History’s greatest leaders influence people from the outside in. They draw and motivate people into action by their speeches, ideas and their example.

He influences us also from the inside out. He calls us from the outside through the voice of the Church, by actions of Divine Providence and through the example of faithful disciples. But He also unites Himself to us, so intimately that His very life flows through our veins. In today’s Gospel He says: 

I am the vine, you are the branches

The sap that feeds us, the branches;  is the life of divine grace, flowing from Christ to us. We were grafted onto the vine at Baptism and were adopted as children of God and God lives in us, through Sanctifying Grace.

But holiness means growing more in union with the Vine. How do we do this?

Firstly, prayer and the sacraments. We expose ourselves to the divine sunlight through prayer. Just as a plant’s exposure to sunlight gives it energy and growth. St Teresa of Calcutta teaches about prayer. Listening to God is the first link in the sacred chain of interior peace. She says:

The fruit of silence is prayer, the fruit of prayer is faith, the fruit of faith is love, the fruit of love is service, the fruit of service is peace. 

The Popes and Saints of the church strongly recommend the daily recitation of the Holy Rosary. But its fruitfulness in our lives, depends on how we pray. Prayer must come from the heart. It must be affective prayer. In the prayer of the heart, we must see and feel with our mind, our will, our heart and our soul, the reality whom we are addressing in prayer. This focus, together with a proper meditation on each mystery results in truly fruitful prayer.

Secondly, remaining in Christ, means making good use of the sacraments, especially Holy Mass, Confession and Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. If prayer is the sunlight, the Eucharist is the rain shower. In each Holy Communion, the divine life is poured into our hearts and minds. This is our nourishment (the true ‘manna’) for our earthly pilgrimage. It is the pledge of eternal life.

Thirdly, obedience to the Divine Will. As St John says in Sunday’s second reading:

Love one another. ….Whoever keeps his commandments lives in God and God lives in him. …..

Our love is not to be just words or mere talk, but   something real and active. So, when we obey the Word of God and the authentic Magisterium of the Church, it is a sign of humility. This is the opposite to proud rebellion.  The truly humble soul is someone that the devil cannot handle. This is because the devil has no humility, instead he full of pride and rebellion. He simply cannot handle humility. The more we die to our own selfish will and grow in the Divine Will, to more untied we become with the true Vine. There are now wonderful writings on the Divine Will, called the Book of Heaven. There is an introductory talk on our website: https://divinemercyshrine.com.au/divine-will-introduction-talk-by-daniel-oconnor/

Fourthly, allow God to prune you. By taking up our cross every day with holy resignation and trusting completely in Jesus, we are pruned of self-love and come not to depend on ourselves, but on the Lord. St Ignatius of Loyola said: If God causes you to suffer much, it is a sign that He has great designs on you.

Therefore, if we remain in Jesus, we will bear much fruit, and our love will become something real and active, not just words. There are many voices in society and the media today which urge us to taste the forbidden fruit. But those who eat of the apple, soon discover that they are worse off and even more unhappy than before. If we fall into serious (mortal) sin, we become like a branch which has been cut off from the vine. Jesus says: These branches are collected and thrown on the fire, and they are burnt. Here the Lord is warning of the reality of Hell fire, for those who stubbornly remain in serious sin. However, if we repent and go to Confession at the earliest opportunity we are grafted back onto the Vine and once again receive the life of grace.

Jesus alone is the Way to Heaven, He teaches the Gospel Truth, which sets us free. He gives us Life, providing the sap of divine grace which unites us to Him and leads to eternal life.  The Church is the guardian of the Deposit of Faith (Christian doctrine). Let’s read the Catechism of the Catholic Church, so we come to deepen our knowledge of Church doctrine and also read the Scriptures, especially the Gospels. We need Scripture in one hand and Tradition in the other (catechism) to really know our Faith. Be constant in prayer in order to receive more actual grace or sunlight in order to grow. Hunger for the Eucharist and love Confession. If we do this, we will produce much fruit!   Praise be Jesus Christ, now and forever!