A Greek philosophy professor ended a lecture as usual by asking if anyone had any questions. Anxious to get to their next class, no one spoke up, until someone asked, “Dr. Papaderos, what is the meaning of life?”
The usual laughter followed and people stirred to go. The teacher held up his hands and stilled the room. Seeing that the student was serious, he replied, “I will answer your question.” Taking his wallet out of his hip pocket, he fished into it and retrieved a very small round mirror, about the size of a quarter.
He then said, “When I was a small child, during the war, we were very poor and we lived in a remote village. One day, on the road, I found several broken pieces of a mirror from a wrecked German motorcycle. I tried to find all the pieces and put them together, but it was not possible, so I kept only the biggest piece. This one. And by scratching it on a stone I made it round. I began to play with it as a toy and became fascinated by the fact that I could reflect light into the dark places where the sun would never shine—in deep holes and crevices and dark closets. It became a game for me to get light into the most inaccessible places I could find. I kept the little mirror and as I went about my growing up, I would take it out in idle moments and continue the challenge of the game. As I became a man, I grew to understand that this was not just a child’s game but a metaphor for what I might do with my life.
“I came to understand that I am not the light or the source of light. But light—truth, understanding, knowledge—is there, and it will only shine in many dark places if I reflect it.
“I am a fragment of a mirror whose whole design and shape I do not know. Nevertheless, with what I have, I can reflect light into the dark places of this world—into the black places in the hearts of men—and change some things in some people. Perhaps others may see and do likewise. This is what I am about. This is the meaning of my life.” Taking the small mirror and holding it carefully, he then caught the bright rays of daylight streaming through the window and reflected them into the student’s face.
Dr. Papaderos’ notion of the meaning of life ties in well with the closing scene of Matthew’s gospel. There we find the apostles, still in doubt as to what their future holds. Recall in the first reading from Acts, they even asked, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” Jesus’ final words to them called for action but not with the aim of any military victory or revenge for his passion. Instead, he told them, “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always until the end of the age.” This was not the battle plan they expected for “conquering the world.”
Filled with wisdom by the Holy Spirit on Pentecost, the eleven went forth and did as Jesus commanded, boldly venturing forth to make disciples of all nations. Like Dr. Papaderos, they understood they were not the light or even the source of the light. At the time, they did not even fully understand all that Jesus was and his relationship to the Father and the Holy Spirit. Refining the principles of our creed took several centuries of prayer and discernment, but with what understanding they had, the early disciples reflected the light of Jesus Christ “into the black places in the hearts of men” and along the way, they “changed some things in some people.” The apostles enabled others to discover that the light they sought could be found only in Jesus Christ and that through Christ, the light of truth and understanding could indeed shine in many dark places.
Like the apostles, we are commissioned to hand on the story that has been given to us about Jesus and his Good News of love, forgiveness, and compassion. As noted in our mission statement, we are “to live Christ’s Gospel message,” which is “to love, teach, pray and serve.” When we do this, we are reflecting the light and love of Jesus Christ to others.
Consciously and unconsciously, we reflect our values by our words and actions and the choices we make. Do they reflect the light of Jesus Christ and the Gospel? A fundamental question we all must answer is, “What are the values I live by?” That was what the apostles had to ask themselves and once they understood that Jesus was the only truth they could live by, they did as he commanded, sharing that wisdom with anyone who would listen. Where there was darkness, they brought the light of Christ. Where there was despair, they brought hope. Wherever they went, they invited others to walk in the light of the Lord. So have countless generations since. If they hadn’t done so, you and I would not be here today.
This is what the Ascension is all about…taking seriously Jesus’ invitation to be his witnesses and share the good news. Evangelizing others doesn’t require a degree in theology. Your theology, fancy or plain, is what you are when the talking stops and the action starts. To paraphrase Dr. Papaderos, we are a fragment of the whole design and shape of Jesus, called upon to reflect God’s love. When we reflect his light into the hearts of those we meet, another corner of the world is freed from the darkness of sin.