Today I read something, and learned something, beautiful.
As Christians, we learn and come to believe that it is only through Jesus that we can be restored to God's friendship, and become - once again - children of our Father.
But what does this mean, really? It is easy to forget from time to time that Jesus was a man, a human being, like you and me. Yes, he is God - but he is also human, in the deepest sense. John Paul II observed: "God is behind man! For God has become man!" How mysterious this is, and how difficult to understand. Is it true, John Paul, that - as you have said - "Jesus Christ is the human face of God, and the divine face of man"?
How mysterious indeed, this Incarnation of God; and yet how amazing, that God desires to share his Life and Spirit with us, in and through this Incarnation, this Word Made Flesh - Jesus. One part of the Eucharist prayer makes this profound reality felt with these words: "By the mingling of this water and wine, may we come to share in the divinity of Christ, who humbled himself to share in our humanity."
How important it truly is, then, to remember this Incarnation. Without it, we could not even be "Christians" - and what is worse: without the Incarnation, we could not have any hope to be restored to God's friendship, or to his Fatherhood. The weight that rests on Jesus' shoulders, who was a man, speaks volumes to us, or at least it should. It is also in Jesus that we come to see an objective form of true beauty, found in this man, who is also God.
Adam, a character in one of Karol Wotyla's plays (Our God's Brother), makes this discovery, and in turn has a reaction and a conversion that belongs to us all who by name call ourselves "Christian":
"You have toiled in every one of them.
You are deadly tired.
They have exhausted You.
This is called Charity.
But with all this You have remained beautiful.
The most beautiful of the sons of men.
Such beauty was never repeated again.
Oh what a difficult beauty, how hard.
Such beauty is called charity."
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Sunday, December 13, 2009
"how, lord?": the only way
Christianity is challenging.
And how do we know, Lord, if it is safe to follow you? Christianity doesn't at all seem to be a "safe" religion. And why should we follow you anyway?
It is a radically different life, the one that Jesus’ proposes to us. In the end, it is the only way to live; in the end, it is the only way to have life – real life; eternal life.
But what does this radically different life look like for us? How are we to live, here and now, as Christians? How, Lord? Too many times have I failed at this, only to learn what I've already learned - and continue to re-learn: this radically different lifestyle is the what I've signed up for. How difficult, how challenging indeed.
“Then he said to them all: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it. What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self? (Luke 9:22-24)”
“Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you. You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven (Matthew 5:42-44).”
“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another (John 13:34-35).”
Lord, these words – your words – are challenging! How much easier it is to not love others – especially enemies - in this world. Too easy, indeed.
I realized something today that I am constantly re-realizing, time and again. These things that Jesus commands of us; this lifestyle – the very path that leads to life, the one and only way – is impossible. Christianity is challenging, because it causes us to realize that it is impossible.We can't do it.
We need you, Lord. You knew it all along: We cannot follow you or live like you unless you give us yourself - which you have done! We cannot do anything you ask us, unless we have you do it in and through us. “You duped me, O Lord, and you let me be duped (Jeremiah 20:7).”
And these words especially, Lord, pierce my heart:
“You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned (Matthew 12:34-37).”
Thank you, Lord, for doing what we cannot do, for loving how we cannot love. It is you - always and only you - who makes this radically different lifestyle possible. It is you, living this life in and through us.
In the end, there is no other way (cf. John 14:6).
And how do we know, Lord, if it is safe to follow you? Christianity doesn't at all seem to be a "safe" religion. And why should we follow you anyway?
It is a radically different life, the one that Jesus’ proposes to us. In the end, it is the only way to live; in the end, it is the only way to have life – real life; eternal life.
But what does this radically different life look like for us? How are we to live, here and now, as Christians? How, Lord? Too many times have I failed at this, only to learn what I've already learned - and continue to re-learn: this radically different lifestyle is the what I've signed up for. How difficult, how challenging indeed.
“Then he said to them all: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it. What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self? (Luke 9:22-24)”
“Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you. You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven (Matthew 5:42-44).”
“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another (John 13:34-35).”
Lord, these words – your words – are challenging! How much easier it is to not love others – especially enemies - in this world. Too easy, indeed.
I realized something today that I am constantly re-realizing, time and again. These things that Jesus commands of us; this lifestyle – the very path that leads to life, the one and only way – is impossible. Christianity is challenging, because it causes us to realize that it is impossible.We can't do it.
We need you, Lord. You knew it all along: We cannot follow you or live like you unless you give us yourself - which you have done! We cannot do anything you ask us, unless we have you do it in and through us. “You duped me, O Lord, and you let me be duped (Jeremiah 20:7).”
And these words especially, Lord, pierce my heart:
“You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned (Matthew 12:34-37).”
Thank you, Lord, for doing what we cannot do, for loving how we cannot love. It is you - always and only you - who makes this radically different lifestyle possible. It is you, living this life in and through us.
In the end, there is no other way (cf. John 14:6).
Friday, December 4, 2009
swear to god: refreshing sacrament
Lately I’ve been reading about the Sacraments; one book in particular, Swear to God by Scott Hahn, has really shed some light on the meaning and biblical roots of the Sacraments.
Just the other night, I was reading a section in this book on the Sacrament of Marriage – and it really touched me. Hahn had made this Sacrament a little more real to me. His words are eloquent, and what touched me most of all was what he shared from his own heart, and his own lived experience with this Sacrament.
In essence, the Sacraments communicate the real presence of Jesus, but also more than that: they are “efficacious signs”, because they “affect graces” that are symbolized, therefore making them more than mere symbols. In all the Sacraments, it is Jesus Himself who is “acting”, and communicating his Life and his graces. The biblical roots are many, and they are deep. However, I wish to only speak of what touched me in what I read in Hahn’s book, particularly this section on Marriage.
Reflecting on his own marriage with his wife Kimberly, Hahn says this:
“Indeed, it was His name we invoked when we made our vows, His help Kimberly and I enlisted and His protection, for the sake of His promise. It is His presence that makes the covenant binding. Jesus Christ abides in our marriage, in a real way, for as long as we both shall live” (p. 185).
How beautiful! How Christocentric (Christ-centered). And how very much it ought to be, seeing as Marriage really is – in the end – all about Jesus. How beautiful indeed, to have a proper perspective on Marriage, receiving it as the gift it truly is, from Jesus Himself.
“Marriage is a sacrament not merely in some ethereal or abstract way,” Hahn writes: “It is a sacrament in the most complete, body-and-soul way possible” (p. 186). Speaking of his wife Kimberly, he continues: “She is a blessed sacrament to me, and an hour with her is an hour of prayer… In her I see, reflected, the love of the Holy Spirit and the reality of the Church. In our bodily union, I contemplate something of the communion of Christ with His own bride, the Church” (p. 186).
How refreshing, once again, to read such inspiring words – words that reflect the true nature of marriage, its sacramental nature. These are words that echo the ancient understanding that even Paul had, who saw in marriage a profound mystery, referring to the mysterious union of Christ with his bride the Church (see Ephesians 5:25-32).
“It is for me, and me alone, that Kimberly’s presence is a sacramental presence of Jesus Christ,” Hahn says (p. 187). Yet he also understands another fundamental truth about the Sacrament of Marriage that seems to be all but completely lost in our world today:
“It is not just an inward reality for couples only. Marriage is a sacrament of the Church, and it is an outward sign of any inward grace received by the couple. A married couple shows the world that God is faithful forever; that He is loving and merciful; that He is lavish in His fruitfulness; and much more, as well… [Marriage] will be a lasting statement to an unbelieving world that finds fidelity impossible to believe” (p. 187).
Hahn ends this section in his book by pointing out that marriage would not be a Sacrament if it were just symbolic in nature. This, too, seems to be a concept that is lost to the world, an “unbelieving world”. It seems evident that people who have not had genuine encounters with Jesus Christ in and through his Sacraments tend to seek other experiences to fill that void - a void that only Jesus can fill. Marriage then becomes trivialized, in a sense, and is brought down to the human level, catering only to those desired experiences that human beings long for. And this is understandable, for we are all made to be filled with life, and “to the full” (see John 10:10). If we aren’t filled with Jesus, we will inevitably seek fulfillment in other ways.
Why would marriage not be a Sacrament if it were just a symbol, as Hahn points out? Because marriage, as a Sacrament, contains the real presence of Jesus Christ (p. 187).
How beautiful. How refreshing.
Just the other night, I was reading a section in this book on the Sacrament of Marriage – and it really touched me. Hahn had made this Sacrament a little more real to me. His words are eloquent, and what touched me most of all was what he shared from his own heart, and his own lived experience with this Sacrament.
In essence, the Sacraments communicate the real presence of Jesus, but also more than that: they are “efficacious signs”, because they “affect graces” that are symbolized, therefore making them more than mere symbols. In all the Sacraments, it is Jesus Himself who is “acting”, and communicating his Life and his graces. The biblical roots are many, and they are deep. However, I wish to only speak of what touched me in what I read in Hahn’s book, particularly this section on Marriage.
Reflecting on his own marriage with his wife Kimberly, Hahn says this:
“Indeed, it was His name we invoked when we made our vows, His help Kimberly and I enlisted and His protection, for the sake of His promise. It is His presence that makes the covenant binding. Jesus Christ abides in our marriage, in a real way, for as long as we both shall live” (p. 185).
How beautiful! How Christocentric (Christ-centered). And how very much it ought to be, seeing as Marriage really is – in the end – all about Jesus. How beautiful indeed, to have a proper perspective on Marriage, receiving it as the gift it truly is, from Jesus Himself.
“Marriage is a sacrament not merely in some ethereal or abstract way,” Hahn writes: “It is a sacrament in the most complete, body-and-soul way possible” (p. 186). Speaking of his wife Kimberly, he continues: “She is a blessed sacrament to me, and an hour with her is an hour of prayer… In her I see, reflected, the love of the Holy Spirit and the reality of the Church. In our bodily union, I contemplate something of the communion of Christ with His own bride, the Church” (p. 186).
How refreshing, once again, to read such inspiring words – words that reflect the true nature of marriage, its sacramental nature. These are words that echo the ancient understanding that even Paul had, who saw in marriage a profound mystery, referring to the mysterious union of Christ with his bride the Church (see Ephesians 5:25-32).
“It is for me, and me alone, that Kimberly’s presence is a sacramental presence of Jesus Christ,” Hahn says (p. 187). Yet he also understands another fundamental truth about the Sacrament of Marriage that seems to be all but completely lost in our world today:
“It is not just an inward reality for couples only. Marriage is a sacrament of the Church, and it is an outward sign of any inward grace received by the couple. A married couple shows the world that God is faithful forever; that He is loving and merciful; that He is lavish in His fruitfulness; and much more, as well… [Marriage] will be a lasting statement to an unbelieving world that finds fidelity impossible to believe” (p. 187).
Hahn ends this section in his book by pointing out that marriage would not be a Sacrament if it were just symbolic in nature. This, too, seems to be a concept that is lost to the world, an “unbelieving world”. It seems evident that people who have not had genuine encounters with Jesus Christ in and through his Sacraments tend to seek other experiences to fill that void - a void that only Jesus can fill. Marriage then becomes trivialized, in a sense, and is brought down to the human level, catering only to those desired experiences that human beings long for. And this is understandable, for we are all made to be filled with life, and “to the full” (see John 10:10). If we aren’t filled with Jesus, we will inevitably seek fulfillment in other ways.
Why would marriage not be a Sacrament if it were just a symbol, as Hahn points out? Because marriage, as a Sacrament, contains the real presence of Jesus Christ (p. 187).
How beautiful. How refreshing.
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