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<table style="font-size:14px;min-width:100%;background-color:rgb(255,255,255)" width="650" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr style="background-color:rgb(255,255,255)"><td id="m_-6871811874468624265gmail-m_7157315743991364660layout-row-margin58553" style="padding:5px;background-color:rgb(255,255,255)" valign="top"><table style="font-size:14px;min-width:100%;border-collapse:initial" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr id="m_-6871811874468624265gmail-m_7157315743991364660layout-row58553" style="margin:0px;padding:0px"><td id="m_-6871811874468624265gmail-m_7157315743991364660layout-row-padding58553" style="padding:10px 30px 0px" valign="top"><table style="font-size:14px;min-width:100%" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr><td id="m_-6871811874468624265gmail-m_7157315743991364660text_div57721" style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;color:inherit;font-size:12px;font-weight:inherit;line-height:1.5;text-decoration:inherit;font-family:Arial" width="580" valign="top" align="left"><div style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;font-size:18px;line-height:1.5"> <div style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px"><b style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-weight:normal"><b style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;font-size:18px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;font-style:normal"><b style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;font-size:18px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;font-style:normal"><b style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;font-size:18px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;font-style:normal"><b style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;font-size:18px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;font-style:normal"><div style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;font-size:18px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;font-style:normal;text-align:start"><b style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;font-weight:normal;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-size:18px;font-style:normal;text-align:start"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-size:18px;font-weight:400;line-height:inherit;text-decoration:inherit;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-style:normal"><b style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;font-weight:normal"><b style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;font-size:18px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;font-style:normal"><b style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;font-size:18px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;font-style:normal"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-size:18px;font-weight:400;line-height:inherit;text-decoration:inherit;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-style:normal">Friends, <span style="background-color:rgb(208,224,227)"><b>in today’s Gospel Jesus asserts his pre-existence by declaring that "before Abraham came to be, I AM." </b></span><br><br>
<span style="background-color:rgb(234,209,220)"><b>There has been a disturbing tendency in recent years to turn <span style="background-color:rgb(255,242,204)">Jesus</span> into
an inspiring spiritual teacher. If that’s all he is, the heck with him.</b></span>
But the Gospels are never content with such a reductive description.
Though they present him as a teacher, they know that he is infinitely
more than that. That something else is at stake in him and our relation
to him. <br><br><span style="background-color:rgb(208,224,227)"><b>Scripture </b></span><span style="background-color:rgb(255,242,204)"><b>clearly teaches that Jesus is divine</b></span>. <span style="background-color:rgb(208,224,227)"><b><span style="background-color:rgb(255,242,204)">He </span>once
declared, "Have faith in God; have faith also in me." </b></span>We can easily
imagine other religious founders urging faith in God, but we’d be hard
pressed to imagine them urging the same faith in themselves! But on
Jesus’ lips, the two are parallel.
<br><br> <span style="background-color:rgb(255,242,204)"><b>As C.S. Lewis so vividly saw, this means that Jesus compels us
to make a choice the way no <span style="background-color:rgb(217,234,211)">other figure does. </span></b></span></span></b></b></b></span></b><span style="background-color:rgb(255,242,204)"><b><span style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-size:18px;font-style:normal;text-align:start"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-size:18px;line-height:inherit;text-decoration:inherit;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-style:normal"><span style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px"><span style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;font-size:18px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";color:rgb(0,0,0);font-style:normal"><span style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;font-size:18px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";color:rgb(0,0,0);font-style:normal"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-size:18px;line-height:inherit;text-decoration:inherit;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-style:normal">Either you are with Jesus
</span></span></span></span></span></span></b></span><b style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;font-weight:normal;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-size:18px;font-style:normal;text-align:start"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-size:18px;font-weight:400;line-height:inherit;text-decoration:inherit;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-style:normal"><b style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;font-weight:normal"><b style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;font-size:18px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;font-style:normal"><b style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;font-size:18px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;font-style:normal"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-size:18px;font-weight:400;line-height:inherit;text-decoration:inherit;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-style:normal"><span style="background-color:rgb(234,209,220)"><b> or <span style="background-color:rgb(217,234,211)">you</span> are against <span style="background-color:rgb(255,242,204)">him</span>.</b></span> There is no other way to take in this language.
To get this wonderful paradox is to come close to the heart of what it
means to be a Christian. <br><br><i style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px">Reflect: </i>Reflect
on this statement: </span></b></b></b></span></b><span style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;font-weight:normal;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-size:18px;font-style:normal;text-align:start"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-size:18px;line-height:inherit;text-decoration:inherit;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-style:normal"><span style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;font-weight:normal"><span style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;font-size:18px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;font-style:normal"><span style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;font-size:18px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;font-style:normal"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-size:18px;line-height:inherit;text-decoration:inherit;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-style:normal">"Either Jesus is who he says he is</span></span></span></span></span></span><b style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;font-weight:normal;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-size:18px;font-style:normal;text-align:start"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-size:18px;font-weight:400;line-height:inherit;text-decoration:inherit;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-style:normal"><b style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;font-weight:normal"><b style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;font-size:18px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;font-style:normal"><b style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;font-size:18px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;font-style:normal"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-size:18px;font-weight:400;line-height:inherit;text-decoration:inherit;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-style:normal"><b>, </b>or he is a lying
lunatic. There is no middle ground." Where do you stand? </span></b></b></b><br></span></b></div><div style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;font-size:18px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;font-style:normal;text-align:start"><b style="margin:0px;outline:currentcolor none medium;padding:0px;font-weight:normal;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-size:18px;font-style:normal;text-align:start"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-size:18px;font-weight:400;line-height:inherit;text-decoration:inherit;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-style:normal">
</span></b><p style="margin-left:60px"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,255)"><b><em>Tűzoszlop</em></b></span></p><span style="color:rgb(0,0,255)"><b>
</b></span><p style="margin-left:60px"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,255)"><b>Vezess, drága fény, a sötétben, mely körülvesz,<br>vezess hát engem!<br>Sötét az éj, hazám távol,<br>vezess hát engem!<br>Óvd léptemet: nem kívánom látni,<br>mi messze van, elég, ha egy lépést tudok tenni.</b></span></p><span style="color:rgb(0,0,255)"><b>
</b></span><p style="margin-left:60px"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,255)"><b>Nem mindig voltam ilyen; nem is kértem,<br>hogy te vezess,<br>utamat én szabtam meg,<br>de most te vezess!<br>A harsány nap volt ínyemre, s bár féltem,<br>gőg uralta szívemet: bocsásd meg, mi volt.</b></span></p><span style="color:rgb(0,0,255)"><b>
</b></span><p style="margin-left:60px"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,255)"><b>Oly sokáig áldott erőd, hát biztos<br>újra kész vezetni már,<br>ingoványon s sziklákon át, míg<br>fel nem száll az éj,<br>s a fénnyel angyalok mosolya nem fogad,<br>mit oly rég szerettem, de elhagytam utamon.</b></span></p>
<p style="margin-left:60px"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,255)">(<b>Szt.John Henry Newman bíboros,</b> Görföl Tibor fordítása)</span></p>
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