photo by john feister
Keeping It Simple – and Profound FROM THE PRESIDENT / Father Chet Artysiewicz
My first priestly assignment in 1973 took me to Morehead, Ky. Glenmary’s mission territory covered six counties including three churches and campus ministry at Morehead State University. One of the football coaches at the school told me, “We use the ‘KISS technique’ here.” He responded to my puzzled look by saying “K I S S: Keep It Simple, Stupid.” Many years later I smile recalling the encounter— but also the wisdom it expressed. While keeping it simple may not be best in every situation, surely it constitutes great advice in many instances. And how about the central truth of our faith in the Resurrection? Could we really refer to Easter as simple? To be sure, something that shatters the limits of our comprehension would not seem to qualify for that designation. Jesus had no instructional guide for 4
GLENMARY CHALLENGE glenmary.org
reference before his resurrection (though I suppose we could smile and say, “He wrote the book!”). Complex gives way to unfathomable in trying to grasp—how? While standing in awe before this mystery, I do think there is a simple message for us that is so very basic to our faith: “God gave us eternal life” (1 John 2:25). There you have it, God’s gift to us. From a God who loved us so much that He embraced crucifixion on Good Friday. A God who loved us so much that He didn’t want a world without us. A God who loved us so much that He wants our company forever and wants us to reunite with our loved ones separated by the curtain of death. Eternal life. Sounds simple, yet of course, “Eye has not seen, ear has not heard what God has in store for those who love him” (1 Corinthians 2:9). The specifics are fuzzy, demanding faith. Sometimes a word like “everlasting” can be misleading, suggesting
