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8. RECAPITULATION |
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II Cor. 4 |
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The royal priesthood, which corresponds to the kingly and priestly ministries of Christ, is the aspect of the kingdom given especially to Christians. How in practice do we express this ministry as young people? The whole New Testament speaks in answer to this question. Let us in this last study recapitulate some of the elements that we have already encountered in the passages so far studied, and in related ones. (1) Grasp the meaning of our baptism: Baptism is introduction into a new life -- the life of royal priesthood. This is the life of an ongoing community, the Church, which participates in the eternal ministry of Christ. The first epistle of Peter makes this clear. ‘And baptism saves you, not by removal of bodily uncleanness, but the pleading of a clear conscience in the presence of God, through the risen Jesus Christ, who is at the right hand of God, who has entered heaven with angels and authorities subject to him’ (1 Peter 3:21). Baptism is initiation into the heavenly community which lives in the presence of God, enabling us to join in the service of God. Those who practice Christmation (Muron) as an integral part of their baptism (and not as a separate sacrament of confirmation) should know that the holy oil anoints them to the priestly, prophetic and kingly ministries of Christ.(2) Grasp the kingly priesthood: The ministry of priesthood is on behalf of the whole creation, and not a means of personal salvation which is already given to us as a free gift. Our fundamental orientation of life then becomes that of the first part of the Lord’s prayer. ‘Father in heaven, Thy name be hallowed, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, in earth as in heaven.’ We do not seek any other objective for our ministry as Christians in the world, except this concern for the coming of God’s kingdom over the entire earth. That the hungry may find food, that the oppressed may be set free, that justice and righteousness may be established in society, that the world may rejoice in God -- these form our ambition as Christians living in the world. (3) Prepare to express the kingly priesthood -- by training for a ministry of self-sacrificing service for the kingdom. If possible find channels for engaging in such service along with others right now. Our service may be in village work, in urban social work, in teaching, in healing, in building, or in pleading the cause of the poor, in labour union work, or in the ordained ministry of the Church. Let our youth and our academic career be a time of training by practice in the art of serving others without dominating them or using them for our own gratification. Let us respect those whom we serve, and consider it our privilege to be able to serve them. The Master came to serve and not to be served. We have the same role. (4) Express the royal priesthood - by engaging fully in the ministry of worship and prayer. Make the Eucharist the centre of our life of prayer. We should not regard the Holy Communion (Holy Mass or Lord’s Supper) as an occasion when Christ gives us his grace by feeding us. That is only part of the Eucharist. But primarily it is a participation in Christ’s eternal act of self-offering on the cross. When the bread and the wine are lifted up and offered to God in Christ, we are offering ourselves, our bodies, our minds, our souls, our abilities and all we have to God in Christ in an act of loving self-immolation to the gracious and loving Father; not to appease Him, but because He is worthy of all, and our gratitude to Him can be expressed in no lesser way. In the Eucharist we should learn to offer up the problems of our people and of the whole of humanity to God. We have a responsibility to lift up the sufferings and yearnings of those with whom we live and whom we know well. We must feel in ourselves and directly experience the poverty and misery of our people, and must intercede for the poor and the miserable and the oppressed with deep personal concern. Only that way the service we render to our fellowmen will receive the quality of authenticity. The Eucharist is the mode in which the sufferings of this world are linked up with the sufferings of Christ on the cross, through the conscious act of the Church, by the power of the Holy Spirit. But this must become a reality in our worship life, and a reality in our daily life. (5) Develop our life of continuing intercession for the world: Christ is unceasingly interceding for the world. We should participate in this continuing ministry of intercession, not in order that we may spiritually grow, but rather in order that life and joy may come to the dying and the miserable. As busy students and hard-working people, we may not have long hours to engage in sustained prayer. The tempo of our technological civilization demands new forms of prayer life. The most accessible to all today is the habit of ‘Ejaculatory’ Prayer. This is from time to time to say in the depths of our hearts ‘Lord, have mercy on the poor’, or such short one sentence prayers, which can be said on any occasion when a lecture gets boring, when we have to wait for somebody, while walking to the college or to our home, etc. The content of these prayers should also become concrete whenever possible, like ‘Lord, have mercy on our nation, and deliver us from famine, from corruption, etc. In the early morning, even while remaining awake in bed, we should lift up our hearts to God in loving, adoring thanksgiving and worship. Only thus can the subconscious mind be cleansed. (6) Devote our energies to creative service: Youth is a time when the energy available seems to be in excess of the needs. Tremendous resources of muscular, mental and emotional energy make it difficult for us to control them as we wish. Real growth in the royal priesthood takes place only as we ‘yield our bodies to righteousness for sanctification’ (Rom. 6:19). The fight against personal impurity and uncleanness cannot be a frontal fight. It can be successful only when we use our bodily energies and emotions to work in the service of others. St. Paul asks us to ‘present our bodies as a living sacrifice’ to God (Rom.12:1). The body, with the muscles, the nerves, the mind, the emotions and the will, is to be engaged in the ‘spiritual worship’ of the royal priesthood. The battle against personal sin is partly won in the fight for social righteousness and in dedicated, devoted service to others.(7) Become pioneers with others in bringing freedom and justice in the world: Let us use our mind and our imagination to find ways of pioneering in fighting oppression and injustice in our societies. The Christian Church started schools, hospitals, and other institutions which have now become the common property of all -- including those who are not Christians. This is our continuing ministry in the world -- to be pioneers of new forms of good. We are not to imitate the world. ‘Do not be squeezed into the mould of this age’ (Rom. 12: 2-a). Our task is to be transformed ourselves, and become a transforming influence in society, by attesting (demonstrating) what the will of God is for our time and place (12:2-b), When there is black- marketing and hoarding of food in our society, as intelligent students and young people it is our job to find means to prevent such acts and to expose those who practice them. If our officials and leaders are corrupt, it is our job to bring the corruption to light. But this kind of destructive criticism may be too easy. We must also show new ways of doing things which change the structures of corruption and oppression, and at the same time inspire others to integrity and self sacrificing service. Creative pioneering is the main vocation of a minority Church.(8) Finally, be ready to accept failure -- and to lay down our lives with faith, hope and love. Christians should not be naive enough to think that by our pioneering action, our society will become a paradise overnight. The cross was apparent failure, ineffective in saving the world. But out of the apparent failure have come the great movements of emancipation and welfare of our day. We should not anticipate either success or general approval, in direct response to our actions. To act in faith is to be despised and rejected and to fail apparently, as part of the calling of the suffering servant (Isaiah 53)(9) In all things render thanks to God, and wait for his full manifestation. Our job is to work within our mandate, with joy and thanksgiving. His presence, open and unveiled, will also bring the day of final release, final salvation, when the whole earth shall rejoice in the light of God. It is the anticipation of this final, open triumph of God in Christ that makes Christians an extraordinary people who never lose courage (2 Cor. 4:1-11).(10) To serve these purposes, help to make the Church a creative fellowship, where honesty, integrity and love are the binding forces, and where hypocrisy and mutual competition and deceit no longer rule. ‘Come to him (Christ) to that living rock, rejected by men but in God’s sight, choice precious; and like living blocks of rock be yourselves built into a house of the Spirit, to exercise the holy priesthood of offering up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ’ (1 Peter 2: 4 -5)QUESTIONS 1. What are some possible forms of pioneering social action in India today? 2. How can the role of a Christian student or young person be understood within the royal priesthood of the whole Church? 3. How can baptism and its meaning become more of a reality to Indian Christians today? ESSAY QUESTIONS (For written work by individual young people, to be read later to a group): 1. If the Sermon on the Mount (Mt. 5, 6 and 7) is to be taken as an indication of what Christ meant by the Kingdom of God, how would you relate it to the problems of India today?2. What did baptism signify in the New Testament with its Jewish background? Study in this connection the following passages:
3. How does the death and resurrection of Christ become effective for the salvation of the whole of mankind, with special relation to poverty, oppression and injustice? In this connection, try to see the relation between personal righteousness and social righteousness. Especially see: Mt. 23: 23 - 28; 25: 31 - 46 Romans 2:1 - 24; 5:15 - 21 Ephesians 2:10; 4:17 - 5 - 2 |