Spirit Moments

“But I say unto you,
Love your enemies,
Bless them that curse you,
Do good to them that hate you, and
Pray for them which despitefully use you,
and persecute you.”

Following Jesus often sounds foolish and foolhardy
in the face of the self-serving pragmatism of the world.

And yet, his way seems to me the only way the world can save itself from self-destruction.
The world has never seen so much material goods as in the present times;
and yet there are billions who survive on less than a dollar day.
Who will feed the hungry, clothe the naked and welcome the homeless?
Not the bankers or the brokers in Wall Street for sure;
but those who respond and resonate with the call of Jesus for love and generosity.

There has never been a more interconnected world than the one we live in now;
and yet we are kept apart from one another by so much
anger, hatred, violence and the desire for revenge and retribution.
Who will stop the cycle of violence so that we can live in peace and harmony?
Not world leaders who foment the anger and hatred among their own people:
but those who listen and follow the call of Jesus for love and forgiveness.

There world has never so much material comforts and luxuries as today;
and yet there has never been as pain, anguish and suffering in the world.
Who will ease the pain and bind the wounds to make us whole and holy again?
Not those who wallow in self-centered comfort or unconscionable luxury;
but those who take up their cross daily to live simple lives dedicated to loving and serving others.

Here is the Christ Challenge:
 “If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? 
Are not even the tax collectors doing that? 
And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others?
Do not even pagans do that? 
Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”

Today is officially the end of the Christmas season. We have welcomed the coming of the Child who has brought us goodness and light. Wrapped in swaddling clothes and laid down in a manger. The Word made flesh. The same Word that was in the beginning. The same beginning when God said the words: “Let there be light!” And there was light. We rejoiced at the birth of a child; because the people living in darkness have seen a great light. And on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.

In a few weeks, we shall be entering the Lenten season. We shall be reminded once more that we are the people living in darkness, in the shadow of death. And the Light, the Word made flesh, will once again vanquish death when he sheds the “swaddling clothes” in which they wrapped him and rises from the dead on Easter morning.

Life is not a journey from birth to age nor from the past to the future, but from surface to depth, from darkness to light, from death (or non-existence) to life. A baby in the womb may seem to be in darkness. But it is in fact aglow with the light from whence it came. In the same manner, the Risen Christ is not enveloped by an aura of light; instead, each cell in his risen body is shimmering in light. Light is being emitted by every pore in his body.

And so it is and will be with us. In the end will be a new beginning when we shall also be shimmering in that primeval light when God said, “Let there be light.”