Putting Christianity into Practice
1. Imagine what the world would be like if the Gospel of Christ were
practised in its entirety everywhere and by everybody. It would not, of
course, become another earthly Paradise, because suffering and death are
the legacy of sin and Our Lord did not remove these when He redeemed us
but made them a necessary element in our purification and spiritual
elevation. Nevertheless, the full practice of Christianity would
transform the world. A little reflection will convince us of this. Men
would love God above all things and their neighbour as themselves. The
sincere and ardent love of God would cause wickedness, brutality and
every kind of immorality to disappear. Love of their neighbour would
make men brothers in reality, so that there would be no more wars nor
threats of conflict. The enormous wealth which is squandered on weapons
of destruction could then be diverted to good works. There would be no
more poverty, because if men loved one another those who had more than
enough would give to those in want. There would be no more prisons,
because there would be no more criminals. There would be no need for a
police force because everyone would do his duty of his own accord. The
reign of love, which is the reign of Jesus Christ, would triumph upon
earth. Excessive wealth and the selfish love of ease and pleasure would
disappear on one hand, while on the other the extreme need of those who
can never be sure of a meal, nor of a roof over their heads, would be
palliated until they had been raised to a standard of living consistent
with the laws of God and with the dignity of men. The love of our
neighbour as ourselves would solve every individual and social problem
in this life. Men would grow into a vast community of brothers devoid of
all barriers of hate, selfishness, and greed. This is not a Utopian
dream, because it is the clear teaching of the Gospel. Jesus did not
preach the impossible. He taught us the standards of the perfect life
which we are all obliged to try and lead.
2. It was something
like this which took place in the early years of the Church, when the
love of God and of their neighbour was a transforming leaven in the
lives of the faithful. “Give that which remains as alms,” Christ has
said, “and behold, all things are clean to you.” (Luke 11:41) This
precept was not, at this time, a dead letter, nor was it interpreted in a
selfish and quibbling manner. It was a lofty reality. “Now the
multitude of the believers were of one heart and one soul,” the Acts of
the Apostles relates, “and not one of them said that anything he
possessed was his own, but they had all things in common... Nor was
there anyone among them in want. For those who owned lands or houses
would sell them and bring the price of what they sold and lay it at the
feet of the apostles, and distribution was made to each, according as
any one had need.” (Acts 4:32-35) This is what it really means to love
one's neighbour. It could not be called Communism, for that is a system
of oppression which violates the laws of nature and the most sacred
rights of humanity, such as the liberty, dignity and faith of the
individual. No, this is Christian charity, the charity which complements
and ennobles justice. Nobody was under any obligation to sell all he
had and give it to the poor (Cf. Acts 5:4), for to do so was not a
command but an evangelical counsel of perfection. (Cf Mt. 19:21)
Everybody believed, however, that he had an obligation to love his
neighbour as if he were himself.
Do you love your neighbour as
yourself? Take a look around you. How many people have no food, whereas
you may have too much? How many have no home, while you have far more
possessions than you need? How many live in squalor, while you may be
surrounded by luxuries? Remember that you are not a sincere Christian,
but only a fraud, if you do not love your neighbour as yourself. It may
be true that this is only a matter of charity, not of strict justice.
But, as St. Alphonsus said, it is much the same thing if a man is damned
for lack of charity as for lack of justice.
Meditate on this with a view to forming generous resolutions.
3. Only the universal practice of Christianity could change the world.
Even after a period of twenty centuries it is true to say that for many
Christians the Gospel is an unexplored book, the principles of which
have yet to be fully realised in their ordinary lives. None of us can
change the world on his own, but each of us can accomplish that part of
the task which depends on himself. Do we really love God whole-heartedly
and above all things? Do we really love our neighbour as ourselves? Let
us examine ourselves earnestly and find out how far we have still to
go. Our love of God may be too feeble and this may be the reason why we
have not achieved spiritual perfection. Our love of our neighbour may
not be as generous as it should be. If this is so, we shall have to
answer for it to God when He pronounces that terrible sentence on those
who have been rejected: “Depart from me, accursed ones, into the
everlasting fire which was prepared for the devil and his angels. For I
was hungry, and you did not give me to eat; I was thirsty and you gave
me no drink, I was a stranger and you did not take me in, naked and you
did not clothe me; sick and in prison, and you did not visit me.” (Mt.
26:41-43) Let us resolve to be charitable and generous to the poor.
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