Called Beyond Greatness

by Rev. Esparza, CP

As we move towards the beginning of Lent and our preparation for the Catholic super bowl of celebrations, Holy week and the Tritium.

Scripture, the word of God is preparing us to enter this powerful moment in the life of the church. 

Celebrating the Paschal mystery that is that life, passion and Resurrection and Ascension of our Lord who takes power over all the universe is a magnanimous, extravagant display of mercy by God in Human History.

It is this extravagant Mercy, this prodigal act of love, this magnanimity on God's part that we are  call to imitate in our own lives.

Magnanimity is the virtue usually associated with the spirit of striving for excellence. It is the trained human heart that seeks to do actions beyond greatness. 

Who better to embody this magnanimous virtue than the saints. Pick any saint and you will understand God's magnanimity and through their journey to holiness. 

Magnanimity comes from the Latin word

which means the greatness of the soul.

Our tradition tells us that it is only he or she that freely practices the good, a virtuous person, whose character can be in hands by fostering a sense of purpose and commitment to the common good and inspires individuals to act in ways that reflect their dignity and the dignity of others. I add, those who through their actions enbody Jesus. Their actions do not only portray the good but they go beyond greatness and into excellence. 

I have been blessed enough to see the magnanimity of God embodied in people. Yes, striving for actions beyond greatness is possible by us simple mortals too. 

I worked in Haiti for 7 years. As many as you know Haiti is a country devastated by generations of international interventionism and local corruption. Yet, I was blessed enough to witness in this broken and beautiful place of this excellence of character in everyday life through the lives of people in very harsh conditions.

 I saw it as people would offer me the best seat in their homes even if the best seat meant an old bucket set upside down so that I could rest. I saw this in orphan children who would bring to me a small gift in the form of a candy or a pen that they would buy with the little money they made selling whatever they could in the streets in order to show their friendship and appreciation. 

I saw this in the widow mother of four young children, who would pick an avocado on an orange from her already meager and scanty  kitchen pantry and will bring it to me whenever I worked really early in the morning on my garden in order to avoid the ruthless humidity of Port-au-Prince. 

These selfless acts of kindness can only be understood as magnanimous not only because of the harsh conditions of material  misery in which they occur but also because they were continuous. THese situations that could only move the heart to selfishness, or the undeniable rightful act of self preservation, an outpouring and lavish sense of compassion, friendship and love where the norm for some of Haitian these brothers and sisters. Their actions opened my eyes to see the living God, Jesus our lord loving me in such a generous way that made the obvious moral acceptable good action into a lower step. The bar of appreciation, compassion or Justice was propelled by the selfless actions into the Divine realm of magnanimity. 

Today's scripture invites us to be able to see God's magnanimity and the call we have as a people as a church to seek to imitate this virtue. 

We've heard how David grabbed the lanz and jug of water from Seoul rather than taking of his life. David could have opted to take Saul’s  live as a rightful action for they were political enemies. Yet, David goes beyond and recognizes the Divine calling of Saul the chosen anointed one of God. David decides not to seek rightfu Justice, an eye for an eye, but rather uses these opportunity to show forth the higher power of compassionate justice also known as love, charitas, agape. 

In the letter to the Corinthians Paul calls this community to their real identity. Although they are earthly men and women, the real identity is to strive for their heavenly realm. It is Christ Resurrection that allows us to choose a higher form of being even in this passing, terrestrial, brocken world. would the corinthians dare to beyond? would they choose their higher calling or would they accommodate in their security, would they lodge in their own comfort or would they risk going beyond greatnes? t

We also hear Luke the Evangelist, in the famous sermon of the plane where the beatitudes are given as new commandments. In this sermon Jesus moves the heart and imagination of the listeners to go beyond what is good into what is excellent. To go beyond greatness into magnanimity. Loving those who love you is not enough. For God's magnanimity and excellence he's able to love even the enemy and pray for his persecutors. 

My brothers and sisters, this is the bar. This is the challenge. This is our work, the scripture brings on to us this week as disciples of Jesus. Will we conform with the good or we will be ready to be formed with hearts and minds that will go beyond greatness and into lives that incarnate through our actions  the magnanimity of our lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 

This also begins to form our hearts to get ready for lent and to live this time of preparation to be taken into God’s lavish generous love, the life, passion and resurrection of our lord.  This extravagance from God is so that our hearts may be moved, not by guilt or shame, but rather by awe and thanksgiving to repentance and to a life worthy of our dignity.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             

Let us come to Jesus today to receive him. It is his strength and not ours, it is his mind and not ours. It is his way and not ours that will grace out mortal and limited lives to embody and to make present  his excellence, his magnanimity here now.