I’m the type of person who is motivated by the satisfaction of checking a completed task off a to-do list. Yet, when I ponder all the reasons I am Catholic, one that stands out to me is this: Being Catholic is never done.
On one hand, this aspect of faith is a challenge. Wouldn’t it be so much easier to believe that once I’ve accepted Jesus as my savior, I’m good to go? Wouldn’t it be so much easier to believe that the good deeds I’ve done have pre-paid my admission to heaven?
That’s not how it works. Jesus tells us to take up our crosses daily and follow him. I know that my actions cannot earn the salvation Jesus already won for me, but I also know that if I truly love him, I must choose him moment after moment, day after day, not simply check a rosary or a work of mercy off a list.
This is where the comforting aspect of “never done” comes in. Christ strengthens us through the sacraments and our faith family in his Church, and he has promised that “the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it” (Mt 16:18). I may waver in the never-ending journey of carrying my cross, but Christ and his Church will always be there to lighten the load and get me back on track.
God is never done with me. Even if I turn away from him, he will never rescind my baptism and confirmation. He will never place limits on the mercy I can receive in reconciliation. When I am struggling in my prayer life, or if it’s been a while since my last confession, he is there waiting for me to come back. This part of “never done” also gives me hope for loved ones who have walked away from the Church. The Holy Spirit works on us even when we don’t notice.
Even at our most faithful, we are never done getting to know God. We cannot fathom his infinite goodness in this life. The Eucharist is the closest we can get on Earth, but even that does not compare to being in his presence in heaven. We can experience God’s love in many ways, including friendships, family life and marriage, but even the holiest and happiest of those relationships will end in death.
All things come to an end, but God’s love doesn’t. He loves us so much that he never wants us to be done experiencing that love. He wants us to be with him forever in eternal life. Before we get there, Jesus asks us to continually take up our cross and follow him, and in turn tells us, “I am with you always, until the end of the age” (Mt 28:20). He is worth the feeling of an incomplete checklist, because he is never done with us.
Reisman, 34, is a parishioner of St. Rose of Lima in Roseville with her husband, Chip, and their two children. She participates in the parish’s homebound ministry, stewardship committee and small groups. Reisman enjoys playing softball with Catholic Softball Group, where she met Chip.
