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TODAY’S WORD…on anger…

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If we say that we are in the light, yet hate others,

we are in the darkness to this very hour.

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If we love others, we live in the light,

and so there is nothing in us that will cause someone else to sin.

But if we hate others, we are in the darkness;

we walk in it and do not know where we are going,

because the darkness has made us blind.

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– 1 John 2:9-11 (GNT)

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You are the people of God;

he loved you and chose you for his own.

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So then, you must clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.

Be tolerant with one another

and forgive one another whenever any of you has a complaint against someone else.

You must forgive one another just as the Lord has forgiven you.

And to all these qualities add love, which binds all things together in perfect unity.

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– Colossians 3:12-14 (GNT)

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Do not use harmful words,

but only helpful words, the kind that build up and provide what is needed,

so that what you say will do good to those who hear you.

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And do not make God’s Holy Spirit sad;

for the Spirit is God’s mark of ownership on you,

a guarantee that the Day will come when God will set you free.

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Get rid of all bitterness, passion, and anger.

No more shouting or insults, no more hateful feelings of any sort.

Instead, be kind and tender-hearted to one another,

and forgive one another, as God has forgiven you through Christ.

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– Ephesians 4:29-32 (GNT)

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Remember this, my dear friends!

Everyone must be quick to listen, but slow to speak and slow to become angry,

for human anger does not produce the righteousness God desires.

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– James 1:19,20 (GNT)

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REFLECTION…

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We all know anger from personal experience.

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All should understand, but many refuse to accept the fact

that anger, in just the right amount, is a normal, even healthy response to reality.

The challenge, of course, is in keeping anger down to just the right amount.

If anger moves outside the range of normal, it can be sinful and potentially destructive.

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Anger can be with self.

When driven deeply inward, anger can turn into depression.

When turned outward toward others anger can lead to violence,

even to destruction of property and persons.

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Anger must, therefore, be managed,

and one way of managing it is to accept it as a reminder that you are alive and well,

but at risk of doing harm to yourself, or others, or both.

Knowing that you are in harm’s way, you become cautious.

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Be slow to anger.

Let the emotion blink you down to a slower speed.

Out-of-control anger can be nothing but harmful to yourself and others.

No one’s perfect.

But neither is anyone exempt from the duty of holding himself or herself in hand when emotions rise to threaten the peace in human relationships.

Not to do so is to encourage the assault of anger on all that is good, and decent.

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So admit that anger can be sinful,

and don’t let yourself off the hook too easily when your patience wanes and emotions of anger rise.

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Take moments of self-examination and repentance before you participate in the Sacrament of Reconciliation

as a good time to reflect on the need for anger management

and your ability to hold yourself in hand.

– Fr. William J. Byron, SJ – from Catholic OnLine.

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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Oh how I need You Lord.

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Bend down, O Lord, and hear my prayer;

answer me, for I need your help. [Ps 86:1]

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