The Church and the World
“Man was made rational, after he was made corporeal. ‘The Lord God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul’ (Gn 2:7). Here are two acts on the part of the Creator: the forming the dust, and the breathing the life. Man is confessedly formed on the same mold as other animals. And unbelievers, in consequence, have been so bold as to assert that he does not really differ from them; and because he is outwardly like them, and has an organized body, and can be treated by medical art, as if he were but a framework of matter, and is obliged to employ his brain as an instrument of thought, that in consequence, he has not a soul.
And the case is the same as regards the sacraments of the Gospel. God does not make for us new and miraculous instruments where with to convey his benefits, but he adopts means already existing. He takes water, which already is the means of natural health and purity, and consecrates it to convey spiritual life. He changes the use of it. Again, he selects bread and wine, the chief means and symbols of bodily nourishment: he takes them, he blesses them, he does not dispense with them, but he uses them. He leaves them in appearance what they were, but he fits them with a divine presence, which before they had not. As he filled the Jewish temple of wood and stone with glory on its consecration, as he breathed the breath of life into the dust of the earth, and made it man, so he comes down in power on his chosen symbols, weak though they are in themselves, and makes them what they were not.
Now, from what has been said, this lesson may be learnt: that things of this world are only valuable so far as God’s presence is in them, so far as he has breathed on them. In themselves they are but dust and vanity.
When we go into the details of life, the same truth comes upon us forcibly and convincingly. The world is always ‘in the power of the evil one’ (1 Jn 5:19), but we are accustomed sufficiently to admit the faults of former times, which do not concern us; we do not see what is evil in our own. Therefore, we need to be reminded of it. We need to be reminded that all our daily pursuits and doings need not be proved evil, but are certainly evil without proof, unless they can be proved to be good. Unless that holy and superhuman influence which came forth from Christ when he breathed on the apostles, which they handed onwards, which has ever since gone through the world like a leaven, renewing it in righteousness, which came on us first in baptism, and reclaimed us from the service of Satan, unless this divine gift has been cherished and improved within us, and is spread round about and from us, upon the objects of our aims and exertions, upon our plans and pursuits, our words and our works, surely all these are evil, without being formally proved to be so. If we engage in a trade or a profession, if we make money, if we form connections in life, if we marry or settle, if we educate our children, whatever we do, we have no right to take it for granted that this is not earthly, sensual, and of this world. It will be so without our trouble, unless we take trouble the other way, unless we aim and pray that it may not be so.
In all things, then, we must spiritualize this world. And if you ask for instances how to do this, I give you the following. When a nation enters Christ’s Church, and takes her yoke upon its shoulder, then it formally joins itself to the cause of God, and separates itself from the evil world. When the civil magistrate defends the Christian faith, and sets it up in all honor in high places, as a beacon to the world, so far he gives himself to God, and sanctifies and spiritualizes that portion of it over which he has power. When men put aside a portion of their gains for God’s service, then they sanctify those gains. When the head of a household observes family prayer and other religious offices, and shows that, like Abraham, he is determined with God’s help to honor Him, then he joins himself to the kingdom of God, and rescues his household from its natural relationship with this unprofitable world. When a man hallows in his private conduct holy seasons, this is offering up of God’s gifts to God, and sanctifying all seasons by the sacrifice of some. When a man who is rich, and whose duty calls on him to be hospitable, is careful also to feed the hungry and clothe the naked, thus he sanctifies his riches. When he is in the midst of plenty, and observes self-denial; when he builds his house, but builds churches too; when he plants and sows, but pays tithes; when he buys and sells, but also gives largely to religion; when he does nothing in the world without being suspicious of the world, being jealous of himself, trying himself, lest he be seduced by the world, making sacrifices to prove his earnestness: in all these ways he circumcises himself from the world by the circumcision of Christ. This is the circumcision of the heart from the world. This is deliverance from dead ordinances; and though, even if this were done perfectly, it would not be enough, for we have to separate ourselves from the flesh also, yet, at least, it is the victory over a chief and formidable adversary.
This is no matter of words, a thing to be listened to carelessly, because we have heard it often before. The death and resurrection of Christ is ever a call upon you to die to time, and to live to eternity. Do not be satisfied with the state in which you find yourselves; do not be satisfied with nature. Be satisfied only with grace. Beware of taking up a low standard of duty, and aiming at nothing but what you can easily fulfil. Pray God to enlighten you with a knowledge of the extent of your duty, to enlighten you with a true view of this world. Beware lest the world seduce you. It will aim at persuading you that it is rational and sensible, that religion is very well in its way, but that we are born for the world. And you will be seduced most certainly, unless you watch and pray that you enter not into temptation. You must either conquer the world, or the world will conquer you. You must be either master or slave. Take your part. ‘For freedom Christ has set us free; stand fast therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery’ (Gal 5:1).”
~John Henry Newman (from Waiting For Christ: Meditations for Advent and Christmas)
And the case is the same as regards the sacraments of the Gospel. God does not make for us new and miraculous instruments where with to convey his benefits, but he adopts means already existing. He takes water, which already is the means of natural health and purity, and consecrates it to convey spiritual life. He changes the use of it. Again, he selects bread and wine, the chief means and symbols of bodily nourishment: he takes them, he blesses them, he does not dispense with them, but he uses them. He leaves them in appearance what they were, but he fits them with a divine presence, which before they had not. As he filled the Jewish temple of wood and stone with glory on its consecration, as he breathed the breath of life into the dust of the earth, and made it man, so he comes down in power on his chosen symbols, weak though they are in themselves, and makes them what they were not.
Now, from what has been said, this lesson may be learnt: that things of this world are only valuable so far as God’s presence is in them, so far as he has breathed on them. In themselves they are but dust and vanity.
When we go into the details of life, the same truth comes upon us forcibly and convincingly. The world is always ‘in the power of the evil one’ (1 Jn 5:19), but we are accustomed sufficiently to admit the faults of former times, which do not concern us; we do not see what is evil in our own. Therefore, we need to be reminded of it. We need to be reminded that all our daily pursuits and doings need not be proved evil, but are certainly evil without proof, unless they can be proved to be good. Unless that holy and superhuman influence which came forth from Christ when he breathed on the apostles, which they handed onwards, which has ever since gone through the world like a leaven, renewing it in righteousness, which came on us first in baptism, and reclaimed us from the service of Satan, unless this divine gift has been cherished and improved within us, and is spread round about and from us, upon the objects of our aims and exertions, upon our plans and pursuits, our words and our works, surely all these are evil, without being formally proved to be so. If we engage in a trade or a profession, if we make money, if we form connections in life, if we marry or settle, if we educate our children, whatever we do, we have no right to take it for granted that this is not earthly, sensual, and of this world. It will be so without our trouble, unless we take trouble the other way, unless we aim and pray that it may not be so.
In all things, then, we must spiritualize this world. And if you ask for instances how to do this, I give you the following. When a nation enters Christ’s Church, and takes her yoke upon its shoulder, then it formally joins itself to the cause of God, and separates itself from the evil world. When the civil magistrate defends the Christian faith, and sets it up in all honor in high places, as a beacon to the world, so far he gives himself to God, and sanctifies and spiritualizes that portion of it over which he has power. When men put aside a portion of their gains for God’s service, then they sanctify those gains. When the head of a household observes family prayer and other religious offices, and shows that, like Abraham, he is determined with God’s help to honor Him, then he joins himself to the kingdom of God, and rescues his household from its natural relationship with this unprofitable world. When a man hallows in his private conduct holy seasons, this is offering up of God’s gifts to God, and sanctifying all seasons by the sacrifice of some. When a man who is rich, and whose duty calls on him to be hospitable, is careful also to feed the hungry and clothe the naked, thus he sanctifies his riches. When he is in the midst of plenty, and observes self-denial; when he builds his house, but builds churches too; when he plants and sows, but pays tithes; when he buys and sells, but also gives largely to religion; when he does nothing in the world without being suspicious of the world, being jealous of himself, trying himself, lest he be seduced by the world, making sacrifices to prove his earnestness: in all these ways he circumcises himself from the world by the circumcision of Christ. This is the circumcision of the heart from the world. This is deliverance from dead ordinances; and though, even if this were done perfectly, it would not be enough, for we have to separate ourselves from the flesh also, yet, at least, it is the victory over a chief and formidable adversary.
This is no matter of words, a thing to be listened to carelessly, because we have heard it often before. The death and resurrection of Christ is ever a call upon you to die to time, and to live to eternity. Do not be satisfied with the state in which you find yourselves; do not be satisfied with nature. Be satisfied only with grace. Beware of taking up a low standard of duty, and aiming at nothing but what you can easily fulfil. Pray God to enlighten you with a knowledge of the extent of your duty, to enlighten you with a true view of this world. Beware lest the world seduce you. It will aim at persuading you that it is rational and sensible, that religion is very well in its way, but that we are born for the world. And you will be seduced most certainly, unless you watch and pray that you enter not into temptation. You must either conquer the world, or the world will conquer you. You must be either master or slave. Take your part. ‘For freedom Christ has set us free; stand fast therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery’ (Gal 5:1).”
~John Henry Newman (from Waiting For Christ: Meditations for Advent and Christmas)
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