INDEED THE CALLING to God's service, or to spiritual illumination - the two are in essence alike - is for all men. This is, literally, Everyman's vocation. There is no one, at least among those who are proficient mentally and emotionally, who has not received the call. I believe, too, that there is a call even for those who are so retarded mentally that they cannot achieve independent life in the world around them. The inner identity the soul, probably registers many experiences which would appear to be beyond the grasp of the rational mind.
If, however, everyone receives a personal call to higher service, why are there so few who stay the course? Jesus says: "The gate that leads to life is small and the road is narrow, and those who find it are few." (Matthew 7:14) To find this road to authentic life is hard: it requires dedication of the self to the exclusion of all lesser concerns, perseverance in spite of all disappointments, and self giving service to others without the expectation of any recognition. Yet it is not we alone who make the decision: it is the Holy Spirit without, making Himself ever more clear to us within, that begins the purification of our soul and the forming of our will. As I say, we are all called by the Holy Spirit from afar. Some do not respond at all; indeed, they do not experience spiritual birth. Some would like to respond, but do not have the inner resources to withstand the temptations of the world around them. A few are prepared to make the great decision and embark on a life of privation in the face of plenty, to traverse a solitary path at a distance from their compatriots, to experience the destruction of their most cherished possessions in the hope that the one real possession we al1 have in common may be revealed to them.
Why is it that only a few people in any generation appear to be selected quite specially for spiritual illumination, while others, the great majority of mankind, grope haltingly on the path of life for some meaning to their existence, for some purpose in the daily round of trivialities that symbolise worldly existence? The fact of election cannot be denied. Just as some people are born with remarkable artistic, intellectual, or psychical gifts, so there are those also who are natural mystics. For these people nothing suffices but the vision of God.
Looking at this on a superficial level, it would seem to be monstrously unjust that the few are vouchsafed a full vision of authentic life, perhaps at a very early age, while the many do not seem to be participants in the race to spiritual understanding, so obtuse is their sensibility and so limited are their aims in life. But this is a very narrow approach to the problem. In fact, the spiritually aware person has to learn that the vision of God is attained only by the painful process of fully incarcerating himself in the material of this world, so often stinking and corrupt, so that every part of his personality is given its due and can attain its own mastery. He has to essay the depth of human degradation as well as the heights of mystical ecstasy. He has, in fact, to translate the primal vision into the facts of life, so that life itself may attain eternal significance by his witness.Furthermore, the spiritually obtuse person is not necessarily destined to remain in a state of somnolence for ever. He too is to awake and confront reality:- ":Awake, sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine upon you." (Ephesians 5:14) As he is shriven progressively of all the possessions with which he identified himself, so he too will come to know the source within him that is the only real, enduring possession, which, paradoxically, he shares with all other creatures. It is a consoling thought that although sanctification is almost impossible to envisage, so high is it above our imagination, it is nevertheless within the grasp of all people, no matter how undistinguished and unpromising they may appear to their fellows. By contrast, great artistic, intellectual, and psychical skills are, by their very nature, the gifts of only a small number of people. They cannot be acquired by the majority of people, who are well advised to cultivate their particular talents instead of yearning for gifts which are quite clearly not within their compass. But great skills are also a potential snare, for unless used for the greater good of humanity, they can, all too easily, separate the practitioner from his fellows and also from God. Self-inflation is one of the greatest hazards in the proficient life. As one marvels at one's own proficiency, so one begins insidiously to deify oneself and lose fellowship with the source of a11 creative action, the Holy Spirit.
What then does election give us? It makes us eligible to bear the suffering of the world. It allows us to participate a little in the redeeming sacrifice made by the supreme man, Jesus Christ, so that the messianic age, inaugurated on the Cross and proclaimed by the Resurrection, may, after two thousand years of travail, be finally established in the world. I repeat, one is elected to bear the privilege of Christ's suffering. This is not a comforting thought, but it is a strengthening, invigorating one. It gives purpose; it lends compassion; it promises glorification not only to oneself but to the whole world.
The reverse side of vocation is commitment. This is the true baptism experience, and its prototype is the baptism of Jesus at the hands of the forerunner, John the Baptist. The hidden years of Jesus surely were a preparation for the ministry ahead of Him. Likewise, His baptism at the hands of a very remarkable man, but a man nevertheless, was a submission of Himself to the demands and frustrations of the uncomprehending world. And in the act of humble self giving He is found worthy to do the great work. "And a voice spoke from heaven: 'Thou art my Son, my Beloved; on them my favour rests.'" (Mark 1:11) At the same time the Spirit, like a dove, descends upon Him. Only when the will responds directly and ungrudgingly, can the Holy Spirit fully enter the soul as a consciously directing power. As I have already indicated, the Spirit is present in all creatures; in man there is the potentiality for the Spirit to be consciously acknowledged and proclaimed. The time at which this happens is the moment of his birth into the Spirit. But only when the soul responds fully to the power of the Spirit, saying as Isaiah did after his vision in the Temple, "Here am I, send me," (Isaiah 6:8), can the Spirit dwell fully in the soul and influence the spirit of man which is deeply set in the soul. Thus it is said, "The Lord shines into a man's very soul, searching out his inmost being." (Proverbs 20:27) When a conscious decision is taken to work for the coming of the Kingdom of God, the Holy Spirit is as fully active in the soul of the disciple as He is outside that soul. He has taken his dwelling-place in the midst of us, and we are called by His name. (Jeremiah 14:9) This is the priceless fruit of spiritual dedication.
The Holy Spirit starts the regeneration of the person first by enlightening his consciousness and then by consecrating his will. The call to service is made real only when there is a positive response to it in full dedication of the personal life. Then the person has himself chosen, and is participating actively with God in the life of spiritual reality. This is the reason why many are called, but few are chosen: only those who choose a way of self-sacrifice to a realm that is glimpsed in faith, believing that this way is nevertheless the only one that can bring with it authenticity in living, can in turn receive the divine blessing and the downpouring of the Holy Spirit upon them. This way may require a complete renunciation of all one's past life and associations for the supreme quest of unitive knowledge. But more often one is called on to pursue the old life and associations with a new awareness of the reality that underlies them, so that the common round and the daily task may themselves be illuminated with the vision of eternity. To me, this is a particularly glorious way to establishing the Kingdom of God on earth, which is the ultimate meaning of the Incarnation, both of Christ and of Everyman.
The baptism conferred by the Holy Spirit confirms one in the spiritual life and confers with it a strengthening of the will and the beginning of an integration of the personality. It can occur only in a person who is, at least temporarily, cleansed of sinful pride, who has already passed through a minor death with Christ, and is now raised with Him to at least a glimpse of the Father's glory. In this way his feet are set upon the new path of life, as St Paul writes. (Romans 6:3-4) The Sacrament of Holy Baptism, usually performed in infancy, is a presage of this passage from death to life which should in fact be a daily occurrence in the life of a spiritual person, although there are, of course, exceptional episodes in which everything he had held dear may have to be denied so that he may know the centre of eternity within himself. In fact when one's will is consecrated to the great work, one has to bid farewell to one's past life in order to proceed unencumbered by old habits and thoughts. This leave-taking has a poignant quality, like that of a grown son bidding farewell to his parents as he makes his way to a new and forbidding country. The sadness is felt mutually by the son and his parents, but he must not look back, once he has "set his hand to the plough." The Kingdom of God is not attained by reverting to past attitudes of mind, or by returning to childish dependence on others. This is the death of a past way of life. Only when one has broken loose from the imprisonment of sentimentality can one begin to relate to the past constructively and lovingly. True love thrives only in an atmosphere of freedom where self giving is effected without the necessity of support or even recognition by the other person.
There are many in the field of spiritual endeavour who, while longing for enlightenment and the experience of the abundant life, refuse to commit themselves to any particular spiritual discipline. They remain spectators in the field of life, weighing up various philosophies and religious systems with sympathy, evaluating different schemes for personal development, and often supporting them verbally. But they do not become personally involved. They prefer the label of reverent agnostic to membership of a finite religious group. Many such agnostics admit they envy those who have manifest faith, but clearly, by the witness of their lives they have no ardent wish to taste that veritable faith for themselves. Until they do commit themselves to a definite scheme of religious training, however, they will never know the faith.
Faith is a gift of the Spirit. Through it we aspire to heights of endeavour far beyond our evident ability. But it is we ourselves who have to put that God-given faith into practice by doing the great work. God will not do it for us. However, once the task is attempted and its travail borne, the Spirit can at last take His place in our midst, in the soul, and be our guide through the inevitable planes of adversity and darkness until we know final release and triumph.
The Holy Spirit makes His presence felt within us as joyous faith. This is not a feeling of personal confidence that could easily boost the personality, but one of an inner assurance that goodness lies at the heart of reality, and, that, as St Paul says, the sufferings we now endure bear no comparison with the splendour, as yet unrevealed, which is in store for us. (Romans 8:18) Thus the fearful faith, that allows us first to offer ourselves in God's service, becomes a mighty paean of self-dedication in faith, for the coming of His Kingdom. It is this type of faith that is one of the gifts of the Spirit enumerated in I Corinthians 12:9. It is the faith that saves.
This is the essential difference between the agnostic purveyor of spiritual truth, no matter how much good-will he may pour forth, and the fully dedicated person who chooses the way to authenticity, even when all the auguries around him are unfavourable. There is a world of difference between good-will and the will to good. The first is a kindly attitude; the second commits that attitude to action by living the good life. But this life is less easy than might be imagined. For once the will has been consecrated to God's service, it then has to be reformed and transfigured, so that, from being an expression of personal desire, it becomes the instrument of God's work. No wonder it is more comfortable to remain on the side-lines and simply watch the drama of life from a safe distance, while shouting slogans of encouragement to the participants in order to assuage one's own conscience. I have tried to show how the Holy Spirit is our true guide to the abundant life. Not infrequently He comes to us when we seem to be in safety and comfort, as He did to the Prodigal Son, and urges us to wake up and be about our business. Our first movements may horrify our friends and colleagues as no doubt did the improvident actions of the Prodigal Son. To those watching us, all may seem a tragic waste of time and energy. Indeed, we may have to taste the bitter fruit of utter degradation, as do some who tread the paths of occultism and witchcraft. We may have to face the personal disintegration that sometimes follows any abuse. And yet, despite all this, there is infinite hope for us. Once we have learnt our lesson thoroughly, the Spirit becomes available to us once more, reminding us of our high calling as sons of God, and leading us back, chastened but no more mere children, on to the authentic path to God. By this dire sequence of experiences, we will have learnt to distinguish between the gold of spirituality and the dross of materialistic glamour and occult power. We will also have learnt important qualities of the inner life of other people, at last being able to relate to them in warm compassion. As a result of this, we can start to identify ourselves with the pain and woe of many of our fellow human beings.
When we have faced the sinful side of our nature, the side that exalts what we believe to be our self interest to the detriment of the wider concerns of our fellow beings and of God, we may begin to know the reverse side also, the side that speaks of the potential glory that lies within the heart of us, and indeed of even the most unpromising person. It is only when we have the courage to face corruption within ourselves that we can be purged by the refining fire of God's love. Thus it was with Isaiah in the Temple, who could at last say, "Here am I, send me."
At that moment of absolute commitment the Holy Spirit descends on us, claims His own within us where He had always been though previously hidden from us, and starts His transforming work on our personality.
The point of first encounter is the will.
Chapter 4