Wednesday, February 12, 2020

7. THINGS VISIBLE & INVISIBLE: THERE'S MORE TO REALITY THAN WHAT MEETS THE EYE


APPETIZER: "The Apostles' Creed professes that God is "creator of heaven and earth". The Nicene Creed makes it explicit that this profession includes "all that is, seen and unseen". The Scriptural expression "heaven and earth" means all that exists, creation in its entirety. It also indicates the bond, deep within creation, that both unites heaven and earth and distinguishes the one from the other: "the earth" is the world of human beings, while "heaven" or "the heavens" can designate both the firmament and God's own "place"... Finally, "heaven" refers to the saints and the "place" of the spiritual creatures, the angels, who surround God." (CCC #325-326)

MAIN COURSE:  Before we can really get into the nitty gritty details of the Incarnation, that is, the various stages and events in the life of Jesus from his conception through his Ascension into Heaven 33 years later, we have to accept that our physical world is not the only realm of reality that exists. And we need to understand that as human beings we are a bridge or meeting place for these two realities of being or existence.  We share with the plants and animals in the physical or material world for which we have received our bodies from God through our parents.  And we share in the spiritual or eternal realm as witnessed by our immortal souls which each of us receives directly from God at conception. Our body gives us our particular genetic appearance and related physical and mental qualities. Our souls give us intelligence (the ability to reason and think) and free will (the power to choose between good and evil).  It is because of our spiritual immortal intelligent souls that the Bible tells us that we humans are created in the image of God (Genesis 1:27).

Before the creation of human beings, God created non-bodied spiritual beings who possess both intelligence and free will  as we do but whose powers and abilities far surpass ours. The Scriptures call these beings angels, a word that means "messenger" because they are seen as being agents of God who deliver his message to humans. They act as intermediaries of the Lord throughout Scripture, bringing about healings, warnings, rewards, consolation, guidance and of course the good news concerning Jesus' birth and resurrection.

But in the beginning the angels had a free-will choice to make. They were created to love and serve God (just as we are) and so each one had to decide if they would live as servants of God or become servants of themselves. Their choice would either lead them into Heaven to be with God forever or it would bring about from God the creation of Hell, which is an existence devoid of God and his goodness. While we do not know any of the details whatsoever (although you may read books or hear homilies that make you think we know) a significant number of the angels chose to love and serve themselves. They were led in this rebellion against God by one of the highest angels whose name was Lucifer. The majority of the angels who used their free will to remain servants of the Lord were led in their decision by another chief angel who we call St. Michael the Archangel (see photo above).

This first fracture in God's plan for his creation brought about the ancient battle of good versus evil that continues to today. It brought about the Fall (original sin) of Adam and Eve who were tempted by Satan in the Garden. And ever since, the fallen unfaithful angels (whom we also call devils or demons) have waged spiritual war against human beings. Why? Because they do not want us to attain what they gave up: a life with God in total love, joy, peace and ffulfilment forever.

They use the same tactics on us that they first used on Adam and Eve. They tempt us to not trust God, to consider him a Tyrant who really doen't care for us.  They try to convince us that we each know what is best for our own lives and happiness. This tactic worked on Adam and Eve and sadly it continues to work on us, their descendants. We never seem to learn!

Traditionally it is said that we are tempted to rebel against God through three ways: the world, the flesh, and the devil.  Let's take a quick brief look at each one of these.
  • By "the world" what is meant is not the globe on which we live but rather, it refers to what is called a "secular outlook".  In other words, we lose sight of our spiritual nature and make moral choices as if this life on earth is all we have. In the recent past you may heave heard of someone referred to as a "worldly person" caught up with the "fine things of life". That was an expression of living for "the world".  And so "the world" tells us to gain all the material good we can, to climb the ladder to success no matter what the cost, to make choices that are rooted in our own self-focused desires.  It can be summed up in the famous saying: "eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow you may die."
  • By "the flesh" is meant the lure of the desires of our fallen human nature that is prone to selfishness. You see, the ancient sin of Adam and Eve wounded and weakened our humanity.  God made us good (as Genesis assures us)  but the effects of original sin make it a struggle for us to choose good and avoid evil. Baptism removes the spiritual alienation caused by this sin and gives us God's grace to overcome the lure of these effects as long as we remain united with Christ.
  • By 'the devil" is meant, of course, the direct spiritual assaults that come from Satan and his demons. Sometimes these can be direct hits on us, but usually our spiritual enemies use the other two things above (world, flesh) as their battle fields. However, these fallen angels can only tempt us from outside of us.  They cannot force us to do what they wish.  They will suggest ideas, thoughts to our minds and encourage us to think of these potential actions as being a choice for good.  But always the ultimate choice is ours to make.

This is why prayer for spiritual strength and good formation in Christian faith and morals is so important for us.  This is why the Church has always urged Christians to read and reflect upon the Scriptures so as the know what God asks of us and offers us. This is also why we have the custom of using and wearing blessed objects such as a cross, a medal or scapular of Mary, a St. Benedict medal or a rosary in our pockets.  These are not superstitious charms, but spiritual weapons and sacred reminders that we belong to God and helped by the prayers of the Blessed Mother, the angels and saints in this spiritual battle.

However, we do not walk this earth alone in this battle.  We are not left to our puny (compared to angels) human resources to fight against the superior abilities of the demons. God has assigned to each one of us a personal agent, a personal messenger, whom we call our guardian angel. It is the mission of this angel to accompany us throughout life primarily for the sake of our spiritual protection. Sometimes this protection is physical and many people have indeed experienced such help. But their main task is to "light and guard, to rule and guide" us (as the traditional prayer goes) safely to Heaven.

Now how does all this fit into the story of Jesus, apart from the Christmas and Easter angels whom we encounter in the Gospels? You will recall that the whole purpose in Jesus becoming human was to undo what Adam and Eve had started by their original sin and to give us even more than they originally had in their relationship with God. His rescue and restore mission includes the defeat of Satan and his minions who first tempted them and who continue the spiritual war against us, their descendants.  It also includes the reality of our immortal souls, healing us from sin, reconciling us to God, and claiming victory over death (the ultimate effect of sin) thus enabling us to live forever in Heaven.

DOGGIE BAG:  Here are a few things to take away with you for spiritual snacking on the reality of the spiritual realm and angels.

Traditional Angel of God Prayer: Angel of God, my guardian dear, to whom God's love commits me here, ever this day be at my side, to light and guard, to rule and guide. Amen.


Quote from the Saints: "For goodness’ sake, don’t forget this invisible companion, ever present, ever disposed to listen to us and even more ready to console us. Oh, wonderful intimacy! Oh, blessed companionship!  If only we could understand it! Keep him always before your mind’s eye. Remember this angel’s presence often, thank him, pray to him, always keep up a good relationship." (St. Padre Pio, d. 1968, He had the spiritual gift of visibly seeing his guardian angel.)

Scripture Verse to Memorize: "He has given his angels charge over you, to protect you in all your ways." (Psalm 91:11)

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