Jesus did not hesitate to proclaim the blessedness of those who suffer: “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted … Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven.” This blessedness can only be understood if we admit that human life is not limited to time spent on Earth, but is wholly directed to perfect joy and fullness of life in the hereafter. Earthly suffering, when accepted in love, is like a bitter kernel containing the seed of new life, the treasure of divine glory to be given to us in eternity.
The reality of suffering is ever before our eyes and often in the body, soul, and heart of each of us. Pain has always been a great riddle of human existence. However, ever since Jesus redeemed the world by His passion and death, a new perspective has been opened: through suffering one can grow in self-giving and attain the highest degree of love because of Him who “loved us and gave himself up for us.”
Even if we do not have at our disposal riches and concrete capacities to meet the needs of our neighbours, we cannot feel dispensed from opening our hearts to their necessities and relieving them as far as possible. Remember the widow’s mite. She threw into the treasury of the temple only two small coins, but with them, all her great love, for “she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.” It is, above all, the interior value of the git that counts: the readiness to share everything, the readiness to give oneself. St. Paul writes: “If I give away all my possessions … but do not have love, I gain nothing.”
Sweat and toil, which work necessarily involves in the present condition of the human race, presents everyone with the possibility of sharing lovingly in the work that Christ came to do. This work of salvation came about through suffering and death on a Cross. By enduring the toil of work in union with Christ crucified for us, we collaborate with the Son of God for the redemption of humanity. We show ourselves to be true disciples of Christ by carrying the Cross every day in the activities we are called upon to perform. The Christian finds in human work a small part of the Cross of Christ and accepts it in the same spirit of redemption in which Christ accepted His Cross for us.
The Lord Jesus allowed Himself to be tempted by the evil one in order to show us how we should behave when subjected to temptation. For those who beseech the Father not to be tempted beyond their own strength, being subjected to temptation does not mean that they have sinned. Rather, it is an opportunity for growing in fidelity and consistency through humility and watchfulness.
Fasting is more than mere abstinence from nourishment or material food. Fasting is a symbol, a sign, a serious and stimulating call to accept or to make renunciations. What renunciations? Renunciation of the “ego,” that is, of so many caprices or unhealthy aspirations; renunciation of one’s own defects, of impetuous passion and desires. Fasting is being able to say no, bluntly and firmly, to what is suggested or asked by pride, selfishness, and vice. Fasting is listening listening to one’s own conscience; respecting the good of others; being faithful to God’s holy law.
Food and drink are indispensable for us to live. We must use them, but we may not abuse them. The tradition of abstention from food and drink has as its purpose to introduce into our existence not only the necessary balance but also detachment from what might be defined as a “consumer attitude.” In our times this attitude has become one of the characteristics of civilization, and in particular, of Western civilization.
A contemplative outlook does not give in to discouragement when confronted by those who are sick, suffering, outcast, or at death’s door. Instead, in all these situations it feels challenged to find meaning, and precisely in the face of every person it finds a call to encounter, to dialogue, and for solidarity.
All of us are trying to live a really Christian and evangelical life as Christian “in the world” without being “of the world.” This apostolic life calls for effective openness to our various environments in order to cause the evangelical “leaven” to penetrate them. It involves multiple activities and responsibilities to be assumed in all areas of human life: the family, professions, society, culture, and politics. It is by assuming these responsibilities competently and in deep union with God that we will fulfill our vocations as Christians: that we will sanctify ourselves and sanctify the world.
The deep unity between prayer and action is at the basis of all spiritual renewal, especially among the faithful. Is it at the basis of the great enterprises of evangelization and construction of the world according to God’s plan.
“Lord, teach us to pray.” When, on the slops of the Mount of Olives, the apostles addressed Jesus with these words, they were not asking an ordinary question, but with spontaneous trust, they were expressing one of the deepest needs of the human heart.
In order to recognize who Christ truly is, we should turn with renewed interest to the Bible. In the revealed text it is the Heavenly Father Himself who comes to us in love and who dwells with us, disclosing to us the nature of His only-begotten Son and His plan of salvation for humanity.
Life lived according to the Spirit stirs up every baptized person and requires each to follow and imitate Jesus Christ. We do this by embracing the Beatitudes; in listening and meditating on the Word of God; in conscious and active participation in the liturgical and sacramental life of the Church; in personal prayer; in family or in community; in the hunger and thirst for justice; in the practice of the commandment of love in all circumstances of life; and in service to the brethren, especially to the least, the poor, and the suffering.
There cannot be two parallel lives in the existence of the faithful; on the one hand, our so-called spiritual life, with its values and demands; and on the other, our so-called secular life, that is, life in a family, at work, in social relationships, in the responsibilities of public life, and in culture. Every area of our lives, as different as they are, enters into the plan of God, who desires that these very areas be the places where the love of Christ is revealed and realized for both the glory of the Father and service of others.
It’s not a question of simply knowing what God wants from each of us in the various situations of life. The individual must do what God wants.
