It’s More F.U.N.: Jesus Christ

I couldn’t help asking the young student what the letters in his knapsack stood for: WWJDIHWH.

“Oh, these letters? They mean: What Would Jesus Do If He Were Here?”

“That’s a very creative and helpful way to remind us of something so important,” I said.

“Yup, especially, during our exams.”

“Exams?”

“Yes, Father.”

“What do you mean?”

“When I’m stuck, I often look at the knapsack and I’m inspired.”

“Really? Inspired in what way?”

“Inspired to say, ‘Jesus, I don’t know the answer, I wish you could tell what it is, but Thy will be done.’”

* * *

This story and many others are examples which demonstrate how people, even in simple and sometimes shallow ways, relate to our Lord Jesus Christ. Despite so many attempts by atheists and free-thinkers to downplay His person, teachings and deeds, our Lord Jesus Christ will always be a perennial (even better eternal) point of personal inspiration, identification and growth. Why?

Because the Person of Jesus Christ is the central core of God’s saving revelation to man. The letter to the Hebrews says, “In many and various ways God spoke of old to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son. (1:1-2)”

God, who is so madly in love with saving man and guiding him towards the intimate communion of His love, decided to take a definitive step to save man. His love became incarnate so that we would have a true model who would reveal to us how ‘man can become like God.’

Peter Kreeft in Catholic Christianity gives us the following arguments why Christ is uniquely attractive to every man and woman:

a) Christ is what distinguishes Christianity from all religions because Jesus is the Lord, God in the flesh. “No non-Christians believe that; if they did, they would be Christians.”

b) “Any other religion could survive the loss of its founder. If Muhammad or Buddha or Confucius were proved to be mythical and not historical figures, the religions that stem from them might still survive. But Christianity could never survive without Christ. For other religious founders only claimed to teach the truth; Christ claimed to be the Truth”

c) “The transmission of the Christian faith consists primarily in proclaiming Jesus Christ in order to lead others to faith in him. From the beginning, the first disciples burned with the desire to proclaim Christ: ‘We cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard’ (Acts 4:20)”

d) “The Incarnation was the most astonishing of all God’s acts, the most surprising, unforeseeable, unimaginable thing that ever happened. The immortal God, who has no beginning or end, became a mortal man, with a beginning (he had a mother!) and an end (He died!). The Author of all of history stepped into the drama he created and became one of his own characters, without ceasing to be the Author. The Creator became a creature. ‘He whom the world could not contain was contained in a mother’s womb’ (St. Augustine). No man ever dreamed this could happen.”

Now the F.U.N. part… Try guessing the following abbreviations that can be derived from WWJDIHWH and some are more demanding.

(*Clue: Jesus is left with bold ‘J’. There may be other possible answers for some.)

a) WWJWMTDH&N

b) HWJWMTCHN

c) WWJWMTDFTC

d) HWIGJTOT

e) HWMLJISWH

*Answers:

a) What Would Jesus Want Me to Do Here & Now

b) How Would Jesus Want Me to Console Him Now

c) What W+ould Jesus Want Me to do for the Church

d) How Will I Give Jesus to Others Today

e) How Will Mary Love Jesus If She Were Here