Saturday of the Twenty-eighth Week in Ordinary Time
The puzzle that life is, is not always obvious to us, is it? A simple complexity in life can make us sit back and question the meaning of life. Just yesterday, for example, I was called to the Riverside Nursing home in the West side of the city to pray the prayers for the dying. Here lay a man on his deathbed absolutely alone. He had no family or loved one beside him. The very thought of dying alone sends chills down my spine. I took time to pray for him. I just prayed that God might show him the light so that deep in his heart this man would know that he was not alone; that God was with him.
What is the purpose of life? Why are we alive? What is the point of it all, anyway? The letter to the Ephesians answers these questions. Read the following verses from this letter very slowly and reflectively. Paul says, “May the eyes of your hearts be enlightened, that you may know what is the hope that belongs to his call, what are the riches of glory in his inheritance among the holy ones, and what is the surpassing greatness of his power for us who believe….” (Eph 12:18-19).
Paul summarized the purpose and meaning of human life in relation to God. The purpose of life is to “know the hope that belongs to God’s call,” and the meaning of our lives depends on the “surpassing greatness of our faith in Christ.” Our life has meaning only in and through God. So even the man who dies alone… absolutely alone… even that life has a meaning and purpose. His life is hidden in Christ.
This meaning and purpose is accomplished because of the Holy Spirit, who is given to us as a gift. Jesus is very clear in today's gospel reading that sins against the Holy Spirit cannot be forgiven. This is so because, if we blaspheme against the Holy Spirit, then we are rejecting the very power that gives us meaning, purpose, healing, forgiveness, God’s love and presence. If we deny the Holy Spirit, we deny every good that comes from the Spirit which includes forgiveness.
Its time then we sit in quiet reflection for a few moments, and desire the presence of the Holy Spirit in us. Let this desire be intense, as if we are struggling for our last breath. Let our desire for the Holy Spirit be more intense than our desire to live. In this desire may we discover the meaning and purpose of life.
Fr. Satish Joseph