Far too many of us are adopters of the notion of karma. Do something bad, something bad will happen to you. Do something good, something good will happen to you.
That cycle of cause and effect is anything but Christian:
There is a curious yet unfortunate belief in many of the faithful that the bad things which happen to us
happen because we deserve bad things. Remember Chapter 9 in St. John’s Gospel where the Pharisees question Jesus, “Who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” (John 9:2). This ill-informed and false doctrine goes on to assert that God is vengeful and does bad things to those who have done bad things. When this errant belief is held by so many people, it then appears to gain a truthful quality by the sheer pervasiveness of its acceptance. In this particular case, many people happen to be incorrect in their assertions. This doctrine is no more valid than to insist that good things happen to people who only do good things. Recall Jesus’ response to the Pharisees, “Neither he nor his parents sinned; it is so that the works of God might be made visible through him.” (John 9:3).
Well, leprosy is a rather bad thing too. Actually, leprosy was a term used to include not only Hansen’s disease as we now define leprosy, but to include any number of contagious and fatal diseases. It was necessary that they be quarantined for the good of the village; yet, being isolated in this way can lend itself to the false conclusion of punishment from on high. The questions may leap-frog over, “Is God punishing me?” to the motive behind this certain penalty, “Why is God punishing me?”
God is NOT like us! God does not do the things we do and think the things we think. “He makes the sun to rise on the bad and good”. (Matthew 5:45). God does not act as we often do, in a vengeful way. On the contrary, we ARE well when we do and think as God does. God is not punishing the afflicted. But we are the ones who punish ourselves when we act and think in a diseased way, in a leprous way, in a manner which isolates us from an intimate relationship with God. We quarantine ourselves amidst the sickly.
It is the new silent killer! Once nearly annihilated in its attack on the physical body, it has resurfaced in the 21st century with a vengeance to attack not the body, but the soul of modern society: spiritual leprosy. It is the disease of a heart closed off from God’s holiness and beauty and refreshment. Spiritual leprosy can be hidden easily under a colonel’s wings, under a soccer player’s uniform, under an attractive dress or hidden within the busyness of a world spinning faster and faster. It is far more fatal. Spiritual leprosy shows up with horrific symptoms. The most hideous of them, this leprosy suffers the “UNGRATITUDE” of a soul toward God and a refusal to receive His healing.
That and more at the link, a link to my priest's reflections on today's gospel.
Read the whole thing. Know and understand that grace, Christ's grace, is unmerited favor. It's an offer to receive what we don't deserve. And Christ offers that grace to you and to me unconditionally.
It's not karma. It's the purest of pure love. Know this.
Then be grateful.
Carry on.
