St Charles Borromeo

St Charles Borromeo, Patron of bishops, catechists, seminarians and spiritual directors, pray for us!

At the time of the Protestant reformation, the Church had great heroes like St Charles Borromeo who at great personal risk to themselves, led by example to rid the church of those who were pretenders, who were only after wealth and power. Like St Francis before him, St Charles and others like him worked to reform the church from within. The heart of the prophets of old were surely in men such as these.

A sermon by St Charles Borromeo
Practise what you preach

I admit that we are all weak, but if we want help, the Lord God has given us the means to find it easily. One priest may wish to lead a good, holy life, as he knows he should. He may wish to be chaste and to reflect heavenly virtues in the way he lives. Yet he does not resolve to use suitable means, such as penance, prayer, the avoidance of evil discussions and harmful and dangerous friendships. Another priest complains that as soon as he comes into church to pray the office or to celebrate Mass, a thousand thoughts fill his mind and distract him from God. But what was he doing in the sacristy before he came out for the office or for Mass? How did he prepare? What means did he use to collect his thoughts and to remain recollected?
Would you like me to teach you how to grow from virtue to virtue and how, if you are already recollected at prayer, you can be even more attentive next time, and so give God more pleasing worship? Listen, and I will tell you. If a tiny spark of God’s love already burns within you, do not expose it to the wind, for it may get blown out. Keep the stove tightly shut so that it will not lose its heat and grow cold. In other words, avoid distractions as well as you can. Stay quiet with God. Do not spend your time in useless chatter.
If teaching and preaching is your job, then study diligently and apply yourself to whatever is necessary for doing the job well. Be sure that you first preach by the way you live. If you do not, people will notice that you say one thing, but live otherwise, and your words will bring only cynical laughter and a derisive shake of the head.
Are you in charge of a parish? If so, do not neglect the parish of your own soul, do not give yourself to others so completely that you have nothing left for yourself. You have to be mindful of your people without becoming forgetful of yourself.
My brothers, you must realise that for us churchmen nothing is more necessary than meditation. We must meditate before, during and after everything we do. The prophet says: I will pray, and then I will understand. When you administer the sacraments, meditate on what you are doing. When you celebrate Mass, reflect on the sacrifice you are offering. When you pray the office, think about the words you are saying and the Lord to whom you are speaking. When you take care of your people, meditate on how the Lord’s blood that has washed them clean so that all that you do becomes a work of love.
This is the way we can easily overcome the countless difficulties we have to face day after day, which, after all, are part of our work: in meditation we find the strength to bring Christ to birth in ourselves and in other men.

The Commemoration of All Souls

Today we remember the faithful departed. I must admit that purgatory was one of the teachings of the church I did not understand right away. For as a Protestant, I was taught that once I was a child of God, that I had the righteousness of Christ; and if I had the righteousness of Christ, why would there be a need for purgatory? A careful study of the scriptures corrected my thinking on this matter. I realized that the "righteousness of Christ" given me was not Christ's own personal righteousness, but was the righteousness that comes from Christ through the Grace he purchased for us by his life, death and resurrection which now His church pours upon us by way of the sacraments. I realized it could not be that His own personal righteousness was given us because Jesus has a name that is above every name, His is the preeminence above all creation, and that would not be so if everyone was made equal to Him in righteousness.

So then I saw that purgatory was the very love of God. Rev 21:27 tells us this about heaven "Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life." Is it required to go through purgatory? No it is not. But I daresay most of us



Being responsible before God

Given by Arlington Bishop Paul S. Loverde on Nov. 2, the Commemoration of the Faithful Departed during Mass at St. Robert Bellarmine Chapel at George Mason University in Fairfax



The liturgical name for today’s celebration is the Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed; the more popular name is All Souls Day. On this day, we both relearn the teaching of the Church on the doctrine of purgatory and offer prayers, especially here the most perfect prayer we have: the Mass, for all the faithful departed including relatives and friends. In fact, we should pray for the souls in purgatory daily all year long. In the Church’s tradition, November is the month when our focus is particularly directed to all the faithful departed, assisting them through our prayer, penance and good works.



On this day, let us relearn the doctrine on purgatory, a doctrine rooted in both scripture and tradition. The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches: “All who die in God’s grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified, are indeed assured of their eternal salvation; but after death they undergo purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven” (n. 1030). Pope Benedict XVI put it this way: “I would go so far as to say that if there were no purgatory, then we would have to invent it, for who would dare say of himself that he was able to stand directly before God? And yet, we don’t want to be, to use an image from Scripture, ‘a pot that turned out wrong,’ that has to be thrown away; we want to be able to be put right. Purgatory basically means that God can put the pieces back together again. That he can cleanse us in such a way that we are able to be with him and can stand there in the fullness of life” (Magnificat, November 2008). Purgatory has been called “God’s Masterpiece of Pity” because had He not created it, how would most of us enter into His presence free of all the residue of sin, what we call “temporal punishment”?







The Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed (All Souls)





Reading 1

Wis 3:1-9



The souls of the just are in the hand of God,

and no torment shall touch them.

They seemed, in the view of the foolish, to be dead;

and their passing away was thought an affliction

and their going forth from us, utter destruction.

But they are in peace.

For if before men, indeed, they be punished,

yet is their hope full of immortality;

chastised a little, they shall be greatly blessed,

because God tried them

and found them worthy of himself.

As gold in the furnace, he proved them,

and as sacrificial offerings he took them to himself.

In the time of their visitation they shall shine,

and shall dart about as sparks through stubble;

they shall judge nations and rule over peoples,

and the Lord shall be their King forever.

Those who trust in him shall understand truth,

and the faithful shall abide with him in love:

because grace and mercy are with his holy ones,

and his care is with his elect.





Responsorial Psalm

Ps 23:1-3a, 3b-4, 5, 6



The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.



The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.

In verdant pastures he gives me repose;

beside restful waters he leads me;

he refreshes my soul.



The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want..



He guides me in right paths

for his name’s sake.

Even though I walk in the dark valley

I fear no evil; for you are at my side

with your rod and your staff

that give me courage.



The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.



You spread the table before me

in the sight of my foes;

You anoint my head with oil;

my cup overflows.



The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.



Only goodness and kindness follow me

all the days of my life;

and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD

for years to come.



The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.





Rom 6:3-9



Brothers and sisters:

Are you unaware that we who were baptized into Christ Jesus

were baptized into his death?

We were indeed buried with him through baptism into death,

so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead

by the glory of the Father,

we too might live in newness of life.



For if we have grown into union with him through a death like his,

we shall also be united with him in the resurrection.

We know that our old self was crucified with him,

so that our sinful body might be done away with,

that we might no longer be in slavery to sin.

For a dead person has been absolved from sin.

If, then, we have died with Christ,

we believe that we shall also live with him.

We know that Christ, raised from the dead, dies no more;

death no longer has power over him.





Gospel

Jn 6:37-40



Jesus said to the crowds:

“Everything that the Father gives me will come to me,

and I will not reject anyone who comes to me,

because I came down from heaven not to do my own will

but the will of the one who sent me.

And this is the will of the one who sent me,

that I should not lose anything of what he gave me,

but that I should raise it on the last day.

For this is the will of my Father,

that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him

may have eternal life,

and I shall raise him on the last day.”

The Feast of All Saints

How the world does pervert the celebrations of The Lord's Church. Some go so far as to not even count the belief in the communion of Saints that has been taught by the Apostles. As the book of Hebrews tells us "We are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses" and in the Book of the Apocalypse we are told that the 24 Elders hold great golden bowls that contain the the prayers of the saints, which rise like the smoke of incense before our God day and night. We hear too of the martyrs who cry out beneath the heavenly altar. On earth, our altars contain the relics of the Saints. The Saints pray for us and intercede for the Body of Christ on earth just as we here on earth pray and intercede for each other. These requests to the Saints cannot be praying to the dead, for the Saints in heaven are more alive than we are. They are part of us and we are part of them. St Paul tells us "how can one part of the body say to another, I have no need of you?"

Tomorrow is All Saints Day. A day to remember and be thankful for our brothers and sisters who have gone on before us. They have run the race and won the prize of eternal life with God and all the holy angels.

I hope these readings from the Office of Readings bless your heart and remind you that we are not alone, our brothers and sisters are cheering us on!

Apocalypse 5:1-14

I saw that in the right hand of the One sitting on the throne there was a scroll that had writing on back and front and was sealed with seven seals. Then I saw a powerful angel who called with a loud voice,

‘Is there anyone worthy to open the scroll and break the seals of it?’

But there was no one, in heaven or on the earth or under the earth, who was able to open the scroll and read it. I wept bitterly because there was nobody fit to open the scroll and read it, but one of the elders said to me,

‘There is no need to cry: the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed, and he will open the scroll and the seven seals of it.’

Then I saw, standing between the throne with its four animals and the circle of the elders, a Lamb that seemed to have been sacrificed; it had seven horns, and it had seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits God has sent out all over the world. The Lamb came forward to take the scroll from the right hand of the One sitting on the throne, and when he took it, the four animals prostrated themselves before him and with them the twenty-four elders; each one of them was holding a harp and had a golden bowl full of incense made of the prayers of the saints. They sang a new hymn:

‘You are worthy to take the scroll
and break the seals of it,
because you were sacrificed, and with your blood
you bought men for God
of every race, language, people and nation
and made them a line of kings and priests,
to serve our God and to rule the world.’

In my vision, I heard the sound of an immense number of angels gathered round the throne and the animals and the elders; there were ten thousand times ten thousand of them and thousands upon thousands, shouting, ‘The Lamb that was sacrificed is worthy to be given power, riches, wisdom, strength, honour, glory and blessing.’ Then I heard all the living things in creation – everything that lives in the air, and on the ground, and under the ground, and in the sea, crying, ‘To the One who is sitting on the throne and to the Lamb, be all praise, honour, glory and power, for ever and ever.’ And the four animals said, ‘Amen’; and the elders prostrated themselves to worship.

A sermon by Saint Bernard, abbot.

Let us make haste to our brethren who are awaiting us

Why should our praise and glorification, or even the celebration of this feast day mean anything to the saints? What do they care about earthly honours when their heavenly Father honours them by fulfilling the faithful promise of the Son? What does our commendation mean to them? The saints have no need of honour from us; neither does our devotion add the slightest thing to what is theirs. Clearly, if we venerate their memory, it serves us, not them. But I tell you, when I think of them, I feel myself inflamed by a tremendous yearning.

Calling the saints to mind inspires, or rather arouses in us, above all else, a longing to enjoy their company, so desirable in itself. We long to share in the citizenship of heaven, to dwell with the spirits of the blessed, to join the assembly of patriarchs, the ranks of the prophets, the council of apostles, the great host of martyrs, the noble company of confessors and the choir of virgins. In short, we long to be united in happiness with all the saints. But our dispositions change. The Church of all the first followers of Christ awaits us, but we do nothing about it. The saints want us to be with them, and we are indifferent. The souls of the just await us, and we ignore them.

Come, brothers, let us at length spur ourselves on. We must rise again with Christ, we must seek the world which is above and set our mind on the things of heaven. Let us long for those who are longing for us, hasten to those who are waiting for us, and ask those who look for our coming to intercede for us. We should not only want to be with the saints, we should also hope to possess their happiness. While we desire to be in their company, we must also earnestly seek to share in their glory. Do not imagine that there is anything harmful in such an ambition as this; there is no danger in setting our hearts on such glory.

When we commemorate the saints we are inflamed with another yearning: that Christ our life may also appear to us as he appeared to them and that we may one day share in his glory. Until then we see him, not as he is, but as he became for our sake. He is our head, crowned, not with glory, but with the thorns of our sins. As members of that head, crowned with thorns, we should be ashamed to live in luxury; his purple robes are a mockery rather than an honour. When Christ comes again, his death shall no longer be proclaimed, and we shall know that we also have died, and that our life is hidden with him. The glorious head of the Church will appear and his glorified members will shine in splendour with him, when he forms this lowly body anew into such glory as belongs to himself, its head.

Therefore, we should aim at attaining this glory with a wholehearted and prudent desire. That we may rightly hope and strive for such blessedness, we must above all seek the prayers of the saints. Thus, what is beyond our own powers to obtain will be granted through their intercession.

Health Care Reform

Tom Durkin sent me this from Bishop Swain about what we need for Health Care Reform. I think it is excellent.

Bishop Swain Sends Health Care Reform Letter
to S.D. Congressional Delegation

Following is the text of a letter that Most Rev. Paul J. Swain sent to Senators Tim Johnson and John Thune, and Representative Stephanie Herseth-Sandlin

The Catholic Church has long taught that all people should receive appropriate and respectful care when in need, sick, or injured. Catholic healthcare has been a leader in putting this teaching into practice for hundreds of years. In South Dakota, Catholic hospitals, clinics, long term care facilities, hospice and other ministries, provide care and treatment, as well as spiritual support, for thousands each year.

Clearly there are deficiencies in the current healthcare system which should be addressed. It is imperative that any new policies be based on fundamental moral principles which seek to protect the life and dignity of the human person, provide special protection for the poor and most vulnerable among us, and which conform to principles of social justice.

Reform should also be accomplished in a way that does not threaten the continuation of Catholic healthcare here in South Dakota and throughout the United States. On behalf of Catholics in eastern South Dakota,and in order to achieve effective and lasting reform, I encourage you to keep the following principles in mind as healthcare legislation is considered in the days to come.

1. Healthcare in law and in practice should serve to protect the life and dignity of all people, from the moment of conception until natural death. Provisions supporting abortion, euthanasia, or embryonic stem cell research, whether directly or indirectly, should be specifically excluded in any legislation.

2. Freedom of conscience must be protected. The moral convictions of all healthcare workers, as well as those in the public who pay for healthcare, deserve your deepest respect. No person should be forced to choose between their properly formed conscience and their job in the healthcare profession.

3. Quality healthcare should be affordable and accessible to all people, no matter their financial status or age. Unborn children, the poor, legal immigrants, the elderly, as well as those nearing death, deserve the same quality and respectful care as those at other stages or conditions in life.

4. Reform should be governed by the principle of social justice known as subsidiarity. In general, “a community of higher order should not interfere in the internal life of a community of a lower order, depriving the latter of its functions, but rather should support it in case of need.” (Catechism of the CatholicChurch, 1883). We in South Dakota have differing structures, institutions and needs from other areas of the country. This fact should be noted and accommodated.

I respectfully urge you to consider these principles as you debate and consider health care bills these next weeks. Public service is a high calling with grave responsibility. Be assured of my prayers for you as you seek to serve those who you represent.

Yours in Christ,
The Most Rev. Paul J. Swain

Let Us Put On the Image of the Creator....

I have begun reading the documents of the Council of Trent (1545 -1563) regarding Justification. Todays Office sparked something in me that I saw reflected in the Catholic view of Justification. I have provided some links here for you so that you can read these for yourself. Catholics and Protestants have a lot more in common than they differ on. I believe that we agree on much of the basic teachings of salvation and I am always trying to find common ground. My friend Mark Rende gave me a great quote from someone in his office the other day that really fits well here "It’s easy to point out differences; the glory is in finding similarities."

A sermon by St Peter Chrysologus

The word, the wisdom of God, was made flesh

The holy Apostle has told us that the human race takes its origin from two men, Adam and Christ; two men equal in body but unequal in merit, wholly alike in their physical structure but totally unlike in the very origin of their being. The first man, Adam, he says, became a living soul, the last Adam a life-giving spirit.
The first Adam was made by the last Adam, from whom he also received his soul, to give him life. The last Adam was formed by his own action; he did not have to wait for life to be given him by someone else, but was the only one who could give life to all. The first Adam was formed from valueless clay, the second Adam came forth from the precious womb of the Virgin. In the case of the first Adam, earth was changed into flesh; in the case of the second Adam, flesh was raised up to be God.

What more need be said? The second Adam stamped his image on the first Adam when he created him. That is why he took on himself the role, and the name, of the first Adam, in order that he might not lose what he had made in his own image. The first Adam, the last Adam; the first had a beginning, the last knows no end. The last Adam is indeed the first; as he himself says: I am the first and the last.

I am the first, that is, I have no beginning. I am the last, that is, I have no end. But what was spiritual, says the Apostle, did not come first; what was living came first, then what is spiritual. The earth comes before its fruit, but the earth is not so valuable as its fruit. The earth exacts pain and toil; its fruit bestows subsistence and life. The prophet rightly boasted of this fruit: Our earth has yielded its fruit. What is this fruit? The fruit referred to in another place: I will place upon your throne one who is the fruit of your body. The first man, says the Apostle, was made from the earth and belongs to the earth; the second man is from heaven, and belongs to heaven.

The man made from the earth is the pattern of those who belong to the earth; the man from heaven is the pattern of those who belong to heaven. How is it that these last, though they do not belong to heaven by birth, will yet belong to heaven, men who do not remain what they were by birth but persevere in being what they have become by rebirth? The reason is, brethren, that the heavenly Spirit, by the mysterious infusion of his light, gives fertility to the womb of the virginal font. The Spirit brings forth as men belonging to heaven those whose earthly ancestry brought them forth as men belonging to the earth, and in a condition of wretchedness; he gives them the likeness of their Creator. Now that we are reborn, refashioned in the image of our Creator, we must fulfil what the Apostle commands: So, as we have worn the likeness of the man of earth, let us also wear the likeness of the man of heaven.

Now that we are reborn, as I have said, in the likeness of our Lord, and have indeed been adopted by God as his children, let us put on the complete image of our Creator so as to be wholly like him, not in the glory that he alone possesses, but in innocence, simplicity, gentleness, patience, humility, mercy, harmony, those qualities in which he chose to become, and to be, one with us.

The Suffering Servant...

The Liturgy of the Word for this Sunday shows us, in all of the readings, the high calling to which we, who aspire to be imitators of Christ, are summoned. The disciples in the Gospel story didn't get it, despite walking the dusty roads with Him and hearing Him speak time and time again. Philip said "Show us the Father"... Jesus asked him "have I been with you so long a time and you do not know me, Philip?". They were too busy jockeying for position. Servant leadership was something that they hadn't considered. Have we? All this clamoring for prosperity and demanding our rights rings a bit hollow compared to His example, doesn't it.

The reading from Isaiah proclaims the coming of the servant on whom would be poured the guilt of the world. The Psalms tell us of His justice and right, but also of his kindness and mercy. It echoes Isaiah's picture of the Father "If he gives his life as an offering for sin, he shall see his descendants in a long life, and the will of the LORD shall be accomplished through him."... "have you not known me Philip?"

The reading from Hebrews shows us the great high priest, both offerer and offering, who sympathizes with our weakness, because He was tempted as we, and so much more. We are exhorted to hold fast to our confession, and to come boldy to the throne of Grace.

May the Lord Bless you this Sunday, as we remember Him. May the Holy Spirit reign in our hearts and teach us the meaning of the Word today.

Reading 1
Is 53:10-11

The LORD was pleased
to crush him in infirmity.

If he gives his life as an offering for sin,
he shall see his descendants in a long life,
and the will of the LORD shall be accomplished through him.

Because of his affliction
he shall see the light in fullness
of days;
through his suffering, my servant shall justify many,
and their guilt he shall bear.


Responsorial Psalm
Ps 33:4-5, 18-19, 20, 22

R. (22)Lord, let your mercy be on us, as we place our trust in you.

Upright is the word of the LORD,
and all his works are trustworthy.
He loves justice and right;
of the kindness of the LORD the earth is full.

R. Lord, let your mercy be on us, as we place our trust in you.

See, the eyes of the LORD are upon those who fear him,
upon those who hope for his kindness,
To deliver them from death
and preserve them in spite of famine.

R. Lord, let your mercy be on us, as we place our trust in you.

Our soul waits for the LORD,
who is our help and our shield.
May your kindness, O LORD, be upon us
who have put our hope in you.

R. Lord, let your mercy be on us, as we place our trust in you.


Reading II
Heb 4:14-16

Brothers and sisters:
Since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens,
Jesus, the Son of God,
let us hold fast to our confession.
For we do not have a high priest
who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses,
but one who has similarly been tested in every way,
yet without sin.
So let us confidently approach the throne of grace
to receive mercy and to find grace for timely help.


Gospel
Mk 10:35-45 or 10:42-45

James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to Jesus and said to him,
"Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you."
He replied, "What do you wish me to do for you?"
They answered him, "Grant that in your glory
we may sit one at your right and the other at your left."
Jesus said to them, "You do not know what you are asking.
Can you drink the cup that I drink
or be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?"
They said to him, "We can."
Jesus said to them, "The cup that I drink, you will drink,
and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized;
but to sit at my right or at my left is not mine to give
but is for those for whom it has been prepared."
When the ten heard this, they became indignant at James and John.
Jesus summoned them and said to them,
"You know that those who are recognized as rulers over the Gentiles
lord it over them,
and their great ones make their authority over them felt.
But it shall not be so among you.
Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you will be your servant;
whoever wishes to be first among you will be the slave of all.
For the Son of Man did not come to be served
but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many."

Seek ye first....

The readings from the Mass for today (Sunday) follow up on the thought that prosperity is not the Gospel, rather, we should be seeking Wisdom as is shown in the first reading. Jesus said on the mountain, "Seek first the Kingdom of God and all these things will be added to you"...In the gospel story, the man who came to Jesus had it all, he followed the law, he had power, prestige and wealth, yet there was something lacking.... but he went away sorrowful because his riches, like weeds, choked out the good seed, the word of God. He could not follow his deepest longing because of his love for his possessions. Prosperity can be a good thing if it is used for the Kingdom to further the Kingdom, but too often it becomes a snare....

Reading 1
Wis 7:7-11

I prayed, and prudence was given me;
I pleaded, and the spirit of wisdom came to me.
I preferred her to scepter and throne,
and deemed riches nothing in comparison with her,
nor did I liken any priceless gem to her;
because all gold, in view of her, is a little sand,
and before her, silver is to be accounted mire.
Beyond health and comeliness I loved her,
and I chose to have her rather than the light,
because the splendor of her never yields to sleep.
Yet all good things together came to me in her company,
and countless riches at her hands.


Responsorial Psalm
Ps 90:12-13, 14-15, 16-17

R. (14) Fill us with your love, O Lord, and we will sing for joy!
Teach us to number our days aright,
that we may gain wisdom of heart.
Return, O LORD! How long?
Have pity on your servants!
R. Fill us with your love, O Lord, and we will sing for joy!
Fill us at daybreak with your kindness,
that we may shout for joy and gladness all our days.
Make us glad, for the days when you afflicted us,
for the years when we saw evil.
R. Fill us with your love, O Lord, and we will sing for joy!
Let your work be seen by your servants
and your glory by their children;
and may the gracious care of the LORD our God be ours;
prosper the work of our hands for us!
Prosper the work of our hands!
R. Fill us with your love, O Lord, and we will sing for joy!


Reading II
Heb 4:12-13

Brothers and sisters:
Indeed the word of God is living and effective,
sharper than any two-edged sword,
penetrating even between soul and spirit, joints and marrow,
and able to discern reflections and thoughts of the heart.
No creature is concealed from him,
but everything is naked and exposed to the eyes of him
to whom we must render an account.


Gospel
Mk 10:17-30 or 10:17-27

As Jesus was setting out on a journey, a man ran up,
knelt down before him, and asked him,
"Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?"
Jesus answered him, "Why do you call me good?
No one is good but God alone.
You know the commandments: You shall not kill;
you shall not commit adultery;
you shall not steal;
you shall not bear false witness;
you shall not defraud;
honor your father and your mother."
He replied and said to him,
"Teacher, all of these I have observed from my youth."
Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said to him,
"You are lacking in one thing.
Go, sell what you have, and give to the poor
and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me."
At that statement his face fell,
and he went away sad, for he had many possessions.

Jesus looked around and said to his disciples,
"How hard it is for those who have wealth
to enter the kingdom of God!"
The disciples were amazed at his words.
So Jesus again said to them in reply,
"Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God!
It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle
than for one who is rich to enter the kingdom of God."
They were exceedingly astonished and said among themselves,
"Then who can be saved?"
Jesus looked at them and said,
"For human beings it is impossible, but not for God.
All things are possible for God."
Peter began to say to him,
"We have given up everything and followed you."
Jesus said, "Amen, I say to you,
there is no one who has given up house or brothers or sisters
or mother or father or children or lands
for my sake and for the sake of the gospel
who will not receive a hundred times more now in this present age:
houses and brothers and sisters
and mothers and children and lands,
with persecutions, and eternal life in the age to come."