| Wednesday, September 11, 2002 Meditation Luke 6:20-26 Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh. (Luke 6:21)
One year ago today, the World Trade Center in New York was destroyed by terrorists, the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. was struck by an airplane, and another highjacked jet crash landed in a field in western Pennsylvania. In the face of violent hatred and monstrous evil, the world witnessed untold displays of faith and courage as firefighters rushed to the rescue and everyday people reached out to survivors.
Undoubtedly, many opinions will be offered today on the lessons of last September 11. Some will be very insightful and helpful, others will be less so. But whatever the commentators say, whatever the lessons are, one thing is certain: God will never leave us. His love always has the power to cast out fear. It is always capable of freeing us to forgive and to return good for evil.
None of us can escape times of pain, suffering, or sickness. But in the Beatitudes, Jesus offers a way of happiness that transcends whatever grief we may experience. Jesus’ disciples had chosen to leave everything to follow him. Surely they missed their homes and the comfort of the familiar at times. Surely there were times when they suffered over the insults and threats leveled at them and their master. But Jesus promised that the experience of sharing in God’s life would far surpass and make up for any suffering involved in following him.
This is one of the greatest paradoxes of Christianity. In dying, we find life; in giving, we receive; in forgiving, we are forgiven. Jesus promises that we really can find happiness in the midst of poverty, hunger, mourning—even terrorism. How? By allowing ourselves to be emptied of all that is opposed to God so that we can be filled to overflowing with his divine life.
God wants to give us a peace that surpasses understanding, a security in him that enables us to forgive and love even when we are attacked. He promises that all who have left the old life behind them, as the disciples did, will be filled with hope. They will know the joy of heaven, even here on earth. And that joy will far outweigh every disaster and trial we will ever know.
“Lord Jesus, you are my hope. Fill my heart—and every heart—with your peace and joy.” |
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