Lightness of spirit is
related to Redemption, for it lifts us out of precarious situations. As soon as
a priest goes in for revolutionary tactics in politics he becomes boringly
serious. This world is all there is, and therefore he takes political
involvements without a grain of salt. One rarely sees a Commisar smile. Only
those who are ‘in the world, not of it’ can see events seriously and lightly.
Joy is born by straddling two worlds — one the world of politics, the other of
grace.
Fulton J.
Sheen Those Mysterious Priests 238
As Christians our vocation is a
simple one: joy. This is not, however, worldly joy, the fruit of consumerist
excess, a joy of stuff – what we have, what we can buy, or own, or sell but something
far deeper and far richer. We rejoice that our yearly memorial of Our Lord’s
nativity is drawing near – a birth which changes everything, which brings about
the salvation of humanity, which is the most wonderful news that the world
could ever hear.
In this morning’s Gospel
John the Baptist has been preaching a baptism of repentance, a turning away
from sin towards the arms of a loving God. He has been stark and uncompromising
and the people to whom he has been preaching find themselves in an awkward
situation, and yet they are drawn to the Good News. They can’t quite understand
what’s going on: Is John the Messiah? If he isn’t, who then is he? He calls people
to the baptism of repentance in the knowledge that Christ’s gift of His Spirit is
coming.
The world, the state, the church all seem to
be in a mess. The peace which the Messiah came to bring it seems as elusive as
ever, whereas the human capacity to create misery in the most dreadful ways
makes us realise that we still have some considerable distance to travel. One
possible answer is the need for repentance: to change our hearts and minds and
to follow Christ.
Our
readings this morning speak of the kingdom of God, a kingdom of love and freedom:
good news to the oppressed which binds up the broken-hearted, a kingdom of
healing and of renewal. In all our sadness and sin, we look forward to our
yearly remembrance of our Lord’s incarnation. We prepare our hearts, our minds,
and our lives, to go to Bethlehem, to see God come into the world naked, vulnerable,
and homeless, utterly reliant on Mary and Joseph. We also prepare to meet him
as he will come again, as our saviour and our judge, daunting though this may
be, in the knowledge and trusts that he saves us, that by his wounds on the
cross we are healed, our sins are forgiven.
We
are to rejoice, strange though it might seem, just like the people of Israel in
captivity, in a God who loves us, who heals and restores us, who gives us real
hope for the future. In the midst of our sorrow we are to place all our hope
and trust in God who loves us, and who saves us.
We
are to rejoice, as S. Paul reminds the Thessalonians, a joy which leads to
prayer, to a relationship with God, giving thanks to God for what Christ has
achieved and will achieve. It encourages us to hold fast to what is good and abhor
what is evil. In living out our faith we are drawn ever closer to the God who loves
us and saves us.
We
are to share this joy with others, to share the good news of Jesus Christ to
all people, and not just in our words but our deeds. If we share what we have,
if we are generous, if we work for justice and are clothed with humility, showing
our joy in mutual love, God’s kingdom will be advanced. We, here, now, know
that Jesus will come and will judge us by the standard of love which he set for
us to follow. Let us trust God and share that trust in prayer, that his will
may be done, and that he may quieten us with his love.
The
world around us is full of pain and anguish, and the only way for it to be
healed is in Christ, who was bruised for our transgressions and wounded for our
iniquities. He still bears those wounds as the wounds of love. As he flung out
his arms on the cross, so he longs to embrace the world and fill it with his
peace and love. He will not force us; he is no tyrant in the sky. It is the
world which must turn to him in love and in trust, and turn away from sin. Our task
is always only all things to be joyful in the Lord, and to live out our faith
to help the world turn to him.
It isn’t an easy thing
to do, and after 2000 years of trying we may seem as far away as when John
proclaimed the coming of God’s kingdom. We can just give up, or we can try, and
keep trying, no matter how many times we fail, secure in the knowledge that God
loves us and forgives us, and that we are to do the same to each other.
No comments:
Post a Comment