02-21-2014, 10:15 AM
LIVING THE FULLNESS OF LIFE
SCRIPTURE READINGS: JMS 2:14-24,26; 12:19; MK 8:34-9:1
http://www.universalis.com/20140221/mass.htm
Do you find life a real joy or a terrible burden, a drudgery? For many of us, life is really a chore. It is not only one of suffering but often a vain suffering. Why is it that some of us are so negative about life? If we find that we have no life in us and that we wish we don’t have to live on, then it would seem that our faith in Christ is in vain, as St James tells us in the first reading. That kind of faith does us no good and therefore cannot save us as it does not give us fullness of life as promised by the Lord. Hence, this quest for life is important. How can we find life?
What would the fullness of life entail? It means fulfilling our physical, material, emotional, aesthetic and spiritual needs. To live the fullness of life is more than just acquiring wealth, status and power. It means to live a meaningful and purposeful life. Meaning is spelt out in terms of being contributive towards others, especially in love and relationships. Purpose would entail immediate, long term goals and the ultimate goal in life. There is no life, even if we are rich and successful in worldly terms, if there is no love in our lives, when we have no friends and no one whom we can share our love. Life is also not full even if we have good friends, unless we find a purpose for living, now and hereafter. That is why it is necessary that we know our final destiny as well.
The fullness of life is the theme of today’s scripture readings. The purpose of Jesus’ coming is to give us the fullness of life. In the first place, Jesus warns us against trying to find life through the way of the world. Many of us are caught in the rat race of acquiring wealth, money, power and status. Some think that fullness of life is to eat, drink and be merry all the time. Others think that life is to look good, attractive and are obsessed with external beauty and care for their bodies. To think that these will give us happiness is an illusion because we become consumed by what we consume. The warning of Jesus is clear. “What gain, then, is it for a man to win the whole world and ruin his life? And indeed, what can man offer in exchange for his life?” We must not be deluded by the world because what the world can offer is external happiness, not the happiness of the soul. The world might be able to satisfy the body but not the spirit. We are not mere body; we have a soul, a heart, and a mind that desires to be satisfied.
So how can we acquire life? The paradox of life is that life cannot be acquired directly. Life is given to us as we expend that life for others. It is a by-product of something else. Indeed, the more we try to acquire life, the more it escapes us. This is what Christ meant when He said, “For anyone who wants to save his life will lose it; but anyone who loses his life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it.” Life is ours only when we give ourselves away in love and service. If Jesus lived the fullness of life, it was because all through His life, He was a man for others. He lived for God and for His people. Jesus did not live for Himself. He went about doing good, focusing on others’ needs rather than His own. Forgetful of Himself, His own thoughts were the sufferings of His fellowmen. He came to proclaim to them the mercy and unconditional love of His Father, whether by words or deeds. Indeed, those people who are rich and successful know that what gives them the greatest joy are not pleasure and power but service and love, especially to the poor. As a consequence most truly successful people give a great portion of their time and wealth to the development and cause of humanity.
That is why securing life cannot be a goal in itself. The truth is that we have been deceived by the world. We are told from young that we need to have goals in life. Life for many is a whole series of ambitions. Once a goal is reached, another goal is set. And so, we are told first to study hard, get a degree, find a good job, then a good spouse, a big house, a luxurious car, etc. But if we are so busy pursuing the goals of life, we will never be able to enjoy and taste life itself. With that kind of thinking, we will always be anxious to prove ourselves. And like others, we are so caught up with our projects and ambitions that we have no time to really live. If all we do each day is seen as nothing more than a means to achieve some goal, then we can say that life is really difficult and work becomes distasteful.
Consequently, if we want to find life, we must not harbour such ambitions because we only postpone life to live in the future – a future that can never be realized. Within this context, we can understand why Jesus told His disciples that if they want to find life, they must renounce themselves and follow Him. In other words, we must empty ourselves of our goal-orientated thinking so that we can begin to live moment by moment, enjoying and relishing whatever we are doing without being too worried about the future. Only by living as fully as we can in this moment and finding meaning in what we do, especially wasting time in relationships, can it then be said that we already taste the power of the Kingdom in our life, here and now. The happiness of life is to be found in the journey itself, much less at the end. For this reason, heaven is a dynamic experience because no one can totally know God and understand the mystery of God. It is like an abyss that is unfathomable. It is like a relationship. There is so much to unravel and discover even in our best friend or spouse, although we might have known each other for years.
This does not mean that we are called to live aimless lives. Not to be obsessed by the goals we set before us does not mean that we drift through life without purpose and motivation. Such an attitude would be irresponsible and would lead to lethargy, boredom and meaninglessness. Indeed, some of us feel so secure in our iron rice-bowl, whether at work or at home, that we do not feel the need to improve ourselves and our work. We fall into complacency doing the same thing every day, following the same routine, without any enthusiasm or motivation, doing the minimum and haphazardly as well. As a result we live a half-fulfilled and mediocre life. In order to live a fulfilled life, we certainly need some kind of goals, but these must not be taken too seriously. The goals that we set before us are simply means to give us some orientation and direction in life. But happiness is not to be found in the goals themselves. It is the living out of the life in the process that we become truly alive.
What then is this “aimless goal” that can truly give us life? Simply this: to empty ourselves in love and service for others. It is when we forget about ourselves and begin to be other-centered that we find life a real joy. The joy comes in losing ourselves, for when we lose ourselves, we no longer worry about ourselves, since our focus is on others. The joy and meaning of living therefore is found not within ourselves but in living for God and for others. As we empty ourselves for the service of the Church and humanity, we become more human and come to realize that at the end of the day, what we value most is compassion, kindness, charity, love and relationship. Whether we are entrepreneurs, workers, professionals, politicians or religious, it is immaterial. Whether we are happy or not depends on whether we see what we do as being our unique contribution to the building of God’s Kingdom and not just technological advances or economic development, but seeding and growing the gospel values among our fellowmen. When we see our work as a service to humanity, as opposed to it being purely a technical and economic engagement, we will feel empowered because then everything becomes meaningful.
For this reason, St James tells us that life is ours only when faith is worked out in deeds. Faith in God alone is useless unless this faith is lived out in love and charity, for even “the demons have the same belief, and they tremble with fear”. St James says, “Do realise, you senseless man, that faith without good deeds is useless. You surely know that Abraham our father was justified by his deed, because he offered his son Isaac on the altar? There you see it: faith and deeds were working together; his faith became perfect by what he did.” If Abraham lived the fullness of life, it was not simply because He believed in God but because He lived out his beliefs by surrendering his life completely to the Lord, allowing Him to lead him each day to the day when God would fulfill the promises made to him and his descendants.
Living for others and for God, of course requires sacrifice and pain. The psalmist tells us “happy the man who takes delight in the commands of the Lord.” What is this command if not to renounce ourselves and take up our cross and follow after Jesus? This is what Jesus expects of us as His followers. We are called to renounce ourselves and share the burden of Jesus in reaching out to humanity. The irony of Christian life is that we find happiness in pain. The world fights shy of pain, believing that pain and suffering take away life and happiness. But Christian life comes to the fullest when we share in the sufferings of others, doing what we can to alleviate them, for by so doing, we learn how to love and grow in compassion and solidarity with God and our fellowmen. The Christian message remains that it is through the cross that we find fullness of life.
SCRIPTURE READINGS: JMS 2:14-24,26; 12:19; MK 8:34-9:1
http://www.universalis.com/20140221/mass.htm
Do you find life a real joy or a terrible burden, a drudgery? For many of us, life is really a chore. It is not only one of suffering but often a vain suffering. Why is it that some of us are so negative about life? If we find that we have no life in us and that we wish we don’t have to live on, then it would seem that our faith in Christ is in vain, as St James tells us in the first reading. That kind of faith does us no good and therefore cannot save us as it does not give us fullness of life as promised by the Lord. Hence, this quest for life is important. How can we find life?
What would the fullness of life entail? It means fulfilling our physical, material, emotional, aesthetic and spiritual needs. To live the fullness of life is more than just acquiring wealth, status and power. It means to live a meaningful and purposeful life. Meaning is spelt out in terms of being contributive towards others, especially in love and relationships. Purpose would entail immediate, long term goals and the ultimate goal in life. There is no life, even if we are rich and successful in worldly terms, if there is no love in our lives, when we have no friends and no one whom we can share our love. Life is also not full even if we have good friends, unless we find a purpose for living, now and hereafter. That is why it is necessary that we know our final destiny as well.
The fullness of life is the theme of today’s scripture readings. The purpose of Jesus’ coming is to give us the fullness of life. In the first place, Jesus warns us against trying to find life through the way of the world. Many of us are caught in the rat race of acquiring wealth, money, power and status. Some think that fullness of life is to eat, drink and be merry all the time. Others think that life is to look good, attractive and are obsessed with external beauty and care for their bodies. To think that these will give us happiness is an illusion because we become consumed by what we consume. The warning of Jesus is clear. “What gain, then, is it for a man to win the whole world and ruin his life? And indeed, what can man offer in exchange for his life?” We must not be deluded by the world because what the world can offer is external happiness, not the happiness of the soul. The world might be able to satisfy the body but not the spirit. We are not mere body; we have a soul, a heart, and a mind that desires to be satisfied.
So how can we acquire life? The paradox of life is that life cannot be acquired directly. Life is given to us as we expend that life for others. It is a by-product of something else. Indeed, the more we try to acquire life, the more it escapes us. This is what Christ meant when He said, “For anyone who wants to save his life will lose it; but anyone who loses his life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it.” Life is ours only when we give ourselves away in love and service. If Jesus lived the fullness of life, it was because all through His life, He was a man for others. He lived for God and for His people. Jesus did not live for Himself. He went about doing good, focusing on others’ needs rather than His own. Forgetful of Himself, His own thoughts were the sufferings of His fellowmen. He came to proclaim to them the mercy and unconditional love of His Father, whether by words or deeds. Indeed, those people who are rich and successful know that what gives them the greatest joy are not pleasure and power but service and love, especially to the poor. As a consequence most truly successful people give a great portion of their time and wealth to the development and cause of humanity.
That is why securing life cannot be a goal in itself. The truth is that we have been deceived by the world. We are told from young that we need to have goals in life. Life for many is a whole series of ambitions. Once a goal is reached, another goal is set. And so, we are told first to study hard, get a degree, find a good job, then a good spouse, a big house, a luxurious car, etc. But if we are so busy pursuing the goals of life, we will never be able to enjoy and taste life itself. With that kind of thinking, we will always be anxious to prove ourselves. And like others, we are so caught up with our projects and ambitions that we have no time to really live. If all we do each day is seen as nothing more than a means to achieve some goal, then we can say that life is really difficult and work becomes distasteful.
Consequently, if we want to find life, we must not harbour such ambitions because we only postpone life to live in the future – a future that can never be realized. Within this context, we can understand why Jesus told His disciples that if they want to find life, they must renounce themselves and follow Him. In other words, we must empty ourselves of our goal-orientated thinking so that we can begin to live moment by moment, enjoying and relishing whatever we are doing without being too worried about the future. Only by living as fully as we can in this moment and finding meaning in what we do, especially wasting time in relationships, can it then be said that we already taste the power of the Kingdom in our life, here and now. The happiness of life is to be found in the journey itself, much less at the end. For this reason, heaven is a dynamic experience because no one can totally know God and understand the mystery of God. It is like an abyss that is unfathomable. It is like a relationship. There is so much to unravel and discover even in our best friend or spouse, although we might have known each other for years.
This does not mean that we are called to live aimless lives. Not to be obsessed by the goals we set before us does not mean that we drift through life without purpose and motivation. Such an attitude would be irresponsible and would lead to lethargy, boredom and meaninglessness. Indeed, some of us feel so secure in our iron rice-bowl, whether at work or at home, that we do not feel the need to improve ourselves and our work. We fall into complacency doing the same thing every day, following the same routine, without any enthusiasm or motivation, doing the minimum and haphazardly as well. As a result we live a half-fulfilled and mediocre life. In order to live a fulfilled life, we certainly need some kind of goals, but these must not be taken too seriously. The goals that we set before us are simply means to give us some orientation and direction in life. But happiness is not to be found in the goals themselves. It is the living out of the life in the process that we become truly alive.
What then is this “aimless goal” that can truly give us life? Simply this: to empty ourselves in love and service for others. It is when we forget about ourselves and begin to be other-centered that we find life a real joy. The joy comes in losing ourselves, for when we lose ourselves, we no longer worry about ourselves, since our focus is on others. The joy and meaning of living therefore is found not within ourselves but in living for God and for others. As we empty ourselves for the service of the Church and humanity, we become more human and come to realize that at the end of the day, what we value most is compassion, kindness, charity, love and relationship. Whether we are entrepreneurs, workers, professionals, politicians or religious, it is immaterial. Whether we are happy or not depends on whether we see what we do as being our unique contribution to the building of God’s Kingdom and not just technological advances or economic development, but seeding and growing the gospel values among our fellowmen. When we see our work as a service to humanity, as opposed to it being purely a technical and economic engagement, we will feel empowered because then everything becomes meaningful.
For this reason, St James tells us that life is ours only when faith is worked out in deeds. Faith in God alone is useless unless this faith is lived out in love and charity, for even “the demons have the same belief, and they tremble with fear”. St James says, “Do realise, you senseless man, that faith without good deeds is useless. You surely know that Abraham our father was justified by his deed, because he offered his son Isaac on the altar? There you see it: faith and deeds were working together; his faith became perfect by what he did.” If Abraham lived the fullness of life, it was not simply because He believed in God but because He lived out his beliefs by surrendering his life completely to the Lord, allowing Him to lead him each day to the day when God would fulfill the promises made to him and his descendants.
Living for others and for God, of course requires sacrifice and pain. The psalmist tells us “happy the man who takes delight in the commands of the Lord.” What is this command if not to renounce ourselves and take up our cross and follow after Jesus? This is what Jesus expects of us as His followers. We are called to renounce ourselves and share the burden of Jesus in reaching out to humanity. The irony of Christian life is that we find happiness in pain. The world fights shy of pain, believing that pain and suffering take away life and happiness. But Christian life comes to the fullest when we share in the sufferings of others, doing what we can to alleviate them, for by so doing, we learn how to love and grow in compassion and solidarity with God and our fellowmen. The Christian message remains that it is through the cross that we find fullness of life.