If you want others to see the importance of it, you must show them how important it is. We do not teach others good things through our bad example. People will not be attracted to the beautiful, if we do not show them the beauty. People will not see the valuable if we do not demonstrate the value.
If you want to attract people to the Catholic Church then you must LIVE out your faith. You must demonstrate it through a good example. If every person who claims themselves to be Catholic, actually lived what they profess to believe in, then there would not be enough churches to hold all those who desired to be Catholic.
It is up to us to start living what we profess to believe, so we can show the value, the importance, the beautiful in our church. We can teach people more through our good example, our daily LIVING of our faith, then we ever could by discussing it. If we try to discuss a faith that we do not take the effort to live out, then we just look like a used-car salesman trying to sell the "lemon" on the lot. People will never believe us if we are not becoming that living witness, professing our faith through action. St. Francis of Assisi said, "To go out and profess the good news to all the world, and when necessary, use words."
We will make it important to the world if we first profess its importance through our actions.
We must also be able to defend our faith. Do you know why the priest washes his hands in the water before consecrating the bread and wine? Do you know what that cloth is called that they so carefully open and fold at the beginning and ending of the consecration...the one the bread an wine is placed on during consecration? Did you know the Mass is the highest form of prayer in the church, and that we give ourselves the sign of the cross at the beginning and ending of the Mass as you would when you pray. Do you know what the word Eucharist means?
There are so many beautiful facets of our faith. It is up to you to teach yourself about your faith.
You need to know the beautiful to show the beauty. You need to know the value to show how valuable it is. Your faith is a gift. Find out the price that was paid for this gift to be given to you. Show the world how important it is to you!
If you want to attract people to the Catholic Church then you must LIVE out your faith. You must demonstrate it through a good example. If every person who claims themselves to be Catholic, actually lived what they profess to believe in, then there would not be enough churches to hold all those who desired to be Catholic.
It is up to us to start living what we profess to believe, so we can show the value, the importance, the beautiful in our church. We can teach people more through our good example, our daily LIVING of our faith, then we ever could by discussing it. If we try to discuss a faith that we do not take the effort to live out, then we just look like a used-car salesman trying to sell the "lemon" on the lot. People will never believe us if we are not becoming that living witness, professing our faith through action. St. Francis of Assisi said, "To go out and profess the good news to all the world, and when necessary, use words."
We will make it important to the world if we first profess its importance through our actions.
We must also be able to defend our faith. Do you know why the priest washes his hands in the water before consecrating the bread and wine? Do you know what that cloth is called that they so carefully open and fold at the beginning and ending of the consecration...the one the bread an wine is placed on during consecration? Did you know the Mass is the highest form of prayer in the church, and that we give ourselves the sign of the cross at the beginning and ending of the Mass as you would when you pray. Do you know what the word Eucharist means?
There are so many beautiful facets of our faith. It is up to you to teach yourself about your faith.
You need to know the beautiful to show the beauty. You need to know the value to show how valuable it is. Your faith is a gift. Find out the price that was paid for this gift to be given to you. Show the world how important it is to you!
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