A few years ago, I watched a documentary about modern bodybuilding and how the sport has become increasingly demanding over the past few decades: Aspiring bodybuilders must train more vigorously, more ferociously than ever before, as the judging standards for muscularity keep setting the bar higher and higher. And hence why anabolic steroid use is now a controversial staple for those who have an all-consuming desire to win — and apparently at any cost.
In one scene, two bodybuilder buddies were pushing each other to the limits in their training session, as they kept shouting in each other’s face, “This is why we train! This is why we do this!”
Now, what does bodybuilding have to do with this week’s reflection – and more importantly, Easter?
At an awe-inspiring, awesomely arranged Easter Vigil I attended at St. Andrew the Apostle, several Catechumens from the RCIA program received Baptism, Holy Communion, and Confirmation. From the candlelight opening, to songs being chanted with emotional fervor, to the thunderous applause after the Catechumens received their Sacraments, the whole experience does not have a perfect adjective to do it justice. It was the kind of experience where you wish you didn’t have to say, “You had to be there to see what I mean!” — yet it was just that: mind-blowingly beautiful. (Or at least to me it was!)
What’s more, and keeping with tradition, we as the congregation not only welcomed the new Catholics into their walk with Christ and Church Tradition, but we also reaffirmed our own Sacraments and commitment to our faith.
And though going through RCIA can sound apples and oranges next to training for a bodybuilding competition (not to mention that bodybuilding is clearly self-serving), that line from the movie, “This is why we train!” suddenly popped in my head as the Catechumens were called to receive their Sacraments.
That is, while Catechumens physically do not have to sweat, grunt, and pump up their veins to complete RCIA, they do have to put their mind and soul through a rather rigorous spiritual test: Do they fully understand Christ’s sacrifice and resurrection for us? Do they truly believe in the Sacraments? Are they devoted to every component of the Mass and understand the Real Presence in the Eucharist? Are they committed to personal responsibility and service, which are crucial to Catholic Christian life? Will they treat their conversion as a lifelong one? Will they embrace the courage to share our faith and be a positive example to fellow Catholic Christians and those exploring the faith?
Those are the same questions I keep in mind as I continue in my own faith journey. Which brings us to John 20:1-9: The empty tomb. And not just the empty tomb — but that Christ has risen from the dead. And not just that Christ has risen from the dead, but also that He fulfilled the ultimate Covenant with humanity: eternal salvation through His death and resurrection.
This makes me think again, “This is why we train!” In this case, it means: This is why we go through Catechism! This is why we devote our lives to the Sacraments! This is why we study the Bible! And this is why we love Christ so much!
Call it the moral sense in how we devote our lives to Christ’s gift of Salvation: We abide by God’s instruction and commit to living a sin-free life. We can already see from this Gospel reading that all four senses of Scripture were fulfilled: Christ literally resurrected from the dead, He fulfilled all typological pointers to His death and resurrection, and we received the anagogical gift of eternal salvation and living in God’s kingdom, as long as we uphold our faith and keep an unwavering relationship with Christ.
I pray that I take this time of renewal as yet another fresh start in my own life: That I reinvigorate my love for God, continue to share the Catholic Faith in the most meaningful and effective ways possible, keep the Sacraments at the forefront of my connection with Christ, and never lose sight of Christ’s most precious sacrifice for *all of us*.
Lastly, as I continue to contemplate the miraculous gift God has given us, I also keep in mind, “This why I’m Catholic!”