“All who wish to follow Me will experience the hostility of hell and also of those who listen to the demons.” (Inner Word)
This is inevitable once we begin to follow Christ. The expression of this hostility may take different forms, but it will certainly appear. The Father has made this clear to us through His Son and through the testimony of those who followed Him.
Before we continue speaking about the Church during this Easter season—so that we may better grasp its beauty and the mission entrusted to it by the Lord—allow me to take a brief look at our community, Agnus Dei, which was founded on April 24, 1980. Certainly, every date—since every day is a gift from God—has its own precious history. Therefore, it is worthwhile to discover what else happened on those days that stand out in a special way in our lives. Since the Agnus Dei community is a spiritual community of Catholics, let us first look at which feast the Church celebrates on this day.
Saint Augustine certainly played a role in the emergence of the community on various levels, which is why we honor him in a special way today. The Augustinian Order, in fact, celebrates the Feast of the Conversion of Saint Augustine on April 24. We know what came forth from his conversion, which he also owed to the intercession of his mother, Saint Monica. His influence on the Church, as well as on people seeking the truth, is immeasurable. This remains true to this day.
For this reason, on this day we have often read with great gratitude excerpts from the story of his conversion, for some among us have also experienced a turning away from a “lost life” toward following Christ. Others, who grew up more firmly rooted in the faith, experienced a deepening of their faith that first enabled them to walk the path of discipleship as it is lived in our Agnus Dei community by the grace of God.
“Everyone can become brothers and sisters if they believe in Me.” (Inner Word)
This refers to the kinship our Lord speaks of in the Gospel:
“Some one told him, ‘Your mother and your brethren are standing outside, asking to speak to you’. But he replied to the man who told him, ‘Who is my mother, and who are my brethren?’ And stretching out his hand toward his disciples, he said, ‘Here are my mother and my brethren! For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother, and sister, and mother.’” (Mt 12:47–50)
In the last two reflections, we have once again seen with sorrow that the Jews did not find a natural path to recognizing Jesus as the Messiah. That the transition—or rather, the fulfillment—of the path taken thus far in following the Son of God was not only possible but actually occurred was evident in the Lord’s apostles and in those who had come to faith. This was particularly clear in the case of Saint Paul, who came from the learned circles of Judaism and experienced his conversion and enlightenment as a great grace. God was at work with authority and confirmed His Son through signs and wonders as well. But since this was not recognized and the estrangement grew ever greater, there was no longer a common path. The consequence was the exclusion of those who confessed the Messiah following the destruction of the Temple in A.D. 70 and the reorganization of Judaism.
As sad as this may be, this separation was likely inevitable, for the recognition of the Son of God as the Messiah was the decisive moment—and will remain so—that opens the door of grace for humanity. The response to follow Him is the decisive moment through which the grace the Son of God brought to earth may reach people.
“Look at Me, just as I look at you!” (Inner Word)
This is our Heavenly Father’s loving invitation to walk a path of intimacy through this earthly life. What tenderness we encounter in these words! The Father’s gaze upon us humans is filled with caring love for our physical and spiritual needs. God’s love always precedes us, for He had already looked upon us before we were in our mother’s womb:
“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you” (Jer 1:5).
In yesterday’s reflection, we looked at the Church and how—despite all resistance—it was able to spread, and we heard the praise of Saint Irenaeus, who extolled the unity of doctrine in the Church and emphasized that the light of God had been entrusted to her, a light now meant to enlighten the nations. The quoted passage from his writing ended with the beautiful words: “For everywhere the Church preaches the truth; she is the seven‑branched lampstand that bears the light of Christ.”
At the end of the text, my gaze once more fell upon the Jews. I expressed the hope that they—after the terrible suffering in their history—will yet recognize the Messiah. This would be a blessing for all. Thus I concluded yesterday’s reflection. With this statement, I refer to a word of the Apostle to the Gentiles, Paul, which we should recall again and again:
“I am speaking the truth in Christ, I am not lying; my conscience bears me witness in the Holy Spirit, that I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brethren, my kinsmen by race. They are Israelites, and to them belong the sonship, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises; to them belong the patriarchs, and of their race, according to the flesh, is the Christ, who is God over all, blessed for ever. Amen.” (Rom 9:1–5)
“Was it not thou that didst cut Rahab in pieces, that didst pierce the dragon?” (Isaiah 51:9)
Beloved Father, it is not always easy for us to understand why evil exists—why there is so much destruction, immeasurable suffering, senseless wars, and evil spiritual beings who live in rebellion against You. They have left fellowship with You and want to drag us humans into their lostness.
Liturgically speaking, this is still the time when the risen Lord Jesus is with His disciples to strengthen them in their faith in His resurrection and to prepare them for the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. We understand Pentecost as the founding day of the Church, which, according to our faith, is the Body of Christ and is built upon the foundation of the prophets and His apostles (cf. Eph 2:20). She is that Israel which recognized Him as the promised Messiah who came to redeem His people. All who recognized the hour of salvation and accepted God’s grace entered into the service of the Redeemer and thus became witnesses of Christ.
We still have thirty days remaining until the Feast of Pentecost, during which it is fitting to offer some reflections on the Church: the one, holy, Catholic Church, which emerged from Jews and Gentiles and has been called throughout the centuries, as the teacher of the nations, to communicate salvation in Christ.
God has set in motion a great work to lead people from all nations to the faith, to gather them in this way, and to call them home to His kingdom. It was His risen Son who gave His disciples in Galilee—as we hear in the Gospel—the following commission:
Yesterday’s reflection introduced us to the story of Saint George as told in the Legenda Aurea. He rescued the princess, who was to be sacrificed to a dragon, through the power of the Lord. As a result, the people—freed from the dragon—turned to the Christian faith. My reflection ended with the sentence:
This story raises the question of what is happening today in a world that is turning more and more away from Christ. Is this dragon once again exercising his dominion over humanity in various ways?
This is the question we must explore today. Anyone with eyes to see cannot fail to notice that the world is under a strong influence of evil and thus in bondage to the dragon. In the story of Saint George, this dependence of humanity required liberation through Christ.
The dragon, who represents the power of evil, is clearly identified in Holy Scripture. In the Book of Revelation it says:
“Move forward, constantly examine everything within Me, and step out!” (inner word)
Our Father wants us to consciously walk the path to eternity and grow in faith, hope, and love along the way. God gives us this opportunity every day. When we understand and practice this, much is transformed. Eternity is then no longer an indefinite distance away—something we hardly think about or not at all. On the contrary: the more we become aware of it and the more our heart begins to long for it, the more it reaches into our daily reality. It teaches us to carry out the task set before us with greater attention. This makes us more prudent and also more decisive, and we more easily leave behind things that are not so important and focus more on what is essential.
