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A boy was watching his father, a pastor, write a sermon.
"How do you know what to say?" he inquired.
"God tells me."
"Oh, then why do you keep crossing things out?"
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A man talked to a pastor. "Sir," he said, "can you explain to me your faith?" The Pastor replied, "Certainly! I can, and I will, if you want me to." The seeker replied, "Well, no thanks. I appreciate your offer, but I'm looking for a faith you can not explain."
*Story, Brian K. Wilcox, OneLife Ministries
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Time will fail me if I try to tell all the unwritten mysteries of the Church.
*Basil the Great, Church Father and Bishop
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The Spirit of Jesus speaks and works through our earthiness, our humanness, not merely in spite of it. This truth is central to sacraments. A sacrament is a sign and means of heavenly Grace.
Paul speaks to the Corinthians about the passing and the eternal.
17These little troubles are getting us ready for an eternal glory that will make all our troubles seem like nothing. 18Things that are seen don't last forever, but things that are not seen are eternal. That's why we keep our minds on the things that cannot be seen.
*II Corinthians 4.17-18, CEV
Things that are seen are the earthy means of God's sacramental Presence and Action. The earthy carries the sign and is the means of the unseen Reality.
Scott Hahn and Mike Aquilina, in Living the Mysteries, speak of sacraments as follows: "Heaven meets earth in the sacraments. This is not mere wishful thinking or a metaphor taken too literally. It is something profoundly true and real."
The early Church had a process for initiating persons into the Christian faith: inquiry, purification, and illumination. The process could take several years or a brief time. It ended in mystagogy (MIST-a-go-gee). This last phase came after converts were no longer seekers but born again in baptism and sharing in Holy Communion (Hahn, Aquilina).
Mystagogy is initiation into the mysteries of Christian faith. This is sacramental faith, for a sacrament is the carrier of a mystery of Christ and His Body, the Church.
Hahn and Aquilina remind us that each Christian is privileged to know Christ and the Christian faith so well as to enjoy insight into the mysteries of the Christ Way. That is, enlightenment spiritually is not just for a few persons, but all Christians, as the early Church knew well. After all, why would Christ withhold anything of Himself from us?
Mystagogy is what we all need, and what we always need, because God's mysteries are inexhaustible. Till we get to heaven, we're all unfinished Christians.
Yes, our relationship with God is simple, and we need to guard against over-thinking it, making it more complicated than it is. Yet, at the same time, to appreciate both our God and our faith, we need to recall that this simple faith is a profound mystery, and one we can never exhaust in this life. To see a little more into the richness and greatness of Grace, we naturally long to see and live even a little more the unsearchable, inexpressible Truth.
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1) What are mysteries that you experience through the Church's liturgy?
2) What are insights into the faith that you have been graced with over the years and that have deepened your experience of Christ?
3) What does it mean to have a sacramental faith? Live a sacramental life?
4) Does your church adequately introduce persons into the Christian mysteries? How might it do better at this act of initiation? Explain.
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*Charitable contributions would be appreciated to assist Brian in the continuance of his work of ministry. For contributions, contact Brian at barukhattah@embarqmail.com .
*Quote from Basil the Great in translation by Hahn and Aquilina. See text for author and book citation.
*Brian's book of mystical love poetry, An Ache for Union: Oneness with God through Love, can be ordered through major booksellers, or through the Cokesbury on-line store, at www.cokesbury.com .
*Brian K. Wilcox lives in Punta Gorda, FL, and Clearwater, FL, with his wife, step-son, and two beloved dogs. Brian has an independent writing, workshop, and retreat ministry focused on Christians living as spiritual disciples of Jesus Christ in everyday life. He serves the Christ Community United Methodist Church, Punta Gorda, FL. Brian is vowed at Greenbough House of Prayer, a contemplative Christian community in South Georgia. He lives a vowed, contemplative life and inspires others to experience a more intimate relationship with God-in-Christ. Brian advocates for a spiritually-focused, experiential Christianity and renewal of the focus of the Church on addressing the deeper spiritual needs and longings of persons.
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