Papal Homily for Vespers of the First Sunday of Advent 2006

CELEBRATION OF FIRST VESPERS OF THE FIRST SUNDAY OF ADVENT
HOMILY OF HIS HOLINESS BENEDICT XV
Vatican Basilica
Saturday, 2 December 2006

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

The first antiphon of this evening's celebration is presented as the opening of the Advent Season and re-echoes as the antiphon of the entire liturgical year. Let us listen to it again: "Proclaim to the peoples: God our Saviour is coming".

At the beginning of a new yearly cycle, the liturgy invites the Church to renew her proclamation to all the peoples and sums it up in two words "God comes". These words, so concise, contain an ever new evocative power.

Let us pause a moment to reflect: it is not used in the past tense -- God has come, -- nor in the future -- God will come, -- but in the present: "God comes".

At a closer look, this is a continuous present, that is, an ever-continuous action: it happened, it is happening now and it will happen again. In whichever moment, "God comes".

The verb "to come" appears here as a theological verb, indeed theological, since it says something about God's very nature.

Proclaiming that "God comes" is equivalent, therefore, to simply announcing God himself, through one of his essential and qualifying features: his being the God-who-comes.

Advent calls believers to become aware of this truth and to act accordingly. It rings out as a salutary appeal in the days, weeks and months that repeat: Awaken! Remember that God comes! Not yesterday, not tomorrow, but today, now!

The one true God, "the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob", is not a God who is there in Heaven, unconcerned with us and our history, but he is the-God-who-comes.

He is a Father who never stops thinking of us and, in the extreme respect of our freedom, desires to meet us and visit us; he wants to come, to dwell among us, to stay with us.

His "coming" is motivated by the desire to free us from evil and death, from all that prevents our true happiness. God comes to save us.

The Fathers of the Church observe that the "coming" of God -- continuous and, as it were, co-natural with his very being -- is centred in the two principal comings of Christ: his Incarnation and his glorious return at the end of time (cf. Cyril of Jerusalem, Catechesis 15,1: PG 33, 870). The Advent Season lives the whole of this polarity.

In the first days, the accent falls on the expectation of the Lord's Final Coming, as the texts of this evening's celebration demonstrate.

With Christmas approaching, the dominant note instead is on the commemoration of the event at Bethlehem, so that we may recognize it as the "fullness of time".

Between these two "manifested" comings it is possible to identify a third, which St Bernard calls "intermediate" and "hidden", and which occurs in the souls of believers and, as it were, builds a "bridge" between the first and the last coming.

"In the first", St Bernard wrote, "Christ was our redemption; in the last coming he will reveal himself to us as our life: in this lies our repose and consolation" (Discourse 5 on Advent, 1).

The archetype for that coming of Christ, which we might call a "spiritual incarnation", is always Mary. Just as the Virgin Mother pondered in her heart on the Word made flesh, so every individual soul and the entire Church are called during their earthly pilgrimage to wait for Christ who comes and to welcome him with faith and love ever new.

The liturgy of Advent thus casts light on how the Church gives voice to our expectation of God, deeply inscribed in the history of humanity; unfortunately, this expectation is often suffocated or is deviated in false directions.

As a Body mystically united to Christ the Head, the Church is a sacrament, that is, a sign and an effective instrument of this waiting for God.

To an extent known to him alone, the Christian community can hasten his Final Coming, helping humanity to go forth to meet the Lord who comes.

And she does this first of all, but not exclusively, with prayer.

Next, essential and inseparable from prayer are "good works", as the prayer for this First Sunday of Advent declares, and in which we ask the Heavenly Father to inspire in us "the desire to go with good works" to Christ who comes.

In this perspective, Advent is particularly suited to being a season lived in communion with all those who -- and thanks be to God they are numerous -- hope for a more just and a more fraternal world.

In this commitment to justice, people of every nationality and culture, believers and non-believers, can to a certain extent meet. Indeed, they are all inspired by a common desire, even if their motivations are different, for a future of justice and peace.

Peace is the goal to which the whole of humanity aspires! For believers "peace" is one of the most beautiful names of God, who wants all his children to agree with one another, as I also had the opportunity to recall on my Pilgrimage in Turkey in the past few days.

A hymn of peace rang out in Heaven when God became man and was born of a woman in the fullness of time (cf. Gal 4:4).

Let us therefore begin this new Advent -- a time granted to us by the Lord of time -- by reawakening in our hearts the expectation of the God-who-comes and the hope that his Name will be hallowed, that his Kingdom of justice and peace will come, that his will be done on earth as it is in Heaven.

Let us allow the Virgin Mary, Mother of the God-who-comes and Mother of Hope, to guide us in this waiting.

May she whom we will celebrate as Immaculate in a few days obtain for us that we be found holy and immaculate in love at the coming of Our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom, together with the Father and the Holy Spirit, be praise and glory for ever and ever. Amen.

Advent - The Coming of the Lord

There will be signs in the sun and moon and stars; on earth nations in agony, bewildered by the clamour of the ocean and its waves; men dying of fear as they await what menaces the world, for the powers of heaven will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. When these things begin to take place, stand erect, hold your heads high, because your liberation is near at hand.
Watch yourselves, or your hearts will be coarsened with debauchery and drunkenness and the cares of life, and that day will be sprung on you suddenly, like a trap. For it will come down on every living man on the face of the earth. Stay awake, praying at all times for the strength to survive all that is going to happen and to stand with confidence before the Son of Man
Luke 21:25-28, 43-36

Advent is a time of waiting, of expectation, of preparation and more importantly of hope. This might not seem the case from this Sunday's Gospel - but if we look a little deeper into the words we shall see that it is indeed a time of Hope. It is an Eschatological Hope.

Jesus warns us about all the terrible things that will be happening when He comes in Glory at the Second Coming (Parousia), He says that "Men will die of fear". But what does He tell us to do? Take place, stand erect, hold your heads high, because your liberation is near at hand
Why? Because Jesus is our Hope "For in hope we were saved" Romans 8:24. We know that our help is in the Name of the Lord and that our "Liberation is near at hand" Luke 21:28

We know that all things work for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.
For those he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, so that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.And those he predestined he also called; and those he called he also justified; and those he justified he also glorified.
What then shall we say to this? If God is for us, who can be against us?
He who did not spare his own Son but handed him over for us all, how will he not also give us everything else along with him? Who will bring a charge against God's chosen ones?
It is God who acquits us. Who will condemn? It is Christ (Jesus) who died, rather, was raised, who also is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us.
What will separate us from the love of Christ? Will anguish, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or the sword?
As it is written: "For your sake we are being slain all the day; we are looked upon as sheep to be slaughtered."
No, in all these things we conquer overwhelmingly through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor present things, nor future things, nor powers,nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 8:28-39

We know that when we are united with Jesus, nothing can separate us from His Love - nothing can separate us from Him. We need to have Faith in His Promises and Trust in Him.

Jesus is the Light of the World, He is the Light that dispels all Darkness. He is the Coming One who is coming in Glory on the Clouds. The first time He came humbly and hidden. He was born a little child in Bethlehem (the House of Bread) so that He would become the Life of the world. Now we wait for Him to come again in Glory, to stop all injustice and hatred. We long and we yearn for Him to establish His Kingdom so that the Sacred Heart of Jesus will reign in the heart's of ALL men.

We, who have the gift of Faith have no need to fear. For fear is a sign of unbelief. Rather we should always be praying to the Lord that He increase our faith, that He might strengthen it - so that like the man in the Gospel we can say "Lord, I believe, but help my unbelief!" Mark 9:24

Whenever we pray the Lord's Prayer we are praying for the end of this world (or this age, the Eschaton). "Thy Kingdom Come!" How many of us are aware of this when we pray? When God's Kingdom has finally been established here on earth there will be no more wickedness, or sin, or evil, or pain, or sorrow , or even death. Everything will be subject to Him to whom belongs "the Kingdom the power and the Glory, now and forever" AMEN

So this Advent, as we prepare ourselves for the Coming of Jesus. Let us remember both His first coming in the flesh and His Second Coming in Glory.

As the mystic Angelus Silesius said:

"Even if Christ were born a thousand times in Bethlehem / If he is not born in thee you are lost for eternity."

So let us ache for Him so much that we make room for Him in our Hearts. That He will be born in our Heart so that the reign of His Sacred Heart may begin from within. This requires a conversion (metanoia) in our daily walk of faith. The beginning of the Kingdom starts will the Call to Conversion "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!" Matthew 3:2

When we have made room for Jesus in our Heart through Repentance, we can then conceive Him in our heart through faith and the power of the Holy Spirit. The more we nourish Him in our heart through faith, the better we will be to receive Him in the Eucharist. Then truly united with Him in Holy Communion we will have no fear for Him to return in Glory. This is why the Priest prays in the Mass after the Lord's Prayer: “in your mercy keep us free from sin as we wait in joyful hope for the coming of our savior Jesus Christ".

We wait for JOY because we know that our God has come to fulfill His Promise of Liberation, or Redemption and Final Salvation! Our Salvation began when we were Baptised, and sealed with the Spirit in Confirmation. Advent then is for us a time of joyful hope as we wait for Jesus to come and complete the process of Salvation that began when we were "reborn" in Water and Spirit and made "sons in the Son" and "Co-heirs with Christ".

May the Lord "confirm your hearts in holiness that you may be blameless in the sight of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus Christ comes with all his saints." 1 Thessalonians 3:13

Covenant and Communion

I just bought my copy of Scott Hahn's new book "Covenant and Communion: the Biblical Theology of Pope Benedict XVI"

It has many great reviews and looks to be an informative and inspiring read. It is a hardback and I bought it for only $27.95 from Koorong!!

An interesting note...Scott Hahn says that Pope Benedict's biblical theology will be an even bigger "time bomb" (as George Weigel called it) than Pope John Paul II's Theology of the Body!

On Searching for Truth

My good friend Mythos has a very good post over on his blog about truth

Please take a look and leave some comments. His blog is also about honesty, truth and authenticity but from an atheist point of view.

What birds plunge through is not the intimate space,
in which you see all Forms intensified.
(In the Open, denied, you would lose yourself,
would disappear into that vastness.)

Space reaches from us and translates Things:
to become the very essence of a tree,
throw inner space around it, from that space
that lives in you. Encircle it with restraint.
It has no limits. For the first time, shaped
in your renouncing, it becomes fully tree.

Rainer Maria Rilke

World Was In The Face Of The Beloved

World was in the face of the beloved--,
but suddenly it poured out and was gone:
world is outside, world can not be grasped.

Why didn't I, from the full, beloved face
as I raised it to my lips, why didn't I drink
world, so near that I couldn't almost taste it?

Ah, I drank. Insatiably I drank.
But I was filled up also, with too much
world, and, drinking, I myself ran over.

Rainer Maria Rilke

Beutiful Poem by Rilke Rainer Maria

I am Much Too Alone in this World

I am much too alone in this world, yet not alone
enough
to truly consecrate the hour.
I am much too small in this world, yet not small
enough
to be to you just object and thing,
dark and smart.
I want my free will and want it accompanying
the path which leads to action;
and want during times that beg questions,
where something is up,
to be among those in the know,
or else be alone.

I want to mirror your image to its fullest perfection,
never be blind or too old
to uphold your weighty wavering reflection.
I want to unfold.
Nowhere I wish to stay crooked, bent;
for there I would be dishonest, untrue.
I want my conscience to be
true before you;
want to describe myself like a picture I observed
for a long time, one close up,
like a new word I learned and embraced,
like the everyday jug,
like my mother's face,
like a ship that carried me along
through the deadliest storm.

Rilke Rainer Maria

MEMENTO MORI

"You are dust and to dust you shall return" Genesis 3:19

It is an ancient Catholic custom to always have the remembrance of death before us (Memento mori).

This evening I found out that one of my Aunts had a heart attack and died whilst at the wheel and crashed into a tree. This was very shocking news for me. I was surprised by the suddenness of my aunt's death, but I wasn't exactly shocked that she had died. It is not because I am heartless but rather because I am a Christian.

As a Christian I am always aware of my mortality and the need to be ready to "meet my maker" at any moment. I do not take my life for granted, as I know that every moment of my life is a gift from God which can be taken away at any moment. This does not mean that I am always living as I should, or even that I am always in a state of sanctifying Grace. However I am always aware that I need to be in a state of sanctifying Grace and have a continual conversion to the Lord.

Whenever I sin I try as soon as possible to repent and ask God for forgiveness in Jesus' Name. Then when it is possible I go to Confession to receive sacramental absolution with the knowledge that I am guaranteed the forgiveness of my sins by God through the Priest.

The bible tells us that the day of our death (when we will meet the Lord for our Judgement) will come like a thief in the night.

Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his clothes, so that he will not walk about naked and men will not see his shame." Revelation 16:15

Therefore, be on the alert-- for you do not know when the master of the house is coming, whether in the evening, at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or in the morning--" Mark 13:35

Therefore be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming. Matthew 24:42

For you yourselves know full well that the day of the Lord will come just like a thief in the night. 1 Thessalonians 5:2

So we can see and we are warned to keep VIGIL, to STAY AWAKE and to BE ALERT.

We do not know when death will strike us down, but we do know that if we always stay close to Jesus that He will be faithful to His promise to us of eternal life.

If we have died with him, we will also live with him;
if we endure, we will also reign with him;
if we deny him, he will also deny us;
if we are faithless, he remains faithful—
for he cannot deny himself. 2 Timothy 2:11-13

Let us always keep in mind the words from St Alphonsus Ligouri in his book on Preparation for Death. In Consideration III he writes:

What is your life? It is like a vapor, which is dispersed by the wind, and is no more. All know that they must die; but many are deceived by picturing to themselves death at such as distance as if it could never come near them...At present our passions make the things of this earth appear differently from what they really are; death tears away the veil, and shows them in their true light, to be nothing but smoke, dirt, vanity and misery...if you believe that you must die, and that there is an eternity, and that you can only die once, so that if you then make a mistake, that mistake is forever and irredeemable, how is it that you do not resolve from this very moment, in which you read these words, to do all you can to secure yourself a happy death?...Give yourself to prayer, frequent the Sacraments; quit dangerous occasions, and, if necessary, leave even the world; secure your eternal salvation; and be convinced that to secure this no precaution can be too great.

HOLY MARY MOTHER OF GOD, PRAY FOR US SINNERS - NOW AND AT THE HOUR OF OUR DEATH. AMEN

Pope Benedict to Artists on Beauty

The world in which we live runs the risk of being altered beyond recognition because of unwise human actions which, instead of cultivating its beauty, unscrupulously exploit its resources for the advantage of a few and not infrequently disfigure the marvels of nature. What is capable of restoring enthusiasm and confidence, what can encourage the human spirit to rediscover its path, to raise its eyes to the horizon, to dream of a life worthy of its vocation – if not beauty? Dear friends, as artists you know well that the experience of beauty, beauty that is authentic, not merely transient or artificial, is by no means a supplementary or secondary factor in our search for meaning and happiness; the experience of beauty does not remove us from reality, on the contrary, it leads to a direct encounter with the daily reality of our lives, liberating it from darkness, transfiguring it, making it radiant and beautiful.

Indeed, an essential function of genuine beauty, as emphasized by Plato, is that it gives man a healthy "shock", it draws him out of himself, wrenches him away from resignation and from being content with the humdrum – it even makes him suffer, piercing him like a dart, but in so doing it "reawakens" him, opening afresh the eyes of his heart and mind, giving him wings, carrying him aloft. Dostoevsky’s words that I am about to quote are bold and paradoxical, but they invite reflection. He says this: "Man can live without science, he can live without bread, but without beauty he could no longer live, because there would no longer be anything to do to the world. The whole secret is here, the whole of history is here." The painter Georges Braque echoes this sentiment: "Art is meant to disturb, science reassures." Beauty pulls us up short, but in so doing it reminds us of our final destiny, it sets us back on our path, fills us with new hope, gives us the courage to live to the full the unique gift of life. The quest for beauty that I am describing here is clearly not about escaping into the irrational or into mere aestheticism.

Too often, though, the beauty that is thrust upon us is illusory and deceitful, superficial and blinding, leaving the onlooker dazed; instead of bringing him out of himself and opening him up to horizons of true freedom as it draws him aloft, it imprisons him within himself and further enslaves him, depriving him of hope and joy. It is a seductive but hypocritical beauty that rekindles desire, the will to power, to possess, and to dominate others, it is a beauty which soon turns into its opposite, taking on the guise of indecency, transgression or gratuitous provocation. Authentic beauty, however, unlocks the yearning of the human heart, the profound desire to know, to love, to go towards the Other, to reach for the Beyond. If we acknowledge that beauty touches us intimately, that it wounds us, that it opens our eyes, then we rediscover the joy of seeing, of being able to grasp the profound meaning of our existence, the Mystery of which we are part; from this Mystery we can draw fullness, happiness, the passion to engage with it every day. In this regard, Pope John Paul II, in his Letter to Artists, quotes the following verse from a Polish poet, Cyprian Norwid: "Beauty is to enthuse us for work, and work is to raise us up" (no. 3). And later he adds: "In so far as it seeks the beautiful, fruit of an imagination which rises above the everyday, art is by its nature a kind of appeal to the mystery. Even when they explore the darkest depths of the soul or the most unsettling aspects of evil, the artist gives voice in a way to the universal desire for redemption" (no. 10). And in conclusion he states: "Beauty is a key to the mystery and a call to transcendence" (no. 16).

These ideas impel us to take a further step in our reflection. Beauty, whether that of the natural universe or that expressed in art, precisely because it opens up and broadens the horizons of human awareness, pointing us beyond ourselves, bringing us face to face with the abyss of Infinity, can become a path towards the transcendent, towards the ultimate Mystery, towards God. Art, in all its forms, at the point where it encounters the great questions of our existence, the fundamental themes that give life its meaning, can take on a religious quality, thereby turning into a path of profound inner reflection and spirituality. This close proximity, this harmony between the journey of faith and the artist’s path is attested by countless artworks that are based upon the personalities, the stories, the symbols of that immense deposit of "figures" – in the broad sense – namely the Bible, the Sacred Scriptures. The great biblical narratives, themes, images and parables have inspired innumerable masterpieces in every sector of the arts, just as they have spoken to the hearts of believers in every generation through the works of craftsmanship and folk art, that are no less eloquent and evocative.

In this regard, one may speak of a via pulchritudinis, a path of beauty which is at the same time an artistic and aesthetic journey, a journey of faith, of theological enquiry. The theologian Hans Urs von Balthasar begins his great work entitled The Glory of the Lord – a Theological Aesthetics with these telling observations: "Beauty is the word with which we shall begin. Beauty is the last word that the thinking intellect dares to speak, because it simply forms a halo, an untouchable crown around the double constellation of the true and the good and their inseparable relation to one another." He then adds: "Beauty is the disinterested one, without which the ancient world refused to understand itself, a word which both imperceptibly and yet unmistakably has bid farewell to our new world, a world of interests, leaving it to its own avarice and sadness. It is no longer loved or fostered even by religion." And he concludes: "We can be sure that whoever sneers at her name as if she were the ornament of a bourgeois past – whether he admits it or not – can no longer pray and soon will no longer be able to love." The way of beauty leads us, then, to grasp the Whole in the fragment, the Infinite in the finite, God in the history of humanity. Simone Weil wrote in this regard: "In all that awakens within us the pure and authentic sentiment of beauty, there, truly, is the presence of God. There is a kind of incarnation of God in the world, of which beauty is the sign. Beauty is the experimental proof that incarnation is possible. For this reason all art of the first order is, by its nature, religious." Hermann Hesse makes the point even more graphically: "Art means: revealing God in everything that exists." Echoing the words of Pope Paul VI, the Servant of God Pope John Paul II restated the Church’s desire to renew dialogue and cooperation with artists: "In order to communicate the message entrusted to her by Christ, the Church needs art" (no. 12); but he immediately went on to ask: "Does art need the Church?" – thereby inviting artists to rediscover a source of fresh and well-founded inspiration in religious experience, in Christian revelation and in the "great codex" that is the Bible.

Dear artists, as I draw to a conclusion, I too would like to make a cordial, friendly and impassioned appeal to you, as did my Predecessor. You are the custodians of beauty: thanks to your talent, you have the opportunity to speak to the heart of humanity, to touch individual and collective sensibilities, to call forth dreams and hopes, to broaden the horizons of knowledge and of human engagement. Be grateful, then, for the gifts you have received and be fully conscious of your great responsibility to communicate beauty, to communicate in and through beauty! Through your art, you yourselves are to be heralds and witnesses of hope for humanity! And do not be afraid to approach the first and last source of beauty, to enter into dialogue with believers, with those who, like yourselves, consider that they are pilgrims in this world and in history towards infinite Beauty! Faith takes nothing away from your genius or your art: on the contrary, it exalts them and nourishes them, it encourages them to cross the threshold and to contemplate with fascination and emotion the ultimate and definitive goal, the sun that does not set, the sun that illumines this present moment and makes it beautiful.

Saint Augustine, who fell in love with beauty and sang its praises, wrote these words as he reflected on man’s ultimate destiny, commenting almost ante litteram on the Judgement scene before your eyes today: "Therefore we are to see a certain vision, my brethren, that no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man conceived: a vision surpassing all earthly beauty, whether it be that of gold and silver, woods and fields, sea and sky, sun and moon, or stars and angels. The reason is this: it is the source of all other beauty" (In 1 Ioannis, 4:5). My wish for all of you, dear artists, is that you may carry this vision in your eyes, in your hands, and in your heart, that it may bring you joy and continue to inspire your fine works. From my heart I bless you and, like Paul VI, I greet you with a single word: arrivederci!

Who is he, this King of Glory? The Lord Sabaoth, he is the King of Glory

"...for if they had recognised it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory." 1 Corinthians 2:8

Jesus Christ is the King of Glory, however He did not come in Glory the first time He was on earth - rather He will come again in Glory at the Second Coming. This is shown very clearly in the letter to the Ephesians where St Paul explains about the humility of Christ which he manifested in His Kenosis (emptying) in the Incarnation and more specifically His Crucifiction.

though he was in the form of God,
did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped,
but emptied himself,
taking the form of a servant,
being born in the likeness of men.
And being found in human form he humbled himself
and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross.
Therefore God has highly exalted him
and bestowed on him the name which is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.

This is one of my favourite quotes from the Bible and possibly even the greatest Christological hymn. We can see that it specifically deals with the humility of Christ and the apparent lack of Glory. However it also shows us how and why Jesus is LORD, because God the Father has exalted Him and bestowed this title to Him.

Jesus came to this world humbly and meekly to establish His Kingdom. However because of His lack of Glory many did not or could not recognise Him.

He came as the Suffering Servant to redeem us from the power of Satan. "He has delivered us from the dominion of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins" Colossians 1:13-14. He accomplished this by His Sacrifice on the Cross and His Resurrection. We as Christians are no longer to be under the dominion or authority of Satan for we now belong to Christ the King!

Christ the King who loves us and sacrificed Himself for us, rules His Kingdom from the Throne of His Cross. To separate Jesus from the Cross even after the Resurrection is to deny its saving power for "we are preaching a crucified Christ: to the Jews an obstacle they cannot get over, to the gentiles foolishness, but to those who have been called, whether they are Jews or Greeks, a Christ who is both the power of God and the Wisdom of God." 1 Corinthians 1:23-24.

Jesus is the Shepherd King of Israel who becomes the Lamb of Sacrifice.

"I am the good shepherd:
the good shepherd lays down his life for his sheep...
The Father loves me,
because I lay down my life
in order to take it up again.
No one takes it from me;
I lay it down of my own free will,
and as I have power to lay it down,
so I have power to take it up again.." John 10

Jesus freely sacrificed Himself for us - the Church. By the same authority that he as Shepherd King laid down his life for His flock, He as Great High Priest unites Himself with the Church as His Bride and sanctifies her

"...just as Christ loved the Church and sacrificed himself for her to make her holy by washing her in cleansing water with a form of words, so that when he took her to himself she would be glorious, with no speck or wrinkle or anything like that, but holy and faultless." Ephesians 5: 25-28.

The Church is the Bride of Christ however it is also the Kingdom of God. In the way that the Church as Bride is not yet holy or faultless so too the Kingdom of God is not fully realised here on earth. Christ is "Head of the Church and saves the whole body...and the Church is subject to Christ" Ephesians 5, therefore it is clear that Christ as Head and Bridegroom of the Church is also the King and His Kingdom is the Church!

"Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God was coming, he answered them, The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed; nor will they say, `Lo, here it is!' or `There!' for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you." Luke 17:20-21

Let us then as Christians Worship and Serve Christ the King of the Universe and King of Love on Calvary. Let us reject Satan and all of his empty promises for we know that we have been blessed in Christ with every spiritual blessing Ephesians 1:3.

Let us acknowledge Jesus as Lord of our life for He is the Lord of History. HE is the Alpha and Omega, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Let him enter your heart today and rule your life, His will be done - not yours!

"Be still and know that I am God,
supreme among the nations, supreme on the earth!" Psalm 46:10

O gates, lift high your heads;
grow higher, ancient doors.
Let him enter, the king of glory!

Who is the king of glory?
The Lord, the mighty, the valiant,
the Lord, the valiant in war.

O gates, lift high your heads;
grow higher, ancient doors.
Let him enter, the king of glory!

Who is he, the king of glory?
He, the Lord of armies,
he is the king of glory. Psalm 24:7-10

Preparatory thoughts on Christ the King

As I am slowly getting ready to go to Mass this evening to Worship Christ the King of the Universe, I though I would make a quick preparatory note on my thoughts for the post I am planning after I have been to Mass this evening. This all depends of course on my mood after Mass, as I doubt the Church I will be going to will actually focus much on Christ at all....

Anyway, I am thinking of discussing how Christ's Kingship is specifically related with Him As the Son, Shepherd, Great High Priest and the Head of the Church.

More specifically though-the need to recover the sense of Christ's Kingship specifically in the context of his supremacy in our lives.Then relating that to Him having all authority in heaven and earth (linking that with the authority he had to sacrifice His life freely)and that everything must be subject to him whether in Heaven or on earth.

Until then I will leave you with the Preface of Christ the King for you to Ruminate over yourself...

Father, all-powerful and ever-living God,
we do well always and everywhere to give You thanks.

You anointed Jesus Christ, Your only Son,
with the oil of gladness,
as the eternal priest and universal king.
As priest He offered His life on the altar of the cross
and redeemed the human race by this one perfect sacrifice of peace.
As king He claims dominion over all creation,
that He may present to You, His almighty Father,
an eternal and universal kingdom:
a kingdom of truth and life,
a kingdom of holiness and grace,
a kingdom of justice, love, and peace.

The Drama of Doctrine

This is the title of a book I am currently reading written by Kevin J Vanhoozer. It is quite a good read. At nearly 500 pages long, I have only read 150. It is written by a protestant of the Reformed tradition (eg..Presbyterians and Calvinists), but he comes to quite a few Catholic positions. Not only that, but he even uses Hans Urs Von Balthasar's "Theo-drama" books for a lot of his ideas and inspiritation.

The thing that has really impressed me with this book is the importance he attaches to correct doctrine and it's dynamic relationship with the Trinity. For him doctrine is not something static, but rather it is living relationship with the Trinity and the revelation received in Jesus Christ.

Too often in Christian (and more specifically Catholic) cirlces today, those of us who insist on authentic doctrine in the Church and the lives of the faithful are too easily branded as being rigid and even Pharisees! As opposed to all the rest who advocate and loving hippie like Jesus and a "Spirituality of the heart" without religion.

In the preface of the book Vanhoozer explains that:

" there is no more urgent a task in the church than to demonstrate faith's understanding by living truthfully with others before God...doctrine is an indispensable aid to understanding and to truthful living. Doctrine is a vital ingredient in the well-being of the church, a vital aid to its public witness. The problem is not so much with doctrine per se but with a picture of doctrine, or perhaps several pictures, that have held us captive."

I feel that his concept of truthful living is very similar to my ideas on authenticity that I posted on previously. Also for Vanhoozer he seems to believe that correct understanding of God and salvation history are prerequisites for truthful (authentic) living.

He discusses his theories of the Good News of Salvation (Gospel) in terms of communication. The Gospel which is "God's saving Word/Act wrought in the person and work of Jesus Christ-must shape theology's method, not vice versa". All theology must begin and end with God so that it will draw us all into the mystery of God as Communion.

He also defines the Gospel as drama-hence relating that the news of Salvation is dynamic and not static.

"Drama is a composite of word and deed; at time the language of action drowns out the words, at other times the words carry the action along. Yet what God was doing in Jesus Christ ultimately makes sense only according to the biblical script that places the person and work of Jesus Christ in the Old Testament context of creation and covenant. There is a cosmic stage and a covenantal plot; there is conflict; there is a climax; there is resolution. Evangelical theology deals not with disparate bits of ideas and information but with divine doings - with the all-embracing cosmic drama that displays the entrances and exoduses of God."

This point is very important for us Catholics today!! So often in the Liturgy we are trying to turn it into a "performance" or entertainment for people. But how much of a dis-service is this?! The Liturgy itself is the re-presentation of the Divine Drama. We need to stop trying to recreate feel good services that barely resemble worship, and reclaim our living heritage that we have from Jesus Himself in the Divine Liturgy (Drama) of the Eucharistic Sacrifice!

This is what was called for by the Second Vatican Council in the the often quoted (but highly misunderstood)concept of "active participation". When we are DRAWN into the Drama of the Mass that is when we are truly participating-we are no longer spectators but participants. Drama does not imply mere idle observation, but rather an action that dynamically draws the viewers into the action itself so that it becomes their own!-they experience the drama for themselves.

Liturgy and doctrine in Catholicism and Orthodoxy are so closely connected that it could be said that they are two sides of the same coin. In the Liturgy our doctrine (theory) is put into practice (experience) and is manifested for all to see. We begin the service with the sign of the Cross and in the Name of the Trinity-a good priest should be able to give a homily on this alone!

What needs to be reclaimed is Mystagogy as has been so wonderfully demonstrated by our Pope Benedict the Magnificent (as some have called him). We need to be able to understand how the symbolic actions that we see in the Liturgy have a much deeper lived reality behind them. It is all a process of revelation. The person and work of Jesus (what we would call the Paschal Mystery) is the revelation of God, the liturgy in turn is the revelation of Jesus so that we may learn to see him in the "Breaking of the bread". This Divine Drama enacted in the Liturgy is the communication (Gospel) of God that we might be drawn up and into the Mystery of the Trinity so that with this lived experience we can then go out and communicate (evagelise) this with others to further the Kingdom of God. In the words of St Thomas Aquinas "Contemplare et contemplata aliis tradere"-To contemplate and to hand on the fruit of contemplation to others.

Once we understand this we will see exactly how important doctrine is for us today as Christians.

Authenticity

Authenticity is something I really believe in, if we are not living authentically what is the point of living at all? I honestly believe that if we are not authentic, then who are we really?

Who are you really? Who do you think you are? If you do not even know who you are and are not brutally honest with yourself, how do you function as a person let alone as all the other personas we create for ourselves (friend, son, student, lover, brother, husband, colleague, Christian, Catholic etc...)?

First of all, we need to know who we are in the eyes of God. If we do not base our understanding of ourselves upon this premise, I believe we are doomed to lead false, fragmented and miserable lives.

We are created in the Image and Likeness of God (Book of Genesis), which means that we are made for the True, the Good and the Beautiful. We have been created not to do, but to become. We have been created for LOVE. The foundation of our existence rests upon and is sustained by the Trinity. Only in the light of the Communion of the Tri-unity can we truly become who we are meant to be. The Unity and Communion that exists within the "Immanent Trinity" must be reflected and manifested in ourselves.

As human persons we are triune in the sense that we are:
1 body, soul and spirit (according to St Paul)
2 memory, intellect and will (according to St Augustine)

Yet even those these aspects or parts of our essential personhood are trinitarian, they are also unified as a whole. They are not separate from each other, they are a mysterious unified whole. This then is how our lives should be-unified and not fragmented...in a word AUTHENTIC.

However we all know from our own experience that within ourselves we aren't totally unified, that we are fragmented. There is something that is not unified within us, there is internal conflict-there is disharmony. This fragmentation, discord, this woundedness is what we traditionally call Original Sin. This means that even though we were created in the Image and Likeness of God-who-is-Trinity, we have lost the likeness.

How then do we regain this Likeness? How is it restored? The answer is JESUS CHRIST!
Only Jesus can restore our fallen humanity. He is the Healer of our Souls, the Divine Physician. He is as the Orthodox call Him: Philanthropos (Lover of Man).

We can see clearly in the Gospels how healing and the restoration our human nature is connected with the Kingdom of God and the Economy of Salvation. Jesus Himself showed us how sin and forgiveness are connected with healing of body and soul. (Luke 5:17-26)In short, we could say that to be whole we need forgives and love-we need REDEMPTION.

It is Christ who "fully reveals man to himself" (Gaudium et Spes), therefore we cannot truly understand who we are unless we discover oursleves in light of the revelation of Jesus Christ who Himself is the Light. By becoming one (united) with Jesus in our baptism we die to our false self and rise with Jesus in our restored Likeness. This is authenticity! Unless we know ourselves from the mind and heart of God shown to us in the Person of Jesus Christ, we will never be able to become who we were meant to be.

Now I don't mean all of this in some lovey-dovey positive thinking sense. Rather I mean it from the bottom of my heart. We need Jesus to show us who we are, who we are meant to be and who we can become. Otherwise we create pseudo versions of ourselves. Because of Original Sin we lack an inner harmony, to use an expression of St Paul our members are warring among themselves. The more versions we create for ourselves, rather then becoming who God created us to be-the more fragmented and disjointed we become.

We become so entangled in distorted images that we have created for ourselves we become more and more fragmented. We actually begin to believe the lies we have told ourselves to justify and console our woundedness that we become more and more FALSE. Not only to ourselves but to others. Pope John Paul II said that we can only become who we are meant to be through a "Gift of Self", but how can we do this if we don't even know Who or What we are giving? This leads us to develop a sort of ontological-schizophrenia. Until we understand our human nature, or human condition (as Satre called it) we cannot understand who we are. You cannot give what you do not have-how can you be a Gift of Self if you don't know who you are?

We develop so may false identities for ourselves that we no longer know who we are and some cannot even recognise themselves when confronted with the mirror of reality. How many of us think that we are nice, happy, patient or good people only to respond to confrontation with a barrage of rage and fury? This is because our actions don't conform with the Image we have created for ourselves. This fragmentation can lead to an identity crisis. At the end of the day who are we really? Does the Image we have made for ourselves conform with the Likeness of who we really are or have become? We can get so lost in the the tiny little shards and fragments of our personalit(y/ies) that it can seem hopeless.

Be not Afraid! There is Hope, for salvation is at hand in the Person of Jesus Christ!

We cannot restore ourselves back and start all over again, we cannot piece ourselves together again because our minds (intellect) have become so darkened by sin and lies that we no longer know how to recognise what is true from false within ourselves (authenticity) and the schema (worldview) we have created for ourselves. We need help, we need SALVATION and REDEMPTION.

Jesus is the only one that can save us from all the lies and darkness in our lives. As it says in Psalm 36:9 "in you is the source of life, in your light we see light". He is the one who reveals us to ourselves as we are meant to be. He is Fully Human and Fully Divine. When we unite ourselves with His Humanity, or rather allow him to become one with us then he will raise our fallen humanity and restore our Likeness. He who was a unified whole in the Hypostatic Union, will now restore (unify) us as individuals and then unite us as a Communion in the Church which is the Mystical Body of Christ with Jesus as Head. He will "recapitulate" (St Irenaeus) all of our fragmented and broken lives into a redeemed and recreated unity."May they all be one, just as, Father, you are in me and I am in you, so that they may also be in us.." John 17:21.

This is what I mean by authenticity. It's not pretending to be someone you are not. It's not trying to be someone else. It's not about being pious or looking holy. It's about being YOU! You need to be the person God created you as, nothing more and nothing less. You are unique and loved, because of this you can only discover yourself in Love (Agape). You need to sacrifice your(pseudo)self so that Christ can reveal your true self to you. Matthew 10:39 "anyone who loses his life for my sake will find it". It's not about what we can do for Jesus, instead we need to let Him form us, recreate us and SAVE us. Salvation isn't earned, it is a pure Gift.

Once we can learn to abandon the false idols and Golden Calf of our false self image, then with our pure "naked desire" (Cloud of Unkowing) we will have emptied ourselves enough for God to work his redemption within us. Only then can we receive the revelation and the "Good News" of the God-Who-is (Yahweh) pure Being so that we can experience Him as Salvation in the Person of Jesus (Yehoshua in Hebrew means "Yahweh Saves") and become who we are meant to be in Christ Jesus.

This authenticity requires a "renewal of the mind" Romans 12:2 so that with the "mind of Christ" Philippians 2:5 we can put on the "Helmet of Salvation" Ephesians 6:17 and become truly human. This requires for us an "obedience of faith" Roman 1:5 so that in emptying ourselves of the falseness within us we can be filled with "every spiritual blessing in Christ" Ephesians 1:5 and with the Grace of God become authentically human so that you can be YOU.

Hopefully now you can see why authenticity is so important for me and why i believe so. I often fall short of my own ideals and I am the first one to admit this. However what you see with me is what you get. I try my best to not be someone that I am not. This is me, with all my spectacular faults and failings-but I hope in my vulnerability that you will see me as I am. Not who you want me to be, or who you think that i should be-but me as I am, as God created me and is in the process of redeeming and sanctifying me.

This is why at times I may seem to "raw" or full-on. This is why people see me as being an "irascible hermit", but maybe that is part of a persona I have developed and created over time. Pray for me that the day will come soon when all of us, with our unveiled faces like mirrors reflecting the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the image from glory to glory. (2 Corinthians 3:18) AMEN

St Jerome-pray for us!

As this is my first ever blog post, I feel a little anxious. How much do I want to bare my soul to others?

I hope to use this blog to help share my journey of faith with other fellow pilgrims following the Way, searching for the Truth and seeking the Light