They began carrying the sick on stretchers. How difficult it is to get to a doctor or healer who is rumored to be able to cure an illness for which normal medical assistance is not sufficient. Man is a social creature; he cannot live without others. But he easily forgets this. In the hospital, he suddenly feels it very clearly, especially when he cannot walk. It seems paradoxical, but we see it at every step: illness has a great social function in our lives. Friends are recognized on this occasion. But diseases also have a religious function. St. Ignatius of Loyola writes that there are no lesser gifts than health. St. Augustine fought against the main error that spread in the Western Christian world at the dawn of a new Europe. It was Pelagianism, the belief that a person’s natural powers and strong will were enough to live honestly and reasonably and do his work. So why would he need God? Over time, he would disappear from his life completely. But illness, injury, and physical weakness will come. They are the best preachers who convince us of how much we need God’s grace at every step. 

They asked to be allowed to touch the tassel of his garment.» We are at a place of pilgrimage. People feel a revered image, actually just a frame. In Rome, in St. Peter’s Basilica, they kiss the leg of a metal statue. It is so worn out that it needs to be replaced. Many are offended by this. They see in it superstition, fetishism, and God knows what other vices. But those who touched the tassel of Jesus’ garment were not in a better situation. Of course, a tassel, a statue, or a picture frame cannot save anyone. Jesus himself always emphasized on these occasions that it is faith that heals, not an external gesture (Mt 9:22). The actual value lies in his heart, his mindset, and his convictions. But man is a creature who speaks, who expresses his feelings outwardly. This is not done only with words but often with a mere small gesture, a look. The more people know each other, the fewer words they need. They give each other a sign with their hands. Gestures in religious expression convey similar meanings. Touching a picture frame has no value in itself, but it can be an expression of great trust. This then works miracles. 

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Not long ago, an intriguing thought came over the radio. The editor was thinking about the present time and its signs. Finally, he stated, “What we have forgotten and what we must quickly learn is the art of resting.” Rest is essential. It is not wasted time but a time to draw strength to improve one’s own personality. Most of us understand and confirm the truth of this statement, but paradoxically, immediately reject rest due to lack of time. However, it is not right to blame the rapidly passing time or the restless time. After all, the sun always rises the same way—a minute always has the same number of seconds. The cause of haste is not in time, but in man.

The first serious reason is work, which can become a drug—it can even cause pathological addiction. In the beginning, there is a certain desire for a better life, behind which greed can sometimes hide. Man burdens himself with various burdens. The more there are, the more new and new needs appear. They consume every free moment. It is very difficult to free oneself from these burdens. The second reason may be an unsatisfied conscience. A person tormented by remorse throws himself into action just to silence the voice within him that accuses him of some guilt. If such a person cannot stop and does not think about his situation, he will never solve his problem.

The third reason may be poor rest. A person who thinks that he will relax by watching television is very wrong. Television programs only distract a person from thinking about themselves. At the same time, they shower him with a huge amount of unnecessary information. In order for a person to analyze it – that is what is needed. And that is so little. Although the reasons are different, they have the same consequences. These consequences include feelings of nervousness, restlessness, and constant fatigue. But the worst thing is that a person becomes numb in spiritual growth. The model of true rest is summarized in God’s commandment. We should celebrate the holiday with rest. But it is a rest that we are to spend with the Lord. Everything else is to be secondary.

This concentration technique in God gives rest. When a person refuses it, he must necessarily look for some substitutes. Psychologists have developed various relaxation techniques and recommend using them in the middle of the working day. Previously, a person did not need any technique, because at lunch, techniques would be silent before God and pray to the Angel of the Lord. techniques necessary. The question is, however, whether it solves anything. To be silent before God means to find the truth about oneself, about one’s own existence. To exist in translation means to come out of oneself. This process involves stepping outside oneself and retracing our steps to our original sources. The river is murky at its mouth, but in the place where it springs, it is clean and clear. Concentration brings us to God. He is the source from which we came out and to which we are heading. With God, our life becomes transparent. We clearly see what is valuable and what is inferior. What is important, and what is priceless? What is necessary, and what can we do without? When we become silent before God, many difficulties will fall from us. Ouroff’s life will also be more peaceful because we will not chase after unimportant things.

In addition, resting in God’s presence enriches and perfects our personality. Silence helps us find the model according to which we were created. This process requires a little patience. God’s light often comes like a neon light. Some time passes between turning it on and turning it off. If we persevere in silence, we will certainly experience a light that will not only illuminate the questions we carry within us but also show us the right solution. A person then walks the path that leads to perfection. Nervousness is replaced by joy, and restlessness is transformed into peace. In today’s Gospel, the Lord calls the disciples to a deserted place to rest. He also calls us. Let us accept his invitation to learn the art of resting in his presence.

Catholics of the Baroque Church …

Dear young friends! Years ago, an intriguing article titled “People of the Baroque Church” appeared in Tygodnik Powszechny. The author correctly states that for people of the 20th century, God is the God of ancient times.  They welcome Him when they enter the church and say goodbye to Him when they leave. They even feel good with the God of the past, preferably in a monumental church, with the God of “antiques”, and bad with the living God. Preoccupied with life, its things, and problems, they seek to forget everything. In the church, they also seek an escape from the reality of everyday life and somehow find it. Why is this so? This is due to our fear of accepting God as a living and current reality.  We are afraid of responsibility, effort, commitment, and change. We do not like to exert ourselves. We like external changes, but not internal and spiritual ones.  Mahatma Gandhi was once encouraged to accept Christianity. In response, these were his words: “I know the Gospel; I have read it many times and admire it, but I have not seen people living according to that beautiful teaching. Believe me, I love Christ, but I do not like Christians because I have not seen a truly Catholic life”. This is a serious rebuke to those who profess faith but don’t live by the Gospel.

“I ask you, as a priest, tell me why there is so much evil, theft, dishonesty among us, even though we are a Catholic nation, despite so many sermons, spiritual renewals, and confessions?” This is a question that young people once asked me in catechesis at school. We give praise to God when we take His word seriously, when we fulfill what He requires of us, and when we believe in what He has revealed and promised. In His eyes, only deeds have value. Words pass away. On the other hand, deeds shine and transform the world. “Jesus said to his disciples, ‘You are the salt of the earth”

Already in the Old Testament, salt was a symbol of the chosen people, and the rabbis compared the Law (Torah) to salt in food. Christ also used this comparison to describe his disciples in the world. Salt gives food the right taste, cleanses and preserves, heals, and is necessary for the body. Each of us is to fulfill a similar role. With our life and behavior, we are to give taste and create an atmosphere of goodness and truth, love and peace. “You are the light of the world”. The Israelites often called the Law and the sanctuary in Jerusalem the light of the world. Light itself shines. It cannot be hidden. Light warms, attracts, guides, and shows the way. Light gives life, brings joy. “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven”. Not only is Christ the light, but every Christian is the light. A lit candle does not diminish the light of the one from whom it was lit. We are to be an extension of Christ and His light. We must draw, not repel, with our lives to Christ, not to distance ourselves.

Each of us …

Dear young people! God and the world are not waiting for great and extraordinary gestures, but for ordinary, simple, and natural behavior. Today, people do not like artifice. They seek ordinariness and simplicity in everything, even in holiness. They seek ordinary, everyday courtesy. This is God’s Gift that everyone can give to others. The more we give it away, the more we will have. Courtesy and kindness are like a ray of sunshine, removing the darkness of the soul, sorrows and worries, suffering and tears, anger and hatred. It opens the doors of hearts and minds, showing beauty and joy, goodness and love, especially where there was sin, hatred, and blindness.

The Church is us. The light of my good deeds can change the Church’s understanding of its role in the world amid rapid change and overvaluation.  The Church has its history and many positive heroes. Carlo Acutis and Pier Giorgio Frassati were declared saints by Pope Leo XIV on 7.IX.2025. Both were young, lay Italians who dedicated their lives to faith, prayer and care for the poor. Acutis, known as the “Influencer of God,” used technology to spread the faith and create websites about Eucharistic miracles, and Frassati was known as the “Saint of the Mountains and the Poor”, who dedicated himself to helping those in need. Carlo Acutis and Pier Giorgio Frassati show that youth is not a time to wait for a serious life – it is already possible to love today. The canonization of the two young blessed shows that holiness is possible even today – young people can live the Gospel to the fullest, combining faith with everyday life, enthusiasm, activity on the Internet, and joint commitment.  Such a view of the world and life also changes the attitude toward God and the Church.

Agatha, a virgin and the ,,widow of Catania.

CURRICULUM VITAE

She was born in Sicily into a wealthy family. During the persecution of Christians, the imperial procurator Quintianus wanted to seize her and her property. All his efforts to make her turn away from Christ were in vain. Her heart remained unbroken and her firm mind could not be broken even by the later terrible tortures, during which her body was mutilated in the most cruel way. She died during the tortures.

CV FOR MEDITATION

BETTER TO SUFFER WITH CHRIST THAN TO REJOICE WITHOUT HIM

We have before us a saint who was among the most widely venerated in ancient times. Her name was even included in the liturgical canon of the Holy Mass. The oldest historical data date back to the 5th century, and the interviews in many biographies are just legendary stories. It can be reliably assumed that the entire life of Saint Agatha took place in Sicily, in the city of Catania. She came from a wealthy Christian family and excelled in both mental abilities and physical beauty. She fell in love with her Redeemer and rejected all suitors. She longed for a spiritual life, willing to make any sacrifice for her divine fiancé.

One of the rejected suitors took revenge by reporting her as an extraordinary Christian. At that time, the deputy of Emperor Decius Quintianus was probably staying in Catania, and after hearing a seductive story about Agatha, he wanted to win her for himself. He decided to send the unyielding Agatha to the brothel of the debauched Aphrodisia for re-education. Agatha would rather accept physical suffering, but she had to first pass a test in which she would prove her purity and nobility. When Aphrodisia returned her to Quintianus, she replied something to the effect that she would more easily soften stone and bend iron than overcome her stubbornness. Quintianus became angryto endure all torture bravel and when nothing helped, he had her tortured. They whipped her, stretched her in a vice, pricked her and burned her. The deputy’s sadistic desires were also manifested in the order to remove her breasts. According to legend, she was thrown into a prison cell without any treatment, and there Saint Peter appeared to her and healed her. Then she was subjected to new tortures on broken glass and hot coals, but she remained faithful to Christ and full of love until her last breath.

It is difficult to describe all the dimensions of reality. Legendary biographies help themselves by presenting conversations in which Agatha steadfastly resisted, pointed out the wretchedness of the gods, and indicated the difference between deities similar to Joviš and Christ. More credible is Agatha’s strength arising from prayer. It is precisely this kind of strength that we should be looking for when we are tempted to make some concession to some of the modern deities. It is better to suffer with Christ than to rejoice without him. To love him means everything with him. And “to love” is the main and greatest commandment.

Out of great respect, the Christians buried Agatha in a new tomb, and according to legend, on the first anniversary of her death, Mount Etna erupted, threatening to destroy Catania. The inhabitants, praying to Agatha, carried a sheet from her tomb against the lava, and it stopped.

RESOLUTION, PRAYER

I will pray the tenth rosary for moral purity.

God, your power is especially manifested when it works in the weak: you strengthened Saint Agatha to bravely endure all torture; help us also, through her intercession, to pass victoriously through all trials to the glory of your kingdom. Through your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit forever and ever. 

.God’s kingdom is the seed that germinates » They told the real case. A young person, a mathematics student, claimed to be an atheist, not to accept any religion. In order to find the goal of life, he said, it is enough for him to do good to everyone. And indeed he followed accordingly. He helped where he could. But development went in its own direction. He also helped believers in difficult times, eventually he believed himself and even became a priest. Faith is not ideology, but life. Life is then unclear in the beginning. The principle of „do ok“ was already at the beginning of faith in God the Father, who is the source of all good things. So the individual person grows in faith, the revelation in the Old Testament grew, the church also grows. So God does not impose a greater burden on anyone than he can bear, and He asks of us nothing but to do at every moment what is our duty and to follow that inspiration, which is inspired by conscience. This is also the living voice of God in the heart of man. There he speaks quietly, slowly, harmoniously. So what is a person? It is no longer what was yesterday, it is not fully what is today, it is not yet what will happen tomorrow. But in reality it is all, because God sees at the same time his entire development.He doesn’t even know how » Country people walk around the fields and like to watch the grain grow. Growth in nature can be observed. Can the development of the human soul also be seen? When it comes to the growth of knowledge, we even check it professionally with exams. Even moral development is observable to a certain extent. That’s why we claim someone has improved or deteriorated. However, the core of spiritual life is how we are penetrated by the Holy Spirit. This is a secret that appears only very imperfectly on the outside. Therefore, we cannot judge anyone infallibly, we cannot say that we know his true value before God. But even we ourselves do not know how high we have grown in our spiritual life. It is certainly not an infallible measure to feel that we are blameless. On the contrary, saints usually felt great sinners. Sacraments, especially St. communion, they multiply grace in us, so they give growth to the inner life, and yet it is not usually manifested in feelings. So the principle of St. Paul that the righteous lives by faith (Rome 1,17) hopes for what he does not yet see. As soon as the grain allows, he immediately starts working with an arrow, because there are harvests

 Previously, the reading of the Gospel in the church began with solemn words: „At that time…“ It was dropped today because it sounds outdated. But we lost something. Everything, that is, what Jesus did or said, happened in a certain, God-ordained time, in the fullness of time. Even in the life of nature, nothing returns. Grain must be harvested from the field at the right time, fruit is torn at maturity.  Even the inner life of a person who develops has its own irreversible rhythm. No really good deed can be put off until tomorrow. We will understand this when we realize that all the good we are capable of is the answer to God’s love. Even among people who like each other, hesitancy in response to the other’s offer disrupts the ratio. If the spiritual life was just a kind of „accumulation of merit“, you could say that one day we will do more and the next day we will take time off. The inspirations of God, on the other hand, do not return, they have their time, that is why the psalm (Ps 95.8) calls us, which we pray at the beginning of the Church Watch: „If you hear his voice today, do not confirm yourself in your heart!“

In today’s Gospel, we heard Jesus’ teaching about happiness. The word “blessed” actually means “happy.” Many people might say that, in Jesus’ teaching on happiness, what Jesus calls happiness seems to be the opposite of what a person would wish. And yet Jesus did not lie and so certainly presents the teaching about true and deep happiness. There are 8 ways to achieve happiness. Just as God gave the law of the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai, so on another mountain, the Son of God gave the law of the Eight Beatitudes. Both the Ten Commandments and the 8 Beatitudes are intended for all of God’s children – believing Christians. Fulfilling this law of God brings happiness to the soul! And with the appearance of many that something else brings happiness, we can compare the fairy tale Salt over Gold, in which Maruška told her father that she loved him like salt, which was at first unacceptable and offensive to both father and son, but eventually the value of salt over gold was shown.

I recall a statement by a well-known actor that before November 1989 he did not care about human rights, did not sign the Charter, but only wanted to secure a lot of money for his children, and only in November 1989 did he realize that his children did not so much desire material values, but freedom, truth, love, that is, more spiritual values. And he felt very ashamed of his children. This statement of the actor is confirmed by the Lord Jesus himself when he says to adults: “Unless you become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.” We know from experience that a child has a humble mind and an uncorrupt, heart, and therefore understands Jesus and his teachings much better and more accurately. This condition also applies to adults, because the more he is, by the grace of God, as a child, the more he will understand Jesus and his teachings, and he will even be a happy person, as it is found in St. Matthew, which is about happiness.

We will truly understand that happy is a humble person, poor in spirit, not proud, but one who does not cling to things, to successes, to beauty, etc. Happy is a gentle, quiet, tolerant, kind person, happy is one who knows how to cry above all over the evil in himself, over the evil of other people, over the evil in the world, happy is a person who strives for justice combined with love that looks at people and not at paragraphs, happy is a person with a pure heart, i.e. one who controls his lower instincts and passions, happy is a peaceful and peace-loving person who always brings God’s peace into his soul and spreads it around him, happy is a merciful person who sees the needs of others and does not think only of himself, but helps others with word and deed, happy is a person who does not always go with the flow and does not change his coat, but faithfully follows Christ always and everywhere, even if he has to suffer for it. Various political parties always announce their programs before elections.

For 2000 years, the program of us Christians has been the teachings of the Lord Jesus and especially the so-called Sermon on the Mount, from which we read part – 8 of the Beatitudes – the teachings about true happiness. We should read this program of the Sermon on the Mount more often as it is written in St. Matthew in chapters 5-7. Even St. Thomas Aquinas, a great scholar, philosopher and theologian, followed this teaching and was therefore very humble and quiet, for example, he was not ashamed to be a simple religious guide around the city and at another time he humbly admitted that he drew the greatest wisdom from the Cross of Jesus.

Even St. Francis de Sales followed the teachings on happiness; despite hisincorrupt irritable nature, he was known as a very quiet and gentle person who brought peace to others. St. John Bosco received a dream from Our Lady that he would win the hearts of children with meekness and love, and in this way he also found happiness for himself. Unfortunately, today’s contemporary world provides many small sources of happiness, such as various prizes, profits, telephone and Internet technologies, and other attractions, while also relying on advertising in television and print media. Without much advertising, Jesus offers his true happiness, which is seemingly difficult to obtain, but he promises everyone that he will help them obtain it. Jesus, may we always try to offer you what I know.