525,600 minutes…this is the number of minutes the COVID-19 took from us. 31st December 2019 headlines “A Pneumonia of Unknown Cause”; 20th January 2020 “Human to Human Transmission is certain”; 15 February 2020 “Silent Spread”… These headlines featured the happenings around us, to which we either shuddered or felt apprehensive because they were expected outcomes or unforeseen outcomes of our layers of decisions to beg the question; Could we have avoided this if we had known better? Or was it some unavoidable fate as described in the Greek Oedipus Rex, still playing out in our existence? Because of this rather complicated existence, we wake up, not knowing or at least planning for the unforeseen or hoping for a miracle to avert an impending doom. This human antic is engraved in our subconscious, and our nights become an extension of these chaotic uncertainties. What makes someone reach beyond the boundaries of these uncertainties to the unknown? Natural to children is the relentless desire to question the world around us; to learn, discern and act in such a way as to form their capacity to be led beyond their knowledge infrastructures. The most rational product of this experience is to resort to mediums to tell the future, or some knowledge about the unknown variables to aid our decision-making. Prophecy? Unfortunately, this word has received the most misrepresentation as “predicting” the future in line with fortune-tell, horoscopes… We not only take a leap of faith from the known to the unknown but through a guided interpretation of the unfolding of our history in the light of God’s eternal AMEN.[1]
In the journey of faith, the Word of God stands as an unwavering guidepost, lighting the path of Christians through history and into the future. One of the most profound ways that God communicates His will and purposes is through prophecy. The Bible, replete with prophetic declarations, calls for a deep understanding and a responsive heart toward the fulfillment of God’s will as revealed in His Word. Heeding God’s Word through prophecy is a crucial part of Christian life, englobing obedience, discernment, and hope anchored in God’s promises. This excerpt explores the need to listen to God’s Word as it transcends into prophecy, its relevance to believers today, and how understanding biblical prophecy changes lives[2] [3] . (Keep reading….)
Prophecy, in its element, is the divine communication from God to humanity, often through man known commonly as prophets. These revelations are not only for predicting future events; they include God’s immediate messages of warning, guidance, and hope. The role of prophecy, particularly in the Bible, is diverse and dynamic. It addresses past, present, and future realities, while unraveling God’s plans and purposes, His standards for righteousness, and the ultimate goal of/for humanity.
If we look at things largely, the prophetic books of the Old Testament, such as Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel, offer clear illustrations of God speaking to His people concerning their present circumstances while pointing toward future fulfillment. We also note that each prophet had a mission and their own way of presenting this mission and message to the people of God. In the New Testament, the book of Revelation gives us a panoramic, if not, daunting view of the final events of history and the eventual triumph of God’s kingdom. Thus, prophecy is a critical part of God’s communication, requiring us to heed these words as markers of divine authority and guidance.
We find ourselves in a society that has secularized everything including Christianity and spirituality, we have forgotten, most of us, that we are cut from the royal bloodline of David and Our Saviour and Lord Jesus Christ. Baptism is the doorway to life in Christ, whence we are brought closer to the kingdom of God and have been given a mantle to exercise our rights as kings, priests and prophets. This is one of our major beliefs as Christians and one would assume that we would always walk in this light of discovery however, we are mostly overcome by the events and the trends, yes, the trends, of the secular world. We envy the need to simplify everything down to our faith so that it fits in for societal and secular approval, “what is cool and what is not” this often seems to be the dilemma of “secularism”. Having realized that we have the right to manifest and speak into existence, thanks to the sacrament of baptism and confirmation, we are faced with a juxtaposition of perspectives; the spiritual school of thought that believes in the power shift that stems from Christianity and the sacrament of baptism and the secular philosophy of that believes that this power shift emanates from self-awareness and has no connections to spirituality or sense of sacredness, but the universe and self-energy puzzles.
These views beg the question; To what extent can believers/Christians balance the call to hear and heed God’s word with the complexities and moral dilemmas presented by modern society?
The Order of the Discalced Carmelites friars has identified this challenge from the numerous engagements with the lay faithful and conscious observation of the evolving world we live in. They have, over the years, researched and studied “Secularism, Spirituality, Christianity, Prophecy and Christianism”. The Carmelite Friars has also gone ahead to distinguish in what ways these terminologies may stand alone or be in unison, in this light, the Centre for Applied Carmelites Spirituality (hereafter CACS) was birthed.
CACS approached these challenges and developed several courses to enable everyone understand and garner knowledge on the essence of human existence. THE SCHOOL OF PROPHETS offers a range of courses on how we can approach spirituality in the sense of the word as “prophets”; how we can be docile to our higher purpose to find our prophetic vocation and chart our purpose in every work of life; how far we can go to find a balance in hearing the voice of God amongst the noise of moral complexities in our environment of today.
If these concerns are yours? Click here to visit the Centre for Applied Carmelite Spirituality.
The Catholic Network also gives us a deep dive into the life of Prophecy and how the CACS are helping humanity towards divine drive and spiritual fulfillment on earth. In a recent article, the concept of being a prophetic voice in a fast-paced evolutionary world is highlighted and further challenges concerning prophecy like listening to the voice of God and applying it to the gifts with which man has already been bestowed are featured in this piece.
Read here for details
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