CLEMENT OF ALEXANDRIA
Another great Father of the Church
is Clement of Alexandria. I want to remember at least three things about St.
Clement of Alexandria. First, he is considered one of the pioneers of the
dialogue between faith and reason. The second importance is Clement’s
explanation of the sacrament of baptism. Third, it is about the importance of
marriage and virginity.
Because of globalization and
secularism, the people’s perspective on faith has changed abruptly. An
additional ingredient to this change is the fast technological development of
the world. Science seems to be the answer to all the problems and issues of the
world. According to Pope Francis’s Lumen
Fidei, faith seems to be the last resort and answer if science cannot
reveal the truth. If science can’t prove anything, then faith comes in to shed
light to the mystery. People forget that faith is truth itself. This dialogue
between faith and reason is only a continuation of what may be the saint of
Alexandria has started. Clement of Alexandria is a good example of how we can
appropriate faith and reason with each other in our explanation of the
contemporary issues of the world. This time it is not much about doctrinal
aspects but rather on the means of spreading the faith. The Fathers of the
Church have already given us almost all the content of our faith. What we can
do now is how in our means of evangelization we can share the importance of
faith and reason in the lives of the people. True to the words of Pope Francis,
we should do something to help the people enlighten their minds about the role
of faith in our daily lives. A greater responsibility is shared to us
consecrated persons to fulfill this calling of the Pope to help him in this new
mission.
On August 25, 2013, I, together with
my three brothers assigned in our apostolate area, facilitated a Mass baptism. I
was the one who gave a short seminar on baptism to the parents and godparents
of seven children. As Filipinos, it is difficult to explain to them the
importance of baptism since almost all of them are preoccupied with the material
things that they can give to their godchildren. In one way of another I
explained to them the need of baptism in a child. Although I did not mention
“rebirth and regeneration”, I think I at least explained the same thing. A
child is being born again because of the sin that was inherited from our first
parents. The effect happening in baptism is the same. Clement’s explanation is
the same yet in a different manner. It always has the same effect, which is the
forgiveness of sins. At the same time, one becomes an adopted child of God. In
regeneration becomes our privilege to call God together as our Father. As we
are born again by the Spirit through baptism, we have become children of God,
the Father.
Lastly, the concept of marriage is
secularized and materialized. Some couples don’t want to be married in the
Church. It is always expensive to get married. People tend to forget the
spiritual importance of marriage. Moreover, the prevalence of teenage pregnancy
is very alarming. If the government wants to help them by means of
contraception, then the Church has also to do her part by doing catechesis.
Clement of Alexandria gives us a wonderful thought bout the purpose of marriage.
According to him, the first purpose of marriage is procreation, which is the
duty of everyone who loves his country. But he added something greater than
this, marriage and bearing children is an act of cooperation with the creator:
Thus man becomes an image of God in so far as man cooperates in the creation of
man.(Paedagogus 2,10,83,2)
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