The Seven Acts of Existence
An Easter Weekend Reflection
In November 2022, Jordan Peterson, Bishop Robert Barron and Father Mike Schmitz explored beauty, religion, Jesus Christ, the rise of the religious unaffiliates, and Western Civilization.
So, light subjects. The panel discussion, however, was released just more than a month ago on Peterson’s YouTube account (watch the full talk below):
In one striking back-and-forth, Bishop Barron — the founder of Word on Fire — affirms that “the battle” over sin and death “has been won on the Cross, but now we [humanity] have the privilege of getting in the army of the crucified and risen Lord and to do the mop up work.” This teaching somewhat perplexes Peterson, as he asks the prelate to expand on how Christians can rationalize believing in God’s eternal victory over evil, while humanity still endures suffering and death.
To this point, Bishop Barron compares Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection to the Allied Forces’ invasion of Normandy in World War II: that D-Day marked the turning point in the conflict to the eventual defeat of Nazi Germany. Essentially, Christ has already won the “definitive battle,” so we can confidently go out and preach the Gospel.
Yet within this exchange, the Word on Fire founder suggests that the “mop up work” — or our current existence in a post-Resurrection, empty tomb era — is the last act in God’s five-act Theodrama, the others being Creation, The Fall, the Rise of Israel and the Messiah.
To preface this next statement, Bishop Barron is certainly one of the voices in the Catholic Church I look toward. He weaves philosophy, Church history and the Bible in a clear, elevating manner. One of my career highlights was interviewing him briefly at World Youth Day 2019 in Panama. Suffice it to say, I could listen to him talk all day and then some.
However, I propose a modification to his five-act Theodrama — because the “mop up work” does not clearly differentiate other cosmic events that will occur. And even five is not a significant number in Scripture; at least, not as much as seven.
Seven is the symbol of perfection. After all, God is perfect, yes? The prologue of the Catechism of the Catholic Church states, in the first sentence, “God, infinitely perfect and blessed in himself, in a plan of sheer goodness freely created man to make him share in his own blessed life.” Indeed, He formed existence itself in seven days. The number appears numerous times throughout Scripture and in Christian practice. For instance, there are seven sacraments in the Catholic Church to “give birth and increase, healing and mission to the Christian’s life of faith”; and there are seven corporal works of mercy (feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, clothe the naked, give shelter to travelers, visit the sick, visit the imprisoned, and bury the dead).
If God “never ceases to draw man to himself,” and bring humanity into order with Him, then there must be more to Existence’s story than the Five Acts Bishop Barron suggests. As the ultimate storyteller, God will not end the drama without a final resolution or — to harken to Peterson’s question — allow His creation to toil in a finite existence. Christ’s resurrection shows humanity’s ultimate destiny: that we will be transcended if we freely choose to love God.
Therefore, I offer that there are seven acts to existence, the other two being The Last Judgment and Eternal Dwelling with God (or New Heaven and New Earth).
In the Apostle’s Creed, Catholics believe (or should believe) that Jesus Christ “ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty; from there he will come to judge the living and the dead.” The Last Judgment is when “Christ returns in glory” to “pronounce the final word on all history,” according to the Catechism. In this true and inevitable episode we must all face, God’s justice will triumph “over all the injustices committed by his creatures.” This Judgment is meant, in some ways, to strike a healthy fear — a warning that we will have to answer for our actions — but also a hope: that there is an end to evil. Who would not want to see that come to fruition?
But why would Jesus judge the “living and the dead” if there is no condemnation or pardon to the sinner? Again, there must be a more defined chapter in God’s story for humanity. This ushers in the final act: New Heaven and New Earth.
To be sure, Bishop Barron’s observation that Act V is the “mop us work” points to Act VII. In the ‘Our Father,’ Jesus Christ calls his followers to pray “thy kingdom come.” Within those three words, Christ reveals that “The Kingdom of God lies ahead of us,” as stated in the Catechism; but it also highlights a desire that Christians may not fully comprehend: with those words, we pray for the end times. We long for the “coming of the reign of God” and to be fully in His presence for eternity.
Or, at least, we should long for that day. But God does not impose His will on humanity. We have a role in salvation history, in remedying the ills of The Fall. The Virgin Mary’s fiat — her “yes” to bearing the Son of God — is the prime example of God working in tandem with us, and us working in tandem with Him.
While humanity cannot save itself, since only God can save, we — like Mary — can help build the kingdom of God that will finally exist in Act VII. We do this through evangelization, preaching the Good News, prayer, living the corporal works of mercy, and partaking in the Eucharist and the sacraments. By turning our hearts to God, we can help others come to know Christ and inspire them to strive toward a holy life. The ultimate tragedy is when one does not choose sainthood — and lives absent from Love itself forever.
Scripture also reveals a New Heaven and New Earth. In the Book of Revelation, the Apostle John sees a “new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God.” In this city, “God’s dwelling is with the human race” and “He will dwell with them and they will be his people and God himself will always be with them.” This is when God will “wipe every tear from [our] eyes, and there shall be no more death or mourning, wailing or pain, for the old order has passed away.”
Ultimately, God’s desire for us is to rest in Him. After hundreds of years of slavery, the flight from Egypt, forty years in the wilderness, battles and death, the Israelites finally witness the fulfillment of God’s promise: that they will live in The Promised Land. As told in the Book of Joshua, “the Lord had given the Israelites rest from all their enemies round about them.” In truth, if we are in God’s grace, we will see His Word fully realized like the Israelites in the Old Testament, if we keep his commandments. But unlike the Israelites’ rest, there will be a permanence in New Heaven and New Earth, — or in Act VII.
There will be no more battles to fight. No more suffering to endure. And no more to strive toward since we will already be with Him. As Christ says, which is often read at funerals, “In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places. If there were not, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back again and take you to myself, so that where I am you also may be.”
Everyone loves a good ending. A life with God for all eternity is perhaps intimidating to comprehend since our minds cannot fully grasp it (mine included). But this destination for our souls must be contemplated — and it must be our ultimate aim. Even though there will be no more battles, this does not mean eternity with God will be a dull life. In fact, the opposite is true. All will be revealed. We will be with Love incarnate. And just as God rested on the seventh day at the dawn of creation, so too He — and we — will rest at the arrival of Existence’s seventh act, assured that all is right.
That is the perfect story.
Have a blessed Easter!