During this period of reflection some of the lessons I learned while I was a priest have been revisiting my mind; namely, that Jesus often secluded himself from his disciples and other people to ground himself in the truth. The lesson that is echoing from this for me is that he felt the need to be acutely sure that his motives and intentions that would lead to his actions were in alignment with his beliefs. In my particular case, this pertains to what I believe to be morally right, not just for today, but well into the future. The world we enjoy the pleasure of existing on today has been loaned to us by our progeny, i.e., it is not our world to destroy. Therefore, my decisions and actions should respect what does not belong to me, but I am not always certain of this. I am also not always certain that my actions serve the greater good of our people here and now. To move forward ignorantly, without regrounding myself in the truth, couched in my belief in what is morally right is dangerous not only to myself, but others as well.

Reflection, self-appraisal, and purification are vitally important for the work and the workers who are actively engaged in striving for a better, just, and lovable world community.