Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Indifference or hate vs love?
Amidst our search for a parish to settle down for the next year, Carmen and I are trying to balance our need for spiritual care and nourishment with the desire to minister in some way and join the parish that we could most be of benefit to. Apart from that little 'admin'task, I am struck by how Godless this place seems to be. Not evil as I would view some parts of Europe. But Godless in their indifference. That theory to which I have always subscribed on an intellectual level: that the opposite of love is not hate but indifference, will be tested for me here in reality. My gut reaction and this is only a knee jerk reaction, is that perhaps I was wrong. When people are indifferent, at least they can be won over by an event / example of a person's life that shows them or puts into relief the emptiness of their lives. Whereaas hatred on the other hand, creates a wall or more accurately blinds people to truth and hardens the heart. I don't know? It seems such a huge effort is needed to first break down that wall before inner conversion can begin. I don't know if I can choose yet which is the lesser of 2 evils? I only know that God's presence seems to burn more starkly in relief against evil than negelectful indifference. Indifference somehow seems more hopeless in its 'passionlessness.' Not sure?
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The weekly comment in our Parish news letter for the 25th Sunday 2009 is pertinent to our commitment as Christians.
ReplyDelete“I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot, I wish you were either one or the other!" ... Revelation 3:15
A fulfilling relationship can only be experienced when you have surrendered to God totally: when you have cheerfully given Him everything you are and everything you have. it is only through such commitment that the glory, power and beauty of Christ will develop in your life. If you sacrifice anything less to Christ, you limit His influence in your life and you deprive yourself of the reward of true Christian discipleship that can be yours.
One of the tragedies in Christianity is the large number of followers who are completely satisfied with half-hearted commitment to Christ. They love Him, but they are not willing to accept the challenges of that love. They are willing to serve Him, if His demands do not clash with their own plans, or do not require any personal sacrifice. Placing the living Christ first and in the centre of your life means complete surrender to Him. It deserves your highest commitment and best effort. The rewards will be breathtaking.
We pray ... Living Lord and Saviour; I commit myself to You again. Make my faith and love dynamic and alive through Your Holy Spirit. Amen
Yours in Christ
Rodney G
That is a great passage. I remember reading about a guy complaining that modern society in flirting with Christianity, seems to have inoculated itself from it by only taking Christianity in small doses almost like a vaccine so that they do not get fully contaminated.
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