The Lives of Evil and Grace
A Late Night Musing… Feedback Appreciated
What is with the struggle characterized in Christianity? Are we trying to lay waste to evil? Truly, the very idea of trying to lay waste to evil is absurd in itself - evil already is laid waste. It is waste in the very idea of itself and is destined in love to be eradicated. If evil were to be personified, it would despise its own self because it knows it does not stand on its own but is a corruption of the creative goodness of our God and ever finds in itself that first cause. And yet evil cannot escape loving itself so much that it will never repent, never give in, and so will rejoice when finally put out of its misery. How horrible evil truly is…
We are captives, born into the bondage of evil through a bent, weakened, and selfish nature. Evil is not something that we naturally come to know and hate - it is something we come to know and embrace and nurture. Our disgrace causes us to love evil. As such, we would not have anything to fight against if it were not for the grace of God. By His fidelity, hope, and love we are graciously offered a second chance, a way back into the life of grace.
And that is the Christian struggle: not putting to death evil but nurturing as we can the life of grace. And we have been gifted by our God with assurances in what nurtures and communicates this life giving grace: hearing and knowing the Word of God, partaking in the Sacraments, prayer, and the communion of saints. And we do those things not to destroy evil but to leave it no room in our lives by, through, and in grace.
And all of that to say this: when we move to oppose evil men and to defeat the evil things they do as well as the evil in our own lives, it would make sense to me that we are not moving out of hate of evil but out of love God and neighbor and self. We are given the tools of grace to call each man to the obedience of faith - faith working in love. And with these tools we are called to move to confront evil in the world. Not to lay waste but to restore and build up by grace, in grace, through faith, hope, and love, within the freedom of each man.
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And there are some who actually want to say that because you are Catholic you do not know the Gospel.
Sometimes I just shake my head and wonder.
What a call! What a thing to live for! I say yes. I join you in that upward call to live and love and serve and to dance in the very face of evil. We only need to fight that which we fear, and Perfect Love has cast out our fear. Hallelujah!
Comment by the Foolish Sage — 4/15/2005 @ 11:02 pm
I think of it in terms of what Paul says in his first letter to the church at Corinth: “Love does not delight in evil but rejoices in the truth.” We’re called first and foremost to love God, and secondly to love our neighbor as ourselves. When we consider what love truly means for us, you’re right … we’re not seeking to hate evil so much as we’re running from it, because evil cannot breed love of anything but itself.
Comment by Geof F. Morris — 4/16/2005 @ 9:40 pm
I don’t even think we’re running from evil - we’re facing it head on and trying to leave it no room. We’re trying to love it out.
Comment by AnotherCoward — 4/17/2005 @ 1:37 pm
But we’re praying to not be lead into temptation …
Comment by Geof F. Morris — 4/17/2005 @ 5:30 pm
But if you are lead there, what are you going to do?
Comment by AnotherCoward — 4/17/2005 @ 6:14 pm
But what would lead you there?
Comment by Geof F. Morris — 4/17/2005 @ 8:41 pm
The lead of love and mercy I should imagine. Not for my sake, but for theirs.
Comment by AnotherCoward — 4/17/2005 @ 8:56 pm
Are you saying, then, that some people are evil? I don’t see evil as a personification but simply as a life force …
Comment by Geof F. Morris — 4/17/2005 @ 9:16 pm
No, evil is an error in motivation - be it willful or not - produced by an absence of knowing God and His purpose. I’ve not quite got my finger on precisely on what evil is, but that’s as good as I’ve got right now… and it fits in with my understanding of the Catholic Church’s teaching. By that defintion, mankind is not evil - God provided for man to fall through freedom though He did not desire man to fall, but as such He had already in mind the way back to a life of grace and righteousness. So the fall did not make mankind evil… but it removed mankind from God’s presence - depriving him of original grace and original justice and falling into original sin. And that absence is passed down through the generations, and, in it, each man falls into sin and evil because he cannot be in union with God’s full purpose without also being in union with God. So evil is an error in motivation produced by an absence of knowing God.
…Anyways… that there was an exercise more for me than anything else… to see if I could properly define evil… …I’ll re-examine it later… comment/critique as necessary
So, back on topic… I’m saying sometimes we are lead into the dens of the wicked to share with them the cross and empty tomb. I can’t imagine that such paths are never without their temptations.
Comment by AnotherCoward — 4/17/2005 @ 10:19 pm
I don’t see us being led so much as our drunken, blind stumblings.
And besides, I’m just poking holes and playing DA.
[BTW, is it time for me to reactivate your account?]
Comment by Geof F. Morris — 4/17/2005 @ 10:33 pm
dude… I was led to the RumorForum…
…but then again… I was led by Jeff and Adriene… so maybe there’s something to what you’re saying
Comment by AnotherCoward — 4/17/2005 @ 10:50 pm
bwah… part of my comment go eaten. yes, please reactivate my account
Comment by AnotherCoward — 4/17/2005 @ 11:23 pm
Done.
Comment by Geof F. Morris — 4/18/2005 @ 7:05 am