Thirst for Christ
“Thirst for Christ" symbolizes a mutual longing, representing both Jesus's desire for human souls and the human soul’s yearning for divine grace, often fulfilled through the Eucharist. Rooted in scripture, this concept highlights a spiritual relationship centered on trust and salvation.
Holiness is the fullness of Christian life, the plenitude of charity and of our condition as God’s children. It is nothing but the faithful struggle with God’s grace to identify ourselves with Our Lord Jesus Christ, living in, with, and for Him. It consists in the imitation of the virtues He lived and taught during his life on earth, and in living the Beatitudes He taught at the Sermon of the Mount. In short, holiness consists in being Christ himself.
How should we approach Jesus Christ? In seeking holiness, we want not only to know about Jesus Christ but also to know him so intimately that we align our own hearts, our own minds, our own wills to Christ himself. Developing an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ requires prayer, a commitment to one’s spiritual life, and the frequent reception of the Sacraments, especially the Eucharist and Penance. Look at the lives of the saints!
“When we look at the lives of those who have faithfully followed Christ, we are inspired with a new reason for seeking the City that is to come and at the same time we are shown a most safe path by which among the vicissitudes of this world, in keeping with the state in life and condition proper to each of us, we will be able to arrive at perfect union with Christ, that is, perfect holiness. In the lives of those who, sharing in our humanity, are however more perfectly transformed into the image of Christ, God vividly manifests His presence and His face to men. He speaks to us in them, and gives us a sign of His Kingdom, to which we are strongly drawn, having so great a cloud of witnesses over us and such a witness to the truth of the Gospel.” [Vatican II document; DOGMATIC CONSTITUTION ON THE CHURCH, LUMEN GENTIUM, 50]
According to Venerable Fulton Sheen, we are called to pursue holiness at all times throughout our lives. We can do this through prayer and fasting, and through the large and small sacrifices in our everyday lives. As beings made in God’s image and likeness, we are invited to an intimate unity with Him, and as members of Christ’s Body here on earth, we are called to be supportive of our brothers and sisters who suffer. Our ultimate destination is union with God in Heaven, finally seeing His splendor with our eyes. Until then, we can spend our pilgrim journey on earth alleviating the restlessness of our hearts by knowing, loving, and serving God, and by knowing, loving, and serving our neighbor.
How can we seek deeper sanctification in our daily lives? Saint Josemaria Escriva once said, “Do not say, ‘this person irritates me.’ Say, ‘this person sanctifies me.’” Whether we are in the home, at school, or in the workplace, there will always be someone who we don’t get along with. By disconnecting the little annoyances of our day from our spiritual life, we are essentially picking up a cross and carrying it away from Calvary. This type of suffering is pointless. But when we walk with Jesus and unite our sufferings, however small, with His, we are entering into a deeper intimacy with Him. Saint Therese of Lisieux became a Doctor of the Church by writing about her “little way” to holiness. She sought sanctification through simple sacrifices such as putting others before herself, offering up the discomfort of a headache to God, and acting with patience and charity toward a fellow nun with whom she did not get along well.
Christ's "thirst"—derived from His words "I thirst" on the cross—goes far beyond a physical need for water. As detailed in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, it represents an intense spiritual longing for human souls, an infinite desire to share God's love, and an invitation for humanity to seek Him
CCC 1: "God, infinitely perfect and blessed in himself, in a plan of sheer goodness freely created man to make him share in his own blessed life. For this reason, at every time and in every place, God draws close to man. He calls man to seek him, to know him, to love him with all his strength. He calls together all men, scattered and divided by sin, into the unity of his family, the Church. To accomplish this, when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son as Redeemer and Saviour. In his Son and through him, he invites men to become, in the Holy Spirit, his adopted children and thus heirs of his blessed life."
—Deacon Gerry Flamm
“Dear children! Today I also rejoice at your presence here. I bless you with my motherly blessing and intercede for each one of you before God. I call you anew to live my messages and to put them into life and practice. I am with you and bless all of you day by day. Dear children, these are special times and, therefore, I am with you to love and protect you; to protect your hearts from Satan and to bring you all closer to the heart of my Son, Jesus. Thank you for having responded to my call.”