Pastor's Desk Notes

July 27, 2025

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

St. Irenaeus of Lyon once wrote that “the glory of God is man fully alive.” Though we can see our fallen human nature on display in countless aspects of our daily lives, there is something about this humanity that still reflects God’s glory. This is the reason for our Lord’s teaching in the Gospel today, that we, who are wicked, know how to give good gifts to our children. Our humanity, fallen though it is, is capable of good. How much more then is God, who is perfection itself, able to give us what is good?

After teaching us how to pray – the Lord’s Prayer is both a formula for prayer and a guide for how we can structure our conversation with God – Jesus shifts to what seems a negative example. If a person keeps asking me for something, I’ll probably cave in and give it to them, if not out of friendship, then because they have annoyed me into it! From there, our Lord shifts to a positive command – ask, seek, and knock. Then He reminds us that we are capable of doing what is good, of knowing what is good, and of facilitating good things. If we can do that even while also being imperfect, broken creatures, how much more can God?

In this way, Jesus is teaching us something about the very nature of God. In a way, He offers us an explanation of what God is not. God is not stingy, petulant, ignorant, imperfect, or greedy. But I am. At least sometimes. As I recognize what God is not (by the way, you might enjoy the podcast “What God is Not” www.whatgodisnot.com) I come to a greater awareness of how vastly different I am from God. And yet, my humanity helps me to see that God is entirely different and so appreciate more what God is actually doing in the world. I may be imperfect in countless ways, but I also see that I am capable of what is good. God is guilty of none of my imperfections, and on the contrary, is goodness itself. Man’s capacity for goodness, then, is a reflection of God’s goodness. What God is calls me to something greater.

“If you then, who are wicked, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him?” Sometimes our hesitation in approaching God is that we think so much about what we are not. But God is goodness itself and knows our needs. He invites us to ask, to seek Him, to become more like Him each day. When we receive those gifts, when we cooperate with His grace, when, by the power of the Holy Spirit, we become more like God, we become fully alive. And the glory of God is man fully alive.

Peace,

Fr. Sam