KEEP THE CHANGE

KEEP THE CHANGE

11/13/19

If there were one thing most people could agree on, it would be the strong dislike for change.  Changes happen all the time, but the ones that upset us are those, which happen without our consent. Those are the changes that take us out of our comfort zone.   However, the changes we make ourselves aren’t always the best either, but then we only have ourselves to blame.  If we look back through time we will see a zigzag pattern of changes. Some of those changes will be wonderful to recall, because they were the right ones. 

What made me think of this was considering the life of the early followers of Christ. 

They were faced with a choice following the death of Jesus.  They could just go back to their lives and forget the whole thing, or they could stay with the Apostles and see what the descent of the Spirit, promised by Jesus, would mean to them.  Certainly this would mean a complete change in their lives. Some probably took the first choice, but many others took the second.  Jesus warned that making a change this dramatic would lead to much grief. For many it did. Still, they accepted the change that following Him would mean. 

Take Paul of Tarsus, the firebrand defender of The Law. He believed that those who followed Jesus were traitors to the ancient faith and deserved to be destroyed. By the time he was writing his letter to the Romans, he had done a total about face. It is hard to imagine what his mindset must have been like in those early days. But, I’m guessing the Holy Spirit worked overtime to effect this change. St. Paul’s exposure to Christ through His followers made such an impression that he was willing to make the change from The Law to the Word. In his letter to the Romans, Paul makes a statement that defines this change, but might have made his hand shake as he wrote it. 

Love is the fulfillment of the Law.  (Rom: 10-13)

Christ calls us to make changes, too, changes that fulfill our calling. We are called to fight racism, discrimination, false judgments, and injustice.  If we need to change our long-held opinions to achieve this, so be it.  It’s important to take stock of our faith life and be sure it is in line with Christ’s message. If it isn’t, we need to change. 

Abide with me Lord, Thou who never changes, Abide with me.

Carol Lemelin OPA