Society

“We urgently need to christianize society”. (Saint Josemaria, “The Forge” at 22).

Lamentation (Correggio)

God is calling me to be a good Christian.

I am sure of nothing else, but I am sure of this.

Perhaps I am not a good daughter, sister, wife, mother or friend?  Perhaps I am not good at my work?  Perhaps I am not even very good at being a functioning member of society?  But, what I am sure of is that Christ is calling me – through all these other roles that I play – to play the most important role of all…  The role of a good Christian!

In ancient times – after the death of Christ – the apostles were referred to as Christians by the Romans.  However, this reference was not a compliment.  It was an insult.  This was a way of disdaining the apostles.  The term was used in a derogatory way to imply that the followers of Christ were rationally unhinged or deranged and unreasonable.  Perhaps – in a way – they really were?

After all, when you consider the prevalent philosophy and religions of the time, Christ’s message was so radical!  There was Christ saying this life is not important and the next life is the one to worry about.  There was Christ saying, does not matter if they oppress you – there is great benefit for you in that.  There was Christ saying, the things that we prize here and the people who we admire are not the things or people who are most favoured by God.

There is a lot to consider in those words.  Even today – after twenty centuries of hearing such things and after a Western society – in which I have been raised – being built on the basis of this sort of philosophy, I am still overwhelmed and confounded by these things.  I am still the sort of person who looks at what the celebrities are doing and admires their clothes or shoes or hair.  And there is something to be said for that…  You see, Christ is calling on me – He is calling on you too – to be His disciple, His apostle.  He is calling on us to be CHRISTIANS.  Saint Josemaria explained it in “The Forge” at 22, when he said, “We urgently need to christianize society”.

And I have been thinking about that today.  You see, it takes great courage and stamina to be able to have the faith required to give away the things of this world and accept the things of the next.  To do this truly – as a CHRISTIAN – I need to follow the example of the Blessed Virgin.  Her life on Earth was as difficult as it can be.  She was poor, a migrant, the mother of a wrongfully convicted criminal, a husbandless wife (after the death of Saint Joseph), and a childless mother (after the death of Christ).

She was the victim of great injustice – not only by society as a whole, but through the wrongful conviction and execution of her Son.

Her life on Earth – in the eyes of society was a true disaster…  And yet, she is Queen of Heaven and the MOST Beloved Creation of God.

And I have been thinking about that today, as I have been thinking about society and what we really need in order to Christianize it…

For with prayer, I stand on Holy Ground where everything is clear. Here. At the Foot of the Cross.