More About the Easter Season at Work
We've been discussing the idea of keeping some sense or spirit of this Easter Season each day, especially as it applies to our work day. It's now the fourth week of this most holy and glorious Season. So, how are you doing?
Based on last week's themes, even with our minds on our work, we can - and should - continue to long for holiness and desire heaven. The task at hand should not be our one and only consuming focus. Neither should our desire for "success" (whatever that means to you). Certainly not our ambitious plans to acquire more money or a higher, more important position. These earthbound desires tie us down, don't they?
Now, that's not to say the idea of more money, a promotion, starting a successful business aren't legitimate as well as tempting. Isn't that how most of us gauge success, both our own and the relative success of others?
But can we who know the meaning of Easter really settle for only this? The soul with even the slightest Christian sensibility knows it needs and wants something more. Let's see if Father Bernard Wuellner, S.J. can help us get a clearer picture of that "something more":
“The Christian puts to himself one searching question at Easter: Am I risen with Christ? One proof that one is living the risen life of grace is a heart burning with love of Christ and all that belongs to this Friend of our souls. For this must be a feature of the new life of grace, that we have a buoyant interest in Christ and a keen ambition to possess His treasures. If we listen to the Church urging us to live the Christ-life more fully these days, we will spiritually rise from our religious sloth, our moral faults, and our absorption in worldly interests that take the mind and heart away from the risen Lord."
As the picture comes into sharper focus, we see how critically important keeping the Easter Season present and fresh in our daily lives becomes. This is no time to set aside that special time and attention we devoted to our spiritual lives during Lent and get back to "business as usual."
"It would be a pitiable mistake to let the slackening of the Lenten penances become at Easter a signal for a decrease in our daily living for and yearning for Christ. The paschal season ought rather to be a sustained climatic union of our souls with His joy and victories…. The swinging of the mind towards higher things and its flight from the lower may be a critical moment in the development of the interior Christian life."
Okay, let's assume we know that real isn't success isn't gauged by the usual worldly measurements. And, knowing that, we duly direct our hearts and minds to "higher things." So how should this impact our day to day lives?
"As the divine captures our attention and deepens our motives, we begin to get rid of our preferences for bodily comforts, worldly honors, and temporal blessings. These things lose their former importance in our estimation. Earth, after all, is but for a little while; heaven is forever. The means, the goods of time, are far below the end – God – in value. A true rating of the worth of earthly things is sometimes spoken of as contempt for them. Though we need not regard them as wicked or worthless, yet part of the spiritual effort to live with Christ risen must consist in counteracting all those desires that shut spiritual goods out of our lives. Those things which the world, hostile to Christ, our own unreasonable flesh, and the tempting devil, would give us if we but wanted them, must be banished from our choices. We must not let ourselves be overthrown by worldly desires, as was the rich young man who approached our Lord. Love of the pleasures of sense is cockle that chokes the good seed of Christ’s truth in the lives of average sinners. Love of honors in this world pulls other stronger souls away from Christ. All such desires that stand against Christ’s mastery within us must be controlled, starved, and never allowed to compete with our desires for the gifts of Christ.
Which brings us back to the beginning, when we asked, "How are you doing?" Are you there yet? Are you risen with Christ? Maybe not - or maybe not all the way yet? Next time Father Wuellner will show us what we need to do to push ahead, to break out of the constraints of a purely worldly view to the true freedom of the follower of Christ.
Meanwhile, let's make up our minds that this day will be not just another day, but an Easter day. We'll give the boss his due even while knowing who's really the boss - the true Big Boss - and give Him more than His due. Agreed?
Based on last week's themes, even with our minds on our work, we can - and should - continue to long for holiness and desire heaven. The task at hand should not be our one and only consuming focus. Neither should our desire for "success" (whatever that means to you). Certainly not our ambitious plans to acquire more money or a higher, more important position. These earthbound desires tie us down, don't they?
Now, that's not to say the idea of more money, a promotion, starting a successful business aren't legitimate as well as tempting. Isn't that how most of us gauge success, both our own and the relative success of others?
But can we who know the meaning of Easter really settle for only this? The soul with even the slightest Christian sensibility knows it needs and wants something more. Let's see if Father Bernard Wuellner, S.J. can help us get a clearer picture of that "something more":
“The Christian puts to himself one searching question at Easter: Am I risen with Christ? One proof that one is living the risen life of grace is a heart burning with love of Christ and all that belongs to this Friend of our souls. For this must be a feature of the new life of grace, that we have a buoyant interest in Christ and a keen ambition to possess His treasures. If we listen to the Church urging us to live the Christ-life more fully these days, we will spiritually rise from our religious sloth, our moral faults, and our absorption in worldly interests that take the mind and heart away from the risen Lord."
As the picture comes into sharper focus, we see how critically important keeping the Easter Season present and fresh in our daily lives becomes. This is no time to set aside that special time and attention we devoted to our spiritual lives during Lent and get back to "business as usual."
"It would be a pitiable mistake to let the slackening of the Lenten penances become at Easter a signal for a decrease in our daily living for and yearning for Christ. The paschal season ought rather to be a sustained climatic union of our souls with His joy and victories…. The swinging of the mind towards higher things and its flight from the lower may be a critical moment in the development of the interior Christian life."
Okay, let's assume we know that real isn't success isn't gauged by the usual worldly measurements. And, knowing that, we duly direct our hearts and minds to "higher things." So how should this impact our day to day lives?
"As the divine captures our attention and deepens our motives, we begin to get rid of our preferences for bodily comforts, worldly honors, and temporal blessings. These things lose their former importance in our estimation. Earth, after all, is but for a little while; heaven is forever. The means, the goods of time, are far below the end – God – in value. A true rating of the worth of earthly things is sometimes spoken of as contempt for them. Though we need not regard them as wicked or worthless, yet part of the spiritual effort to live with Christ risen must consist in counteracting all those desires that shut spiritual goods out of our lives. Those things which the world, hostile to Christ, our own unreasonable flesh, and the tempting devil, would give us if we but wanted them, must be banished from our choices. We must not let ourselves be overthrown by worldly desires, as was the rich young man who approached our Lord. Love of the pleasures of sense is cockle that chokes the good seed of Christ’s truth in the lives of average sinners. Love of honors in this world pulls other stronger souls away from Christ. All such desires that stand against Christ’s mastery within us must be controlled, starved, and never allowed to compete with our desires for the gifts of Christ.
Which brings us back to the beginning, when we asked, "How are you doing?" Are you there yet? Are you risen with Christ? Maybe not - or maybe not all the way yet? Next time Father Wuellner will show us what we need to do to push ahead, to break out of the constraints of a purely worldly view to the true freedom of the follower of Christ.
Meanwhile, let's make up our minds that this day will be not just another day, but an Easter day. We'll give the boss his due even while knowing who's really the boss - the true Big Boss - and give Him more than His due. Agreed?
Happy Easter!
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