You may have overheard a conversation when, suddenly, one of the speakers said:
“It’s a matter of life and death.”
You knew immediately that they were speaking about some serious matter.
In life, there are situations which are that important and we are aware of it.

The 1^st reading of today’s celebration leads us to think of such situations (Ecclesiasticus 15:15-20).
The writer, Ben Sira, says clearly:

“Man has life and death before him;
whichever a man likes better will be given him.”

Some people may think that this arises as a sudden happening and that a choice has to be made instantly.
Most often, it is not so.
The choice is in fact a multiple one, spread over months and years.
Options are offered to us leading to decisions, one after the other.
And… these decisions fashion the person we become.

The options vary in kind and their impact is also different in intensity.
They open up different opportunities…

• • • compassion or aggression
    • honesty or deceit
    • faithfulness or betrayal
    • authenticity or corruption
    • courage or cowardice
    • generosity or selfishness
    • forgiveness or revenge

and the list can go on, every time offering a challenge –
the challenge to become a better person, more truly human, more essentially Christ-like, or… the opposite.

LIFE… or DEATH options, this is what they are.
Of course, they lead to a more meaningful and happier life or… the opposite.

The choice remains ours: what we like better will be given to us –
this is the astonishing gift of freedom!
 

Note: Another text is available on a different theme, in French at: https://image-i-nations.com/6e-dimanche-de-lannee-a-2023/

Source: Image: Monday Morning Minutes