In response to USCCA, Chapter 8 Discussion Questions:
I've written a response to Question 1 for another venue, so I will wait to post that here until another day. Meanwhile, re Questions 2 & 3:
How could I help someone come to faith in the Resurrection of Christ? I don't think it really works that way. I think that the Holy Spirit gives the gift of Faith. Christ's Resurrection is something beyond human reason; the only way it is truly grasped is by the gift of Faith, given freely by the Spirit. The way I can be used by the Spirit in that work is analogous to tilling soil. I could till the soil, but the Spirit plants the seed. The primary way I am to "till the soil" is by living a life transformed by the Spirit, especially by caring for others. Another way I can "till the soil" is by sharing The Word (Scripture) with others. Another way that is very accessible to me is that I can support others' in their growth in their faith life. But the real work is done by the Spirit: giving the Gift of Faith. For those who resist this Gift, I can pray the Lord to have mercy and to persist in making their lives "soil" capable of receiving the "seed." This is a hard thing to pray because I am well aware that usually this involves some sort of tragedy or hardship. People who have resisted the Gift of Faith in Christ tend to be hardened against receptivity. It usually takes a life-altering event to bring about any review of their world-view.
There might be many ways a person comes to understand their need for a Savior, but the main way I experience this need is by encountering my own limitations, particularly my inability to forgive and to heal without the special working of the Holy Spirit.
"Why (/how) are the Cross and the Resurrection bound together in the Paschal Mystery?"
You can only rise to new life when you die to the old.
I've written a response to Question 1 for another venue, so I will wait to post that here until another day. Meanwhile, re Questions 2 & 3:
How could I help someone come to faith in the Resurrection of Christ? I don't think it really works that way. I think that the Holy Spirit gives the gift of Faith. Christ's Resurrection is something beyond human reason; the only way it is truly grasped is by the gift of Faith, given freely by the Spirit. The way I can be used by the Spirit in that work is analogous to tilling soil. I could till the soil, but the Spirit plants the seed. The primary way I am to "till the soil" is by living a life transformed by the Spirit, especially by caring for others. Another way I can "till the soil" is by sharing The Word (Scripture) with others. Another way that is very accessible to me is that I can support others' in their growth in their faith life. But the real work is done by the Spirit: giving the Gift of Faith. For those who resist this Gift, I can pray the Lord to have mercy and to persist in making their lives "soil" capable of receiving the "seed." This is a hard thing to pray because I am well aware that usually this involves some sort of tragedy or hardship. People who have resisted the Gift of Faith in Christ tend to be hardened against receptivity. It usually takes a life-altering event to bring about any review of their world-view.
There might be many ways a person comes to understand their need for a Savior, but the main way I experience this need is by encountering my own limitations, particularly my inability to forgive and to heal without the special working of the Holy Spirit.
"Why (/how) are the Cross and the Resurrection bound together in the Paschal Mystery?"
You can only rise to new life when you die to the old.
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