How I Came to Change My Mind on SSU: Part 12. Romans 1 (iii) Natural and Unnatural Sex

In the last post in this series, we saw that according to the early Church indulging in excess in anything beyond what is necessary was considered unnatural and a fundamental obstacle to holiness. Both the New Testament and the early Church insist that self-control is the foundation of holy living, i.e., communion with God.and one another.

So, eating is good. But eating in excess is unnatural and gluttonous. The things of this world are good. But, accumulating more than is necessary is unnatural and greedy. Anger that empowers us to resist and “renounce Satan and all the spiritual forces of wickedness that rebel against God and the evil powers of this world which corrupt and destroy the creatures of God” (Book of Common Prayer, p. 302) is good. But, anger toward other people is unnatural and sinful.

In each case, self-control is key, both in the sense of controlling our desires and of channeling them to their proper end which is the love of God and love of neighbor. This was also true when it comes to sexual behavior.

Unnatural Sex and Self-control

It is important to note that a general cultural suspicion of material/physical reality and suspicion of the female, plus Paul’s ambivalence about sex and marriage (cf. 1 Corinthians 7) influenced leaders and teachers in the early Church when they reflected on sex and marriage. Most contemporary Christians would likely be more affirming of material reality, more affirming of femaleness, and more affirming of the goods of marriage than were many of our ancestors in the faith. Even so, the scriptures and the early Church have things to teach us. One of those is the significance of the spiritual discipline of self-control. This is true in all areas of life, including sex.

The theme of self-control and its challenges has been central to the Church's thinking in the area of sexual desire. As with gluttony, greed, and anger, out of control or “excessive” sexual desire and behavior – lust – was considered unnatural. One early Church theologian observed that most other creatures only mate seasonally or that their females are only occasionally “in heat.” Only humans copulate year round, day and night. In his view, this is surely evidence that human sexual behavior tends toward an unnatural, out of control obsession.

One of the most important theologians of the early Church, Augustine of Hippo (354-430), wrote at length about sexual desire and self-control. For Augustine, the involuntary nature of physical sexual response is evidence of our loss of control due to the Fall. A man should be able to choose whether or not and when he has an erection. But, the body and its desires do not always respond to the will and sometimes responds against it. Augustine sees this as a serious problem. It is contrary to what is supposed to be our natural state in which our flesh is subordinate to our reason. He is also concerned with the way reason is abandoned in the midst of sexual passion. He compares it with being drunk, which is a surrendering of self-control. Unlike most of the theologians before him, Augustine did believe that Adam and Eve were meant to have sex in the Garden of Eden. But, it would have been controlled and willful, quite unlike most people experience and enjoy it. He argues that sex without the Fall would have been as voluntary as a handshake. And no more passionate or pleasurable. And the only reason for doing it would be for willed reproduction. Augustine argued that marriage (while inferior to celebate singleness or monastic life) could be a good thing characterized by fidelity, procreation, and the sacramental bond. But, he is also clear that even within marriage, sex is only for procreation. Further, given the population of the earth, Augustine believed that the injunction in Genesis to "be fruitful and multiply" had been fulfilled and thus even procreation was no longer necessary.

(see City of God, Book 14, Chapter 26; On the Good of Marriage, On Holy Virginity)

Augustine believed that marriage is about more than procreation (the faithfulness each spouse to the other and the sacredness of the unbreakable, 'sacramental', bond), but he was convinced that procreation is the only natural purpose of sex. Sexual desire and pleasure were both inherently rooted in sin – lust. And he was not alone in this.

If a man marries in order to have children, he ought not to have a sexual desire for his wife. He ought to produce children by a reverent, disciplined act of will.

– Saint Clement of Alexandria (150-215)

Do you imagine that we approve of any sexual intercourse except for the procreation of children? He who is too ardent a lover of his own wife is an adulterer.

– Saint Jerome (347-420)

Eve in paradise was a virgin . . . understand that virginity is natural and that marriage comes after the Fall.

– Saint Jerome (347-420)

These are not insignificant theologians and their attitudes are not unusual. They are typical of the early Church and common throughout most of the Church’s history. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) had a slightly more favorable view of sexual pleasure (Summa Theologica II.2.Q153.2, Milhaven, John Giles, Thomas Aquinas on Sexual Pleasure, The Journal of Religious Ethics, Vol. 5, No. 2 (Fall, 1977), pp. 157-181). But Aquinas was just as emphatic that the only natural end of sex was procreation – thus any artificial birth-control is unnatural and analogous to murder (Contra Gentiles.3.122).

I have argued against completely separating sex from the potential for pregnancy and procreation, but, that it is not the necessary or only natural aim of sex (See here).

I do not share the above to suggest that the early Church theologians were silly or that their teaching is now irrelevant. I write as one who reads, appreciates, and has been shaped by their wisdom. They desired a peace that transcended the agitations and anxieties of this life. And, as we saw in the last post in this series, it was not just sexual agitations and anxieties that concerned them. If we decide Augustine and others sometimes misdirected or misapplied their concern for a life of self-control and deep peace governed by reason, the concern is still a legitimate one for Christians.

But, their suspicion of physical pleasure – especially sexual pleasure – and their suspicion of the female are sometimes at odds with the creeds and much of scripture. Further, it sometimes leads them to flirt with the anti-material heresies of Manichaeism and Gnosticism.

It is instructive to note how differently these major figures of the early and medieval Church understood what is ideal and natural vs. unnatural in sexual behavior and its purpose compared to most Christians today. Most of us would – I certainly would – want to affirm a more positive Christian understanding of sex and sexual pleasure. And of marriage more generally. And it is important to note that in their context these theologians were more positive about both than many non-Christians of their day. And there are others in the Church's tradition – a minority report, so to speak – who have been more positive about marriage and sex.

Our Christian forebears rightly recognized the power of sexual desire and the potential for it to wreak havoc as well as joy in our lives. And, thus, the concern for self-control as a basic virtue. Self-control is a central New Testament virtue (and a fruit of the Spirit) that we should reclaim. And not just in sexual matters. I’ve written more on this here: Self-Control: Neglected Fruit of the Spirit.

Self-control and homosexual sex

The theme of self-control and its challenges in the area of sexual desire was central to the thinking of the early Church (and much of pagan philosophy of the period). Excessive pursuit of sexual pleasure, along with other pleasures of the senses, was considered sinful. And this is how homosexual relationships were understood. The ancients did not think of homosexuality in terms of orientation. Rather, they saw it as out of control, excessive sexual desire – lust. Here are some examples:

Soranus of Ephesus, a Greek physician in Rome first half of 2nd century AD, asserted:

No one readily believes that effeminate or sexually passive men (whom the Greeks call malthacoi) are actually suffering from a disease. For this behavior does not arise naturally in humans; rather, when modesty has been suppressed, it is lust that coerces to obscene usage body parts that have their own specific function, although there is no limit to desire, no hope of satisfaction when their allotted roles do not suffice for individual parts. (Homosexuality in Greece and Rome: A Sourcebook of Basic Documents, Thomas K. Hubbard, ed. p. 463)

Dio of Prusa (Dio Chrysostom), a Greek orator, philosopher, and historian of the Roman Empire (AD 40-115) wrote:

Is it possible that this intemperate race [men engaging in same-sex sex] would hold off from abuse and corruption of males and impose upon themselves the clear and sufficient limit decreed by nature? Wouldn't they rather seek another greater and more illicit form of outrage once they had become in every way sated and full of their unrestrained pleasure with women? . . .  The man who is boundless in such desires finds nothing rare or resistant in that race, despises what is easy and devalues female Aphrodite, since it is readily available and truly altogether feminine. Instead he will cross over to the male side, desiring to commit shameful acts with those who in the near future will be rulers, judges, and generals, finding here a difficult and rarely acquired pleasure. He experiences the same thing as hard drinkers and winos, who after long and uninterrupted binges of drinking don't want to drink any more, but intentionally create thirst through steam-baths and the serving of salty or spicy foods. (Homosexuality in Greece and Rome: A Sourcebook of Basic Documents, Thomas K. Hubbard, ed. p. 448)

In his commentary on Romans, St. John Chrysostom seems to share this perspective:

You see that the whole of desire comes of an exorbitancy [excess] which endures not to abide within its proper limits.

(The Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers of the Christian Church, vol. XI, p. 356)

The assumption is that these men naturally desire women, but, because their desire is out of control and excessive, they “cross over” for new sexual pleasures with other men. It is the excess that is unnatural. This seems to me to be significant. And I believe it can inform our reading of Romans 1. I will return to that in the next post.

Next: Part 13. Romans 1 (iv) Idolatry, self-control, and same-sex sex

Previous: Part 11. Romans 1 (ii) Unnatural Passions

Little Floaty Things That Say "No" (On Doubt)

"Dad, do you ever have little floaty things in your head that say, 'No'?" My daughter, Becca, was in second grade when she asked this question one night as I was putting her to bed. Taken a bit aback, I asked her what she meant. She said, "Well, like when I say to myself there is a God and the floaty things say, 'No, there isn't.' Or I say, ‘God loves me,’ and they say, 'No, he doesn't.'"

It dawned on me that the "little floaty things that say No" were my daughter’s second grade way of describing her early experiences with doubt. I assured her that I was also familiar with the little floaty things and had been since I was about her age.

I suspect that most of us have had some experience with the little floaty things that say No – with doubts. At one time or another, most of us have wondered about the existence of God, or God’s goodness, or God’s love for us personally. And doubt is not limited to the theoretical. On a more practical level, it includes questioning whether the way of life revealed in Jesus Christ is really the way to our fullest life and deepest joy. Is the way of gentleness, love, and forgiveness really the way? Whether they are theoretical or practical, the questions are bound to arise. What do we do with the little floaty things that say “No”? Here are some suggestions:

1. Do not be ashamed, embarrassed, or afraid of your doubts. They come with the territory and actually act as a spur to spiritual growth. Frederick Buechner calls doubts, "The ants in the pants of faith."

2. On the other hand, beware the snare of pride. It is easy to become self-satisfied for being so clever and sophisticated as to see all the difficulties with faith for "thinking people".

3. Don't be surprised by doubt. It is part of the conversion process. The gospel is, after all, foolishness and a stumbling block. When the values and biases of the gospel conflict with the values and biases of this world into which we have been enculturated, there will be tension. That is true whether the prejudices are intellectual, moral, or theological. That tension leads to doubt. It also leads to a choice. Which biases am I going to live by?

4. Be skeptical of your own skepticism. We live in a skeptical age. It is quite easy –  and comfortable – to be a complacent skeptic. But, the bases of many doubts are also subject to doubt. In the areas of science and history, for example, the methods used are not as objective or certain as was once claimed. They are themselves based on assumptions that cannot be proven and their results are shaped by the biases of the researcher. And they are unable to answer every question. Nothing that matters can be proven beyond a shadow of doubt. Truth can only be demonstrated by the living of it. This is no more or less the case with the truth of faith.

Unless we are willing to doubt our doubts, our doubts can become merely excuses to avoid the implications of believing.

5. Do not use doubt as an excuse not to follow Jesus or respond to the Spirit's call. If I neglect to apply for a job because I doubt I will get it, I surely won't. I can remain unchallenged and comfortable right where I am. Hans Denk, a Christian of the seventeenth century, asserted this basic axiom of faith: "You cannot truly know Christ without following him in life.” Jesus calls us to follow just as he called the first disciples. We are left to choose whether we will or not. Thomas exemplifies this in chapter eleven of John’s gospel. When Jesus heads back toward Jerusalem to raise Lazarus, the disciples counsel him not to go because those who want to kill him are there. Jesus starts walking toward Jerusalem anyway. Thomas says to the others, "Let us also go, that we may die with him." He had come to believe that following Jesus was the way to his deepest joy and was committed to following him and sharing his fate. The knowing often comes in the following.

6. It is helpful to recognize that while faith has its difficulties, so do its opposites, unbelief and apathy. For example, the persistence of evil and suffering has been a perennial problem for those who believe in a loving God who desires our good. The problem is not solved, however, by removing God from the equation. The question is only changed to "If we are no more than the most recent byproduct of a cosmic accident, why do we care so much about the suffering of others?" Or, even more problematic, "Why should we care?" Some people are starving. Others are tortured. If there is no God, and life is accidental anyway, why do I care so much? Why should I?

7. Talk to God about your doubts – even if it means starting your prayer with, "I'm not even sure I believe you are there . . ." God is not afraid of your doubts or offended by your questions. After all, Jesus invited Thomas to examine and touch his wounds. He has promised his love to you – no matter what. God would much rather have you spend time with him asking hard questions than have you not spend time with him at all.

8. Continue with the discipline of regular prayer and worship. Taste and see that the Lord is good (Ps. 34:8). An intimate realization of God's presence and love puts to rest a lot of the questions. Such a realization does not usually happen without some discipline and time on our part. We need to be trained to pay attention spiritually. As with physical discipline, it usually takes time to see the effects of spiritual discipline.

9. Remember that the Church includes and has included many who have struggled with believing. You are not the first person to ask questions about the faith. It is helpful to find out, through reading or conversation, how others have answered – or learned to live with – particular questions.

10. Recognize that there is mystery at the heart of it all. As Christians, we believe that God has spoken and acted definitively through Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. But God has not seen fit to provide answers to our every question. And even the answers we've been given contain mystery. At some point, we can only rest with humility in the presence of the Mystery at the heart of it all.

There is no simple formula that will silence all “the little floaty things that say no” once and for all. They are natural companions of faith. But, the above suggestions can take away some of the power of our doubts. And even when our questions are unanswered, the struggle with them leads us deeper into the mystery of God where the little floaty things that say, “No” are countered by God's resounding "Yes!"

Ten Quotes About the Resurrection

1. "The simple truth is that resurrection cannot be accommodated to any way of understanding the world except one in which it is the starting point."

– Lesslie Newbigin (Proper Confidence)

2. The assertion that Jesus is risen from the dead remains a matter of dispute in a special degree because it cuts so deeply into fundamental questions of the understanding of reality.

– Wolfhart Pannenberg (The Apostles' Creed in Light of Today’s Questions)

3. We may say without exaggeration: at the tomb in Jerusalem the ultimate choice will be made between two totally different world-views.

– Walter Kunneth (Theology of the Resurrection)

4. When we celebrate Easter, we are really standing in the middle of a second ‘Big Bang', a tumultuous surge of divine energy as fiery and intense as the very beginning of the universe. What a recent writer wonderfully calls ‘the fire in the equations’, the energy in the mathematical and physical structures of things, is here at Easter; and when in the ancient ceremonies of the night before Easter we light a bonfire and bless it and light candles from it, we may think of the first words of God in Genesis, ‘Let there be light!’.

– Rowan Williams (Tokens of Trust)

5. Is the body a shell that one sheds, or is it an intrinsic part of the personality that will forever identify a person? If Jesus, body corrupted in the tomb so that his victory over death did not include bodily resurrection, then the model of destruction and new creation is indicated. If Jesus rose bodily from the dead, then the Christian model should be one of transformation. The problem of the bodily resurrection is not just an example of Christian curiosity; it is related to a major theme in theology: God’s ultimate purpose in creating.

– Raymond Brown (The Virginal Conception and Bodily Resurrection of Jesus)

6. Jesus’s resurrection is the beginning of God’s new project not to snatch people away from earth to heaven but to colonize earth with the life of heaven.

– N.T. Wright (Surprised by Hope)

7. Christ did not come into the world that we might understand him, but that we might cling to him, that we might simply let ourselves be swept away by him into the immense event of the resurrection.

– Dietrich Bonhoeffer (The Mystery of Easter)

8. The risen life is not easy; it is also a dying life. The presence of the Resurrection in our lives means the presence of the Cross, for we do not rise with Christ unless we also first die with him. It is by the cross that we enter the dynamism of creative transformation, the dynamism of resurrection and renewal, the dynamism of love.

– Thomas Merton (He is Risen)

9. Whatever we can know historically about Christ’s resurrection must not be abstracted from the questions: what can we hope from it? And what must we do in its name? The resurrection of Christ is historically understood in the full sense in the unity of knowing, hoping, and doing.

– Jurgen Motmann (The Way of Jesus Christ)

10. Our death is already behind us, and our resurrection before us.

– Ephrem of Edessa (On Paradise)

Resurrection: The Matter of Matter and Why it Matters

The resurrection of Jesus, (resurrected—fully and physically alive, empty tomb and all) is essential to Christian faith. One of the reasons this matters is that it affects how we understand matter to matter and what hope we have for the material reality of this world and our material bodies and histories.

Classically, there are two options for addressing matter. Christianity promises a third.

1. Matter is all that matters – the materialist, atheist option. The material world is all there is and there is no meaning beyond what can be weighed or measured. The universe and all it contains, including human beings, is merely the product of impersonal, purposeless processes. In that case, the best we can do is try to avoid as much suffering as possible and "enjoy the few minutes you got left the best way you can," as The Misfit says in Flannery O'Connor's A Good Man is Hard to Find. You can also try to avoid inflicting any more pain than necessary. You can even seek to alleviate and prevent it if that's how you want to spend your minutes. Or, like The Misfit, you can enjoy "No pleasure but meanness." But, which you choose is just a matter of taste. The most we can hope for is that sooner or later, one way or another, each of us will be put out of her or his misery by the oblivion of death.

If matter is all that matters, in the end it doesn’t matter all that much. And it does not matter if it is cared for or destroyed, cherished or exploited. And that is true of all material beings, including human beings. Even those who have aimed at improving the material well-being of humanity while committed to an ideology based on materialism have justified horrific things being done to the actual physical, material bodies of human beings.

Most atheists and materialists try to avoid these conclusions. But none successfully.

2. Matter doesn’t really matter – the option of one or another version of Idealism, Spiritualism, or Gnosticism. The material world and its tragic history is at most an insignificant backdrop to a more real spiritual drama. Or it is a bad and yucky thing. Or it is an illusion. This is true of the world at large and it is true of our material bodies. And suffering, then is not really real. The hope is that we can escape the material world with all its challenges and suffering through one or another system of spiritual liberation. Or we can hope that whatever is eternal, e.g., our soul or spirit, will finally shuffle off the mortal coil of material, bodily existence and move on to some realm of spiritual bliss.

As with option 1, if this is true, it doesn’t matter much how matter is treated. It is a matter of indifference.

Christians have sometimes tended to adopt some version of this. To disastrous effect. There has been a tendency to treat material reality as merely "stuff" to be used and exploited rather than a gift to be received with reverence and gratitude. And horrific things have been done to the material, physical bodies of human beings for the sake of their immaterial souls or some larger, spiritual ideal. 

But, orthodox Christianity has not taught that matter does not matter.

3. Christianity affirms something different – matter matters, but it is not all that matters and it matters in a direction. The material world is created by God and God declares it good – very good. It has been further blessed by being assumed by divinity in the Incarnation of Jesus Christ. In the resurrection of Jesus we are assured that, in spite of its tragic history, the material creation is destined for transfiguration and New Creation. Matter matters.

If one assumes either 1 or 2, any talk of "resurrection" must be understood as metaphorical with, at best, only tangential connection with physical and material reality. If it has any meaning at all it is only a spiritual meaning. And there are some who talk of resurrection as if that is all it means – while the stories of resurrection have metaphorical meaning, Jesus did not actually, physically rise from the dead.

But, the hope of Christianity is based on a real, physical, material resurrection. First of all, the resurrection of Jesus in the 1st century. But, we also affirm in the Creeds that we believe in (and base our hope on) "the resurrection of the body". And what we hope for matters.

While the evil we humans commit, collaborate with, and suffer under always has a spiritual dimension, fundamentally, it is real, physical, and historical. The trauma, tragedy, torture, and terror are in real space, in real time. The contradictions we live under are historical, not metaphorical or merely spiritual. The Christian hope is not that we will somehow merely escape from the trauma, tragedy, and terror of evil, sin, and death – either that of our personal stories or of the story of human history. Our hope is that it has been addressed and redressed in the Incarnation, crucifixion, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. And that it will all be transfigured in resurrection.

I wonder if, when we say we believe in the resurrection of the body, what we are saying is about more than only the resurrection of individual bodies. It certainly is that. But, it it is also about the whole Human body stretched out on the rack of history. It is that body that was incorporated in the Incarnation. When Jesus Christ rose again on the third day, so did the promise of the resurrection/transfiguration of all the very material, historical sin and suffering of humanity and all creation – not metaphorically, but really and physically.

A real, physical resurrection matters. With that there is hope that the very real, physical torture and suffering of history (and the persons caught in it as victims, perpetrators, and collaborators) does not get the last word. Death and its servants do not win. Because we believe material reality matters and matters in a particular direction, we believe it matters how we care for the material creation. And it matters how we treat and care for the actual physical bodies of other human beings and their real material needs. While our meaning and purpose is found in more than our physical, material needs; the affirmation of the resurrection of the body insists that bodies cannot be separated from that meaning and purpose.

The Christian themes of creation and resurrection affirm that matter matters and it matters in a direction with a purpose and meaning. Rejoicing in the power of the resurrection, we live in the hope that material reality – including us God-breathed, material, embodied creatures – will be transfigured in resurrection glory. In the meantime we are obliged to cherish and care for it all and for the physical bodies and material needs of every human being.  

The Cross = a Platform, an Altar, and a Throne

A Good Friday Meditation

Isaiah 52:13-53:12, Psalm 22, Hebrews 4:14-16; 5:7-9, John 18:1-19:42

Cathedral of St. Paul, Fond Du Lac, Wisconsin

When I survey the wondrous cross, what do I see?

When you survey the wondrous cross, what do you see?

A cruel instrument of personal torture and public terror?

It was certainly that.

The Romans used the cross liberally to maintain the order of their empire.

And it certainly was a cruel, painful, humiliating way to die.

As we gather to commemorate the crucifixion of Jesus,

we do well to remember that the cross on which he died

was a cruel instrument of torture and terror.

But, when Jesus was hung on a cross to die,

this notorious instrument of personal torture and public terror

was transformed into something more.

It became a platform, an altar, and a throne.

Look at the three windows at the back of the cathedral.

On the right is the Old Testament prophet, Isaiah.

On the left is the Old Testament priest, Aaron.

In the  center is the Old Testament King, David.

Jesus is the fulfillment of each of these Old Testament offices.

When I survey the wondrous cross,

I see the platform for the Prophet proclaiming the Good News.

With Jesus, the cross became a platform for a prophet – the Prophet.

This prophet came not simply to deliver a word from God,

he was the very Word of God enfleshed.

From this unusual wooden platform of the cross,

he uttered this prophetic word, “It is finished.”

What is finished?

The reign of death.

With the death of Jesus

we see the death of death.

Now, however much it might seem that death has the last word,

we know that Jesus – his life and love –

is the last word and death is finished.

As the Prophet’s proclamation echoes through the ages

from this wooden platform,

death becomes a whisper.

Death is as fleeting as late spring snow.

When I survey the wondrous cross,

I see the altar where the one Priest becomes the one Sacrifice.

Jesus is the priest able to sympathize with our weakness,

tested as we are, yet without sin.

On that wooden, cross-shaped altar,

Jesus, the one the Sacrifice,

bore our infirmities and carried our diseases.

He was wounded for our transgressions

and crushed for our iniquities.

With his death, our sin dies

and by his bruises we are healed.

Jesus is the source of eternal salvation.

When I survey the wondrous cross, I also see a throne

from which the King of glory reigns.

“Jesus of Nazareth, king of the Jews”

is also King and Lord of all creation.

Especially in the Gospel of John,

the cross is transformed from an instrument

of torture, terror and death

into an instrument of glory.

In chapter 12 of the Gospel of John, Jesus declares,

“But I, when I am lifted up from the earth,

will draw all men to myself”

and “the prince of this world will be driven out.”

The prince of this world rules though fear,

torture and terror,

destruction and death.

The prince of this world wins when we respond

with fear and hatred and vengeance.

But, on the cross, the prince of this world

is unseated,

The one true King assumes his throne

and begins his reign of love and peace and reconciliation.

Let us remember on Good Friday that Jesus died a cruel death

on an instrument of personal torture and public terror.

Let us also remember that he transformed the cross into something more.

Let us rejoice that he has made possible our transformation

as we are freed from the power of Death and Sin

and welcomed as subjects of his gracious reign.

When I survey the wondrous cross on which the Prince of Glory died, I see more.

I see a platform for a prophet.

I see an altar where priest and sacrifice are one.

I see a throne from whence reigns the Prince of Peace who is the King of Glory.

On Jesus' Prayer from the Cross for his Enemies

LORD JESUS CHRIST, Fountain of holiness and sweetness, I bless and thank you for your abundant love and heartfelt prayer for you enemies and for those crucifying you. With hands outstretched on the cross, you pleaded for them, asking that they be pardoned, and you generously excused their transgressions, saying, Father, forgive them for they know not what they do. Indeed, these are words, full of grace and sweetness, capable of softening the heart of any sinner and of moving him to repentance!

O sweet Jesus, how inclined you are to forgive, how easily appeased, and how eager to show mercy. Great and boundless is you kindness Lord, to all who love you; you likewise manifested that same loving kindness toward you enemies. Hanging high on your Cross you were not moved by any bitterness against those crucifying you, nor did you seek vengeance on those tormenting you. You did not pray for the earth to swallow them up, or for fire to come down from Heaven and consume them that very instant. Rather, like a welcome rain, you uttered sweet and loving words on behalf of your cruel tormentors, saying: Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.

These words reveal you most excellent love as well as your indescribably meekness, qualities that could never be obliterated in you. Nor were you held back from uttering a prayer. Your executioners shouted: Crucify! Crucify! And you responded with the words: Father, forgive them. They drove rough nails into your body and you offered excuses for their unheard-of wickedness, saying: They know not what they do. O Christ, how wonderful is your love.

….

Penetrate deeply into the five sacred wounds of the crucified, kiss his other wounds, cling to the tree of life with loving arms, and hold fast to Jesus hanging on his Cross, he is the certain pledge for our salvation. Worship him devoutly, commit yourself to him with full faith, and abandon yourself completely into his hands. Since he had shown himself to be good and merciful to his enemies, then he will certainly be more gracious to one who sorrows over his sins.

If you, however, wish your prayer to be heard the sooner, and if you desire to win your Redeemer’s grace and obtain the fullness of his mercy, then from the depths of your heart forgive your brother for whatever he has done against you. Forgive him for small matter so that God may forgive you for more serious offenses, and pray for his salvation in the same way as you pray for your own. You will find grace and, by imitating the example of Jesus, who orders us to love our enemies and pray for our persecutors, you will become the child of the Most High.

If you train yourself to forgive all injuries done you, even though you suffer them unjustly, and to pray for those who have wronged you, then you have gained for yourself at the hour of your death a confident hope. Such holy prayer for one’s enemies has won eternal blessedness for the apostles, has glorified the martyrs, ennobled the confessors, and made all the saints like unto Christ and deserving of eternal life.

– Thomas a Kempis (1380-1471), On the Passion of Christ

Holy Week and the Way of Jesus

In Holy Week Jesus confronts us with fundamental questions.

Will we be people of the basin and the towel,

prepared to wash one another's feet

and feet of the world?

Or will we be people of the hammer and nails,

enthralled with the way of separation and violence –

in our hearts,

in our words,

in our actions?

Will we crucify Jesus again and again

as we crucify those he loves,

with whom he identifies,

and for whom he died?

Will we justify our own fingerprints on the hammer and nails

by insisting that others have more?

Or will we take up our cross,

deny ourselves and follow

the One who came not to be served,

but to serve;

the One who insisted that God desires mercy,

not sacrifice;

the One who said love your enemy;

the One who prayed from the cross,

“Father, forgive . . .”?

Will we follow the one who took up the basin and towel

and washed even the feet of those

who would abandon,

deny, and betray him?

Do we really believe in the way of Jesus?

Do we really believe in resurrection?