I just got home from a Reconciliation service. The priest began his homily by talking about the memory loss caused by Alzheimer and Dementia. He described the way that many who suffer from those diseases have forgotten who they are. They may not remember their family, what they like to do, or how to do things like receive Communion at Mass. They need people in their lives who can remind them of what they've forgotten - what they cannot remember on their own.
They've forgotten who they are.
Often times in our own lives we too forget who we are. Think for a moment about who we are. We are God's children. We are the objects of a great and perfect Love.
When we walk in the opposite direction of God - when we sin- we've forgotten who we are.
The Sacrament of Reconciliation is not only about God calling us back to Him and forgiving us. It's about God reminding us of who we are.
We are an Easter people. We are a people of the resurrection. Even when we sin, we are still a people meant to be alive in the glory of the risen Christ. How often we forget who we are.
When I don't do something because I'm too afraid, when I'm so caught up in what's going on in my life, when I'm distracted by so many loud things around me, I forget who I am.
God wants to remind us of who we are. He wants us to remember that we are good and holy and that the reality of who we are lies in His great love for us, not in our sins and failures.
What a quick and powerful prayer it is to ask God to "remind me of who I am."
