Brian’s Reflection: Tuesday, January 27, 2009

 

 

Man has no claim upon God. Even Moses came

before God only with an appeal for grace.

 

- Rabbi Johanan, Deuteronomy Rabbah

 

 

Why did humankind conceive of a God of infinite and unconditional love, who forgives and frees upon the honest acknowledgment of failure in compassion or justice? Because, simply, there are things we can’t forgive ourselves for, or justify  -  things from which we can’t rationalize our guilt. We need such a God, to be free and to move on. The only cost is honesty.

 We call it Divine Grace. It is essential for our liberation. Human beings are capable of such meanness, such self-deception, such arrogance towards our fellow human beings. Things which outdistance our ability or our gall to justify.

 The “true” God is always about Life. As President Obama said, there are times when we must just pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and move forward. Otherwise our soul withers.

 The God of Grace is a gift we have given ourselves. We hold the gift to a rigorous standard:  it cannot be deceived. The freedom only comes through unflinching self-awareness.

 It would be very good if more of us could make use of Grace in it’s full demands and gift.

 Brian+