To the ancient Hebrews, life meant far more than the period between conception and death. Life was what proceeded from loving and obeying God. And death was not just that which followed the last breath on earth. To the ancient Hebrews, death was the rejection of the living God. Seek the Lord and you will live, the prophet Amos tells the people. And, conversely, isolate yourself from the love of the Lord, and you will join the living dead. The point is that you and I are not genuinely alive because we are not medically dead. We are genuinely alive when our actions are full of love and understanding and intelligence and heart. To be genuinely alive, we must experience God. It is not enough to know about God. We must know him, experience him. We can only know him and experience him through love. The first letter of John states, Whoever does not love, does not know God . . .When we consider all things through the love of Christ, we are alive in Christ. St. Paul puts it this way, For to me, to live is Christ. Today we pray for the strength to be fully alive, and the grace to choose the life of Christ.
– Father Joseph Pellegrino
