Blog # 118 SALVATION / OBEDIENCE / LOVE

Blog # 118 SALVATION / OBEDIENCE / LOVE To say of us that we are 'saved' is similar to saying we are 'alive'. The notions of being alive or saved invites the question what does it mean to be alive, or to be saved. Both life and salvation are similar notions. We are never merely alive but always alive as someone, in the here and now, alive as doing something. So we are never merely saved, but saved as someone, in the here and now, saved as doing something. Both natural human life. and salvation, (God's life /love shared with us), ever invite us to ask questions. What do I want to do with my life? How do I go about it? What is God calling me to do with my gift of salvation? How do I go about it? To be alive is one thing. to know the fullness of life is another. To be convinced we are saved is one thing. To know what this entails is another.To help us do this with salvation we listen to what Jesus teaches. He did indeed ask the question what does it profit a person to gain the whole world and suffer the loss of one's soul. In asking this question Jesus pointed up the absolute and primary importance of the salvation of our souls. But Jesus also said be ye perfect as your Heavenly Father is perfect, and blessed are the clean of heart. We begin to see the meaning or substance of being saved is to be holy. In other words, Jesus did not come into the world just so that God could love us, but also so that we might love God! And in order to love God, as Jesus reminded us, we live by the Commandments. (Jn 15: 10). The way to make this experience a conscious act of love for God is to keep ourselves aware the Commandments are an expression of God's wisdom goodness and love. The Commandments issue forth from a personal relationship God wishes to have with those who believe. In obedience to the Commandments we share God's wisdom goodness and love. As a student becomes like her teacher by sharing the teacher's wisdom, so we become like God, in our limited human way, by sharing God's wisdom goodness and love in obedience to the Commandments. We can live by the commandments all week long, every day, at home at school at work, in church and out, twenty-four hours a day. Even our sleep can be a response to God's command to refrain from 'killing' ourselves with work and worry, the fifth Commandment! Through the gift of Baptism and salvation in the here and now we are entitled and empowered throughout our life to be united with Jesus as branches on a vine. As we grow in holiness we become more like Jesus ( Col 3: 10). To help make His holiness grow in us, which is the call of salvation, we ever seek to know Jesus better, as a boy, a young man, a carpenter, a brother, a friend, and as our God. Then will the thoughts of Jesus be our thoughts, the words of Jesus our words, and the actions and attitude of Jesus our actions and attitude. That is the basic plan of salvation, the fundamental meaning of being saved through with and in Jesus.

Blog # 41 - a Lamb of God

Blog # 41 - a LAMB OF GOD Years ago back in the seminary before I was ordained we seminarians created a dark room in the basement of our residence for developing photos. It was very important to have the room completely light proof, full of darkness with no white light whatsoever. I was always intrigued by the fact the darkness was very real, I knew that, but so dark and unreal to my senses that I couldn't feel it taste it hear it or smell it. It was an interesting question for me to ask could I see the darkness. I could not see anything in the room at all until I lit a special red light that would permit a limited vision of the equipment we needed to use in the process of developing our photos but would not prevent the process as white light would do. How that came about was a mystery to me, but an even greater mystery was the question what happened to the darkness when we turned on the white light without opening the locked door of the dark room and the darkness would be gone. What happened to it? Where did it go? I am still intrigued by that question particularly since I see it in reference to a prayer we use each day in the Mass which addresses Jesus as the Lamb of God Who takes away the sins of the world. We could have used the word 'forgive' the sins of the world in that prayer but we did not. Take away is stronger than forgive. We are dealing with a spiritual reality so there is no need or room to identify or imagine a 'place' where the sins have 'gone'. The important thing is to realize Jesus is our redeemer and as the Lamb of God He takes away our sins. They are gone which implies in this case they do not exist any more just as the darkness does not exist any more when the light appears. It is still a mystery, beyond our limited capacity to understand fully but clear enough for us to realize the power wisdom and goodness of Jesus in becoming our redeemer on Calvary and in being genuinely grateful for that identity of His in relation to our sins and those of the whole world. Most people would stop here ,thankful and happy that our sins are taken away in the obedient love of Jesus. That is indeed a great gift to us. But the best part and most awesome part of it for me is not that sins are taken away but the offense to God that sin entails is atoned for and taken away in the suffering and death of Jesus. Jesus had the power and the right to win this gift for us. For this to be real Jesus would have to be divine. Sin as an offense against a fellow human being can be forgiven by the human being offended. But sin in its identity as an offense against God, which all sin is, can only be destroyed or 'taken away' by someone who is identified on the level of God, someone who is divine. From the time John pointed Jesus out as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world at the beginning of His public ministry at the River Jordan (Jn 1: 29), to the time Jesus laid down His life on the Cross in obedience to the Father' love for Jesus and for us, we have one of the stongest arguments or proofs of the divinity of Jesus. We have an opportunity of proclaiming it for Him every time we offer the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. Lamb of God, Who takes away the sins of the world, have mercy on us, grant us peace.