The sacraments, works of charity and mercy and relationship with God are essential
If our goal is to be with Jesus for all eternity, we certainly shouldn’t focus all of our energy on the future. So many Catholics spend their time anticipating heaven without helping the kingdom of God come to earth as it is in heaven. We pray the Lord’s Prayer so many times, but fail to believe what we say as the will of God.
In the midst of this Easter season and the many accounts of the appearances of Jesus to His disciples, He has two basic messages. One is to not be afraid, for the Holy Spirit has been given to us for courage and guidance. The other is to not predict when the end of time will come or anticipate how eternity will look or feel. Jesus tells us that is the responsibility of God and that we should spend our time on this earth living great lives to bring about the presence of Jesus to those we meet.
We prepare ourselves to be able to do that by being nourished in the Eucharist, being forgiven and renewed in the sacrament of reconciliation, in our works of charity and mercy, and in our relationship with God and others. If we spend all of our time thinking about what is going to happen and when or how, we won’t have much energy left to live in this present moment. Living in this present moment with our whole heart, soul, mind and and dedicating it all to God’s glory is the task we’ve been given.
If people are still looking up into the sky to experience the real presence of Jesus, then we are not living the lives that we should live. Jesus should be so present in how we treat each other that no one should have to look to the sky to find Him. Are we seeking forgiveness and reconciliation among our family members, friends, strangers and enemies? Are we allowing fear to determine how we live our lives? Are we so afraid of the future that we have given up hope in the present moment? Have we allowed our consciences to be formed by the morality taught to us by Jesus, or do we allow civil authorities to determine our morality? Do we believe that the will of God is still in force? It is the will of God that no one should be lost and that all are one. Do we believe that, and do we work at making that happen every day?
We are making our way toward Pentecost in the liturgical calendar and hopefully we are clearly discerning which gifts of the Holy Spirit to pray for: wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety and awe and wonder in the presence of the Lord. Have we witnessed the real presence of Jesus, here and now, in the person of the sick and suffering, the unhoused, the stranger and alien, the imprisoned and the dying?
The early community of believers in Jesus had to grapple with the expanding community and had to decide who to include or exclude. They followed the example of Jesus and made sure that everyone was included in the community, especially in the daily distribution for the needs of all. Thank God for those today who feed the hungry and clothe the naked. As we experience them and they experience us, we get to see Jesus face to face. Let us build the kingdom of God here on earth as it is in heaven.
