Sons of God

Yesterday I woke up singing "Be Thou My Vision," a lovely Irish prayer to the "Lord of my heart." This morning, for some inexplicable reason, my unconscious selection was an OBNG. By that I don't mean Organic Bean and Grain. I'm thinking of "oldie but not goodie," at least not by my standards. And the song is -- gasp! -- "Sons of God" by Ray Repp. I say "gasp!" because I simply don't care for the vast majority of the contemporary songs we've been using in the Catholic Church since the 60's. I find many of the lyrics to be unsound theologically, liturgically and Scripturally. As for the melodies -- sigh -- let's not go there. Suffice it to say that this sort of music annoys me far more than it inspires and uplifts me.

So why on earth did I open my eyes today singing "Sons of God" when it's something I'd never consciously choose during my waking hours? Perhaps it's because I really do delight in being a child of God. And the lyrics for this song really aren't all that bad. You can see for yourself here. That we are indeed sons and daughters of God is an indisputable fact, an absolute truth. St. Paul clearly tells us that in Christ Jesus, we are all sons of God (Gal 3:26), that all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God (Rom 8:14). St. John makes this point, too, while exulting in the Father's love: "See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are" (1 Jn 3:1).

And so we are. Pope Benedict XVI reminded us of this yesterday in his message to Cardinal Stanislaw Rylko, president of the Pontifical Council for the Laity, on the occasion of an Asian Catholic laity conference, which began in Seoul, South Korea, on Tuesday and runs through Sunday. Telling the conference participants that "they have been entrusted with a great mission: that of bearing witness to Jesus Christ, the universal Savior of mankind," the Holy Father stated: "If the lay faithful are to take up this mission, they need to become ever more conscious of the grace of their Baptism and the dignity which is theirs as sons and daughters of God the Father, sharers in the death and resurrection of Jesus his Son, and anointed by the Holy Spirit as members of Christ's mystical Body which is the Church."

The dignity which is ours as children of God is intimately bound up with the grace of our Baptism. In this sacrament, we are "reborn as sons of God; we become members of Christ, are incorporated into the Church and made sharers in her mission...the believer enters through Baptism into communion with Christ's death, is buried with him, and rises with him" (Catechism of the Catholic Church, The Sacrament of Baptism, #1213-1284).

As I said above, I revel in being a child of God, who has made me His own. I also delight in being a baptized Catholic, through the infinite grace and mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ. Every day I thank God for my parents, who lovingly brought me into and faithfully raised me in the Catholic Church. Today I may not consciously choose to sing the entire hymn "Sons of God," but I'm certain that I'll be repeating over and over the last line of its refrain:

Allelu, allelu, allelu, alleluia!