This is Cardinal Francis George. I invite you to join me for the next two minutes to reflect

with Father Robert Barron on the Word of God, which is the Word on Fire. Word on Fire Catholic

Ministries is a non-profit ministry at the forefront of Catholic evangelization, using

new media to spread the faith and every continent. Father Barron challenges us to open our hearts

to the Word on Fire, which is God's Word of Love for each of us. If our hearts are open,

the Lord can change and transform us so that we might speak with love about the one who

is love. The global benefactors of Word on Fire with the support of the Archdiocese of

Chicago now present Word on Fire. Peace be with you. Friends, the famous gospel for today

is getting at that funny way that religion itself often trips us up. The Romans had that

expression, corrupcio optimismo. The corruption of the best is the worst. And we see very often in

the area of religion. What I mean is the very things that are meant to unite us to God and

hands to each other are hijacked by our own worst instincts and tendencies, religion as it

were turning on itself, conducing toward the opposite thing. St. Paul, you know, was particularly

interested in this matter. Again and again, he points out how the law of God, which remains

good. Paul loved the law. He studied it as a young man. He loved it. It remains good. But the law

nevertheless can become an occasion for the puffing up of the ego and hence the putting down of

one's neighbor. And then the law turns on itself. The more I know the law and practice it,

sometimes the more I can notice how much better I am than somebody else. And now we all know

this phenomena. We see it in others and we see it in ourselves. It's precisely our knowledge

of God's law, the church's law, that enables us actually to find a place of superiority vis-à-vis

our neighbors. Remember that old skit from Sarriant Live called the church lady? Dana Carvey plays

this fussy old lady who certainly knew her Bible but used her knowledge to pass judgment on just

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