Old Law and the New Law. We hear about it today, what it means for any man, Jew or Gentile, to accept the Way of Christ. St. Peter answer's St. Paul's query:
And God, who knows the heart, bore witness by granting them the Holy Spirit just as he did us. He made no distinction between us and them, for by faith he purified their hearts. Why, then, are you now putting God to the test by placing on the shoulders of the disciples a yoke that neither our ancestors nor we have been able to bear (Acts 15:8-10)
A 'yolk' is the weight of servitude. Jesus asks us to put down that yolk and take up the challenge he offers, namely the new law of love. While a yolk can constrain the beasts harnessed to it, a yolk also guides the plough and helps man make the Earth productive, feeding more, increasing our bounty. The Catechism of the Catholic Church explains the new law of Christ thus:
The New Law is called a law of love because it makes us act out of the love infused by the Holy Spirit, rather than from fear; a law of grace, because it confers the strength of grace to act, by means of faith and the sacraments; a law of freedom, because it sets us free from the ritual and juridical observances of the Old Law, inclines us to act spontaneously by the prompting of charity and, finally, lets us pass from the condition of a servant who "does not know what his master is doing" to that of a friend of Christ - "For all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you" (CCC 1972)
And why embrace this new law? Jesus tells us directly, "I have told you this so that my joy might be in you and your joy might be complete." (Jn 15:11)
Joy. Is not love joy? Me thinks that many Catholics and other Christians work so hard at 'doing the right thing' that the Way becomes an old yolk, a burden. But we have been invited to share in God's joy through abiding in love together with his Son, walking the Earth among our brothers and knowing what it is to give, to share and to show mercy. Joy. That's a word i like to hear and i can certainly show a lot more of it! Life is joy. Love is joy. God is joy.
Deo gratias.
And God, who knows the heart, bore witness by granting them the Holy Spirit just as he did us. He made no distinction between us and them, for by faith he purified their hearts. Why, then, are you now putting God to the test by placing on the shoulders of the disciples a yoke that neither our ancestors nor we have been able to bear (Acts 15:8-10)
A 'yolk' is the weight of servitude. Jesus asks us to put down that yolk and take up the challenge he offers, namely the new law of love. While a yolk can constrain the beasts harnessed to it, a yolk also guides the plough and helps man make the Earth productive, feeding more, increasing our bounty. The Catechism of the Catholic Church explains the new law of Christ thus:
The New Law is called a law of love because it makes us act out of the love infused by the Holy Spirit, rather than from fear; a law of grace, because it confers the strength of grace to act, by means of faith and the sacraments; a law of freedom, because it sets us free from the ritual and juridical observances of the Old Law, inclines us to act spontaneously by the prompting of charity and, finally, lets us pass from the condition of a servant who "does not know what his master is doing" to that of a friend of Christ - "For all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you" (CCC 1972)
And why embrace this new law? Jesus tells us directly, "I have told you this so that my joy might be in you and your joy might be complete." (Jn 15:11)
Joy. Is not love joy? Me thinks that many Catholics and other Christians work so hard at 'doing the right thing' that the Way becomes an old yolk, a burden. But we have been invited to share in God's joy through abiding in love together with his Son, walking the Earth among our brothers and knowing what it is to give, to share and to show mercy. Joy. That's a word i like to hear and i can certainly show a lot more of it! Life is joy. Love is joy. God is joy.
Deo gratias.
No comments:
Post a Comment