Tuesday, November 28, 2017

Renunciation

Dictionary.com  defines renunciation as "an act or instance of relinquishing, abandoning, repudiating, or sacrificing something" [1], quoting in part.  Renunciation is defined here to include the surrender of one's ability to obtain, acquire, possess or choose.

In this fast-changing technological world, when new things arrive at the marketplace before warranties have run out on the old, when people build up excitement over something still in production or development, is renunciation even a concept?  Has the word disappeared from one's vocabulary, buried under layers upon layers of desires that are material and temporal, that have no redemptive value?

The need to realize these desires by making acquisitions seems to be both a prerequisite and proof of a privileged life that nearly everyone wants.  Whether one actually lives or pretends to live such a life, the desires are the same.  To separate material and temporal desires from one's life is to cut oneself off from society, one that is not only unmindful of God but also frowns upon, if not ostracize those who speak of God.

In light of such intense peer and societal pressure, God is relegated to the background by many.  Waiting with love and in humble silence, God suffers through the pierced sacred heart of Christ, wondering if they would at some point choose to turn around and acknowledge God's love and omnipresence, and take bold outward strides toward God without embarrassment, guilt or fear.

To get close to God, one ought to live one's life in detachment from all things material and temporal, using them only as a necessity of modern living without chasing after the latest and the best.  To do better, one must renounce not only worldly desires and possessions but also choice by abandoning oneself completely to God, not something easily accomplished.


[1] http://www.dictionary.com/browse/renunciation

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