God searches for his children - 4th week of lent wednesday - dead

On Black Saturday we commemorate an article of the faith, the catholic faith, which we seldom remember much less celebrate.  It is called the descent of Jesus to the dead.

What is this article of faith about?  When Adam and Eve disobeyed God, the gates of heaven were closed even to those who have done good on earth.  Yes even to Moses, Elijah, Isaiah and all the prophets, and all the holy men and women of the old testament.  Heaven was closed waiting for the coming of the messiah who will open again by his death and resurrection the gates of paradise.  Only the messiah, only Jesus can open the gates of our Father’s house.

And so the prophets and the holy men and women of the old testament had to wait for Jesus.  They had to hear him, he had to come to them to save them just as he saved the people during his time and just as he continues to come to us through the sacraments to save all of us.  And this is what we commemorate every Holy Saturday – Jesus descended to the dead and there he preached to them in order to open for them the gates of heaven and usher them in.  Jesus said in the gospel, “Amen, amen, I say to you, the hour is coming and is now herewhen the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God.  Indeed the hour is coming, in which all who are in the tombs will hear his voice.”  This speaks of the descent of Jesus to the dead so that he can open paradise for them.

This is the beauty of God’s salvation in Jesus which we remember most especially in this season of lent.  God is not a Father who will simply wait for his sinful and erring children to come back to him, aloof on his throne.  He is not waiting for us up there to demean ourselves and make a lot of pleadings down here before he comes to forgive us.  No.  God searches for us, God seeks us out like a shepherd searching for his lost sheep. God pursues us like a lover imploring us to come back to him.  God never forgets even the little ones, even the insignificant ones, even those people who may have been gone a long time ago their descendants have already forgotten all about them.  But God never forgets.

This is the attitude of God towards us.

As we gather to pray for our dead brother we are consoled by this thought, that we have such a loving and a caring God.  We are consoled because we are assured that we too will not be forgotten, that God will search for us when we become lost, that God will pay attention to us even when we have become insignificant, that God will remember even when we are long forgotten by others.  God will never forget us.  This is our assurance.  This is our hope.