Christian Reflection and Prayer

"Repent, and believe the Good News"
(Mark. 1:15)

There's an amusing story of a farmer
who owned a very beautiful horse of which
he was very proud. One day he rode him
into town and carefully tied the animal to
the hitching post in front of the general
store. Two thieves, passing through the
town, spied the handsome horse and
decided to steal it. They also decided
on a clever strategy to carry out their
plan. One of them untied the horse and
rode swiftly away. The other remained
by the post. When the farmer emerged
from the store and saw that his horse
was gone, he was about to shout for
help when the conspirator walked up to
him. In a sad, low tone he said, "Sir,
I am your horse. Years ago I sinned,
and for my sins I was punished. I was
changed into a horse. Today my
sentence is over, and I can be released
if you will be so kind." The farmer was
dumbfounded, yet touched by the story.
So he sent the man away wishing him
luck in his new life. Several weeks later
the farmer went to a fair in a neighboring
town. Great was his surprise to see his
own horse for sale there. After gazing
long at the animal to make sure that his
eyes did not deceive him, he walked
over and whispered into the horse's ear,
"So -- I see you've sinned again!"

When we sin again, even though we
don't turn into a horse, our humanity is
diminished. And we are called to
repentance, which means to restore
our lost humanity -- to transform
ourselves into the fully human person
God wants us to be.

(Sunday Sermons on Line)