UNION WITH CHRIST
“I desire to be in union with Jesus.” Today, we all speak of the world’s desires, but what do we understand by desires? What breadth of humanity do we cover? How do we connect our needs and our wills? What role does the capacity for desire play in our human and spiritual growth? What is it that we want? These are not trivial questions. With regard to our desires, we divert ourselves a good deal. We cannot, but at times do, separate the wishes of our minds and our wills. I cannot have everything that I want and not everything that I want is necessary for my growth and maturity, nor for those others who are around me. Common sense must show me what is advisable and my will must show me the extent of what I need. The important thing is judgement. Judge what to do or not to do and act accordingly.
Deep in our hearts we want God… experience that fills us with the joy and the confidence to walk through life. So it was with Claret: a man of great desire but who knew how to reconcile and discern these desires. So he was happy.
Jesus our friend wants to give us his friendship and, as in the case of two friends who love each other intensely, his aim is to melt like the wax, to experience the attraction of the magnet… Do I experiment with this attraction? Does the word “Jesus” come to my mind often? Or perhaps it means nothing to me? How sad! What are my deepest desires? My aims?
Jesus asked the Baptist’s disciples about their desires. “What are you looking for? … And they stayed with Him. On the following day, John was there again with two of his disciples. Seeing Jesus passing, he said “This is the Lamb of God.” On hearing him say this, the two disciples followed Jesus. Then Jesus, turning and facing those who followed him, asked: “What do you want?” They said to him:” Master, where do you live?” He answered them: “Come and see it”. They went and looked at where he lived and stayed with him that day. It was the tenth hour“(John 1: 35-39).
