Your own festival of these spiritual fruits demonstrates
to those you teach that the fruit from this branch comes straight from the Vine
that is Jesus Christ.
Cullen
Schippe has been in Catholic publishing for well over 40 years and currently
serves as President and Publisher for the Peter Li Education Group. E-mail
Cullen at cschippe@peterli.com.
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