Today's Gospel

How to Live Authentically

So, is there a word or a phrase that jumps out at you today? A phrase that jumped out at me was, "The people were astonished at His teaching, for His word had authority." Jesus had no worldly authority. There are lots of people in the gospels who had lots of worldly authority. But where did Jesus' authority come from? Well, it came from His authenticity. It came from His truth. It came from His very being as the way, the truth, and the life. I think, very often, people want to use authority to get other people to do things. But for the most part, we're most interested in following authenticity. Most human beings react a little bit if someone tries to use some badge of authority to suppress them, or coax them, or force them to do something they don't feel is necessary, or they don't feel-- they just don't feel like doing. So that's what jumped out at me, and the idea that it's authenticity that gave His words authority, not any worldly institution or somebody saying, "You should listen to this guy. He's got the truth." And I think from that, we have to ask ourselves, "What does it mean for you and I to live authentically in the world? What does it mean for you and I to show up authentically as a friend, as a husband, as a wife, as a mother, as a father, as a brother, as a sister, as an employee, as an employer? What does it mean for us to show up authentically as Christians in the modern world?" Have a great day. Remember, Be Authentic, Be Bold, and Be Catholic.