Growth
in the Christ-life gives us an increased awareness of our relationships
with others. That is to say, the true Christian is keenly aware that, to a
great degree, God intends each of us to press on toward maturity in the
spiritual life through proper relationships with our fellow human beings.
Indeed, the Christian imperative reminds us that we are to walk life�s
path not in isolation, but hand in hand with our brothers and sisters of
our human family.
To authentically relate to others, we must be aware of who they really
are. We must be able to penetrate beyond surface appearances, which may or
may not be appealing to us, and contact others in their core existence.
When we are truly in touch with others at the core of their beings, we are
aware of their awesome dignity. We are conscious that these persons are
created and redeemed by God in His overwhelming love for them. Fortified
with this proper awareness, we are then in a position to relate to others
as we should.
In order to be in touch
with the inner self of others, we must be in touch with our own inner
self. This awarenesses, in
turn, is also an awareness that our self is in the image of God, that we
have been divinized in Christ, that we are oriented toward love of God and
neighbor. Here, then, we see the profound interaction between the three
awareness and loves: awareness and love of God, self, and neighbor.
As Christians, consequently, we should have a maturing sense of how our
existence is, in varied ways, profoundly interlinked with the existence of
others. This reality of union with others is not limited to those we
directly meet but includes all members of the human family.
Our relationship with others includes a Christ-like spirit of service.
In rarer moments of heroic reflection, we perhaps have dreamed of
sensational ways through which we may be called to lay down our lives for
our neighbor. For most of us, however, such opportunities will probably
never occur, and this is just as well. Our courage could well be far less
in a real situation than it is in the inflated proportions of dreamlike
musings. Most people perform much better in the less heroic atmosphere of
everyday sameness. Yet each day, so ordinarily similar to both the one
which has preceded and the one which will follow, offers constant
opportunities for the laying down of one's life for others. If these daily
opportunities are less sensational than the more heroic occasions, they
are much more numerous and therefore much more consistently present as
possibilities for serving others.
Dying daily for others means many things. It means curbing those
persistent, selfish tendencies that, if left unchecked, gradually narrow
our vision so that we hardly think of none but ourselves. Dying daily for
others means working at being kind and patient in seemingly little things,
but immensely important in maintaining a spirit of harmony in the pursuit
of human affairs. Dying daily for others means fidelity to our work, even
though this fidelity must be expressed amid temptations such as
discouragement, laziness, and disinterest. Dying daily for our neighbor
means these and many other things, some of which we all share in common,
some of which are peculiar to each person's uniqueness. One of these
common elements is this: dying for others in daily and varied fashion is
an expression of our present concern while at the same time it increases
our capacity for future love.
Jesus, of course, is our great exemplar
regarding the service of others: But Jesus called them to him and said,
�You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and great
ones make their authority over them felt. But it shall not be so among
you. Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant;
whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave. Just so, the Son
of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a
ransom for many� (Mt
20:25-28).
� 2000 Shepherds of
Christ Newsletter, Rev. Edward Carter, S.J., editor. Used with permission.
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2000 issue of