Weekly Reflection - 10th Sunday in Ordinary Time

After the man, Adam, had eaten of the tree, the Lord God called to the man and asked him, "Where are you?" (Gen. 3:9)

This is the Tenth Sunday in Ordinary Time.  St. John Paul II brought to the Church the beautiful teaching of the Theology of the Body.  In the beginning Adam and Eve lived in harmony with God.  There was divine order.  The only prohibition was not to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. God gave our first parents free will to obey him out of love.

In the garden was a serpent.  Eve was seduced and then Adam ate of the tree.  From that moment on, man recognized his nakedness and hid from God.  He then began to feel shame and to avoid responsibility for the sin committed.  We also experience deep contradictions within ourselves. St. Paul says "I don't do the good I want, but the bad I don't."  These disordered tendencies can only be controlled by prayer, the reception of the Sacraments and the practice of virtue.  

Questions for Reflection: 

• Does the dogma of Original Sin speak to me? 
• Do I recognize myself as a sinner in need of Redemption? 
• Am I convinced that Christ came to give me his grace in order to achieve harmony and integrity within myself?