“WITH ME IN PARADISE”

The great Tradition recites: Creavit Deus Adam et posuit in paradiso, id est in Christo, meaning: God created Adam (man) and placed him in paradise, that is, in Christ. If this is true, then in Christ not only was the entire universe created (and therefore is under his lordship) but also, and above all, man was conceived, willed, and called into existence starting from him. This interpretation is extraordinarily evident in the Adam in the Cathedral of Chartres, which is placed in parallel and full likeness to the face of Christ. Man, therefore, is not only made in the image of the first Adam, but especially of the second Adam, Christ. And paradise is much more than a geographical location: it is a relationship with God, it is Christ himself. The promise of this koinonia is reconfirmed by Jesus on the cross to the repentant thief. Moreover, death is seen as the door to life, that is, access to the presence of God without veils or shadows. But let’s look at the scene in Luke. Jesus dies between two condemned men, who have two different reactions. One does not understand, but the other glimpses in the weakness of the Crucified One the power of saving love. Hence his request (cf. Luke 23:42). Let’s note that in Jesus’ response, salvation is not only in the future but in the present, in the today. Even his kingship, therefore, should not be seen as a reward for his sacrifice, because never has Jesus reigned so gloriously as on the cross. Of course, it is not worldly royalty, which is expressed in power and imposition, but the royalty of love, as we have said, which is capable of accepting even an unjust death. This is why the world rejects the kingship of Christ. Yet elements such as glory and victory are not exempt from his kingship. Yes, because the king on the cross is risen, and the humiliated Son of Man will return with power. But be careful: cross and glory must never be separated. In glory there is the cross, and the cross “hides” the resurrection. In a word: Jesus shows the validity of his path of self-giving (the cross); he does not intend to replace it. In it, the face of the God of love shines through, the keynote of the new song.

Commentary by b. Sandro Carotta, osb
Abbazia di Praglia (Italy)

Translation by f. Mark Hargreaves,
Prinknash Abbey