|
People sin when, by yielding to the
temptation of the devil, they willful turn away from God. Can a
person who has turned away from God repair his fault, create
again order out of disorder, make up for his offense and obtain
pardon? He can 'lament what he has done and do penance for it,
but left to himself, all his tears and sighs of sorrow will be
of no avail. It takes two persons to obtain one pardon. The
sinner, says St Thomas Aquinas, is like a man who throws himself
into a deep pit; he is himself the cause of his fall.... but of
himself he cannot get out in the same way as he could threw
himself into it. God alone can blot out his sin by giving him
pardon. No one can claim that without the previous inspiration
of the Holy Spirit and His help, he is able to believe, hope,
love or do penance as he likes. The reconciliation of a sinner
with God must necessarily be the work of two: God and the
sinner.
God's role in reconciliation is very important because the
initiative comes from Him. He must make the first step towards
our reconciliation, by manifesting His will to restore us in His
friendship. God is ready to forgive us; and we must be convinced
of this or else our repentance for sins will not be true
contrition, but merely the remorse of Judas that led to despair:
"when Judas, who had betrayed Christ, saw that He was
condemned, he repented ... saying: "I have sinned by
betraying innocent blood!" Then he went off and hanged
himself (Matt. 27: 3- 5). God showed that he is willing to
forgive us all our offenses by such unmistakable and compelling
proofs that to doubt His mercy would be an offense worse than
our previous sins put together. "God is love, " says
the Apostle John, and "He has displayed His love by sending
His only begotten Son in the world in order that we might love
through Him."(1 Jn.4, 9, 16). The same truth is affirmed by
St Paul when he says: God proves his love towards us because,
while. we were yet sinners, Christ died for us..."(Rom. 5,
8). Our reconciliation, as far as it depends on God is therefore
assured. God is calling you to reconcile with Him through Christ
and in Christ. As true man, Christ could suffer. Being all love,
He generously embraced the mission signified by His very name,
"Thou shalt call His name Jesus; for He shall save His
people from their sins (Mat. 1, 2 1). He is the Lamb of God who
takes away the sins of the world. "He gave Himself up for
us an offering and sacrifice to God (Eph. 5, 2)." St Thomas
says: "One drop of his blood has power to save the whole
world. "Thus Christ satisfied for our sin and merited our
reconciliation. At the same time he became the supreme model:
"Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example to
follow His footsteps. "(1 Pet. 2, 21). Since reconciliation
is the work of two, and God has shown his willingness to accept
us, then our own role is what is left- St Augustine says:
"God who created you without your consent will not save you
without it." By doing this He is respecting our free will
and sense of responsibility and fairness. Since we have been the
cause of the offense, it is just that we should take our share
in the reparation too. Do we not feel prompted to do so? Does
our gratitude towards Christ not urge us to do so? As he died
for each of us, so does He now "call His own by
name"(Jn. 10, 3) to co-operate with Him in their own
redemption.
But in what does your reconciliation consist? It consists in
allowing God to do fully His work in you through Christ. Christ
is our Redeemer, and for His sake God will be merciful to those
who repent and return to Him; hence, you must love God, detest
your sins and to do penance for them. Every sinner builds within
his soul a citadel where he asserts himself and hardens himself
against God and His eternal Law. Before he can go and meet God
again and surrender, the citadel of evil must be ,broken down.
In this way the purity of the soul is restored; for " The
impure cannot love God," says Cardinal Newman, "and
those who are without love of God cannot ,really he pure because
purity prepares the soul for love, and love confirms the soul in
purity Therefore, since you know that God is willing to fulfil
his own part by accepting you back after turning away, do your
own part by co-operating with His grace by returning back to Him
like the prodigal son, because that is what we turn ourselves
into every time we sin.
"The virtue of Chastity does not mean that we are
insensitive to the urge of concupiscence, but that we
subordinate it to reason and the law of grace, by striving
wholeheartedly after what is noblest in human and Christian
life. "
~ Pius XII.- Sancta Virgintas (March 25,1954).
|
|
