Among the concerns of our time, we see the thirst for God in many personal searches enveloped in an atmosphere of spirituality that is not quite fulfilling.

Questions

A major theme present in many cases is what happens beyond the barrier of death: Is there a real personal life? Will we retain our personal identity one hundred percent? Will we experience a real encounter with loved ones? Is personal resurrection possible? Is God a guarantee of happiness? Is there a heaven and a hell?

These are unavoidable questions that arise during intense moments in personal and family life, such as the loss of loved ones or the failure of cherished projects. Many thinkers and writers express their responses to the fundamental Christian paradox: how can we live with a secure hope on earth if everything ends with death? Or, does the Christian appreciation of earthly realities have meaning if the afterlife nullifies our work and our loves?

Searches

It’s not just about affirming God’s existence, but about knowing who God is and what His innermost being is like. Not only that, but also about understanding the relationship of each person’s self with God, which involves the mind, the heart, the feelings, and ultimately, the trusting surrender to the One who has given everything for each one of us.

Perhaps the thought of the French philosopher B. Pascal is relevant, who considered that knowledge of God without knowledge of one’s own misery causes pride. Knowledge of one’s own misery without knowledge of God causes despair. Knowledge of Jesus Christ, on the other hand, fosters the middle ground, because in him, we find both God and our misery. (Thoughts, no. 192).

Ultimately, each person’s thinking depends heavily on their religious upbringing, which has often stemmed from respect and fear, rather than from the love of God, who truly cares for every man and woman and demonstrated this to the extreme through the Incarnation of his only-begotten Son and his death on the cross. The good Curé of Ars illustrated this when someone asked him what he would think if, at the end of his life, he discovered that God did not exist. He replied that in that case, he would not regret having dedicated his life to an ideal of love and service to his neighbor. And naturally, he kept silent about the fact that he was certain of God’s existence, not because of his own merits, but because of God’s infinite goodness.

Dead Kings

The Basilica of the Monastery of San Lorenzo de El Escorial is accessed through the Courtyard of the Kings, so named for the six kings of Israel who commissioned the construction of a temple for the glory of Yahweh. Once inside, the imposing altarpiece immediately captures the attention and embodies the meaning of this great temple for encountering God, inviting prayer and faith in the history of salvation.

To the right and left of the altarpiece are the two cenotaphs of Charles V and Philip II, accompanied by their wives and daughters in prayerful adoration of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist. These gilded bronze cenotaphs are the work of Leon and Pompeo Leoni, who also sculpted all the figures on the altarpiece. They do not contain the remains of these emperors, as these are located, as is well known, in the crypt situated directly beneath the presbytery and altar where the Eucharist is celebrated.

For in this lower enclosure lie the tombs of the kings of the Habsburg and Bourbon dynasties, also in marble and bronze, alongside the crucified Christ. Dignity and faith, but without pride, in the common earth shared by all mortals: at the hour of death we are all equal, although it is true that good works remain, such as this Monastery, Royal Pantheon, Basilica, Library, school, courtyards, galleries, and gardens.

The dead live on in these magnificent works, for those men had faith and acknowledged their wretchedness before the God who created and savior humanity. Kings, emperors, artists, artisans, and builders knew how to worship the living and true God with His universal salvific will.

Death and life

Yes, we, the men and women of the 21st century, receive the great message of the Christian faith, of hope that does not disappoint, and of the abundant life in God to which we are called. From the magnificent magnitude of these works, from the beauty that uplifts the soul, from the sciences that seek the truth, and from the wisdom of the heart, and much more, we, the people of today, can find the meaning of history. And within it, the meaning of personal life, which has its origin in God the Father, the Creator, in Jesus Christ, the Redeemer, and in the Holy Spirit, the Sanctifier.

Death and life are two sides of the same coin when it comes to achieving the true happiness to which we are all called. This applies to rich and poor, healthy and sick, kings and commoners alike. One need only visit the Monastery of San Lorenzo de El Escorial and open one’s eyes to be drawn into the most sublime and enduring aspects of history.

Through faith, we know that God is not arbitrary in giving his gifts, but rather sows them with infinite generosity—Jesus Christ is the tangible proof—in every soul: no one remains outside the action of the divine Spirit, who draws us gently and powerfully, respecting the freedom of every man and woman. This freedom explains the terrible problem of evil in the world, but also the selfless love of believers and others who strive to be light for the world.

It is worth emphasizing that questions about God, the afterlife, and personal resurrection so deeply involve the individual that intellectual reflection alone is insufficient: because we are not merely a thinking brain or a physical body, that res cogitans and res extensa of the philosopher René Descartes, thank God. And let it be known that the French thinker was a sincere and true believer, who became lost in a crystalline intellectual elaboration. And it is fortunate that his attitude of trust in God and in Christianity allowed him to advance in the light of faith.

Like in a mirror

Saint Paul compared faith to a mirror that reflects something of God and of our journey in the history of Salvation, even though it is not yet the definitive encounter and possession in Eternal Life.

Some may be disconcerted by the certainty of the faith proclaimed by the Church in the Apostles’ Creed: I believe in God the Father, Creator; I believe in God the Son, Redeemer; I believe in the Holy Spirit, Sanctifier; I believe in the Church; I believe in the forgiveness of sins; I believe in eternal life. This may seem like an unscientific certainty, even a position of pride toward those who doubt so many certainties. However, the affirmation of faith is both light and shadow, security and risk, hope and sorrow. Nothing in human beings is diamond-like, chemically pure, or an absolute thought.

Pope Leo XIV expressed it thus: “This is the missionary spirit that should animate us, without closing ourselves off in our small group or feeling superior to the world; we are called to offer the love of God to all, so that this unity may be realized which does not annul differences, but values ​​the personal history of each one and the social and religious culture of each people.”

We believers are grateful for the gift of faith and God’s grace. We strive to understand everyone, even those who do not understand us, and to practice charity, which is even more humane than mere tolerance. In loving our neighbor as a child of God and a brother or sister of Jesus Christ, we are aware of the difficulties some face, and we ask God the Father to pour out his hope upon a world so often tormented. In Jesus Christ, who died and rose again, we have the ultimate reason for our hope.