*****
Mi>“Owe no debt to anyone except the debt that binds us to love one another.”
The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language defines debt as “something owed, such as money, goods or services; an obligation or liability to pay or render something to someone else”. The reader is then encouraged to see ghabh in the index of Indo-European Roots: “Important derivatives are: give, forgive, gift, able…duty and endeavor.”
Life is full of debt, obligations and things that we owe to others in a spirit of duty. Some of the things that we owe to others include: tuition, taxes, credit card debt, utility bills, work for our wages, insurance, health care costs…and the list goes on and one.
On another level, although less obvious, there is a whole host of other things that are even more important that we must render to others in a spirit of generosity: time, talent, respect, reverence, fidelity, honesty, care, concern, consideration, kindness, patience, justice, peace, reconciliation…and this list also goes on and on.
If we stop to collectively consider the list of all the things that we owe to others, it can be more than a little overwhelming. Perhaps it is best to summarize it as does St. Paul when he advises us to “owe no debt to anyone except the debt that binds us to love one another”. The debt of love – the bond of love – is not only the most important obligation that we owe to one another, but it also includes all the other things, virtues and actions that we owe to others…that we must render to others.
In a letter to St. Jane de Chantal, St. Francis de Sales wrote:
“I must tell you that I have never understood that there was any bond between us carrying with it any obligation but that of divine love and true Christian friendship, what St. Paul calls the ‘bond of perfection,’ and truly that is what it truly is, for it is indissoluble and never weakens. All other bonds are temporal…but the bond of love grows and gets stronger every time. It cannot be cut down by death, which, like a scythe, mows down everything but charity…So this is our bond, these our own chains which, the more they are tightened and press against us, the more they bring us joy and freedom…nothing is more pliable than that; nothing, stronger.” (Letters of Spiritual Direction, page 127)
Our lives are filled with debts and obligations that we owe to one another. In the midst of our daily attempts to meet these obligations, may God give us the grace to remember and pursue the debt that really matters: the bond of love and the obligations – and opportunities – that come with it.*****
“For this I labor and struggle, in accord with the exercise of his power working within me…”
In his Treatise on the Love of God, Francis de Sales wrote:
“God acts in our works, and we co-operate in God’s action. God leaves for our part all the merit and profit of our services and good works; we leave God all the honor and praise thereof, acknowledging that the growth, the progress, and the end of all the good we do depend on God’s mercy, finishing what God had begun. O God, how merciful is God’s goodness to us in thus distributing his bounty!” (TLG, Book XI, Chapter 6, p. 212)
It would be enough if God simply made us the recipients of his mercy and generosity, but in his wisdom, God has also made us the agents or instruments of his mercy and generosity. Our common vocation is not limited to enjoying the gift of creation. We are also called to nurture it, care for it, shepherd it and grow it! God works in and through us and we work in and through God’s action.
To us come all of the benefits. To God goes all of the glory.
We are – in word and in deed – God’s co-workers. We celebrate both God’s generosity to ourselves and share that generosity with others.
Just today, how might God employ our cooperation in both receiving and sharing his bounty?
*****
“When day came, he called his disciples to himself…”
“The Feast of the Holy Name of Mary, or simply the Holy Name of Mary, is a feast day in the Roman Catholic Church celebrated on 12 September to honor the name of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It has been a universal Roman Rite feast since 1684, when Pope Innocent XI included it in the General Roman Calendar to commemorate the victory at the Battle of Vienna in 1683.”
“The feast day began in 1513 as a local celebration in Cuenca, Spain, celebrated on 15 September. In 1587 Pope Sixtus V moved the celebration to 17 September. In 1622 Pope Gregory XV extended the celebration to the Archdiocese of Toledo and it was subsequently extended to the entire Kingdom of Spain in 1671. The feast was removed from the General Roman Calendar in 1969, as it was seen as something of a duplication of the 8 September feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. In 2002, Pope John Paul II restored the celebration to the General Roman Calendar.” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_Name_of_Mary)
In today’s Gospel, Jesus tells calls his disciples–those called to accompany and follow him – by name. Mary is unique, insofar as she became a disciple by accepting the invitation extended to her by God – by name – to become the mother of the Messiah.
Each of us is called by name to be disciples of Jesus Christ – by giving birth to him in ourselves and following his example – in ways that fit the unique state and stage of life in which we find ourselves. How might we call others to join us?
Just today!
*****
“Think of what is above…”
What does it look like when we are thinking of what is “above”? Look no further than today’s Gospel from Luke (and/or the variant found in Matthew 5:3-11):
“Blessed are you who are poor, for the Kingdom of God is yours.
Blessed are you who are now hungry, for you will be satisfied.
Blessed are you who are now weeping, for you will laugh.
Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude and insult you, and denounce your name as evil on account of the Son of Man.”
Thinking of what is “above” is best displayed in how we treat others – how we treat ourselves – here below on this earth. In other words, when we “think of what is above” is must be translated into how we act here below in this world.
Just today.
*****
“He humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross.”
In a sermon preached on the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, Francis de Sales remarked:
“St. Paul, the outstanding master and teacher of the newborn Church, discovered in the crucified Christ the blissful wellspring of his love, the theme of his sermons, the source of his boasting, the goal of all his ambitions in this world and the anchor of all his hopes for the world to come. I had no thought, he says, of bringing you any other knowledge than that of Jesus Christ, and of him crucified. God forbid that I should make a display of anything, except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ…” (Pulpit and Pew: A Study in Salesian Preaching)
The cross of Christ is the core of our lives. The cross of Christ is the central image of our faith. The cross of Christ is the path to our salvation.
Still, no less than five times in the synoptic Gospels, Jesus makes it very clear: if we wish to be his disciples, we must be willing to pick up not his cross, but pick up our own crosses. We are not called to carry his cross, but ours. Put another way, we imitate the power and the promise of the cross of Christ precisely by being willing to embrace the crosses — the challenges, the burdens, the setbacks — that are part and parcel of our lives. In short, the cross that we carry is the need to be ourselves — not somebody else — and to take up all that comes with that effort.
Many of the crosses we carry are specific to the state and stage of life in which we find ourselves. Francis de Sales offers the following examples of the kinds of crosses that we might be asked to carry.
“To the pastors of the Church I offer a cross of care and labor, a shepherd’s toil to protect, to feed, to correct and perfect the flock. This was the cross first carried by our Lord who called himself the Good Shepherd: witness his journeys, his fatigue by Jacob’s well, his loving care for those who treated him badly.” (Ibid)
“To religious I offer the cross of solitude, celibacy and unworldliness. It is a cross that has touched the True Cross; it is a cross that was carried by Our Lady, the holiest, most innocent and completely crucified of all who ever loved the cross for Christ.” (Ibid)
“To those serving in government, I present the cross of learning, fairness and the sincerity of truth: a cross worthy of those who, St. Paul says, are in God’s service. Such a cross is ideal for crucifying merely secular values, for repressing self-interest: it encourages peace and quiet in the realm.” (Ibid)
“To workers, I offer the cross of humility and labor, a cross sanctified by our Lord himself in the carpenter’s shop. The cross of daily work is often a sure way to salvation; it may also be the best means of avoiding sin, for the devil finds work for idle hands.” (Ibid)
“For teenagers I have chosen the cross of obedience, purity and self-discipline. It will crucify the young blood of passion that is just coming to a boil: the boldness of youth still awaiting the guiding hand of prudence. It will teach them to bear the easy yoke of Christ in whatever calling in life God may place them.” (Ibid)
“For old people there is the cross of patience, gentleness and a helpful attitude towards the young. This cross demands a brave heart. They have learned that swift as a breath our lives pass away…” (Ibid)
“There is no shortage of crosses for married folk, but perhaps I could single out the cross of mutual support and faithfulness, and the cross of bringing up a family…” (Ibid)
There is but one cross of Jesus Christ. For us, however, our crosses come in many shapes, sizes and situations.Today, what cross might Christ be asking each us of to carry?
*****
“You yourself a sword will pierce…”
In his Treatise on the Love of God, Francis de Sales wrote:
“Various sacred lovers were present at the death of the Savior. Among them, those having the greatest love had the greatest sorrow, for love was then deeply plunged into sorrow and sorrow into love. All those who were filled with loving passion for their Savior were in love with his passion and sorrow. But his sweet Mother, who loved him more than all others, was more than all others pierced through and through by the sword of sorrow. Her Son’s sorrow at that time was a piercing sword that passed through the Mother’s heart, for that Mother’s heart was fastened, joined and united to her Son in so perfect a union that nothing could wound the one without inflicting the keenest pain upon the other…” (TLG, Book VII, Chapter 13, pp. 50-51)
Nobody should love sorrow. But, as we know from our own experience, sorrow is part-and-parcel of loving. If you’ve never experienced sorrow, chances are you’ve probably never experienced love, either.What more need be said?
*****
“For every tree is known by its own fruit…”
“Saint Cornelius was elected Pope in 251 during the persecutions of the Emperor Decius. His first challenge, besides the ever present threat of the Roman authorities, was to bring an end to the schism brought on by his rival, the first anti-pope Novatian. He convened a synod of bishops to confirm him as the rightful successor of Peter.”
“The great controversy that arose as a result of the Decian persecution was whether or not the Church could pardon and receive back into the Church those who had apostacized in the face of martyrdom.”
“Against both the bishops who argued that the Church could not welcome back apostates, and those who argued that they should be welcomed back but did not demand a heavy penance of the penitent, Cornelius decreed that they must be welcomed back and insisted that they perform an adequate penance.”
“In 253 Cornelius was exiled by the emperor Gallus and died of the hardships he endured in exile. He is venerated as a martyr.”
“Saint Cyprian of Carthage is second in importance only to the great Saint Augustine as a figure and Father of the African church. He was a close friend of Pope Cornelius, and supported him both against the anti-pope Novatian and in his views concerning the re-admittance of apostates into the Church.”
“Saint Cyprian was born to wealthy pagans around the year 190, and was educated in the classics and in rhetoric. He converted at the age of 56, was ordained a priest a year later, and made bishop two years after that.”
“His writings are of great importance, especially his treatise on The Unity of the Catholic Church, in which he argues that unity is grounded in the authority of the bishop, and among the bishops, in the primacy of the See of Rome.”
During the Decian persecutions Cyprian considered it wiser to go into hiding and guide his flock covertly rather than seek the glorious crown of martyrdom, a decision that his enemies attacked him for. On September 14, 258, however, he was martyred during the persecutions of the emperor Valerian.” (http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint.php?n=596)
We see in both Cornelius and Cyprian two examples of how good people can produce good fruit, especially in tough times. We also see in both Cornelius and Cyprian how helpful friends can be – especially in tough times – in our individual efforts to produce good fruit ourselves day in and day out.
Today, how might we imitate them?
