Journey to Sanctity
FOURTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
First Reading: Zep 2:3; 3:12-13
Responsorial Psalm: Ps 146:6-7, 8-9, 9-10
Second Reading: 1 Cor 1:26-31
Gospel: Mt 5:1-12
Theme: Nothingness, Giftedness, Goodness
On this Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time, our readings for today are filled with the Lord's counsel for achieving true human fulfillment through the path of the Beatitudes. The Catechism instructs us that Christ’s Beatitudes "respond to the desire for happiness that God has placed in the human heart." That joy that God has placed in the human heart is ultimately God's vision: seeing God as He is. As St. Thomas Aquinas puts it, "God is happiness by His essence." We found perfection, truth, beauty, goodness, and love in God, and God, who created us, imprinted these longings in our hearts from the beginning. Thus, to attain the beatitudes is to attain happiness and fulfillment by recognizing our nothingness, everyone's giftedness, and God's goodness.
First, we will seek the Lord by recognizing our own nothingness. Zephaniah instructs us in the first reading to seek the Lord, all you humble of the earth, seek justice, and seek humility. Recognizing our nothingness and need for God will assist us in seeking the Lord in our own littleness, even among the people and places you least expect. As Ven. Fulton Sheen puts it, "Divinity is always where one least expects to find it." Why does God want it this way? Because of humility, we are more free to assist those in need whom we have always rejected. We need to seek the Lord in our nothingness to free us from sin and keep us in touch with God. Once we rely on our own strength, we will always fall; it will separate us from God. That's why St. Paul tells us in the second reading, "God chose the foolish of the world to shame the wise, and God chose the weak of the world to shame the strong." We need God for our fulfillment, and in keeping us away from sin will always keep us in a state of happiness, though imperfect, as St. Augustine puts it: "The punishment for sin is sin itself, because if you're separating yourself from God, you're separating yourself from the source of your own happiness." Let us always be dependent on God, who can help us achieve the beatitudes, as we seek the Lord in our own nothingness.
Second, we will seek the Lord in the giftedness of others. The blessedness of being with God is freely given if and only if we are receptive to His grace. Man is naturally good because God created us very good, as Genesis told us. This recognition of our giftedness helps us appreciate the gift of life. Our life is a gift and is held in great importance because of our dignity as brothers and sisters of Christ. It is we who build and sustain the mystical body of Christ, the Church. By the grace of God that He has given us, we can also now build the kingdom of God here on earth, where the presence and the love of God are made real. Thus, man is called to virtuous life. "Man" comes from the Latin word "Vir," which comes from the word "Virtue." The path to the beatitudes is paved with virtues. As we seek the Lord in the giftedness of others, let us thank God with all our hearts for His grace in lifting us up to the path of the beatitudes.
Third, we will seek the Lord by acknowledging the goodness of God. For the eyes of the world, the beatitudes are not seen as something to be highly achieved for, but for the saints, they would see this as the greatest human achievement, as St. Augustine said in his confessions, "To fall in love with God is the greatest romance; to seek him is the greatest adventure; to find him is the greatest human achievement." After all his adventures with the idea of the world and its pleasures, Augustine still longs for a greater pleasure, for a greater happiness, and once he recognizes his own nothingness, he acknowledges God’s goodness, who is ready to forgive him and welcome him. His encounter with the divine became his source of happiness. This is the joy of the saints; in contemplating God, they see the fullness of truth, goodness, and the perfect home to which they can belong. As we seek the Lord in His goodness, let the love that we experience with the Lord be shared with each other.
Therefore, in our nothingness, may we always depend on the Lord. In our giftedness, we may be able to express our sincere gratitude to the Lord, and in His goodness, we may be able to share His love and compassion with each other. We have the Scriptures to fill us up; we have each other's gifts to share; and God gives us his beatitude to satisfy our deepest desires. Let us journey through life in the sanctity of life.
