One of my brother priests, he used to be a chaplain for the Navy Seals, and he’s such a great dude. Let’s just say he is pretty large. He has biceps as big as my face. He was in a war torn country celebrating mass for his Navy Seals. As he’s celebrating mass, an explosion happens outside of the tent. The priest dives for cover. As he looks up, he notices all of the Navy Seals are still kneeling in the dirt praying to the Lord. One of the Navy Seals gently looks at the priest and he says, “Father, keep pressing on.”
Here’s the Gospel today where Jesus says, “Perseverance will secure your lives.” No matter what sufferings, no matter what trauma, no matter what we experience in this life, with Jesus Christ, we can persevere to the end. The Navy Seals of Catholicism are the saints. You look at any of the saints’ lives, they persevered in the midst of sorrow, suffering, trauma, addiction, sins. With Jesus Christ, they persevered, and so can you. Only with Jesus, only with his grace.
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