By Antony Christy, SDB –
March 29, 2020: Ezekiel 37:12-14; Romans 8:8-11; John 11:1-45
The signs of life are newness, change, growth, freshness, development, and all of them put together, Transformation. We are called to be People of Life, people who are prepared for a transformation, through sufferings and struggles. This message comes out very strongly in the current context – with the world wide lock down and the so called Social Quarantine! Even apart from this, being people of life is not that easy today, because we live surrounded by a culture of Death.
Death is signified by a state of stand still, a state of no change, a state of decay, a state of giving up, a state of discouragement – if we are going to look at this situation as an isolation, as a punishment, as a terrifying threat to self preservation, we are giving right into that culture of death. The world today is filled with these signs – there seems to be a panic, a self-centered survival instinct unleashed everywhere, a objectifying look that makes everyone other than me a virus out to attack me! Are these signs of a people of life? Can a Christ-ian take this stand towards life?
The Word today invite us to enter into a dialogue proper to the People of Life… because we are children of the God of Life. There is constantly the conflict between the forces of Life and those of death, right before our eyes, in our very own lives, in daily situations and the choices we have to make concretely. If we are people of life, we shall enter into a dialogue of life, being prepared for a transformation. When the Lord promises new life, it does not come out of nothing, not without the process that we have to put ourselves through, not without the struggle, the effort, the self-giving that we need to be prepared for. It is a kind of Spiritual Alchemy that gives rise to a real transformation within. The Lent, and this time of pandemic crisis, is a moment to prepare ourselves for a Transformation.
IN FAITH: God gives us life and constantly renews us. Life is not our making, it is a gift! The more we realise that the more grateful we shall become and the more responsible we would grow in handling it. The first reading, invites us to reflect through Prophet Ezekiel, the gift of Life that is given to us by the very author of life, that is God. I shall give you my Spirit and you shall live, says the Lord.
In faith we have a relationship built between God and us: You shall be my people and I shall be your God…that is the alliance that God has made with us, and is faithful to. You shall be my children and I shall be your father and mother; You shall be my flock and I shall be your shepherd; You shall be my beloved and I shall fill you with my love..says the Lord. Today the Lord promises us amidst all the darkness of the world and the shadow of death, to fill us with God’s Spirit and make us live. As those dry bones, gathered together and stood up to life, so can we rise up in this world as people of life, IN FAITH.
IN HOPE: We are constantly challenged and threatened by the darkness that surrounds us, as the darkness that surrounded Lazarus in the tomb. Just as we are crying out to the Lord, “Lord its been four months the world is grinding through this epidemic crisis,” we see the people there telling Jesus, “Lord it’s been four days since he has been laid there.” Four days…the Jews believed that from the fourth day after death, the process of decay began. The decayed body comes to life, the situation of total hopelessness is brought to life by the Hope of Resurrection.
In hope we need to behold what Jesus declares: I am the Life and Resurrection. In Baptism we are all united to the death of Christ on the Cross, and that gives us the hope of sharing the Resurrection of the Lord. We are called to live as People of life, people who look to the light, people who look up to resurrection, people who are filled with joy and optimism, people who are prepared to be Transformed IN HOPE.
IN LOVE: If we are people of life, it has to be seen in our daily life, in our constant transformation… we cannot live a life that is like anybody else and call ourselves people of life. We cannot grumble and mourn like everyone and call ourselves people of life. We cannot give up and groan like the rest of the world and call ourselves people of life. We cannot panic and get frustrated looking at the suffering, and call ourselves people of life. We cannot look at people as viruses and call ourselves people of life. We cannot become insensitive to the most affected, just because we are also affected, and still call ourselves people of life. We cannot just succumb to sinfulness and evil and still call ourselves people of life.
In love, when we decide to live our lives, as St. Paul makes it clear in the second reading today…we are to live our life in the Spirit, not the life of flesh. Life in the Spirit is filled with light, radiance, joy and above all, Love. The Spirit of the Risen Lord has to fill our life and thus we will be light to the nations, witness of God’s love to the people around, testimonies of the Resurrection that is promised to us and signs of the eternal life that we are called to. The foundation is love…to live a life that is filled with love, love for God who loves us abundantly and love for our brothers and sisters, with respect, dignity, sensitivity and solidarity with every child of God. We will stand for, radiate and uphold life as people of life, IN LOVE.
Let us heed the call that the Word gives us today: to be prepared to be transformed into people of life, in faith, in hope and in love. Turning to the God of life in Faith, returning to the Life and Resurrection that is Jesus Christ in Hope and transforming ourselves to live these moments of trial in the Spirit, in true Love. Let these moments, not be moments of mere isolation or alienation; let these be moments of true internal and communitarian transformation.
Fr Antony Christy is a Salesian Priest from 2005, who has a Masters in Philosophy (specialisation in Religion) and a Masters in Theology (Specialisation in Catechetics). He is currently pursuing his doctoral research in Theology at Salesian Pontifical University, Rome. Walking with the Young towards a World of Peace and Dialogue is the passion that fires him.