Mary, Queen of Vocations, pray for us!
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Does following God's commands really add to one's life? Isaiah prophesies good things for those who obey, and the sword for those who don't. Yet we know as Jesus teaches us that God gives blessings to both the just and the unjust (Mt 5:45). So we can't necessarily tell, in the short term, who is being obedient to God and who is not, at least not by telling who has the most health. Isaiah prophesies however, that doing evil always catches up to us, sooner or later. Disobeying God, the author of life, leads to a loss of life.
A few people today, however, object that science can help us to live longer and better more than religion ever could. First of all, you do not have to be religious to be naturally good. We would all agree with that. Sometimes atheists are kinder and more generous than churchgoers. Second of all, it does not take a religious person to see that love is more conducive to human happiness than hate. Even animals show some capacity for compassion. It can be proven scientifically, say a few, that living a moral life of doing good and avoiding evil is more conducive to preserving and enhancing human life. This is true for individuals and for the common good of all. In other words, being moral is critical to self-preservation, without appeal to any revealed religion with its divine commandments. Third of all, there are a few who consider religion to be more destructive of human life than atheism, for they see a tendency for religion to serve itself rather than human persons.
Jesus would not agree that religion inherently serves itself. He sees in the commands of Moses divine revelation that points man toward a morality that goes beyond science, while at the same time purifying human reason of potential distortions of the moral law. In Jesus' view, man without religion tends to have too narrow a view of what makes a good life, a view that can be broadened through faith in God. He does agree, however, that religion is in constant need of purification, since there can be instances where religion serves individuals instead of the common good. We see this in human history. Religions are constantly invaded and used by prideful people seeking gain for themselves. The purification Jesus suggests is always making sure that worship is reserved for God alone, and not for persons. Jesus tells us to beware of any religious person seeking gain for himself instead of living a life of humble service.
In the end, however, one can never accuse Jesus of being more 'spiritual' than religious, as sometimes people do. Jesus wanted to purify institutional religion, the law of Moses in particular, but He is all about preserving that law, not discarding it. Although distorted religion can and does use human persons from time to time rather than serving them, religion by its nature exalts the human dignity of persons by defining a human person as one loved by God. A human person loved by God has an inviolable, transcendent value that cannot be quantified by science. Thus, religion has an inherent advantage of protecting and promoting the dignity of human life over and against science, which has no jurisdiction over something that cannot be measured, the value of a human life. The commands of God, ascertained by faith, thus serve as a light to expose the ways that science chooses to serve itself rather than to serve the common good. Religion, then, plays an indispensable role in serving human persons. Religion serves as the guarantor and guardian of the right to have life, and to have it in abundance (Jn 10:10). +m
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