8th Sunday OT, C February 27, 2022
Fr. Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette
How do we win? Where is our victory? Does not our faith promise victory over evil, sin, and death? The Ukraine crisis, rising secularism, persecution of Christians throughout the world, Covid, cancer, dementia, rising costs, fewer jobs… When you start looking for it, you can stack up quite the list of things going wrong. And we have to be realists. We can’t pretend to not see what it right in front of our eyes, but we do have the choice of what we focus on.
And this is what St. Paul is calling us to do in his letter to the Corinthians. He’s in prison, his followers are relapsing into sin, and the Roman Empire is trying to destroy the Church, but he taunts death itself. “Where, O Death, is your sting? Where, O Death, is your victory?” He sees past the façade of this turmoil to the truth… to the “God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” He reminds us of what that victory looks like. He calls us to live it out.
“When this which is corruptible clothes itself with incorruptibility and this which is mortal clothes itself with immortality.” This is the victory, the promise of the resurrection. We often look at the morality, the challenges, the practical details of our faith, but how often do we stop to consider just what is being promised? How often do you say the creed? Do you realize what we say at the end, that we believe in the resurrection of the dead, the resurrection of the body? Do we really believe that we get our bodies back?
Indeed we do. And they are much grander than what we are now. Notice what I said there, not what we “have,” but what we “are.” You are not a soul with a body. You are a soul and a body. Your body is not a car you drive. You are your body. What you do with your body is what you do and whatever someone does to your body is done to you. When we die, we will be in an incomplete state. The resurrection is necessary because it will bring us back to being fully human, body and soul.
Only, unlike the bodies we are now, the resurrected body will not fail us or hinder us. Paul describes it as powerful, immortal, incorruptible, heavenly, and spiritual. Between Paul’s letter’s and what we see from Jesus’ own resurrected body, the Church has developed a list of four characteristics of the glorified body.
Immortality and incorruptibility are often combined in what we call “impassability.” It means incapable of suffering. We will face no disease, injury, or death. No biological failures. Even being 33 and pretty healthy, I already look forward to no more aches, pains and letdowns from my body. It’s almost hard to imagine.
Powerful and heavenly go towards what we call “subtlety,” which means they will no longer face the limits of space and time. Jesus came through closed doors and would appear in different places almost instantly. We will be able to do the same thing. Whatever the “new heavens and new earth” looks like after the end of time, we’ll be able to travel it with no trouble whatsoever.
The body being “spiritual” lends to the teaching on what we call “agility.” This means our bodies will perfectly reflect and obey our souls. No clumsiness or neurological disorders. We will be able to move our bodies when and how we want every time. Emotions and facial expressions will perfectly match what is actually going on in our souls.
All of this combines in the greatest attribute that we call “clarity.” This is our body’s ability to reflect the glory and beauty of God. Not just a physical attractiveness, but a radiance of joy, peace, and goodness that comes from being like God, free of sin, and perfectly happy.
And we have a foretaste of these attributes even in this life and this body. Miracles and saints manifest a shadow of a reflection of this. Padre Pio’s bilocation is a foreshadowing of all our subtlety and agility. Many, many miracles of healing anticipate the impassibility of the glorified body. And many accounts of meeting a living saint include a description of a strange beauty or radiance despite being physically unimpressive by natural standards. What we see in them partially, we shall enjoy fully… if we cling to the victory won for us by Jesus Christ.
All will be raised from the dead, but only those who die in Christ will be raised in this glorified state. St. Paul urges the Corinthians… urges us to keep our eyes on the prize, to look past the turmoil, remembering that this is not our home. This life is the battleground, the site of the war, but we know the victory is already won. We have only to fight to stay on the winning side.
So, as Paul says, “be firm, steadfast, always fully devoted to the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.” This labor is what Jesus speaks of today, what he has spoken of these past several weeks. We are his disciples and “when fully trained, every disciple will be like his teacher.” So strive to be fully trained.
This is accomplished above all by imitating Christ, which requires us to clearly see who Christ is and what he has done. Catholicism is not a moral program with Jesus as a coach. It is a relationship with Jesus Christ. Our morality is objective and true, but the reason it exists is to remove the beams and speck that stop us from seeing who Jesus is and who we are. Focus not on the sins of others, but on purifying yourself. Correct others only when it is truly a selfless act of love and humility. And if you want to know where you stand, reflect on your words. How you speak reflects your heart. Choose to speak well, to praise God, and your heart will begin to follow.
Finally, how you respond to difficulty is a test of your character. Sirach teaches us that “tribulation is the test of the just.” All those trials I listed at the start, all the problems of your life… they are tribulations, trials, chances to be purified and put your heart, mind, and soul to work. They are opportunities to labor for love. We cannot fix every situation, but we can always choose faith, hope, and love. Labor to make that choice because that labor is rewarded by eternal life, by a body that does not suffer, die, or disobey you… a body that radiates glory and joy unimaginable in this life. Keep at it. And when faced with discouragement, look at the cross and say with St. Paul, “death” and everything that goes with it “is swallowed up in victory.”