As dying, and behold we live.

Monday, 6/15/15

Paul wrote that his thoroughly Christian living had turned his values topsy-turvy. As examples of that, he said the following.

When his life was sorrowful, he found himself rejoicing.

When his life was poor, he felt rich.

When he was dying, he was most alive.

That last observation reminds me of an Irish priest in Burma’s forests during World War Two.

With Ireland remaining neutral during the war, the Japanese military let Father roam free.  Working alone for four war years, he brought the Sacraments to many villages. Then, when American planes were shot down, he was able to hide our men, then smuggle them out to India. 

Later, in writing about those experiences, for a title he borrowed St. Paul’s words: “As Dying, and Behold We Live.”

A similar topsy-turvy way of living is open to us. By following Christ, we too can turn our sorrows into joys, our poverty into wealth, and our deaths into life.