Word of Life

March 2006

Truth is to be practised. If we live it out we will benefit society and, still more, find new life in God.

But those who do what is true come to the light. (John 3: 21)

What does it mean to ‘do what is true’? We can learn the truth, we can speak it…. But for Jesus truth is something we ‘do’. Jesus always surprises us.

Nicodemus, who was a Rabbi and a member of the Sanhedrin, was also surprised. He had gone to see Jesus to ask how to enter the kingdom of God. He was told that he would have to be reborn, which meant accepting the new life Jesus had come to bring, allowing himself to be transformed inwardly, to the point of becoming a son of God, so entering into God’s own world. Salvation, more than a human achievement, is a gift from on high.

Nicodemus, having gone to see Jesus by night, in darkness, left enlightened.

But those who do what is true come to the light.

This Word of Life is an invitation to act in conformity with the truth, in line with the Gospel. It asks us to be people who put the Word of God into practice, and not just hear it. Hilary, who was Bishop of Poitiers and a Father of the Church, said ‘There is no word of God that is not to be carried out: and all God’s words contain within them the need to be done. The words of God are decrees.’

Faith and moral behaviour are very closely linked.

It is clear from the intense conversation with Nicodemus that, in Jesus, light, life and love in action coincide. It must be the same for those who accept him and, in him, become sons and daughters of God. Clement of Alexandria, another Father of the Church, wrote, ‘Those who obey the Lord and because of him put Scripture into practice, are fully transformed into the image of the Master. They come to live like God in the flesh.’

The same link between belief and behaviour is asked of those who do not profess a specific religious creed. The deepest convictions their consciences dictate demand to be translated into deeds.

But those who do what is true come to the light.

The fruit of doing the truth is to come to the light, ‘to accept’ Christ. Jesus promised: ‘[To] those who love me … I will reveal myself.’ (John 14: 21) He is the ‘true light.’ (John 1: 9)

Another fruit of doing the truth is the witness we give to others, to society where we are. Jesus said this when he invited us to let our light shine ‘before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.’ (Matt. 5: 16)

A consistent life is more eloquent than any number of speeches. Children require their parents to be consistent. They want them to be united, intent on strengthening family harmony. Citizens expect their elected representatives to be consistent: to carry out what they have agreed to do; to work for the common good; to be honest in financial administration. Students ask their teachers to be consistent in their role as educators. Honesty, transparency and competence are all required of business people, workers, and professionals…

Society is also built up by our witness to the living link between our ideals and our real choices day by day.

But those who do what is true come to the light.

This was the experience of people like Nelson Mandela who remained steadfast in his quest for equality, enduring many difficult years in prison, only to emerge victorious as his nation’s leader, and of Martin Luther King, who paid for being true to his beliefs with his very life.

It is also the experience of many men and women, unknown to us but no less consistent in the choices they make. It was like that, for instance, for the owner of a small company who was asked to give a bribe in exchange for new orders. He did not betray his principles. It was a decision he made with firmness but not without difficulty, knowing that by remaining honest he was risking the loss of a large part of his income. In fact, the warehouse that distributed his products cancelled its orders, bringing his business to the brink of bankruptcy. After a few months, though, the warehouse was forced to reverse its decision: the customers had complained because they could no longer find that company’s products in the shops. Being consistent with his principles had been rewarded.

Chiara Lubich