THE PATH TO FULLNESS OF LIFE


MONDAY, TENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME 

1 Kings 17:1-6; Ps 121; Mt 5:1-12

The Blessed Life for All

It is the will of God, our Creator and Saviour, for us to have fullness of life and wellbeing. Before the original fall, the knowledge of what would cause our nature and individual life to flourish was part of nature’s endowment. Human reason, with the original grace that God granted to our first parents, gave them enough light to know and do the will of God. Human well-being consists in nothing other than knowing and doing the will of God. But deceived by the tempter to choose what was not consistent with divine will for them, they lost the light of grace and wandered in the darkness of sin and evil. The path leading to life of blessedness was lost to them due to the darkness that enslaved the human will, which caused the loss of God’s guiding light or grace. In other words, the human race knew death by the choice of our first parent against the clear forewarning of God. Blinded by sin and enslaved by evil, we lost sight of God and the sacramental nature of creatures. Everything serves the will of God, and He is in each thing according to its nature.

The reception and housing of the word of God open our eyes to see how everything serves the will of God the Father. Understanding the sacramental nature of everything is a foundation for our deeper understanding of the Sacrament of the Eucharist. A handy illustration is the words of the prophet Elijah to Ahab, that God will withhold the rain because of the sins committed by the king and the people. “As the Lord lives, the God of Israel whom I serve, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years except at my order.” The fact that Elijah is a prophet of God means that his utterances were in line with what he received from God. He obeyed God, which is why creatures obeyed his words, which were God’s. During the issuing famine, God provided for the prophet through ravens he ordered to bring food to him. “He did as the Lord had said; he went and stayed in the wadi Cherith, which lies east of Jordan. The ravens brought him bread in the morning and meat in the evening, and he quenched his thirst at the stream.” The communion and authority given to the prophet were for everybody and lost through sin. We were created to have constant and consistent interaction with God and gradually harbour the Holy Spirit of the living God through the knowledge of truth and love for God.

God promised to restore this initial blessedness he prepared for us, which the serpent stole from us and enslaved us in his evil power. He fulfilled his promise in the Incarnation of the Son of God. The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us, meaning that fullness or blessed life is within our reach again. The fullness of life begins once we make an act of faith in the Son of Man. Blessedness begins but will only manifest gradually as we die to our own will and embrace the will of God. Hence, the Lord presents the beatitudes as futuristic blessings. “How happy are the poor in spirit; theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Happy the gentle: they shall have the earth for their heritage. Happy those who mourn: they shall be comforted, etc.” Each of the beatitudes expresses a way of conforming our will to God’s or patterning our lives on that of Jesus Christ. Hence, through the beatitudes, we let the Spirit of God inspire and lead us into action for the kingdom of God and the salvation of souls. Hence, the beatitudes offer us a way to die and live the life of Jesus Christ. So, the Lord added: “Happy are you when people abuse you and persecute you and speak all kinds of calumny against you on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven: this is how they persecuted the prophets before you.” The Eucharist, which is the Sacrament of the Real Presence of the Lord, causes the blessed life in us by making us abound in his grace and communion.

Let us pray: O God, from whom all good things come, grant that we, who call on you in our need, may at your prompting discern what is right, and by your guidance do it. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever.    

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