Generosity and prodigality

WE have to learn to distinguish between the two since both

can look the same and can involve more or less the same amount of

money, time, effort, etc. Generosity is, of course, not prodigality,

though it is never sparing of the resources that may be needed to

pursue a real good.

   

            Prodigality is simply a matter of wastefulness, oftentimes

of the thoughtless and selfish kind, as dramatized in that parable of

the prodigal son. (cfr. Lk 15,11-32) It is an irresponsible way of

using one’s resources, endowments and blessings that are made to

respond simply to one’s whims and caprices.

  

            To be able to distinguish between the two, we have to

develop the attitude, habit and skill of referring the use of things

to God. As to how to do it, some ideas that can help us are the

following:

  

-      To often ask ourselves what God wants us to do with our resources;

-      To consult the social teachings of the Church that can give us

clear ideas about how our attitude should be toward the material and

temporal things we have, like our business, etc.

-      To practice many works of mercy, both of the material and

spiritual kinds;

-      To take active initiative in carrying out ambitious projects

to help the poor, the marginalized, those in the peripheries, etc.

  

            It’s always good that whatever service we do for others,

we should be as generous as possible without spoiling them, and

whatever attention we give to ourselves, we should try to be as

sparing as possible without, of course, harming us or jeopardizing our

health, etc.

  

            Pertinent to this point, Christ said: “Give, and it will

be given to you. They will pour into your lap a good measure, pressed

down, shaken together, and running over. For by your standard of

measure it will be measured to you in return.” (Lk 6,38)

  

            In other words, the more we give, the more we actually

will receive. Christ promised as much when he said: “Everyone who has

left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or

children of fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much

and will inherit eternal life.” (Mt 19,29)

  

            In another occasion, Christ also said: “Whoever has will

be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have,

even what they have will be taken from them.” (Mt 13,12) It is clear

that Christ wants us to be generous and not sparing in our love for

God and service for the others.

  

            We have to be wary of the strong influence of today’s

temper that encourages everyone, especially the young ones, to be

self-centered and self-absorbed. It’s an evil spirit that tempts

people to be wasteful of what they have just to satisfy not their

needs but their wants, their whims and caprices. It’s a spirit that

traps them in the logic of the flesh and of the world.

  

            We have to find ways of how to overcome this predicament.

That is why Christ told us clearly that we practice self-denial and

all forms of sacrifice. These practices are not meant to demean or

debase us, but rather to free us from the many snares of the devil

that are thrown on us everyday, so we can affirm our true dignity as

children of God.

   

            We need to teach everyone to practice generosity while

avoiding prodigality. We have to learn how to be big-hearted in our

love for God and others, unafraid of the cost and effort that may be

involved.

   

            We also have to know how to combat prodigality that can

now trap us in very subtle if not strongly attractive and irresistible

ways. We have to learn how to deal with the waves of materialism,

commercialism, egoism, and all forms of addiction, that surely lead us

to be wasteful and prodigal of our resources, talents and endowments.

Love above all

OF course, after the elections we can expect feelings of

highs and lows among us. The winners and their followers

understandably are joyful. And just as understandably also, the losers

and their followers are in some of kind of mourning mode. Let’s just

leave it at that.

  

            But let’s always remember that we are all brothers and

sisters, children of God. Irrespective of our differences and

conflicts, mistakes and offenses, we are meant to love each other

always. Let’s avoid becoming gloating winners and sore losers, marked

with anger and hatred, depression, resentment, thoughts of revenge and

the like. These actuations are actually inhuman, let alone,

unchristian.

  

            If we truly are Christians, we would know how to love one

another not only in spite of, but also because of our differences and

conflicts. That’s how Christ treats all of us. He came to love

everyone, including those who were against him, those who crucified

him. He at least offered them mercy.

  

            We have to learn from the example of Christ. He is the

“way, the truth and the life” for us. He knows what is to be man. He

knows our strength and weaknesses, and he knows how to handle them. He

is showing us how to deal with our human condition here on earth,

weakened as it is by our sin.

  

            And his example is marked with detachment not only from

his views, from his teachings, but also from his life. Yes, he was

clear and precise about what is right and wrong, what is good and

evil. He was very concerned about the cause of justice and the rule of

law. But in the end it is mercy, the summit of charity, that prevails.

  

            We have to understand that Christ came to save all of us,

and not just a few, the supposedly good ones. Precisely, he paid more

special attention to the ‘lost sheep.’ He went to the extent of

teaching us that we love even our enemies, and he acted out that

teaching by accepting death on the cross. Our relation with one

another should reflect this kind of attitude.

  

            As St. Paul would put it in his Letter to the Romans,

“Love does no wrong to a neighbor. Therefore, love is the fullness of

the law.” (13,10) This does not mean that justice is done away with.

Love always upholds and perfects justice.

   

            It is just that a love-inspired justice is not one where

the mistake of one party is corrected by another mistake by way of a

purely punitive kind of justice. Such kind of justice is not real

justice, the justice that is meant for us, given our dignity as

children of God.

  

            A love-inspired justice also has its punitive aspect, but

of the kind that heals a person of his defect, corrects his mistake

and restores his real dignity as a child of God. It’s not just

punishing a guilty person for the sake of punishing alone.

  

            This love-inspired justice, I am afraid, is not yet known,

much less, lived by a great majority of the people today nor reflected

in our legal and judicial systems. It is the kind of justice that may

appear at first sight as unfair to the innocent party, since he

appears to suffer more than the guilty party.

  

            But this is the example of Christ. This is the kind of

justice Christ is showing us to follow and live. This is how he

resolved the injustice we committed against God. He was made to suffer

and did not complain. He just bore everything, showing us how precious

we are to him.

  

            We need to do some drastic adjustments in our

understanding of justice and charity. It will obviously require the

grace of God, our identification with Christ. It will involve a lot of

effort, willingness to suffer, detachment from the things of this

world and even of our life, magnanimity and a sporting spirit.

Hunger and thirst for God

WE need to see to it that we develop a real hunger and

thirst for God to such an extent that we would really feel the

corresponding urges. Our yearning for God should not just be a

spiritual or intellectual affair.

  

            It has to be felt, like we do when we hunger for food and

thirst for water. It should filter down to our senses that would

involve the corresponding organs of our body. Otherwise, that hunger

and thirst for God will not last long, let alone, something that is of

the abiding kind.

  

            That is why it is good to go through some of the psalms

that vividly express this need. Psalm 62 (63), for example, describes

this need very well. The eleven verses that comprise it articulate how

we should feel toward God. I believe it is worthwhile to go through

that psalm slowly, savoring each word and the reality it expresses.

  

            “You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you / I thirst for

you, my whole being longs for you,” the psalm starts, giving us an

idea of how we should feel in our relationship with God. We have to

look for God with great desire, involving our whole being, and not

just a token. In fact, our greatest desire, our strongest hunger and

thirst should be for God alone. Everything else that we need will come

in the proper order.

  

            “I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods;

with singing lips my mouth will praise you,” it continues, describing

how we ought to feel when we would finally satisfy that hunger and

thirst for God. Again, the satisfaction and sense of fulfillment

should not just be of the spiritual kind. It has to be felt in our

mouth and tongue. Again, unless we feel this satisfaction, our longing

for God would not last long.

  

            “On my bed I remember you; I think of you through the

watches of the night, I sing in the shadow of your wings / I cling to

you; your right hand upholds me.” These verses somehow tell us that

our thoughts, memory and imagination should be filled with the burning

desire to be with God. Otherwise, they will be filled with something

else that definitely would not be proper to us.

  

            The psalm also tells us that there should be a feeling of

confidence and peace that in spite of whatever, we would be in safe

hands. “Those who want to kill me will be destroyed; they will go down

to the depths of the earth,” it says. This feeling of confidence and

peace is important because if our desire for God does not have that

effect, then it cannot be kept for long.

  

            Again, it is good that we go through the words of the

psalms to train especially our human faculties to have the proper

attitude in our relation with God. Otherwise, they will just be at the

mercy of passing sentiments, let alone, deceptive, disordinate and

false feelings and perceptions.

  

            Our relationship with God would be compromised even if we

only manage to give some appearance of piety which many people have

become good at. And nowadays, with all the many alluring distractions,

it is imperative that our relationship with God is really strong. Our

hunger and thirst for God should dominate all the other desires and

yearnings we have in life.

  

            As said earlier, it would be good if we can find ways to

develop a deeply felt hunger and thirst for God. This, for sure, will

not compromise our humanity, our naturalness, etc. On the contrary, it

will purify, enrich and elevate our humanity to the supernatural life

of God that is meant for us.

  

            Yes, we are meant for God. We are nothing when we are not with God!