The Cosmic Pre-eminence of Christ
Fr. Mervyn Carapiet
St. Paul’s letter to the Colossians states,
“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; for in
him all things in heaven and on earth were created…He himself is before all
things…for in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell…and through him
God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things…by making peace through the
blood of the cross.” “For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and
you have come to fullness in him…He disarmed the rulers and authorities and
made a public example of them, triumphing over them all”
(1, 15-20 and 2, 9-15).
The
pre-eminence of Jesus Christ is the transcendent critique of superstition,
magic and political authority. The letter to the Colossians was aimed at
solving the crisis in the community. The Christians of Colossae were living
without purpose, prisoners of obscure forces arising from within the world
itself, leaving them with what they thought the only option of manipulating
them by special cultic practices. In a situation of religious fear, the
Christians of Colossae saw their salvation depending upon a complex of human
practices and observance of rites. And for explaining the unfathomable laws of
the world and history the Colossians acknowledged a system of intermediary
spirits between God and creation, which presided over the cosmos and the
destiny of the world. The letter to the Colossians indicates that there were
doctrines that had to do with angelic powers (1, 16; 2, 18) and ascetical
practices (2, 16) that were advocated at Colossae in a way that detracted from the
person of Jesus Christ (2, 16-23).
Paul
clearly affirms that Christ possesses the sum total of redemptive power (1,
19). Christ is the exemplary cause of creation (1, 15-16) and the efficient
cause of redemption (1, 20; 2, 13-14). His death pacifies creation’s disharmony
and now he is established in cosmic lordship (1, 20; 2, 15). Christ’s supremacy
requires that nothing appear in creation except in relation to him and also
that he himself shares in the creation of all things. The cosmos is dependent
upon him (1, 19), his death upon the cross has its effects on the whole of
creation, pacifying it and uniting it to God (1, 20).
The Lordship
of Christ is not to be regarded in the same way as that of the spirit powers, a
dominance that would deprive man of free choice in his destiny. With Christ
this is not so. The lordship of Christ means no alienation for humanity or for
creation. Jesus in effect had won it in the depth of his life as man. His
lordship is exercised in the context of human toil, “recapitulating” and
gradually spiritualising creation. This relationship to nature is essential to
Christ’s lordship. By working for a progressive spiritualization of creation,
man participates in the reign of Christ over all things.
He does not
need magic for this. Christ then is Lord of a creation that finds its harmony
in a restored humanity. The mystery of the Resurrection is the foundation for
the reconciliation of body and soul, of matter and spirit, of heaven and earth.
“None of us should be afraid and none should capitulate. God can always be
found. Our most important task is not to assert ourselves, but always be ready
to set off on the way to God and to each other. The feast of Christ the King is
therefore not a feast of those who are subjugated, but a feast of those who
know that they are in hands of the one who writes straight on crooked lines”
(Benedict XVI, Christ the King, in
Benedictus, Ignatius Press 2012, pg. 356).
Granting
the truth of the above reflection, it is not possible to see how superstition
and the magic mentality can square with the Christian attitude.
15
November 2012
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