The world and our sanctification

By Fr. Roy Cimagala

WE need to know the important relation between our temporal affairs in the world and our most important duty and responsibility of our own sanctification. We need to realize more deeply that our sanctification is done always in the world, which is the arena for us to tackle the test of whether we would like to be with God or simply to be on our own.

This means that if we truly love God, we should not run away from the world and the many challenges it presents to us. Rather we should love it, immerse ourselves in it, make use of what is true, good and beautiful in it and purify it of what is not.

It would clearly be a wrong understanding of what and how it is to love God if we equate loving God with running away from the world, or worse, hating it. The negative and evil things we can find in the world should only spur us to love the world the way God loves it—sending his only begotten Son to it. In other words, we have to be “alter Christus” to love the world properly.

Our sanctification therefore should have an effect on the way we carry out our temporal affairs and on the world in general. It just cannot be purely spiritual, mainly in the level of intentions and desires only, or exclusively personal understood as individualistic, with hardly any relation to the others and to the world in general. It should not be confined only to isolated and sacred places.

It should be knowledgeable about the different issues and problems in the world, unafraid to complicate one’s life and even to get dirty without compromising what is essential in our relation with God.

The effect of our sanctification on the world can obviously take on an infinite number of ways and forms. Its impact on the world can be through our charity work, or through the humanization and Christianization of the different sectors and aspects of our society.

Aside from its effect on the person and the family, it should leave a sanctifying mark on the world of business, politics, education, sports, entertainment, social life, etc. It should make a better world, more worthy to be offered to God from whom it came, asking us to take care of it.

In business alone we need to advocate for an ethical behavior in governance, challenging corruption and greed, and promoting transparency as essential components of just leadership. We need to look into how we can have fair labor practices that ensure employees of dignified and respectful treatment. We have to do something about proper stewardship of God’s creation that avoid environmental degradation.

In politics, the duty of sanctification should promote unity and understanding among all people, avoiding polarization and division, relieving cases of injustice and giving due protection to the rights of the vulnerable and marginalized members of our society. We need to uproot corruption and lack of transparency in the government. It should work to inject integrity into the lives and work of our politicians.

In entertainment, sanctification can mean promoting wholesome and uplifting content, reflecting God’s design for human dignity and creativity. It should eradicate obscenity and signs of moral decay. Sadly, we have a lot of this kind of dirt these days.

Sanctification in the middle of the world can mean praying for our leaders, asking God to guide them with wisdom and justice. Some advocacy work should be encouraged so that policies and practices that reflect gospel values can be promoted. Perhaps, faith-based initiatives that promote social justice, good education and community development can be developed.

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com