rabbi, where are you staying.... January 4 2019 st elizabeth ann seton

I would like to repeat the dialogue for I think it is important: They said to him, "Rabbi, where are you staying?"  Jesus said to them, "Come, and you will see."  So they went and saw where he was staying,and they stayed with him that day.  And they stayed with him that day.

Studying the words of Jesus is not enough.  Listening to priests speak about Jesus is not enough.  Going to church and praying once in a while whenever it fits your schedule is not enough.  To develop a deeper relationship with Jesus, one has to spend time with him.  

There’s a quote in the book the little prince which says, “it’s the time you spent with your rose that makes your rose so important.”

Sometimes we really don’t understand why some people especially the saints do what they did for God. We all know the story of St. Paul and how he was converted.  But it escapes us why this man did so much for Jesus, why bear so much sacrifice, why did he offer himself even to be stoned and imprisoned, never giving up even when he was shipwrecked several time and finally to die for Jesus.  The experience and impact of Jesus must have been so profound.

St. Elizabeth Ann Seton discovered God’s love too in the midst of a crisis after suffering the devastating effects of bankruptcy and a family life and marriage disrupted by the early deaths of her loved ones.  And from this profound experience of being loved by God despite and in spite, she offered her whole self to God and to the church.  Saints become saints because of this profound but uncommunicable experience with Jesus

The invitation then is to experience Jesus, to experience the love of the sacred heart of Jesus.  Jesus said, Come and you will see.  And they stayed with him.