2022/05/02

37. The Formation of the Holy Spirit

The formation of the Holy Spirit takes place in the space brought about by the Holy Spirit, as described in the Acts of the Apostles when it says: "And suddenly there came from the sky a noise like a strong driving wind, and it filled the entire house in which they were" (Acts 2:2). The "house in which they were" signifies the house of God where the Mass is celebrated regularly. The Eucharist is always present in its centre, preserving the spacetime of the Mass. When the congregation, who receive the Holy Eucharist during the Mass, enters this spacetime, the memory of having eaten the Holy Eucharist placed in their realm of unconsciousness is synchronised with the present spacetime, resulting in their being enable to receive the formation of the Holy Spirit easier. The faithful themselves will sit eye to eye with the Eucharist, even if they are unaware. Jesus, the only teacher in the world (cf. Matthew 23:8-10), respecting the dignity of people created in the image of God, encourages us by saying, "No disciple is superior to the teacher; but when fully trained, every disciple will be like his teacher" (Luke 6:40). Jesus wished Christians to grow to the point of taking on a role worthy of their name. That role Jesus entrusted to Christians to continue his work after he had accomplished all his vindication is to receive the Eucharist. Therefore, the Magisterium must see to it that those who receive the Eucharist during Mass become aware of this role. First, the congregation who receives the Eucharist should be asked in front of the Holy Eucharist to declare who it is and express their willingness to take the Eucharist voluntarily. They state clearly who the Eucharist is, in response to the priest who lifts the Eucharist saying, "Blessed are those called to the supper of the Lamb" (cf. this blog № 32), using Peter's confession of faith which Jesus said be "blessed." Then, the congregation must be guided to take the Eucharist firmly, holding out their hands before the priest, and eat it spontaneously with their own hands. Through this process, the receiving congregation will become able to proclaim aloud that the Eucharist is the Christ, the Son of God, and hear the voice, see the Eucharist with their eyes, touch it with their hands, smell it and taste it. They can receive the Eucharist with all of their senses. In this way, they vividly overwrite in their memory that they have fulfilled their experience of union with God. If they concentrate on the Eucharist, they will be able to experience God who is with people and memorise what they experienced, like Joseph, who for the first time picked up God who became a man in the Bethlehem stable, and like the women who held the feet of the risen Jesus, also like Thomas to whom Jesus said, "Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side" (John 20:27). Those who distribute the Eucharist must trust these statements and preserve the moment the congregation touches and looks closely at the Eucharist and eats it. That is for cherishing the risen Jesus' command, "Touch me and see," in his words: "Why are you troubled? And why do questions arise in your hearts? Look at my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me and see, because a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you can see I have" (Luke 24:39).

Maria K. M.

 2022/04/25

36. The Formation of the Holy Spirit and the Revelation to John

"Then there appeared to them tongues as of fire, which parted and came to rest on each one of them" (Acts 2:3). This description of Pentecost shows how the Holy Spirit connected with the conscious realm of the individual disciple's brain to take what was Jesus' and declare it to them for their formation. Their remarkable actions after the event show that at this time, the worldview of Jesus Christ, which they had in their unconscious realm, was pulled out into their conscious realm by the Holy Spirit. John, who was present there, advises people in his letter: "As for you, the anointing that you received from him [the Son] remains in you, so that you do not need anyone to teach you. But his anointing teaches you about everything and is true and not false; just as it taught you, remain in him" (1John 2:27). "The anointing that you received from him" here refers to the worldview of Jesus Christ placed in the unconscious realm of the disciples who had stayed close to Jesus. If so, the passage, "just as it taught you, remain in him," is telling them to remain in the formation of the Holy Spirit, which pulls the worldview of Jesus Christ out of their unconscious realm into their conscious realm, as John experienced at Pentecost. However, when John wrote this letter, he was not aware that his next generation would not be able to share his experience. The Holy Spirit leads each person directly, not through prophets or teachers, nor by a charism or spirituality that works through a particular person. Surprisingly, on the day of Pentecost, Jesus' disciples already had the experience that contemporary people, who live in the age of personalised Internet connection, take for granted. These people maintain the worldview of the information-oriented society in their unconscious realm, and it is constantly being pulled out into their conscious realm. So, in order for the disciples "who have not seen and have believed" Jesus to remain in the Son, the worldview of Jesus Christ must be infused into their unconscious realm. John must have gradually become aware of this necessity. One of Paul's letters tells us that some witnesses to Jesus' resurrection had already died (cf. 1 Corinthians 15:6). God made John write a training book that would fill one's unconscious realm with the worldview of Jesus Christ in preparation for the time when these witnesses would eventually die out. And in the book, he stated, "Blessed is the one who reads aloud and blessed are those who listen to this prophetic message and heed what is written in it, for the appointed time is near" (Revelation 1:3). The daily practice of reading aloud this prophetic message and hearing its voice helps us keep "what is written in it" in our unconscious realm. Those who do so will have the blessedness of remaining in the Son.

Maria K. M.

 2022/04/18

35. The Beloved Disciple and the One Who Receives the Name of Jesus

God made humanity male and female from the beginning so that they, as father and mother, would share the relationship between God and humanity.¹ The relationship between God and man has been parent and child from the beginning, and the relationship between God and Jesus' "my church" is also parent and child.² Jesus told his disciples there were "eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven" because people had already filled the earth at that time as God had commanded in Genesis. John the Apostle, a childless young man from the beginning, just like Jesus, was particularly called Jesus' beloved disciple. John and James asked Jesus to make them sit at his right and left in his kingdom immediately after Jesus had foretold his Passion for the third time.³ The other disciples became angry with them, but Jesus treated their wishes seriously. Jesus focused on the young men because he saw in them spontaneity towards him. One's will is truly free only when it turns towards God spontaneously. When the Holy Spirit descended, John realised he had received the name of the mother of Jesus. He, a male, could never receive the name of Jesus to become like Jesus.⁴ When John heard Mary Magdalene, who had been called to by the cross of Jesus with him, had encountered the risen Jesus, John paid attention to her. He did so because, from his own experience, he noticed her spontaneity towards Jesus. He understood Jesus had given her the name of Jesus and wrote down this scene in the Gospel. Risen Jesus said to Mary Magdalene in front of the tomb, "Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?" (John 20:15). She thought it was the gardener and said, "Sir, if you carried him away, tell me where you laid him, and I will take him." Jesus, seeing her spontaneity in saying, "I will take him," called out, "Mary!" and told her, "Stop holding on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father" (John 20:17). John interpreted these words to mean that once he ascended to the Father, she would be allowed to touch his name. Mary Magdalene must have been a single woman like Jesus, as her name came with a place name, Magdala. As one of a group of women who served the party of Jesus, sharing their possessions,⁵ she was always watching him from close by and making his teachings her own. Mary Magdalene opened the way to receiving the name of Jesus for new women who would spontaneously live the following words of Jesus. "And everyone who has given up houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands for the sake of my name will receive a hundred times more, and will inherit eternal life" (Matthew 19:29).

Reference: 1. Genesis 2:24, 2. this blog #31, 3. Matthew 20:20-23, 4. this blog #34, 5. Luke 8:3

Maria K. M.

 2022/04/11

34. The Vocation of the New Man and the New Woman

The Creator had a plan to make humanity male and female from the beginning. Witnessing men and other animals coming into being, people discovered living things have spontaneity. This spontaneity in living things made people sense something that "is" in them, and people came to perceive it as "existence." Eventually, they learn that this sensation is an event happening in one's brain and realize only they themselves can be perceived as being while everything else exists as the information demonstrating the relationship with themselves. So, when God, who created humans like that, says "I am", he means he is with people and in a relationship with them.¹ For one, information that demonstrates their relationship with others is the only means that assures the "existence" of others. The Bible writes God created humanity in his likeness. For this proposition to be information that guarantees people the "existence" of one – whether oneself or others, it must become information that demonstrates the relationship with others. So, God sent his only begotten Son to the earth. For Christians, the perfect likeness of God is Jesus. Therefore, to be like God signifies to be like Jesus. We can point out two specific characteristics of Jesus that Christians can share to be like him. Jesus encouraged his disciples to become "eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven."² These words were telling about Jesus himself. One of the specific characteristics of Jesus is that he became a eunuch without castration. He added: "Whoever can accept this ought to accept it," so that people who were in diverse social situations, like Peter and John, could freely accept his exhortation timely whenever they could. Another characteristic is that Jesus had maternity as God the Word while he was born male.³ So, we have to consider that he had both masculinity as a man and femininity as God. For Christians to become like Jesus, they need to receive new possibilities in their own masculinity and femininity. What is important here is that those the Father drew near the cross were the three Marys. Male Christians, with or without children, become those like Jesus by receiving Mary's name, following "the disciple whom Jesus loved." As for female Christians, those with children become like Jesus by receiving the name of Joseph through Mary, the wife of Clopas, while so do those childless by accepting the name of Jesus through Mary Magdalene. The three Marys under the cross symbolized the members of the Holy Family.⁴ If Jesus' "my Church" appears as the likeness of Jesus modelled on the Holy Family in this way, the world of the Bible will become real.

Reference: 1. this blog #25, 2. this blog#29, #33, 3. this blog #29, 4. this blog #30, #31

Maria K. M.

 2022/04/04

33. The Vocation of Mary and Joseph

Jesus encouraged mainly his male disciples to become "eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven."¹ It is because men's bodies are designed to be able to control their sexual impulses. The male body has a function whereby old sperm is absorbed into the body to replenish it with new sperm. As male external genitalia is also used as a urethra, some may think that sperm, like urine, must be expelled once it is filled up, but the idea is an illusion. On the other hand, the number of eggs is determined when a woman is a foetus in her mother's womb, and no new eggs are produced after birth. An egg matures in a grown woman's body and comes out into the fallopian tubes. If the egg does not meet any sperm and does not become a fertilised egg, it is expelled from her body together with a part of the uterus which peels off with bleeding. Ovulation, in which a mature egg is released, happens independently of the woman's will. At this time, she undergoes a few days of estrus. So, God specially prepared Mary so that she would carry his only begotten Son. The Holy Spirit came upon her, and the power of the Most High overshadowed her.² It meant that her body became "like an angel." Jesus must have had an image of his mother in mind when he replied to the Sadducees: "They can no longer die, for they are like angels; and they are the children of God because they are the ones who will rise" (Luke 20:36). The Gospel accounts show that Jesus, who was the first to rise from the dead, was seemingly no different from an ordinary person. As Mary was likewise, no one, let alone herself, would have realised what had happened to her. That is why Jesus responded to the woman, "Rather, blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it" (Luke 11:28) when she said aloud, "Blessed is the womb that carried you and the breasts at which you nursed" (Luke 11:27), and also addressed his mother as "Woman."³ Considering all these things, we can imagine that Joseph, who took Mary and her unborn child Jesus into his home following the angel's instruction and became Jesus' earthly father, witnessed extremely rare childbirth in Bethlehem. It must have been like the scene in which Jesus has risen, leaving an empty tomb behind. Joseph saw it all and realised everything; he feared God and lived his whole life as "a eunuch who has made himself a eunuch for the sake of the kingdom of heaven," even though he did not know it. The life choices of Mary and Joseph opened up to Christians the possibility of receiving the life of a new man and a new woman.

References: 1. Matthew 19:12, 2. Luke 1:35, 3. John 2:4, 19:26

Maria K. M. 

 2022/03/28

32. Peter's "Blessedness"

As I wrote in the previous article, Jesus' question and Peter's answer are linked to the Revelation of John by "blessedness" of Jesus' words, "Blessed are you," and get connected to a new space. There are seven "blessedness"¹ in Revelation, and six of them contain reasons for being blessed. However, only the fourth "blessedness" does not give any reason, as follows: "Then the angel said to me, 'Write this: Blessed are those who have been called to the wedding feast of the Lamb.' And he said to me, 'These words are true; they come from God'" (Revelation 19:9). The wedding feast of the Lamb is Jesus' last Passover supper. At that table, the Apostles ate and drank what the bread and wine had been made the body and blood of Christ by the word of Jesus, and thereby they had the experience of union with him. Even today, the flow of the Mass goes towards the Eucharist, which makes us experience the union that the Apostles had. At the last stage of the Mass, the priest shows the consecrated bread and wine and invites the faithful into union with the Eucharist, chanting, "Blessed are those called to the supper of the Lamb." Here, the faithful before Jesus, who is present in the Eucharist, is forced to give a testimony of who he is, like Peter before Jesus' question, "But who do you say that I am?"(Matthew 16:15). "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God" (Matthew 16:16), Peter replied. And Jesus responds, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father" (Matt 16:17). Peter's words of reply were "blessed," which were guaranteed by the Father in heaven, and "these words are true; they come from God." So, the faithful before the Eucharist testifies with Peter's confession of faith that is blessed. Jesus went on to say. "I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven" (Matt 16:19). When the keys to the kingdom of heaven open the doors of heaven² with the words of starting of the Mass, a new space emerges in which the heavenly Mass and the earthly Mass are united. Therefore, the fifth "blessedness" explains the blessedness of the one who shares in the first resurrection. "They will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for [the] thousand years" (Revelation 20:6). "The thousand years" signifies the time of the earthly Mass, connected with the eternity of the Kingdom of Heaven. The congregation who attends the earthly Mass, which is connected to the heavenly Mass where large crowds praise God, receives the blessings of dismissal imparted by the heavenly priests and the earthly priests. The earthly priests, who have accomplished, so to speak, the second mystery of the Incarnation by the Holy Spirit, send the faithful who received the body and blood of Christ, hoping that they will accomplish the third mystery of the Incarnation and return to the Mass. Then, with the priest's words announcing the ending of the Mass and the reply of thanksgiving, the connection with the heavenly Mass is loosed.

References: 1. Revelation ①1:3, ②14:13, ③16:15, ④19:9, ⑤20:6, ⑥22:7, ⑦22:14, 2. Revelation 3:20　

Maria K. M.

 2022/03/21

31. "My Church" of Jesus

In the previous article, we discussed how the ''my church'' of Jesus came into being as three Marys. Jesus mentioned the ''my church'' when he taught his disciples on what foundation he would build it. Jesus first asked his disciples, "But who do you say that I am?"(Matthew 16:15). Peter replied, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God" (Matthew 16:16). Because Jesus said, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father. And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it" (Matt. 16:17-18), the ''my church'' of Jesus is to be built on the words of Peter's reply so to speak. Therefore, the church, established on his words as its foundation, must also have the words. If we think about it, the words Peter replied are a combination of the message of the angel who appeared to Joseph in his dream for the first time, "He will save his people from their sins" (Matthew 1:21), and the message of the angel given to Mary: "Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God" (Luke 1:35). Thus, the Holy Family can be taken as a model for the ''my church'' of Jesus. Because Jesus was God, the Holy Family that received Jesus as a son had been prepared in the likeness of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, of whom Jesus spoke. It is also why the ''my church'' of Jesus was born as the three Marys. In addition, as Jesus said, ''Blessed,'' Jesus' question and Peter's answer are to be connected to the new space in linkage with the Book of Revelation. In our age, in which online communities and organisations that are connected to each other worldwide are everyday things, if the ''my church'' of Jesus appears in the likeness of God, modelled on the Holy Family, it will provide us with the chance to make the biblical world real and to inject the image of God into the highly information-oriented society. The ''my church'' of Jesus, who draws all people on the cross, plays a significant role in being a community where visitors can see and experience God in reality. If so, Christians will be aware that they need to form themselves towards the new role Jesus has brought for the new men and women. We will continue this theme in the next issue.

Maria K. M.