YOU might think this combination is
most odd and strange,
if not impossible. But whether we like or not, it’s a combination that
is proper to us as persons who have to establish good relation with
God and everybody else, and in fact, with everything else in this
world.
It may be hard to pursue, but it is certainly not
impossible. In the first place, we are equipped and enabled to do it,
and on the part of God, our Father and Creator, everything has been
provided so that we can make such combination a living reality.
We need convictions because we have to be firmly rooted on
the truth about us, about others, about God and about everything else.
This need to develop convictions presumes that we have to make a
deliberate act and continue doing it all throughout our life to
conform ourselves to the truth. The truth about ourselves just cannot
come to us without us conforming to it.
But these convictions should not make us closed or
narrow-minded, or rigid and inflexible, as many people understand
convictions to do. Quite the contrary. If our convictions are really
rooted on the truth about God and about us, they would simply make us
open-minded always and flexible, knowing how to have a certain
tolerance to a variety of differences and even conflicts that we
cannot avoid in our life.
The secret is precisely to vitally identify ourselves with
Christ who is God who became man to save us. In Christ, we have the
complete truth about ourselves, about who we are, about what we are
supposed to do in all the possible scenarios of our life, whether good
or bad, big or small, etc.
In Christ, we have the perfect example of how to be open
to anyone and to anything, how to be tolerant of anything, adapting
himself to any human situation, without changing or compromising his
identity.
We cannot get a better model of this combination of
convictions, openness and tolerance than in Christ. In him, not only
did God become man, but we also have a God who adapts himself
completely to our human condition, all the way to making himself like
sin though not committing sin.
That’s what St. Paul said in his Second Letter to the
Corinthians: “For our sake, God made Christ to be sin who knew no sin,
so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (5,21)
Can we think of a better way for one to have this
combination of conviction, openness and tolerance? Here we can see how
Christ, who is truth himself, making himself completely open to
whatever possibility our human condition can produce, and not only
being tolerant but willing to make these possibilities, including our
sinful state, his own.
That is what is signified when he accepted death on the
cross. He assumed all the sinfulness of men in order to conquer it
with his resurrection, and give us the possibility of being saved.
Yes, it is still a possibility, because the actuality of
our salvation would also depend on us, on whether we correspond to his
will and ways which can be summarized in that new commandment he gave
us: “Love one another as I have loved you.” (Jn 13,34)
Of course, this new commandment can also be articulated in
the beatitudes Christ himself gave, and it always presumes, requires
and perfects the old law as articulated in the 10 commandments.
To be truly men and women of convictions, openness and
tolerance, we cannot help but establish a vital, loving relationship
with Christ by praying, studying, meditating and acting on his word
that expresses his will for us, and by receiving him personally
especially in the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist.
This vital, loving relationship with Christ will give rise
to the proper attitudes, understanding, skills and virtues that can be
expected of anyone with convictions, but who also knows how to be open
and tolerant of everyone and of everything.
With this relationship, we would know how to love
everybody, how to be meek and humble, how to empathize and be
compassionate, quick to help and even to assume the burdens of the
others. We would have a universal heart, always finding ways to love
more and more people and in abidingly better ways as the circumstances
would dictate.
With this relationship, we would know how to keep not only
the letter of the law but most importantly the spirit, uphold and
defend not only ideas but persons in their actual conditions, and go
beyond formulas to give the gratuity of God’s love and mercy, as Pope
Francis said.
if not impossible. But whether we like or not, it’s a combination that
is proper to us as persons who have to establish good relation with
God and everybody else, and in fact, with everything else in this
world.
It may be hard to pursue, but it is certainly not
impossible. In the first place, we are equipped and enabled to do it,
and on the part of God, our Father and Creator, everything has been
provided so that we can make such combination a living reality.
We need convictions because we have to be firmly rooted on
the truth about us, about others, about God and about everything else.
This need to develop convictions presumes that we have to make a
deliberate act and continue doing it all throughout our life to
conform ourselves to the truth. The truth about ourselves just cannot
come to us without us conforming to it.
But these convictions should not make us closed or
narrow-minded, or rigid and inflexible, as many people understand
convictions to do. Quite the contrary. If our convictions are really
rooted on the truth about God and about us, they would simply make us
open-minded always and flexible, knowing how to have a certain
tolerance to a variety of differences and even conflicts that we
cannot avoid in our life.
The secret is precisely to vitally identify ourselves with
Christ who is God who became man to save us. In Christ, we have the
complete truth about ourselves, about who we are, about what we are
supposed to do in all the possible scenarios of our life, whether good
or bad, big or small, etc.
In Christ, we have the perfect example of how to be open
to anyone and to anything, how to be tolerant of anything, adapting
himself to any human situation, without changing or compromising his
identity.
We cannot get a better model of this combination of
convictions, openness and tolerance than in Christ. In him, not only
did God become man, but we also have a God who adapts himself
completely to our human condition, all the way to making himself like
sin though not committing sin.
That’s what St. Paul said in his Second Letter to the
Corinthians: “For our sake, God made Christ to be sin who knew no sin,
so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (5,21)
Can we think of a better way for one to have this
combination of conviction, openness and tolerance? Here we can see how
Christ, who is truth himself, making himself completely open to
whatever possibility our human condition can produce, and not only
being tolerant but willing to make these possibilities, including our
sinful state, his own.
That is what is signified when he accepted death on the
cross. He assumed all the sinfulness of men in order to conquer it
with his resurrection, and give us the possibility of being saved.
Yes, it is still a possibility, because the actuality of
our salvation would also depend on us, on whether we correspond to his
will and ways which can be summarized in that new commandment he gave
us: “Love one another as I have loved you.” (Jn 13,34)
Of course, this new commandment can also be articulated in
the beatitudes Christ himself gave, and it always presumes, requires
and perfects the old law as articulated in the 10 commandments.
To be truly men and women of convictions, openness and
tolerance, we cannot help but establish a vital, loving relationship
with Christ by praying, studying, meditating and acting on his word
that expresses his will for us, and by receiving him personally
especially in the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist.
This vital, loving relationship with Christ will give rise
to the proper attitudes, understanding, skills and virtues that can be
expected of anyone with convictions, but who also knows how to be open
and tolerant of everyone and of everything.
With this relationship, we would know how to love
everybody, how to be meek and humble, how to empathize and be
compassionate, quick to help and even to assume the burdens of the
others. We would have a universal heart, always finding ways to love
more and more people and in abidingly better ways as the circumstances
would dictate.
With this relationship, we would know how to keep not only
the letter of the law but most importantly the spirit, uphold and
defend not only ideas but persons in their actual conditions, and go
beyond formulas to give the gratuity of God’s love and mercy, as Pope
Francis said.
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