When Jesus heard that his cousin, John the Baptist, had been killed, he withdrew to a deserted place. Pondering John’s brutal death, he may have struggled to understand the mystery of evil that prompted Herod to do what he did.
Like John the Baptist, Jesus was put to death by evil men but meanwhile he did not allow himself to be caught up in their culture of death. To the contrary, Jesus came to bring life abundantly to the world, inviting his followers to join him in a culture of life, not death.
The culture of life promotes the sanctity of life. This underlies our Catholic conviction that all life is sacred from conception to natural death, hence the Church speaks up for the poor, the unborn, the imprisoned, the marginalized, the ill, the migrant worker, and the victims of racism and bigotry.
The culture of life chooses the way of the Lord over all other possibilities. It considers how each decision should best reflect the presence of Christ. What would Jesus do? St. John Paul II often spoke about the culture of life and so did many other saints. You may recall AB Fulton Sheen hosted a TV show entitled, “Life is worth Living.”
In his letter, Paul tells us that no matter what the world throws at us, no power in the universe can separate us from the love of God. Being committed to the culture of life led Mother Theresa to care for the poorest of the poor and the dying in the gutters of Calcutta. Being committed to the culture of life prompted Martin Luther King to share his dream that his children would be judged by the content of their character, not the color of their skin. Being committed to the culture of life compelled St. Oscar Romero to stand up for the indigenous peoples of El Salvador.
They conveyed Paul’s message that God, who knows all our sins and sinful tendencies, never stops loving us. But that is not all. Paul goes on to present us with a litany of different kinds of suffering and tragedy, including war, starvation, fear, injustice, death, poverty, and depression. He points out that God’s love is even more powerful than these horrible realities that continue to plague our world today.
Notice Paul doesn’t blame God for the tragedies and sufferings that occur. He doesn’t lament, “God, why do you allow these horrible things to happen?” Paul knows that in this fallen world, evil affects even the most innocent and holiest of people. He also knows that the devil uses evil and suffering to drag people into despair, hopelessness, self-centeredness, and hardness of heart toward others.
In the face of tragedy, the Christian responds not with despair, revenge, anger or corruption, but with love, perseverance, and hope, following the Lord’s example. As Paul points out, “…in all these things we conquer overwhelmingly through him who loved us.”
Our commitment to the culture of life generates a spirit of charity that foils the devil’s plans. The culture of life calls us to be people of life and hope. It is this commitment that allows us to view the events of our physical life as only a chapter in the story of our lives.
Ideally we live for God. St. Ignatius of Antioch wrote ages ago, “The Christian is not his own master, his time is God’s.” Yes, we live for eternal life and we refuse to be destroyed by the culture of death.
The culture of death only sees the here and now. It doesn’t consider the impact of a person’s actions on his or her life or on the world in general. It is the culture of death that says, “Have an abortion.” Just think of all the talent and love the world has lost. The culture of death also says, “Party on!” so many do so, knowing that this pandemic could kill them.
The culture of death has sent many inmates to death row, even though some are innocent of the crime for which they were convicted. That same culture has prematurely claimed the lives of countless people through slavery, euthanasia, and martial law brutality, here and in distant lands.
It is easy to isolate ourselves from others and become insensitive to what they are enduring. But remember, we are all God’s children, unconditionally loved by our creator and redeemer. God is counting on us to be his hands and feet to convey that love to others. We also have the right to demand that others be treated with dignity just as we are.
Pope Francis once said, “Jesus does not force you to be a Christian. But if you say you are a Christian, you must believe that Jesus has the power—the only one who has the power— to renew the world, to renew your life, to renew your family, to renew the community, to renew everybody.”
Perhaps that insight is what prompted a Dominican priest to compose a prayer we use monthly in our Taize service. “Deliver us Lord from everything that is evil. From all things that separate us from you and each other. Deliver us from our pride, our selfishness, our anger, our jealousies. Deliver us, Lord, from when we feel unlovable or find it difficult to love. Deliver us, Lord, through all pain, suffering and death. Deliver us unto each other in a genuine openness, one to the other. Deliver unto us the strength of loving one another exactly as we are. And protect us from all anxiety as we wait in joyful hope for the coming of our savior, Jesus Christ.”