THE CHURCH IS THE BODY OF CHRIST
Our lives are most precious to "Our God."
Religious symbols:
Oil - is for blessing and healing
Water - symbolizes repentance and rebirth
Cross - symbolizes redeeming power of
Christ
Bible - by placing our hands on It
symbolizes integrity
In the Catholic
Church, material objects play an important role in our religious practices. In
the matter for sacraments we find water, various oils, wine, and wheat. In the
sacramentals we use many things such as beeswax, oil, fire, and plants. We also
have many sacramentals like rosaries, pictures, statues and medals. Hopefully
using natural objects in such a sacred way will inspire us to learn the
importance of respecting and taking care of all of God's creation, - our
environment, the world in which we live in. Our natural resources are precious
and we should respect and care for them.
Today's first
reading is a hymn to water; it is the element that sustains all of our life,
and our lives are most precious to "Our God." In the second reading
St. Paul addresses the populace of Corinth, a city known at the time for great
number and variety of its temples. The Apostles uses this fact to remind the
Corinthians of the sacredness of their bodies.
Today we celebrate
the Feast of the Dedication of St. John Lateran. This is also our parish
Church, because it is the pope's cathedral. This is the spiritual home of the
people who are the Church of the Body of Christ.
Points to Pray and Ponder: Many times we say "What a beautiful
church," meaning its architecture. Less frequently do we recall that we
are all the church, the children of God who gather in liturgy to praise and
worship God. Please go to the link for the Saint of the Day for the rest of today's
reflection, and read the history of St. John Lateran Basilica.