by Fr. Geoff Lloyd
Resurrection and Eternal Life have been my dominant thoughts since our Easter services. Not only the gratitude to God and Jesus for all they have done for all our sakes, but also reflecting on the mechanics of how it all works and asking the old chestnut question, “What will heaven be like?” Do you have those thoughts? In my 74th year I find I’m thinking about all this much more than I did 20 years ago! So, what happens when we get to heaven? Here’s an old story I’ve told before from Australia that might – or might not – help.
In Australia cricket is the national sport and it is every cricketer’s dream, at whatever level he or she may be playing, to score a hundred runs. To get a “century” is a great achievement. There was a cricketer playing for his club in a rural part of Australia and his father used to come and watch his son play in every match. Well, actually, he didn’t watch because he was blind. He always used to sit on the top, not able to see anything, but he could hear everything – the crack of the ball on the bat, the excitement of the crowd as the game advanced. But he had never seen his son play.
The time came for the final game of the season and, if the son’s team were going to be the champions, they had to win the game. But, in the week leading up to the game the father of the boy died. On the day the captain came to the boy rather fearfully, saying, “I will understand if you don’t feel like playing today.” Surprisingly, the boy replied that he would like to play if the captain wanted him in the team. So, the day after his father’s funeral he went out to bat with his team in extreme difficulty. He took his stance, faced the bowler and started his innings. He was brilliant. No one had seen him play like it before. He reached his “century”, he saved his side, they became champions. When they were back in the pavilion after the game, his friends came up and said, “However did you do it? You must have thought of your father, no longer there on the side of the hill, listening to you play. How did you play like that today?” The boy just said, simply,” You see, I had to play like that today. I believe today was the first time my father saw me bat.”
I do not think I would be a Christian if I did not believe in eternal life. If I did not believe that cancer ridden bodies would be restored to their original beauty, that the blind will see and the deaf will hear, I would question the justice and mercy of God. But Jesus said,” In my Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.” Death in other words is God pushing us off the ledge into eternity. Alleluia!
A Prayer from St. Ignatius of Loyola:
Teach us, Good Lord, to serve you as you deserve. To give and not to count the cost. To fight and not heed the wounds. To toil and not to seek for rest. To labour and not to ask for any reward except that of knowing we do Your Will.
Through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
