In an historical moment in which the Jewish nation was divided and the high priests were corrupted and Rome ruled it all, Jesus Christ entered our world. He Who created heaven and earth and all that lives there has come to reveal that we were created in His image. We cannot comprehend this mystery but again this year 2020 we seek to penetrate a little more deeply into this mystery of the divine indwelling. Our consideration will study what it means to be created in the Image of God; how do we imitate the One Who called us into being; how His life and love teaches the power of indifference and finally the power of prayer, fasting and almsgiving.
Yes, dear family, each of you is created in the image of God. In this image we are called to discover our likeness to our Father, the Son and the Holy spirit. In the very essence of our being light and love cry out to us and bid us to increase daily in this oneness with God. He has revealed that He is the Light of the world and he has passed this baton onto us to reveal the light of love conquering the darkness of sin. In the image of love we seek to incarnate the Second Person of the holy Trinity in all our thoughts, words and deeds. Love calls into existence and love is the goal of our existence. This is the true image that each of us possesses like a great piece of art in our souls. This image calls us to imitate the love that brought us into life. Imitation is a form of flattery or praise. John the Baptist, Christ’s precursor, came forth in love to prepare souls for the moment Love would come to them. His imitation of our Lord focused upon the need to reject the evil within us and by the baptism of repentance to amend our lives and to seek to do good. Our Lord and John give us the example of how the early Christians learned how to behave: imitation of other holy souls. St. Paul calls the Christian to follow his life and we also ought to be able to ask others to follow us as we imitate the Master and His saints.
Once we begin to imitate the life of Christ and the saints our love and image of Christ develops in such a way that we become indifferent to whatever takes place for “all things work unto the good for those who love God.” How true this is! There is nothing that happens by chance; all is ordered for our sanctification if we have the spiritual eyes to see beyond the material order. The spiritual life calls us to interpret everything from the Cross of our Lord Jesus. Our spiritual life is the very meaning we give to the moment we life in view of the Cross. The Cross is the greatest act of indifferent love offered by the God-Man. What seems to be so gruesome and repulsive Jesus embraces for the sake of our souls. This is the true indifference of the spiritual soul that conquers whatever the world throws at it. From this spirit of indifference flows the life of power which sums up the message of Jesus.
Love prays for all; love forgives all and love gives to all whatever they may need. We know this by the actions of prayer, fasting and almsgiving. In prayer “we obtain the divine favor, by fasting we extinguish the concupiscences of the flesh, by almsgiving sins are redeemed (Dan.iv.24); and by all three together, the image of God is renewed in us, provided that we are ever ready in His praise, eager without ceasing for our own purification, and disposed at all times to assist our neighbor.” Pope St. Leo the Great.
These three activities of the spirit lead the soul to the greatest imitation of the son of God. All virtues are contained therein; all life is summed up and all sins are crushed. Let us then conclude our preparation for the Birth of Christ by ordering our prayer life; fasting on special days and sharing our excess wealth with those in need. Under the guidance of our Blessed Mother our rosaries will stimulate our knowledge and encourage our penance. Through her we will find the needs of our neighbor and help to satisfy that need. Let us always remember that we are created in the Image of Love and every saint begotten in Love wishes to share that Love. May your Christmas day and season increase your knowledge and love of God.
In the hearts of Jesus, Mary and Joseph,
Fr. Richard Voigt
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