The greatest deception, and the deepest source of unhappiness, is
the illusion of finding life by excluding God, of finding freedom by excluding moral truths and personal responsibility
(Pope John Paul II, Homily, July 28, 2002)
St Paul reveals some ofthe fruit we must expect to find in a Christian soul: The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control(Galatians 5:22-23). This is not to say that a good person will not lose his temper, be selfish or lack gentleness fromtime to time. Sin affects each of us. But when the fruits listed by St Paul are consistently found in a person's life, we may discern that the source ofthis fruit is good.
Christian life is not the ascetic result of superhuman souls. It is rather the fruit that divine grace produces in those who generously let it work and actively cooperate with it. Just as God cannot do something evil, grace cannot produce bad fruit. In the spiritual life, God's grace is the ultimate source of fruit that isgood. Therefore, when we freely cooperate with this grace, the result is alwaysthe good fruit of holiness and our transformation into Christ.
(from Daily Prayer with Regnum Christi)
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