A little Xmas miracle
This morning of Christmas Eve, I felt the need to go to mass, just to have a moment of celebration and peace. But I had to take our guinea pig to the veterinary instead, so I thought why not go to the vet's as if I were going to mass. I kept this thought in my mind and the same sacred feeling in my heart, that I have when attending a mass. You've no idea what a wonderful atmosfere was created in the vet's waiting room. Instead of complaining about having to be there, queueing to get in, at Christmas Eve, people were chatting and laughing, and the time passed so quickly. - I realized that this is what God wants from us, when He asks us to be His Christed heart in every moment of our lives, not only when we pray and meditate.
This is a little Christmas miracle for me!
Paula
A Christmas Miracle
Oh, Paula, this is so beautiful.
You were at the manger!
Yes, wherever we go, let it be like going to mass.
I do not exactly know what mass is, but it is some kind of openness to God and giving to Him?
God bless you.
With love,
Gloria
A little Xmas miracle
Dear Gloria,
do you mean you never attended a mass?
I'm not Catholic. In Finland the main religion is the Lutheran religion which is very austere and severe. There are no decorations in the churches. I guess that's why I was so fascinated by the Catholic churches when I first came here in Italy. They have such beautiful decorations and paintings. I didn't like the mass though, because people seemed to be reciting litanies by heart, while they were thinking about something else. Now I realize that a mass is what everyone makes of it. So I go to mass whenever I feel the need to do so (not very often), and I must say I used to judge what the priest was saying and how the people were behaving. But now I know that they are all there, because they are wanting to get closer to God and they are doing it in the only way that's offered them. I still think that more than to give to God, people go to mass to get something from God. But I guess God doesn't mind: He doesn't need anything from us.
I go to mass to feel the communion with God magnified by the fact that people are there to worship Him in a sacred space. Just to get out of the world and the normal routine for a while.
Paula
Paula
When I was a very little girl -- 4,5, and 6 --Margaret, the girl who took care of me while my parents worked, would take me to the Catholic church with her. I don't know if it was for mass or what. I do remember having to put a handkerchief over my head and how much I felt that I did not belong there. All I really remember is my embarrassment and discomfort
When one of my daughter's dear friends had her holy communion at the age of seven, we went to it. I remember that dear little girl and how happy and proud she was, but I don't remember the ceremony.
I don't know what it is, but I have not really felt at home in any church or synagogue.
Maybe I should try again, Paula.
With love and blessings, Gloria
A little Xmas miracle
I think this really shows how our thoughts create our reality. I didn't have a religious upbringing, quite the contrary. But somehow I always felt at home in churches. Anywhere I go, all I have to do to feel at home is to enter a church. I guess I feel it as my Father's home.
I remeber when, some years ago, I was on a stressfull journey in Bruxelles, Belgium. I entered the great cathedral in the main square. There was this great golden statue of Archangel Michael, and I just burst into tears and all the tension was suddenly gone. Just as if I'd come home.
Paula