Despite our protests and personalized application, the basis of our faith and practice are based on: love, peace, forgiveness, prayer, fasting, and a sacramental life. These conditions are not merely suggestions, but our responsibility to adhere to, and to follow. They are not meant for the faint of heart, nor constrained by circumstances applied only when we derive some benefit. We, so often, have trivialized what our commission on earth is really about, because, we are the baptized ones; inheritors of the gift of the seal.. We are the bearers of the Holy Spirit. We are the light not hidden under bushel baskets, secreted behind locked doors, or in false compartments. We are the hearers, sharers, and bearers of the Word. We are the modern followers of the Christ, and like so many who have fallen before us, or who have succumbed to error, we are reminded not to be like Pharisees and/or hypocrites.

We are persistent, however, in our way, and either we apply only the rules, guidelines, and precepts which make our life easier, or adapt them to fit our lifestyle. We do not always take into consideration those around us, nor measure ourselves by God’s standards. Rather, we simplify our needs to be inclusive solely to the "me." Take Sam at a younger age, for instance who prayed to God, but with self-imposed guidelines, rather than with the message of God. He prayed for forgiveness, but when God questioned the young man’s sincerity in requesting forgiveness, the young man.... Well maybe it’s better to share the story.