Saturday, November 20, 2010

rejoice in the goodness of the other

Here for this saturday are a few words form St. Thomas Auinas on eternal life:

"Again, eternal life consists of the joyous community of all the blessed, a community of supreme delight, since everyone will share all that is good with all the blessed. Everyone will love everyone else as himself, and therefore will rejoice in another' sgood as his own. So it follows that the happiness and joy of each grows in proportion to the joy of all."

As we draw close to the liturgiacal year and we celebrate the Feast of Chist the King, it isn't a bad idea to think about eternity. What will it be like? What will we be like? What does it means to profess faith in "live everlasting" or "communion of sainst" or the "resurrection of the body."


These things require and demand attention and thought. The more we can think about them togther with the saints and the mind of the church the more we will be better prepared for thecoming of the King.

In the words of St. Thomas, "we will rejoice in another's good as our own."

Imagine that attitude of living. Rather than take offense at another's fortune or blesseing we will be able to rejoice with them and draw strength from it and allow it to build bonds of unity.

I wonder what that would do for us here and now? What would it look like to rejoice in the goodness of the other? It might taste like eternity or at least a little piece of heaven's pie.


Thinkng on heaven should shape the way we thinnk and live today. The future affects today and today is how we move toward the future.

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