Worthy

    

 

A portable altar set up at the cabin we were at for our Diocese of Steubenville Seminarian Retreat. Unworthy though we are, Jesus comes to us in perfect humility... even on the back porch of a cabin in rural Ohio

"And there was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived with her husband seven years from when she was a virgin, and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She did not depart from the temple, worshipping with fasting and prayer night and day. And coming up at that very hour she began to give thanks to God and to speak of him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem." -Luke 2:36-38

    This paragraph comprises all the Scriptures tell us about the prophetess Anna. All we know about her is found in this short account of the conclusion o
f the presentation of the child Jesus in the temple, though we certainly receive enough information to fill in the gaps about her life. A very old woman (for the time), she spent every moment of every day worshipping the Lord with prayer and fasting in the temple, hearing his voice through prophecy and reminding others of the coming of the Messiah- He is coming soon!

    Indeed, He was! Completely by prophecy, one day Anna searches out and locates what seems to be an ordinary, young, married couple and newborn baby, but she knows instantly that the small child is the Messiah. With a loud voice she rejoices with the prophet Simeon that the "redemption of Jerusalem" has arrived, that the object and desire of all her prayer and worship has come in the smallest form to bring all hearts back to the Father. All of her life has led to this moment-- the revelation of the salvation God has:

    "...Prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel." -Luke 2:31-32

    This is the greatest treasure God has ever given to His people! This is Emmanuel; God with us. Anna has given her life in preparing her own heart to receive this gift, and now she proclaims this treasure to all she sees that they too may receive worthily. 

    "Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof; but only say the word, and my servant shall be healed." -Matthew 8:8

    The faithful Centurion spoke these words of humble inquiry to Jesus with complete trust that the Lord would heal if He willed it. In this realization of his own unworthiness to receive the gift of the Word of God, Jesus Christ, his soul was purified and made worthy to receive. Though this may seem like a confusing contradiction-- how can knowing we are unworthy make us worthy?-- this Centurion understood that God loves souls who believe and acknowledge they are not worthy to receive Him, yet believe with complete trust that the Divine Mercy of God overcomes all our unworthiness. For only in such humility can a soul truly be saved from death; if they know they must rely totally on the grace of God to do it, and the love of God that He will do it.

    "My sacrifice, O God, is a contrite spirit; a humbled, contrite heart, O God, you will not spurn." -Psalm 51:19

    With the prophetess Anna, we draw near to Jesus Christ as He presents Himself to the Father for our sakes in the temple-- this is the mass. In the Divine Liturgy, Jesus gives Himself to us veiled in the perfect humility of bread, just as He veiled Himself in the perfect humility of a newly circumcised baby. But in every mass, we fall down in humility before the Lord, with our unworthiness filling us with grief that we have failed throughout our lives to ready our hearts for Christ, and with the Centurion we cry, "Domine, non sum dignus..."

    But we do not end there. For this treasure of salvation is too great for us to call "sour grapes" and ignore. If we do not receive Christ, we shall die. We have no choice but to beg for mercy, for we know that God's mercy is abundant, if only He will open the floodgates for us, so we continue, "..but only say the WORD, and my soul shall be healed!"

    The Word! This is the Word of God, made man in the form of a child, in the accidents of bread! It is the Word of God that has breathed forth covenants of salvation throughout the ages, to Adam, Abraham, Moses, David, Solomon, and now revealed in Christ-- in mercy. For we could not carry out our end of the covenant, so Jesus carried it out for us. If anyone is worthy of salvation, it is the sinless Christ... so in His abundantly generous love for us, He makes us worthy by offering His own body, blood, soul, and divinity, that we may be conformed to Him, if only we dare to be humble in receiving all of Him-- His crown of glory and of thorns.

    So though unworthy, Christ prepares us to receive Him by His own worthiness. And now, with Anna in the temple, and the words of the faithful Centurion reverberating through the universal tradition of the Church, we proclaim this same treasure to the world, in the worthiness of Christ. We have been given Emmanuel! If only all would humbly enter into His worthiness, that they too might rejoice to be saved!

    This was the zeal for souls that was experienced by the saints. Saints, who have lived in this world of darkness and death, come to encounter eternal life in Jesus Christ, and running from the tomb they enter the homes of those who are afraid, and cry out with Saint Mary Magdalene:

    "I have seen the Lord!" -John 20:18

    Even Our Lady, preserved from all stain of sin, rejoiced that the Lord "looked with favor on His lowly handmaiden" (Luke 1:48), that God in His mercy had made Her worthy of receiving Jesus. She understood completely how the worthiness of Christ redeemed Her since Her Immaculate Conception, and so all the saints have looked to Her* as a guardian and guide of our hearts in being transformed into the worthiness of God. Let us pray to the Immaculata that She may lead all souls in humility to Her Son, giving thanks to the Father for having made us worthy to share in the Word of God, Emmanuel, our promised salvation. (See Colossians 1:12.)

    *Saint Joseph is also an incredible guardian and guide of our hearts in this grace of transforming worthiness. He was unworthy of being the adopted father of Christ and knew it, yet in his humility the mercy of God made him worthy. Pray to Saint Joseph that his pure, chaste heart might escort you safely to love the Lord without any stain of sin whatsoever.