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There was a scholar of the law who stood up to test Jesus
and said, “Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal
life?” Jesus said to
him, “What is written in the law? How do you read
it?” He said in
reply “You shall love the Lord, your God with all your heart,
with all your
being, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your
neighbor as
yourself.” He replied to him, “You have answered correctly;
do this and
you will live.”
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Toward
the end of the movie "Peaceful Warrior," after his mentor Socrates had
led Dan
Millman into a better understanding of life, after Dan had made an
amazing
recovery from a debilitating accident, and after a further set of
disappointments, Socrates taught Dan one final lesson. It was the most
important lesson that he taught him. He led Dan to a place which he
had told him was a very important
place. When they arrived, there was nothing there. It took Dan a while,
but he
finally realized the lesson. It was not the destination. It was the
journey that was important--how you go about your journey, what you do
along the way, what you refrain from doing. It is how you are living as
you travel toward your destination that is important. The journey is
what brings us happiness.
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In
terms of the lessons of Socrates in the movie "Peaceful Warrior," the
scholar of the law in the Gospel who was testing Jesus, was
ostensibly interested in
destination--inheriting eternal life. Jesus' answer was that of
Socrates: worry about the journey, not the destination. Worry about how
you are going to be living here on earth--how you should be loving God
and neighbor while you are here.
It is a lesson for life. Eternal life, indeed, but life on earth as well. Followers of Jesus will be interested in eternal life because the assurance of an after-life offers hope for anyone who is living on earth. But the focus on earth of the Christian is not only the destination of heaven; it is the way we are living on our journey, namely with love. The problem with the journey, of course, is that often it is not what we want. We expect our journey on earth to be according to our design--which includes a life that is not difficult. But in essence, as Socrates reminds Dan in the movie, life has three rules: paradox, humor and change. Paradox--life is a mystery, and we should not waste time trying to figure it out, especially when things happen that we do not want to happen. Humor--we must keep a sense of humor, especially about ourselves. Change--we know that change will always happen. Nothing stays the same. The time to work is now. We are involved in the journey. As the movie "Peaceful Warrior" closes, Dan remembers this dialogue with Socrates: "Where are you?" "Here." "What time is it?" "Now." "What are you?" "This moment." We can be better right now. Jesus would add: and the way to do it is with love. |
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THOUGHT
Love is the most
important directive of Jesus while on our journey of life. What is the
best way to show it right now?
PRAYER Good
and gracious
God, you have promised us the destination of heaven, and you have
directed us to live the journey of life according to the rule of love
that your Son gave to us. Help us to use your grace to be the loving
person you want us to be right now. Be with us we pray.
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©2007
Capuchin Province of Mid-America
Fr. Mike Scully is a member of the Capuchin Province of Mid-America |