"Salt and Light." For Christians, this is a familiar phrase from the Gospel of Matthew, part of Jesus' Sermon on the Mount: You are the salt of the earth. But if salt loses its taste, with what can it be seasoned? It is no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.
You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden. Mt. 5:13-14
It seems as if we live in a tasteless and dim world. You can drive across America, eating bland, unsatisfying fast food in restaurants that look the same everywhere. What passes as entertainment is dismaying. Our nation's fight for religious liberty – once done on battlefields in the colonies – is now done in our own Supreme Court. Desiring to turn a blind eye to the dull, dim life around us is a great temptation. But we are called for so much more.
I am not sure that Christ had fast food and MTV on His mind (but maybe…) when He preached the Sermon on the Mount, but it applies to us and the time in which we live. It's a directive, based on who we are: immortal beings made in the image and likeness of God.
God is not dull, dim, bland or boring. God is magnificent, creative, loving, just, merciful, intelligent – and we are meant to reflect this. We are meant to preserve the good (as salt has been used for food preservation), to bring flavor to the world with our creativity and gifts, and to bring the light of truth to a world sorely in need.
One of the very best ways I know that Christians (and all good people of faith) can learn to live this out is at Acton University. We talk about what makes a good leader, whether in business, government, education or family. We discuss the rich religious foundations of human freedom, and how to guard them. We learn from people of salt and light from all over the world.
Our world is not meant to be dim, stale and bland. We are salt and light. Come to Acton University 2014; join us on that city on the mountain.
Sincerely,
Rev. Robert Sirico, President
