In Colossians 3:1-4, Paul refers to the Easter mystery in both concrete and symbolic terms. Commentaries on the resurrection illustrate the need for both a mundane and a transcendent understanding of the passage. Conforming to its cruciform implications, the passage suggests to believers “set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God...not on earthly things” (Col 3:1-2). As much as Paul urges transcendence, it is important to apply spiritual principles to the material world. The metaphors “being raised in Christ,” and “putting on Christ” help keep the Catholic Church grounded in its cruciform principles: of simultaneously being in the world and not of the world. We must focus on what is above, without becoming heartless to the immanent suffering in the world: a central lesson of the crucifixion. As MacDonald (n.d.) points out, the metaphors of being raised in Christ and putting on Christ directly refer to the meaning and function of the sacraments, particularly the transformative power of baptism. Baptism literally removes the person from one, profane state, and welcomes the soul in Christ’s embrace. Through baptism, one receives very real spiritual power that embedded...

The life is “hidden” because the spiritual transformation is not immediately apparent or visible to the naked eye, which encourages humility as one carries out mundane duties. The soul is permanently a part of the Christian community. As an initiation rite, the baptism is a symbol of death and resurrection, being raised in Christ and not of this world, putting on Christ for the duration of one’s life. Being a member of the church is more than just being a member of a social group; it means being a part of a spiritual community, of the corpus Christi.
The entire community of the faithful is focused on the heavenly realm; the Church creates a spiritual community with a special purpose. That ultimate, divine purpose of salvation needs to remain foremost in the minds and hearts of the people. Yet it is important to keep these metaphors of being raised in Christ always connected to the cross to prevent a single-minded focus on the verticality, or on only the upward trend towards heaven and the abnegation of one’s duties on earth. Service and community—the horizontality of the Church’s actions in the…