Henri Boulad: The Infinite is within You !

Yes. The Infinite is within You. This is what the Jesuit scholar Fr. Henri Boulad said in his homily today Sunday December 13, 2020. Fr. Boulad spoke of it as a inner movement of conversion. He told a story of a young man that wished to be rich and, on his way of looking into this desire, he met an old man who, upon learning from the young man about his desire, directed him to go into a cave. As the young man goes into the cave, he finds himself in darkness that blinds him. However, when he touches the wall, he finds himself before a large and luminous palace full of treasures and in the middle a large table of delicious food. He needed to have courage in order to make a decision and start the journey...And Fr. Boulad said that he experienced the same reality. It is the road to fulfillment. Every human person will have to take the same road. We all have in ourselves the hidden treasure. Yet we do not really see it. I think that we are too busy with the things that float outside. We need to start the process of conversion. Let us read it in the conversion of Saul of Tarsus. The vision that Saul experienced is the same. The word "conversion" has been used since the early Fathers from the Greek "Metanoia." In The Acts of the Apostles, it is written "But Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. Now as he journeyed he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven flashed about him. And he fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, 'Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?' And he said, 'Who are you, Lord?' And he said, 'I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting; but rise and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do.' The men who were traveling with him stood speechless, hearing the voice but seeing no one. Saul arose from the ground; and when his eyes were opened, he could see nothing; so they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. And for three days he was without sight, and neither ate nor drank. Now there was a disciple at Damascus named Anani'as. The Lord said to him in a vision, "Anani'as." And he said, 'Here I am, Lord.' And the Lord said to him, 'Rise and go to the street called Straight, and inquire in the house of Judas for a man of Tarsus named Saul; for behold, he is praying, and he has seen a man named Anani'as come in and lay his hands on him so that he might regain his sight.' But Anani'as answered, 'Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to thy saints at Jerusalem; and here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call upon thy name.' But the Lord said to him, 'Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel; for I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name.'" (Acts 9:1-16). Years ago, Fr. Henri Boulad gave a homily in Advent. Listen here: "Jesus is a revelation. Jesus is a revolution". But what kind of revolution? "Jesus empties heaven and moves the [Divine presence] to be among us: Emmanuel." and continues "Is it possible that God makes such a radical move? I have a response here to our Muslim brothers who think it is impossible. For them God cannot descend from heaven without losing his honor and dignity." Listen carefully because here Henri Boulad summarizes the Christian Mystery in as simple language as possible "If Jesus Christ is an illusion...If Christianity is a sheer mystification...If God did not come to us and did not descend from his heaven...If he did not take the radical and seemingly impossible leap of the incarnation, then he ceases being credible - he ceases being love - he ceases being God." Let us reflect. Here is the message: "The scandal of the Incarnation, which means that we cannot believe that God could debase himself, becomes the key and the supreme proof that this is the truth." "But a God in heaven well served who looks to me and says 'You suffer. Have courage. Perhaps one day you will be with me in my heaven' is not God. A God who says 'Patience. I am fine here but you over there can suffer' is not God. This is the false God that we, often, figure that he sends us prophets from time to time to console us' . NO, NO. NO. This God who looks to me with a telescope is not my God. I do not want him." "If there is a phenomenon of atheism today in the West as well as in Egypt, it is precisely because men say we are in fact better than God. The walk that I walk to help when I see a hungry person or a thirsty one or a person without faith, can't God do it? Has he no choice regarding his honor?" "No. He did it. This is the supreme proof of the Christian Mystery. Do not look somewhere else. 'Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down...' He descended. No more seventh heaven..." "The only God I can believe, love and worship is the God Jesus Christ because he descended to me." "'Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down...' " And the great preacher and Jesuit scholar Henri Boulad finished here his homily. I love Jesus. He loved me before I knew him. I am the Prodigal Son who needs God. In Jesus, God came to earth.In the Eucharist, he is within me. Let us sing to Him: Love Divine - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sw5ZCZeS32M