Christ Should Be
Manifest In Our Whole Life
The life of the Christian has three distinguishing
aspects: deeds, words and thought. Thought comes first, then words, since our
words express openly the interior conclusions of the mind. Finally, after
thoughts and words, comes action, for our deeds carry out what the mind has
conceived. So when one of these results in our acting or speaking or thinking,
we must make sure that all our thoughts, words and deeds are controlled by the
divine ideal, the revelation of Christ. For then our thoughts, words and deeds
will not fall short of the nobility of their implications.
What then must we do, we who have been found
worthy of the name of Christ? Each of us must examine his thoughts, words and
deeds, to see whether they are directed toward Christ or are turned away from
him. This examination is carried out in various ways. Our deeds or our thoughts
or our words are not in harmony with Christ if they issue from passion. They
then bear the mark of the enemy who smears the pearl of the heart with the
slime of passion, dimming and even destroying the lustre of the precious stone.
On the other hand, if they are free from and
untainted by every passionate inclination, they are directed toward Christ, the
author and source of peace. He is like a pure, untainted stream. If you draw
from him the thoughts in your mind and the inclinations of your heart, you will
show a likeness to Christ, your source and origin, as the gleaming water in a
jar resembles the flowing water from which it was obtained.
For the purity of Christ and the purity that
is manifest in our hearts are identical. Christ’s purity, however, is the
fountainhead; ours has its source in him and flows out of him. Our life is
stamped with the beauty of his thought. The inner and the outer man are harmonized
in a kind of music. The mind of Christ is the controlling influence that
inspires us to moderation and goodness in our behaviour. As I see it, Christian
perfection consists in this: sharing the titles which express the meaning of
Christ’s name, we bring out this meaning in our minds, our prayers and our way
of life.
Source: The
Liturgy of the Hours – Office of Readings
From a treatise on Christian Perfection by St
Gregory of NyssaPhoto Credit Waiting for the Word
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