New Age Disciples of Christ – Swami Sachidananda Bharathi

     Love, unity, peace and joy within us should also have their visible extensions and transforming effects among us and in the society around us. This is where our ‘corporate social responsibility’ of ‘loving the neighbour’ as we love ourselves becomes important. We need to sincerely work and courageously struggle for creating a social environment conducive for the ‘Kingdom of God’ of love, unity, peace, and joy to exist and grow. This social task often calls for collective public action to protect and promote justice and righteousness in the society. These public actions can even be political ‘revolutions’ in which the Disciples of Christ can collaborate with all people of God to establish justice and righteousness in the world. Without justice and righteousness the Kingdom of God of love, peace, unity and joy cannot exist or grow in a society.

Collaborating with groups, parties and organizations that do not believe in God and in the divine values of love, unity, peace and joy will be counter productive in the mission of realizing the vision of the Kingdom of God. The Church has to be eternally vigilant not to fall into the temptations of such ‘collaborations’. Both Capitalism and Communism are apparently attractive ideologies on the surface. But both have proved to be counter productive to the values of the Kingdom of God preached and presented by Lord Jesus Christ. The Gandhian ideology of ‘Sarvodaya’ is by far the best ideology developed by humankind so far which can help in the mission of ushering in a culture of peace and the Kingdom of God on earth. This fact makes India a responsible instrument of God for establishing His Kingdom.

The Eucharistic Communion and the Sacrament of Reconciliation are the most important ‘divine services’ offered by the Church to nurture and nourish the Kingdom of God within and among the disciples of Christ. If these ‘divine services’ become mere ‘paid services’ and rituals, they will be counterproductive. Regaining the sanctity of these ‘Sacraments’ is an urgent spiritual task ahead of the Church today. 

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