The Resurrection

                                                 The resurrection of Jesus from the dead and his appearances to the disciples were so unexpected that they could no longer depend solely on their senses. An element of faith was necessary to make sense of what happened right in front of their eyes! If only everything could be so plain as merely to rely on their five senses, the reality of the resurrection of Jesus would have been a mere phenomenon of this world. In reality, however, the resurrection transcended the limits of this world and transformed the human into the divine by the power of God's own Spirit. The essential divinity hidden in the human reality blossomed into the full-fledged human-divine in Jesus Christ. This transformation from the human to the divine is meant to be a fore-runner and an example of our own transformation in life and after death.
                                                Transformation is not something unheard of  in the natural cycle of life in this world. Take the case of a butterfly or a moth that has 4 stages of transformation. Each stage looks completely different and serves a different purpose starting with the egg. The caterpillar (larva) is the second stage and is comparatively long as it is the feeding and growth stage. The third stage called 'the chrysalis' (pupa) is the transformation stage proper getting ready to reach the adult stage of a butterfly or moth, the final fourth stage. Our final stage of transformation is reached in resurrection from the dead at the end of the world to receive reward by the just and punishment by the unjust (John. 5:28-29; Acts, 24:15). Resurrection, being a transformation, is not to be relegated to a world of obscurities as if we couldn't understand it. At the same time, being a historical and trans-historical event, the reality of the resurrection of Jesus Christ should not be entirely based on historical investigations. Faith has an important role in capturing the trans-historical aspect of the resurrection of Jesus Christ and is a further stage of enlightenment.
                                                Since there is enough material in the literature about the veracity of the fact of Jesus' resurrection from the dead, we need not labor the point here. However, certain indications of its reliability from the Bible itself may be noted. St. Paul clarifies the point in 1 Cor.15:3-8. It is based on the facts handed over to him by eyewitnesses of events. This is not against the claim of Paul that he received the message of the Gospel directly from Christ (Gal. 1:12) as it refers to the inner meaning of the facts, which were already publicly proclaimed by the primitive Church. The facts were that Jesus appeared, after his resurrection, not only to the Apostles but also to the 500 of the disciples at once. Although none of them was in a frame of mind to accept the fact of resurrection , an element of faith might have helped them to accept it. However, in the case of Paul himself this was not the case when he was confronted by Jesus on his way to Damascus. At the time he was known as Saul, and was on a mission to persecute the believers in Jesus at Damascus where the glory of the risen Jesus struck him down (Acts, 9:1-9). As a result of this experience , Saul turned out to be Paul, the most ardent missionary of the risen Jesus Christ.
                                             The facts on which Paul based his evidence of the resurrection of Jesus were first orally transmitted before they got recorded in the four Gospels. Since the first written records of the New Testament were the first and second Letters to the Thessalonians (around A.D. 53) and the First Letter to the Corinthians (around A.D..55), Paul got the details about the resurrection of Jesus directly from the existing oral traditions. As the Gospels were written between A.D. 70 and 100 Paul could not have depended on them for his information. Besides, Paul, as Saul, was already in the midst of those events as he was a student in Jerusalem under Gamaliel, a famous teacher of Israel, although his mind was closed at the time to the implications of those events.
                                              All the four Gospels converge on 4 main points:
1. The stone at the entrance to the tomb.
2. The link between the empty tomb tradition and the visit to the tomb of the women on the first day of the
     week.
3. Peter and the other Apostles came to know of the empty tomb from the women.
4. The prominence of Mary Magdalene.
                                              Women were given a central role in announcing the resurrection of Jesus even to Peter and the other Apostles,although they reported only about the empty tomb. However, no one would have believed women's stories, especially in ancient times,and needed to be verified and proclaimed by credible witnesses. Peter and John ran to the tomb on hearing the news and saw and believed.
                                               Jesus first appeared to Mary Magdalene and then to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus. Since Thomas was absent at his first appearance to the Apostles, Jesus appeared again when Thomas was present. The third appearance was near the Sea of Galilee where Peter was appointed to serve his followers. After teaching them about the Kingdom of God for 40 days on his resurrection from the dead, Jesus departed from them in his ascension to the presence of his Father. At last , Jesus appeared to Saul on the road to Damascus and turned him into Paul. The prayer of Jesus to his Father to spare him suffering and death was answered in placing him beyond the possibility of any more suffering and death. Our prayers are answered by God beyond our expectations and so sometimes do not seem to meet our immediate needs.

The Spirit of the World or The Worldly Spirit

                                                       It is the spirit of the world ruthlessly invading our daily life that is harmful to our real welfare and not the world itself. What is the world and its spirit where we cannot avoid the former while the latter should be avoided? St. Paul explains it in his first Letter to the Corinthians, ch. 5, verses 9-13. The believers are expected to shun those among them who are loose livers not those outside the believing community who are loose livers, grabbers and swindlers or idolaters. The reason for this concession to the believers is that otherwise they would have to get out of the world that is not possible. Although both believers and non-believers are living in the world, the former are expected to be guided by the Spirit of God while the latter may be led by the spirit of the world.
                                                      "Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God" (1 Cor. 2:12). God has given us eternal life in Jesus Christ and as a guarantee for the same sealed us with His own Spirit who dwells in our hearts (2 Cor. 1:22). The believers, therefore, are expected to live far removed from the spirit of the world. The Spirit of God in us supplies the antidote to wean us away from the spirit of the world that tries to cling to us as a result of our dealings in the world. The Spirit of God washes us clean from our tendency to be inordinately attached to things and people in the world. When we are detached from the harmful effects of our attachment to the world, we are able to live in the world without worldly spirit. St. Paul brands even our sorrow into healthy or harmful depending on the spirit that rules in us. "For the wound which is borne in God's way brings a change of heart too salutary to regret, but the hurt which is borne in the world's way brings death (2 Cor. 7:10).
                                                     The reason why the sorrow that is borne in God's way is healthy is because of its beneficial effects on the person concerned. It brings a change of heart in the person that helps him or her to renew the entire life taking it to a new and higher level. Such a person defines his or her life in terms of love that transforms the person. Such persons reach a higher level of maturity whereby they become happier and abide in an atmosphere of joy and peace. Just the opposite is the case with persons who bear their hurt or sorrow in the worldly manner leading them to unhappiness. They are worried about the ill consequences they have to suffer and think of only protecting their own selves. Unfortunately, the basic law of life applies to them negatively: " If you cling to your life, you will lose it, and if you let your life go, you will save it" (Luke, 17:33). Obviously, the reference here is to eternal life to gain which we have to moderate our life in the world.
                                                    The same is the reason why Jesus rebuked Peter immediately after praising him for his true faith in the Messiah that was revealed to him by God. " But Jesus turned and told Peter, 'Get behind me Satan! You are an offense to me, because you are not thinking God's thoughts but human thoughts!'" ( Matthew, 16:23). What was Peter's fault to earn so severe a stricture from the one who knew him thoroughly? Peter was ruled by the spirit of the world, put into him by Satan, in presuming to boldly advise Jesus to avoid all suffering and death on the cross predicted by him. Peter unknowingly became a stumbling block in a matter so close to the heart of Jesus that his reaction became swift and vehement. What was the sensitive issue involved? It was the Will of the Father for Jesus to become the sacrificial Lamb for the redemption of the entire Universe! It was not that Jesus was fond of suffering and death as may be seen in his prayer at the Garden of Gathsamene. There he keenly prayed and supplicated his Father to take away the chalice of painful death if it was possible with the proviso that the Father's Will should prevail. Apparently the prayer of Jesus was not heard by his Father and yet really it was heard. (See The Letter to the Hebrews, 5:7). (To see how, go to the next Post on 'The Resurrection').

Self-Transformation

                                                       The purpose of our spiritual life is union with God and this cannot be achieved without a transformation of our very being. How this is to be brought about should be the most pressing and urgent question of our life. God has shown us the way how it should be done through the centuries down from the creation of the world. Until Jesus Christ came on the scene, all the revelations of God through various means were preparations for the ultimate resolution of this problem. Jesus announced the good news of the arrival of God's Kingdom on earth. All of us are invited to co-operate in building up this kingdom the foundation of which has been laid in and by Jesus Christ.
                                                       The very first requirement to enter God's Kingdom is to receive God's life from above to recognize and accept which we are required to turn back from our present ways of life. This is called repentance or conversion from our usual habit of looking outward to the world turning back to ourselves to find there the image and likeness of God in us ( Matthew, 4:17; Gen.1:26). All our actions and reactions in life proceed explicitly or implicitly from the inner powerhouse enshrined in our soul and we are called to make the same process conscious. This is why the wise people from both the East and the West constantly insisted on the maxim: 'Know Thyself'. Without the consciousness of who we are essentially if we start interacting in the world, we are going to be sucked into the whirlwind of the external world where we are likely to be drowned. Reflection and meditation on our essential nature keeping which upfront as our standard-bearer is the sure shot method to live happily and peacefully in this world.
                                                      That we are governed ordinarily by our apparent and false self overshadowing our real and true self is a fact of life. Our body through its five senses merrily goes on interacting with the world forgetting all about the soul that is the source of its energy. Our forgetfulness of the source of our energy results in its dissipation in the objects of the world through false attachment. Since we have to interact in the world for our daily life, it is necessary to transform our life through proper detachment from objects in the world. While our true happiness resides in the soul, we are deceived by the seeming attractions of the objects in the world in thinking that they are the source of our happiness! The result is a nagging sense of dissatisfaction and disappointment with our involvement in the world. If only our involvement in the world, even while enjoying sense pleasures, were with a detached attitude, our original energy of the soul would not have been compromised!    
                                                    Our self-transformation is the sure shot method to achieve this kind of balance needed in our daily life. How shall we attain this self-transformation? St. Paul deals with it in a very palpable manner in his Epistle to the Colossians ch.3, verses 5-17. We must put off what belongs to the earth like fornication, indecency, lust, foul cravings and ruthless greed that is  equal to idolatry. In their place, we must put on the garments that suit God's chosen people like compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Genuine love for one another should be the crowning glory of our life. Since our mind plays a pivotal role in controlling our life, a transformation of our mind is the basic requirement for our self-transformation. As we live in the world, we cannot avoid facing many life-challenges that come our way. We shall encounter the world by keeping the spirit of the world at bay by exercising self-control whereby our mind is taught to keep its balance (See the next Post on'The Spirit of he World').
                                                     This kind of self-transformation is what Jesus wanted from his followers. "Then he called the people to him, as well as his disciples, and said to them, 'Anyone who wishes to be a follower of mine must leave self behind; he must take up his cross, and come with me...'" (Mark, 8:34). It is not for nothing that Jesus demands the fulfillment of these seemingly irksome conditions from his followers. It is the tried and tested method for genuine and perfect happiness for everyone including those who are crushed under the weight of their daily life. "Come to me all whose work is hard, whose load is heavy; and I will give you relief. Bend your necks to my yoke, and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble-hearted; and your souls will find relief. For my yoke is good to bear, my load is light'" (Matthew, 11:28-30).
                                                      

Worshiping God in Spirit and in Truth

                                            "But the time approaches, indeed it is already here, when those who are real worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth" (John, 4:23).
                                             These are words from Jesus in conversation with the Samaritan woman on the religious dispute whether God should be worshiped in Samaria or in Jerusalem. Jesus provides two reasons why real worshipers should worship the Father in spirit and in truth. "Such are the worshipers whom the Father wants. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth" (John 4:23-24).
                                             How should we understand worshiping God in spirit and in truth? As we are composed of body and soul, both of them should find place in our worship. As God is spirit and our soul too is spirit, the communion between the two is of the essence of worshiping in spirit. However, we cannot neglect the external manifestation of worship by using our body to praise and thank God and being related to others. The conformity between the internal and the external is guaranteed by worshiping in truth. Mere rituals and uncommitted words used in prayer to God do not contribute to worshiping in truth. As a clear example of worshiping God in spirit and in truth, let us examine the style of life Jesus led here on earth.
1. Jesus was consumed by the firm determination to do the Will of his Father in heaven. As a consequence, his dealings in the world and his relationship to everyone including Mary, his mother, was secondary because he had to be busy with his Father's concerns (Luke, 2: 49; John, 2: 3-4). Jesus was completely detached from the concerns of this world and yet was ready to take care of the needs of the people around him(John, 2: 3-10). Our involvement in the world with an attitude of detachment, not indifference, is essential for worshiping God in spirit and in truth. (See our Post on 'Detachment').
2 Jesus went to the Jerusalem Temple, especially during festivals, to teach people the ways of God without dissuading them from offering ritual sacrifices. Clearing the Temple of those who turned it into a marketplace was to remind them that it was meant to be a house of prayer (Matthew, 21: 12-13, Mark, 11: 15-17; Luke, 19: 45-46; John, 2: 13-17). Worshiping God in spirit and in truth is reflected in our personal and social attitudes.
3. Jesus overturned every rule that demeaned people upholding, in the process, the dignity of human beings above every other concern. The best example for the same may be seen in the instances when Jesus seemingly violated the Law of Sabbath in order to heal the infirm and help the weak to regain their strength. In matters concerning laws and rules, Jesus set the priority right that was distorted by the authorities by declaring: "He also said to them: 'The Sabbath was made for the sake of man and not man for the Sabbath: therefore the Son of Man is sovereign even over the Sabbath'" (Mark, 2: 27-28). Safeguarding, therefore, the dignity of every human being, demolishing in the process every restriction against it, is the same as worshiping God in spirit and in truth.
4. Jesus was compassionate and his heart went out to people who suffered from indignities, illness, hunger, death of the loved ones etc. Actions out of compassion for people are examples of worshiping God, Who is compassion itself, in spirit and in truth. Jesus did not shy away from the social life of the times and got himself thoroughly involved with the problems of the people.      
                                       Worshiping God in spirit and in truth is the right means to surrender ourselves to the Will of God without, at the same time, compromising on the quality of our life in this world. For how do we pray always even as we are engaged in the activities of daily life? It is done through the spirit of prayer pervading our entire life. What is this spirit of prayer? Besides the usual timings and forms of prayer practiced by us, when our entire life is dedicated to the Will of God  with a clean heart and unattached actions and relations in the world, we have the spirit of prayer. Without seeking our own name and fame for our good works if we offer them up for the glory of God alone, we worship God in the spirit. 
                                       What about worshiping God in truth? It should not be the case that we imagine our worship to be in spirit without any substance in it. Worshiping in truth is the remedy to this sort of malady seen in many cases. It is like checks and balances we exercise on our spiritual authenticity. Hollow and empty sounds produced in certain instances may help us psychologically and yet to benefit spiritually, our rituals, prayers, sacrifices etc. must have a correspondence between the internal and the external. What we express externally should be an outcome of our internal life and in the process we are thoroughly transformed into new people. Actions that follow from a transformed person are infused with spiritual vigor. Whatever is not conducive to our own transformation from the old ways of life to the new ones cannot be counted as woship in spirit and in truth. (See the next Post on 'Self-Transformation).                                    

A Slave of God is really a Free Person

                                                  Jesus said:"No servant can be the slave of two masters; for either he will hate the first and love the second, or he will be devoted to the first and think nothing of the second. You cannot serve God and Money" (Luke, 16:13).        
                                                  The question that might immediately arise in our minds could be: 'How can then we live in this world?' Let us keep in mind that Jesus does not forbid use of money or material things required for our life in this world What is forbidden is serving money instead of God alone serving Whom is the only way to free ourselves from the tyranny of seeming attractions of life. Our heart, that is the center of our personality, tends to be satisfied only with the total dedication of ourselves to the object of our admiration. A slave is branded with the symbol of authority of the master for no other reason than the requirement of full dedication, and in our case we are branded with the very image and likeness of God (Gen. 1:26). What is more, the perfect image and likeness of God in Jesus Christ is in us as the hope of a glory to come (Col. 1: 27). This is so from the very beginning of creation since "All that came to be was alive with his life, and that life was the light of men" (John, 1:4). Thus we are doubly branded by God as His own Whom alone should we serve for our real happiness as the slave of God is really a free person.
                                                 How is this to be understood? Living in the world we are drawn to many things that seem attractive and to different people for various reasons. We are on the wrong path only when we attach ourselves to things and persons in wrong ways. When we are addicted to them and cannot extricate ourselves from their strangleholds, we are on the wrong path. The remedy for this ill is to surrender ourselves to something stronger and all-consuming so that we are masters of ourselves in the world. This is achieved through our self-surrender to God loving Whom whole-heartedly is our primary duty (Deuteronomy, 6:5; Luke,10:27). and is the panacea for total freedom.
                                                  Jesus continues with the reason why we cannot love God and Money at the same time citing from the example of the Pharisees who loved money. "You are the people who impress your fellow-men with your righteousness; but God sees through you; for what sets itself up to be admired by men is detestable in the sight of God" (Luke, 16:15). Righteousness is our right standing before God and that cannot be manufactured by our ingenious ways as it has to come from God alone. Any human attempt to show righteousness without reference to the initiative of God in the matter turns out to be hypocrisy. The reason for this is that the standard set up by God for human righteousness is beyond our scheme of things, which is governed by the pattern of this world.
                                                  How should we surrender ourselves to God whole-heartedly in order to be really free and be permanently happy? Jesus himself gives us the solution to our query by continuing to say: "Until John, it was the Law and the prophets: since then there is the good news of the kingdom of God, and everyone forces his way in" (Luke, 16:16). The Law given through Moses and the prophets was meant to be preparatory for the great initiative of God in inaugurating His Kingdom on earth. The price one has to pay in sharing the joys of this good news is to do violence to oneself just as Jesus did and overcame the world (John, 16:33). This violence is against our undue attachments in the world that distort and veil our fundamental relatedness to God.
                                                  If anyone thinks that as a consequence the Law and the prophets are irrelevant, Jesus has forewarned: "It is easier for heaven and earth to come to an end than for one dot or stroke of the Law to lose its force" (Luke, 16:17). How should we proceed then? How can we combine the demands of the Law and the prophets with the good news of the Kingdom of God? This is achieved through worshiping God in spirit and in truth (John, 4:23). We shall treat this topic in our next post as it needs to be elaborated  a little. It should also help us to see through many of the problems involved in surrendering ourselves fully to God without compromising on the quality of our life in the world.

The Worldly and the Other- Worldly

                                             "For the worldly are more astute than the other-worldly in dealing with their own kind" (Luke, 16:8).
                                              A cunning person is better equipped in dealing with another cunning person, just as a miser knows the trick of the trade in confronting another miser. In the parable of Jesus about the rich man and his steward, we see the master applauding the dishonest steward for acting astutely. The conclusion drawn by Jesus is that the worldly people are more astute in dealing with their own kind, i.e., the worldly people (Luke, 16: 1-8). The other-worldly people, on the other hand, are full of intelligence of a different order that is divine in nature and is foreign to the worldly. This allows them to see God's creativity everywhere and invite Him to re-create one's own life. Jesus recommends use of our wealth for charity so that we may be able to win friends in the other world where our present wealth would be a thing of the past. No wealth or treasure can really be ours when compared to our life that should be really ours. If we are irresponsible by squandering what is really not ours, nobody is expected to give us what is really ours, i.e. eternal life (Luke, 16:9-12).
                                            Even as we live in this world, how can some be other-worldly and others this-worldly? It does not mean that in order to be other-worldly, one has to run away from or cut all relations with the world. It depends on our personal attitude, wherever we are, that makes us other-worldly or this-worldly. Even when a tragedy strikes, it may transform our lives for the better. Brooding over our life can be either for coming out of it stronger and better or for breaking us to shreds! The former manner of brooding over helps us to strengthen our inner life with full vigor to rise up again, whereas the other type drags us into further desperation The difference is between the other-worldly and this-worldly. St. Paul expressed it thus: :"For the wound which is borne in God's way brings a change of heart too salutary to regret; but the hurt which is borne in the world's way brings death" (2 Cor. 7:10).
                                            What is God's way that makes our life other-worldly and the world's way that makes it this-worldly? In a nutshell we may say that all that is related to our soul and its connection to God is God's way and everything that is connected to our body and this world is the world's way. Our primary inclination is to tend to our body and its needs for which we need the resources of this world. As a result, all of us are extroverts, meaning 'turned towards' the world and as it is natural, it is to be accepted as normal. This is in consonance with what St. Paul says: "Observe, the spiritual does not come first; the animal body comes first, and then the spiritual" (1 Cor. 15.46). Of itself, it does not make a person this-worldly provided we are willing to turn back inwards to see the implications of being human that cannot avoid the reality of our soul and its connection to God.
                                          Our usual tendency to blame the situations of life for our failures and failings should not be resorted to as an escape route to avoid our responsibility. For, very often it is due to our failure in attending to the infinite capacity we are endowed with that we encounter disaster! St. Paul warned about adapting ourselves to the pattern of this world instead of renewing our minds and thus transforming our entire nature (Rom. 12:2). The clue lies in the state of our minds and not in the state of affairs in the world, which could also be transformed through the transformation of ourselves.
                                          Our mind has the capacity to transform our lives whereby we become other-worldly even as we are engaged in the daily routines of this world. As long as we take care not to be a slave to anything or anybody other than God, we are free and are other-worldly. Our outlook and views may not tally with those in the world who hold fast to merely worldly values. They are smart in dealing with similar worldly people and we should not have any regrets in being relegated to the background as we have a greater treasure to cherish of which they may be unaware! Other-worldly does not mean that we cannot engage the world, but it means that our engagement with it is capable of transforming it to a new and higher level

Our Wealth does not Give us life

                                                  "A man in the crowd said to him, 'Master, tell my brother to divide the family property with me'. He replied, 'My good man, who set me over you to judge or arbitrate? Then he said to the people, 'Beware!. Be on your guard against greed of every kind, for even when a man has more than enough, his wealth does not give him life'" (Luke, 12: 13-15).
                                                   Life here means eternal life of which our present life is only a beginning and an occasion to promote our true welfare that would never end. However, we are usually overwhelmed by the compulsions of our physical life neglecting the source of our life, the soul. As a result, our whole concern is about improving our material and physical conditions of life ignoring our spiritual life that nourishes the soul. As both body and soul are united in ourselves as a unit, it is important to pay attention to both of them. Jesus reacted the way he did as the man in the episode was totally governed by greed, although his desire to resolve peacefully a dispute of inheritance was praiseworthy. He did not have any idea about the value of real life as exemplified by the parable of the rich man who was actually a pauper in the sight of God (Luke, 12:16-21).
                                                 Who is a pauper in the sight of God? As long as we live in this world of material things, there is a strong tendency to identify ourselves with the things and persons around us. We are drawn to them and are attached to them forgetting that our life has a greater dimension emanating from our soul. Even when we use our five physical senses like sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch, the power that enlivens them comes from our soul. It is the soul that is directly connected to God and getting immersed in material things and values exclusively, weakens or alienates the soul from Him. A weakened soul in the body is a pauper before God, while an alienated one is a sinner. Undue attachment to our body, material things, wealth, persons etc. is that which makes a person a pauper or a sinner before God. The solution to this problem is in true detachment (see our post on this topic) from everything and everybody even as we lead a normal life in the world.
                                                 Jesus went a step further and declared: "The man who loves himself is lost, but he who hates himself in this world will be kept safe for eternal life" (John, 12:25).What is the meaning of hating oneself? Living in this material world, we tend to lose sight of our wholeness and identify ourselves with parts of ourselves especially our bodily image forgetting the immense riches of our soul. What has to be hated, therefore, is ourselves governed solely by bodily impulses and material attractions relegating to the background the soul and its potentialities. Since the usual tendency of people is to follow the former rather than the latter, there was no need for Jesus to specify the distinction. In the same way we have to understand the demand of Jesus to hate one's father, mother, wife, children, brothers and sisters and one's own life by detaching oneself from undue attachment to them (Luke, 14:26). Jesus himself has upheld our obligation to look after our loved ones elsewhere (Mark, 7:9-13).  The principle of losing one's life to save it is sometimes applicable even to save our present life as is seen in the case of Lot's wife (Luke, 17:32-33).
                                               The conclusion is inescapable that our wealth does not guarantee life that is eternal as well as sometimes temporal too. The latter case is evident in running away from disaster as in the time of Lot when the attachment of Lot's wife to her old way of life forced her to turn back and take a last look. Similarly, in the event of floods, fire, earthquake etc., it would be foolishness to tarry in order to salvage our belongings on pain of losing our life itself. Losing our present life in the world is nothing in comparison to losing our eternal life. Jesus is insistent on the ways and means to gain our eternal life for which we should be ready to lose everything else. Wealth, power, fame, influence, popularity etc. give us the impression that we are well-equipped to enjoy life. This feeling is part of 'Maya' (illusion) or appearances far removed from reality. Reality will dawn on us when we give our soul the due place it deserves to be enlightened and strengthened by the Divine Spirit.

Happiness and the Word of God

                                       "While he was speaking thus, a woman in the crowd called out, 'Happy the womb that carried you and the breasts that suckled you!" He rejoined, "No, happy are those who hear the word of God and keep it'" (Luke, 11: 27-28).
                                         It is our usual tendency to try to draw out happiness from the material things of this world and from our relationships in society. There is nothing wrong in this until we become too attached and get blindly addicted to our surroundings and situations. What is the way to get a sense of balance and equipoise to deal with our daily life and be happy at the same time? Here is the relevance of the declaration of Jesus that only those who seek out the word of God and keep it can really be happy. This is true even in the ideal situation one may be in with regard to this world, which is necessarily changing and is in transition.
                                         All of us born and brought up in different countries, cultures, religions, social situations etc. should seek out and try to truly understand the word of God as a first step to abiding happiness. Acting upon the word of God as understood by us is the acid test for real happiness. Jesus gives two examples of how people in various circumstances rightly understood the word of God and acted upon it. The queen of the south came all the way from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon and the people of Nineveh repented at the preaching of Jonah (Luke, 11:31-32). This is in stark contrast to the people at the time of Jesus who go on asking for signs in spite of having the word of God with them. Jesus publicly denounced this attitude calling them a wicked generation (Luke, 11:29).
                                         Just as the eye is the lamp of our body, the word of God is the lamp of our soul. The function of the lamp is to illumine so that everything is seen in the light from where darkness flees and disappears. This is not the case with those whose understanding is clogged and who fanatically follow meaningless rituals far removed from the word of God. At the time of Jesus, it was exemplified by the Jewish pharisees and scribes who cleansed the outside of the cup and plate while they themselves were infested with greed and wickedness inside. How far one could be removed from the spirit of the word of God may be seen from further examples given by Jesus in the Gospels (Luke, 11:42-54). Should anyone expect to be really happy in this situation?
                                         How shall we benefit from the word of God by a correct understanding followed by its faithful execution? Our fundamental focus should be the readiness to be taught by God Himself even as we read or listen to the word of God. The background of a believing community is presupposed in this type of direct teaching by God. God does this by directly inscribing the right meaning on to our heart and illumining our mind on the basis of which we have to act. As a result of this twofold action by God , a clear conscience emerges in us. The two focal points, therefore, are heart and mind resulting in an informed conscience. By 'heart' is meant the center of our personality and not the physical organ that pumps blood in our body. To keep the center of our personality ready for receiving the word of God, we have to cleanse ourselves thoroughly. It is our internal cleansing from all negative dispositions we have accumulated through life's journey (See our post on 'From Negativity to Positivity'). Our mind consisting of Intellect and Will are illumined and strengthened by divine action. As a result of this cleansing, illumination and strengthening, a pure conscience emerges in us guiding us to choose our way in life in accordance with the word of God.
                                        What about happiness in this process? Happiness is the result of our adherence to the word of God as we would be brimming with love, joy and peace. The Kingdom of God is nothing else but the company of people full of godly love, joy and peace under the sovereignty of God. The difference between purely worldly love, joy and peace and the divine love, joy and peace is that between appearance and reality. The former appears to make us happy and yet it does not have substance in it as it melts away like a mirage in a desert. A thirsty person in the desert wants to drink water that is not available in the mirage in spite of appearances to the contrary. In the same way, real happiness consisting of divine love, joy and peace cannot be had without the assistance of the Word of God. A purely extrovert person cannot have real happiness for which self-reflection aided by the Word of God capturing our real nature is required!

From Negativity to Positivity

                                          A negative disposition in us, manifested through lethargy, disinterestedness, anxiety, depression etc. is a silent killer of our vitality and will to live. Thoughts of suicide and self-destruction gradually emerge in such people very soon leading to a point of no- return. It is vital, therefore, to take action to turn our negative attitudes to positive ones like optimism, social interaction, a sense of purpose etc. The Bible speaks about people sitting in darkness who prefer darkness to light fearing that their evil works may be exposed. A Malayalam poet wrote for a child thus: "Light brings sorrow, darling, it is darkness that is comfortable". It is a herculean task to get people out of their self-imposed state of unhappiness to happiness through transforming them from negative to positive dispositions.
                                         A common feature of negative dispositions is the tendency to withdraw into oneself in an unhealthy manner avoiding touch with reality. The antidote to this problem is first a healthy manner of withdrawal into oneself for self-reflection in order to return to the world with full self-confidence. For, it is our mind that tricks us into solitude and despair and the very same mind can be turned around to see and perceive things objectively. In the negative mindset what we perceive are mere appearances, whereas in the positive mindset reality emerges.
                                         The very first real perception, though implicitly, is about ourselves as spirits in bodies with infinite potentialities. When our mind succumbs to the seeming attractions of the world highlighting the importance of our body, we are lulled into sleep forgetting our real nature as spirits. In this condition, nothing can satisfy us and we become frustrated, disappointed, stressed out and withdraw into ourselves highly dissatisfied with life. The reason for this tragedy is running after appearances neglecting reality. That we can never be satisfied with anything short of infinitude for which our soul (spirit) is capable of through love, joy and peace should be brought home in order to remain happy in our life. With this conviction if we meet the world in our daily life, enjoying even sensual pleasures in the natural course of life, we remain sufficiently detached and can remain truly happy.
                                        The realization that we are in fact endowed with infinite potentialities to be gradually developed should impel us into meaningful actions. We should see that our actions do not recoil on ourselves as 'karmaphala' (fruit of our actions) through 'karma yoga' (proper way of executing actions). For this we have to act with 'nishkama karma' (actions without expectations of results) so that our actions become pure oblations to God Who is the one to decide the results of our actions. In addition, if we offer our actions to God without any motive of self-interest, it becomes true worship, i.e., work as worship. Nothing will be able to dishearten such a person as he or she is under the complete sway of God's Will. We have to nourish and sustain 'karma yoga' through 'jnana yoga' (right knowledge) and .'bhakti yoga', (devotional union with the Lord).
                                        Our negative attitudes in life originate from our seeming helplessness in facing the powers and circumstances in the world. Actually we are not helpless since we are endowed with infinite capacity of our soul aided by the Divine Spirit. It is our mind consisting of intellect and will that should be attended to in order to draw energy from our soul. Intellect is illumined and the will is strengthened by the Divine Spirit through our soul whereby we are able to draw on our infinite potentiality. In practical life, it is the mind that controls our moods, attitudes and thinking. We are able to supervise our mind and direct it through proper ways attained through 'jnana yoga', 'bhakti yoga' and 'karma yoga'. The mind should not be allowed to run riot and lead us into abyss of darkness, but should be controlled to follow our orders. This is called self-discipline that will change our negative attitudes to positive ones. We shall feel, thereafter, wholesome and happy as we are in tune with our true nature. Positive attitudes will show us the way to live life to its fullest in its real sense.     

Christ in You

                                        "...The secret is this: Christ in you, the hope of a glory to come" (Col. 1:27).
                                        Our original theme of "perfect happiness is our birthright" is rooted in the firm belief that God has adequately provided for realization of this birthright. Our faith in Jesus Christ is the remedy envisaged and made possible by God to overcome all obstacles standing in the way of our wholesomeness. This remedy for our ills is not restricted to any group or society as it is meant for healing the entire human race for which Jesus died on the cross. The duty of the Church is to announce the good news of Jesus Christ to the entire world without arrogating to itself any privileged position. This is so because the entire human race is under divine judgment and God has no partiality to anyone in particular. St. Peter realized this truth early in his ministry and spoke about it in the house of Cornelius(Acts, 10:34-35). Further, the Holy Spirit came upon the Jews and the non-Jews alike even before their baptism just by hearing the Word of God (Acts, 10:44).
                                            The presence of Christ through his Spirit is, therefore, not restricted to the members of the visible Church. The Church from its very beginning has been teaching this truth about the invisible Church as essential to the visible one. The fact that Jesus died and rose from the dead for and in place of the entire humanity means that his presence is universal encompassing all human beings. St. Paul expresses it convincingly when he wrote: " But God's act of grace is out of all proportion to Adam's wrongdoing. For if the wrongdoing of that one man brought death upon so many, its effect is vastly exceeded by the grace of God and the gift that came to so many by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ (Rom., 5:15). Here the use of "so many" stands for "all" as none is excluded from death, so no one is excluded from
grace  As the poison of sin ravaged the entire humanity by the sin of Adam, the antidote of redemption provided by Jesus penetrated the whole humankind. In both the cases, however, our personal sharing enlivens the potentiality for evil or that for good in our daily practical life. We may point out here that the relevance of Jesus Christ for the entire humanity is but a continuation of God's care and concern for all as is evident from the Old Testament times.
                                            The fact that God elected a certain people to be His own did not mean that He did not care about others. On the contrary, the purpose of God in electing Israel from all others was to prepare a people to live according to His own heart and be a model to others and this is equally applicable to the Church today. Whenever they failed in their mission, God punished them as severely as the others whom He uprooted and destroyed for the sake of Israel. Besides, even the Word of God was not restricted to the prophets of Israel as others too were instructed by God in favor and against Israel on occasions. All these are recorded in the Old Testament and just by way of example we may consider the last two chapters of 2 Chronicles 35 and 36 concerning Josiah and Cyrus.
                                            Josiah was king of Judah and he kept the statutes and ordinances of God like no other king and God was well pleased with him. Yet, when he wanted to attack the king of Egypt, Necho, the Egyptian king warned him to desist from the attempt as it was the word of God. As Josiah did not listen to Necho and persisted in his resolve to attack, he was fatally wounded and succumbed to the wound suffered by him. Josiah pleased God in everything he did and yet was abandoned to his whims and fancies in refusing to believe that the word of God could come from Necho, the king of Egypt, a non-Israelite. Similarly, Cyrus, the king of Persia was inspired by God to free the Jews from captivity and allow them to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the Temple.  
                                              In light of the above and numerous other instances, it is clear that the final and decisive remedy for the ills of humankind instituted by God , i.e., Jesus Christ could not be far from any human being. The body of Christ is being built through the infusion of his Spirit whereby we become his dwelling place. Pope Benedict XVI wrote: "If Christ himself is inside me and I inside him, the two of us are not separate individuals. This is where the doctrine of the Body of Christ begins, because we are all incorporated ... in Christ himself". However, this incorporation has degrees of perfection in various individuals. Since Jesus died and rose from the dead sending his Spirit into the world, every human being is incorporated inchoatively. This is to be perfected by consciously developing our divine potentialities hidden as images and likenesses of God. Jesus Christ being the perfect image and likeness of God , to be united with him means to be in communion with God. Union with Christ should be both visible and invisible so that we may say truly that Christ is in us. 

Keep Awake

                                               "Keep awake, then, for you do not know when the master of the house is coming. Evening or midnight, cock-crow or early dawn - if he comes suddenly, he must not find you asleep. And what I say to you, I say to everyone: keep awake" (Mark, 13: 35:37).
                                                 In our quest for happiness, the world would lull us into sleep with sense pleasures and imaginations of what a good life should be. We actually sleep internally and spiritually of which our lethargy and uncontrolled bodily sleepiness are mere symptoms. We have to be awake to the reality around us for which our internal awakening is a necessity. When we identify ourselves with the visible world through our body, senses, imaginations, intellect and will, we are in danger of being caught up in deep internal sleep. We forget about the antidote to our sleepiness deposited in the energy of our soul. Actually, it is this energy that activates life in our body and its various faculties, namely, our mind consisting of intellect and will and the five senses. Keeping awake, therefore, demands that we give due importance to the central place our soul occupies in us.
                                                The coming of Jesus as the master of the House of God applies both to his second coming as well as to the time of our death. Since no one knows the time of death, it is only prudent to be ready always to open the door to the master when he comes. The parable of the ten virgins tells us clearly how to be alert and be ready to receive the bridegroom at whatever time he comes. While the five prudent virgins took oil with their lamps, the foolish ones had only the lamps without any oil. Although all of them slept, the prudent ones were able to join the procession to receive the bridegroom, whereas the foolish ones could not, as they were unable to light their lamps without oil. Going out to buy the oil at the last minute cost them their chance to be with the bridegroom. Keeping awake, therefore, does not mean to abstain from bodily sleep, but to be prepared for the occasion (Matthew, 25:1-13), although sometimes it may be necessary to abstain from even bodily sleep to fight off severe temptations through prayer (Mark, 14: 37-42).
                                                 How should we lead our life in order to be awake and be alert at the proper time? Jesus is our model to shape our life according to his prescriptions as well as his own practices. This implies that we turn ourselves in to him for training as his disciples. When Jesus was 12 years old, Mary, his mother, was stunned to hear the reply he gave to her on inquiry why he stayed back in the Temple without his parents' knowledge. "Did you not know that I was bound to be in my Father's house?" (Luke, 2:49). This was an indication of what kind of a mission Jesus came into the world for sent by his Father in heaven. In other words, doing the Will of God was his sole mission for which all other relationships had to give way. The same applies to us as we are bound to love God first and foremost leaving our father, mother and all intimate relationships behind. Here, what we have to do is to get rid of false attachments to everything and everybody in order to be totally attached to God  Total attachment to God does not preclude our responsibilities to our loved ones as we shall see below about 'logical priority'. Physical separation does not necessarily achieve the purpose. Jesus carried forward this attitude until his death on the cross so that he could say: "it is accomplished" (John, 19:30). Jesus accomplished perfectly his Father's Will and yet interacted with people normally without keeping himself away from the crowds except for prayer and meditation.
                                                Our problem is about how to combine the two: doing God's Will and carrying out our daily tasks in the world. The secret of a genuine spiritual life is hidden in this combination. God's Will has to be first and foremost without diminishing our involvement in our daily duties. This is achieved by placing God's Will at the center of our life and keeping our worldly involvements at its periphery. Both are easily combined if we remember that a 'first' can be either one of importance (Logical priority in Philosophy) or that of chronological priority, i.e., first in time. Even if we have to be engaged in our daily duties chronologically first, the importance of the Will of God is not diminished if we place it at the center of our attitudes. The same principle applies in our praying always, i.e., the spirit of prayer pervading all our activities. Of course, for this to happen, we have to keep awake!
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         
                                                 

Not Far from the Kingdom of God

                                       "When Jesus saw how sensibly he answered, he said to him, 'You are not far from the Kingdom of God'" (Mark,12:34).
                                          The context of this solemn announcement of Jesus was provided by a lawyer who asked Jesus: "Which commandment is first of all?' (Mark 12:28). The lawyer acknowledged wholeheartedly the answer given by Jesus: "The first is, 'Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God is the only Lord; love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength'. The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself' (Mark, 12: 29-31). After endorsing what Jesus said, the lawyer added something that elicited the remark of Jesus why he was not far from the Kingdom of God. Loving God and our neighbor - said the lawyer, " ...that is far more than any burnt offerings or sacrifices" (Mark, 12:33). Jesus was certainly pleased that the lawyer really understood the word of God as it was meant to be understood!
                                          Who are the people who are far away from the Kingdom of God? Here we are concerned with only those people who are within the ambit of the Word of God. The others should be satisfied with parables without explanation as it is their lot not to understand higher things. The parable of the sower of seeds (Matthew, 13:4-8) illustrates how the hearers of the word of God stand with regard to the Kingdom of God. There are three types of people who hear the word of God and yet are far from the Kingdom of God.
1. Those who hear the word of the Kingdom without understanding it. Here, understanding is not the result of human scholarship or ingenuity, but an insight coming from internal illumination from God Himself. Education and scholarship may pave the way for preparing our hearts and yet may hinder us from the right understanding, if our hearts are not purified. Even illiterate and uneducated people are eligible for this internal illumination, if they purify their hearts for the same. These are the seeds that fall on the foot path and evil forces carry them away like birds eating up the stray seeds.
2. Those who accept the word of the Kingdom with joy, but has no staying power to sustain it. These are the seeds that fall on the rocky ground where there is little soil and the seeds sprout quickly because it had no depth of earth. However, when the sun rose the sprouting seed was scorched and it withered away as it had no roots. Similar is the case with the person who accepts the word with joy and without the root of perseverance in the face of trouble or persecution because of the word and he falls away at once.
3. Those whose worldly cares and false glamour of wealth choking the word of the Kingdom of God. These are the seeds that fall among thistles and the thistles shoot up and choke the seeds. The word of the Kingdom proves barren in these people because their worldly cares and attachment to wealth, fame, honor, power, position etc. tend to choke the word.
                                       All of these three types of people are far from the Kingdom of God. Who are the lucky ones who are near the Kingdom of God? These are the seeds that fall into good soil producing fruits hundred fold or sixty fold or thirty fold. We see from the Gospels that the disciples of Jesus were close to the Kingdom of God. There are different degrees of discipleship and accordingly various levels of closeness to the Kingdom of God  Most of the people are far from the Kingdom of God because of their undue attachments in the world arising out of love for money, power, position, honor, fame etc. They thereby forfeit their birthright to perfect happiness that is the hall-mark of the Kingdom of God.
                                       The solution to this problem need not lie in running away from the world, but in realigning ourselves internally through detachment from our false attachments. How can we be detached from the poisonous elements of undue attachments in our worldly involvements? We have the example of two secret disciples of Jesus in the Gospels: Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimethea. Both of them were rich, influential, members of the Jewish religious governing council and waiting for the Kingdom of God to arrive. This latter qualification enabled them to seek out ways and means to enter into the Kingdom of God even while they were fully involved in the world. They did not unnecessarily antagonize the Jewish authorities by publicly siding with Jesus and yet sought him out in private and defended him in public when and where it mattered most. At the same time, they were not averse to losing their power and position by defending Jesus on occasions.and disagreeing with the authorities in condemning him. Above all, they were the only two people to bury the body of Jesus in the tomb, disregarding any human authority in doing what was right,even as his own official disciples ran away!        

Fresh Skins for New Wine!

                                            "No one puts new wine into old wine-skins: if he does, the wine will burst the skins, and then wine and skins are both lost. Fresh skins for new wine!" (Mark, 2:22).
                                              It is a question of compatibility even in religious attitudes. Those who want to follow the letter of the law ignoring its spirit does not do any service to the law itself! They completely misunderstand the law and sometimes reach conclusions even contrary to the intent of the lawgiver. Similarly, when a new reality like the Kingdom of God is introduced by Jesus, strict law-keepers like the Pharisees among the Jews tend to misunderstand it. It is not that that they had never heard of the Kingdom of God or God's Sovereignty over everything. They were stuck with the old wine-skins of human traditions for the new wine of insight into the working of God's Kingdom offered by Jesus.
                                              Jesus stressed on the importance of interior attitude over and above the external observances of religion. It is not that these observances are completely superfluous and meaningless, but that they should be conducive to fostering and developing the all-important interior attitudes of love, joy, peace, humility, service etc. In cases where the combination of the two is not possible, the interior has the right of way over the exterior, especially because the former is going to produce new and vigorous exterior attitudes.
                                              There are many examples of this new attitude throughout the Bible. However, Jesus was not against the application of laws with social consequences as is seen in the Gospel of Mark, chapter 1, verses 40-45. Jesus insisted that the leper who was cleansed by him go to the priest and make the offering laid down by Moses for his cleansing. It was for the sake of certifying his cure so that he may be freely accepted in the community implying that the law was for his own benefit. However, when it comes to the real internal life of a person, the externals are of secondary importance as is seen from instances where Jesus severely criticized the Pharisees of his day. They failed to capture the import of laws as well as practices for spiritual growth of a person. They preferred to store new wine in old skins and needed urgent correction from someone who was above even the laws and religious practices!
                                               Jesus took upon himself the task of correcting the errant ways of blind guides knowing very well the consequences of his actions. The most glaring irritants were connected with the breaking of the law of Sabbath instituted by God Himself. How could Jesus justify his actions in this matter that persuaded the Pharisees to declare that he could not have come from God?  The justification of those actions of breaking the law of Sabbath could be summed up thus: The enforcers of the law deviated from the spirit of the law and imposed on people restrictions never meant to be part of the law. God instituted the law of Sabbath for the good of the people so that they may be helped to enter into the rest of God Himself. For, the Sabbath was meant to be a day of rest for inculcating in oneself spiritual bliss, peace and love. This was never attained by their practices at the time of Jesus.
                                                 Jesus boldly criticized the human tendency to pay lip service keeping our hearts far from God. "You neglect the commandment of God, in order to maintain the tradition of men" (Mark,7:8). Fresh skins (attitudes) are required to keep the new wine of observing the Sabbath meaningfully, praying always but fasting on appointed time, forgiving sinners, dining with them and the marginalized, keeping the hearts clean over and above the ritual cleansing etc. These are the signs of the arrival of God's Kingdom on earth to be completed and fulfilled in eternity. The observations of Jesus regarding the religious practices of his times  are equally applicable to all of our practices in the name of religion. In this context, it is worthwhile to ponder over the recent judgment of the Supreme Court of India distinguishing between the religious faith and religious practices. While the Court upheld the constitutional right of everyone to profess, practice and propagate one's own faith as a requirement of the nature of secularism, it severely criticized the tendency of some to advocate any practice in the name of religion as legitimate. Whatever goes against the spirit of religion, morality, social order etc. cannot be tolerated as genuine even if it is in the name of one's own faith or religion, the Court admonished.  

Alive or Dead?

                                         "There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death" (Proverbs, 14:12).
                                           Notices are usually sent around by the authorities to capture a notorious criminal dead or alive. But , in daily life it is a question of being alive or dead as people apparently seem to be alive and yet are in fact dead! This happens because we fail to discern the thoughts, inclinations and tendencies of our hearts that issue forth in wickedness. The prophet Jeremiah (17:9) announced it by saying that our hearts are deceitful above all things. We have instances in the Bible how following what appears to be right leads to death, sometimes of the body and at other times of the soul. King David's sons Amnon, Absalom and Adonijah died for their sins though they were sure of their ways to be right (2 Sam., 13:1-39; 15:1-6; 18: 1-18; 1 Kings, 2:12-25). Samson, Solomon and Rehoboam sold their souls for what they thought to be right and came to great grief (Judges, 16:1-21; 1 Kings, 11:1-13; 12:1-19).
                                           This happens as we do not care to pause and think before we act. In other words, our view of the world prompted by our unruly emotions lead us astray because of lack of reflection. We are guided by the external world and its appearances and attractions forgetting the riches of our internal world. Our five senses of sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch overpower our mind consisting of our intellect and willpower. These two internal faculties of our mind are equipped to shed light and take decisions on whatever concerns us in life. Although they are in fact more powerful than our five senses, their might and power are overshadowed and weakened by the onrush of the senses. If we neglect to shake off our inertia by means of will power, our intellect becomes dormant and unresponsive. As a result the soul or the living spirit in the  human person that is the source of light and love is rendered inactive. Now the field is ready for our senses, that run after appearances without any real substance in them, to play havoc in our life. The person under such a spell unleashed by the senses appears to be alive, though, in fact, is really dead!  
                                           The solution to this problem of appearance and reality may be seen in the Book of Revelation, chapter 3."To the angel of the church in Sardis write: These are the words of him who holds the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead. Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die , for I have found your deeds unfinished in the sight of my God. Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; hold it fast, and repent. But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you (Rev. 3: 1-3).
                                            Waking up from slumber is the basic solution needed to put things right by those who appear to be alive and yet are really dead! Such people are actually sleeping though they might think that they are wide awake. How should one correct course to reverse from the present way of life to the one of really being alive? One has to stop everything right now and turn back to oneself to gain real insight  from within before returning to the world of things. This is what is meant by repentance  when Jesus announced the inauguration of the Kingdom of God. Repentance is not merely being sorry for one's sins and past life, but a total reversal of the present ways of life to be transformed through the new insight and power gained from within ourselves. The realization that we are basically created in the image and likeness of God Himself(Gen. 1:26) and redeemed by Jesus Christ equips us to march ahead empowered by the Holy Spirit of God.      
                                            By waking up, we are able to salvage what still remains of life that too is about to die. This is achieved through strengthening what still remains by remembering what we received and heard and holding it fast. It is like a plant that is about to die due to lack of water and is revived when properly watered. What we have to remember is the Word of God that we received and heard and it leads to repentance in the above-mentioned sense. This process begins with first waking up from sleep. The main obstacle in waking up is our belief that we are already awake and are really alive. It is like a dream when there is no doubt about its reality until one wakes up. The warning is that one should urgently wake up before it is too late. The Word of God has given enough warning in advance to the point of saying that we may be taken unawares like a thief coming when we are least prepared to take any action!                         

The Kingdom of God

                                              Since we arrived at the Kingdom of God as the conclusion in our Post on 'The  Foundation of Perfect Happiness', it is our duty to explain the connection. If the Kingdom of God is something attainable only in the next world and after our death, how can it be the foundation of happiness that we would like to start experiencing here and now in this world? Our contention is that the Kingdom of God already starts here and now in our present life to be completed in its perfection in the next world.
                                               This is why Jesus indicated that the Kingdom of God is within us (Luke, 17:21). It is like a seed planted in our hearts and in due course is expected to grow into a plant producing fruits. It is also like a treasure hidden or a pearl of great value discovered by a trained eye upsetting the whole life of its discoverer. All those who are gripped by the truth of the Kingdom of God are transformed into loving, joyous and peaceful people already in this life! St. Paul specified it thus: "For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit (Romans, 14:17). It is not something far away in space and time as the Kingdom of God transcends both space and time and the limitations of this material world. However, it does not deny the value of the material world and our life in space and time as all of them have to be transformed and upgraded into a new kind of life called eternal life. Eternal life is meant to start here and now with our self-transformation leading to the transformation of the entire Universe.
                                               Jesus Christ laid the foundation for this kind of momentous transformation of everything beginning with his own resurrection from the dead. He very intimately connected the Kingdom of God, which is also his kingdom, with his own person transformed into a new life-giving Spirit (1 Cor., 15:45) along with a transformed body through resurrection. We are invited to join this new life through our own self-transformation and new kind of life (Rom., 6:5). Jesus announced his own resurrection from the dead, prefigured in his transfiguration on a high mountain before his disciples (Matthew, 17:1-5), thus: "Truly I tell you, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom (Matthew, 16:28). Jesus unhesitatingly announced before Pilate that his kingdom did not belong to this world (John, 18:36) indicating thereby that it originated from heaven and will be culminated in heaven. The Kingdom of God and the kingdom of heaven are one and the same spiritual reality whereby God becomes all in all manifesting His supreme sovereignty over everything and everyone.
                                              How does this spiritual reality of the Kingdom of God invade our life so as to become the foundation of our perfect happiness? It is similar to the function of the real Self as against the false self in the Vedas of Indian Thought. As soon as we come to the realization that our real Self is the same as the Supreme Self, the false identification of ourselves with any other is exposed. This realization and consequent manner of life put an end to the source of all our sorrows and griefs opening the door to eternal bliss. The same is the case with the Kingdom of God that is allowed to govern our lives regulating our false notions and movements and leading us into perfect joy and bliss.
                                              The Kingdom of God governs our life when we are under the sway of divine love, joy and peace. According to St. Paul, these three fruits of the Holy Spirit are followed by goodness, kindness, faithfulness, gentleness, long-suffering and self-control (Gal., 5:22-23). Paul adds there that against such things there is no law. It means that a person who lives enjoying those 9 fruits of the Holy Spirit is released from the laws of this world being governed by the laws of a transformed world. This does not, however, preclude the need of taking care of our body and whatever is required for its upkeep and well-being as long as we live in this world. In the new transformed world of the Kingdom of God, all the values of this world too are subsumed and transformed into the new reality. In order to enjoy these fruits of the Spirit we may start with the last one, i.e., self-control that will lead to the gradual emergence of all other fruits. Self-control opens the door to our real Self as images of God Himself and as His children called to share in the bliss of His Kingdom.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

The Foundation of Perfect Happiness

                                            It would seem that we have strayed from our main topic of "Perfect Happiness is our Birth-Right" to various unpleasant measures to gain it! This feeling is due to the fact that we fail to distinguish between what we think should happiness be and real happiness. Let us quote from the famous British Philosopher John Locke's (1632-1704) book "An Essay Concerning Human Understanding": "The necessity of pursuing happiness is the foundation of liberty. As therefore the highest perfection of intellectual nature lies in a careful and constant pursuit of  true and solid happiness; so the care of ourselves, that we mistake not imaginary for real happiness, is the necessary foundation for our liberty. The stronger ties we have to an unalterable pursuit of happiness in general, which is our greatest good, and which, as such, our desires always follow, the more are we free from any necessary determination of our will to any particular action". (1894, P. 348).
                                           We see that Locke makes further distinctions between imaginary and real happiness as well as the pleasures we experience here on earth and those we shall experience in heaven. The great medieval Philosopher Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) made the important distinction between imperfect happiness here on earth and perfect happiness in heaven. Locke stressed the continuity between the two as the present pleasures are sweet foretastes of the pleasures in heaven. He made our pursuit of happiness as the foundation of our liberty and the everlasting happiness as the foundation for our perfect happiness. This is so because: (a) our claim to liberty can be based only on our right to pursue personal happiness; (b) our attachment to perfect happiness enables us to be detached from any apparent and imaginary manifestations of happiness in our life. Because everyone has the secret fear of death, Locke concludes, if there is no everlasting happiness for which we need to order our life morally and practice virtues, there will not be any real happiness at all!
                                           We can perceive that the true foundation of perfect happiness cannot be laid in as temporary and fleeting a feature as the pleasures we enjoy in this world. It is not the case that we are forbidden to enjoy them; on the contrary, there is nothing wrong in enjoying them with a detached attitude. Detachment does not mean indifference or disinterest, but absence of compulsion leading to addictions (See our Post on 'Detachment'). Gradual detachment from everything finite and temporal, even while enjoying them, enables us not to be addicted to and enslaved by them. We are able to be free and be master of everything in the world as our real attachment and addiction are to the Infinite and the Everlasting. Our intimate and deep nature craves for this kind of complete satisfaction derivable from God alone. This is the reason why Jesus offered eternal life to anyone who believed in him as the believer in him turns out to be within the ambit of the Kingdom of God that is perfect happiness.
                                           What is the credibility of Jesus Christ in offering eternal life to anyone who believed in him? What is so unique to Jesus in contrast to all other spiritual masters the world has seen? That he was God Himself become man is part of faith to believe which God has to draw the believer to Himself. Even before this kind of faith is operative in someone, the claim of Jesus that he has words of eternal life may be experienced from the fact that he proved his words by his actions. Jesus offered himself as a living sacrifice on the cross in accordance with his claim that he conquered the world by conquering himself. That God accepted his offering was shown by raising him up from the dead investing him with new life belonging to the Kingdom of God. Unlike the present material world, the Kingdom of God is full of perfect happiness. The foundation, therefore, of perfect happiness is in the eternal and permanent nature of the Kingdom of God.
                                            That Jesus was crucified is a fact of history verifiable by truth-seekers. His resurrection from the dead, however, is both historical and trans-historical, belonging both to this world and the next world. Here historical study alone cannot establish the full truth as faith is required to see through the implications of this historical fact. This is but a requirement of the nature of the subject itself, resurrection being not limited to the confines of this world, but bursting out of it into eternity or being transcendental. Perfect practice of what Jesus claimed and taught and acceptance of the same by God the Father by raising him from the dead is the final proof of his credibility due to which we are in a sure footing if we believe in him!