A previous post described how Christians think of God and the whole, according to Robert Sokolowski. Eucharistic Presence, The God of Faith and Reason. The so-called Christian Distinction changes not only how we view God and the whole, but also how we view ourselves, and our roles, within the whole.
The word "person" as descriptive of the human being is a Christian concept, and means the role or mission we have in a world created by God out of love. The word person, according to Sokolowski (and von Balthasar, see Eucharistic Presence at ch. 10, arose in Greek drama to signify the mask through which the actor spoke in order to be heard and to indicate his character (per - sona) and then later the actor's role in the drama. The word was taken up by Christian theology to signify the human being's role in the Christian drama.
For the Christian, man is not only "homo sapiens," but a "rational animal" with a mission, a role in life. A person is the description of the man with a mission (imparted through a calling or vocation). A person truly exists only when he has heard his calling and accepted his mission. This makes sense only in a Christian setting, in a setting in which a distinction is drawn between God and the whole (cosmos). If God created the cosmos out of love, the appropriate "reactive attitude" according to Sokolowski (citing Peter Strawson - p. 126) is gratitude and a giving back through obedience to the gift given. It is obedience to Christ's invitation (call) to imitate him in his own redemptive mission. For Christ, his mission was his all -- he saw himself only in terms of his response to God's vision and pro-vidence of the world, God's plan. For us humans, we are only "more or less" involved in this mission -- more as we choose to be obedient to Christ's call -- to become a person, a human being with a mission!
The saints are those whom we recognize as having actively assumed their missions. They are "one" with their mission, identify with it publicly. (The videos of Thomas More, Sophie Scholl, Mother Theresa are examples cited in an earlier post.)
We become aware of our calling through prayer and discernment, and the grace that is imparted in us through prayer and the sacraments. The rationality of our nature is fully involved in this process -- we are, after all, rational animals -- but it is "put to service" for our calling/mission in Christ. ONLY in Christ do we find our mission, since only in Christ's redemptive plan are we called -- and so ONLY in our Christian mission do we become a person.
This is an exalted calling, and the sacraments of initiation, Baptism, Confirmation and Eucharist, introduce us to it, confirm us and help sustain us in it, along with the sacrament of penance and prayer and the sacramentals. Paul's letter to the Galations (and in many other places in his letters) describes this life: a relentless practice to avoid evil and to "put on" good. The fruits of this practice, never ending in our life on earth, are fruits of the holy spirit: charity, joy, peace, kindness, patience, goodness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, modesty, self-control, faithfulness. See Catechism 1832.
Paul describes this process of living, of imitating Christ, as taking off the old man and putting on a new, i.e. clothed with Christ. Gal. 3:27 Through the sacraments and prayer we remove the persona of wickedness (characterized by "immorality, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, etc. Gal. 5:19-21) and put on the persona of Christ: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Gal. 5:22. The "new man" wears a new habit, a new habitude, a habitude of natural and theological virtue, of sanctity and grace. The grace that gets us there is God's love working with us, as we struggle to put on our new habit, our Christian role and mission. If that struggle is to be a dance, we must work with the grace that teaches us the steps.
What habit am I putting on today? You?
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