- The Record Archives
- Volume CXVIII, No. XX - November 10, 2005 - variety
Cross Words
Dying for love: the ultimate sacrifice
Staff writer
It has become extremely obvious to me that the theology professors around here are doing their job. And no, I don't say that just to suck up … well, maybe a little.
The responses I received were filled with theological quotes and references, words like "atonement" and "satisfaction" and pages upon pages of reasoning.
Not to enrage my professors too much, but does all that really answer my question of why do we say that Christ's dying was an act of love? What about the practical question of how does a person's death show love? Especially when it comes to God's love?
A lot of people didn't understand why I would ask the question. I mean how does a person giving his or her life for others not show love? If you think this, you are completely right, but you are making a leap of faith that some people cannot do without a bit more basis. Basically, how was Christ's passion, death and resurrection a sign of love for us?
You have to look at it in a few steps. First, think about love. If someone loves you because they are forced to, is it really love? No. Just ask all the people who say "I love you" just because their significant other said it first. In order for love to be true, it has to be chosen. That is why God gave us free will. The only way we can truly love God is if we have the choice.
The second step involves the infamous picture of people wearing nothing but leaves; you guessed it, Adam and Eve. At some point, humanity made a decision to turn away from God. Why they did this, no one knows, but what matters for us today is that it put a gap between us and God. We call that gap death.
Third step, why can't God just close the gap? Well, think of it this way: If the choice you make has no consequence, is it really a choice? If God just closed the gap, then the choice to turn away doesn't matter, and in its truest definition, free will doesn't exist.
So, if you are following me up to this point, you understand that in order for us to truly love God, there has to be a choice to do so. And the choice only matters if there are consequences for the choice you make.
Therefore, we are at a point where humanity has chosen to turn away and now has to pay that consequence.
The problem is that none of us could pay the price for all the sins of humanity. I know I have no idea where I would start. So Christ came to pay the price for us.
Look at it this way: We are on one side of a canyon with God, but for some reason we are not satisfied. So we jump the canyon to the other side. What we didn't take time to see is that we couldn't jump back. Instead, we fall into the gap of death. So Jesus comes to our side as one of us. He then steps into the gap for us and lets those who choose to walk across his shoulders to the other side. He stands in death for us, giving his life so that we have a chance to save ours. That is where the sacrifice comes in.
This is a simplistic version of it, but I hope you get the point. In the end, those of us with Christian beliefs have that to look to as the ultimate act of love, and now I hope you can see why.
As for a question for next time, I was asked what is the point of going to Mass every week if you are Catholic?
Tell me what you think.
Until next time, keep smiling.