Funhouse Mirrors

Sorry for my break in blogging, trying to get more content ready to go so I can post more successfully. However onward to today's post.

Let’s unravel a story shall we?

A young girl around 5 years of age and her mother were going through a funhouse and the young girl was able to see a reflection of herself for the first time in one of the warped mirrors. It took her a moment to recognize that the distorted reflection that she saw was her own. After spending time with her mother making faces and having fun, her mother began to move on without the girl noticing. She was having too much fun playing with her reflection. By the time she noticed she was alone, her mother had already passed out of sight. Suddenly the new reflections weren’t funny but rather scary. The girl ran through the corridors of the funhouse to catch up to her mom.

This could have been me, I know that my mom and I went through a few funhouses as a kid, but I don’t remember if I was ever lost in one.

As I was talking with a few people I found ourselves talking about the effects of sin on our relationship with God. One of my friends mentioned they felt like a funhouse mirror. My friend didn’t like that he felt that way, but in truth, he was right. We are all like funhouse mirrors.

In Genesis when man is created, God, in the form of the Trinity says, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness...” (Genesis 1:26) we were intended to be creatures with great knowledge, free will and immortal souls. Then when sin entered the world, that nature was forever blemished.The same is true of mirrors or metal that has been warped. The reflective quality is still there but the image is warped. We are not able to see a true and authentic image of the original image.

Then there exists the grace that God gives us. If grace is like a light beam, an unblemished mirror would reflect and refract the light back at an angle perpendicular to the source. The effect of sin would be twofold, the change in shape, (as stated above) and the grime and gunk build up.

Children are inquisitive and often leave smudges and fingerprints on everything. Venial sins would be your average child with dirty hands, light can still somewhat pass through but the reflection isn’t as bright. Mortal sin would be like letting a hoard of toddlers with opaque finger paint at the mirror. There isn’t any light that could get through there and it’s a mess that we don’t want to necessarily deal with.

Since it is Spring and a time to make things clean and fresh, there is a way to deal with this. Going to the Sacrament of Reconciliation will give us all the boost that we need to get rid of the toddler prints on our souls. We have the choice and free will to turn back to God and let him at us with spiritual windex and a squeegee, or a power washer, whatever our case might be.

If you are looking for an Examination of Conscience to start out with, check out this link from the United States Council of Catholic Bishops for adults, children and based on the Ten Commandments. As for me it’s time to find my way to the Confessional as well.