With the end in mind

 IT’S understandable that with the approach of the

celebration of the Solemnity of Christ the King on November 23, the

readings of the Masses these days bring us to consider the end of

time, judgment, heaven and hell.

            The Solemnity of Christ the King marks the end of the

liturgical year. And we would begin another one with the onset of the

season of Advent, the proximate preparation for Christmas, the birth

of Christ, our Redeemer.

            It’s good that we have the mind to consider this reality

so that we would know how to behave in time while we are still here,

doing all sorts of things. The consideration of the so-called “last

things” would give us a global picture of our life that actually spans

even beyond time itself.

            It will help us to distinguish between what is essential

and what is not, what has absolute value and what only has a relative

one, albeit also important. The relativeness of a thing does not

exclusively mean it is unnecessary. It can also be indispensable, but

only relative and subordinated to a higher, absolute value.

            This is not to scare us, but rather to remind us that

there is such a thing as the end of things, whose consequences and

implications we often take for granted or fail to correspond properly.

            In our earthly life, there is always a cycle of beginning

and ending that only shows the transitoriness of our life here on

earth. Let’s hope that we do not get lost or entangled in our earthly

affairs that actually have important bearing on our life after death.

            At the same time, this cycle of beginning and ending

highlights the reality that we actually long for a life that has no

end. We have the desire to leap from the transience of our time here

to the permanence of eternity.

This yearning for an eternal life, which of course can be

ignored and distorted, has basis in the fact that our soul, the

principle of life of any living being, is not merely a plant or animal

soul, but a spiritual soul. It has the capacity to subsist despite the

deterioration and death of our corporeal organism.

            We have to learn how to handle the unavoidable tension

between the here and now and our final end, between time and eternity,

between the relative character of our earthly, temporal life and the

absolute value of our eternal life, between the material and spiritual

dimensions of our life.

            More than handling the tension, our duty is actually to

know how to develop the proper relation between the two dimensions of

our life, since these two are supposed to form just one unity or one

life. There is indeed distinction between the two, but they actually

form just one whole life.

            Obviously in this matter, what should guide us should be

our Christian faith, and not just any science or ideology. It’s our

faith, a very precious gift from God, that gives us a complete picture

of reality. It probes deep into a reality that no human science can

reach, since it tackles mainly the spiritual and even the supernatural

dimensions of our life.

            We should see to it that as soon as we realize this, we

start to form and strengthen our conviction to be guided by our faith,

more than anything else, in dealing with the real purpose of our life

here on earth.

            In the meantime, it would be good that as early as

possible, even at the stage of childhood, everyone should be taught to

be mindful of the end, purpose or objective of anything.

            A child, for example, should be taught that everything has

a reason and a purpose, so that he can easily be weaned from a

mentality and a behavior that is stuck only on what is here and now,

what is simply pleasing to the senses, etc. He can be trained to see

beyond the externals and the incidentals and start to be interested in

the essentials.

            Of course, this has to be done gradually, as in on an

inclined plane, but this should be pursued consistently. An

appropriate structure, like family practices and tradition, social

culture, scholastic formation, should be in place to put the child on

the right track.

            The development of the child should be closely monitored

to see if there is real progress and that whatever deviation is

promptly attended to. He should be taught to wean himself from too

much dependence on feelings, and to start using more of reason and

then the faith.