Here and Now with Francis 5/25/16 (Christ, holiness, journey, Christianity, conversion, hope, courage, grace)

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Holiness is a journey; holiness cannot be bought.  It can’t be sold. It cannot be given away. Holiness is a journey to God's presence that I must make: no one else can do it in my name. I can pray for someone to be holy, but he’s the one who has to work towards [holiness], not me. Walk in God's presence, in an impeccable way.

From the homily
"Jesus’ Kingdom of Heaven," the Pope stressed, is for "those who have the courage to go forward" and courage, he observed, is generated by "hope," the second element of the journey that leads to holiness. The kind of courage that hopes "in an encounter with Jesus." The third element of this journey towards holiness, the Pope observed, appears in Peter’s words: "Put all your hope in that grace:” "We cannot achieve holiness on our own,” affirmed Pope Francis.  “No, it is a grace. Being good, being saintly, going every day a little 'a step forward in the Christian life is a grace of God and we have to ask for it. Courage, a journey. A journey one must take with courage, with hope and with the willingness to receive this grace. And hope: the hope of the journey.
"Conversion, every day,” recalled Pope Francis, does not mean one must beat oneself as penance for committing a wrong:   “No, no, no: small conversions... if you're able to not speak ill of another, you're on the right path to becoming saintly. It 'so easy! I know that you never speak ill of others, no? Little things ... 'I want to criticize a neighbor, a workmate': bite your tongue a bit. The tongue will swell a bit, but your spirit will be holier on this journey. Nothing grand, mortification: no, it's simple. The path to holiness is simple. Do not go back, but always moving forward, right? And with fortitude." [link]

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