Life

Sub-Theme 1: Happiness

A.

(I) Present Situation

Life is seen as a struggle to attain happiness. A person's ideas of happiness vary according to age, experience and possibilities. In today's pluralistic societies people do not always seem to agree on what can bring happiness. For the young, happiness sometimes seems to centre on the material or physical level of human needs, yet they also desire good relationships, approval, trust and peace. Their ideas need broadening to include all levels of human development. Happiness is a result rather than a goal.

(II) African Tradition

There were commonly accepted values in traditional society, therefore, the ideas of what would bring happiness were rather clear-cut.

(III) Church History with Emphasis on Africa

The Good News of Jesus Christ gives a meaning to life. False ideas of Christianity have deprived people of happiness. Witness of joy even in suffering. Wrong ideas of renunciation as a way to happiness.

B. Bible

Old Testament

Life is a mixture of joy and sorrow (Ecclesiastes 3:1-22). Happiness is linked with companionship, having children, experiencing freedom, union with one's fellow men and enjoying the fruits of one's labor. God is acknowledged of as the source of all these gifts. Sadness and suffering are also part of life. God has created man for happiness (Genesis 1 and 2). Separated from God and his fellow men, man experiences sadness and suffering (Genesis 3). Psalm 37: God leads the Israelites to discover the way to happiness. Jeremiah 2:1-13: the prophets help their people to see where they are going astray. Jeremiah 30:10-22: the prophets foretell that God Himself will come and save them from their sinfulness, the cause of unhappiness.

New Testament

Jesus, Son of God made man, is the Good News of salvation. Matthew 5:10: he reveals the fundamental attitudes (the Beatitudes) to God and life which result in happiness. Luke 19:1-10: those who accept his radical message, experience joy. John 16:16-22: in his resurrection, Jesus guarantees that happiness is a true and lasting reality for men. Philippians 4:4-7: our common effort to overcome selfishness and live in the spirit of the Beatitudes is a source of joy. We look forward to complete happiness in the Kingdom of the Father (Revelation 21:1-4).

C. Synthesis

Man craves for beatitude, which is a result of living by one's human values and cannot be made one's goal. In 1 Corinthians 13: love is the key to happiness. It places ambition, good jobs, security and source of happiness in their proper place.

Sub-Theme 2: Unending Life

A.

(I) Present Situation

The desire for happiness and life is frustrated by failure, suffering and death. Young people generally do not think about death, except in particular instances such as the death of a relative. Pupils wonder about traditional obligations concerning the "living-dead". They may question the existence of an after-life due to a misunderstanding of science and its categories. Long-term goals determine short-term goals: people are "future-directed". Ideas and questions about death, judgment, Heaven and Hell.

(II) African Tradition

The family includes ancestors: continuity of the lifeline. Efforts are made to remember the dead. The quality of the next life depends on this one. After death, man joins God and the ancestors in a life which gives more power and has more advantages than the present life. Tribal myths attempt to explain how men lost unending life and happiness.

(III) Church History with Emphasis on Africa

The Resurrection of Christ and the gift of life through His Spirit begin not in the after-life but now. In Christian teaching about unending life, has the threat of Hell been stressed more than the call to Christian life and love?

B. Bible

Old Testament

Old Testament ideas on life after death are very limited. Isaiah 38:9-20: life the greatest gift man has, is threatened by death. Psalm 16; Psalm 73:21-26: the experience of God's faithful and loving presence in the difficulties of life gradually leads to a belief in God's fidelity in and through death. Daniel 12:1-3: by the first century B.C. after some Israelites chose death rather than offend God, hope in life after death is affirmed more clearly.

New Testament

Luke 7:11-17; Mark 5:21-24; 35-43: Jesus shows by miracles that death is not the end of life. John 11:25-26: 1 Corinthians 15:1-28, 51-58: by his own death and resurrection, Christ won the victory over death for men. Eternal life begins here and now (John 3:11-16; 5:19-24). Luke 14:12-14; 10:25-28: by living in openness to God and our neighbors, we experience eternal life. The Eucharist, source and sign of eternal life (John 6:53-56). Revelation 22:1-5: the way man lives now prepares him for the fullness of life that awaits him.

C. Synthesis

The present takes on its true meaning only in the light of the future. Christian understanding of death, judgment, Heaven and Hell. The hope of attaining eternal life is based on the gift of God himself in Christ, but on his part effort is necessary to live this hope.

Sub-Theme 3: Success

A.

(I) Present Situation

Each society has its own ideas of success and failure, and passes them on to the young. The goals that individuals or groups choose depend on their vision and priorities. Success and failure can have varying effects on people. Each individual is a unique personality with his own particular circumstances; therefore success cannot mean the same for any two people.

(II) African Tradition

Fulfilling one's social personality has been seen as more important than material achievement. When material success was achieved, generosity and hospitality were expected. One should not be prosperous at the expense of one's neighbors. Unexplained success can lead to accusations of witchcraft or magic, thus limiting personal initiative. Some traditional stories show the connection between success and innocence, humility and the power of the weak.

(III) Church History with Emphasis on Africa

The history of the Church has often been presented as a success story. Is this right? Christians have witnessed to the belief that faith can transform failure.

B. Bible

Old Testament

The goal of man's life is to achieve union and harmony with God, his fellow men and creation (Genesis 1 and 2). Deuteronomy 6:1-9: the law offers guidance to the Israelites in their efforts to achieve a harmonious life-style. Psalm 1: the idea that following the law guarantees success is challenged by the experience of faithful men failing and suffering while wicked men prosper (Job 1:1-3: 21:7-15).

New Testament

Matthew 4:1-11, 18-21: Jesus overturns traditional and popular ideas of success. Matthew 19:16-22: challenges the Old Testament ideal. Luke 9:23-26: invites his followers to complete self-giving for others. Philippians 2:1-11: the death and resurrection of Christ's life is the pattern for his followers. John 12:24-26; Romans 12:1-21: wholehearted self giving in the service of others, with complete trust in God's fidelity, is the Christian criterion for successful living.

C. Synthesis

Christian love will cause men to view their success in relation to the well-being of others. The gifted and the better equipped will seek to change the conditions in which men life; seeing human development as an aspect of Christ's kingdom. Success as understood by Christians can be summarized in the command to love God and one's fellow men. Christians are to be enlightened by faith in Christ, the man for others, who challenges popular ideas of success.