Upside Down Theology

We all know what life is like, for we have lived it. Yet none of us has seen what lies in store for us in the heavenly kingdom, or even really what living here is really like. We think that things are a certain way, but really God shows us that they are upside down.

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord. (Isaiah 55:8)

Fr. Bill said an interesting thing at Mass today on the Feast of All Saints: "Wanting what the saints have isn't envy because you don't want to take it away from them, you just want to share in it."

That got me to thinking about other "upside down" facets of our theology.

• 1 Corinthians 14 says: "Pursue love, but strive eagerly for the spiritual gifts" yet it is not gluttony
• In Mark 8 Christ says: "For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and that of the gospel ⁹ will save it."
• In eating Christ's body and blood in the Eucharist, we do not kill Christ; instead we live more fully
• And in giving away all of our love, we end up with more of it than we started

Amazing!