Our Scriptures this weekend focus on God’s final victory over sin, death, and earthly power. As we bring this liturgical year to a close, it is a natural thing to focus on. Jesus’ High Priesthood is the source of our forgiveness. He is seated at the right hand of the Father because His work is done. It is our job through the decisions we make, the prayers we offer and the sacraments, that feed us strength and grace, to apply His sacrifice to our lives.

I do not know where the current boiled down theology comes from, but it seems many Catholics only focus on God’s love and not His justice. We seem to conveniently forget that He knows our hearts and minds. When we stand before Him, there is no pretext or excuse, just unfiltered truth. Do we live lives that seek to fall more in love with Him, or do we choose ourselves?

There is a great illustration of this in C.S. Lewis’ book “The Great Divorce”. It is a thoughtful exercise in the distance between heaven and hell. C.S. Lewis goes so far as to describe the posture and physical stance of each citizen reflective of the way they lived their lives. The citizen of Heaven stands upright with arms open, the citizen of Hell stooped over with arms closed. Meaning the gift of free will that God has given us can lead us to live for others and God, or ourselves. I think this is a powerful illustration of our responsibility, that in eternity even our posture reflects our choices.

I do not say this to frighten or feign that I am without flaw. Faith is a lived choice. God will judge us, there is no getting around that. How we live our lives, like ripples on a pond, reverberates through our family, friends, world, and history. The question is: whose image do those ripples magnify: that of ourselves or of God?

May the Love, Peace and Grace of God be with you,

Fr. Adam