A God for our time
By Rev. Frank Majka, S.J.
associate
director, University Ministry
If it is true that God meets us where we are, then how does God meet us in an age characterized by a haunting sense of personal powerlessness, alienation between people, and a growing callousness toward life? I can think of at least three ways.
 In a time when people are doubtful of their power to make a difference, God assures us that He sees more in us than we do. Although Moses believed himself to be only a fugitive, God knew that he could lead Israel out of Egypt. David was a boy so unremarkable to his father, Jesse, that Jesse didn’t present him to Samuel with the rest of his sons. But God knew that David had the makings of a king. Mary described herself simply as a handmaid of the Lord, but God chose her to be the mother of Jesus. Finally although Peter called himself a sinner, Jesus discerned in him the kind of faith upon which He could build His Church. God is still at work today urging us to look deeper than our superficial, often negative views of ourselves to see what He sees.
In our un-peaceful time, we need to remember that God brings people together. In the Old Testament, He took 12 tribes and made them into
a nation. In the New Testament, Jesus made 12 men into the nucleus of His new people. He cured
lepers, the sick and the possessed, making it possible for them to rejoin their families and communities. St. Paul wrote that Christ’s cross brings enemies and strangers together in peace and forgiveness. God continues to bring people together and reminds us that we are one human family. He encourages us to reach out to one another despite our differences.
Finally, when there appears to be little regard for human life today, God reveals Himself as the One who always gives and fosters life. God gave a son to Abraham and Sarah (Sarah laughed when she heard she would be a mother in her old age.) and provided food and water in the desert for the starving Israelites. Jesus declared that He had come precisely so that all people might “have life and have it more abundantly” and promised unending life to all who believed in Him. Easter reminds us that even death cannot prevent Christ’s determination to bring life to the world. Knowing this should make us grateful for our own lives and eager to protect the lives of others.
God meets us where we need Him to be, and the ways He shows Himself to us today both comfort us in our uneasy times and challenge us to reflect those same qualities in our lives.
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