Our disbelief in the spiritual and supernatural

By Fr. Roy Cimagala

I SUPPOSE this condition is understandable. But we need to do something about it, because whether we like it or not, the reality that governs us goes far beyond the material and the sensible and even the intelligible. We have to deal with things spiritual and supernatural which, in fact, are far more important in our life. They have a much greater bearing in our life.

That gospel episode where some people of Christ’s hometown could not believe what they saw and heard from him dramatizes this point. (cfr. Mt 13,54-58) “Where did this man get such wisdom and mighty deeds?” they asked in astonishment. “Is he not the carpenter’s son? Is not his mother named Mary, and his brothers James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas? Are not his sisters all with us?”

We need to incorporate in our system the way we can overcome this disbelief and awkwardness. And the first thing to do is to acknowledge the reality that our life has a prominently spiritual dimension that requires us to nourish the way we think, judge, reason and ultimately to love. These are the functions of our spiritual soul. It’s in this dimension that the supernatural aspect of our life enters.

Our spiritual soul with all its faculties (our intelligence and will) enables us to go beyond our material and natural world. It is what connects and engages us with others, be they things or persons or a supernatural being. It is what enables us to enter into communion with others.

We just have to remember that our spiritual soul is not a self-generated being. It is a creature, created by God the Creator. It is what would make us realize that we come from God and should remain with God for its proper vitality. We have to realize deeply that we cannot live properly without him.

That is why we have to see to it that to live properly as a human person we need to establish and continually reinforce our spiritual and supernatural bearing. This duty has priority over all the other duties we have in this life. We may call it the mother duty from where all our other duties and responsibilities, as well as our rights and dignity, spring.

We should do everything to establish, recover and maintain this spiritual bearing and supernatural outlook. We should see to it that more than anything else, we should be guided by God’s will and ways that are shared with us through his gifts of faith, hope and charity. We just cannot rely on our own counsel.

Given the way we usually are, we really need to exert great effort to comply with this duty of keeping a spiritual and supernatural bearing in our life. Fact is we tend to rely simply on our own ideas, opinions, preferences. We easily allow ourselves to be swayed by social trends and fads, hardly questioning their foundations and orientations. Worse, we can even be guided mainly by our biological elements.

That is why we need some time everyday to do some deep thinking and reflection that should lead us to meditate on God’s word and works, and to pray, that is, to enter into conversation with God. Otherwise, we would not be able to enter the spiritual and supernatural dimension of our life. We would simply remain in the peripherals and the superficial aspects of our life.

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com