Ultimate Destiny

Posted On March 22, 2008

Holy Saturday
Readings: Gen 1:1-2:2 or 1:1, 26-31a; Gen 22:1-18 or 22:1-2, 9a, 10-13, 15-18; Ex 14:15-15:1; Is 54: 5-14; Is 55:1-11; Bar 3:9-15, 32-4:4; Ezek 36: 16-17a, 18-28; Rom 6: 3-11; Mk 16:1-7.

“… so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we, too, might live a new life.” Rom 6:4

The Easter Vigil, with its nine readings and eight responsorial psalms, traces the story of God’s continuing faithfulness to His fatherhood from the creation of the world to the Resurrection of Christ, even though His children repeatedly turn away from Him.
But this story of God’s mercy doesn’t really end with the Resurrection. For it is God’s plan that, “just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we, too, might live a new life” Rom 6:4.
What’s this “new life”? It’s a sharing in the life of God, body and soul. When Christ was raised from the dead, the Father introduced His Son’s humanity, including His now glorified body, into the Trinity” (CCC #648).
This is is also your ultimate destiny in the Father’s plan. By entering into communion with Christ, you receive divine sonship. Thus, after you die, the Father will raise you up as He did Jesus and, in your now glorified body, you will be embraced into the life of the Trinity itself (see CCC #460).
This is good news. And it gets better! We don’t have to wait until we die. Eternal life doesn’t just mean that, after we die, we live again forever. It means we live in and with God. And we can start living this new life right away, for “even now we are called to be a dwelling for the Most Holy Trinity” (CCC # 260).
How do we respond to this call? By our love and obedience (cf CCC # 460), and, most especially, by entering into communion with Christ in the Eucharist. As Our Lord explained to St. Faustina, “Eternal life must begin already here on earth through Holy Communion. Each Holy Communion makes you more capable of communing with God throughout eternity” (Diary, 1811).

Thank you, Father, for this awesome gift of eternal life. Help me to enter into it now by uniting myself with You more and more with each reception of Holy Communion.

Vinny Flynn