5th Sunday after Easter 2013
When we ask that God will “give us this day our daily bread,” we pray for all mankind, but especially for our fellow Catholics, because God is the Father of those baptized members of the Mystical Body in a far more intimate way than all those who remain outside His Church.  We are closer to one another through our share in God’s life, than we are with our blood relations, and we have the obligation to love one another.  The Our Father is the loftiest prayer, being composed by Christ Himself, and it reminds us of the importance of receiving the Holy Eucharist often as well as making frequent spiritual communions when we cannot receive.

Faith is essential for our salvation, but Faith alone does not save, as St. James confirms.  We must possess all the virtues to be saved.  We must practice good works, especially mental prayer.  Perfect happiness is found in the practice of virtue.  Even Aristotle recognized this fact and recognized that it is impossible for man to reach this ideal without divine assistance.
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