The True Face of Love

The Body of the Dead Christ in the Tomb

To what depths did God go to love us? Look above.

To what depths did God go to save us? Look above.

We sugarcoat the crucifixion. We are all very good at sugarcoating death, but if we are to truly understand the depths of God’s love for us we must look the dead Christ in the face.

Take your time, for his mouth is gaping wide and his eyes are not yet fully closed. His hands show sings of rigor mortis and his face is contorted with pain.

We know this isn’t the end of the story but too often we gloss over the reality of Christ’s crucifixion and death.

If we want to know the ways of God…Look above.

If we want to know how far God went to bring us to himself…Look above.

Don’t gloss over it because it is vile. Gaze into the shattered face of Christ, caress his broken body and touch his green hands and feet.

We cannot begin to fathom the depths of God’s love until we first allow his lifeless eyes to gaze back at us. When we do, we begin to see the depths God plunged himself into so he might recklessly give himself away.

Throw a Wrench

Too much vitriol consumes our world. It’s also consuming a lot of our Church.

Sometimes I feel overwhelmed by the hatred which so easily flows from peoples mouths. It’s exhausting and destructive, regardless of what “side” it comes from.

We so easily vilify anyone or anything that is different from ourselves. It certainly must be lonely up there on our pedestal.

The past few months, years, begs the question…”what the hell is going on?”

I have neither the time, energy, or competence to adequately answer that question but I do know the solution.

We stop. That’s it. We just stop. You would think as adults we know that. You would think as adults we would have learned that infantile behavior is well, stupid and childish. But, I’m wrong. We haven’t.

To LIBERALLY quote St. Benedict, we need to shut up for a moment, go to our rooms, and listen to the only voice that really matters.

If the creator of the universe only spoke one word – Christ – than maybe we should have him on our lips before we ever think of speaking another word again.

Christ calls us to break the cycle of violence. He calls us to throw a wrench into the destructive words and actions we see too often today.

Maybe, just maybe, we should sit in our rooms, turn off the TV, close our mouths, and listen.

It might not seem like much but it is one way we can throw a wrench in the middle of a world which seems to be collapsing in on itself because too many people can’t keep quiet.

On that note, I will take my own advice and end here.

Peace!

A New Journey Begins

The past few months have seen many changes including a recent move. As our world seems to be turned upside down and life seems to bring many struggles, I have found that God is present in ways we cannot begin to comprehend.

Instability seems to be the norm yet we must remember that Christ is the same, “yesterday, today and forever.” We must also remember that stability, a promise we Benedictines make, anchors us in Christ and His Church – 1,500 years of history has shown that Benedictines understand how to ride the waves of uncertainty.

None of us really knows what lies ahead and maybe this is what God is reminding us. Our future is in His hands, not ours. Abandonment to God and his will is really the only way we can keep from getting caught up in the chaos that seems to surround us. That doesn’t mean that anxiety doesn’t creep in but it does help us realize that when we surrender to His will we find new adventures placed in our lives.

I’m not sure where God is leading me at this time, especially since I will most likely be leaving a career in medicine, but I do know that an excitement and peace has come with this new change.

May God lead us all during this time and as St. Benedict says, “may he brings us all together to everlasting life.” (Rule of St. Benedict, Chapter 72)