Wandering Christian

Lord, let Your servant go in peace
For Your Word has been fulfilled.

A Child shall be born to the Virgin,
And His Name shall be called, "Emmanuel."

My own eyes have seen Your salvation
Which You have prepared for all men.

A Light shall reveal to the nations
And the glory of Your people, Israel.

Simeon's canticle
Hangad

Simeon was a prophet. I can imagine him wearing long robes and going to the temple, just to pray. And he prayed for the Messiah... the one who would bring salvation to the world: the Lord's Christ. His whole life followed that course. He waited for the Christ to come, and when he finally saw Jesus, still a boy in that temple, he felt his mission was accomplished.

Everybody has a mission in this world. But sometimes we wonder why life is so hard, or why there is so much suffering in this world. When I try to reflect about all this, I almost faint... And the point is that life has not been easy, neither to me nor to you. I cannot recall a single month in my life, since I was about thirteen years old, in which I have not been confronted with multiple realities - realities that I will have to face for the rest of my life: intolerance, ignorance, hatred, prejudice, lack of faith, lack of respect, dismay. And still, I am pretty sure that my sufferings are nothing compared to what many men and women have been through: wars, persecution, imprisonment and so many other unspeakable acts of ignorance.

And every time I feel I am going to faint, I remember that old man Simeon and his faithful life. And I realize all I can say is "Lord, give me strength to be your servant and fulfill your will in my life". I do not know if Simeon was rich or poor, well-educated of illiterate, handsome or ugly... But I do know that he was a human being (just like us) and his life was also full of pain and sad episodes. However, he prayed incessantly for God's will (and not his) in his life.

Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him.
It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord's Christ. Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying:
"Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you now dismiss your servant in peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all people, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel."
Luke 2:25-32
The Bible (New International Version)

And God's will is this child who is born to a virgin. A child that represents a true miracle. And when we let this miracle be born in our lives, it does not matter anymore how difficult our life is or how much we still have to follow in order to have our mission accomplished.

And at the end, that is what all this "being alive" thing is about. It is about hope. The hope that every time this child is born in someone's heart, a new world is born too. And that we should fill this world with a new one, yet to be ruled by this wondrous child, who came to set the captives free, to proclaim everlasting love and peace among all nations. And when we let this child grow and fructify in our lives, we are filled with this hope that strengthens us to carry on and to be His faithful servants in this world.

So, come, Emmanuel! And bind in one the hearts of all mankind. Let our sad divisions cease, and a new kingdom of peace be established. Rejoice, for He has come!

O come, O come, Emmanuel,
and ransom captive Israel,
that mourns in lonely exile here
until the Son of God appear.
Rejoice! Rejoice!
Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Desire of nations, bind
in one the hearts of all mankind;
bid thou our sad divisions cease,
and be thyself our King of Peace.
Rejoice! Rejoice!
Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.

Veni Emmanuel (extract - two stanzas from the seven original ones)
Based on Latin - circa 9^th century and arranged by Thomas Hellmore, with lyrics by John M. Neale (this particular rendition is sung by Whitney Houston)

Further reading:
Luke 2

It is past six o'clock, when she wakes up,
wearing the same jersey, although with some weeping more...

After having cleaned a bit the dust that was in her place,
she cleans a bit her own failure, and her desire to cry...

Just to see how happy her small one wakes up:
"...if you knew, my life, the day that awaits us..."

And in her reality, she will see the city grow,
and its people, in their worlds, will come and go,
meanwhile she will take her role, seeing life pass by
Another day less in her life, another day more...
Another day more...

Pain has given her pieces of advice to love,
looking at the heart, and never looking back...

Sometimes, however, injustice takes control,
and at Pokhara's corner, you can see the two of them.

I chat with my people: "it is late, I will pay",
and she sees that something is dying from the inside...

And in her reality, she will see the city grow,
and its people, in their worlds, will come and go,
meanwhile she will take her role, seeing life pass by
Another day less in her life, another day more...
Another day more...

Otro día más (translation) Álex Ubago
Click here to read the original lyrics

A woman. A city. Us. The world following its own pace around us... Ubago's song hit my heart like an arrow since the very first time I heard it in Spain, in 2005. The urban scenario is cold and frightening, anywhere. And in the midst of these scenarios, many women like this one spend another day less of their lives, devastated by life. Life, that is God-given, but mankind-destroyed... But, who is this unknown woman, trying to survive while we happily drink at a bar?

This woman is the one who was rejected by her family and ex-boyfriend when they found out she was pregnant. She had her precious child, but had nowhere to go. So, she is there, on the streets, begging for our attention.

This woman is the one who was hit so hard by her husband that had to leave her home with her baby in her arms and nothing more. So, she is there, on the streets, begging for our attention.

This woman is the one who has revealed to her relatives she is a lesbian. They could not stand having an "abomination" at home, and asked her to leave their life. So, she is there, on the streets, begging for our attention.

This woman is the one who has immigrated to that lonely country. She was just looking for a better life for the child in her womb, but could not find a decent job... She is considered a threat to that government. So, she is there, on the streets, begging for our attention.

This woman is the one who was recently fired because her employer found out she was pregnant, and he did not want to pay for her pregnancy. She did not have a regular job, and no rights either. So, she is there, on the streets, begging for our attention.

This woman is the one who lost everything due to an economic turmoil. She knows nothing about oil crisis and stock exchanges... Anyway, she could not pay her mortgage anymore, and had to leave her home. So, she is there, on the streets, begging for our attention.

This woman is the one who was raped and was infected with the HIV virus. Her friends and family turned their back to her, and she had nowhere to go. So, she is there, on the streets, begging for our attention.

When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'
Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'
The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'
Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.'
They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?'
He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.'
Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.
Matthew 25:31-46
The Bible (New International Version)

This woman is the God we pretend we worship. Yes, the same God who cannot be associated with a feminine image, according to many... Instead, the God we promised we would see, seek, find and serve in everyone, loving all of them as if they were ourselves.

And since I am just a wandering Christian, I can say, with no regret that this poor woman is our Jesus in this world. Jesus, the beggar-mother-rejected woman... who despite everything, is still bearing a new child, and trying to give birth to us again, because we are Her creation.

But she is still there, on the streets, begging for our attention. And we do nothing to help her.

What will we do about that?

Meanwhile, this mother Jesus is seeing the world around us come and go, as the city grows. A day less... A day more... And we do nothing.

Further reading:
Matthew 25

O Lord, my strength and my fortress, my refuge in time of distress, to you the nations will come from the ends of the earth and say,
"Our fathers possessed nothing but false gods, worthless idols that did them no good. Do men make their own gods? Yes, but they are not gods!"
Jeremiah 16:19-20
The Bible (New International Version)

Most of the non-Christian world might consider us as a sole group of believers, with closed dogmas and assumptions. However, for decades, two different religions have been developed inside the Christian world. These two groups, trying to coexist unsuccessfully, are being responsible for, perhaps, the fiercest battle that has ever happened among Christians, and, because of which, this 2000-year faith might disappear completely (at least the way we know it now).

And the fact is that I cannot foresee any kind of mutual reconciliation (or at least acceptance) right now. And this is because what happens nowadays might be seen as a matter of gods...

In our communion we have people worshiping two different gods.

One of them is pure love, and cares for all His creation. His message applies to everybody, and He would not deny His salvation to those who have never heard of Him, but still have followed His commandments.

The other is a Manichean one, who acts like a chess master. He has created human beings already knowing they would sin and be condemned to hell.

One of them had revealed Himself to some men in the desert. Through these men, He has shown a pathway that leads to His revelation contained in Jesus.

The other has chosen only those men, and later, only the elected. The rest is already condemned.

One of them inspired different people to write books about their perceptions of Him, leaving His innermost principles and His promise of salvation to them. But His word is still revealed to us, through the action of His Holy Spirit. Revelation is not strictly closed. It evolves with the Church.

The other has psychographed a series of books, and does not care for contradictions or misunderstandings in His writings. Differences on ethical and sociologic concepts are not relevant either. He commits people to follow those books strictly and literally. The Holy Spirit is limited to extactic manifestations only.

One of them is still talking to us. We praise Him through new discoveries and advances on science, art and technology. He is happy for our having a deeper and wider knowledge of social and ethical issues.

The other says that anything that science discovers that apparently is against His scripture is something heretic and therefore, should be completely ignored and ridicularized.

One of them is beyond logic. So, we believe in Him.

The other has a very twisted logic. Because of that, He needs to scare us, so we will keep believing in Him.

One of them understands that we have to deepen our knowledge on Him through varied theological studies.

The other makes us remain attached only to clobber passages and limited perceptions. We are not allowed to research more.

One of them, for reasons we still are not sure, has allowed people to have diverse sexualities. But for Him, much more important than that is that those people live them in committed, loyal and long-term relationships.

The other likes to act as an asmodeus. He permits people to be different, just to make them feel they are something filthy. He approves disgusting treatments in order to change someone's desire, that, at the end, do not work anyway.

One of them commits us to fight against misery, pain, prejudice and social inequality.

The other says that everything that looks like socialist, homophile and humanitarian is part of a wider agenda, that tries to menace the Christian world.

One of them allows a wide range of talk and discussions on several subjects related to Christianity.

The other is encapsulated to "isms": Augustinianisms, Pelagianisms, Nestorianisms, Tomisms, Arminianisms, Calvinisms...

One of them says: "love them anyway".

The other says: "you are a cancer and must be extinguished".

One of them does not mind being called "mother".

The other, however, is very outraged with this assumption. Because for this god, women are just "inferior beings".

One of them has been manifested through Jesus Christ, who commanded us to love God beyond everything and people around us as ourselves.

The other has stimulated (and still stimulates) wars, murders, slavery and prejudice.

This is a mere difference of gods. Some have chosen one of them. The others have chosen (or were obliged to chose) the other.

And there is no easy answer for that...

Further reading:
Jeremiah 16