SOMETHING INSIDE US
“A man is more, much more, than bone and blood
and flesh.” (Paul Horgan)
Paul
Horgan wrote this thought that I would like to share with you today:
A
man is more, much more, than bone and blood and flesh. Blood and meat we treat
alike when we fight in battle, and we give our orders to them and every man is
as useful or not as his neighbor. But when he is hurt or dying or recovering,
or longing for whatever it is he longs for, then -- then there is something
inside him that shows, in ways you cannot put your finger on, and it is the
most true thing about him, and the most important.
These
are our longings, desires, and hopes within each one of us, the deep inner
realities that guide and motivate our days -- the rhythm of life. When we hear
talk of flesh in Scripture, we usually think of it as the human parts of our
bodies, our flesh and bones. St. Paul often puts flesh against spirit in his
letters. By flesh, Paul means "self-centeredness" versus spirit, or
"God-centeredness." Are you and I oriented toward ourselves, or to
the ways of our heavenly Father? If the first option is true for us, then our
physical existence, bodies included, can be a burden to our spirit. If we look
to God our Father, though, before all else, then our material lives become
sacred vessels in God.
Our
Christian creed, which is the profession of our faith in God the Father, Son,
and Holy Spirit, and in the saving power of God, culminates in the proclamation
of the resurrection of the dead on the last day and in life everlasting, as we
read about in today's Gospel when Jesus tells Martha, "I am the
resurrection and the life."
This
is our faith and our hope: "If the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the
dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will give life to
your mortal bodies also through His Spirit which dwells in you" (Rm 8:11).
In
our responsorial psalm today, we acclaim: "Out of the depths God hears our
cry" (130:1). May the resurrection of the Lord be our hope and longing
each day of our lives.