Being Christians as we all know requires more than sitting in a Pew on Sundays. If we want to be close to God and live our lives in relationship and communion with him then a little more is required than passive attention. We have opportunities to grow closer to Him all the time, to celebrate the sacraments, attend liturgy, study scripture and take classes to learn about the most important and loving being in our lives. We also have to try to imitate Jesus and live His way every minute of our lives. That means at home, at school, at work, at the grocery store, in our neighborhoods and communities, and in our parishes. Understanding “Catholic Social Teaching” can help us to do that. We must reach out to those in need, even when it inconveniences us. We must honor the dignity of our families, co-workers, classmates and neighbors. We must love them with a self- sacrificing love, recognizing that they are made in God’s image and that whatever we do to them we do to Him. Easier said than done?? Tomorrow at work or at school think of the Creator of the Universe and unite your work to His work of creating and caring for all of the things and people on earth. When you are eating a meal with your family remember those without food and thank God that you are able to feed the hungry at home, talk with your family about a plan to help those in need of food and shelter. Treat the checkout clerk at the grocery store the way you would treat Christ, He is in them. Every moment, in every situation we have a choice to live out our faith and do things as Christ would since we are his followers, or to do things our own way and reserve thinking about or living our faith to Sunday mornings. It is a lifestyle not an extracurricular activity. We are Christians everywhere and at all times and living the Christian life can be difficult. That is why we have a Christian community to help us along the way as well as social teaching to help us apply biblical principals to our everyday lives.
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