The Seasons: A Poem

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Sunrise over Amazing Grasses Family Farm The mad Artist wields His brush, Painted colors rush, To life and give flush, Before the quiet autumn hush. The life seems to pour, As colors fall to the floor, To be seen no more, Outside the dark, grey door. Brightness from below, Sun upon the snow, High, cold clouds blow, Flakes and ice appear to grow. The man melts with little seen, Underneath, pale, grey green, Hides life in dark unseen, Waits for warmth and to careen. Buds on branches show, Patience starts to grow, Trickles, streams and veins flow, Bringing fruits of melted snow. Sprung to life it springs, Bees, birds, sound rings, Lush green flings, Its gift bounty brings. Green growth gives one last rush, Underneath the Painter's brush. The mad Artist wields His brush, before the quiet autumn hush. More poetry is available from James M. Hahn in  The Last Dragon and Other Poems  available now. My new book of cryptogram puzzles " Secret Messages from the Saints " is avai
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God's Most Fearful Gift

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I struggled for a long time trying to understand today's first reading from St. Paul's letter to the Romans. Keeping in mind his audience, most likely retired military gentiles, I still couldn't make much sense of the wording:

The gifts and the call of God are irrevocable.

Just as you once disobeyed God
but have now received mercy
because of their disobedience,
so they have now disobeyed in order that,
by virtue of the mercy shown to you,
they too may now receive mercy.

For God delivered all to disobedience,
that he might have mercy upon all.

Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God!
How inscrutable are his judgments and how unsearchable his ways!

For who has known the mind of the Lord
or who has been his counselor?
Or who has given him anything
that he may be repaid?

For from him and through him and for him are all things.
To God be glory forever. Amen.

Again, here we find the danger and confusion that often results from pulling passages out of context. If we go back to the verses preceding these, a light begins to dawn. Loosely translated, St. Paul is telling these Roman gentiles that it is because of the hardness of heart shown by God's chosen people, that He showed mercy to all through His son, Jesus Christ. They, the Romans, are now benefitting from Israel's generations of disobedience [as are we]. Although they now continue to disobey God, even after the revelation of Jesus Christ; "In respect to the gospel, they are enemies on your account..."(Rom 11:28), they too will convert because they will see the mercy shown to you.

For God delivered all to disobedience, that he might have mercy upon all. 

Why? Why would God "deliver" all to disobedience? Why would He allow the patriarchs to disobey Him? Why would He allow the Romans, Jews, Gentiles, Greeks, Philippians, French, Germans, Americans, you, and me to live in disobedience?

This is the great question of any age! Why would God allow this? Why would God allow anyone to murder, be it a child in the womb or a race in the gas chambers of Auschwitz? Why would he allow sexual immorality, depravity, slavery, addiction, robbery, and so much more? Why would a loving God allow such disobedience among His children?

The answer, and it is a hard one to accept, is that He does so out of love. God has given every person a fearful gift; the gift of freewill. He will not rescind this gift and He will respect our use of it no matter how much it may pain Him, others, or ourselves.  He wants us to use this gift in imitation of Him. He wants us to use it to love and be loved. However, as the ultimate giver of gifts, He will not demand that we use the gift as He wishes. This would not be love, this would not be a gift with no strings attached. He wants us to use this gift according to His will but that is a choice we have to make on our own. He reminds us of this through the examples of Mary, "be it done unto me according to thy word", Jesus, "not my will, but yours be done...and ...thy Kingdom come, thy will be done...", and the many lives of the saints.

What a beautiful, generous, fearful, and terrifying gift! A gift that shows us that we are indeed created in the image and likeness of God! Yet, it is also a gift that can transform us into the most hideous creatures ever made in His image and likeness. 

So, what is the proper response to such a gift? What is the proper way in which to use such a gift? The answer here too, is love. The proper response and the proper way to use this gift is to imitate the giver and use it only with selfless love. 

In the Gospel today, Jesus illustrates this entire concept of both God's gift to us and our gift to others with a simple message - give love to those who cannot repay you [and, in fact, those who may despise you, try to rob you, turn against you, murder you, enslave you, and more]. This is what God has done for us - poor, crippled, lame, and blind as we are - we must go and do likewise. 


Click here to read more from James M. Hahn - Blog - Books 
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God bless you - Jim Hahn
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