Brother Thomas Paul’s Retreat notes
Episode 15

The mystery of Christ in the book of Psalms

‘Have mercy on me, my God, have mercy…for in you I take refuge. I will take refuge in the shadow of your wings until the storm has passed.’
(Psalms 57:1)
We are studying about the hidden Christ in the book of Psalms.
We often speak about mercy and grace…. understanding the actual meaning of this is Wisdom too.
The fundamental aspect of Christian Spirituality is that God assumed human nature to transform man into God.
The CCC explains ‘grace’ in paragraph 1997.
‘Grace is the participation in the life of God.It introduces us into the intimacy of Trinitarian life: by Baptism, the Christian participation in the grace of Christ, the Head of His Body. As an adopted son, he can henceforth call God, Father; in union with the only Son. He receives the life of the Spirit who breathes charity into him and who forms the church.’
When the divinity of God unites with humanity it is ‘grace’. It is our loving God’s gratuitous gift. When the divine thus merges with the human, humanity becomes divine.
We pray during Holy Mass…
‘The only begotten Son of God, wanting to make us sharers in His divinity, assumed our nature, so that he, made man, might make men Gods.’
David and the Israelites sang about Jesus, the Saviour, thousands of years before the birth of Jesus. They were well aware that there was no salvation without grace. In comparison to us… they lived in a much difficult situation. We are fortunate today…because we have the Sacrament of Reconciliation for the
forgiveness of sins.
Psalm 57:1..
‘Have mercy on me, my God, have mercy
For in you I take refuge. I will take refuge in the shadow of your wings until the storm has passed.’
The ‘storm’ here is the temptation and sin that constantly stalks mankind. The hope here is that a ‘storm’ does not stay….it passes quickly. It does not exist after some time. This is exactly the state of the trials and temptations that afflict us and which comes from the evil one. It does not last very long. We must hold on and remain under the shadow of His wings till the disastrous storm passes away.
That was the Israelites’ only solace then….they held on in hope.
‘I cry out to God, Most High, to God who does everything for me.’
(Psalm 57:2)
‘The Lord is my Light and my salvation..whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life;
Of whom shall I be afraid?’
(Psalm 27:1)
..We see the mystery of Christ in these verses in the book of Psalms.
…God has kept us safe in a fortress….which is the heart of His only begotten son, Jesus Christ. We need not fear… for He will not allow anyone to harm us. God tells each one of us, ‘You are my beloved son/daughter.”
So in whom should we have our being?
Psalm 27:4…..
‘One thing I ask from the Lord,
This only do I seek
That I may dwell in the house of the Lord
All the days of my life,
To gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek Him in His temple.
This is something we cannot imagine…but this is our daily prayer.