Sunday Reflections

Contemplating Life and Death

Benjamin Franklin has been quoted to say that there are only two things certain in life: death and taxes. While much can be said about the latter, let us focus on the former, namely, death. Cardinal Collins in his Pastoral Letter on Stewardship* asserts that “the thought of death is spiritually fruitful, as it forces each of us to consider our priorities.”

As we approach the end of the liturgical year, the Mass readings point toward Christ’s Second Coming and the end of our earthly life. Through the contemplation of our limited time on earth, we can ask ourselves if we are appropriately using our gifts to serve Christ in the poor and our neighbour. One great gift we can share is that of our time. Cardinal Collins says that, “we can use our time in this life to be selfish, or to be generous to others. The blessed used their time here to care for those in need.”

Two practical ways we can effectively and generously use our time is in prayer and active presence with our neighbour. It is primarily important to spend time in prayer, in order to begin to know, love and worship God and come to understand His love and mercy for us. Consequently, with the fire of God’s love fostered through our time in prayer, our time spent with others will be more fruitful, as it will now be God’s love within us reaching out to others. So as we journey with our eyes fixed heavenward, let us generously give our time to God and our parish community.

Summary

As the Mass readings point toward Christ’s Second Coming and the end of our earthly life, we should ask ourselves if we are appropriately using our gifts to serve Christ in the poor and our neighbour. One great gift we can share is that of our time. Cardinal Collins says that, “we can use our time in this life to be selfish, or to be generous to others. The blessed used their time here to care for those in need.”