A bar of iron costs $5. Made into horseshoes, it's worth $12. Made into needles, it's worth $3500. Made into balance springs for watches, it's worth $300,000. Your value is determined by what you can make of yourself with God鈥檚 help.
A few days before World Youth Day in Panama, 2019, Cardinal Pietro Parolin encouraged young people to transform the world by imitating Mary. 鈥淭he whole world wants a better world, but how to do it?鈥澛� We follow Mary鈥檚 example! We must get to know God and then put ourselves at God鈥檚 disposal, Parolin says,聽
Mary said: 鈥淚 am the handmaid of the Lord.鈥� If all Christians 鈥減ut themselves in the same disposition of spirit鈥� in the same way of acting to truly change the world, little by little鈥� then a solid change would be brought about in our world,鈥� Parolin said.聽 (A Moment with Mary 鈥� April 4, 2019)
It is very simple, like minimalism, which is a lifestyle philosophy that aims at reducing everything to the essentials, getting rid of everything surplus. That鈥檚 a belief of the guru of organization on Netflix Marie Kondo who helps families tidy up their houses.
Kondo sold millions of copies of The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up. As a child Kondo said, "I was obsessed with what I could throw away. One day, I had a kind of break down and fainted. I was unconscious for two hours.
鈥淲hen I came to鈥� I realized my mistake: I was only looking for things to throw out. What I should be doing is finding the things I want to keep. Identifying the things that make you happy: that is the work of tidying."
Modern minimalism was born in the 1960s, but the saints already taught these principles in their words and actions, living simply with a focus on Jesus Christ. We can accomplish this by following six simple rules.
Rule 1 Get rid of everything you don鈥檛 need. FACT: Recently I had to clean some files out of my filing cabinet just to add a new file. Rule 2 Don鈥檛 become attached to material things. St Francis of Assisi got rid of his possessions, even his clothes, in front of his father and the bishop.
Rule 3 Keep order and simplicity at home. Rule 4 Appreciate the value of your time and be selective with your commitments. Rule 5 Keep your mind calm. Rule 6Less is more. 鈥淚f I give聽 away everything I own鈥� but do not have love, I gain nothing鈥� (Corinthians 13:1-3). (Aletia, March 25, 2019)
You can indeed have a rich life if you have love! And the essential requirement to change the world is to have love! In 鈥淔aith Hope and Love but the greatest of these is Love鈥� Brendan McGuire says:
鈥淟ove never stops but neither does the work of love, which means we have to continue to dig deeper and to continue to work harder at loving our parents; at loving our children; at loving our siblings; at loving even the stranger and most especially the one we do not like, the one that is a bur to us.鈥�
McGuire鈥檚 reflection ends with, 鈥溾�here is faith, hope and love, but the greatest is love.鈥� 鈥�
