How to enter the sanctuary
Thursday of the Third Week in Ordinary Time
In the First Reading today, we hear about how we ought to conduct ourselves while entering that heavenly sanctuary of worship (which is to say, offering our lives each day with Christ our High Priest, in union with the Sacrifice of the Mass).
“Since through the Blood of Jesus we have confidence of entrance into the sanctuary
by the new and living way he opened for us through the veil, that is, his flesh, and since we have ‘a great priest over the house of God,’ let us approach:
with a sincere heart
in absolute trust
hearts sprinkled clean
our bodies washed in purity
holding unwaveringly to our confession
rousing one another to love and good works
not staying away from our assembly
encouraging one another
seeing the day drawing near.
Sincerity: first on the list, though probably not what we might put first. But the author of Scripture is right: without the honesty of self-knowledge, admitting our sinfulness, our creaturely weakness, and therefore calling out for God’s help, the offering of our lives will be compromised, if not deceptive. We will be fooling ourselves, satisfied with maintaining a duty, subtly assuming a posture of self-sufficiency and, eventually, inevitably, superiority before the Lord.
Trust: If we are aware of our own depravity and weakness, of our need for God’s redemption, then we must surrender ourselves to his care, entrusting our days and our whole lives to his will and renouncing our self-will. This abandonment is not resignation but follows from the recognition that God is our Father, that we have prodigally turned away from him, and that we have now resolved to return home.
Pure of heart: as Kierkegaard remarked, purity of heart is to will one thing. A pure heart is not duplicitous: a sincere, trusting heart has renounced subliminal and ulterior designs. In particular, a pure heart does not see others as opportunities or means for one’s own advancement or satisfaction: it seeks to serve others because all are loved by God, created in his image and likeness, and deserving of the respect that honors another’s own freedom, not controlling others but serving them.
Pure of body: Chastity begins with how we love through our bodies. Long before it concerns sexuality, chastity is how we love others with our eyes, faces, ears, hands, and arms. Chastity is offering my body as Christ did as an altar of sacrifice, a gift of love.
Unwavering faith: Faith is not a one-time effort. It is a profession, a belief we must confess again and again. Holding fast is an effort. If our faith feels weak, this is good news: it is a real faith that can be exercised and strengthened, not just an illusion or custom. A frequent renewal of our baptismal promises, perhaps every Sunday, is an excellent means to strengthen our faith.
Rousing one another to good works: Preach by our actions, using words as necessary. “Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things” (Phil 4:8); and not only think of them, speak of them and share them and build up the common love of them, a worthy esprit de corps.
Not staying away: Commitment to the assembly of the Church. And not just abstractly but concretely, both universally and locally. The parish is my home, and I must make it my home, wed myself to its company, give myself to its service. The Chruch is my mother, and so I should honor the pope and all bishops, venerate the saints, make pilgrimage to shrines and cathedrals and basilicas, learn her traditions, and otherwise make her the overwhelming influence in my life.
Encouraging one another: We need the encouragement of others; there is no shame in requiring it. No one becomes a saint on their own. “As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.” (Prov 27:17) Learning the art of encouragement, using honey and not vinegar, building another up and not putting them down, leading by example and joy, never demanding credit or recognition: this is how we rouse each other, as brothers and sisters, comrades, members of a common body.
Seeing the day drawing near: Brother, remember your death. Think often of the coming of Christ, his return: look for it eagerly. We long not for impartial fulfillment but for the real, complete thing. “Hasten” the coming of the Lord by working for the kingdom that is coming, the new heavens and new earth. Seek not what is below, what is passing, but what is above, what is enduring. Learn to see differently.