We have but one life to give; it should include Christ for All

Only one life was the Son of Man given to assume humanity in all of its empty scenarios; yet it was the only way that God could bring sinners to a conclusive existence of redemption. When God created man he already knew the weaknesses that would confront every man and woman since he was already present to an eternal kingdom. It was and theologically is the Incarnation that became the total plan of God’s effort to forgive every sin that was, is, and will be until the end of human activity before the Parousia.

The Church thus confesses that Jesus is inseparably true God and true man. He is truly the Son of God who, without ceasing to be God and Lord, became a man and our brother: “What he was, he remained and what he was not, he assumed,” sings the Roman Liturgy. And the liturgy of St. John Chrysostom proclaims and sings: O only-begotten Son and Word of God, immortal being, you who deigned for our salvation to become incarnate of the Holy Mother of God and ever-virgin Mary, you who without change became man and were crucified, O Christ our God, you who by your death have crushed death, you who are one of the Holy Trinity, glorified with the Father and the Holy Spirit , save us!” (CCC 469).

Let us not become so expectant of forgiveness by God that it becomes an absence of what we need for this graciousness of belief. When we stand before the Cross of total mercy on Calvary, the premise of what is before our eyes cannot become a spectacle that is a closure of a curtain on a stage play. If that leaves an image of the main character coming forward for a curtain call then any of us with that expectation will leave with little or no understanding of what the Son of God just completed. The words of having one life to give is the theme that the Incarnation of Christ was meant to imply.

Too often, if all of us have come to regard it as simply another step towards salvation, it will corrupt the real understanding of God’s eternal plan to eradicate sin and welcome the prodigals among us back home. It certainly will be a challenge to convince doubters that this Good Friday Truth is more than just a stage play that ends in success. The Resurrection is a success that completes the reason for the Incarnation; however it is the Blood shed and the water and blood that the centurion's spear released from the dead body of Jesus Christ. This, according to John, were the symbols of the baptism and the Eucharist of the Last Supper. (Jn 19: 34).

Of all the symbols we may ascertain in much of Sacred Scripture, these two elements stand as truth for the Catholic Church in its belief of the Crucifixion as a sign of total forgiveness in its Sacred Liturgy. Our life in Christ must include the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist as well as our Baptism. These are the living signs of our allegiance to Jesus Christ, our Redeemer!

Ralph B. Hathaway