Continuing with Hypothesis VIII and considering the experience of those who die and come back to life, we are brought to a place of self-reflection that we often resist. The only thing that we take out of this world is either our virtue or our vice. Saint Ephraim tells us tonight that it is the it voice of these sins that will bear witness to the truth about our lives before God.

Again we must strive to think about this in the full context of our faith and what God has revealed to us. God, we are told, wills that all be saved and does everything in his power to bring us to salvation. In His Son He has revealed to us his love and his mercy and he has given us the fullness of his grace in order to elevate us to the very life and the love of the Trinity. We must see our lives in light of this ultimate reality and our engagement with the world around us must be given shaped by this distinctive identity. There is no in-between state for us as Christian men and women. Life has been given to us for repentance; that is, in order to turn toward God and to receive his grace and mercy. We must not through heedlessness or sloth elevate other things above God and make them our idols. The stories that we are presented with tonight call out to us: “Now is the time, now is the moment of salvation.” Let us pray that we would have ears to hear.

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Text of chat during the group:

00:11:56 John Clark: The 3 key ingredients in French cooking..Butter..butter..and butter! 00:34:11 Ambrose: gaudium et spes 00:37:39 Lilly: in the wise words of an old man ... ‘god meets us where we are’ 00:40:06 Tyler Woloshyn: Like the Old Testament Brazen Snake was made for good, it did get corrupted when misused for the wrong reasons. It can be the same when people worship liturgy above God. 00:40:15 Joseph Muir: Thank God that He does, Lily! 00:57:11 Tyler Woloshyn: A priest once said, he would rather encounter people who are "theologically stupid" rather than the career theologian who runs people over to put them down to reach the next theology book." 00:58:56 Joseph Muir: Which reminds me all the more, Tyler, that the greatest theologians are those who pray the most❤ 00:59:41 Ambrose: GS 44-45 touch on this engagement as well as the priority of the Gospel and the person and work of Christ. 01:02:20 Eric Williams: At least you didn’t quote Only The Good Die Young. ;) 01:02:28 Tyler Woloshyn: Praying without ceasing makes great theologians. Good input their Joseph about prayerful theologians. 01:02:58 Joseph Muir: Hahahaha, wait, what Billy Joel song was he referencing? 01:06:24 Ambrose: Fr. A shared this recently. Thought it was great. If you are an eye-witness of your brother falling [into sin], say without hesitation: “A curse on you, Satan! My brother is not to blame”, and strengthen your heart against judging your brother, or the Holy Spirit will withdraw from you. Anonymous Sayings of the Desert Fathers 01:06:30 Eric Williams: Even vice is sort of a product now (maybe always was?). “Collect them all! Don’t be left out!” 01:09:40 Eric Williams: Billy Joel lyric: 01:09:45 Eric Williams: “You can get just so much From a good thing You can linger too long In your dreams Say goodbye to the Oldies but goodies ‘Cause the good ole days weren’t Always good And tomorrow ain’t as bad as it seems” 01:10:10 Eric Williams: Keeping the Faith, from the album An Innocent Man 01:10:40 Francesca pineda (30): Oh no! I missed what Paul of Thebes said because my phone died! 01:15:06 Francesca pineda (30): Thank you

Understanding Prayer: Heart, Mind and Soul