By Fr. Roy Cimagala *
THIS is just to be realistic. It’s not meant to scare us or
to be a killjoy or a wet blanket in our life. Not only do we all die.
There is also the end of time itself. Our earthly existence is just a
sojourn, a training and testing ground before we enter into our
definitive life for all eternity, hopefully in heaven with our Father
and Creator God.
We need to develop a good and healthy sense of our life’s
end, which is our death that can come to us anytime, as well as the
end of time itself. If we follow our Christian faith, we know that
there is nothing to be afraid or anxious about in these truths of our
faith.
We would know what truly is the purpose of our life here and
of our earthly existence in general. We also would know that we have
all the means to pursue that purpose properly. We are somehow reminded
of this truth of our faith in that gospel episode where Christ talked
about the end of the world. (cfr. Mk 13,24-32)
But, yes, we have to develop a good and healthy sense of how
to end our life well, properly prepared to meet Christ in our
particular judgment as well as in our general judgment during Christ’s
second coming.
Having a good sense of the end gives us a global picture of
our life that spans from time to eternity, and sheds light on the
present. It guides us. It gives us a sense of confidence and security.
It reassures us that we are on the right track, that we are doing
well.
The sense of the end motivates us to make plans always, to
be thoughtful and anticipative of things. It also teaches us a sense
of order and priority. It motivates us to set goals, make schedules
and the prudent use of time. Ultimately, it helps us to distinguish
between the essential and the non-essential in our life.
A person who does not have a sense of the end is obviously
an anomaly. He tends to be lazy and prone to his personal weaknesses,
to drift off aimlessly and lose control of his life. Such person is
usually called a bum, a tramp or a vagrant.
In this regard, we have to learn to look forward to the
second coming of Christ. That’s when Christ, the pattern of our
humanity and the savior of our damaged humanity, will come again to
make the final judgment on all of us, establishing the definitive and
eternal Kingdom of God that is meant for us. Obviously, we have to
prepare ourselves for it.
This truth of our faith was implied when some leading Jews
once asked Christ when the Kingdom of God would come. To which, Christ
answered that “the coming of the Kingdom of God cannot be observed,
and no one will announce, ‘Look, here it is,’ or, ‘There it is.’ For
behold, the Kingdom of God is among you.” (cfr. Lk 17,20-25)
This attitude of waiting, expecting and making the proper
preparation for the second coming of Christ should be learned by all
of us. And we can do that by strengthening our belief that Christ is
actually already with us. He is everywhere, around us and inside us.
We just have to develop the habit of looking for him in order to find
him.
Only with Christ, can we be properly prepared to face him in
the final general judgment during his second coming.
* Chaplain Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE), Talamban, Cebu City
Email: roycimagala@gmail.com
