Glorious Cross May 27
You overcame the sting of death, and opened the kingdom of heaven to all believers. You are seated at God’s right hand in glory. We believe that you will come and be our judge (Hymn, “Te Deum”).
The judgment of Christ at his return will not be the act of an arbitrary judge. Quite the contrary, his judgment will simply affirm a verdict already determined by the free decisions people make according to the light of their consciences. There will be no surprises. There is no such thing as an unconscious or unintentional sin. The only decision that will be condemned is a decision against goodness. The unbeliever has a conscience and the freedom to follow it, doing good and avoiding evil. Every decision made carries its own judgment. The Jewish person has the Law revealed by God. In behaving according to its spirit and commandments, the Jewish person´s judgment is marked. The Christian looks to Christ whose Gospel is proclaimed and kept alive in the community of the Church. In the end, Christ reduced all the morality of that Gospel to one commandment, “Love one another as I have loved you” (Jn 14:12). Paul interpreted it thus: “The one who loves has fulfilled the law” (Rm 13:8). The final judgment will be reckoned on love. The Christian will be judged by acts of love or the neglect of them. In Christ, the door to the Kingdom remains unlocked, but the door knob to open it is turned only by the hand of the one who loves. The final judgment will acknowledge the deliberate responses to the call to love.
If you don’t know the judge, don’t expect to win the case. (Unknown)
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