Editorial
'The Truth Will Make
You Free'
In the month of August,
four years ago, a prisoner from Tihar jail in Delhi came to Divine Retreat
Centre to make a retreat. It was by chance that he had come across a copy
of Vachanolsavam which inspired him to make his peace with God. Medical
experts had given him only a short time more to live as he was far advanced
in liver cirrhosis. This man, named Richard Achan Joseph, from Manipur,
spent the time in Divine under the strict custody of the police. Richard
had pleaded before the highest court of justice in India: "If the medical
science of this country cannot save my life, I must be given a chance
to cry out before the justice of my God."
Soaking his dead hopes in
his tears and offering them to God, Richard spent fourteen days in the
holy atmosphere of Divine, praying along with the thousands of people there.
When the word of God that fell upon his ears melted within his heart, he
looked back upon his life and wept . "Do not be afraid;for see - I am
bringing good news of great joy for all the people"(Lk 2:10). Richard's
mind whispered: "Good news for me! A Saviour for me! I must be saved. I
must be released, not from jail, but from diabolical bondage, from the
world of revenge and hatred. Jesus is a Saviour to me." When his
tears fell at the feet of Jesus, the burden in his heart disappeared. With
a good Confession, the stains in his soul were washed away. What if he
were to die now? God's word told him about "a new heaven and a new earth
; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea
was no more" (Rev 21:1).
That was another birth in
Richard's life. This earth became a new earth. New horizons of expectation
gleamed before him. Rays of hope shone in his mind. A thousand praises
of God rose within his soul. "See, the home of God is among mortals.
He will dwell with them as their God ; they will be his people, and God
himself will be with them"(Rev 21:3). "See I am making all things new"(Rev
21:5). Richard experienced a rejuvenation in his body and in his soul.
He was healed. He was at peace. While he gave his witness before the thousands
gathered before him, the eyes of the police officials standing guard over
him with sten guns, became moist. The guards, who had come from the courts
of justice to the tents over shadowed by the radiance of Eternal Love,
had already broken off the shackles binding Richard's hands and feet. Richard,who
was blessed with a vision of Jesus during the hallowed moments before the
Holy Eucharist, the police officials, and the multitudes present there,
cried out with John the Evangelist, "It is the Lord! "(Jn 21:17).
Knowledge of self leads to knowledge of God. Awareness of one's own limitations
and sins is self- knowledge. This self-knowledge is attained through the
word of God which is the good news for all men. True freedom is a liberation
from all bondage. It is when we are freed from the bonds of this world
that we become inhabitants of the kingdom of God. The freedom of the children
of God is to recognize the Father and discover his will.
When we recognize the Father
we cannot remain idle. Breaking all barriers, we somehow reach his sacred
presence. That was what Peter did. To recognize God, to become aware of
him, we must be filled with love. It was John, the beloved disciple, who
told Peter, "It is the Lord !". We encounter God through the medium
of love because "God is love"(1 Jn 4:16). Where there is love there
is freedom. Where there is no love there is selfishness. Selfishness destroys
freedom. The mists of sin and selfishness are obstacles to know God. John
recognized Jesus in the fresh light of an early dawn, but not through the
light of this world. Rather, it was through the golden bright light of
an unalloyed love. Richard's experience of God was similar. He praised
God in the midst of his failures. Shook off the shackles of sin. And then
began the journey of his stupefied mind towards his loving Father, God.
He shed tears when he realized he was not worthy to be called a son; those
tears became the offering of repentance. When we realize it is the Lord,
we should not tarry. Never think,"Let tomorrow come." Leap forward and
go ahead.
Freedom is to recognize
the truth. It is to see the truth and grasp the truth one has seen. "What
is truth? asked Pilate"(Jn 18:38). Jesus was silent. Yet that silence
was eloquent. Within that silence his words resounded. "I am the way,
the truth and the life" (Jn 14:6). When the God of truth is standing
beside us, what is the need for a witness to the truth?
The willingness to accept
truth is enough. Jesus said, " The truth will make you free". He
is waiting on the shore to lead us into the blessedness of freedom. "
It is the Lord !"
-Editor