"The experience of God's love is lived by man as a 'call' to which he must respond...the experience of love we gain through veneration for the pierced side of the Redeemer, safeguards us from the risk of closing in on ourselves, and makes us open to a life lived for others."
Pope Benedict XVI
I have experienced God's love in many different ways since I've become disabled. In fact, I believe that it's led me to realize the importance of being there for others in their suffering and hard times.
I don't view it as an obligation or a hardship to help other people. I see it as a spiritual experience.
It can be hard sometimes to explain to people these words from Pope Benedict XVI because they reflect the actual experience of realizing God's love for us and opening ourselves up to others. It can't be intellectualized. There is no monetary payoff. It is not a tangible thing.
This call that the Pope describes is, sometimes, a quiet whisper. Other times it is a roar.
When I receive an email or a phone call from someone in trouble, I hear this call. I try to respond the best I can. Sometimes the person is in great pain and I hear a roar. Other times, they are reaching out before there is a crisis. I hear a whisper.
I am tempted sometimes to say that I am too busy. I, too, enjoy my leisure time. Americans cherish our "down time" after we put in our work hours. We have almost developed a sense of entitlement to leisure these days.
But, as the Pope says, that can lead to us closing in on ourselves. When we remain open to living for others, we learn that our needs will be met. We can trust that, by doing the will of God in each moment, the spiritual rewards we receive in terms of our inner peace and well being, will far outweigh any momentary pleasure we may get from other activities.
The reality is that there is no man-made object or activity that will give us the experience of love which living God's will does.
When I hear that call and follow it, I am doing it for my sake as well as the sake of others. There is no nobility or largesse in my acts- it is simply the response that I know leads me closer toward living more often in God's loving presence.
1 comment:
That's the paradox - doing for others is really helping ourselves most. I really liked this post.
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