LIVING A FULLY HUMAN LIFE
In the first reading from Exodus, we hear God
speaking to Moses, "Thus shall you say to the children of Israel: The
Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of
Jacob, has sent me to you. This is My name forever; this My title for all
generations" (Ex 3:15). In the Responsorial Psalm we acclaim, "The
Lord remembers His covenant forever" (Ps 105:8a).
God will never abandon us! Even when we think
He is absent, He is still with us. The Eucharist is a sign of that sacred and
profound truth. How much God loves His children!
We believe that salvation has come through the
birth of a Child - Jesus Christ - and that a new era of salvation has opened
for the whole world. God has fulfilled His promise of salvation in a way so tender
and so touching that could not have been envisioned by the prophets of old.
Our salvation has come through the birth of
the eternal Son of God, made human like us in all things but sin. God always
has a great love for His people, but how much more touching it is to experience
this love in the human Heart of Jesus Christ. Living fully a human life, with
all its burdens and difficulties, Jesus says, "Come to me, all who labor
and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn
from Me; for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your
souls. For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light" (Mt 11:28-30).
What does the yoke of Jesus refer to in the
Gospel? The Jews used the image of a yoke to express submission to God. They
spoke of the yoke of the Law, the yoke of the Commandments, the yoke of the
Kingdom, the yoke of God. Jesus says that His yoke is "easy". The
Greek word for "easy" can also mean "well-fitting". We are
invited to put on the "sweet yoke of Jesus" and to live the
"heavenly way of life and happiness". Yes, that is "well
fitting" for us.
Jesus also says His "burden is
light". There's a story of a man who met a boy carrying a smaller crippled
lad on his back. "That's a heavy load you are carrying there,"
exclaimed the man. "He ain't heavy; he's my brother!" responded the
boy. No burden is too heavy when it's given in love and carried in love. Jesus
offers us a New Kingdom of righteousness, peace, and joy. In His Kingdom, sins
are not only forgiven but removed and eternal life is poured out for all its
citizens. This is not a political Kingdom, but a spiritual one.
That is a salvation worth waiting for!