Jacobs shook his head. “Not at all, Mr. Cartwright. It was a pleasure talking with you.” Expecting nothing more from his illustrious guest, he was about to turn back to his work, when he saw Samuel Cartwright actually extend his hand for him to shake. Hoping his amazement wasn’t clearly written on his face, Jacobs took the politician’s hand in a firm grasp, and felt the gratifying pressure of Samuel Cartwright’s response.

Cartwright took on a serious tone. “I hope you’ll allow me to return again sometime, Jacobs. I’d appreciate discussing more of your views on the war and General Washington.”

Jacobs nodded in mute assent, once again astonished at the politician’s condescension. Then perceiving what a fool he must look, he quickly found the words to thank his apparently new-found acquaintance. “You are welcome at any time, Mr. Cartwright. But as I am always busy during the day, perhaps you would prefer to come in the evening? My wife would be honored to have you as our dinner guest, if you are agreeable to that.”

Cartwright thought a moment, then asked, “Well then, if you have no other engagements, why not tomorrow evening?”

Jacobs made quick reply in order to hide his shock. “That would be fine. We’ll see you tomorrow then. A pleasant evening to you, Mr. Cartwright.”

Cartwright tipped his hat to the blacksmith. “And to you, Mr. Jacobs.” Picking up his newspaper with one hand and leading his newly shod horse with the other, he walked out of the shop, down the path, and towards the center of the town, until he was quite out of sight.

Jacobs let out his breath with a perplexed sigh and turned his gaze to his smithy, noting with distaste how dank and dirty it must have seemed to his distinguished visitor. ‘But then again, Samuel Cartwright is not an average politician like I had presumed,’ Jacobs pondered. ‘No, he’s rather a man who’s willing to consider views contrary to his own, if they are supported by good reasons. Tomorrow evening, Mr. Cartwright will be entertained with the very best my household can provide’, Jacobs promised himself. ‘He will discover just how dignified even a blacksmith’s family can be!’ Chuckling softly to himself, Jacobs put his tools away, shut up his shop, and walked up the path to his house.

1 cup granulated sugar

1/4 tsp salt

2 cups cranberries

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

1/2 cup butter, melted

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1 tsp almond extract

Preheat the oven to 350° F. Grease a 9-inch pie pan.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, and salt. Add the cranberries and walnuts, and toss to coat. Fold in the butter, eggs, and almond extract. Spread the batter into prepared pan.

Bake for 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Serve warm with whipped cream or ice cream.

Enjoy!

Why, oh Lord, did you give me free will?
I would be content with your will!
I feel forlorn, as if I was
Forgotten—
If only I could see the prize!

I cry, oh Lord, ‘Why am I the ‘good girl’?’
When, I know, I fall wholly short!
I feel rejected, because I try to
Listen—
‘Good’ can’t be true, for all my sins!

I plead, oh Lord, don’t let me fall in darkness!
I have been there—never again!
I feel, Lord, too much, too much
Sorrow—
Your way is light, no, no, not shadow!

I grovel, oh Lord, at your feet!
I beseech you forgive them and me!
I feel, Lord God, totally
Tired—
Please, my Lord, give me rest!

HOW LONG, oh Lord, is my question!
HOW LONG is it, Lord, till I meet you?
I feel, Lord, without you so
Empty—
God, oh! God, I beg you for hope.

Why, oh Lord, can they be so shameful?
Why, oh Lord, can not they see?
I know, Lord, I am too
Responsible—
Help me, oh Lord, to bear my load!

I weep, Lord, at your door!
I feebly, raise my hand in attempt to knock!
I know, Lord, I am all
Unworthy—
But You still will bring me in!

I bless You, Lord, forgiving God!
I see now, the WAY, the TRUTH, the LIGHT!
I feel, Lord, as on earth I couldn’t have
Imagined—
You, my Lord, have saved all for me!

For us to repent, we first have to understand what repentance really is; misunderstanding what it is is also a hindrance in itself, because it keeps us from true repentance. What is true repentance, and what does it do for us? It removes barriers caused by our own sinfulness. It also removes barriers caused by those times that we have been hurt by other people, times that we might have trouble letting go of and forgiving. These sins and hurts hinder us from becoming closer to Christ. Christ calls us to repentance so that He can heal us.

Some common misconceptions about repentance:

1) Some people think that it is to feel terrible about yourself. They think that repentance is sincere only when you despise yourself for being a hopeless sinner. But Jesus didn’t tell us to hate ourselves. We’re supposed to hate the sin, not the sinner.

2) Repentance that comes of being found out is not true repentance. For example, if you cheated on an exam and you got caught, you’d be sorry about it, but only because you got caught. If you hadn’t, you wouldn’t have given it another thought. Many of the sins that we commit aren’t known to anyone but ourselves and God. Just because they haven’t been exposed doesn’t mean that they’re ok. These secret sins are hardest to repent of, because they are hidden, but they are also the ones that we need to get rid of the most.

3) Repentance is not the ability to rid ourselves completely of sin. That will not happen because we are not perfect beings. If we could be perfect, we wouldn’t need God.

That misconception is the reason why some Catholics don’t go to Confession. We might say to ourselves, “Why go to confession when I know I’m just going to sin again?” but this is wrong. When we go to Confession, we are not only being forgiven, we also receive the grace needed to resist that temptation, because it will probably come again. This grace is a free gift from God, but we have first to desire, seek, and accept it.

So what is true repentance? Well, for one thing, it is not merely feeling sorry for one’s sins. The New Testament was originally written in Greek, and the Greek word for “repentance” is “metanoia,” which literally means “change of mind.” So it’s not just a feeling, it’s an act of the will. It’s deciding to turn away from sin and turn back to God. Sometimes we find it hard to repent because we think it’s all our responsibility. We need to remember that repentance is not all about us. Lots of prayer is needed here. We need God’s help and Mama Mary’s help. We need the Holy Spirit to enlighten us and to change our hearts so that we can have true repentance.

There are four “H’s” that we can use to remind us of the attitudes we ought to take in repenting. They are:

1) Honesty. We need to call the sin a sin, meaning no ridiculous excuses like, “Sin is a growth experience,” or “Cheating during exams is just sharing.”

2) Humility. We need to admit that we sinned because we are weak, and that we need God to overcome those sins.

3) Hate the Sin, Not the Sinner. Again, we’re not supposed to hate ourselves. It’s the sin that we’re supposed to hate because we’ve let ourselves become slaves to it. But Jesus made it possible for us to say “no” to sin, so if we truly hate the sin, we’ll stay away from it. Furthermore, we won’t make any excuses such as, “I am just human,” or try to put the blame on someone else. We can’t go putting the blame on the devil and expect to be OK, precisely because Jesus gave us the power to resist temptation.

4) Have a Good Confession. Going to confession enables you to be humble. You’re bringing yourself to God, saying that you’ve done wrong, acknowledging that you need help, and sincerely asking for it. Besides receiving the grace to avoid in future the sins you have confessed, you also get good advice from the priest who heard your confession. We also need to forgive ourselves. To not do so is putting ourselves higher than God, almost like saying, “God, You can forgive me, but I can’t.” like we know better than Him. It’s a sin of pride.

When we come to the Lord in repentance, we need to have Faith that He will forgive us and give us the strength we need to follow him. We should find peace in the knowledge that Jesus has conquered death and the prince of darkness by giving us the means to reach Heaven, through our coming to Him for healing and forgiveness. For our Faith to continue and to grow, we have to make giving our whole selves to Christ our first priority goal.

Faith is believing in what God says, but more than that, it is entrusting every aspect of our lives to God and His promises. When Christ told Peter that he could walk on the water, he trusted in Christ and believed that the Divine would make it possible, in spite of what his mind and his body was telling him. In the same way, when Christ promises that He will save us from our sins, we should believe that He can, and that He will. Faith, like repentance, is not just a feeling. Faith is a decision to trust in Christ. Repentance is a decision to turn away from sin. Peter felt fear. But he made the decision to trust in Christ. And that is what Faith is.

Luke 11:9 – 11
“And I tell you, ask and you will receive; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. What father among you would hand his son a snake when he asks for a fish? Or hand him a scorpion when he asks for an egg? If you then, who are wicked know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the Father in heaven give the holy Spirit to those who ask him?”

We respond to God’s love by first acknowledging our sinfulness, repenting, and then in faith, asking for His forgiveness. We also ask Him to heal us, because the hurts that are caused by our sins and the sins of others keep us from receiving God’s grace in its fullness. Healing cannot be complete if we ask for forgiveness but fail to forgive those who have hurt us. It’s hard, I know, and sometimes, I think it’s even harder to forgive than it is to be the one to say sorry.

Hurts caused by our family and friends can really get in the way of our drawing nearer to the Lord. There is a saying that we wound most deeply those we love best. If this is the case, then we should forgive them the most as well.

Healing occurs a) when we forgive someone, b) when we ask someone to forgive us, c) when we come to God and ask Him to heal us, and d) when we serve others. When we focus on helping others, we not only help them heal the hurts in their lives, we also heal our own. That’s not to say we disregard our hurts; we do need to recognize them so that we can seek healing. But we shouldn’t let ourselves get so bogged down in them that we become insensitive to the suffering of those around us.

God wants us to experience the fullness of life in His love, by knowing Him. However, our sins and hurts keep us from receiving His blessings in their fullness. Christ wants to remove these hindrances and to extend His mercy towards us; we have to do our part and repent from our sins, believe that He will forgive, strengthen, and heal us. Only then will we be fully open to receiving His Spirit which will strengthen us further and enable us to live our lives as truly pleasing to God.

Unfortunately, the supernatural link between God and men was disturbed by man’s sin, causing a chasm which nothing human could heal. It was therefore necessary for Jesus Christ, the God-Man, to step in and bring about reconciliation between God and man. By His Passion and Death, He atoned for our sins and restored the supernatural order by gaining for men the power to be once again children of God and heirs of Heaven.

Sanctifying grace is clearly the most wonderful of all God’s gifts to His rational creatures, such that one word isn’t nearly enough to describe it. Holy Scripture contains many definitions of sanctifying grace:

Life: “I am come that they may have life, and may have it more abundantly” (John 10, 10). Grace confers a godlike, supernatural life upon the soul. Only mortal sin, aptly called “the death of the soul”, can kill this life.

Charity: Of Greek origin and meaning “love”, this word is used by St. John to describe sanctifying grace – “God is love, and when He lives in us by grace, the first thing that happens is that we begin to love God and our neighbor for the sake of God”.

Regeneration: This means “rebirth”, by which the soul receives a new life from God – “Unless a man be born again…he cannot enter the Kingdom of God” (John 3, 5).

Divine Adoption: Sanctifying grace enables man to rise from slavery to a share of God’s family life and to have companionship with Christ – “Behold what manner of Charity the Father has bestowed upon us, that we should be called, and should be the sons of God” (1 John 3, 1).

Partaking of the Divine Nature: St. Peter uses this expression in 2 Peter to describe the new life which we receive through our life with God. We become “partakers of the Divine Nature” when we receive Holy Communion.

Having explained the different definitions of sanctifying grace, it is now important to understand how it is bestowed upon man. According to the Council of Trent, five steps are required: 1) God touches the heart of the sinner and calls him to repentance; 2) the sinner, helped by grace, turns to God and believes in God’ promises, especially in the fact that he is “justified by God’s grace through the Redemption which is in Christ Jesus”; 3) the sinner is struck with a healthy fear of God’s justice, but also hopes to obtain pardon from God’s mercy; 4) he begins to love God, hates and despises his sins, and resolves to lead a life that is pleasing to God; and 5) after all this, he receives Baptism, and, if already baptized, the Sacrament of Confession; if unable to receive either one, he can make an act of perfect contrition in their place.

As children of God, those of us in the state of grace must have supernatural powers to enable us to act according to our sanctified state. The Holy Spirit is the communicator of sanctifying grace to our souls and resides there as in a spiritual temple – “Know you not that you are the temple of God and that the spirit of God dwells in you?” (1 Corinthians 3, 16). He infuses our souls with groups of supernatural virtues as well as sanctifying grace, such as the Theological Virtues – Faith, Hope, and Charity; the Moral Virtues – Prudence, Justice, Fortitude, and Temperance; and His Seven Gifts – Wisdom, Understanding, Counsel, Fortitude, Knowledge, Piety, and Fear of the Lord.

Through the Sacraments and prayer, we can increase sanctifying grace in our souls; but it can be lost just as easily when we commit mortal sin. We must pray vigilantly for a fervent appreciation of sanctifying grace, and especially for the grace never to forfeit it by committing one mortal sin. While no one can be certain that he is in the state of grace, we can be certain of God’s mercy. What a valuable and precious thing is sanctifying grace, truly one of God’s greatest gifts to man! And what a terrible thing when man loses this precious gift by cutting himself off from God through mortal sin! Truly, man can bring no greater evil upon himself.