Theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven!

Luke 12:32

Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.

Jesus remarked that men of violence tried to take the kingdom of heaven by force.  The paradox of this is that heaven is impregnable to such people while it is wide open to his "little flock."  Why?  Because you cannot kick down a door that stands wide open.  It is the poor in spirit, the people who don't think they have the "right" to heaven, the simple, the humble, the gentle, who find, to their astonishment, that Heaven has come looking for them with an invitation engraved on the hands of the Host who died to win it for them.  While men of violence are off killing people and blowing up buildings to establish Heaven on earth, Heaven himself is quietly welcoming the wounded, the weak, the foolish, and victims that these Uber-menschen have trampled in their pride.  May they someday find the grace to be poor in spirit.

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Mark P. Shea is a popular Catholic writer and speaker. The author of numerous books, his most recent work is The Work of Mercy (Servant) and The Heart of Catholic Prayer (Our Sunday Visitor). Mark contributes numerous articles to many magazines, including his popular column “Connecting the Dots” for the National Catholic Register. Mark is known nationally for his one minute “Words of Encouragement” on Catholic radio. He also maintains the Catholic and Enjoying It blog and regularly blogs for National Catholic Register. He lives in Washington state with his wife, Janet, and their four sons.

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