Lectio the Liturgy: Sunday, May 25, 2025

Julie Storr shares a reflection on the beauty and power of prayer.

The Catholic Faith is beautiful. By that I mean there are many elements of beauty. The first time you step into a church in Rome, you may find that you hold your breath for a moment. The artwork, the stained glass windows, and the statues are all visual ways that we enter completely into the worship of the Mass.

Another, and one of my favorite beauties of the Church, is incense. Incense isn’t just about the smell; the rising smoke is a visual reminder of our prayers rising to heaven. We find rising prayers in Revelation 5:8,

...the gold bowls filled with incense, which are the prayers of the holy ones.

Our Prayers Rise to Heaven Like Incense Before the Father

The prayer tells us that our rising prayers and our sacrificial offerings are, through the grace of God, what purify us. Our offerings are not just the bread and wine on the altar, but they are also what we place on the altar, including our selves.

Through this process of purification, we are conformed to the mysteries of God’s mighty love. This mighty love is Jesus.

I was struck by the word conformed. In Romans 12:2, Paul tells us to not be conformed to the world. Instead, the prayer tells us that we should be conformed to Jesus.

In a biblical context, the word conform refers to the alignment of one's behavior, thoughts, or character with a particular standard, whether worldly or divine.

As I thought about being conformed to the world or to Christ, what came to mind was that the Sacrament of Confirmation more closely conforms us to Jesus.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church paragraph 1285 teaches us that through the Sacrament of Confirmation,

“the faithful are more perfectly bound to the Church and are enriched with a special strength of the Holy Spirit. Hence they are, as true witnesses of Christ, more strictly obliged to spread and defend the faith by word and deed.”

If you’ve been confirmed, you are strengthened, you are to continue to be conformed, and the Holy Spirit brings you the strength and courage to continue the words of Jesus in the world and I think that sounds like fun.

Often times when we think about Jesus’ ministry, we focus first on the Passion and Death, but I think that during the majority of Jesus’ time on earth, He had a lot of fun.

It is fun to see people healed. It is fun to pray with others and share what is on the Father’s heart for them. It is fun to help people have a good day.

Conforming Ourselves to Christ

Take a moment now and look back through the prayer and notice what it is we have to do allow this process of conformation to take place in our lives. Do you see it?

To be purified by His grace, to be conformed to the masters of His love, all we need to do is offer up our prayers and lay our sacrifice on the altar. He does the rest.

Copy of Lectio the Liturgy Sunday May 25, 2025