A Little While
While visiting a Jewish lawyer I questioned him on the issue of time. “When did time begin?” He looked at me with a puzzled expression and asked hasn’t it always been? No it is not true that time has always been with us. As Creation tells us the man and woman were in paradise and possessed certain gifts which dignified the man and woman. They possessed eternal life; they were not supposed to die. They enjoyed infused knowledge and did not need a school and teachers. They also were free from the need of doctors since their bodies were impassible. So when did time begin?
That’s right it began when sin entered the bloodstream of Adam and Eve. When sin entered our nature time began and we lost immortality, infused knowledge and impassibility. This is important to keep in mind. We have been placed in time to regain what we lost through the development of the Christ-like personality. Through baptism we regain what we lost but we must work a “little while”. There is no getting around it we are in a quest to regain our union with God through the increase of love daily.
“A little while and you shall not see Me. Then a little while and you will see Me.” It is repeated 7 times in a short dialogue with our Lord. John uses the seven technique to indicate a divine mystery. Everyone of us receives the presence of our Lord through the sacramental program. Seven sacraments to reveal our Lord’s presence and action within our souls. Two very special sacraments that can increase our awareness of our Lord’s presence are confession and holy communion. These two sacraments are the building blocks of St. John Bosco’s educational preventive system.
Through these wondrous mysteries of God’s presence healing and feeding our souls we come to the realization that our time in this world is only “a little while” and once this little while is over we will (God willing) see our Lord face to face. Yet as we traverse this world and this time in which we live, we must use our days and the events in this time to save souls. This is why our Lord told us that we are the light of the world and the salt of the earth. We have a mission while in this time zone: glorify God and save as many souls as we can. Seek souls daily and pray for them daily.
Courage was the key word in the life of St. John Bosco. Courage he would say because the time here is short (a little while) but heaven is forever. A concrete image of this life of ours is presented by an infinite rope in which one side has a red ribbon representing our time here. It covers about 6 inches of this long, long rope. Think about it. Our life is a passing breathe and our place knows us no more. It’s nothing. It’s a test of love because of the act of pride. Don’t be fooled by this world, your flesh or the devil. Live one day at a time and in a little while you will be in the presence of our Lady, our Lord and all the angels and saints.
Heaven is our true home. Let the life of Christ increase in your soul each day that God gives you in this world. Balance everything on the scale of time and give all for the eternity of love. God bless you with an eternal Easter experience.
In the hearts of Jesus, Mary and Joseph,
Fr. Richard Voigt, S.D.B
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