{"id":163561,"date":"2025-03-28T01:00:35","date_gmt":"2025-03-28T05:00:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/?p=163561"},"modified":"2025-03-20T22:31:09","modified_gmt":"2025-03-21T02:31:09","slug":"lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\/","title":{"rendered":"Lent 2025 &#8211; Day 24 &#8211; The Motor of the Mission"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"163561\" class=\"elementor elementor-163561\" data-elementor-post-type=\"post\">\n\t\t\t\t<div data-particle_enable=\"false\" data-particle-mobile-disabled=\"false\" class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cbf6437 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"cbf6437\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-8876ca5 elementor-widget elementor-widget-html\" data-id=\"8876ca5\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"html.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<iframe class=\"lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/embed\/episode\/7GHLIiYfGm6AlMgzUw5Q3p?utm_source=generator\" style=\"border-radius:12px\"  width=\"100%\" height=\"152\" frameBorder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\" allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/iframe>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-bee7262 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"bee7262\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><b>Day 24<\/b><\/p>\n<p><b>The Motor of the Mission<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Mother and Teacher of all nations \u2014 such is the Catholic Church in the mind of her Founder, Jesus Christ; to hold the world in an embrace of love, that men, in every age, should find in her their own completeness in a higher order of living, and their ultimate salvation. She is \u201cthe pillar and ground of the truth\u201d (1 Timothy 3:15). To her was entrusted by her holy Founder the twofold task of giving life to her children and of teaching them and guiding them \u2014 both as individuals and as nations \u2014 with maternal care.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u2014 St. John XXIII, Mater et Magister, 1<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Some people want to conquer the world because they are megalomaniacs. Conquest is all about extending their egos, manifesting their power through domination of others. These are the would-be emperors of earthly kingdoms who will stop at nothing to achieve their goal \u2014 Napoleon, Stalin, Hitler. Every age of human history has figures like these. They echo the devil\u2019s own rebellious self-assertion, recorded in Scripture as a snapshot of the attitude behind sin in general: \u201cLong ago you broke your yoke, you tore off your bonds. You said, \u2018I will not serve\u2019\u201d (Jeremiah 2:20).<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Some critics of Christianity accuse Jesus, as the Church presents him, of being just one more of these. The leaders of the Catholic Church, according to them, seek to control and dominate people, to enslave them with the chains of ignorance and superstition through a millennia-long exercise in self-aggrandizement.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>A Difference in Motivation<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But that is not what Jesus\u2019s command to \u201cGo, therefore, and make disciples of all nations!\u201d is all about. That is not the goal of evangelization \u2014 not at all. Jesus \u2014 unlike the dictators whose failed totalitarian regimes litter the floor of human history \u2014 acted out of love. He is, in fact, the revelation of God\u2019s unlimited, unconditional love: \u201cFor God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life\u201d (John 3:16).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Evil dictators may not be fully responsible for their atrocities. Their psychological brokenness may absolve them from much of their culpability \u2014 or it may not; that is for God to judge. Yet in every case, they seek to enlarge themselves \u2014 their image, their reputation, their influence, their power \u2014 at the expense of others. They use others.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This contradicts true, Christlike love. The example and teaching of Jesus was the exact opposite. He gave himself, literally, for the sake of those he loved \u2014 all of us. He lowered himself to take on human nature through the Incarnation. He lived an obscure, working-class life in Nazareth for thirty years. He exhausted himself preaching, healing, and teaching his followers during his three years of public ministry. And he offered his own life in loving obedience unto death on a cross to atone for the sins of each and every member of the human family. He summed up his own earthly mission by saying: \u201c . . . [T]he Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many\u201d (Matthew 20:28).<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>A High Purpose for a Heartfelt Command<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When Jesus commanded his apostles to make disciples of all nations, then, that command didn\u2019t flow from megalomania. It flowed from love, from the sincere, heartfelt desire to rescue every human soul from the existential frustration that is our natural inheritance due to original sin. His life and mission fulfilled the Old Testament prophecy:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; upon those who lived in a land of gloom light has shone. You have brought them abundant joy and great rejoicing . . . (Isaiah 9:1\u20132)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Jesus desires people to believe in him, follow him, and obey his teachings because he wants them to live life to the full: \u201cI came that they might have life, and have it more abundantly\u201d (John 10:10). He knows that all of the good things of the earth \u2014 wealth, pleasure, popularity, achievements, power \u2014 cannot satisfy the human heart. And when we seek to fill our hearts with them, they become twisted, destructive idols that actually thwart our progress toward fulfillment. Following them and putting our hopes in them, we become lost, confused, desperate, even twisted ourselves. Jesus alone, through the gift of divine grace, can save us from that, and he wants to do so; that\u2019s why he established a missionary Church.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Seeking the Troubled and Abandoned<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This deep connection between love and mission comes across beautifully in a passage from St. Matthew\u2019s Gospel. Jesus had finished his Sermon on the Mount, and he had proven the trustworthiness of the words in that sermon by an astonishing series of miracles. At that point, St. Matthew gives us a glimpse into what\u2019s going on in our Lord\u2019s heart:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Jesus went around to all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and curing every disease and illness. At the sight of the crowds, his heart was moved with pity for them because they were troubled and abandoned, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, \u201cThe harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest.\u201d (Matthew 9:35\u201338)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Jesus encountered people who felt \u201ctroubled and abandoned, like sheep without a shepherd.\u201d This is the perennial struggle of the human heart, the reason behind the sincere but often desperate forays of philosophers and religious thinkers of every place and time. The human heart yearns for wisdom and completeness but cannot find it in this fallen world; it yearns to make sense out of life but is stymied at every turn by the paradoxes of evil, suffering, and human misery. Jesus was moved by this human condition, by the angst of the human predicament.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>From Worthy Feelings to Effective Action<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And what was his reaction? In the very next verses of St. Matthew\u2019s Gospel, Jesus called his twelve apostles, gave them a share of his authority and power, and sent them out as his messengers to bring hope, guidance, and healing to all those who are \u201ctroubled and abandoned\u201d and otherwise trapped by the forces of evil.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Then he summoned his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits to drive them out and to cure every disease and every illness. . . . Jesus sent out these twelve after instructing them thus, \u201c . . . As you go, make this proclamation: \u2018The kingdom of heaven is at hand.\u2019 Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, drive out demons . . . \u201d (Matthew 10:1, 5\u20138)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Jesus enabled and commanded his followers to do precisely what he had just been doing \u2014 preaching, teaching, healing, serving, bringing light into the darkness of needy human hearts. Clearly, the mission of the Church is the outpouring of God\u2019s own love for every person.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The commandment \u201clove your neighbor as yourself\u201d should be understood in this context. It embraces much more than a passive avoidance of harm. To love someone, in Christ\u2019s mind, is to affirm the goodness of his or her existence and to help that existence flourish. If every Christian is called to participate in the Church\u2019s mission of evangelization, it is only because every Christian \u2014 and indeed, every human being \u2014 is created for love, to be loved, and to love in return. Only this gives our lives the meaning we crave.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Questions for Personal Reflection or Group Discussion<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What idea in this reflection struck you most and why?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Why do you think so many people today consider obedience to be a bad word \u2014 or at least a bad idea? How would you express in your own words why God wants us to obey his teaching and commandments?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What teachings of the Church make you uncomfortable? Which ones do you often feel interior resistance toward? Why? What should you do about that?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">People can often do the right thing for the wrong reasons. We can do a favor because we want to ask for a favor in return. We can compliment someone because we want to be liked. We can show kindness in order to manipulate. In those cases we are not truly loving the other person \u2014 at least, we are not loving that person with a pure heart. This impurity leads to frustration and resentment when we don\u2019t get what we want. The path of love that Jesus invites us to follow is different. It seeks to honor the person we are serving, to give of ourselves in a way that will truly help that person, but also respect him or her. This form of love requires more reflection and sensitivity, as well as a denial of our own deep-seated selfish tendencies. But it also creates a climate of interior freedom for us, and an unambiguous experience of goodness on the part of the one we are serving.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Today, how will you seek greater purity of heart in your words and gestures of kindness?<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I will do a hidden act of kindness, something that only God and myself will ever know about.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I will reflect on situations where I typically end up feeling resentful or frustrated and ask God to show me where those feelings are really rooted.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I will spend ten minutes today in silent adoration of a crucifix, gazing at Jesus dying on the cross and thinking about the revealed truth that he did it in order to show me how much he loves me.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(Write your own resolution) I will<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Concluding Prayer<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Jesus, the beginning and fulfillment of the new man, convert our hearts so that, abandoning the ways of error, we may walk in your footsteps on the path which leads to life. Make us live our faith steadfastly, fulfilling our baptismal promises, testifying with conviction to your word, that the life-giving light of the gospel may shine in our families and in society. . . .\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Jesus, only-begotten Son of the Father, full of grace and truth, the light which illumines every person, give the abundance of your life to all who seek you with a sincere heart. To you, man\u2019s Redeemer, the beginning and the end of time and of the universe, to the Father, unending source of all good, and to the Holy Spirit, seal of infinite love, be all honor and glory, now and for ever. Amen.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u2014 Prayer of St. John Paul II for the Great Jubilee of the Year 2000<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Day 24 The Motor of the Mission Mother and Teacher of all nations \u2014 such is the Catholic Church in the mind of her Founder, Jesus Christ; to hold the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":359,"featured_media":163113,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"default","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"default","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"set","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[6893],"tags":[2965],"post_folder":[],"class_list":["post-163561","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lent-2025","tag-lent"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"","pp_force_visibility":null,"pp_subpost_visibility":null,"pp_inherited_force_visibility":null,"pp_inherited_subpost_visibility":null,"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v28.8 (Yoast SEO v28.8) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Lent 2025 - Day 24 - The Motor of the Mission - Regnum Christi<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Lent 2025 - Day 24 - The Motor of the Mission\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Day 24 The Motor of the Mission Mother and Teacher of all nations \u2014 such is the Catholic Church in the mind of her Founder, Jesus Christ; to hold the [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Regnum Christi\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/RegnumChristiEn\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-03-28T05:00:35+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Daily-Header-Image-24.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"3750\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"2500\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Fr. John Bartunek, LC\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@RegnumChristiEn\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@RegnumChristiEn\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Fr. John Bartunek, LC\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"8 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Fr. John Bartunek, LC\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/15ab18dea0e6ff1adb91fda8e59961cd\"},\"headline\":\"Lent 2025 &#8211; Day 24 &#8211; The Motor of the Mission\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-03-28T05:00:35+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1758,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/Daily-Header-Image-24.png\",\"keywords\":[\"Lent\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Lent 2025\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\\\/\",\"name\":\"Lent 2025 - Day 24 - The Motor of the Mission - Regnum Christi\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/Daily-Header-Image-24.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-03-28T05:00:35+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/Daily-Header-Image-24.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/Daily-Header-Image-24.png\",\"width\":3750,\"height\":2500},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Portada\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Lent 2025 &#8211; Day 24 &#8211; The Motor of the Mission\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/\",\"name\":\"RegnumChristi.com\",\"description\":\"Regnum Christi is a Catholic Community of Apostles including lay people, consecrated men and women, and the priestly order of the Legionaries of Christ\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"RegnumChristi.com\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/07\\\/open-1.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/07\\\/open-1.png\",\"width\":900,\"height\":600,\"caption\":\"RegnumChristi.com\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/RegnumChristiEn\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/RegnumChristiEn\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.instagram.com\\\/regnumchristi_english\\\/\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/15ab18dea0e6ff1adb91fda8e59961cd\",\"name\":\"Fr. John Bartunek, LC\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/622fd36594e05daecbf3cb6f50d7151c3066ae3991815fa200dc7c1865bc6a7e?s=96&d=blank&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/622fd36594e05daecbf3cb6f50d7151c3066ae3991815fa200dc7c1865bc6a7e?s=96&d=blank&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/622fd36594e05daecbf3cb6f50d7151c3066ae3991815fa200dc7c1865bc6a7e?s=96&d=blank&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Fr. John Bartunek, LC\"},\"description\":\"Fr. John Bartunek, LC, S.Th.D, received his BA in History from Stanford University in 1990. He comes from an evangelical Christian background and became a member of the Catholic Church in 1991. After college, he worked as a high school history teacher, drama director, and baseball coach. He then spent a year as a professional actor in Chicago before entering the religious Congregation of the Legionaries of Christ in 1993. He was ordained a Catholic priest in 2003 and earned his doctorate in moral theology in 2010. He provided spiritual support on the set of Mel Gibson\u2019s\u00a0The Passion of the Christ\u00a0while researching the 2005 Catholic best seller,\u00a0Inside the Passion, the only authorized, behind-the-scenes explanation of the film. Fr. John has contributed news commentary regarding religious issues on NBC, CNN, Fox, and the BBC. He also served as the English-language press liaison for the Vatican\u2019s 2005 Synod of Bishops on the Eucharist. His most widely known books are The Better Part: A Christ-Centered Resource for Personal Prayer and 60 Days to Becoming a Missionary Disciple. His most recent book is\u00a0Spiritual But Not Religious: The Search for Meaning in a Material World. Fr. John resides in Atlanta and serves as Territorial Vicar for the Legionaries of Christ. See all books, Regnum Christi Essays, Retreat Guides, posts, and online classes from Fr. John Bartunek, LC.\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/author\\\/jbartunek\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Lent 2025 - Day 24 - The Motor of the Mission - Regnum Christi","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Lent 2025 - Day 24 - The Motor of the Mission","og_description":"Day 24 The Motor of the Mission Mother and Teacher of all nations \u2014 such is the Catholic Church in the mind of her Founder, Jesus Christ; to hold the [&hellip;]","og_url":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\/","og_site_name":"Regnum Christi","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/RegnumChristiEn","article_published_time":"2025-03-28T05:00:35+00:00","og_image":[{"width":3750,"height":2500,"url":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Daily-Header-Image-24.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"Fr. John Bartunek, LC","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@RegnumChristiEn","twitter_site":"@RegnumChristiEn","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Fr. John Bartunek, LC","Est. reading time":"8 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\/"},"author":{"name":"Fr. John Bartunek, LC","@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/15ab18dea0e6ff1adb91fda8e59961cd"},"headline":"Lent 2025 &#8211; Day 24 &#8211; The Motor of the Mission","datePublished":"2025-03-28T05:00:35+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\/"},"wordCount":1758,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Daily-Header-Image-24.png","keywords":["Lent"],"articleSection":["Lent 2025"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\/","url":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\/","name":"Lent 2025 - Day 24 - The Motor of the Mission - Regnum Christi","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Daily-Header-Image-24.png","datePublished":"2025-03-28T05:00:35+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Daily-Header-Image-24.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Daily-Header-Image-24.png","width":3750,"height":2500},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/lent-2025-day-24-the-motor-of-the-mission\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Portada","item":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Lent 2025 &#8211; Day 24 &#8211; The Motor of the Mission"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/","name":"RegnumChristi.com","description":"Regnum Christi is a Catholic Community of Apostles including lay people, consecrated men and women, and the priestly order of the Legionaries of Christ","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/#organization","name":"RegnumChristi.com","url":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/open-1.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/open-1.png","width":900,"height":600,"caption":"RegnumChristi.com"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/RegnumChristiEn","https:\/\/x.com\/RegnumChristiEn","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/regnumchristi_english\/"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/15ab18dea0e6ff1adb91fda8e59961cd","name":"Fr. John Bartunek, LC","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/622fd36594e05daecbf3cb6f50d7151c3066ae3991815fa200dc7c1865bc6a7e?s=96&d=blank&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/622fd36594e05daecbf3cb6f50d7151c3066ae3991815fa200dc7c1865bc6a7e?s=96&d=blank&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/622fd36594e05daecbf3cb6f50d7151c3066ae3991815fa200dc7c1865bc6a7e?s=96&d=blank&r=g","caption":"Fr. John Bartunek, LC"},"description":"Fr. John Bartunek, LC, S.Th.D, received his BA in History from Stanford University in 1990. He comes from an evangelical Christian background and became a member of the Catholic Church in 1991. After college, he worked as a high school history teacher, drama director, and baseball coach. He then spent a year as a professional actor in Chicago before entering the religious Congregation of the Legionaries of Christ in 1993. He was ordained a Catholic priest in 2003 and earned his doctorate in moral theology in 2010. He provided spiritual support on the set of Mel Gibson\u2019s\u00a0The Passion of the Christ\u00a0while researching the 2005 Catholic best seller,\u00a0Inside the Passion, the only authorized, behind-the-scenes explanation of the film. Fr. John has contributed news commentary regarding religious issues on NBC, CNN, Fox, and the BBC. He also served as the English-language press liaison for the Vatican\u2019s 2005 Synod of Bishops on the Eucharist. His most widely known books are The Better Part: A Christ-Centered Resource for Personal Prayer and 60 Days to Becoming a Missionary Disciple. His most recent book is\u00a0Spiritual But Not Religious: The Search for Meaning in a Material World. Fr. John resides in Atlanta and serves as Territorial Vicar for the Legionaries of Christ. See all books, Regnum Christi Essays, Retreat Guides, posts, and online classes from Fr. John Bartunek, LC.","url":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/author\/jbartunek\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/163561","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/359"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=163561"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/163561\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/163113"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=163561"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=163561"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=163561"},{"taxonomy":"post_folder","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post_folder?post=163561"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}