Thursday, December 13, 2007
Death and Advent
There is something about this month of November that urges silent reflection. All of nature is quiet and asleep. The color of life as seen in trees, blooming meadows and fields—is all gone. The landscape is gray and brown—or perhaps even covered in white! Holy Church, always in harmony with God's providence and creation, dedicates this month to praying for the dead. And how can we do so without thinking of our own life—and our own death—which is meant to free us from the bonds of earth and bring us into God's presence forever? Does not St. Francis say in his beautiful prayer, "it is in dying that we are born to eternal life"?The thought of death is not, and must not be, a morbid thing. No. Correctly seen, this life of time, given by God, is only temporary and but the brief, passing trial that must bring us to eternity. Our Lord and His Saints teach us this incessantly.
These are good thoughts to lead us into the liturgical season of Advent. For in this season of penitential, yet joyful anticipation, the Church continues these thoughts, as She presents for our reflection the coming of Christ Our Lord, not only in time, but also at the end of time. So is it not good to think about our own place in God's providential plan, and perhaps to examine our lives to see just how well we are corresponding to that loving plan? And when we do, let us practice that virtue so greatly needed in our time—hope. Remember what hope means? It is good to read the consoling definition of this essential virtue as we read it so long ago in the Catechism of the Catholic Church:
Hope is the virtue by which we firmly trust that God, Who is all-powerful and faithful to His promises, will in His mercy give us eternal happiness and the means to obtain it.
It is an infused theological virtue, received at Baptism together with sanctifying grace and having the possession of God as its primary object. It belongs to the will and makes a person desire eternal life, which is the heavenly vision of God, and gives one the confidence of receiving the grace necessary to reach heaven...
Our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI reminds us of this virtue in his new encyclical Spe Slavi. In the introduction, he explains that "according to the Christian faith, 'redemption' (or salvation) is not simply a given. Redemption is offered to us in the sense that we have been given hope, trustworthy hope, by virtue of which we can face our present: the present, even if it is arduous, can be lived and accepted if it leads towards a goal, if we can be sure of this goal, and if this goal is great enough to justify the effort of the journey. Now the question immediately arises: what sort of hope could ever justify the statement that, on the basis of that hope and simply because it exists, we are redeemed? And what sort of certainty is involved here?"
Faith is Hope. Our Holy Father also reminds us that "before turning our attention to these timely questions, we must listen a little more closely to the Bible's testimony on hope. “Hope”, in fact, is a key word in Biblical faith—so much so that in several passages the words “faith” and “hope” seem interchangeable".
Dear brothers and sisters in Chirst, the Season of Advent is THE season of hope. Hope in the one who was, who is and is to come. Amen.
Labels: Advent, Catechism of the Catholic Church, Death, Hope, Spirituality, Thoughts
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