Dear St. Rita Families,
Some powerful words from Our Lord in Sunday’s Gospel! He completely turns the values of the world on their heads, and He challenges us to look to things above rather than things below. He encourages those who are suffering, and He warns those who are comfortable. For the Christian who is serious about living his Faith, two takeaways are particularly important. The first is that sin and its influences are present in the world and will be until the end of time. The second is that our Faith carves out a space for us to live in the joy of Heaven, even on this earth.
For the Christian who is striving to live according to the Gospel, there will always be obstacles in this world. The kingdom of the devil is very present in this world, and so we cannot be surprised when evil rears its ugly head. When Good begins to make inroads, evil attacks in whatever way it can. Therefore, we are not afraid, surprised, or demoralized when we face opposition for the good work we are engaged in. Rather, we respond by acknowledging that our suffering in this life is certainly just punishment because of our sins, and we say with the Good Thief, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your Kingdom.” Then, we continue in our mission to live the Gospel, loving God and neighbor. We know that the suffering inflicted upon us by others is a reflection of what they suffer in their hearts constantly, and so we can have compassion on them, even as we suffer because of them.
If the suffering that the Lord permits for us sounds unbearable, then it may be good to reflect on the alternative! At least the suffering of this life has the possibility of ending, but only if we go to Heaven. If we end up in Hell, the suffering doesn’t end, and it will be much, much worse. Acknowledging this truth isn’t about scaring us into being submissive, but it is meant to remind us just how evil we become if we try to fit in with the values of this world. The promises of this world are not from God, and they do not make us godly.
Only God makes us godly – His sons and daughters, in fact. And if we are the family of God, then it makes sense that we live out His family values in our lives here. Thus, when we do live according to the Commandments, the Beatitudes, and the Virtues, we in fact discover real joy, the richness of charity, the satisfaction of peace, and true friendship. These are reflections of the life of Heaven, and God in His Goodness allows us to taste them here, so that we can be encouraged in our journey.
Therefore, wherever you find yourself – rich or poor, with lots of friends or few, happy or sad, full or hungry – I invite you to bring Christ with you. He was the richest man on earth and yet had “nowhere to lay his head” (Mt 8:20). He was the best of friends and was murdered by those He loved. His food was to do the will of His Father (Jn 4:34), and thus He fed us with His Body and Blood. He wept at the death of His friend Lazarus, and He gives us the joy of forgiveness and eternal life.
In Christ,
Fr. Christensen