This is a short meditation on what types of things affect both our spiritual lives and others, as well as to show part of the nature of Christian love (agape).
I was sitting on a beach in San Diego, on the night of January 16. I was on a retreat with my church and our priest gave a short talk. Among the topics he touched upon was this.
He said in order to live the Christian life, easy, little things have to be done like taking out the trash, washing the dishes, even smiling.
It makes us think how much it will witness to Christ, as well as to open up others to ask about Him, if we do these simple things. For example if someone is having a bad day and a person smiles to him or her, that person might be uplifted and encouraged for the rest of the day. It might even be that this person is waiting for you specifically to smile to him or her. These are the sort of simple things that bear witness to Christ and His love.
Other things like being a help to others will show this character, like working tirelessly.
Sometimes it is the manner of speech, movement, and behavior that will bear witness to Christ. We always have to remember that we are representing Him to those who are not of the Church as St. Paul says, “we are ambassadors for Christ” (2 Corinthians 5:20). If people see that we cuss all the time, we treat people with contempt, we ignore others for a dumb reason, and behave essentially no different from anybody else, how is then that people can see a difference in us, the difference that comes from Christ? We are the children of the King, and the children of the King don’t live like the rest of the world, there is a distinction between them and the rest of the people. This distinction, Jesus tells us in the Gospel of John where he says, “By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:35).
This distinction will separate us from the world, because the world does not know God, and without knowing God, love (agape) is not realized. This is so because agape is unconditional love, but the world has only tribal love or friendship love. They will not necessarily go help someone who is a stranger to them, and they will not seek justice for all, but only for their relatives or friends, even if they are not just. It is the Christian who looks at humanity as all equal whether they be his family, friends, or even the innocent person who he does not know. So impartiality is part of Christian love.
This last part about impartiality is part of Christian love reminds us to show love to everyone and to love only requires the simple things. Don’t think of getting big gifts or taking great trips, the simple, little things here and now will have more effect overall than those big things and will be remembered by those who receive it.
So remember smile, say hi, greet a person, take out the trash, wash the dishes, and do all similar “little things,” and you will live in the way Christ showed us and commanded us.
Thank God for them.
Glory be to God both now and ever and unto the age of all ages. Amen.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Friday, January 21, 2011
Simplicity
"The LORD preserves the simple; I was brought low, and He saved me." -Psalm 116:6
Without simplicity of heart faith is nearly impossible, and without faith everything else that is Christian is impossible.
Faith is essentially simple because through faith we know that God is and what he wants us to do and how to live in the beauty of God.
We don't need anything else if we have faith, just as we don't need to do any more things than to eat, drink, and breathe to live. So this is the same with the Christian life.
Expanding on the above, it is like when we go to biology class and start learning HOW the body works and HOW it converts food into energy or HOW it maintains itself. These things are interesting but we don't NEED to know them to live, because living itself is way beyond understanding how the body works. So the same is with our faith, even though the Church Fathers wrote many things about God, what they wrote is not LIVING the faith. What is essential to our faith is praying and living in the way Jesus showed us. The rest is the how, not the Way.
Jesus referred to the Kingdom of Heaven of being like the little children that were coming to him, and no doubt little children are simple, therefore we have to be simple in order to get into the Kingdom of Heaven.
Now simplicity does not cause trouble between friends, it doesn't hold grudges for a long time, and is quick to forgive.
A simple person might be bothered by something someone said to him, but after a while, whether shorter or longer, they forgive the person who bothered them and are reconciled with him or her.
Simplicity also doesn't judge. It's only through complication and loss of simplicity that people start changing and entering into sin. Loss of simplicity leads to gossip, judging, malice, lying, hatred, shamefulness, disobedience to parents, hurting others around you, and the rest of the sins.
The Ten Commandments if contemplated upon can be seen to be simple in nature.
In Commandments I-IV, a simple person knows who his God is, and worships Him in Spirit and Truth.
In Commandments V-VIII and X, a simple person is content with life, so he or she doesn't want to disobey parents for anything else's sake, nor to murder, nor to steal, because nothing can be gained with these; with these only loss can come.
In Commandment IX, a simple person loves all unconditionally, not some more than others, this is why one won't bear false witness.
Therefore simplicity's nature causes one to live in virtue. If one tries to lead a complex life, it is hard to live in the Christian way. Simplicity of heart is essential in Christianity because through it faith, hope, love and the rest of the virtues come.
Live in simplicity.
May the grace of Jesus Christ be with us all, and glory be to God both now and ever and unto the age of all ages. Amen.
Without simplicity of heart faith is nearly impossible, and without faith everything else that is Christian is impossible.
Faith is essentially simple because through faith we know that God is and what he wants us to do and how to live in the beauty of God.
We don't need anything else if we have faith, just as we don't need to do any more things than to eat, drink, and breathe to live. So this is the same with the Christian life.
Expanding on the above, it is like when we go to biology class and start learning HOW the body works and HOW it converts food into energy or HOW it maintains itself. These things are interesting but we don't NEED to know them to live, because living itself is way beyond understanding how the body works. So the same is with our faith, even though the Church Fathers wrote many things about God, what they wrote is not LIVING the faith. What is essential to our faith is praying and living in the way Jesus showed us. The rest is the how, not the Way.
Jesus referred to the Kingdom of Heaven of being like the little children that were coming to him, and no doubt little children are simple, therefore we have to be simple in order to get into the Kingdom of Heaven.
Now simplicity does not cause trouble between friends, it doesn't hold grudges for a long time, and is quick to forgive.
A simple person might be bothered by something someone said to him, but after a while, whether shorter or longer, they forgive the person who bothered them and are reconciled with him or her.
Simplicity also doesn't judge. It's only through complication and loss of simplicity that people start changing and entering into sin. Loss of simplicity leads to gossip, judging, malice, lying, hatred, shamefulness, disobedience to parents, hurting others around you, and the rest of the sins.
The Ten Commandments if contemplated upon can be seen to be simple in nature.
In Commandments I-IV, a simple person knows who his God is, and worships Him in Spirit and Truth.
In Commandments V-VIII and X, a simple person is content with life, so he or she doesn't want to disobey parents for anything else's sake, nor to murder, nor to steal, because nothing can be gained with these; with these only loss can come.
In Commandment IX, a simple person loves all unconditionally, not some more than others, this is why one won't bear false witness.
Therefore simplicity's nature causes one to live in virtue. If one tries to lead a complex life, it is hard to live in the Christian way. Simplicity of heart is essential in Christianity because through it faith, hope, love and the rest of the virtues come.
Live in simplicity.
May the grace of Jesus Christ be with us all, and glory be to God both now and ever and unto the age of all ages. Amen.
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Faith
“Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1).
Faith is the gateway to Christianity.
Faith is the first step in the Christian life.
We do not need to know every single detail to believe (as St. Augustine said, “I believe in order to know”), but to trust.
Trust and faith go together.
An analogy would be if I were to tell people about myself and my life story. They would believe me first and through believing then they would know. The reason they would believe is because they trust me therefore faith and trust go together. They are almost inseparable.
Patience and faith go together.
To keep the faith that we start in we must have patience. Patience when something troubles us in the faith, and we wait for an answer from God. The virtues of the Christian way are like a network; when you grow in one virtue, the others grow as well. Faith and patience go together, because without other virtues growing, faith won’t grow as well.
Humility and faith go together.
In Hebrews 11:1, St. Paul the Apostle says, “Faith is the substance of things hoped for.” Substance in Greek (as well as Latin from where we get our English word), means “standing under.” Therefore in order for us to have true faith we must be humble, not focusing on ourselves but on God our hope. We have to submit to God and to our spiritual fathers if we are to continue in the faith of Jesus Christ.
Finally we have to be simple to have faith. There were many great theologians in the past, as well as in the present, who were very studious and they were great apologists and wrote so many things about the Christian way. They studied a lot of theology, a lot of history, a lot of languages, and a lot of many other subjects, yet in the end they came to the realization that ultimately the faith is simple. Also if we are to be worshippers of God in spirit and truth, we have to be simple, as Jesus said, “Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 18:3). Children are simple and believe, therefore we have to be the same according to the words of our Lord Jesus.
Glory be to God both now and ever and unto the age of all ages. Amen.
Faith is the gateway to Christianity.
Faith is the first step in the Christian life.
We do not need to know every single detail to believe (as St. Augustine said, “I believe in order to know”), but to trust.
Trust and faith go together.
An analogy would be if I were to tell people about myself and my life story. They would believe me first and through believing then they would know. The reason they would believe is because they trust me therefore faith and trust go together. They are almost inseparable.
Patience and faith go together.
To keep the faith that we start in we must have patience. Patience when something troubles us in the faith, and we wait for an answer from God. The virtues of the Christian way are like a network; when you grow in one virtue, the others grow as well. Faith and patience go together, because without other virtues growing, faith won’t grow as well.
Humility and faith go together.
In Hebrews 11:1, St. Paul the Apostle says, “Faith is the substance of things hoped for.” Substance in Greek (as well as Latin from where we get our English word), means “standing under.” Therefore in order for us to have true faith we must be humble, not focusing on ourselves but on God our hope. We have to submit to God and to our spiritual fathers if we are to continue in the faith of Jesus Christ.
Finally we have to be simple to have faith. There were many great theologians in the past, as well as in the present, who were very studious and they were great apologists and wrote so many things about the Christian way. They studied a lot of theology, a lot of history, a lot of languages, and a lot of many other subjects, yet in the end they came to the realization that ultimately the faith is simple. Also if we are to be worshippers of God in spirit and truth, we have to be simple, as Jesus said, “Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 18:3). Children are simple and believe, therefore we have to be the same according to the words of our Lord Jesus.
Glory be to God both now and ever and unto the age of all ages. Amen.
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