The Spirit of the World Leads to Idolatry

Pope Frances declared in this morning’s homily, “Its not enough to say: ‘But I believe in God, God is the only God.’ Thats fine, but how do you live this out in your life’s journey? Because we can say, ‘The Lord is the only God, there is no other’, but then live as if He was not the only God and have other deities at our disposal … There is a danger of ‘ idolatry: idolatry, which is brought to us through the spirit of the world. And in this Jesus was clear: the spirit of the world, no. At the Last Supper he asks the Father to defend us from the spirit of the world, because the spirit of the world leads us to idolatry.”

We have many idols in our lives today and they all stem from the spirit of the world. Money, consumerism, greed, and coveting others possessions, are just a few of the many. Spend 60 seconds and think about your own personal life. What are your idols? Write them down on a piece of paper and put them in a safe place so that next time you have some quiet time you can pull them out and think about them. Pray about them. Are these the things that God really wants you to be so focused on? Are these really more important than God himself?

If this is not the way that you want to live your life, make a personal declaration that you will change. Pray every day for God’s help to rid your life of these things from the spirit of the world that is affecting your life negatively. And then give thanks to God for his help and forgiveness.