The Most Reverend George V. Murry, SJ Bishop of the Diocese of St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands

FINDING GOD EVERY DAY

What is our goal in the spiritual life? The answer is found in the testimony of the saints. Our spiritual goal in life is to be in communion with God so that we may share His life and live with Him forever. But how do we do that given that we all live busy lives?

We have commitments to our families that require enormous amounts of time. Work makes demands upon us, not only in those areas for which we are responsible but also in responding to the reasonable and unreasonable expectations of others. Nor can we discount the time it takes to answer emails, text messages, faxes and ordinary phone calls.

One unexpected result of the fast pace of our contemporary society is boredom. Because everything happens so fast, we have gotten used to continual stimulation. Human life, however, is not one stimulating event after another. When stimulation is missing then boredom appears. We see it on the faces of teenagers who are momentarily unable to use their MP-3 players. As adults, boredom shows itself as an inability to patiently listen to children or co-workers or remain focused during Mass when a silence occurs.

The need we have in Western society for constant stimulation also affects our spiritual lives. With all the noise and all the stress, our life in the Spirit can become fragmented. We begin to feel disconnected from God and only experience fleeting moments of spiritual communion, for example, at a wedding or funeral, or when we hear a particularly meaningful song.

Short-lived moments of spiritual communion are not what God intends for us. Through grace, God offers us the opportunity to be with Him every day, at every moment, in all that we do that is good. But to reach that goal, we must take three steps.

First, we must honestly evaluate how we stand before God. Do we love God before any other love? Are we free of serious sin? Have we given all to the Lord? If our answer to any of those question is "no," we have some work to do.

Second, we must re-tune ourselves to the voice of God. The Lord speaks to us through the events of our day.

But if we do not know His voice, we will not recognize it. We can re-tune ourselves to God's voice by reading the Scriptures daily. They are His word and in them we will hear His voice.

Lastly, we must form new habits for living that will bring us closer to God. This is what theologians call conversion: a change in the way we live and think. Many of the time-consuming activities of our lives we do out of habit. To deepen our spiritual life, we need to make choices about what is important and what is not. Our relationship with God needs to be among the most important aspects of life. Therefore, making time for prayer, morning and evening prayer, the rosary or the angelus, is essential.

With the help of God, we can be companions of Jesus every day of our lives. Ifwe stand honestly before Him, seek to hear His voice and make choices that bring us closer to His love, He will walk with us and shepherd us On the road to Jerusalem.

CODE OF CONDUCT

All diocesan personnel, including, priests, deacons, administrators, staff and volunteers will begin receiving a two-part document called Code of Conduct and Policies and Procedures Concerning Minors. The first part will outline general ethics expected of all who work or volunteer in our parishes, schools or agencies. The second part summarizes the manner in which diocesan personnel are to protect children from harm. All diocesan personnel must read the document and then sign and submit the consent form on the back page.

PROTECTION OF CHILDREN

The Diocese of St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands is committed to protecting children from all harm. If you have knowledge that any priest, deacon or church worker may have abused a minor, please immediately contact the Vicar General of the diocese, Msgr. Michael Kosak, at (340) 778-0484 or Bishop George Murry, SJ, at (340) 774-3166.

THE CATHOUC ISLANDER    *NOVEMBER 2006"     7