Wings

To look up is to recognize that there is a higher power, God.
People of faith are people of hope, because they know that this present moment is not all that there is to life.
Trust God. He will give you wings, not to escape life but to discover new paths that lead to seeing life's meaning.

Because you believed!

You didn't seek fame or greatness, but now every generation calls you blessed.
You said yes even if it was not easy for you to imagine how it could be possible, and your faith was strengthened to the point of saying to others "Do whatever he tells you!"
You gave up your only son to be about his Father's business, and now you are invoked as "Mother" of people from all races, from generation to generation.
What was your dream, o Mary, when you were a little girl? I bet it wasn't like how your life turned out to be. God, indeed, is infinitely more creative than us. God has done great things in your life. Blessed are you who believed!

Is it lawful? Is it kind?

In today's Gospel, we hear the same question we often ask ourselves when we are in a dilemma: "Is it lawful?".
Personally, I realize that I ask this question when something within me, an intuition, an inner voice, makes me doubt the course of action I am about to take. It is as if an affirmative response to the question would appease my doubt or the nagging feeling I have.
So much has been said against deciding on the basis of our feelings; that maturity means being able to make a logical decision. But I believe that it is important to listen to our feelings.
There is something raw, something sincere about our initial feelings. To listen to them is important in enabling us to own responsibility for our choices. Then we will not hide behind and take comfort in legalism or in being right.
The voice that comes from the core of our being is not self-centered or egoistic, because what is at the core of our being is something that unites us with the rest of humankind. And the only question that remains to be asked is, "Is it kind?"