Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavens, as he chose us in him, before the foundation of the world, to be holy and without blemish before him.
I reminded the Veteran of her white veil, dress and shoes; and of the little white purse with a white rosary she must have carried in her white-gloved hands. It wasn’t so hard to be good in those days. All you had to do was fold your hands, close your eyes and let the church, in the persons of your mother and your aunt, dress you up like a miniature bride. Her face softened as she recalled the innocence of First Communion day.
God has not forgotten the promise of our First Communion Day, nor have we. The Church still uses those white clothes to recall how we shall stand holy and without blemish before him. When we’re baptized we wear white, and when we’re buried they spread a white pall over our casket, recalling Revelations 7: 14:
These are the ones who have survived the time of great distress; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
Our second reading today from Saint Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians celebrates the holiness we receive as both invitation and challenge. Despite the blood, sweat and tears of the journey, we will arrive at the Holy City dressed in white and gleaming like the morning sun.
Ephesians reminds us we were called by God’s initiative, and not because we have earned a special blessing:
In love he destined us for adoption to himself through Jesus Christ, in accord with the favor of his will, for the praise of the glory of his grace that he granted us in the beloved.
Notice that the pronoun us is used only twice in that sentence, but there are five pronouns referring to God. Like a groom who sees his wife as stunningly beautiful – despite whatever she thinks of herself - the Lord will remake us according to his splendid desire for us. On that day we will radiate the purity of God’s grace, and we’ll sing with the Holy Virgin, All generations will call me blessed.
In his wonderful encyclical, Redemptoris Mater, Blessed Pope John Paul II used this song about the Church to reflect on the Virgin Mary. She was blessed in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavens. She fulfills this prophetic word, and shows us that it is both real and attainable.
I am not speaking about you or me but of us, the Church, who hover around Jesus and Mary like planets around a star. The Church is certainly full of dark matter; yet it shines with First Communion innocence throughout the galaxies for the One who accomplishes all things according to the intention of his will, so that we might exist for the praise of his glory.
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I love to write. This blog helps me to meditate on the Word of God, and I hope to make some contribution to our contemplations of God's Mighty Works.
Ordinarily, I write these reflections two or three weeks in advance of their publication. I do not intend to comment on current events.
I understand many people prefer gender-neutral references to "God." I don't disagree with them but find that language impersonal, unappealing and tasteless. When I refer to "God" I think of the One whom Jesus called "Abba" and "Father", and I would not attempt to improve on Jesus' language.
You're welcome to add a thought or raise a question.