How are we all equal before Christ?

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MargaretofCortona

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I never understood it, considering how different we are. There are a few people in particular I would consider close to ideal. I keep wondering why would such people need God in their life. Some people are indeed more mentally tougher than others. They easily forgive and forget. They can easily overlook an offense. They are calm, reserved, thoughtful, rational, patient, very honest, accepting of criticism, open-minded, a high threshold for life’s ups and downs, realistic, self-confident, very independent, responsible and self-contained. They don’t have expectations from others. They have proven to be perfectly capable of taking care of all theirs without little or no help from others. If someone is content with the life they are living, what God is good to them?
 
MargaretofCortona said:
They have proven to be perfectly capable of taking care of all theirs without little or no help from others. If someone is content with the life they are living, what God is good to them?
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I’ve been thinking along exactly these lines recently. I was pondering the question “why is belief in Catholicism flagging in the west?” The tentative answer I was considering is exactly what you’ve hit upon: it’s possible these days, in the western world, to think that we have everything we need, and to think that we don’t need God (in the way that past generations felt the need for God).

The answer to your question, of course, is that someone who feels bullet-proof is still only able to be self-sufficient in this life; once they die, their “contentment with life” dies as well. Since we believe in eternal life – or, at least, pay lip service to that belief – then we implicitly rely on God!

We are all equal before Christ, then, because we will all die, and we will all rely on Him for salvation!
 
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With modern advances in medicine, it is much easier to believe we don’t need God.
 
I don’t mean to criticize the OP, but this line of thinking seems to me to be delving into pride of life territory. Yes, there are some people who do seem to have it all together. They may be gifted physically, emotionally, and intellectually. Yet these qualities are temporal and are tied, whether we know it or not, to the blessings of God.

It is easy for us all to wonder, “Why do I need God?” when we are healthy, employed and happy. What happens when we are no longer healthy? What happens when we are no longer employed? What happens when the things and people on which we build our happiness disappoint us?

My father died last year from Alzheimer’s disease. It was the most difficult thing I’ve ever had to do watching him slowly but steadily decline mentally and physically. Before his illness, my father had many of the same qualities you’ve listed. He was hard working, honest, thoughtful, independent, and he took care of his family. None of that mattered in the end, because by the time he died he was completely dependent on others for his daily survival.

All of the good things in our lives, both external and internal to ourselves, derive from God’s blessing. Many times, it’s hard for us to understand just how much we need God. We can’t comprehend it until the God-given skills, abilities, or resources we have are suddenly taken from us. In that moment, however, we all realize the limits of being human and, hopefully, we realize our desperate need for God.
 
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Gorgias said:
it’s possible these days, in the western world, to think that we have everything we need, and to think that we don’t need God (in the way that past generations felt the need for God).
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It is everywhere, not only the West. Someone who made it through difficult times will attribute their success to their own blood, sweat and tears. He may claim “I slogged, I suffered all on my own. Or I was there at the right place at the right time, met the right people. Nothing to do with God. I deserve these rewards.”

My response to these is: there are many times more people who did what you did and more but didn’t make it. You have been blessed and not knowing it. As in Jobs and economic catastrophes, all that success can be gone in a blink. The loss of a major contract, closure of a market due to new laws and government intervention, loss of a job, loss of investments, loss of health can easily reduce one to pauper in no time.
 
When we’re healthy and happy we don’t think of the afterlife.
 
If you are strong, what good is God in your life? God is for the weak and weary. Outcasts to society
 
MargaretofCortona said:
I never understood it, considering how different we are. There are a few people in particular I would consider close to ideal. I keep wondering why would such people need God in their life. Some people are indeed more mentally tougher than others. They easily forgive and forget. They can easily overlook an offense. They are calm, reserved, thoughtful, rational, patient, very honest, accepting of criticism, open-minded, a high threshold for life’s ups and downs, realistic, self-confident, very independent, responsible and self-contained. They don’t have expectations from others. They have proven to be perfectly capable of taking care of all theirs without little or no help from others. If someone is content with the life they are living, what God is good to them?
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Do you mean: If someone is content with the life they are living, what good is God to them?

It is moral quality that is important, the spiritual. Being accomplished and holy are different.

Galatians 3
27 For as many of you as have been baptized in Christ, have put on Christ.
28 There is neither Jew nor Greek; there is neither bond nor free; there is neither male nor female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus.
29 And if you be Christ’s; then you are the seed of Abraham, heirs according to the promise.
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Hi, Margaret!

Wow… you’ve described citizens of utopia…

I don’t doubt that there are people as you’ve described… yet, there are two things to consider:
  1. They are as such because they Live Christ–even if they have not ever pounder the idea of God in their lives, they are actually living according to Christ’s Teachings; in essence, a person such as you’ve described are the quintessential Christian–even if operating out of the natural Call God made and not an actual cognition of Him (Catholicity).
  2. There are hidden flaws and imperfections that you may be missing or that they may be hiding. Remember Hillary Clinton? She seemed to be the voice of reason and forgiveness… yet, in her zeal for improving the world she released, along with Obama, the mass murdering of children in their moms’ wombs (then there are the loads of other things).
It is not enough to do good and forgive and be confident and self-reliant:
5:46 For if you love those who love you, what right have you to claim any credit? Even the tax collectors do as much, do they not? 5:47 And if you save your greetings for your brothers, are you doing anything exceptional? Even the pagans do as much, do they not? 5:48 You must therefore be perfect just as your heavenly Father is perfect. (St. Matthew 5:20-48)

2:15 If one of the brothers or one of the sisters is in need of clothes and has not enough food to live on, 2:16 and one of you says to them, ‘I wish you well; keep yourself warm and eat plenty’, without giving them these bare necessities of life, then what good is that? (St. James)
We are called to Holiness:
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5:44 But I say this to you: love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you; 5:45 in this way you will be sons of your Father in heaven, for he causes his sun to rise on bad men as well as good, and his rain to fall on honest and dishonest men alike. (St. Matthew)
Maran atha!
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Angel
 
Hi, Margaret!

…which filters out quite nicely… except for the constants… man still favors hatred, power mongering, and destruction in spite of the enlightenment brought by tech and science; further, all the advancements cannot do away with fact number one: why do we exist?

Qoheleth poundered this way back when and he came to appreciate that everything (all) is vanity… without the ultimate Purpose, Life, in deed, is vain.

Maran atha!

Angel
 
Jesus said that no one can come to him except through the Father. The Bible warns over and over not to become proud, to the point of replacing God with ourselves. WE cannot convert anyone, but we can pray for them and show them the path to God. Psalm 1 is called the “head” psalm (prayerful hymn) which tells us to be wary of those who do not believe – they are not to be the model of our faith.

On the other hand, scripture tells us that fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. When those old testament verses were written, the “law of Moses” had already been written down, and one of the laws was to read the law to the people at least every 7 years so that they would be reminded of it.

I am convinced that most people in a free society (and there are many on earth which are not free societies) are aware of God from other people, from churches they pass by on the street, or in some other fashion. Then, too, they must have some sense of right and wrong – absolutes, not just made-up morality. In his farewell address to Congress, George Washington, first US president, warned of separating morality from God – we shouldn’t just make up our own morality to suit our convenience.

People cannot ignore morality or absolutes. And few people are so independent that they can only refer to themselves as the standard of morality or absolute – without causing major problems, like we saw in the last century, with world wars, or in our century, with the ongoing threat of a world war. Why would anyone not want a savior?
 
Hi, I!

I fully concur!

It is interesting how people can claim all these grand powers yet governments around the globe do nothing to “make it happen.” Governments, as well as private citizens, are content with running the “business as usual” gambit. So what if millions suffer shortages and exploitation?.. as long as the wheel gets greased… who cares?; let’s put God out of our modern thought!

Then calamity hits… that’s when the old saying comes through: ‘a friend in need…’ God radiates from amongst the poor as they teach through love and charity the value of Life.

Maran atha!

Angel
 
Hi!

…well there’s ego and autonomy; these two things continue to grab man’s attention and heart–‘do away with God and you can be god’ (paraphrased–what the ancient serpent said to Eve)

Maran atha!

Angel
 
MargaretofCortona said:
When we’re healthy and happy we don’t think of the afterlife.
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Agreed.

So, if I asked you, “are doctors necessary to you?”, would you reply “(Well, I don’t need a doctor at this moment, so) NO!”…?

Or, would you reply, “(well, even though I don’t need a doctor at this particular moment, I will need a doctor at some point, so) YES!”…?

Same argument here. Even though one doesn’t feel the need for God now, that doesn’t mean that s/he doesn’t need God altogether or even at some point.

In other words, “not thinking of the afterlife” doesn’t imply “I won’t ever need to think of the afterlife.” 😉
 
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