One of the most painful experiences of a human being must be that of betrayal. Especially painful is the betrayal of children against their parents when those parents have tried to be as loving and self-giving as possible. It is a possibility because no matter how loving parents can be, there is still the possibility that children may not respond well to that love. It is the possibility that true freedom requires.
Pope John Paul II in his book Crossing the Threshold of Hope said: “God who is omnipotent has made himself impotent when he gave us freedom”. It could not be any other way. True love requires freedom because it cannot be forced, it can only be elicited.
At times I do think about the possibility that I have to lose my salvation. At different moments in my life I have considered that I could end up in hell. I do not take my salvation for granted. I know my weakness and my capacity for betrayal. And I think of this possibility seriously because I know that revelation tells us that God takes our freedom so seriously that he is willing to risk losing us. It has already happened with some of his most beloved creatures. One of his most gifted creatures opted for that betrayal and God allowed him to have it his way: Lucifer.
The Bible is full of references about these spiritual beings to whom God has entrusted the care of the material world: For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. Psalm 91:11. They have been entrusted with the mission of guarding us in order to move us to good. However, those who betrayed God instead of moving us to good, move us to evil. We could wander why God allows them to linger and roam about the Earth. Why doesn’t he just send them somewhere else and leave us in peace? Why do we have to suffer from their temptations and from all the evil they do?
I believe that the answer lies in the proper understanding of what we could call “angelic time”. It is not exactly measured as we measure time. For us, it takes a lifetime to learn about the world around us, to experience the love of others and eventually the love of God. As we learn about the world around us, about our responsibilities, we eventually make a decision either for self-giving or for selfishness. This fundamental decision we make about our lives is made gradually as we process the events of our lives. Now, what takes years from a human point of view, takes place in one instant in the world of angels. Being bodiless, they can grasp reality instantly and they make a fundamental choice about their stance regarding love in one instance. In other words, in one instance they make their fundamental decision for salvation and condemnation. Moreover, that one act from the point of view of these spiritual beings has an effect throughout the entire course of the material world. We experience the benefits or the evil of their one instance throughout our history. Let us remember that we are talking about different dimensions of time.
God cannot eliminate the devil and his demons from the world during the course of their decision making. This is what respect to their free will entails. However, he can intervene in our history. This is the advantage that we have over angels. God did not have a window of opportunity in their angelic time to become one of them and to work from within their nature. However, God can do that for us. He can accompany us, become one of us, and eventually work within us. This is salvation history: God at work within our history so as to elicit love from within us while at the same time respecting our freedom. This is the source of our hope.
Questions for pondering:
- Have you ever thought what it would be like if you realize at the end of your life that you have been condemned to hell forever?
- Have you been able to perceive the work of God in your history?
Fr Lino Otero, LC: Originally from Nicaragua, my family moved to Miami, Florida when I was a teenager. Soon afterwards I experienced the call to serve God without reservations. Since then, I have had experience in hospital ministry, working as a middle school teacher, leading a parish school, organizing soccer tournaments for kids, starting a radio station, training priests in leadership formation, organizing a parish community from maintenance to mission, and much more. I love spiritual direction and preaching. Years of philosophy, psychology and theological training have enriched my personal life and have shaped my message of hope. For more go to linootero.me
