The\nview that Christianity is all about a list of do’s and dont’s is not uncommon\namong non-Christians, and even some Christians themselves. It is the way I\nperceived it for a long time and a mentality that is hard to uproot completely.\nHowever, today’s Gospel confronts this view and challenges each of us in our\nperception and understanding of what being Christian is all about. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
There\nis no denying that the commandments are central to Christianity. From the time\nthe Law is first given to Moses in Mount Sinai, it is an essential part of\nIsrael’s identity. By its observance, Israel gains God’s blessings and is made\ninto His <\/em>people. Throughout its history, Israel’s identity\nis defined first and foremost by this: that they are God’s people. And it is\nthrough the Law that they come to know Him and His will. Even when God becomes\nincarnate and takes on our humanity, He doesn’t abolish the Law. Instead, He\nsays His only purpose is to fulfill it and in today’s Gospel condenses the\ncommandments to one: love one another as I have loved you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Yet,\ntoday’s Gospel also reveals that the commandments, thought essential, were\nnever an end in themselves. It was never about a blind following of things to\ndo and not to do. Instead, they were always a vehicle, a means, toward the true\nend: right relationship with God. “If you keep my commandments,\nyou will abide in my love.”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Therefore,\nthe commandments and our observance of them are undoubtedly indispensable. But\nit is not a matter of futile and empty legalism. Instead, they are the means by\nwhich we come to know God’s will and, most importantly, come to recognize that\nHis will is good. Allow me to stress this because at the root of that\nlegalistic perception of Christianity is the idea that God’s commandments are\narbitrary and oppressive. The reality, however, is that God’s will for us is good.\nYes, even though sometimes we may find them hard to understand or difficult to\nfollow, His commandments are meant for our good. And this is made manifest all\nthe more in the Gospel, where we see that it is one and the same God who\nenjoins us to follow His commandment and then specifies that this commandment\nis to love as He has loved us: by laying down His life for us. How can we doubt\nthat His will for us is good and founded in love when we contemplate what He\nsuffered for us in His Passion and Cross?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Lastly,\nit is also essential to consider that it is the very experience and recognition\nof such love which should motivate our observance of His will. Eventually, the\ngoal is to come to a place where we follow God’s will not because of some rules\nbut because we have come to know, trust, and experience His love and do not\nwant to reject Him. Ultimately, if I only regard the commandments as something\nI must do, but fail to see the good will and love of the God who gives them to\nme, then they easily become burdensome and heavy to bear. Even though we are\ncoming to the end of this Easter Season, let us take up again our contemplation\nof the Paschal Mystery of our Lord and ponder the depths of His love anew – the\nlove He calls us to abide in by following His commandments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Santiago Torres<\/strong> \u2013 St. Joseph Seminary, Edmonton, Alberta<\/p>\n\n\n\n Fot. Tingey Injury\/Unsplash.com<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" 6th Sunday of Easter<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[8,17,18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2447","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blog","category-strona-glowna-najnowsze","category-strona-glowna-slider"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n