Spirituality Matters: January 9th - January 15th

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(January 9, 2022: Baptism of the Lord)
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“Jesus went about doing good and healing all those oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.”

Today, we celebrate the feast of the Baptism of Jesus. The Baptism of Jesus marks his inauguration into his public life. Isaiah in the first reading gives the blueprint for ministry for Jesus. As Isaiah writes, “I will put my spirit upon him, and he will bring forth justice to the nations. I have formed you……to open the eyes of the blind, to bring prisoners from confinement and from the dungeon, those who live in darkness.”

We know from the life of Jesus as recorded in the Scriptures that he fulfilled the blueprint Isaiah had written. He reached out to the marginalized, cured those who were sick, touched those who were believed “untouchable,” challenged his religious leaders to “do what they preached,” and was constantly traveling doing good works. With all the good that he accomplished for others, he was crucified. In the words of today’s Gospel, he was that “beloved Son in whom the Father was well pleased.”

In celebrating the feast of the Baptism of Jesus, we also celebrate our own Baptism. Just as the Baptism of Christ inaugurated his public life, so also our own Baptism inaugurates us into the Christian life. Christ gave us an example in his life to allow us to see how those who were baptized into him can live His life. St. Jane tells us:

“God never ceases to work in our hearts to draw us out of ourselves so we can receive his grace and give ourselves wholly to him.”

The reading from Acts tells us that “Jesus went about doing good and healing all those oppressed with the devil, for God was with him.” To live our lives as followers of Christ we also should “go out of ourselves” and “go about doing good” and bringing Christ’s healing presence and his peace to those whom the Lord sends our way. Like Christ, we too should visit the sick and reach out to the marginalized in our communities and in our families. We should speak with those toward whom we have had negative feelings or painful memories: anyone that we might consider ‘untouchable’, anyone at home, in the neighborhood or at work who we avoid, ignore or even despise.

We need to be people who put into identifiable action our profession of being a follower of Christ. This action requires strength and courage. Just as the Father was with the Son in his life, so also, we have the presence of Christ within our minds and hearts to give us the strength and courage we need to be his authentic followers.

Today, let us then come out of ourselves and our own little worlds to see what good we can do and how we, relying on the strength of the Lord within us, might be agents of the Lord’s healing presence to all those around us.

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(January 10, 2022: Leonie Aviat, OSFS, Religious and Founder)
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Readings: Colossians 3: 12-17; Psalm 15: 2-3, 3-5, 5; Matthew 18: 1-5, 10, 14

“Anyone who welcomes one such child for my sake welcomes me...”

Today we celebrate the life and legacy of St. Leonie Aviat, OSFS: religious, founder.

In the middle of the 19th century during the Industrial Revolution, there was a rapid expansion of the textile industry in the town of Troyes, France. The Industrial Revolution created opportunities for women to work outside of the home and/or the farm. Droves of young country girls came to the town in search of employment and adventure. They had no money, nowhere to live and were thus exposed to many potential hazards. With a remarkable intuition for overcoming obstacles, Father Louis Brisson took these girls into his care. He acquired a building, offering board and lodging and even work on the premises to a number of young female workers. He trained a group of volunteers to oversee the boarding house, but no matter how devoted they were, the undertaking lacked stability. It was not only necessary to provide room and board for the girls and young women, but also to educate them in their faith and guard them against moral danger. Fr. Brisson eventually determined that this new undertaking would be better served by a community of religious women who could devote themselves to this growing ministry.

Enter Leonie Aviat. Together with Fr. Brisson, she founded the Oblate Sisters of St. Francis de Sales who, during the course of her lifetime, saw many a child – and young adult, for that matter – welcomed for the sake of the Lord.

Children not only come in many shapes and sizes, but, as it turns out, children also come in a variety of ages. In the broadest sense, the ‘children’ to whom Jesus alludes in today’s Gospel are anyone who is vulnerable, anyone who needs welcome, anyone who needs comfort and anyone who needs a safe place.

Today, who might be the children in our lives whom Jesus challenges us to welcome for his sake today?

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Throughout the history of Christian spirituality there frequently appears to be an uneasy relationship between prayer and work, between being and doing, and/or between resting in God and doing for/with God.

St. Francis de Sales offered a remedy for the temptation to dichotomize prayer and work. The ‘Gentleman Saint’ identified – in broad strokes – three types of prayer.

First, there is vocal prayer. This is the type of prayer on which most – if not all – of us first cut our gums: the Our Father, the Hail Mary, Grace-before-Meals, etc, etc. It is a form of prayer of which we can make good use even into old age.

Second, there is mental prayer, or “prayer of the heart.” Some people experience this type of prayer as meditation; for other people, it is known as contemplation. This type of prayer relies a great deal less on words and makes greater use of thoughts, considerations, affections, images and silence. Unlike vocal prayer, it tends to be much less public and much more private. It seems to come easily for some folks, while it appears to be more elusive or challenging for others.

Finally, there is what Francis de Sales referred to as the prayer of good life. It is the prayer that comes with doing good – with practicing virtue – in a very mindful, heart-filled, intentional and deliberate way at each and every moment: specifically, through the practice of the Direction of Intention!

Leonie Aviat clearly saw the Direction of Intention as the bridge linking prayer and work. Years after founding the Oblate Sisters, she would later remark:

“I still remember the words the Good Mother said to us one day on the subject. ‘The faithful practice of the Direction of Intention is the first rung on the ladder that will make us attain sanctity.’ She had been so faithful to this article that she knew its reward.” (Heart Speaks to Heart, p. 150)

Professor Wendy Wright notes that in the Salesian tradition the interior prayer of the Direction of Intention - be it with or without words - provides the foundation for both the life of the cloistered Visitandine and the very active life lived by an Oblate Sister. She again quotes Leonie Aviat:

“My children (wrote the Good Mother) you are not called to say the office for the moment. Your principal occupation is work. Give yourself to it as graciously as possible. Go to your work when the clock chimes. Set out joyfully according to our Rule, as if you were going to say the office and make meditation, because for you, work is a continual meditation.” (Ibid)

Whether we do our work prayerfully – or put our prayer to work – prayer and work are the inseparable sides of the same coin: the love of God, neighbor and self.

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(January 11, 2022: Tuesday, First Week in Ordinary Time)
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“He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.”

In today’s Gospel we hear that the people of Capernaum were “astonished” at the teaching of Jesus, for “he taught them as one having authority and not as the scribes”. What distinguished the teaching of Jesus from the teaching of the scribes? How did Jesus’ “new teaching” manifest itself? Some of the differences include - but are certainly not limited to – these:

1) Jesus taught matters of the highest importance which are necessary for salvation. By contrast, the scribes taught trifling matters of rites and ceremonies which were passing away, such as the washing of hands and of cups.

2) What Christ taught in word, he fulfilled in deed. He talked the talk and walked the walk. The scribes, by contrast (as Jesus observed) spoke bold words but exhibited few deeds.

3) Jesus taught with fervor and zeal, such that the words of Scripture could always be applied to him. The scribes could lay no such claims.

4) Jesus confirmed his teaching by miracles; the scribes could not.

5) The scribes were merely interpreters of the Law, whereas Christ was the embodiment of the Law and Prophets.

6) While the scribes sought their own glory and the praise of others, Jesus taught solely for the glory of God and for the salvation of others.

7) In his words and example – and also by the hidden inspirations of his grace - Jesus illuminated the minds and inflamed the hearts of his hearers. By contrast, the scribes clouded the minds and discouraged the hearts of their hearers. (http://newtheologicalmovement.blogspot.com/2012/01/christ-taught-as-one-having-authority.html)

When other people encounter us – especially as it relates to matters of faith, life and love – to whom do we bear a greater resemblance: the scribes or the Christ?

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(January 12, 2022: Wednesday, First Week in Ordinary Time)
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M. Scott Peck, an American psychiatrist, wrote two books on the subject of “demons” - People of the Lie: The Hope For Healing Human Evil and Glimpses of the Devil: A Psychiatrist's Personal Accounts of Possession, Exorcism, and Redemption. Peck describes in some detail several cases involving his patients. In People of the Lie he provides identifying characteristics of an evil person, whom he classified as having a character disorder. In Glimpses of the Devil Peck goes into significant detail describing how he became interested in exorcism in order to debunk the myth of possession by evil spirits – only to be convinced otherwise after encountering two cases which did not fit into any category known to psychology or psychiatry. Peck came to the conclusion that possession was a rare phenomenon related to evil, and that possessed people are not actually evil, but rather, they are doing battle with the forces of evil. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demon)

In today’s Gospel – and all throughout the Gospels – we are told that Jesus drove out “demons” as a part of his ministry of proclaiming the power and promise of the Good News. Whether or not you believe in demons – regardless of your thoughts regarding exorcisms – we all struggle with things that plague us, that exasperate us or that appear to ‘possess’ us to the extent that they prevent us from being the people God wants and/or intends us to be. Despite our best efforts, these “demons” seem impervious to our feeble attempts at conquering, dispelling or exorcizing them. Perhaps therein lies the lesson - the greatest mistake we make in struggling with our own “demons” is to believe that we must do it alone; that we must battle with our “demons” all by ourselves.

However large, small, frequent or few they might be, are you willing to bring your “demons” to Jesus?

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(January 13, 2022: Hilary, Bishop and Doctor of the Church)
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“The leprosy left him immediately...”

Time and time again throughout the four Gospels, we witness how Jesus cured people on the spot – their infirmity was healed, removed or eradicated immediately. In the case of today’s Gospel selection from Mark, Jesus immediately healed a person afflicted with leprosy.

But not all miracles happen in an instant. Some require several steps. Others require more time.

In Chapter 9 of the Gospel of John, Jesus cures a man born blind by first mixing spittle and mud before applying the mixture to the man’s eyes. In Chapter 8 of Mark’s Gospel, the healing of another blind man requires two stages. In Chapter 2 of John’s Gospel Jesus turns water into wine seemingly as a last resort. And in the Gospels of Mark (7:25-30) and Matthew (15:21-28) Jesus agreed to heal the possessed daughter of the Syrophoenician woman only after what sometimes appears to have been a protracted negotiation. For that matter, in the Old Testament (2 Kings 5) Naaman the Syrian was cured of his leprosy only after bathing seven times in the River Jordan.

Whether in an instant, over several stages or during the course of a lifetime, all miracles share one thing in common – they begin by asking God for help. If even only as a first step, from what might we need to be healed, freed or liberated by God?

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(January 14, 2022: Friday, First Week in Ordinary Time)
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“For ever I will sing the goodness of the Lord.”

Romanian-born Jewish-American writer, professor, political activist, Nobel Laureate, and Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel once remarked: “When a person doesn't have gratitude, something is missing in his or her humanity”.

Today’s Gospel offers us a powerful illustration of how the absence of gratitude - that is, somehow failing to recognize the goodness of the Lord - can diminish one’s humanity.

When Jesus heals a paralytic in two phases (first, by forgiving the man’s sins and second by curing the man’s infirmity) there isn’t an ounce of gratitude to be found anywhere among the scribes, because the only thing they seem capable of mustering is resentment. Not to put too fine a point on it, but the scribes seem to be suffering more from something missing in their humanity and they come off in this story as being sorry excuses for human beings.

Maybe the reason that the scribes failed to recognize a singular work of the Lord in the present (at the hands of Jesus) was due to the fact that they had managed to forget the collective works of the Lord in the past. Absorbed by their own sense of smug self-importance, the scribes appear to have lost their capacity for gratitude. These men of God no longer displayed any need for God.

Do you feel as if something is missing from your humanity? Forgetting how blessed you are? Then you should take time to remember the goodness of the Lord and, in whatever form you prefer, have the courage to sing about it!

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(January 15, 2022: Saturday, First Week in Ordinary Time)
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“For there were many who followed him…”

As word of Jesus’ reputation for helping those in need spread, we are told in today’s Gospel that lots of folks (including Levi, a customs official) from lots of places travelled lots of distances to see him, to behold his face, to hear his voice to experience his healing power and to know his love.

In one of his Conferences to the Sisters of the Visitation, Francis de Sales remarked:

“It is very good for us to know and feel our misery and imperfection, but we must not allow that to discourage us; rather, our awareness of our miseries should make us raise our hearts to God by a holy confidence, the foundation of which ought to be in Him…The throne of God’s mercy is our misery; therefore, the greater our misery the greater should be our confidence in God.” (Living Jesus, page 45)

Today’s Gospel challenges people in need not to avoid God but to pursue God. Awareness of our sinfulness should not drive us away from God but should draw us closer to God. Have confidence that God will help us. Have confidence that God will heal you. Have confidence that God will empower us.

Why? Because God loves us! How? In the person of his Son, Jesus.

Spirituality Matters: January 2nd - January 8th

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(January 2, 2022: Epiphany of the Lord)
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“They did him homage.”

“They set out. The star which they had observed at its rising went ahead of them until it came to a standstill over the place where the child was. They were overjoyed at seeing the star, and on entering the house, found the child with Mary his mother. They prostrated themselves and did him homage. They opened their coffers and presented him with gold, frankincense, and myrrh.”

Not just today, but every day –– every hour, every moment –– we are called to follow the star that is our Lord, our Redeemer and our Savior, Jesus Christ. Each day, we are called to set out onto the road of life, following the signs of God’s love, justice, reconciliation and peace wherever we experience them. And like the astrologers in today’s Gospel, we, too, are called to “do him homage.”

Homage, an old-fashioned, quaint-sounding term, is defined in the dictionary as “special honor or respect shown publicly.” Hmmm, perhaps not so quaint or out-of-date a notion after all!

How can we pay Jesus homage? How can we publicly give him special honor and respect? What kind of gifts can we give to Christ –– and by extension, to one another –– day in and day out? Are such displays of respect limited to cross-continental treks or exotic, once-in-a-lifetime treasures?

Francis de Sales offers this advice:

“Let us not be at all eager in our work, for, in order to do it well, we must apply ourselves to it carefully indeed, but calmly and peacefully, without trusting in our labor, but rather, relying on God and God’s grace. Anxious searchings of the heart about advancing in perfection, and those endeavors to see if we are advancing, are not at all pleasing to God, and only serve to satisfy our own self-love, that subtle tormentor who grasps at so much but accomplishes so very little. One single good work, done with tranquil spirit, is worth far more than many done with anxious eagerness.”

Paying homage to Jesus –– showing special respect and honor in public –– is measured less by grandiose feats and more by simple, ordinary actions performed with great attention and intention. Paying homage to Jesus is less about a multiplicity of good deeds and more about fully immersing ourselves in each moment of each day as it comes. Paying homage to Jesus is less about trying to prove to Jesus how worthy we are and more about accepting our need for God and the actions of God’s grace in our lives. Paying homage to Jesus is less about prostrating ourselves before him and more about standing up for all that is righteous, peaceful, liberating and just.

How might our experiences this day –– and especially, the people whom we encounter in those experiences –– be inviting us to pay homage to Christ? The answer - by paying special honor and respect to one another - one, single good work at a time.

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(January 3, 2022: The Most Holy Name of Jesus)
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“They brought to him all who were sick with various diseases and racked with pain…who were possessed…paralytics…and he cured them.”

“A disease is an abnormal condition affecting the body of an organism. It may be caused by external factors or it may be caused by internal dysfunctions. In humans, ‘disease’ is often used more broadly to refer to any condition that causes pain, dysfunction, distress, social problems, or death to the person afflicted, or similar problems for those in contact with the person. In this broader sense, it sometimes includes injuries, disabilities, disorders, syndromes, infections, isolated symptoms, deviant behaviors, and atypical variations of structure and function, while in other contexts and for other purposes these may be considered distinguishable categories. Diseases usually affect people not only physically, but also emotionally, as contracting and living with many diseases can alter one’s perspective on life, and their personality.”

“People use metaphors to make sense of their experiences with disease. The metaphors move disease from an objective thing that exists to an affective experience. The most popular metaphors draw on military concepts: Disease is an enemy that must be feared, fought, battled, and routed. The patient or the healthcare provider is a warrior, rather than a passive victim or bystander. The agents of communicable diseases are invaders; non-communicable diseases constitute internal insurrection or civil war.”

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disease) Look at the word closely: “dis-ease.” Dis-ease, then, is anything – be it physical, emotional, psychological, social, spiritual, material – that causes pain, discomfort, agitation, anxiety or distress. The Gospel reminds us that Jesus stands ready to receive any – and all – “dis-eases” with which we – or others we know – are afflicted. Jesus has the power to put us – or others we know – at ease. How might Jesus put you “at ease” today? How might you imitate His example by doing the same for others? *****
(January 4, 2022: Elizabeth Ann Seton, Religious)
***** “Beloved, let us love one another, because love is of God; everyone who loves is begotten by God and knows God. In his book This Saint’s for You, Thomas Craughwell writes:

“For two hundred years American parochial schools have provided countless children with a solid education while teaching them how to be faithful Catholics and solid citizens. While parish schools aren’t as numerous as they once were – to say nothing of the legions of nuns that used to teach in them – the situation is not nearly as daunting as it was in Elizabeth Ann Seton’s day.”

“Mother Seton’s life coincides with the birth of the United States and the rise of the Catholic Church in America. She was born one year before the battles of Lexington and Concord, during an era when Catholicism was outlawed in every colony except Maryland. In British America, there were no bishops, no nuns, no Catholic schools and no seminaries. Only about twenty priests lived in the colonies, most living incognito and using aliases to avoid hard anti-clerical laws. For her part she grew up the daughter of a prominent, well-to-do Anglican family on Staten Island. During the revolution they walked a fine line between loyalty to the king and support for the rebels. Whatever her family’s true sympathies may have been, they were firmly in the American camp by the time George Washington was elected president: in fact, the then-fifteen year-old Elizabeth danced at the first inaugural ball.”

“At the age on nineteen she married William Seton, a wealthy New York merchant. The couple had five children – three girls and two boys – and enjoyed a life of comfort and privilege. After eight years of marriage, William’s business went bankrupt: shortly thereafter, he contracted tuberculosis. In an attempt to save William’s health, the Setons sailed for Italy, where William had business friends, the Filicchi family. He subsequently succumbed to his chronic illness. Elizabeth and her children remained as guests of the Filicchi’s for some time. Their hosts owned a private chapel that provided Elizabeth with her first exposure to the Catholic faith, about which two things impressed this widowed mother: the Filicchi’s reverence during Mass, and the comfort they appeared to receive from confession. Upon her return to New York, Elizabeth sought out the pastor of a local Catholic Church and asked to convert to Catholicism.”

“With few exceptions, Elizabeth’s Anglican family and friends turned their backs on her following her conversion. She struggled to support herself and her children until Bishop John Carroll invited her to open a Catholic school in the archdiocese of Baltimore. It was during this time that she began to consider joining a religious community. However, the European model of religious life – living a mostly cloistered life with only a few hours per day devoted to teaching girls who boarded at the convent – did not appeal to her. With so much work begging to be done for the Catholic Church in America, Elizabeth wanted to be much more active. With Bishop Carroll’s encouragement, she founded a new community of sisters dedicated to the work of Catholic education: the Sisters of Charity. They opened America’s first parish school in Emmitsburg, Maryland on February 22, 1810.”

“The system established by Mother Seton conveyed the faith from generation to generation; it eased the passage of Catholic immigrants into American society; it served as the seedbed for countless vocations to the priesthood and the religious life. Her teaching order offered a new model for religious women – sisters who were ‘in the world, but not of it.’ In the history of the Catholic Church in America, Mother Seton was – and continues to be – an indispensible woman.” (This Saint’s for You, pp. 99-100)

Elizabeth Ann Seton followed God’s commandment to love by founding a community of religious women who dedicated their lives to parochial education: teaching children – many of them immigrants – how to be faithful Catholics and solid citizens. How might we follow her example of love today?

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(January 5, 2022: John Neumann, Bishop)
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“If we love one another, God remains in us, and his love is brought to perfection in us.

In attempting to describe the “love of God”, Francis de Sales wrote the following in his Treatise on the Love of God:

“This is not a love which natural powers – whether of angels or of men – can produce. It is the Holy Spirit who pours it into our hearts. Just as our souls which give life to our bodies do not take their origin from our bodies but are placed in our bodies by God’s natural providence, so also charity – that is, the love of God – which gives life to our hearts is not extracted from our hearts but is poured into them like a heavenly liquor by the supernatural providence of His divine majesty…We don’t love our parents because they belong to us; we love them because we belong to them. It is thus that we love and desire God: not that He may become our good, but because He is our good; not that He may become ours but because we are His. It is not as though He exists for us: we exist for Him.” (Living Jesus, p. 207; 209-210)

When we describe the “love of God,” we need to be crystal clear that the “love of God” is not about something we do for God. No, the “love of God” is all about God and God’s love for us. That said, it says a great deal about God when we consider that God would share this most divine of gifts with us. What return can we possibly make to God for empowering each of us with so wonderful a gift? The truth is we can’t return it. However, we can share it!

Consider what John Neumann did with the love that God had for him!

“This ‘American’ saint was born in Bohemia in 1811. He was looking forward to being ordained in 1835 when the bishop decided there would be no more ordinations: Bohemia was overstocked with priests. John wrote to bishops all over Europe but the story was the same everywhere: no one needed any more priests. But John didn’t give up. He had learned English by working in a factory with English-speaking workers so he wrote to the bishops in America. Finally, Bishop John Dubois of New York agreed to ordain him but John would have to leave his home forever and travel across the ocean to a new and rugged land. He was ordained the following year.”

“In New York, John was one of 36 priests for 200,000 Catholics. John’s parish in western New York stretched from Lake Ontario to Pennsylvania. His church had no steeple or floor but that didn’t matter insofar as John spent most days traveling from village to village anyway, climbing mountains to visit the sick, staying in garrets and taverns to teach, and celebrating the Mass at kitchen tables. Because of the work and the isolation associated with his remote outpost, John longed for community. In 1840, with the permission of Dubois, he applied to join the Redemptorist Fathers, was accepted, and entered their novitiate at St. Philomena's in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He was their first candidate in the New World. He took his vows as a member of the Congregation in Baltimore, Maryland, in January 1842. After six years of difficult but fruitful work, he was appointed as the Provincial Superior for the United States. Neumann became naturalized citizen on 10 February 1848. John was appointed bishop of Philadelphia in 1852. As bishop, he was the first to organize a diocesan Catholic school system: he increased the number of Catholic schools in his diocese from two to one hundred.”

“Neumann actively invited religious institutes to establish new houses within the diocese. In 1855, he supported the foundation of a congregation of religious sisters in the city, the Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia. He brought the School Sisters of Notre Dame from Germany to assist in religious instruction and staffing an orphanage. He also intervened to save the Oblate Sisters of Providence, a congregation for African-American women, from dissolution. Neumann's efforts to expand the Catholic Church were not without opposition. The Know Nothings, an anti-Catholic political party representing descendants of earlier immigrants to North America, was at the height of its activities. They set fire to convents and schools. Discouraged, Neumann wrote to Rome asking to be replaced as bishop, but Pope Pius IX insisted that he continue.”

“John never lost his love and concern for the people—something that may have bothered the elite of Philadelphia. On one visit to a rural parish, the parish priest picked him up in a manure wagon. Seated on a plank stretched over the wagon’s contents, John joked, ‘Have you ever seen such an entourage for a bishop!’ The ability to learn languages that had brought John to America enabled him to learn enough Spanish, French, Italian, and Dutch to hear confessions in, at least, six languages. When the a wave of Irish immigration reached American shores, John learned Gaelic so well that one Irish woman remarked, ‘Isn’t it grand that we have an Irish bishop!’ John Neumann died of a stroke on January 5, 1860 at the age of 48.” (http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=70)

John Neumann clearly demonstrated that he belonged to God by creating places in which people felt that they also belonged. Today, how might we imitate him in our attempts to belong to God by loving our neighbor?

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(January 6, 2022: Andre Besette, Religious)
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“In this way we know that we love the children of God when we love God and obey his commandments.”

The life and legacy of Andre Bessette offers us a concrete example of what it looks like to “”love the children of God”:

“When Alfred Bessette came to the Holy Cross Brothers in 1870, he carried with him a note from his pastor saying, ‘I am sending you a saint.’ The Brothers found that difficult to believe. Chronic stomach pains had made it impossible for Alfred to hold a job very long and since he was a boy, he had wandered from shop to shop, farm to farm, in his native Canada and in the United States, staying only until his employers found out how little work he could do. The Holy Cross Brothers were teachers and, at 25, Alfred still did not know how to read and write. It seemed as if Alfred approached the religious order out of desperation, not for a vocation.”

“He may have had no place left to go, but he believed that was because this was the place he felt he should have been all along. The Holy Cross Brothers took him into the novitiate but soon found out what everybody else had learned - as hard as Alfred (now Brother Andre) wanted to work, he simply wasn't strong enough. They asked him to leave the order, but Andre, out of desperation, appealed to a visiting bishop who promised him that he would intercede on his behalf with the brothers so that Andre could stay and take his vows.”

“After his vows, Brother Andre was sent to Notre Dame College in Montreal (a school for boys aged seven to twelve) as a porter. His responsibilities were to answer the door, to welcome guests, find the people they were visiting, wake up those in the school, and deliver mail. Through kindness, caring, and devotion, Brother Andre helped many souls experience healing – in many documented cases, including physical healings.”

“As if that were not enough, in 1904 Bro. Andre received permission to construct a small chapel dedicated to St. Joseph, to whom he had a life-long devotion. By the 1930’s he had inaugurated the construction of a basilica on the highest point of the city on Montreal, but the Depression all-but-brought the project to a halt. At ninety-years old he told his co-workers to place a statue of St. Joseph in the unfinished, unroofed basilica. Brother Andre died soon after on January 6, 1937 and didn't live to see the work on the basilica completed. But in Brother Andre's mind it never would be completed because he always saw more ways to express his devotion and to heal others. As long as he lived, the man who had trouble keeping work for himself had never stopped working for God.”

“On December 19, 2009, Pope Benedict XVI promulgated a decree recognizing a second miracle at Blessed André's intercession and on October 17, 2010, Pope Benedict XVI formally declared sainthood for Andre. (http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=18)”

As Bro. Andre did, we need to be tenacious in our daily attempts to “love the children of God.” One of the simplest ways of loving one another is also one of the most powerful: by extending welcome.

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(January 7, 2022: Raymond of Penyafort, Priest)
***** “Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar by not believing the testimony God has given about his Son.” In a sermon, Francis de Sales observed:

“The Commandment to love the neighbor is new, then, for the reason just given; that is, because Our Lord came to renew it, indicating that He wished it to be better observed that it had ever been before. It is new also because it is as if the Savior had resuscitated it, just as we can call a man a new man who has been restored to life from death. The Commandment has been so neglected that it must have seemed never to have been given inasmuch as there were so few who remembered it, to say nothing of those who practiced it. Thus, Our Lord gave it again. And He wants it to be as if it were a new thing, a new Commandment, one that is practiced faithfully and fervently. He wants it so renewed so that everybody should love one another.” (Living Jesus, p. 249-250)

We can never be reminded enough of this “new” Commandment that Jesus preached in word and in deed: “Love one another, as I have loved you.” To observe this Commandment is to live in the truth. Of course, Jesus’ “new” Commandment also infers that if we claim to love God while hating our brother (or sister), we are liars; or worse yet, we make God a liar. *****
(January 8, 2022: Christmas Weekday)
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“Be on your guard against idols...”

“‘Idolatry’ is a pejorative term for the worship of an idol, a physical object such as a cult image, as a god or practices believed to verge on worship, such as giving undue honor and regard to created forms other than God. In all the Abrahamic religions idolatry is strongly forbidden, although views as to what constitutes idolatry may differ within and between them. In other religions the use of cult images is accepted, although the term ‘idolatry’ is unlikely to be used within the religion, being inherently disapproving. Which images, ideas, and objects constitute idolatry is often a matter of considerable contention, and within all the Abrahamic religions the term may be used in a very wide sense, with no implication that the behavior objected to actually consists of the religious worship of a physical object. In addition, theologians have extended the concept to include giving undue importance to aspects of religion other than God, or to non-religious aspects of life in general, with no involvement of images specifically. For example, the Catechism of the Catholic Church states: ‘Idolatry not only refers to false pagan worship. Man commits idolatry whenever he honors and reveres a creature in place of God, whether this be gods, or demons (for example Satanism), power, pleasure, race, ancestors, the state, money, etc.’” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Idolatry)

Odds are slim that any of us actually worship craven images in our homes, offices or places of worship. However, there are other ways of practicing idolatry. What might we be tempted to worship in this life? The list might include: our time, our talents, our opinions, our way of doing or seeing things, our appearance, our popularity or our plans!

Today, be on your guard against idols…whatever and wherever they may be!

---

spirituality Matters: December 25th - January 1st

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(December 26, 2021: Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph)
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“God’s chosen ones...”

Today’s selection from the Book of Sirach certainly shares in the spirit of the Fourth Commandment: “Honor your mother and father.” The reading is telling us that our relationships with others - especially those with whom we share so much time and contact every day - are the primary expression of the disposition of our hearts, minds, affections and attitudes.

The selection from the Letter to the Colossians confronts us with the gift - and the challenge - of creating that ‘space’ we call ‘family’ a space in which we first learn something of what it means to be sons and daughters of God. As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, we must clothe ourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness and patience. Insofar as a holy life is not the same as a stress-free or trouble-free life (just look at the life, especially the very early life, of Jesus, Mary and Joseph), we all need to practice these virtues all the time with the hope of establishing, maintaining and strengthening family, especially - God forbid - when we ruffle, distract or disappoint one another.

Francis de Sales calls us to live a life of devotion in ways that fit the demands and responsibilities of the state and stage of life in which we find ourselves. What is a devout life? It is nothing more (but more demanding) than doing what is right in the eyes of God, and in relation to one another, carefully, frequently and diligently. It is precisely in the vocation in which we find ourselves, especially in those roles so basic as mother, father, brother, sister, wife, husband, son or daughter that we must practice the devout life.

Francis de Sales tells us:

“The little, unattractive and hardly noticeable virtues which are required of us in our household, our place of work, among friends, with strangers, any time and all the time, these are the virtues for us.” (Introduction, Part III, Chapter 2).

Of course, the most important virtue to practice is that of love, which not only reconciles, but also purifies and, dare we say, even glorifies the best of human relationships. It is only in relationship with one another that the practice of the little, everyday virtues flowers into love, not only helping to create a better life here on earth, but also providing a foretaste of the eternal life promised to us in heaven.

As we celebrate the Feast of The Holy Family, we realize that we actually know very little about the day-to-day give-and-take of relationships among Jesus, Mary and Joseph. Family life – a hidden life – is a way of life that requires both science and art. Considering Jesus’ fidelity to - and consistency in - his pursuit of justice, peace, reconciliation and freedom, we certainly can sense where Jesus first acquired as a child so many of the skills he would later practice in his adult life.

After all, charity, peace, justice, forgiveness - like so many things - begin at home.

*****
(December 27, 2021: St. John, Apostle and Evangelist)
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“The life was made visible...”

In his book This Saint’s for You, Thomas Craughwell writes:

“Among the twelve apostles, Christ’s three closest friends were Peter, James the Greater and John. Within this inner circle, John was the Lord’s favorite, the one referred to as ‘the beloved disciple’ in St. John’s Gospel. By tradition, John is also believed to have been the youngest of the apostles, perhaps barely out of his teens when he followed Christ. After Jesus was arrested, John was the only one of the apostles who remained with him. He witnessed Christ’s trial before Pontius Pilate, followed him as he carried the cross through the streets of Jerusalem, stood at the foot of the cross with the Blessed Virgin Mary, and helped take Christ’s body off the cross and lay it in the tomb. Before dying, Christ rewarded his most loyal friend by placing Mary in John’s care.”

“Initially John preached in Jerusalem but then moved to Ephesus, the greatest city in the eastern Roman Empire. A tradition that dates to at least the second century says that John took Mary with him. Amid the ruins of Ephesus stands a little stone house believed to have been Mary’s home. St. John died peacefully at age ninety-four, the only one of the apostles who was not martyred. Sparing him a violent death may have been Christ’s last gift to his best friend.” (This Saint’s for You, p. 193)

John knew it. Peter and James knew it. Countless of the people who encountered Jesus during his life on this earth knew it. We, too, can know it.

What a friend we have in Jesus!

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(December 28, 2021: The Holy Innocents, Martyrs)
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“A voice was heard in Ramah, sobbing and loud lamentation…”

In his book This Saint’s for You, Thomas Craughwell writes:

“Even in the Christmas story, there is a touch of tragedy: the massacre of the infant boys in Bethlehem. St. Matthew’s Gospel records that when the Magi stopped in Jerusalem to ask the whereabouts of the King of the Jews, Herod, the king of Judea, sent them to Bethlehem with instructions to return once they had found the Christ Child so that he, too, could pay homage. Warned by an angel that Herod was up to no good, the Magi returned home via a route that bypassed the city and its conniving king.”

“Once Herod realized the Magi were on to him, he sent troops to Bethlehem with orders to kill every boy aged two and younger. But the same angel warned Joseph to take Mary and Jesus to Egypt for safety. By the time Herod’s troops charged into the village, the Holy Family was long gone. No one knows how many babies were massacred that day.” (This Saint’s for You, pp. 134-135)

It is sometimes said that there is no such thing as a ‘secret’ sin. By its very nature sin is a social animal. Every sin – however public or private – impacts not only the person who commits it but also other people – often times, innocent people – as well. The Holy Innocents suffered because of one man’s sin. These children - collateral damage - died because of Herod’s personal envy, professional greed and narcissistic paranoia. As the poet Prudentius wrote:

All hail, ye infant martyr flowers

Cut off in life’s first dawning hours:

As rosebuds snapped in tempest strife,

When Herod sought your Savior’s life.

What about us? Who are the ‘innocents’ in our lives who are impacted by the personal or ‘private’ sins we commit? *****
(December 29, 2021: Thomas Becket, Bishop and Martyr)
***** “And you yourself a sword will pierce…” In his book This Saint’s for You, Thomas Craughwell writes:

“Nothing in Thomas Becket’s early life suggested that he would become a defender of the liberty of the Church, to say nothing of becoming a martyr. He was a shrewd administrator with a special talent for making money. He proved to be the ideal royal servant: whatever King Henry II wanted done, Becket accomplished. When the old archbishop died, Henry took it upon himself to name the new archbishop rather than wait for the pope to do so: thinking he would be the perfect choice, Henry chose Becket. With one of his closest friends as archbishop of Canterbury, Henry believed that he could extend his royal authority over the Church in England.”

“Turned out, Henry was wrong.”

“Once Thomas was consecrated archbishop of Canterbury, he became a changed man. He did penance to make up for years of careless living. The man who had once refused to clothe one freezing beggar now gave lavishly to the poor. We don’t know if Henry noticed the change that had come over his friend, but when the king made his first move against the Church it became clear that Becket would not be the puppet archbishop for which Henry had hoped. In their first disagreement, Henry argued that priests who committed crimes were treated too leniently by Church courts, and they should submit to the civil courts of England. Becket replied that laymen did not have jurisdiction over clergymen. Stung by Becket’s opposition, Henry brought a host of false charges against his one-time friend. He had Becket indicted for squandering royal funds and even accused the archbishop of treason. Death threats from the king’s men followed, prompting Becket to flee to France for fear of losing his life.”

“For the next six years Henry and Becket jockeyed for position, each trying to win the pope’s support. In the end a truce was worked out, allowing Becket to return home to Canterbury, although the central issue of the Church’s liberty remained unresolved. When Becket subsequently excommunicated bishops who had both supported Henry and also infringed on the prerogatives of the archbishop of Canterbury, Henry threw one of his infamous tantrums, ending by crying aloud, ‘Will no one relieve me of this troublesome priest?’ Four of the king’s knights – bitter enemies of Becket – set out at once for Canterbury where they confronted Becket in his own cathedral. When Becket refused to give in to all of Henry’s demands, the knights hacked the archbishop to death at the foot of the altar.”

“The shock of Becket’s murder reverberated across Europe. Henry submitted to public penance, letting the monks of Canterbury flog him as he knelt before his former-friend’s tomb. St. Thomas Becket quarreled with his king over the liberty of the Church, but throughout the entire ordeal it was the rights of the diocesan clergy that had hung in the balance…and for which Becket gave his life.” (This Saint’s for You, pp. 134-135)

Just as in the case of Jesus, Thomas stood his ground when confronted by the face of injustice. Just as in the case of Jesus, Thomas ultimately gave his life to protect – and promote – the freedom and liberty of others. Just as Jesus was pierced by a lance, so Thomas was pierced by a sword.

How far would we go in standing up to the face of injustice…just today?

*****
(December 30, 2021: Thursday, Octave of Christmas)
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“Do not love the world or the things of the world. The world and its enticement are passing away. But whoever does the will of God remains forever.”

This statement sounds pretty harsh, doesn’t it? Insofar as the world and so many things of the world are gifts from a loving God, should we not appreciate them? Should we not celebrate and cherish them? Should we – dare we say it – love the world and the things of this world? In his Introduction to the Devout Life, Francis de Sales wrote:

“When our worldly goods cleave to our hearts, what complaints, what trouble and what impatience do we experience if a storm, a thief or a cheat should take away from us any part of our possessions! When our goods do not cleave to our hearts and we think about them only because of the care as God wants us to have for them, then we won’t lose reason or peace of mind if or when they are taken from us.”

He continued:

“If you are too strongly attached to the goods of the world that you possess, if you are too solicitous about them, if you set your heart on them, if you are always thinking about them and if you fear losing them with a strong, anxious fear, then believe me…you love them too much. It is impossible to take great please in a thing without having extraordinary affection for it.” (IDL, II, Chapter 6, p. 116)

Pay close attention to what Francis de Sales is saying. While he isn’t suggesting that we should hate the world (it is, after all, a gift from God that God has commissioned us to care for and cultivate!), Francis is encouraging us to make a subtle – but lifesaving – distinction. We should take great delight in the world and many things of this world, but we should reserve our love for relationships alone – our relationships with God, with others and with ourselves. Even as we possess things, we should do our level best to prevent those things from possessing us. Put another way, while celebrating the manifold gifts of creation during the course of our lives on earth, we should remind ourselves from time to time that we can’t take them with us into heaven – with one exception, of course.

Love!

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(December 31, 2021: New Year’s Eve)
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An Exhortation by St. Jane de Chantal on the Beginning of a New Year

We are about to bring another year to an end, a year like so many years which have come before it. Time passes by. The years come and go, and some day we, likewise, will pass and come to an end as well. We must make a strong and absolute resolution that, if Our Lord should gift us with yet another full year, we will make better use of it than those years that have come – and gone – before. Let us walk with a new step in God’s divine service to our neighbor and to our greater perfection. Let us take great courage to labor in earnest.

Please take this to heart. What is the point of being gifted with a new year if not to recommit ourselves to the task at hand? Otherwise, we should not be astonished to find ourselves in the same place at the conclusion of this year with little or nothing to show for it. I desire that this not happen to you; rather, consider how you can make good use of every day that God is pleased to give you. Let us embrace the responsibilities and challenges of life in the best way that we can; let us employ the time that God gives us with great care. While we hope in God’s divine goodness, may we also remember to aspire to actually do what is good.

So, then, let us live this New Year in the name of our Lord. Let us redouble our efforts at serving God and one another faithfully, especially in small and simple ways. God only expects what we can do, but what we can do God clearly expects. Therefore, let us be diligent in giving our best to God, leaving the rest in the hands of God’s infinite generosity.

(Based upon St. Jane de Chantal’s Exhortation for the last Saturday of 1629, On the Shortness of Life. Found in Conferences of St. Jane de Chantal. Newman Bookshop: Westminster, Maryland. 1947. Pages 106 – 107)

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(January 1, 2021: Mary, Mother of God)
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“The Lord bless you and keep you! The Lord let his face shine upon you and be gracious to you! The Lord look upon you kindly and give you peace!”

In his Introduction to the Devout Life, Francis de Sales wrote:

“Honor, venerate and respect with special love the holy and glorious Virgin Mary who, being the Mother of Jesus Christ our Brother, is also in truth our very mother. Let us then have recourse to her, and as her little children cast ourselves into her bosom with perfect confidence, at all times and on all occasions let us invoke her maternal love whilst striving to imitate her virtues…” (Living Jesus, p. 224)

As we begin another New Year, let us rededicate our lives to the glorious Virgin Mary. Let us honor, venerate and respect her. Let us turn to her. Let us have confidence in her. Let us invoke her maternal love while striving to imitate her virtues. For her part, may Mary – Mother of Jesus – help us in our efforts every day during this New Year to be worthy brothers and sisters of her Son. And in so doing, may God bless us and keep us. May the Lord let his face shine upon us and be gracious to us. May the Lord look upon us kindly and give us peace!

~OR~

“Mary treasured all these things and reflected on them in her heart.”

“Look at Mary in all the circumstances of her life. In her room at Nazareth, she shows her modesty in that she is afraid, her candor in wanting to be instructed and in asking a question, her submission, her humility in calling herself a handmaid. Look at her in Bethlehem: she lives simply and in poverty, she listens to the shepherds as though they were learned doctors. Look at her in the company of the kings: she does not try to make any long speeches. Look at her at the time of her purification: she goes to the temple in order to conform to church customs. In going to Egypt and in returning she is simply obeying Joseph. She does not consider she is wasting time when she goes to visit her cousin Elizabeth as an act of loving courtesy. She looks for Our Lord not only in joy but also in tears. She has compassion on the poverty and confusion of those who invited her to the wedding, meeting their needs. She is at the foot of the cross, full of humility, lowliness, virtue, never drawing any attention to herself in the exercise of these qualities.” (Stopp, Selected Letters, page 159)

When Mary agreed to be the mother of Jesus, she got much more than she bargained for. Her ‘yes’ to God’s invitation to be the mother of the Messiah forever changed the course of her life. But as Francis de Sales observed, she constantly reaffirmed that ‘yes’ as she experienced God’s will for her son, God’s will for her husband and God’s will for her. In good times, bad times and all the times in between, she fully embraced the various circumstances in which she found herself.

We, too, are called to give birth to Jesus. While not a physical birthing, this call is no less challenging or demanding to us as it was for Mary.

As we see in the life of Mary, giving birth to Jesus is not a one time event. It is a life-long process. Saying ‘yes’ to giving birth to Jesus is about being faithful to God’s will for us and others - one day, one hour, one moment at a time throughout our lives. Giving birth to Jesus is about fully and deeply embracing the responsibilities, events and circumstances of the state and stage of life in which we find ourselves. It’s about rolling with the punches while remaining convinced of God’s love and care for us.

Mary is a powerful reminder that giving birth to Jesus brings more than its share of inconveniences, headaches and heartaches. However, Mary is likewise a powerful reminder of how one person’s fidelity to God’s will can change the world for the better.

Forever!

Spirituality Matters: December 19th - December 25th

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(December 19, 2021: Fourth Sunday of Advent)
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“Mary set out and traveled in haste.”

The angel Gabriel's greeting to Mary contained 2 discrete, yet related, messages: (1) Mary would be the mother of the long-expected Messiah, and (2) her cousin Elizabeth had conceived a child. No sooner has Mary said ‘yes’ to the invitation to be the mother of the Messiah than she is off "in haste" to visit her cousin.

In a very real sense, long before she actually delivered the child, who would redeem the world from the hopelessness and despair of sin, Mary was already giving birth to the Messiah through her own willingness and eagerness to serve the needs of another. In this case, a relative who, because of her age, might have been considered a woman with a "high risk" pregnancy.

On the face of it, there is nothing noteworthy about Mary's action. After all, wouldn't any decent human being do the same for a relative in need? What makes Mary's service remarkable is the urgency with which she did it. She truly is a model of virtue, one who clearly demonstrates in her own life that the best way of saying "thank you" for God's goodness to her is to be a source of that goodness to others.

St. Francis de Sales observed:

“Mary does not consider that she is wasting time when she goes to visit her cousin Elizabeth. No, it is an act of loving courtesy.” (Stopp, Selected Letters, p. 159)

In her ‘haste’ to serve Elizabeth, Mary shows us the path of true devotion. Francis de Sales continues:

“God rewards us according to the dignity of the office we exercise. I do not say that we may not aspire to the outstanding virtues, but I do say that we must train ourselves in the little virtues first without which the great ones are often false and deceptive.”

Advent reminds us that the great hope for which we all long is built upon the foundation of little, simple, ordinary things: kindness, graciousness, welcome, patience, honesty, hospitality and compassion. Mary shows us that even the most singular demonstrations of God's love for us, first and foremost, challenge us to recognize the opportunities already present in our ordinary lives to devote our energies in promoting the welfare of one another.

Like Mary, may we come to see that our willingness to do little things for one another with great love and enthusiasm - to display “loving courtesy” - is the first step in our ultimate vocation: to give birth to the Great Promise of God's love for all people - Jesus Christ.

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(December 20, 2021: Monday, Fourth Week of Advent)
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Mary said: “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.”

In God Desires You: St. Francis de Sales on Living the Gospel, author Eunan McDonnell, SDB, tells us:

“…Jesus praises the poor in spirit. He encourages a childlike attitude towards God our Father and openness to receive in faith. What is required is a childlike simplicity that can speak the ‘yes’. This is Mary’s childlike response to the angel when she says, ‘Let what you have said be done to me’. In this manner she lives the maxim ‘ask for nothing, refuse nothing’. She is open to receive what God desires to give, his love.” (pgs. 130-131)

Simple words, but Mary’s childlike ‘yes’ is anything but simple. It calls upon Mary, and upon each one of us with Mary as our model, to trust beyond all measure in the love and mercy of our Father. It invites each of us to know in our “heart of hearts” that God truly desires us and desires to fill us with abounding love. In our willingness to be open to this desire “being filled”, it calls us to empty ourselves and to leave behind all that takes up space in our hearts, leaving open space for God’s presence. McDonnell writes:

“What is required is true emptiness which is to be found in the anawim to which Mary belongs. A complete and utter dependence on God. An emptiness of heart that allows God to shower it with his abundance. Mary and those who imitate her emptiness, put up no barrier to the generosity of God who loves to give. Poor in spirit, she offers empty space which can be inhabited by God.” (Ibid)

In all of this utter dependence on God, we sense the living out of Advent, this time of waiting patiently with an openness to God’s word being “done to me”. Francis de Sales says of Mary, she is “the morning star which brings us gracious news of the advent of the true sun”. (Oeuvres IX:5) Mary lives out her advent. We wait with Mary. *****
(December 21, 2021: Peter Canisius, Priest/Doctor of the Church)
***** Where did we ever get the notion that being wise requires us to be know-it-alls? Why reinvent the wheel when you don’t have to do so? Why start from scratch when it isn’t necessary? We might say that these situations also apply to St. Francis de Sales himself as today we celebrate the life and legacy of St. Peter Canisius, SJ, a Dutchman and contemporary of the “Gentleman Saint” who became a prominent force as a missionary in Counter-Reformation Germany. In defending the Church’s teaching on Purgatory against the critique of John Calvin, Francis de Sales remarked:

“It is a beautiful thing - and one full of consolation - to see the perfect correspondence which the present Church has with the ancients, particularly in belief. Let us mention what supports our position concerning Purgatory. All the ancient fathers believed in it and have testified that it was of the Apostolic faith. Here are the authors we have for it…It would have been easy for me to bring forward their testimonies, which are accurately collected in the books of our Catholics: of Canisius, in his Catechism; of Sanders On the Visible Monarchy; of Genebrand in his Chronology; of Bellarmine in his Controversy on Purgatory; of Stapleton in his Promptuary. But particularly let those who would see at length and faithfully quoted the passages of the ancient Fathers, take up the work of Canisius…” (The Catholic Controversy, pp. 378 – 379)

What’s the point of our consideration? Wisdom isn’t about needing to know everything all by yourself. Wisdom – in part – is all about knowing where to find that which you need to know from the work already done by others.

*****
(December 22, 2015: Wednesday, Fourth Week of Advent)
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“He has looked upon his lowly servant…and has done great things for me: holy is his name.”

Mary’s great hymn – the Magnificat – is a testimony to her profound sense of humility. But her humility – her sense of being a “lowly servant” – should not be confused with self-deprecation. In truth, Mary’s humility has a lot less to do with her nothingness and a lot more to do with God’s ‘everything-ness’! Mary’s humility – her being overwhelmed by the generosity of God – empowers her to generously say ‘yes’ to God’s invitation to her to become the Mother of the Messiah.

In his Conference “On Generosity,” St. Francis de Sales wrote:

“Humility which does not produce generosity is undoubtedly false, for after it has said, ‘I can do nothing, I am only absolute nothingness,’ it almost immediately gives way to generosity of spirit which says, ‘There is nothing - and there can be nothing - that I am unable to do, so long as I put all my confidence in God who can do all things.’ Buoyed up by this confidence, it courageously undertakes to do all that is commanded.” (Living Jesus, pp. 152-153)

This humility – and its corresponding spirit of generosity – describes Mary to a tee. Today, can the same be said of us?

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(December 23, 2013: John of Kanty, Priest)
***** “Lift up your heads and see: your redemption is near at hand…” In his Treatise on the Love of God, Francis de Sales wrote:

“God displays in a marvelous manner the incomprehensible riches of his power in the vast array of things that we see in nature, but he causes the infinite treasures of his goodness to show forth in an even more magnificent way in the unparalleled variety that we see in grace. In a holy excess of mercy, God is not content in solely with granting to his people, that is, to the human race, a general or universal redemption whereby everyone can be saved. God has diversified redemption in many ways, so that while God’s generosity shines forth in all this variety, the variety itself, in turn, adds beauty to his generosity…” (TLG, II, Chapter 6, p. 116)

What a powerful statement: God’s redemption is not generic; it is not one-size-fits-all. God redeems us personally; God redeems us individually; God redeems us by name. In the next-to-last chapter of his Treatise, Francis remarked:

“Consider how Jesus took on the task of redeeming us by his death, ‘even to death upon a cross’. The Savior’s soul knew each of us by name and surname…” (XII, Ch. 121, p. 280)

So, when we pray the words of the psalmist, your redemption, those words really mean your redemption. They do not mean someone else’s redemption - not the redemption of the person to your right or left, not the salvation of folks before or behind you.

Yours!!

So, lift up your head; lift up your heart! See your redemption near at hand…a redemption – a gift – that is crafted specifically for you and out of love for you by the same God who created and redeems you by name.

*****
(December 24, 2015: Friday, Fourth Week of Advent)
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“Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; he has come to his people and set them free…”

On the subject of freedom – of liberty – Francis de Sales wrote:

“Our free will is never as free as when it is a slave to God’s will, just as it is never as servile as when it serves our own will. It never has so much life as when it dies to self, and never so much death as when it lives to itself. We have the liberty to do good and evil, but to choose evil is not to use but to abuse this liberty. Let us renounce such wretched liberty and subject forever our free will to the rule of heavenly love. Let us become slaves to dilection, whose serfs are happier than kings. If our souls should ever will to use their liberty against our resolutions to serve God eternally and without reserve, Oh, then, for love of God, let us sacrifice our free will and make it die to itself so that it may live in God! A man who out of self-love wishes to keep his freedom in this world shall lose it in the next world, and he who shall lose it in this world for the love of God shall keep it for that same love in the next world. He who keeps his liberty in this world shall find it a serf and a slave in the other world, whereas he who makes it serve the cross in this world shall have it free in the other world: for there, when he is absorbed in enjoyment of God’s goodness, his liberty will be converted into love and love into liberty, a liberty infinitely sweet. Without effort, without pain, and without any struggle we shall unchangingly and forever love the Creator and Savior of our souls.” (Treatise 12: 10, pp- 277-278)

One of the greatest gifts that God gives us is freedom. But in the Salesian tradition, freedom is not about merely having the power to do either good or bad; freedom is not simply the ability to do right or to do wrong. On the contrary, Salesian liberty – the gift of divine freedom – is the power to be our best selves, to be good people, and to do good things…in imitation of the image and likeness of God’s Son and our Brother, Jesus Christ. Francis de Sales observed:

“The first thing we ask of God (in the Lord’s Prayer) is that God’s name be hallowed, that his kingdom may come and that his will be done on earth as it is in heaven. What else can this be but the spirit of liberty?”

How can we practice this heavenly freedom in our relationships with each other on this earth? Francis de Sales noted:

“In all other things which are neither commanded nor forbidden, let each one abound in one’s own sense: that is, let each person enjoy and use one’s liberty, without judging or interfering with others who do not do as one does, or trying to persuade others that one’s ways are the best.” (Conferences I: p. 13)

Let us be who we are and be that in perfect freedom. Let us give others the freedom they need to do the same. What a great gift to give at Christmas time…and, at any time…to others!.

*****
(December 24, 2015: Vigil of the Nativity of the Lord)
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“The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ…”

“Genealogy (from Greek: γενεά, genea, “generation”; and λόγος, logos, “knowledge”) is the study of families and the tracing of their lineages and history. Genealogists use oral traditions, historical records, genetic analysis, and other records to obtain information about a family and to demonstrate kinship and pedigrees of its members. The results are often displayed in charts or written as narratives. The pursuit of family history tends to be shaped by several motivations, including the desire to carve out a place for one’s family in the larger historical picture, a sense of responsibility to preserve the past for future generations, and a sense of self-satisfaction in accurate storytelling.” (Wikipedia)

Today’s opening chapter from the Gospel of Matthew is Scripture’s version of Ancestry.com. Bridging the Old and New Testaments, this chapter of Matthew outlines the “genealogy of Jesus Christ.” As such, it carves out a place for Jesus within the larger picture of salvation history. As such, it strives to preserve names from past generations for future generations. As such, it tries to tell the story of Jesus’ predecessors as accurately as possible. As such, it attempts to provide as much information it can about the kinship and pedigree of those who came before Jesus.

Many of us assume that the “genealogy of Jesus Christ” ends with Jesus Christ. We assume that the story ends with the third set of fourteen generations. Nothing could be further from the truth! The “genealogy of Jesus Christ” isn’t limited to the names of his predecessors; it continues to this very day in the names of his followers; it continues in the present generation – in the lives of people like you and me.

How can we live up to our God-given pedigree today? How can we give convincing witness of our divine kinship today? How can we demonstrate that we are sons and daughters of God – brothers and sisters of Jesus Christ – today?

~ OR ~

*****
(December 24, 2015: Vigil of the Nativity of the Lord)
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“Today is born our Savior, Christ the Lord.”

In a Christmas sermon, Francis de Sales remarked:

“What else have we to say except that the mystery of Our Lord’s Nativity is also the mystery of the Visitation. Just as the most holy Virgin was to visit her cousin Elizabeth, we, too, must go very often to visit the Divine Babe lying in the manger. There we shall learn from the sovereign Pastor of shepherds to direct, to govern and to put our flocks in order in such a way that they will be pleasing to His goodness. But as the shepherds doubtless did not go to Him without bringing Him some little lambs, we must not go there empty-handed, either. We must bring Him something. What can we bring to this Divine Shepherd more pleasing than the little lamb which is our love and which is the principal part of our spiritual flock? For love is the first. This special gift is the grace which helps us to attain what would otherwise be impossible for us: the joy and happiness of glory. Thus, in the darkness of the night Our Lord was born and appeared to us as an infant lying in a manger…” (Sermons for Advent and Christmas, p. 53)

What better gift to bring to the manger than to place our love at the service of God and one another? Oh, come, let us adore…and experience a foretaste of the joy and happiness of glory!

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(December 25, 2021: Nativity of the Lord)
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With regard to the great Solemnity of the Nativity of the Lord, Blessed Louis Brisson wrote:

“We honor the three births of Our Lord. In the case of the first we recall the eternal birth of the Son of God in the bosom of His Father; in the second, we recall His temporal birth in the stable of Bethlehem; and in the thirds, we recall His mystical both in our hearts by means of Holy Communion and His grace. The consideration of the first birth should lead us to adore the Son of God on the throne of His glory, in the endless reaches of eternity, where equal to His Father He receives the adoration of the angels and seraphim. By contrast, in Bethlehem we adore him on the throne of poverty, which is a throne of love. He hides his grandeur because he wants us to draw near him without fear.”

“Having adored Him in Heaven – having adored Him in the crib – adore Him present within you. I ask you, cross your arms across your chest where the Savior dwells after Holy Communion and say to Him, ‘I adore You in my heart. I adore You within me. You are as truly in me as You are in Heaven; You are as truly in me as You are truly in the crib where You received the adoration of the poor shepherds. You are truly within me.’” (Cor ad Cor, Part III, Chapter 36, p. 217)

We recognize Jesus at the right hand of the Father. We recognize Jesus lying in a manger. Do we recognize that same Jesus within ourselves? Do we recognize that same Jesus in others?

Merry Christmas!

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Spirituality Matters: December 12 - December 18

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(December 12, 2021: Third Sunday of Advent)
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“What should we do?”

The crowds asked John the Baptizer: "What should we do?" Such a simple question. Such a challenging question. Such a potentially life-changing question.

You and I live in a world in which the coming of Christ has already occurred. However, this world in which we live is also a place in which the possibilities of that promise have yet to be fulfilled.

What should we do? Try to fulfill it by sheer force of human will? Should we just shrug our shoulders and hope for the best?

The answer for us is the answer that John offered to the crowd two thousand years ago: “Be generous, do your job justly and don't exact from others more than they should - or can - give.” In short, following the Will of God, following the example of Jesus, cooperating with the promptings of the Spirit is not about doing more, doing extra. It is not about embracing a different vocation. It is not about being someone other than who you already are. Simply - and yet, powerfully - it is about doing more with the life that you are already living and doing more with who you are in ways that give life, justice and peace to others.

Francis de Sales passionately believed this teaching! He cautions against jumping to the conclusion that following Jesus, walking with Jesus and being Jesus for others requires that we do extra. Francis says clearly: "Be who you are. Be that well."

We all want a world that more perfectly reflects the peace, the hope, the reconciliation, the justice and righteousness of the Kingdom of God. We all want a world that more clearly embodies the fulfillment of the promise given to us in Jesus. We all want a taste here and now of the banquet that awaits us forever in heaven.

What should we do? Be generous. Do our jobs, live our lives justly. Do not take or expect from others more than they should - or cannot - give.

Be who you are. Be that well. Be who, what, why and how God creates, redeems and inspires you to be: joy to the world, joy to yourself and joy to others.

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(December 13, 2021: Lucy, Virgin and Martyr
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“Your ways, O LORD, make known to me; teach me your paths. Guide me in your truth and teach me…”

In his Introduction to the Devout Life, Francis wrote:

“When commanded to go to Rages, young Tobias said to his father, ‘I do not know the way,’ to which his father replied, ‘Go, then, and find some man to lead you.’ I say the same thing to you. Do you seriously wish to travel the road to devotion? If so, look for a good person to guide and lead you. This is the most important of all words of advice. As the devout Teresa of Avila says, ‘Although you seek God’s will, you will never find it with as much certainty as on the path of that humble obedience so highly praised and practiced by all devout writers.’ The advice of the great St. Louis gave to his son was this: ‘Choose as your guide an able and experienced person who can safely teach you the things that you must do.’”

Francis de Sales strongly believed that we should not attempt to “go it alone” in our efforts to imitate Christ, to practice devotion or to “Live Jesus.” Whether in the form of a confessor, a spiritual director, a personal coach, a friend or a combination of these, we should seek out companions to accompany us along the road of life and avoid the temptation to be lone wolves. He continued:

“‘A faithful friend,’ Holy Scripture says, ‘is a strong defense, and those who find friends have found treasure. A faithful friend is the medicine of life and immortality, and those who fear the Lord find one.’ For this reason, we must more than anything else have faithful friend who by advice and counsel guides our actions and thus protects us from the snares and deceits of the wicked one. For us, such a person will be a treasure of wisdom in affliction, sorrow and failure. Such a person will serve as medicine to ease and comfort our hearts when afflicted by spiritual sickness. Such a person will guard us from evil and make our good even better.” (IDL, Part I, Chapter 4, pp. 45 – 46)

God provides us with many means of support in our attempts to walk in God’s path.

• How often do we pause and thank our friends for helping us to be the people that God calls us be?

• How often to we thank our friends for keeping us on the straight and narrow?

• How often do we thank our friends for picking us up when we fall or for finding us when we stray?

Today, how grateful are we for having companions on the journey?

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(December 14, 2021: John of the Cross, Priest/Doctor of the Church)
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“Which of the two did his father’s will?”

Talk is cheap. One incurs no cost at all when simply saying what one will do. It is a different situation all together when it comes down to someone actually doing what they said that they would do.

There is something of both sons (from today’s Gospel) inside of each of us. It’s easy to initially ‘yes’ somebody to death, only not to follow through in the end. By contrast, it is also easy to say ‘no’ to something, only to eventually come around and follow through in the end.

Let’s face it. Sometimes we do the right thing for all the wrong reasons. Sometimes we do the right thing only as a last resort. Sometimes we do the right thing because it is the only option we have left. Sometimes, we do what we know is right against our will.

How can you do the Father’s will today? By - however reluctantly or enthusiastically - doing it, rather than merely talking about it.

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(December 15, 2021: Wednesday, Third Week of Advent)
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“Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind regain their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed the deaf hear, the dead are raised…”

These words are Jesus’ answer to the question, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?” Of course, Jesus’ words are not mere words. On the contrary, they describe the actions that Jesus is performing, the miracles he is working and the healings that he is affecting on a remarkable level.

How would we answer the question: “Does the love of God dwell within you, or should we look somewhere else?” Of course, the most powerful answer would not come in the form of words, but rather, the convincing answer would come from our actions: namely, from the practice of virtue. Francis de Sales wrote:

“Let us try sincerely, humbly and devoutly to acquire those little virtues whose conquest our Savior has set forth as the goal of our care and labor. Such are patience, meekness, self-mortification, humility, obedience, poverty, chastity, tenderness toward our neighbors, bearing with their imperfections, diligence and holy fervor.” (IDL, Part III, Chapter 2, p. 127)

What kinds of simple, everyday signs might we perform today as signs that “the one who is to come” continues to come to us, each and every day?

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(December 16, 2021: Thursday, Third Week of Advent)
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“Though the mountains leave their place and the hills be shaken, My love shall never leave you nor my covenant of peace be shaken, says the LORD, who has mercy on you.”

What comforting and reassuring words we hear in the closing verse of the selection form the Book of the Prophet Isaiah!

In his Treatise on the Love of God, Francis de Sales wrote:

“God displays in a marvelous manner the incomprehensible riches of his power in the vast array of things that we see in nature, but he causes the infinite treasures of his goodness to show forth in an even more magnificent way in the unparalleled variety that we see in grace. In a holy excess of mercy, God is not content in solely with granting to his people, that is, to the human race, a general or universal redemption whereby everyone can be saved. God has diversified redemption in many ways, so that while God’s generosity shines forth in all this variety, the variety itself, in turn, adds beauty to his generosity…” TLG, II, Chapter 6, p. 116)

What a powerful statement! God’s mercy is not generic, and it is not one-size-fits-all. God’s mercy is directed toward each one of us personally, individually and by name. In the next-to-last chapter of his Treatise, Francis remarked:

“Consider how Jesus took on the task of redeeming us by his death, ‘even to death upon a cross’. The Savior’s soul knew each of us by name and surname…” (XII, Ch. 121, p. 280)

However the mountains may be moved and hills in our lives may be shaken, nothing compares with the love and mercy that God has for us: in good times, tough times and all the other times in between!

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(December 17, 2021: Friday, Third Week of Advent)
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“The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ…”

“Genealogy (from Greek: γενεά, genea, “generation”; and λόγος, logos, “knowledge”) is the study of families and the tracing of their lineages and history. Genealogists use oral traditions, historical records, genetic analysis, and other records to obtain information about a family and to demonstrate kinship and pedigrees of its members. The results are often displayed in charts or written as narratives. The pursuit of family history tends to be shaped by several motivations, including the desire to carve out a place for one’s family in the larger historical picture, a sense of responsibility to preserve the past for future generations, and a sense of self-satisfaction in accurate storytelling.” (Wikipedia)

Today’s opening chapter from the Gospel of Matthew is Scripture’s version of Ancestry.com. Bridging the Old and New Testaments, it outlines the “genealogy of Jesus Christ.” As such, it carves out a place for Jesus within the larger picture of salvation history. As such, it strives to preserve names from past generations for future generations. As such, it tries to tell the story of Jesus’ predecessors as accurately as possible. As such, it attempts to provide as much information it can about the kinship and pedigree of those who came before Jesus.

Many of us assume that the “genealogy of Jesus Christ” ends with Jesus Christ. We assume that the story ends with the third set of fourteen generations. Nothing could be further from the truth! The “genealogy of Jesus Christ” is not limited to the names of his predecessors; it continues to this very day in the names of his followers; it continues in the present generation – in the lives of people like you and me.

How can we live up to our God-given pedigree today? How can we give convincing witness of our divine kinship today? How can we demonstrate that we are children of God – brothers and sisters of Jesus Christ – today?

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(December 18, 2021: Saturday, Third Week of Advent)
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“He shall reign and govern wisely; he shall do what is just and right in the land…the Lord our justice.”

In his >u>Introduction to the Devout Life, St. Francis de Sales wrote:

“Be just and equitable in all your actions. Always put yourself in your neighbor’s place and your neighbor in yours, and then you will judge rightly. Imagine yourself the seller when you buy and the buyer when you sell and you will sell and buy justly…A man loses nothing by living generously, nobly and courteously with a royal, just and reasonable heart. Resolve to examine your heart often to see if it acts toward your neighbor as you would like your neighbor to act toward you were you in your neighbor’s place. This is the touchstone of true reason.” (IDL, Part III, Chapter 36, p. 217)

Today, how can we imitate “the Lord our justice”? Let us start by examining our hearts. How well are we doing “what is just and right in the land”? Are we doing what is right, just and reasonable in our relationships with others?

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Spirituality Matters December 5th - December 11th

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(December 5, 2021: Second Sunday of Advent)
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“Prepare the way of the Lord.”

John went throughout the whole region proclaiming a baptism of repentance as it is written using the words of Isaiah: "Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths."

Just as John the Baptist reminds the people in the region of the Jordan to prepare the way of the Lord, so too we are called to do the same. It started with our Baptism when we became members of the Body of Christ. It happens by our daily words and actions, our call to "Live Jesus" every moment of every day.

Our reading from Baruch reminds us to put on the splendor of the glory of God forever and our Responsorial Psalm reminds us that the Lord has done great things for us and we are filled with joy.

We may ask ourselves if we truly are filled with joy as we prepare the way of the Lord. Are we? This joy only happens if we work on our relationship with God and one another. We can not give what we do not have. If God is not the center of our life, we will fail.

In his Introduction to the Devout Life, St. Francis de Sales tells us that devotion must be experienced in different ways: by the gentleman, the worker, the servant, the widow, the young girl and the married woman. Not only that, but its practice must be adapted to the strength, activities and duties of each individual person.

St. Francis de Sales believes that we must start with our interior, that is, with our prayer life. If we work on building a healthy, ongoing relationship with God, it can go a long way in helping us to build, healthy, ongoing relationships with others. It can help us to put into action the prayer of St. Paul: “I pray always with joy in every prayer for all of you”.

If we are deepening our relationship with God on a daily basis, we will be better able to prepare the way of the Lord with joy in our daily encounters with one another. We will be able to “Live Jesus” every moment of every day.

Together!

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(December 6, 2021: Nicholas, Bishop)
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“Strengthen the hands that are feeble, make firm the knees that are weak. Say to those whose hearts are frightened: be strong, fear not!”

In today’s Gospel Jesus fulfills the prophetic words from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah through prophetic action. First, Jesus forgives the sins of the paralyzed man; second, he heals the man’s paralysis.

The Season of Advent provides us with a wonderful opportunity to consider the ways – any ways – in which we might be suffering from any form of paralysis: spiritual, emotional, social - and perhaps - even physical. In what ways might our minds be feeble? In what ways might our resolve be weak? In what ways might our hearts be frightened?

Whether on our own – or with the help of others – let us approach the Lord in our neediness. Let us ask for His forgiveness. Let us ask for His strength. May He open our eyes, ears and hearts to the wonders of His power! May our tongues – and lives – give witness to His love!

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(December 7, 2021: Ambrose, Bishop and Doctor of the Church)
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i>“Comfort; give comfort to my people, says your God.”

In a commentary on the necessity to “reprint the Gospel,” Blessed Louis Brisson observed:

“The third evangelical task about which I want to speak is the evangelization of the nations - the preaching of Our Lord. Our Lord has come to earth to give us an example, to instruct us and to redeem us by His sufferings. The preaching of the Gospel was one of the principal reasons for His coming. We, therefore, should reprint the Gospel also by our preaching.”

“All of us should preach. Those who work with their hands as well as those who are occupied with exterior works, those who conduct classes as well as those who teach by example, those who direct souls as well as those who are assigned to the ministry of the pulpit - all of us should preach. We should preach in a practical way. We should teach our neighbor, if not by our words, at least by our actions. If you do so, do you think that you will have no influence on those who see you?” (Cor ad Cor, p. 30)

Today are you looking for a way to “reprint the Gospel?” Are you interested in doing your part to continue “the evangelization of the nations, the preaching of Our Lord?” Then here is one suggestion that comes directly from our God Himself.

“Comfort; give comfort to my people.”

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(December 8, 2021: Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary)
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“She became the mother of all the living…”

In order to fully appreciate the Church’s teaching on the Immaculate Conception – that Mary was preserved from the effects of Original Sin from the moment of her conception – Francis de Sales placed it within the larger context, that is, God’s plan of salvation.

In his Treatise on the Love of God, Francis wrote:

“God displays in a marvelous manner the incomprehensible riches of His power in the vast array of things that we see in nature, but God also displays the infinite treasures of His goodness in an even more magnificent way in the unparalleled variety of goods that we recognize in grace. In a holy excess of mercy, God is not content solely with granting to his people, that is, to the human race, a general or universal redemption whereby everyone can be saved. God has diversified redemption in many ways so that while God’s generosity shines forth in all this variety, the variety itself in turn adds beauty to his generosity.”

“First and above all, God destined for his most holy Mother a favor worthy of the love of a Son who, since he is all-wise, all-powerful, and all-good, necessarily prepared a Mother in keeping with himself. Therefore, God willed that his redemption be applied to her in the form of a remedy that would keep her safe, so that the sin which spreads sown from generation to generation would not reach her. As a result, she was redeemed in a surprising way. At the appointed time the torrent of original sin began to roll its fatal waves over the conception of this holy woman (with the same impetuous strength it had exerted at the conception of all Adam’s other daughters): then, when the torrent had reached that point, it did not pass beyond it but stopped…In this way, God turned all captivity away from his glorious Mother. To her God gave the blessing of the two states of human nature: she possessed that innocence which the first Adam had lost, and she surpassingly enjoyed that redemption which the second Adam gained for her. Hence, like a chosen garden that was to bear the fruit of life, she was made the flower of every kind of perfection.” (Book II, Chapter 6)

How was this freedom from the effects of sin displayed in the life of this singularly redeemed woman? Everything that she experienced in life “was used devoutly and faithfully in the service of holy love for the exercise of the other virtues which, for the most part, cannot be practiced except amid difficulty, opposition, and contradiction…The glorious Virgin experienced all human miseries (except such that directly tend to sin) but she used them most profitably for the exercise and increase of the holy virtues of fortitude, temperance, justice, and prudence, and of poverty, humility, patience and compassion. Therefore, such things did not hinder heavenly love but on many occasions assisted and strengthened it by continual exercise and advance.” (Treatise on the Love of God, Book VII, Chapter 14)

Whether sinner or sinless, we all have one thing in common with the Blessed Virgin Mary, the “mother of all the living”. We are called to embrace each day as fully as possible with its countless opportunities to practice “fortitude, temperance, justice, prudence, poverty, humility, patience and compassion.” In practicing these virtues, we not only experience the freedom of God’s redemption, but also, we can more freely be instruments of God’s redemption in the lives of others.

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(December 9, 2021: Thursday, Second Week of Advent)
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“The Lord is gracious and merciful; slow to anger, and of great kindness…” Anger is defined as “a strong feeling of being upset or annoyed because of something wrong or bad; the feeling that makes someone want to hurt other people, to shout, etc.; the feeling of being angry”.

Regardless of how we define it, we know anger when we see it. We know anger when we hear it. We know anger when we feel it. It is, after all, part of the experience of being human.

But as Scripture tells us, anger is also part of being divine. How many times do we hear references to God’s anger, God’s wrath and God’s fury? But note the qualification made in today’s responsorial psalm: God is slow to anger – almost as if to suggest that God only grows angry as a last resort. Even then, the same Scriptures tell us that God’s anger does not endure because divine anger always gives way to the even greater power of divine mercy, divine compassion and divine forgiveness.

What a contrast with human anger! How often are we quick to anger! How frequently is anger the first emotion for which we reach! How long we remain angry! How often our anger takes on a life of its own! In his Introduction to the Devout Life, Francis de Sales counseled:

“I say to you, this life is an earthly journey to the happy life to come. We must not be angry with one another along the way; rather, we must march on as a band of brothers and companions united in meekness, peace and love. I state absolutely and make no exception: do not be angry at all if that is at all possible. Do not accept any pretext whatever for opening your heart’s door to anger. St. James tells us positively and without reservation that ‘the anger of man does not work the justice of God.’” (IDL, Part III, Chapter 3, pp 146 – 147)

Just today, let us do our level best to live without anger. Should we become angry, let it be the last to arrive and the first to depart. In the event that anger comes our way, may it give way to meekness, peace and love.

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(December 10, 2021: Friday, Second Week of Advent)
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“You’re damned if you do; you’re damned if you don’t.” That statement pretty much sums up the message in today’s Gospel selection from Matthew. John the Baptizer was criticized for being aloof and austere; Jesus was criticized for being an accessible, down-to-earth man of the people.

There was just no pleasing some people.

In his Introduction to the Devout Life, Francis de Sales wrote:

“Does anyone fail to see that the world is an unjust judge, gracious and well-disposed to its own children but rigorous towards the children of God? We can never please the world unless we lose ourselves together with it. It is so demanding that it can’t be satisfied. ‘John came neither eating or drinking, says the Savior, and you say, ‘He has a devil.’ ‘The Son of Man came eating and drinking,’ and you say he is ‘a Samaritan.’ If we are ready to laugh, play cards or dance with the world in order to please it, it will be scandalized at us, and if we don’t, it will accuse us of hypocrisy or melancholy…” (IDL IV, Ch. 1, p. 236)

You know the old adage: if you try to please everyone, you end up making yourself miserable. On any given day follow the example of both John and Jesus; be who you are and be that as best as you can, come what may!

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(December 11, 2021)
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“You were destined…to turn back the hearts of fathers toward their sons.”

Advent is the season during which we are challenged ‘to beat our swords into plowshares and our spears into pruning hooks. In this season we are challenges to lay down our arms, and to let bygones be bygones.

In his Introduction to the Devout Life, St. Francis de Sales wrote:

“When your mind is tranquil and without any cause for anger, build up a stock of meekness and mildness. Speak all your words and do all your actions – whether little or great –in the mildest way you can: not merely with strangers but also among your own family and neighbors. As soon as you recognize that you are guilty of a wrathful deed, correct it as soon as possible by an act of meekness toward the person with whom you were angry.” (IDL, Part III, Chapter 8, p. 149)

This season of peace – which is unlike any other season – reminds us of relationships in which peace is lacking. We are reminded of fences that need to be mended, hatchets that need to be buried and wounds that need to be healed with fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, brothers and sisters, neighbors, co-workers and friends.

During this Advent season to whom do our hearts need to turn?

Or return?

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Spirituality Matters November 28th - December 4th

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(November 28, 2021: First Sunday of Advent)
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“Be vigilant at all times.”

It is the beginning of yet another season of Advent! It is the time for vigilance. Listen to the words of Blessed Louis Brisson, OSFS:

“Advent means coming. This time is set aside to help prepare us for Christmas. These four weeks of Advent represent the four thousand years that preceded the coming of the Messiah. Throughout these many years the prophets announced the coming of Our Lord. In reading their prophecies we find all the details of His life and sufferings described in advance with as much accuracy as if they had already taken place.”

“There are two advents of the Lord. The first is his great advent when He came to this earth to save us. He willed to come to us little, humble and unknown. He was born poor to show us that poverty is no disgrace. He willed to be a workingman to teach us to love work as He loved it.”

“The second advent of Our Lord is made in our hearts. Evert time we have a good thought, every time that we take the Good God with us, every time that we make an act of fidelity, every time that we are all His, an advent takes place…” (Cor ad Cor, p. 13)

Each and every moment of every day has the potential for presenting us with an opportunity for experiencing the “advents of Our Lord”. Of course, as Jesus himself warns us in the Gospel, each and every moment may also have its share of worries and anxieties associated with the state and stage of life in which we find ourselves.

Are we open to considering how the worries and anxieties of life may precisely be the places in which the “advents of Our Lord” may come? Are we vigilant? Are we watchful?

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(November 29, 2021: Monday, First Week of Advent)
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“Amen, I say to you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith.

In today’s Gospel Jesus is amazed not only by another person’s depth of faith; but he is also amazed at the person who demonstrates such faith – a foreigner. And not just any old foreigner, but a powerful one: a Roman centurion who, for all his power, truly knows his place.

In a sermon for Lent during the last year of his life, Francis de Sales remarked: “Certainly the greatest defect we have in our prayers – and in all that happens to us, particularly in that which concerns tribulations – is our lack of confidence.” (Living Jesus, p. 105)

We see no lack of confidence on the part of the centurion in today’s Gospel. As a man who gives – and takes – orders for a living, he knows that the willingness to follow orders can make the difference between life and death, between success and failure, between victory and defeat. He approaches Jesus with the belief that Jesus can affect the miracle for which he seeks by simply giving the order. The soldier’s confidence is so strong that he is prepared to take Jesus’ word on it.

In the midst of our concerns and tribulations, how confident are we in the promise of Jesus’ power? How willing are we to take Jesus at his word?

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(November 30, 2021: Andrew, Apostle)
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“At once they followed him...”

In his book This Saint’s for You, Thomas J. Craughwell writes:

“Andrew and his brother Peter were sitting in their fishing boat on the Sea of Galilee, repairing their nets, when Christ called to them, saying, ‘Come, follow me and I will make you fishers of men.’ Although the brothers did leave their boat to follow the Lord, they never stopped catching fish: it was how they supported themselves and their families.”

“Time and time again the Gospels take us back to the Sea of Galilee: on one occasion, Jesus climbed into Peter and Andrew’s boat to preach to a crowd on the shore; on another, while the brothers and some of the other disciples were out fishing, they saw Jesus advancing toward them by walking on the water. After a long night of fishing and catching nothing, Christ urged the brothers to go out to the deepest part of the sea and lower their nets one more time. This time the catch was so great that the fishing nets broke, and Peter and Andrew had to signal to their fellow apostles and business partners James and John to come help them haul in the fish. And, when there was nothing for the crowd of five thousand to eat, it was Andrew who brought forward a boy who had five barley loaves and two fish, which Christ multiplied to feed the multitude…with much leftover to boot.”

“Tradition says that St. Andrew carried the Gospel to Greece. At the town of Patras, he was arrested and tied to an X-shaped cross. The legend claims that it took him three dies to die, and the entire time he hung on the cross St. Andrew preached to all who passed by.” (p. 179)

Andrew: once a fisherman, always a fisherman. A fisherman doesn’t get to pick the day, time, situations or circumstances in which he fishes. He simply fishes, come what may. A fisherman jumps at the chance to make a catch; he will drop whatever else he might be doing in pursuit of his livelihood. Such an avocation requires tenacity, patience, determination and a willingness to go with the flow. Perhaps that’s Jesus why Jesus called Andrew to become one of his apostles/disciples, because such qualities could come in quite handy when it came to preaching the Good News.

Jesus calls each of us - in our own unique ways - to be fishers of “men.” To what degree does Jesus see in us some of the same qualities that he saw in Andrew?

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(December 1, 2021: Wednesday, Advent Weekday)
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“My heart is moved with pity for the crowd...”

Today’s Gospel offers us two things for our consideration. One is the virtue of compassion; the other is the anatomy of compassion. In his Treatise on the Love of God, Francis de Sales observed:

“Compassion, sympathy, commiseration or pity is simply an affection that makes us share in the sufferings and sorrows of those we love. It draws the misery of others into our own heart. Hence it is called misericordia, that is, misery of heart.” (Living Jesus, p. 38)

The virtue of compassion is clearly displayed in Jesus. When he looks at those he loves – the people who had been with him for three days – “his heart is moved with pity” for they had had nothing to eat for all that time. Jesus experiences “misery of heart” when confronted with the neediness of the crowds. The anatomy of compassion is also clearly manifested in Jesus. First, Jesus recognizes the needs of those he loves (they were hungry). Second, Jesus’ heart is moved by the needs of those he loves. Thirdly, Jesus acts. Rather than simply stopping at being “moved with pity”, he does whatever it takes to meet the needs of those he loves.

By contrast, the disciples’ compassion appears to come up short. While they, too, recognize the needs of the crowds - and while their hearts similarly are moved by the neediness of the crowds - the disciples seem overwhelmed by the enormity of the needs and appear to be more interested in doing whatever it takes to send the crowds away to fend for themselves.

You have to wonder: for whom was this miracle of compassionate action performed? Was it done for the crowds who had been with Jesus just three days, or for the disciples who had been with Jesus long enough to know better than to doubt him?

How well does the anatomy of compassion work in us? How willing are we to recognize the needs of those we love? How willing are we to allow our hearts to be moved by the needs of those we love? How willing are we to try to do something – however extraordinary, however sublime – to meet the needs of those we love?

When it comes to imitating the compassion of Christ, two-out-of-three merely will not do.

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(December 2, 2021: Thursday, Advent Weekday)
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“A strong city have we; he sets up walls and ramparts to protect us.

On this new day on our Advent journey, we reflect on these words from Blessed Louis Brisson:

“Father Chevalier, my moral theology professor, used to say to us, ‘Do you believe that Our Lord became human merely to redeem the world? He became human that we might partake of His life, of His body, of His soul, of His divinity and of His happiness.’ And who is this Model, this life and this Happiness? The Word-Made-Flesh Himself!”

“The Savior, Jesus Christ – the One Whom we attempt to reproduce in ourselves and Who is living in us – accomplishes this divine redemption in us. He gives us the grace to do this. He is our Exemplar, our Model. He walks before us. We have only to put our feet in His footprints. Thus, we will bring about our complete redemption.” (Cor ad Cor, pp. 18, 19)

We have a strong city in the person of Jesus Christ! In Christ we find walls and ramparts in which we find not only protection, but also experience “His life, His body, His soul, His divinity and His happiness.” And perhaps more than ever these days, we could use more than few extra ramparts.

Today, how might Jesus be inviting us to be a “strong city” in the lives of others? How might we become a source of safety, support and protection for others today and help them to experience the life and happiness rooted in a life in and with Jesus?

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(December 3, 2021: Saint Francis Xavier, Priest and Religious)
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“Do you believe I can do this for you?”

“Francis Xavier was a man of tremendous zeal, energy and optimism. As a student at the University of Paris he met St. Ignatius of Loyola (a fellow Basque). Led by Ignatius, in 1534 Francis and five friends formed the Society of Jesus (better known as the Jesuits). The first Jesuits hoped they all would serve as missionaries together in the Holy Land; instead, Francis was sent to southwest Asia. He sailed with a convoy of Portuguese ships bound for the colony of Goa, India. The journey consumed thirteen months, and Francis was seasick through most of it. While the Portuguese already had been in Goa for thirty-one years (the city was well established with churches, monasteries and even a bishop), most of the town’s population was composed of cruel, dissolute and vicious men who abandoned the illegitimate children that they had with Indian women, tortured their slaves, despised the helpless and regarded India as their personal property to pillage as they wished.” “With so much work to be done, Francis maintained an exhausting routine that included visits to the city prison and hospitals, saying Mass for the lepers, teaching catechism to children and slaves, and writing lyrics that explained the basics of Christianity and then setting them to the tunes of popular songs. One of his toughest challenges was trying to convince the Goa Portuguese to live like Christians instead of godless despots.”

“After months in Goa he sailed to the Spice Islands (in what is now Indonesia). There he met three Japanese converts to Christianity. This chance meeting piqued his interest, and once he arrived in Japan the refinement, elegance and courtesy of the people there captivated him. But Francis could never stay long in one place; he wanted to bring the Gospel to China. With the help of a Chinese convert named Anthony, Francis struck a bargain with a Chinese merchant who – for an extravagant fee – agreed to transport him to China. However, the merchant abandoned Francis and Anthony instead on a desolate island. There, Francis fell ill and died, attended by Anthony, two slaves and a Portuguese ship’s captain who’d stumbled upon the castaways.”

“Francis Xavier set an exceedingly high standard for missionaries: it is estimated that during a period of eleven years he converted forty-thousand people to Christianity. In 1904 Pope Pius X recognized his achievements by naming him as the patron of missionaries.” (This Saint’s for You, pp. 277 – 278)

When it comes to evangelizing – when it comes to continuing the work of Jesus Christ – it could be said that we are all missionaries by virtue of our Baptism. Fr. Brisson believed that evangelizing is not only about waiting for people to come to us but also about going to them.

Francis Xavier believed that all things were possible for Jesus. How can we imitate his example today?

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(December 4, 2021: John Damascene, Priest and Doctor of the Church)
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“The Kingdom of heaven is at hand…”

One of the signs that Jesus associates with the Kingdom of heaven being at hand is the driving out demons. The season of Advent provides each of us with a great opportunity to drive out from our own minds and hearts any number of demons with which we might be plagued. These demons – while not necessarily limited to this list – could include:

• Anxieties

• Grudges

• Bitterness

• Resentment

• Old Hurts

• Unresolved conflicts

• Unbridled anger

• Perfectionism

• Scrupulosity

• Negativity

• Ingratitude

• Presumption

The Kingdom of heaven is at hand! Why not make more room in your life for the Word-Made-Flesh by driving out our demons through some heavy duty spiritual house-cleaning between now and Christmas?

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Spirituality Matters November 21st - November 27th

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(November 21, 2021: Jesus Christ, King of the Universe)
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“His Dominion is an everlasting dominion that shall not be taken away; his kingship shall not be destroyed.”

Today we celebrate Christ’s kingship, Christ’s power, Christ’s royal character. Unlike earthly kings, however, Christ’s dominion, as we hear in the Book of the Prophet Daniel, is an everlasting dominion. Unlike other kings, Christ’s reign will never pass away.

What kind of king is Christ? How is his dominion unique among other monarchs? We look to the words of St. Francis de Sales in a conference on ‘Hope’ he gave to the Sisters of the Visitation in 1620. The occasion was the founding of yet another Visitation community (some 80+ of which were established by the time St. Jane de Chantal died in 1641):

“You have always only one and the same king, our crucified Lord, under whose authority you will live secure and safe wherever you may be. Do not fear lacking anything, for as long as you do not choose any other king, he will always be with you. Take care to increase in love and fidelity towards Christ’s divine goodness, keeping as close to this king as possible, and then all will be well with you. Learn from him all that you have to do. Do nothing without his advice. This king is the faithful friend who will guide you and govern you and take care of you as, with all my heart, I ask him to do.”

No benign dictator here! No benevolent tyrant here! No monarch here who lords his power over others. No self-serving leader here who consolidates his wealth or influence at the expense of others.

Christ is a crucified king. He is a monarch who lays down his life for others. His dominion serves the needs of others. His prestige gives others guidance and hope. His wisdom provides sound advice. His commonwealth is all about faithful, loving friendship.

Francis de Sales (as he so often does) really nailed it when he wrote in his Introduction to the Devout Life: “We lose nothing by living generously, nobly, courteously, and with a royal, just and noble heart.” (Part II, Chapter 36) Like Christ, we are called to use our God-given power and promise to serve the needs of others. Like Christ, our royal “divine right” demands that we love one another with “a royal, just and noble heart.”

How do we use our “divine right” as sons and daughters of God?

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(November 22, 2021: Cecilia, Virgin and Martyr)
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“She has offered her whole livelihood…”

In a conference to the Sisters of the Visitation, Francis de Sales observed:

“The esteem in which humility holds all good gifts, namely, faith hope and charity, is the foundation of generosity of spirit. Take notice that the first gifts of which we spoke belong to the exercise of humility and the others to generosity. Humility believes that it can do nothing, considering its poverty and weakness as far as depends on ourselves. On the contrary, generosity makes us say with St. Paul, ‘I can do all things in Him who strengthens me.’ Humility makes us distrust ourselves, whereas generosity makes us trust in God. You see, then that humility and generosity are so closely joined and united to one another that they are and never can be separated.” (Conferences, “On Generosity” pp. 75-76)

We see this humility and generosity on display in today’s Gospel. Whereas some wealthy people who contributed to the temple treasury were relying more on themselves for their welfare (they made sure that they had plenty for themselves in reserve) before giving to others, the poor widow – we are told – gave to the treasury without squirreling anything away for herself first, strongly suggesting that she was relying more on God for her welfare. The wealthy contributed with conditions; the widow contributed without conditions.

Today, whether we have a lot or a little, what steps can we take to store up riches less for ourselves and more for others?

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(November 23, 2021: Miguel Pro, Priest and Martyr)

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(November 23, 2021: Miguel Pro, Priest and Martyr)
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“When you hear of wars and insurrections, do not be terrified; for such things must happen first, but it will not immediately be the end.”

“Born on January 13, 1891, in Guadalupe, Mexico, Miguel Agustin Pro Juarez was, from an early age, both remarkably spiritual and equally mischievousness, frequently exasperating his family with humor and practical jokes. Miguel was particularly close to his older sister and after she entered a cloistered convent, he eventually recognized his own vocation to the priesthood. Although he was popular with the senoritas and had prospects of a lucrative career managing his father's thriving business concerns, Miguel the Jesuit novitiate in El Llano, Michoacan in 1911.

“He studied in Mexico until 1914, when tsunami of anti-Catholicism swept through Mexico, forcing the novitiate to disband. Miguel and his brother seminarians trekked through Texas and New Mexico before arriving at the Jesuit house in Los Gatos, California. In 1915, Miguel was sent to a seminary in Spain; in 1924, he went to Belgium where he was ordained a priest in 1925. Miguel suffered from a severe stomach problem and after three operations, when his health did not improve, his superiors, in 1926, allowed him to return to Mexico in spite of the grave religious persecution in that country.”

“Back in his native land, churches were closed, and priests went into hiding. Miguel spent the rest of his life in an attempt to sturdy and strengthen Mexican Catholics. In addition to fulfilling their spiritual needs, he also carried out works of mercy by trying to meet the temporal needs of the poor in Mexico City. To protect his real identity, he used a number of disguises while carrying out his clandestine ministry. He would arrive in the middle of the night dressed as a beggar to baptize infants, bless marriages and celebrate Mass. He would appear in jail dressed as a police officer to bring Holy Viaticum to condemned Catholics. When going to fashionable neighborhoods to procure money food and other resources for the poor, he would show up at the doorstep dressed as a fashionable businessman with a fresh flower on his lapel. Falsely accused in the attempted assassination of a former Mexican president, Miguel became a hunted man. Betrayed to the police by an informer, he was sentenced to death without the benefit of any legal process. On the day of his execution (which the Mexican president personally ordered to have photographed and filmed), Fr. Pro forgave his executioners, prayed, refused the blindfold and died proclaiming, ‘Viva Cristo Rey.’”(http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=86)

Miguel Pro may have been terrified at the prospect of losing his life, but that did not prevent him from offering his entire livelihood – his very life – for the sake of the Gospel. How might we imitate his example just this day in our attempts to answer God’s call in our own lives to serve the needs of others without counting the cost?

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(November 24, 2021: Andrew Dung-Lac, Priest and Companions - Martyrs)
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“They will seize and persecute you; they will hand you over…”

In this age of 24-7 news cycles, one could be forgiven for being terrified from time to time. We never seem to get a break for, as they say in the industry. “If it bleeds, it leads”. Whether around the corner or around the world, we are constantly exposed to a never-ending dose of unsettling news reports: stories of violence, accounts of revenge and descriptions of disasters. One could make the argument that you would have to be crazy to be unconcerned or unaffected by reports of economic, social, political and/or military turmoil!

In his Introduction to the Devout Life, Francis de Sales observed:

“With the single exception of sin, anxiety is the greatest evil than can happen to a soul. Just as sedition and internal disorders bring total ruin to a state and leave it helpless to resist a foreign invader, so also if our hearts are inwardly troubled and disturbed, they lose both the strength necessary to maintain the virtues they had acquired and the means to resist the temptations of the enemy. He then uses his utmost to fish – as they say – in troubled waters.” (IDL, Part IV, Chapter 11, pp. 251-252)

Francis de Sales believed that people should be informed. We should be aware – and where applicable, concerned – about the things that are happening around us. More importantly, however, is the need to know what is happening inside of us. We need to know the state of our minds and hearts. After all, sometimes the effects of the “wars and insurrections” that may surround us are nothing in comparison with the “wars and insurrections” that rage within us!

Trouble is a part of life. Do not make it worse by allowing it to trouble you on the inside to the point where you can’t manage it on the outside - for your own sake, as well as for the sake of those who depend on you.

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(November 25, 2021: Thanksgiving Day)
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“He fell at the feet of Jesus and thanked him…”

In his Introduction to the Devout Life, Francis de Sales observed:

“Consider that a certain number of years ago you did not yet exist. God has drawn you out from nothingness so as to make you what you are now and has done so solely out of his own goodness. Consider the nature God has given you. It is the highest in this visible world, is capable of eternal life and able to be perfectly united with God’s Divine Majesty…God has placed you in this world not because God has any need of you but because God wishes to exercise his goodness in you by giving you his grace and glory. For this purpose, God has given you intelligence to know him, memory to be mindful of him, will to love him, imagination to picture his benefits to yourself, eyes to see His wonderful works, and tongues to praise him, just to mention a few…Consider the corporeal benefits that God has bestowed on you: the body itself, all goods provided for its maintenance, health, comforts friend, supporters and other helps… By noting each and every particular blessing you will perceive how gentle and gracious God has been to you.” (IDL, Part I, Chapters 9- 11, pp. 53 -57)

How can we possibly even begin to give thanks for everything that God has given – and continues to give – to us? Francis de Sales offers a suggestion, just as God has been gentle and gracious to us, may we strive to be equally – or at least, somewhat – as gentle and gracious to others on this Thanksgiving Day…and every day!

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(November 26, 2021: Friday, Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time)
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“Consider the fig tree and all other trees…”

In his Treatise on the Love of God, Francis de Sales observed:

“The cross is the root of every grace received by us who are spiritual grafts attached to our Savior’s body. Having been so engrafted if we abide in him, then by means of the life of grace he communicates to us we shall certainly bear the fruit of glory prepared for us. But if we are mere inert sprigs or grafts on that tree - that is, if by resistance we break the progress and effects of His mercy - it will be no wonder if in the end we are wholly cut off and thrown into everlasting fire as useless branches.”

“God undoubtedly prepared paradise only for such as he foresaw would be his. Therefore, let us be his both by faith and by our works, and he will be ours by glory. It is in our power to be his, for although to belong to God is a gift from God, yet it is a gift that God denies to no one. God offers it to all people so as to give it to such as will sincerely consent to receive it. He gives us both his death and his life: his life so that we may be freed from eternal death, his life so that we can enjoy eternal life. Let us live in peace, then, and serve God so as to be his in this mortal life and still more so in life eternal.” (TLG, Part III, Book 5, pp. 178-179)

Francis de Sales insists that our future depends heavily upon our present. At any given moment we can think, feel and act in ways bring us closer to either (1) redemption or (2) damnation. It all comes down to how deeply grafted we are onto the heart – and the cross – of Christ.

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(November 27, 2021: Saturday, Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time)
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“Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy, and that the day catch you by surprise like a trap...”

The readings selected for these remaining days of the waning liturgical year emphasize the “end times”: the final judgment and the importance of being on the lookout for when that climactic moment will occur.

In a letter to the Duc de Bellegarde, St. Francis de Sales wrote:

“Persevere in this great courage and determination which keeps you lifted high above temporal things, making you pass over them like a happy halcyon bird lifted safely above the waves of the world which flood this age. Keep your eyes steadfastly fixed on that blissful day of eternity towards which the course of years bears us on; and as they pass, they themselves pass us stage by stage until we reach the end of the road. But meanwhile – in these passing moments – there lies enclosed as in a tiny kernel the seed of all eternity. In our humble little works of devotion there lies hidden the prize of everlasting glory; the little pains we take to serve God lead to the repose of a bliss that can never end.” (Selected Letters, Stopp, p. 236)

Be watchful! Be alert! Be on the lookout! Avoid carousing, drunkenness and anxiety in all their forms. However, do not limit your vigilance to the last moment of your life; rather, expand your vigilance to include every moment of your life! In so doing, you might not only avoid having your last day catch you like a trap, but rather, you will be able transform every day into an opportunity to grow in your knowledge and love of God, your neighbor and yourself now – and forever.

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Spirituality Matters November 14th - November 20th

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(November 14, 2021: Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time)
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“As to the exact day or hour, no one knows it…except the Father.”

Scripture is clear: the world as we know it will pass away. Scripture also makes it clear that we cannot hope to know “the exact day or hour” that moment will come.

Still, it is only natural that we sometimes become anxious when we imagine that the world as we know it will cease to be. It is even more understandable that we should become anxious when we consider the inevitability of our own personal death. Here, too, however, we do not know “the exact day or hour.”

Francis de Sales himself reminds us: “We, in this life, are walking, as it were, on ice.”

How should we deal with the reality that one day our earthly lives will end?

We deal with an uncertain future by living well each and every present moment. The present moment is the only time we have at our disposal. The present moment is the only time we have to make choices that either help – or hinder – our efforts at preparing for eternity.

St. Francis de Sales advises us: “Keep your eyes fixed on that blissful day of eternity toward which the course of years bears on us; and these as they pass, they themselves pass by us stage by stage until we reach the end of the road. But meanwhile, in these passing moments there lies enclosed, as in a tiny kernel, the seed of all eternity; and in our humble little works of devotion there lies hidden the prize of everlasting glory, and in the little pains we take to serve God there lies the traces of bliss that can never end.” (Stopp, Selected Letters, p. 236)

To the extent that we live each present moment we can experience the gift of peace. “We must in all things and everywhere live peacefully,” says St. Francis de Sales. “If trouble, exterior or interior, comes upon us, we must receive it peacefully. If joy comes, we must receive it peacefully, without throbbing of heart. If we must avoid evil, we must do so peacefully, without disquieting ourselves. If there is some good to be done, we must do this peacefully, too.” And so then, place yourself in the hands and heart of Jesus who, St. Francis reminds us, is “the Prince of peace: where you make him your absolute master, all is peace.” Place yourself in the hands and heart of Jesus who is the master of each present moment, where you live each present moment, you are best prepared for your last moment.

When we are at peace, when we live intentionally, we can handle everything that life has in store for us - everything, including death itself…a death that leads to eternal life.

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(November 15, 2021: Albert the Great, Bishop and Doctor of the Church)
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“Lord, please let me see…”

In his Introduction to the Devout Life, Francis de Sales offered wrote:

“God is in all things and places. There is no place or thing in this world in which God is not truly present. Everyone knows this truth in theory, but not everyone puts this knowledge to good effect. Blind men do not see a prince who is present among them, and therefore do not show him the respect they do after being informed of his presence. However, because they do not actually see the prince, they easily forget he is there, and once they forget this fact, they still more easily lose the respect and reverence owed to him. Unfortunately, we frequently lose sight of the God who is with us. Although faith assures us of his presence, we forget about him and behave as if God were a long way off because we do not see him with our eyes. While we may tell ourselves and others that God is present in all things, we often act as if this were not true because we fail to remind ourselves of God’s presence.” (IDL, Part II, Chapter 2, p.84)

Despite the fact that the blind man in today’s Gospel could not actually see Jesus, it is crystal clear that he showed Jesus respect and reverence. What is the moral of the story? Even when we lose sight of how Jesus acts in our lives and in the eyes of other people day in and day out, it is always within our power to show him the respect and reverence by acting as Jesus did in showing respect and reverence for others.

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(November 16, 2021: Margaret of Scotland)
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“And he came down quickly and received him with joy…”

The story of Jesus and Zacchaeus highlights an aspect of the Salesian notion of devotion: enthusiasm. Jesus only has to tell Zacchaeus once to “come down quickly.” For his part, Zacchaeus came down as quickly as he could!

In his Introduction to the Devout Life, Francis de Sales wrote:

“When charity reaches a degree on perfection at which it not only makes us do good but also to do this carefully, frequently and promptly. It is called devotion. Ostriches never fly; hens fly in a clumsy fashion, near the ground and only on occasion; but eagles, doves and swallows fly aloft, swiftly and frequently. Good people who have not as yet attained this devotion by toward God by their good works but do so infrequently, slowly and awkwardly. Devout souls fly to him more frequently, promptly and with lofty flights.” (TLG, Book VIII, Chapter 4, p. 64)

This description certainly describes Zacchaeus to a tee. Here is a man with a great sense of urgency. He literally flew down to Jesus at the invitation to spend time with him. Once he arrived at his home with Jesus, Zacchaeus was just as quick to declare his intention to share his good fortune with those less fortunate than him as well as to make things right with anyone who might have a grievance against him.

How quickly will we be this day to respond to Jesus’ invitation to spend time with him? How quick will we be to share our good fortune with others? How quickly will we be to make things right with anyone who might have a grievance against us?

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(November 17, 2021: Elizabeth of Hungary, Wife, Mother & Religious)
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Today we celebrate the life and legacy of St. Elizabeth of Hungary: wife, mother, widow and religious.

In his Introduction to the Devout Life, Francis de Sales wrote:

“St. Elizabeth, daughter of the King of Hungary, often visited the poor. For recreation among her ladies, she sometimes clothed herself like a poor woman, saying to them, ‘If I were poor I would dress in this manner.’ O God, how poor was…this princess in the midst of all her riches and how rich was their poverty!” (IDL, Part III, Ch. 15)

The richness of poverty. Interesting notion.

In the Salesian tradition, poverty of spirit (”Blessed are the poor in spirit, for to them belongs the kingdom of heaven”) is less about doing without; rather, it has a lot more to do with how generous I am with what I have. Elizabeth did not serve those without by renouncing what she had; she served the poor by placing what she had at their disposal.

How might we practice poverty today, and know the true richness – and wealth – that flows from that practice?

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(November 18, 2021: Rose Philippine Duchesne, Founder and Religious)
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“To the upright I will show the saving power of God…”

“Rose Philippine Duchesne was the daughter of Pierre-Francois Duchesne, an eminent lawyer, and her mother, Rose Euphrosine Perier, who was a member of the well-known Perier family. She was educated by the sisters of the Visitation of Holy Mary; at the age of 19 she (without her family’s approval) subsequently joined the community. Rose witnessed the Visitation’s dispersion in 1792 during the French Revolution's Reign of Terror. She attempted to re-establish of the convent of Ste-Marie-d'en-Haut, near Grenoble without success, and in 1804, she accepted the offer of Mother Barat to receive her Visitation community into the Society of the Sacred Heart. In 1815, St. Rose Philippine Duchesne established a Sacred Heart community in Paris.

“In 1818, Rose Philippine Duchesne sailed for America with several other members of the Society. They arrived in New Orleans and traveled the Louisiana territory via the Mississippi River, ending up in St. Charles, Missouri, near St Louis, where she established the first house of the Society ever built outside of France in a log cabin. By the year 1828, six houses had been added in America including a foundation serving the Potawatomi tribe in a portion of the Louisiana Territory that would eventually become (in 1861) the state of Kansas. In time the Native Americans referred to her as the “Woman Who Prays Always.”

“Inspired by the stories of Belgian Father Pierre De Smet, S.J., Duchesne was determined to expand the Society into the Rocky Mountains, but illness forced her to return to St. Charles, where she spent the last ten years of her life, dying at the age of 83. She was canonized on July 3, 1988, by Pope John Paul II.” (http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=377)

The Lord helped Rose Philippine Duchesne to see that the end of her local Visitation community did not mean the end of her having a purpose in life - in fact, it was a new beginning. As it turned out, her initial misfortune paved the way for a long and fruitful ministry in places and with people that could only have happened if she had cause to leave Grenoble. No doubt that Rose eventually came to see that in closing one door in her life God subsequently opened a window.

Rose Duchesne is a shining example of the saving power of God. How might we be instruments of that same saving power in the lives of others today?

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(November 19, 2021: Friday, Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time)
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“My house shall be a house of prayer…”

In his Treatise on the Love of God, Francis de Sales wrote:

“I ask you to imagine on the one hand an artist engaged in painting a picture of our Savior’s birth. No doubt he will give the picture thousands of touches with his brush and take not only days but weeks and months to complete it with various persons and other objects that he wishes to portray in it. On the other hand, let us look at a print maker. After he has placed a sheet of paper on the plate with the same mystery on the Incarnation engraved upon it, he gives it only a single stroke of the press, and in this one stroke he will complete the entire task. In an instant the printer will draw off a picture representing in a beautiful engraving all that has been imaged as described in sacred history. Although the printer has created it in but one single movement, his work likewise contains many great persons and various other objects, each one clearly distinct in order, rank, place distance and proportion. If one were not acquainted with the secret of the work, he or she would be greatly astonished to see so many varied effects from a single act.”

“In the same way, nature like a painter multiplies and diversifies its acts accordingly as it has various works in hand: it takes a long time to complete its great effects. But God, like a printer, has given existence to all the different creatures - which have been, or ever shall be – from one powerful stroke of his all-powerful will. From his idea, as from a well-cut plate, he draws his marvelous distinction of persons and other things that succeed one another in seasons, ages and times, each one in its order as they were destined to be.” (TLG, Book II, Chapter 2, Chapter 9, pp. 105-106)

What can we say about God based upon what we see in the greatness and beauty of creation? (1) Variety is the spice of life, and (2) all things bright and beautiful take time.

How might we take some time just this day to consider the greatness and beauty of creation, to say nothing of the greatness and beauty of the God who created it?

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(November 20, 2021: Saturday, Thirty-third Week in Ordinary time)
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“He is not God of the dead, but of the living, for to him all are alive.”

In his commentary on today’s passage from Luke’s Gospel, William Barclay observed: “Jesus gave the Sadducees an answer that has a permanently valid truth to it. He said that we must not think of heaven in terms of this earth. Life there will be quite different because we will be quite different. It would save a mass of misdirected ingenuity – and no small amount of heartache – if we ceased to speculate on what heaven is like and left such things to the love of God.” (pp. 250-251) But there is also another takeaway from today’s Gospel, according to Barclay: “Out of this arid passage emerges a great truth for anyone who teaches or who wishes to commend Christianity to one’s fellows. Jesus used arguments that the people he was arguing with could understand. Jesus talked to them in their own language; he met them on their own ground; and that is precisely why the common people heard him gladly.” (251)

William Barclay’s insight here is very much in keeping with Fr. Brisson’s understanding of one of the fundamental qualities of Salesian spirituality – if you want to speak to the hearts of people, you (1) need to meet them where they are and (2) use words that they can understand. How might we “Live + Jesus” just this day by meeting others where they are…and speaking to them in ways that they can understand?

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Spirituality Matters November 7th - November 13th

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(November 7, 2021: Thirty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time)
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In the first reading today and in the Gospel reading we meet two widows who are remarkably similar. Both put their trust in God rather than in things.

In turn, both are rewarded and recognized for their trust, for their faith, in God.

The first widow is a foreigner to the Hebrews. She is from Zarephath, a coastal city on the Mediterranean. Elijah traveled through this land during a famine. As in all famines, the rich complain, and the poor starve. The woman was poor. When Elijah met up with her, she was putting her last scraps together before she and her son would die. Imagine a stranger going up to this woman and asking for food in the name of the Lord. And imagine this woman putting her faith in God and feeding the prophet. Putting her total trust in God, she received enough to eat for a full year.

The second widow was the one of the Gospel reading who put two small coins into the Temple treasury. Jesus said that her donation, although it seemed insignificant, was tremendous because she gave all that she had. Her donation was an act of putting her faith in God to care for her.

What these two widows did is extremely difficult for all of us. No matter how great our faith is, it is profoundly difficult to put our total trust in God. There is something within us all that looks for solutions to our problems outside of the realm of faith. A great fallacy of our age is that money can solve our problems. It is the job of advertisers to convince us that we can buy happiness. Paradoxically, the happiest of those blessed with material wealth and riches are those who freely share their success with others.

The radical message of today's readings is that we must place our confidence in God rather than in our material possessions. This action is difficult for us to do because it demands our practicing the virtue of humility. Only a humble person who recognizes his or her profound need for God is certain that the presence of God in his or her life is fundamental to happiness.

Perhaps, some day, we will have the profound faith to trust in God as these two widows trusted in God. But, then again, that is the fundamental reason why we gather together to worship, to pray and to celebrate the Sacraments, while we realize that our faith can always be deepened, we also acknowledge that we cannot do that alone.

We need God and we need one another.

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(November 8, 2021: Martin of Tours, Bishop)
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“Love justice, you who judge the earth…”

In his dialogue Republic, Plato uses Socrates to argue for justice that covers both the just person and the just city state:

“Justice is a proper, harmonious relationship between the competing parts of a person or a city. Hence Plato's definition of justice is that justice is the having and doing of what is one's own. A just man is a man in just the right place, doing his best and giving the precise equivalent of what he has received. This applies both at the individual level and at the universal level.” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justice)

We probably do not think about it very often, but each of us in our own way is called to judge. However, deliberately or unconsciously, the thoughts, feelings, attitudes and actions we form every day impacts the earth, even only if it is in our little corners of it. That said, our collective ways of judging – and treating – the earth add up over time.

The Book of Genesis reminds us that we are not only on the receiving end of Creation, but we are also cooperators in Creation – we have an active, ongoing role to play in Creation. In the Roman Missal we hear:

“You laid the foundations of the world and have arranged the changing of times and seasons; you formed man in your own image and set humanity over the whole world in all its wonder, to rule in your name over all you have made and for ever praise you in your mighty works, through Christ our Lord.”

Teddy Roosevelt is quoted as having once defined justice as “doing the best you can where you are with what you’ve got.” How best can we apply those words in our attempt to do justice to the earth – and especially in our relationships with those sharing the earth with us – just today?

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(November 9, 2021: Dedication of the Lateran Basilica)
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“You are God’s building...”

To construct a building is one thing, but to maintain it is another. Prudent builders/owners not only allot resources for the actual construction of whatever it is they build, but they will also earmark resources for the ongoing upkeep of the building.

In a letter to Madame de Chantal (February 11, 1607), Francis de Sales observed:

“It is not necessary to be always and at every moment attentive to all the virtues in order to practice them; that would twist and encumber your thoughts and feelings too much. Humility and charity are the master beams - all the others are attached to them. We need only hold on to these two: one is at the very bottom and the other at the very top. The preservation of the whole building depends on two things: its foundation and its roof. We do not encounter much difficulty in practicing other virtues if we keep our heart bound to the practice of these two...” (LSD, pp. 148-149)

God – the Master Builder – has constructed each of us in his image and likeness. Today, celebrate the building-of-God that you are! Maintain the gift of your divinely-built edifice with the spiritual foundation and roof most readily available for your good - humility and charity!

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(November 10, 2021: Leo the Great, Pope and Doctor of the Church)
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“Jesus, Master, have pity on us!”

We all have skeletons in our respective closets. We all have things in our past about which we are embarrassed or ashamed. In his Letter to Titus, Paul remarks: “We ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, deluded, slaves to various desires and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful ourselves and hating one another.” Who of us can claim to be blameless? And yet, because of God’s mercy – because of God’s generosity – there is more to us than our past. We can have a new present; we can have a new future.

The Gospel story of the ten lepers is a powerful illustration of how God’s love can change and transform our past. Jesus cured these men not because of anything that they did to deserve it, but rather Jesus cured them simply because he wished to do so. However, if Jesus did expect anything in return for his pity – for his mercy – for his generosity – he expected some semblance of gratitude.

Today, think about all the good things that God has done for you. Think about how merciful God is. Think about how generous God is. How can we show our gratitude? How can we say, “Thank you”?

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(November 11, 2021: Martin of Tours, Bishop)
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“The Kingdom of God is among you…”

In today’s Gospel we hear: “Asked by the Pharisees when the Kingdom of God would come, Jesus said in reply, ‘The coming of the Kingdom of God cannot be observed, and no one will announce, ‘Look, here it is,’ or, ‘There it is.’ The Kingdom of God is among you.” Jesus seems to be saying that the Kingdom of God isn’t about finding a thing, place or location, because in the context of the Gospel, the Kingdom of God is a person - in this case, the person of Jesus Christ.

In his Introduction to the Devout Life, Francis de Sales observed:

“God is in all things and in all places. There is no place or thing in this world in which God is not truly present. Just as wherever birds fly they always encounter the air, so also wherever we go or wherever we are we find God present.”

He continued:

“God is not only in the place where you are but also in a most particular manner in your heart – in the very center of your spirit. Just as the soul is diffused throughout the entire body but resides in a special manner in the heart, so, too, God is present in all things but always resides in a special manner in our spirit.” (IDL, Part Two, Chapter 2, pp. 84-85)

So, where would you expect to find the Kingdom of God today? Try looking for it in the Body of Christ - look for it within yourself and look for it within others. *****
(November 12, 2021: Josaphat, Bishop and Martyr)
***** “Where the body is, there also the vultures will gather...” We’ve probably all had this experience while travelling by car in the open country - seeing birds circling somewhere in the sky up ahead. As we drew closer to where they were circling, we realized that these were not just any bird but birds of prey. And, at that point, we anticipated what we were going to see within the next minute or two - roadkill. Hence, we associate the gathering – or circling – of vultures with death. By contrast, what would we expect to see gathering or circling around life? St. Francis de Sales mentions a few of the things for which we should look:

“Patience; meekness; self-discipline; humility; obedience; poverty; chastity; tenderness toward our neighbors; bearing with our neighbors’ imperfections; holy fervor.” (IDL, Part III, Chapter 2, p. 127)

Which begs the question: what do other people see gathering – or circling – around us?

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(November 13, 2021: Francis Xavier Cabrini, Founder and Religious)
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“Pay attention to what the dishonest judge says…”

And what did the unjust judge say? Essentially, he said this: “I will do justice to this woman just to get her off my back.”

Have you every done something good simply to get someone else to stop bugging you? Have you ever done the right thing just to get someone else to go away? Have you ever done the just thing just to get someone else to shut up?

Let us face it. Isn’t it true that sometimes we do the right thing for a less-than-admirable motive? In his Treatise on the Love of God, Francis de Sales wrote:

“Let us purify all our intentions as best we can. Since we can diffuse throughout all various acts to sacred motive of divine love, why should we not do so? On all occasions we will reject every kind of vicious motive, such as vainglory and self-interest, and consider all the good motives we can have for undertaking the act before us so as to choose the motive of holy love - which is the most excellent of all – and to flood it over all other motives, steeping them in the greatest motive of all....” (TLG, Book XI, Book 14, p. 237)

One might ask, “So, am I supposed to wait until my motives are totally pure before I attempt to do something right?” Lord knows that if that were the case, then the world would really be out of luck! In a perfect world we would always do what is good, righteous and just for only good, righteous and just reasons. But insofar as this is an imperfect world, we should not cease our attempts to do what is good for goodness’ sake; rather, we should acknowledge the need to purify our intentions even as we struggle to live our lives with other people in a reasonable, just and equitable manner.

May God give us the courage we need just this day to not only do the right thing but also to do the right thing for the right reason!

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Spirituality Matters October 31st - November 6th

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(October 31, 2018: Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time)
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“The Lord our God is Lord alone! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

In today’s reading, a scribe - that is, a Pharisee with a degree in religious law - “steps up”, presumably in an attempt to put Jesus down. Hence, the question: which of the Ten Commandments plus the six hundred and thirteen rules [the Deuteronomic laws] that rabbis believed God orally gave Moses was the most important of all?

Some rabbis thought all were equally important - a kind of early example of “the seamless garment” notion. Most others used to spend a great deal of time disputing which ones were the greatest.

Jesus’ response is an acceptable one, quoting DT: 6:5 (today’s first reading!), stressing that the love of God must involve the total person: heart, soul, and mind. There are no half measures. Then, Jesus goes on to quote LV19:18, which stresses that we should love our neighbors as ourselves.

Jesus combines these two commandments and declares that they are the foundation of God’s entire revelation. That is, the whole law and the prophets rest on these two pillars. Combining these two may not be unique to Jesus, but it clearly shows his position on his understanding of the Torah.

We have the saying that a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. When one part fails, the entirety fails. This saying also applies to love, too, in regard to the three-link chain of love: for ourselves, for our neighbor and for our God. Note the order in which the “loves” are named in the Gospel, however: God, neighbor and self. Love of self, perhaps, is the trickiest one of all.

On the one hand, love of self (what Francis de Sales referred to as “self-love”) from a solely earthly perspective can all-too-easily revert to infantile behavior - life is all about me. I have trouble learning that I am not the center of the universe - as a young child believes. If I fail to learn to admit that I am a sinner, then I am in for trouble. While I might admit that I am not perfect, I might have trouble admitting being wrong in any specific instance. Frequently enough, I will do anything to avoid admitting failure. In sum, I have an overblown sense of the person I really am.

On the other hand, some of us may have been love-starved or abused when young in any number of ways. Authority figures or other powerful role models in our early development may have put us down so heavily that our self-image is severely damaged. From a solely earthly perspective, I may have real trouble loving myself. I may see myself as having little or no value. In sum, I sell myself way too short.

The Romans said it well: in medio stat virtus - in the middle (between the extremes) stands virtue. A healthy self-image stands in the middle. I am not the center of the universe, but neither am I a doormat. I need to check for the need for balance on this first step in the progression from what Francis de Sales calls “self-love” to “love of self”. Which begs the question – what is the difference between the two?

Simply put, “self-love” is all about how I see myself from an earthly perspective. “Love of self” is all about how God sees me; that is, with a heavenly perspective.

What better way to live this virtue than how Jesus did it – by meeting others where they are and by meeting ourselves where we are. After all, we can’t love ourselves and others for the person we aren’t – we can only love ourselves and others for the person we are.

As God sees us.

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(November 1, 2021: All Saints)
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“He began to teach them...”

In her book entitled Saint Francis de Sales and the Protestants (in which she examines his missionary activity in the Chablais, one of the most seminal periods in the life of the “Gentleman Saint”), author Ruth Kleinman wrote: “Saintliness is hard to practice, but it is even more difficult to describe.” A notable exception to this dictum are the words we hear proclaimed today in the Gospel of Matthew on this Solemnity of All Saints. Jesus describes saintliness simply and succinctly. It is about living a life of Beatitude:

• Saintly are those who mourn, i.e., those who refuse to harden their hearts when faced with the needs of others.

• Saintly are those who show mercy, i.e., those who are willing to forgo old hurts and to forgive others from their hearts.

• Saintly are those who are poor in spirit, i.e., those who experience everything as a gift and who demonstrate their gratitude through their willingness to share what they have (regardless of how ordinary or extraordinary) with others.

• Saintly are the pure of heart, i.e., those who avoid artificiality and pretense and who have the courage to be their true, authentic selves.

• Saintly are the meek, i.e., those who know that power isn’t demonstrated by taking from others but about giving to others. It’s not about doing to others but about doing for/with others.

• Saintly are the peacemakers, i.e., those who bring people together rather than drive them apart.

• Saintly are those who hunger and thirst for what is right, i.e., those for whom doing good comes with the same frequency and urgency as the need to eat and drink.

• Saintly are those persecuted for doing what is right, i.e., those who are willing to stand up for what is right regardless of the cost(s) incurred.

And as it turns out, not only is sanctity not hard to describe, but also it isn’t nearly as hard to practice as we might think. In a sermon on Our Lady, Francis de Sales observed:

“There is no need of putting ourselves to the trouble of trying to find out what are the desires of God, for they are all expressed in His commandments and in the counsels of Our Lord Himself gave us in the Sermon on the Mount when He said: ‘How blessed are the poor in spirit, blessed are the lowly, and the other Beatitudes.’ These are all the desires of God upon which we ought to walk, following these as perfectly as we can.” (Select Salesian Subjects, #0170, p. 37)

Sanctity? To be sure, it is hard work. But with the grace of God – and the support of one another – it is doable!

And - of course - with one another.

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(November 2: All Soul’s Day)
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“The souls of the just are in the hands of God...”

In one of his pamphlets that was later published in a broader collection entitled The Catholic Controversy, Francis de Sales wrote:

“We maintain that we may pray for the faithful departed, and that the prayers and good works of the living greatly relieve them and are profitable to them for this reason: that all those who die in the grace of God – and consequently, in the number of the elect – do not go to Paradise at the very first moment, but many go to Purgatory…from which our prayers and good works can help and serve to deliver them.”

“We agree the blood of Our Redeemer is the true purgatory of souls, for in it are cleansed all the souls of the world. Tribulations also are a purgatory, by which our souls are rendered pure, as gold refined in the furnace. It is well known that Baptism in which our sins are washed away can be called a purgatory, as everything can be that serves to purge away our offenses. But in this context, we take Purgatory for a place in which after this life the souls which leave this world before they have been perfectly cleansed from the stains they have contracted. And if one would know why this place is called simply Purgatory more than are the other means of purgation above-named, the answer will be, that it is because in that place nothing takes place but the purgation of the stains which remain at the time of departure out of this world, whereas in Baptism, Penance, tribulations and the rest, not only is the soul purged from its imperfections, but it is further enriched with many graces and perfections. And agreeing as to the blood of Our Lord, we fully acknowledge the virtue thereof, that we protest by all our prayers that the purgation of souls – whether in this world or in the other – is made solely by its application.” (CC, pp. 353-354)

Notwithstanding the effects of our prayers and good works on behalf of our dearly departed, Francis de Sales reminds us that at the end of the day it is the life and death of Jesus Christ that purifies our souls, whether in this life or in the next. To that end, whether it is the just or the unjust, whether it’s in this world or the next, we are all in the hands of God.

Here is hoping that we pray for our faithful departed. And here is hoping that our faithful departed pray for us: after all, is it not true that all of us could stand to do with some purgation of one kind or another!

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(November 4, 2015: Wednesday, Thirty-first Week in Ordinary Time)
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“Everyone of you who does not renounce all his possessions cannot be my disciple.”

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines ‘renounce’ as “to give up, refuse, or resign, usually by formal declaration.”

Perhaps the first step in becoming a disciple of Jesus is to acknowledge that all of our possessions are ultimately gifts. This truth can help us to ‘renounce’ the temptation to view our possessions as exclusively for our use and enjoyment. All gifts – material or otherwise – are meant to be shared with others.

Second, perhaps we need to renounce the temptation to allow our possessions – however good they may be – to possess us. All gifts – material or otherwise – are meant to serve us, not the other way around.

Finally, the process of ‘renouncing’ our feeling of somehow being entitled to the exclusive use of God’s gifts and/or ‘renouncing’ the temptation of allowing our possessions to possess us does not happen in an instant or in the twinkling of an eye. For most folks, that process requires a lifetime.

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(November 4, 2021: Charles Borromeo, Bishop)
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“There will be rejoicing among the angels of God over one sinner who repents...”

Whence comes all this rejoicing over repentant sinners? In his Treatise on the Love of God, Francis de Sales wrote:

“God’s favor floats over all life’s difficulties and finds joy in turning all miseries to the greater profit of those who love him. From toil he makes patience spring forth, contempt of this world from inevitable death, and from concupiscence a thousand victories. Just as the rainbow touches the thorn of aspalathus and makes it smell sweeter than the lily, so our Savior’s redemption touches our miseries and makes them more beneficial and worthy of love than original innocence could ever have been. The angels, says our Savior, have ‘more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just who have no need of repentance.’ So, too, the state of redemption is a hundred times better than that of innocence. Truly, by the watering of our Savior’s blood – made with the hyssop of the cross – have been restored to a white incomparably better than that possessed by the snows of innocence. Like Naaman, we come out of the stream of salvation more pure and clean than if we had never had leprosy.” (TLG, Book II Chapter 6, pp. 116 – 177)

“Redemption is a hundred times better than innocence.” Given the fact that all of us suffer from the leprosy of sin in any number of ways, not only should the power of repentance make for rejoicing among the angels in heaven, but this repentance should also produce even greater rejoicing among us here on earth! Who else but God could have the power to turn our sins into a means of our salvation?

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(November 5, 2021: Friday, Thirty-first Week in Ordinary Time)
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“I myself am convinced about you, my brothers and sisters, that you yourselves are full of goodness…”

Am I good or am I evil? Your answer to this question is no mere theoretical or abstract discussion. In the Salesian tradition, at least, the question – and its answer – makes all the difference between life and death. If you believe that you are good, odds are that you will think, feel, believe and behave in ways that lead to life. By the same token, if you believe that you are evil, well – not surprisingly – you will in all likelihood think, feel, believe and behave in ways that lead to death.

In his Introduction to the Devout Life, Francis de Sales observed:

“Consider that a certain number of years ago you were not yet in the world and that your present being was truly nothing. The world had already existed for a long time, but of us there was as yet nothing. God has subsequently drawn you out of nothingness to make you what you are, and God has done so solely out of his own goodness. Consider the nature God has given to you. It is the highest in this visible world. It is capable of eternal life and of being perfectly united to his Divine majesty.” (IDL, Part One, Ch. 9, p. 53)

During the 1970’s it was quite popular to say, “God doesn’t make junk.” While not exactly high theology, it does get to the heart of the Salesian understanding of human nature. To use the words of St. Paul, we humans – all of us – are “full of goodness.” As members of the Salesian family, we know that being good and having good are not the same things as doing good. We all fail to live up to our God-given goodness. We all fail to put our goodness into action. We all fall short when it comes to recognizing and sharing our goodness.

In other words, as good as we may be, we sometimes do bad things. Remind yourself throughout this day that God has made you a good person; after all, you are made in God’s very own image and likeness. In like manner remind yourself throughout the day to ask for the grace you need to build up that goodness and to share that goodness with others.

Paul was convinced that you are good. Are you?

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(November 6, 2021: Saturday, Thirty-first Week in Ordinary Time)
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“The person who is trustworthy in very small matters is also trustworthy in great ones…

In his Introduction to the Devout Life, Francis de Sales observed:

“Put your hand to strong things by training yourself in prayer and meditation, receiving the sacraments, bringing souls to love God, infusing good inspirations into their hearts, and in fine, by performing big, important works according to your vocation. But never forget your distaff or spindle. In other words, practice those little, humble virtues which grow like flowers at the foot of the cross: helping the poor, visiting the sick and taking care of your family with all the duties and responsibilities that accompany such things.”

“Great opportunities to serve God rarely present themselves, whereas little ones are frequent. Whoever will be ‘faithful in little things’ will be placed ‘over many’, says the savior.(IDL, Part Three, Chapter 35, pp. 214-215)

With what little, ordinary things will God entrust us today? How faithful will we be?

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Spirituality Matters October 24th - October 30th

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(October 24, 2021: Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time)
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“Your faith has saved you…”

Our first reading reminds us of the Lord’s promise to the people of Israel that God will protect them and bring them home for He is “the Father of Israel and Ephraim is my firstborn”. God is particularly solicitous of the weak (e.g., the blind and the lame), women with children and those who cannot survive on their own.

This concern exhibited by a loving Father gives us some glimpse into the unique relationship between God and His people. St. Francis de Sales continually reminds us of God’s love for his creation. This truth certainly makes sense and is very consistent with the fundamental reason for our existence. After all, what child is not loved by his or her parents in a totally gratuitous fashion?

In our second reading we are confronted with the role of the high priest, one who is as human as we all are. The author of the Letter to the Hebrews makes clear that the high priest can be compassionate because he, himself, is a wounded healer. Here again, we see the gratuitous nature of our relationship to our God. God gives us a vocation, no matter what our state in life. It is not ours to take, but rather to respond to his invitation.

The Gospel recounts the story of the blind beggar, Bartimaeus. What a powerful example of how deeply God loves all of us, but especially those who are disadvantaged. This relationship, while gratuitous, is not passive – in fact, there is a real sense of mutuality on display here. Bartimaeus cries out to Jesus to have pity on him. Jesus, in return, restore the sight of the blind man. The blind man asks that he might be able to see, and Jesus tells him that his faith has saved him.

In other words, both played their respective roles in an interaction that resulted in a miracle!

We ask for the faith that we need to see the fundamental relationship between God and his people. Sometimes, our own brands of blindness prevent us from seeing the unique God-given goodness in other people. Perhaps even more tragically, our blindness prevents us from seeing the unique, God-given goodness in ourselves. This inability to see the good imprisons us and others by denying the possibility of maximizing our gifts and talents for our own good and the good of our brothers and sisters.

Francis de Sales challenges us to emulate the faith of Bartimaeus. He challenges us to be confident enough in our own intrinsic self worth that we dare to ask our Lord that we might see more of who we – as well are others – really are, especially in the sight of God.

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(October 25, 2021: Monday, Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time)
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“The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God.”

Even as we strive to be “children of God”, we are still imperfect people. Try as we might to do otherwise, there are still many ways in which we live according to the ‘flesh’. Each of us still retains our share of shadows; all of us still struggle with some elements of darkness. What are we – as children of God called to live in the light of the Spirit – to do about this dilemma? Francis de Sales certainly offers this encouragement:

“It is a great part of our perfection to support one another in our imperfections; what better way is there for us to practice love of our neighbor save in this support?” (Select Salesian Subjects, #0096, p. 22)

The presence of shadows – and even darkness – should not discourage us in our attempts to be who we are: children of God! The spirit does bear witness in our spirit, imperfect as we are.

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(October 26, 2021: Tuesday, Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time)
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“To what can I compare the Kingdom of God? It is like a mustard seed…”

It seems paradoxical that Jesus would describe something as vast as the Kingdom of God in terms of one of the smallest of all seeds: the mustard seed. Still, consider how St. Francis de Sales describes eternity in a letter to the Duc de Bellegarde (Peer and Master of the Horse at the courts of both Henri IV and Louis XIII of France):

“Keep your eyes steadfastly fixed on that blissful day of eternity towards which the course of years bears us on; and these as they pass, themselves pass us stage by stage until we reach the end of the road. But meanwhile, in these passing moments there lies enclosed as in a tiny kernel the seed of all eternity; and in our humble little works of devotion there lies hidden the prize of everlasting glory, and the little pains we take to serve God lead to the repose of a bliss that can never end...” (Stopp, Selected Letters, p. 236)

Indeed, the Kingdom of God is a big thing. In fact, it is the biggest and the broadest of all things. As Jesus reminds us, however – and as Francis de Sales underscores – sometimes the biggest of things come in exceedingly small, ordinary and everyday packages!

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(October 27, 2021: Wednesday, Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time)
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“We know that all things work for good for those who love God…”

We may take these words from Paul’s letter to the Romans on faith, but there are many times in our lives when – despite our best efforts to love God and, for that matter, our neighbor also – things not only do not work for good, but also things do not work out in ways that we would like.

At least, not on the surface, or not in the short run.

In a letter to her second daughter Francoise, St. Jane de Chantal wrote:

“If you can look beyond the ordinary and shifting events of life and consider the infinite blessings and consolations of eternity, you would find comfort amid any and all reversals of fortune…Oh, when will we learn to be more attentive to the truths of our faith? When will we savor the tenderness of the Divine Will in all the events of our life, seeing in them only His good pleasure and His unchanging, mysterious love which is always concerned with our good, as much in prosperity as in adversity? Let us surrender ourselves lovingly to the will of our heavenly Father and cooperate with His plan to unite us ultimately to Himself. Courage! May you find strength in these thoughts.” (Stopp, Letters of Spiritual Direction, p. 216)

We know – or, at least, we deeply want to believe – that indeed “all things work for good for those who love God.”

Today, may we find consolation and encouragement from the words of St. Jane de Chantal (who knew more than her fair share of suffering, setback and loss) that all things do work out for good in the long haul even when it seems – in the short run, at least – that they do not.

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(October 28, 2021: Simon and Jude, Apostles)
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“He called his disciples to himself…”

Remember the hit TV comedy series Cheers? These are the words from the show’s theme song:

Making your way in the world today takes everything you've got. Taking a break from all your worries, sure would help a lot. Wouldn't you like to get away Sometimes you want to go where everybody knows your name, and they're always glad you came. You wanna be where you can see, our troubles are all the same You wanna be where everybody knows your name. You wanna go where people know, people are all the same, You wanna go where everybody knows your name.

In today’s Gospel we hear that even Jesus knew that “making your way in the world…takes everything you’ve got” and that “taking a break from all your worries sure can help a lot”, so he went up to the top of a mountain by himself to spend time in prayer with his Father. The next day, he calls his disciples to himself and named his Apostles. And to this day – nearly two thousand years later – everybody knows their names.

Just today, how can we make a name for ourselves in the service of God and neighbor? Today, how can we treat others in ways that makes them “glad you came”?

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(October 29, 2021: Friday, Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time)
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“I speak the truth in Christ, I do not lie.”

In his Introduction to the Devout Life, Francis de Sales wrote:

“Your language should be restrained, frank, sincere, candid, unaffected and honest. Be on guard against equivocation, ambiguity or dissimulation. While it is not always advisable to say all that is true, it is never permissible to speak against the truth. Therefore, you must become accustomed never to tell a deliberate lie, whether to excuse yourself or for some other purposes, remembering always that God is the “God of truth”. If you happen to tell a lie inadvertently, correct it immediately by an explanation or by making amends. An honest explanation always has more grace and force to excuse us than a lie does.” (IDL, Part III, Chapter 30, p. 206)

Children of God that we are, let us try our level best this day not to lie. Better yet, let us try our level best to talk – and walk in – the truth.

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(October 30, 2021: Saturday, Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time/Halloween)
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“Trick or treat!!!”

“Trick-or-treating or guising is a customary practice for children on Halloween in many countries. Children wearing costumes travel from house to house to ask for treats such as candy (or, in some cultures, money) with the question ‘Trick or treat?’ The ‘trick’ is a (usually idle) threat to perform mischief on the homeowners or their property if no treat is given to them. In North America, trick-or-treating became an ever-growing phenomenon Halloween tradition in the years following the lifting in 1947 of nationwide sugar rationing that had occurred during WWII.”

“The tradition of going from door to door receiving food already existed in Great Britain and Ireland in the form of ‘souling’, where children and poor people would sing and say prayers for the dead in return for cakes. Guising, that is, children disguised in costumes going from door to door for food and coins also predates trick-or-treating, and is recorded in Scotland at Halloween in 1895, where masqueraders - in disguise carrying lanterns made from scooped out turnips - visited homes to be rewarded with cakes, fruit and money. While going from door to door in disguise has remained popular among Scots and Irish, the North American custom of saying “trick or treat” has become the norm.” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trick-or-treating)

(NOTE: in the United States Halloween has become one of the most popular social events for adults, second only to News Years Eve.)

Many of us will be opening our doors countless times tomorrow night for little (and maybe, some not-so-small!) ghosts, ghouls and goblins that are wearing disguises and hoping for treats. Isn’t it reassuring that when we approach God in prayer for the many good things that we seek on behalf of ourselves or others that we do not need to be disguised – that we do not need to wear masks – that we do not need to pretend to be something or someone we are not? Isn’t it wonderful that we can simply be who we are on this earth without the need to hide our faces from a God who loves us for the people we are?

One of the greatest treats that we can enjoy in this life is to simply be ourselves!

Of course, there’s no ‘trick’ to expressing our gratitude to a God who loves us for the people we are. The best way is to ‘treat others in the same way, that is, to love them not for whom they are not, but to love them for whom they are!

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Spirituality Matters October 17th - October 23rd

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(October 17, 2021: Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time)
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“Through his suffering my servant shall justify many.”

Following the admonition of Christ that we should be the servants of others would not sound so daunting if it were not for one little word.

Suffering.

Jesus is clear: to serve is to suffer and to suffer is to serve. This statement begs the question: did Jesus serve because he liked pain?

Consider the meaning of the word ‘suffering.’ The American Heritage Dictionary describes suffering as “to feel pain or distress; sustain loss, injury, harm or punishment.” Jesus certainly experienced all these things in a big way. In this regard, we have in Christ one who can sympathize with us. (Hebrews)

But suffering is more than simply experiencing pain. The same dictionary directs the reader to consider the roots of the English word servant, and therein we find a powerful revelation: in its root meaning, to suffer is to carry, to bear, to “bear children.”

Suffering is not simply the ability to experience pain. No, suffering is the willingness to forbear, to persevere, to carry on in doing what is right and just, what is healthy and holy even in the face of opposition or resistance. Suffering is the pain that comes from efforts at bringing forth life in the lives of others.

This kind of suffering is not powerless passivity. This suffering – divine suffering – is about being proactive. This suffering – this service – is a matter of choice: the choice to love.

Jesus did not love to suffer. Jesus suffered precisely because he was willing to love. Jesus suffered – he persevered – in his commitment to being a source of love in the lives of others.

That is what made Jesus a servant. That is what can make us true servants. Like Jesus, while our service will be marked with suffering, it is far more important that it be marked with love.

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(October 18, 2018: Luke, Evangelist)
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“The Lord stood by me and gave me strength...”

Our first reading from Paul’s Second Letter to Timothy reminds us that being either an apostle, a disciple or an evangelist brings its share of troubles. Including being betrayed! Paul cites at least three occasions in which he felt that he was – as we say so often these days – thrown under the bus. First, Demas deserted him; second, Alexander the coppersmith did him great harm; and third, no one showed up on Paul’s behalf when he attempted to defend himself in court. While he attributes his ability to get through these rough patches in his life to the Lord standing by him and giving him strength, it certainly did not hurt that at least one person other than the Lord – St. Luke – remained faithful to Paul throughout his ordeals.

St. Francis de Sales wrote about the pain that comes from being betrayed by those closest to us. In his Introduction to the Devout Life, he wrote:

“To be despised, criticized or accused by evil men is a slight thing to a courageous man, but to be criticized, denounced and treated badly by good men - by our own friends and relations – is the test of virtue. Just as the pain of a bee is much more painful than that of a fly, so the wrongs we suffer from good men and the attacks they make are far harder to bear than those we suffer from others. Yet it often happens that good people – all with good intentions – because of conflicting ideas stir up great persecutions and attacks on one another.” (IDL, Part III, Chapter 3, pp. 128 – 129)

Paul found it exceedingly difficult to swallow betrayals at the hands of those with whom he lived and worked without becoming embittered about it. However, it seems that Paul was able to work through these betrayals because of the loyalty of two people in his life: the Lord and Luke.

Like Luke, how might we help another person work through the experience of betrayal? How might we – through our willingness to practice fidelity – give them the strength to overcome their pain and discouragement?

How? By standing with them today!

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(October 19, 2021: John de Brebeuf and Isaac Jogues, Priests, Companions and Martyrs)
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“Through the obedience of the one the many will be made righteous…”

Today the Church reflects upon the ultimate sacrifice made by the Jesuit Martyrs of North America. Warning: this account if not for the faint of heart. (http://www.americancatholic.org/features/saints/saint.aspx?id=1173)

“Isaac Jogues (1607-1646) and his companions were the first martyrs of the North American continent officially recognized by the Church. As a young Jesuit, Isaac Jogues, a man of learning and culture, taught literature in France. He gave up that career to work among the Huron Indians in the New World, and in 1636 he and his companions - under the leadership of John de Brébeuf - arrived in Quebec. The Hurons were constantly warring with the Iroquois, and in a few years Father Jogues was captured by the Iroquois and imprisoned for thirteen months. An unexpected chance for escape came to Isaac Jogues through the Dutch, and he returned to France, bearing the marks of his sufferings. Several fingers had been cut, chewed or burnt off. Pope Urban VIII gave him permission to offer Mass with his mutilated hands: ‘It would be shameful that a martyr of Christ be not allowed to drink the Blood of Christ.’ Welcomed home as a hero, Father Jogues might have sat back, thanked God for his safe return and died peacefully in his homeland. But his zeal led him back once more to the fulfillment of his dreams. In a few months he sailed for his missions among the Hurons. In 1646 he and Jean de Lalande, who had offered his services to the missioners, set out for Iroquois country in the belief that a recently signed peace treaty would be observed. They were captured by a Mohawk war party, and on October 18 Father Jogues was tomahawked and beheaded. Jean de Lalande was killed the next day at Ossernenon, a village near Albany, New York.”

“The first of the Jesuit missionaries to be martyred was René Goupil who, with Lalande, had offered his services as an oblate. He was tortured along with Isaac Jogues in 1642 and was tomahawked for having made the Sign of the Cross on the brow of some children.”

“Jean de Brébeuf (1593-1649): Jean de Brébeuf was a French Jesuit who came to Canada at the age of 32 and labored there for 24 years. He went back to France when the English captured Quebec (1629) and expelled the Jesuits but returned to his missions four years later. Although medicine men blamed the Jesuits for a smallpox epidemic among the Hurons, Jean remained with them. He composed catechisms and a dictionary in Huron and saw seven thousand converted before his death. He was captured by the Iroquois and died after four hours of extreme torture at Sainte Marie, near Georgian Bay, Canada.”

“Father Anthony Daniel, working among Hurons who were gradually becoming Christian, was killed by Iroquois on July 4, 1648. His body was thrown into his chapel, which was set on fire. Gabriel Lalemant had taken a fourth vow—to sacrifice his life to the Indians. He was horribly tortured to death along with Father Brébeuf. Father Charles Garnier was shot to death as he baptized children and catechumens during an Iroquois attack. Father Noel Chabanel was killed before he could answer his recall to France. He had found it exceedingly hard to adapt to mission life. He could not learn the language, the food and life of the Indians revolted him, plus he suffered spiritual dryness during his whole stay in Canada. Yet he made a vow to remain until death in his mission.”

“These eight Jesuit martyrs of North America were canonized in 1930.”

The sacrifice of these Jesuit martyrs gives radical witness to the truth that life is not about possessions – rather, life is about been self-possessed enough to devote oneself to being generous. In their case, through making the ultimate sacrifice.

Through the obedience of these eight, many more were made righteous. How might we build on the witness of their generosity in our little corners of the world today?

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(October 20, 2021: St. Paul of the Cross)
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“You also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come…”

We all know the expression, “Hindsight is 20-20.” As we know from our own experience, often it is much easier to recognize the truth about something hours, days, weeks and perhaps even years after the fact. While hindsight is better than having no sight at all, there are certain limitations associated with recognizing how God has been active in one’s life only after further reflection.

This pattern gets played out time and time again in numerous accounts of Jesus’ life and ministry. People did not seem to recognize that the Son of Man was standing right in front of them. Put another way, insofar as they were not prepared to recognize who Jesus was before he appeared, they failed to recognize him when he arrived! The aim of the Spiritual Directory – the goal of the Direction of Intention – is to help us to acquire foresight when it comes to recognizing the activity and presence of God in our lives. Living in each present moment challenges us to anticipate the variety of ways in which God may visit, speak to or inspire us just this day and to recognize God’s divine activity and presence as it actually occurs in each and every present moment - and not merely after the fact.

In the movie Field of Dreams, Doctor “Moonlight” Graham (played by actor Burt Lancaster) says to Ray Kinsella, “You know, we just don't recognize the most significant moments of our lives while they're happening. Back then I thought, 'Well, there'll be other days.' I didn't realize that that was the only day.”

May God give us the awareness that we need to be prepared for the most significant moments - and each moment - in our lives, each and every day. But then, when you consider that we have only a limited number of moments allotted to us on this earth, shouldn’t every moment be a significant moment?

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(October 21, 2021: Thursday, Twenty-ninth Week in Ordinary Time)
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“I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing!”

In a film released in 2004, Denzel Washington stars as John Creasy, a despondent former CIA operative/Force Recon Marine officer-turned-bodyguard. Creasey gets a shot at redemption when he is hired to protect the daughter of a wealthy businessman in Mexico City. When the nine-year-old girl is kidnapped and held for ransom, Washington’s character will stop at nothing to get the young girl back, even to the point (spoiler alert!) of giving his life in exchange for hers.

The name of the film is Man on Fire.

Jesus Christ clearly was a man on fire. He tells us so in today’s Gospel selection from Luke. All throughout the three years of his public ministry, Jesus demonstrated again and again to us that he would stop at nothing to proclaim the power and promise of the Kingdom of God – forgiving the sinner, healing the blind, lame and leprous, finding the lost, raising the lowly, humbling the proud and challenging the haughty. His efforts not only won him many friends, but also made him more than a few enemies. Undaunted by the challenges of his vocation, Jesus remained faithful to the work of redemption, even to the point of giving his very life for others.

Jesus wants us to be men and women on fire with the love of God and neighbor. Jesus wants us – his brothers and sisters – to be unrelenting in demonstrating in our own lives the power and promise of the Kingdom of God.

How can we get “fired up” for the sake of the Gospel today?

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(October 22, 2021: John Paul II, Pope)
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“For I do not do the good I want, but I do the evil I do not want.”

You can feel the frustration in Paul’s Letter to the Romans. Redeemed as he was by Jesus Christ, not only did Paul fail to do many of the things that he knew that he should have done, but he also did many of the things that he knew that he should not have done. In another place Paul describes this disconnect as if having two men battling inside of him, each wrestling for dominance over the other.

In a letter to Peronne-Marie de Chatel (one of the four original members of the nascent Visitation congregation at Annecy who, notwithstanding her virtues and gifts, nevertheless experienced “discouragement, scruples and even moments of very human impatience and irritation”), Francis de Sales wrote:

“You are right when you say there are two people in you. One person is a bit touchy, resentful and ready to flare up if anyone crosses her; this is the daughter of Eve and therefore bad-tempered. The other person fully intends to belong totally to God and who, to be all His, wants to be simply humble and humbly gentle toward everyone…this is the daughter of the glorious Virgin Mary and therefore of good disposition. These two daughters of different mothers fight each other and the good-for-nothing one is so mean that the good one has a hard time defending herself; afterward, the poor dear thinks that she has been beaten and that the wicked one is stronger than she. Not at all! The wicked one is not stronger than you but is more brazen, perverse, unpredictable and stubborn and when you go off crying, she is incredibly happy because that’s just so much time wasted, and she is satisfied to make you lose time when she is unable to make you lose eternity.”

“Do not be ashamed of all this, my dear daughter, any more than St. Paul who confesses that there were two men in him – one rebellious toward God, and the other obedient to God. Stir up your courage. Arm yourself with the patience that we should have toward ourselves.” (Letters of Spiritual Direction, p. 164-165)

Of course, there are not really two people battling inside of us trying to see who will win out! Thank God for that, because most days we have more than enough in handling our singular personalities! Of course, it is discouraging when we do not live up to God’s standards or even our own. Of course, it is frustrating to make what often appears to be little progress in the spiritual life. Of course, there’s more good that we should do and more evil that we should avoid. Rather than drive yourself crazy, gently – and firmly – follow Francis de Sales’ advice: “Stir up your courage. Arm yourself with patience that we should have toward ourselves.” And - of course - with one another.

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(October 23, 2015: John of Capistrano, Priest, Religious and Reformer)
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“And he told them this parable…”

In his commentary on this selection from the Gospel of Luke, William Barclay makes the following observations:

“The parable teaches that nothing which only takes out can survive. The fig tree was drawing strength and sustenance from the soil and in return was producing nothing. That was precisely its sin. In the last analysis, there are two kinds of people in this world – those who take out more than they put in, and those who put in more than they take out.”

“In one sense we are all in debt to life. We came into it at the peril of someone else’s life, and we would never have survived without the care of those who loved us. We have inherited a Christian legacy and a freedom which we did not create. There is laid on us the duty of handling things on better than we found them. ‘Die when I may’, said Abraham Lincoln, ‘I want it said of me that I plucked a weed and planted a flower wherever I thought a flower would grow’.”

Not to put to fine a point on it, but ask yourself the question: Am I a person who takes more out of life than I put in, or am I a person who puts more into life than I take out?

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Spirituality Matters October 10th - October 16th

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(October 10, 2021: Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time)
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“How hard it is to enter the kingdom of God.”

In the closing minutes of the movie Field of Dreams, the character of Thomas Mann is invited by the ghost of Shoeless Joe Jackson to come ‘out’ with the team. Ray Concella is incensed. Why is the writer invited instead of Ray? Ray launches into a litany of all the things that he has done in following the promptings of the ‘voice’ and ends with the statement: “Not once have I asked what’s in it for me!” The ghost inquires: “What are you saying, Ray?” Ray responds: “I’m saying - what’s in it for me?”

How honest. How revealing. How human.

We hear echoes of this same refrain in St. Peter’s statement in today’s Gospel: “We have put aside everything to follow you.” Implied? “What’s in it for us?”

The truth is that the Good News never seems to let up. God never settles for less or for just “getting by”. Even as we grow in our love for God, ourselves and others, the Good News always calls us to give more, to go deeper, to press on. The truth is that the Good News is not about being “good enough” or simply “getting by”. No wonder we sometimes ask the questions “What more do you want?” that can turn into, “What’s in it for me?”

What’s in it for us is a twofold promise. First, we are promised that we will come to know the joy associated with being more concerned about giving than receiving. We will experience in this life the freedom that comes with allowing God to penetrate all – not just some – of who we are. In short, we experience the wealth that is only known by generous people. Second, we are promised that there will come a day when we will enjoy this God-given freedom forever in a life that never ends.

So, what’s in it for us? How about purpose, meaning and direction in this life! How about the fullness of purpose, meaning and direction – and so many other gifts – in the life to come!

Now that’s Good News!

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(October 12, 2021: Blessed Louis Brisson - Priest, Founder and religious)
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In her book, Heart Speaks to Heart: The Salesian Tradition, Wendy Wright quotes Fr. Brisson regarding the challenge to “Reprint the Gospel” in all aspects of life. We read:

“It is not enough to read the Gospel in order to understand it. We must live it. The Gospel is the true story of the Word of God living among men. We must produce a New Edition of this Gospel among men by prayer, work, preaching and sacrifice…”

“First, we reprint the Gospel by prayer, through which we give ourselves to God in every way without reserve.”

“Second, we reprint the Gospel by means of work. We must reprint the Gospel and reprint it page by page without omitting anything…In our lives there is always some manual labor. There is a library to keep in order, a helping hand to be given. A little gardening to be done, a little tidying up or arranging to be done…God has attached great graces to manual labor.”

“The third way for us to reprint the Gospel is by preaching. All of us should preach. Those who work with their hands as well as those who are occupied with exterior works, those who conduct classes and those who teach by example, those who direct souls as well as those assigned to the ministry of the pulpit – all of us should preach. We should preach in practical ways. We should teach our neighbors, if not by our words, at least by our actions.”

“The fourth thing in the Gospel is sacrifice. The Word made Flesh prayed in order to teach us how to pray. He worked. He preached. Finally, He suffered. These are the four conditions necessary to reprint the Gospel…” (pp. 145-146)

There are any number of ways in which God may ask us to reprint the Gospel: in prayer, work, preaching and sacrifice. Are you willing? Are you able? Are you ready?

Today, how can you reprint the Gospel?

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(October 13, 2021: Wednesday, Twenty-eighth Week Ordinary Time)
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“There is no partiality with God.”

In his commentary on today’s selection from Paul’s letter to the Romans, William Barclay made the following observation:

“Paul insists that in God’s economy there is no most favored nation status. There may be nations which are picked out for a special task and for a special responsibility, but none which is picked out for special privilege and special consideration. It may be true, as Milton said, that ‘When God has some great work, he gives it to his Englishmen’, but it is a great work that is in question, not a great privilege. The whole of the Jewish religion was based on the conviction that the Jews held a special position of privilege and favor in the eyes of God. We may feel that that is a position which nowadays we are far past. But is it? Is there no such thing nowadays as a color bar? Is there no such thing as a conscious feeling of superiority to what Kipling called ‘lesser breeds without the law’? This is not to say that all nations are the same in talent, but it is to say that those nations who have advanced further ought not to look with contempt on the others, but are, rather, under the responsibility to help them move forward.”

Each of us has a unique role to play in building up God’s Kingdom. However obvious or obscure our unique rolls may be, let us not confuse doing God’s work with promoting our own privilege.

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(October 14, 2021: Callistus I, Pope and Martyr)
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“They are justified freely by his grace through the redemption in Christ Jesus.”

In his commentary concerning this verse from Chapter 1 of St. Paul’s Letter to the Romans (in which he used forms of the words justify/justification in lieu of righteous and/or righteousness), William Barclay wrote:

“If we justify ourselves, we produce reasons to prove that we acted in the right way. If someone else justifies us, that person produces reasons to prove that we acted in the right way. Paying attention to the forms of the word in Greek, however, they always mean to treat, or account or reckon a person as something. Therefore, if God justifies a sinner, it does not mean that God finds reasons to prove the person right – far from it. It does not even mean, at this point, that God makes the sinner a good person. It means that God treats the sinner as if the sinner had not been a sinner at all. Instead of treating the sinner as a criminal to be obliterated, God treat the sinner as a child to be loved. That is what justification (righteousness) means. It means that God reckons us not as God’s enemies, but as God’s friends, not as bad people deserve but as good people deserve, not as law-breakers to be punished but as good men and women to be loved. That is the very essence of the Gospel.” (Daily Study Bible Series, p. 22)

We are not made righteous (justified) by faith in ourselves. We are made righteous (justified) by God’s faith in – and love for – us! Just this day, how might we display our gratitude for God’s abiding faith in us through our interactions with one another?

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(October 15, 2021: Teresa of Jesus, Religious and Doctor of the Church)
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“A worker’s wage is credited not as a gift, but as something due…”

Today we celebrate the life and legacy of St. Teresa of Avila. In his book This Saint’s for You, Thomas Craughwell observes:

“Every day – all day long – God pours his grace upon the world. Those who accept it – who cooperate with God’s will – draw closer to the Lord, as in the case of St. Teresa of Avila, the patron of souls in need of divine grace. The easygoing life of the Carmelite convent she entered was not conducive to the contemplative life. So, she began planning a new branch of the Carmelites, one that would bring nuns (and friars) back to the order’s original commitment to a life of austerity and deep prayer…St. Teresa’s legacy is her collection of spiritual writings, She was the first Catholic woman to write systematically about prayer and the interior life. In 1970, upon naming her a Doctor of the Church, Pope Paul VI praised Teresa as ‘a teacher of remarkable depth.’”

Insofar as Teresa died in 1582, her writings were well known by the “Gentleman Saint”. In a letter to Madame de Chantal (1605), Francis de Sales wrote:

“The practice of the presence of God taught by Mother Teresa in chapters 29 and 30 of The Way of Perfection is excellent, and I think it amounts to the same as I explained to you when I wrote that God was in our spirit as though he were the heart of our spirit and in our heart as the spirit which breathes life into it, and that David called God: the God of his heart. Use this boldly and often for it is most useful. May God be the soul and spirit of our heart forever….” (Stopp, Selected Letters, pp. 160 – 161)

Teresa knew from personal experience that “reforming” oneself – to say nothing of encourage others to “reform” themselves – is hard work. Of course, as we so clearly in the life of Teresa, working to be the best version of oneself is its own reward!

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(October 16, 2021: Margaret Mary Alacoque, VHM)
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<"Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart.” Today we celebrate the life and legacy of St. Margaret Mary Alacoque. In his book This Saint’s for You, Thomas Craughwell observes:

“At the age of nine, Margaret Mary Alacoque contracted polio. She spent the next six years confined to her bed as an invalid. When she was fifteen it is said that she had a vision of the Blessed Virgin Mary: upon emerging from her ecstasy, she discovered that she had been healed of her infirmities. During those six years Margaret Mary had developed a rather deep prayer life. When she subsequently joined the Sisters of the Visitation at Paray le Monial, she found the form of meditation prescribed for the novices rudimentary to the point of being tedious. Notwithstanding this source of frustration, Margaret Mary persevered and professed final vows.”

“In 1675 she had a vision of Christ while praying in the monastery chapel. He told Margaret Mary that he wanted her to be his messenger, spreading throughout the world devotion to his Sacred heart that, he told Margaret Mary, was ‘burning with divine love’ for the human family. Christ asked that the Church institute a new feast day in honor of his Sacred Heart and that, for love of him, Catholics should attend Mass and receive Communion on the First Friday of each month. He promised to save all faithful Catholics who honored him by displaying an image of his sacred heart in their homes or going to Mass and Communion every First Friday of the month for nine successive months.”

“Margaret Mary Alacoque encountered a great deal of skepticism when she began to tell the other sisters in the monastery about her visions. The nuns accused her of lying and questioned her sanity, while the local clergy dismissed her visions, saying that the Sacred Heart devotion went too far in humanizing Christ and thus diminished his divinity. The Jesuits, however – and the monastery’s chaplain Father Claude de la Colombiere, SJ – argued successfully that Margaret Mary’s revelations put fresh emphasis on the perfectly orthodox principle of confidence in God’s infinite love. Today veneration of the Sacred Heart of Jesus is a mainstay in Catholic devotional life.”

How ironic that God would choose a religious woman living in a cloistered community to become the herald (with the help of Claude de la Colombiere, of course!) of Christ’s unbounded love as seen so clearly in the image of his Sacred Heart? As Jesus told us late last week, nothing – however seemingly unlikely – is “impossible with God”. God took a personal, private revelation of his love to Margaret Mary and managed to transform it into a universal expression of love!

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Spirituality Matters October 3rd - October 9th

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(October 3, 2021: Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time)
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“It is not good for man to be alone.”

Today’s readings remind us of our need to have profound respect for one another. Today’s readings speak of the reverence we should have for every human being. Today’s readings speak of the care and concern that we should have for all creation.

More importantly, the readings speak of a deeper truth: like the God in whose image and likeness we are created, we are not meant to live alone.

Francis de Sales wrote:

“God has signified to us in so many ways and by so many means that God wills all of us to be saved that no one can be ignorant of this fact. For this purpose, through Creation God made us in his own image and likeness; by the Incarnation, God has made himself in our image and likeness…God’s goodness moves God to communicate liberally to us the help of divine grace so that we may come to the joy of his glory…” (<Treatise on the Love of God, Book VIII, Chapter 4)

Just as God communicates with us, we are meant to live in communion with one another.

In his Conferences, Francis spells out how being ourselves leads us to be in relationships with others.

“The sweet and loving bond of holy love will be continually drawn tighter and closer as we advance farther and farther along the road of our own perfection. As we become more and more capable of union with God, we shall unite ourselves closer and closer to one another…At each communion, which we make, our union will be rendered more perfect, for, uniting ourselves with Our Lord, we shall remain always more closely united together, and therefore this is why the holy reception of this celestial Bread and of this most adorable Sacrament is called Communion: that is to say, common union.” (Conference VI, On Hope)

Fundamentally, Francis de Sales tells us that we are born to love. We are made for relationship. Much of who we are – much more of who we could be – can only become reality through the relationships we establish and nurture with others.

To be sure, we need to be ourselves. We need to grow in self-knowledge and self-acceptance. We need to embrace our strengths and our weaknesses. We need to consider what we can do on our own. We need to accept what we cannot do on our own. But none of this happens in a vacuum: the fullness of who God calls us to be is found precisely in our relationships with one another.

Not only is it not good for man to be alone. We can only be fully human when we live in communion with God…and with one another.

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(October 4, 2021: Francis of Assisi, Founder and Religious)
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“What is written in the law? How do you read it?”

Jesus raises a great question in today’s Gospel. And the person to whom he directs it – a “scholar of the law” – would appreciate the power of the question. Any student of the law – and anyone who practices law – knows that it isn’t enough just to know the letter of the law, but it’s also important to know how to ‘read’ – that is, to interpret – the law so as to know how best to apply it.

This dilemma brings us to the best – albeit, if not the most concise – answer to that question - the parable of the Good Samaritan.

Talk about a study in contrast! Two so-called experts in the letter of the law – the priest and the Levite - failed miserably because they did not offer any assistance to the man who fell victim to robbers. And the other hand, the Samaritan – a man who may have known extraordinarily little if any law – followed the law of compassion and common sense by tending to the needs of this unfortunate stranger by being a good neighbor.

Of course, the most important law for those who follow Jesus is the Gospel, that is, the Law of Love, a love so clearly embodied by Jesus as well as by his mother, Mary. It is important for us to have a working knowledge of that Law; it’s important for us to know how to read or interpret that Law. More important, however, than knowing or interpreting it is our willingness to put the Gospel of Jesus Christ – the Law of Love – into practice.

In what ways can we be Good Samaritans - that is, good, just and compassionate neighbors today?

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(October 5, 2021: Francis Xavier Seelos, Priest)
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“You are anxious and worried about many things…”

In his Introduction to a Devout Life, Francis de Sales wrote:

“Anxiety is not a simple temptation but a source from which and by which many temptations arise. With the single exception of sin, anxiety is the greatest evil that can happen to a soul. Just as sedition and internal disorders bring total ruin on a State and leave it helpless to resist a foreign invader, so also, if our heart is inwardly troubled and disturbed it loses both the strength necessary to maintain the virtues it had acquired and the means to resist the temptations of the enemy. He then uses his utmost efforts to fish, as they say, in troubled waters.”(IDL, Part IV, Chapter 11, pp. 251-252)

Martha was obviously overwhelmed by her desire to do right by Jesus when it came to the practice of hospitality. Apparently more obvious to Jesus, however, was the fact that Martha was “anxious and worried about many things.” This issue of wanting to be the perfect host and whining about needing help with the serving seems to have been the tip of the iceberg.

We should want to put our best foot forward when entertaining guests. We should want to give worthwhile things our best effort. We should want to do things well. We should want to get it right the first time.

And when we do not? Deal with it; learn from it and move beyond it without being all worked up and anxious about it. Anxiety not only ruins good things, but it also makes bad things even worse.

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(October 6, 2021: Blessed Marie Rose Durocher, Founder)
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“Lord, teach us to pray…” In today’s Gospel Jesus teaches his disciples how to pray. Of course, a more fundamental question might have been, “Teach us why we should pray.”

In a letter written to a young woman who was – you guessed it – having trouble when praying, Francis de Sales wrote:

“First, we pray to give God the honor and homage we owe Him. This can be done without His speaking to us or we to Him, for this duty is paid by remembering that He is God, and we are His creatures and by remaining prostrate in spirit before him, awaiting His commands.

“Second, we pray to speak with God and to hear Him speak to us by inspirations and movements in the interior of our soul. Generally, this is done with a very delicious pleasure, because it is a great good for us to speak to so great a Lord. When He answers He spreads abroad a thousand precious balms and unguents which give great sweetness to the soul.”

“So, one of these two goods can never fail you in prayer. If we speak to our Lord, let us speak, let us praise Him, beseech Him and listen to Him. If we cannot use our voice, still let us stay in the room and do reverence to Him. He will see us there. He will accept our patience and will favor our silence. At other times we shall be quite amazed to be taken by the hand and he will converse with us and will make a hundred turns with us in the walks of His garden of prayer. And if He should never do these things, let us be content with our duty of being in His suite and with the great grace and too great honor He does us in accepting our presence…” (Thy Will be Done, pp. 26-27)

So, why should we pray? Well, either (1) to remind ourselves of who God is in our lives, or (2) to remind ourselves who God wants us to be in relationship with Him and each other. Regardless of how many, how few or if any words we may use in the process of praying, may God give us the grace to (1) do what we pray and (2) pray what we do.

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Octobe(r 7, 2015: Our Lady of the Rosary
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“He will get up to give him whatever he needs because of his persistence...”

There is an adage which basically goes like this: “If you don’t ask, you don’t get.” Mind you, the adage does not guarantee that you will always get what you want. Likewise, the adage does not guarantee that if you do get want you want that you will get it when you want to get it or how you want it. On the other hand, if you do not ask the question in the first place, that pretty much guarantees that – under normal circumstances – you’ll never get what you want under any circumstances! That is one way of ‘reading’ today’s Gospel parable. Ask; seek; by all means knock. But do not think that whatever you receive – whenever you receive it – however you receive it – necessarily results from the first question, the initial seeking or a single knock. In God’s way of telling time, we may need to ask, seek or knock many times.

In some cases, maybe even over a lifetime.

However, it is important to take note of a distinction that Jesus makes in today’s Gospel. While God promises to provide whatever we need because of our persistence, God makes no such promise when it comes to providing whatever we want.

Do you want to ask God for something? Then how about making this prayer - O God, give me the gratitude that comes from wanting what I already have, rather than always getting what I want.

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(October 8, 2015: Friday, Twenty-seventh Week Ordinary Time)
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“When an unclean spirit goes out of someone…it brings back seven others more wicked than itself.”

In today’s Gospel, Jesus drives out a demon. In addition, he speaks about demons that would attempt to divide a kingdom against itself. Francis de Sales knew a few things about demons. In his Introduction to the Devout Life, he wrote extensively about this same demon upon which we touched previously this week: anxiety.

“Anxiety is not a simple temptation but a source from which and by which many temptations arise…When a soul perceives that it has suffered a certain evil, it is displeased at having it and hence sadness follows. The soul immediately desires to be free of it and to have some means of getting rid of it. Thus far the soul is right, for everyone naturally desires to embrace what is good and to dispose of anything evil…Now if it does not immediately succeed in the way it wants it grows very anxious and impatient. Instead of removing the evil, it increases it and this involves the soul in greater anguish and distress together with such loss of strength and courage that it imagines the evil to be incurable. You see, then, that sadness, which is justified in the beginning, produces anxiety, and anxiety in turn produces increase in sadness. All this is extremely dangerous.” (IDL, Part IV, Chapter 11, p. 251)

Anxiety never roams alone. It brings with it a whole host of other unclean spirits that can divide the kingdom of our heart against itself. Whatever difficulties or challenges you may face, don’t let things get worse by allowing anxiety and its cohorts to make a home in your heart.

Simply – but firmly – show them the door.

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(October 10, 2015: Denis, Bishop, and Companions, Martyrs)
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“Blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.”

In a letter written to a young woman who was ultimately unsuccessful in her desire and efforts to join a religious community, Francis de Sales wrote:

“You should resign yourself entirely into the hands of the good God, who, when you have done your little duty about this inspiration and design that you have, will be pleased with whatever you do, even if it be much less. If after all your efforts you cannot succeed, you could not please our Lord more than by sacrificing to Him your will and remaining in tranquility, humility and devotion, entirely conformed and submissive to His divine will and good pleasure. You will recognize this clearly enough when – having done your best – you cannot fulfill your desires.”

“Sometimes our good God tries our courage and our love, depriving us of the things that seem to us – and which really may be – very good for the soul. If He sees us ardent in our pursuit and yet all the while humble, tranquil and resigned to do without to the privation of the things sought, He gives us blessings greater in the privation than in the possession of the thing desired. For in all things and everywhere, God loves those who with good heart and simplicity – on all occasions and in all events – can say to Him, ‘Thy will be done.’” (Thy Will be Done, pp. 3-4)

Observing the Word of God is not simply a matter of being a casual observer – it is about putting that Word into action! Despite our best attempts at putting that Word into action, however we do not – as we know all-too-well from our own experience – control the result or outcome our efforts. As Francis de Sales reminds us, what we do – or do not – accomplish in observing God’s Word is not nearly as important as allowing that Word to draw us closer to God and to one another.

Come what may!

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Spirituality Matters September 19th - September 25th

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(September 19, 2021: Twenty-fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time)
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“If anyone wishes to be first, he shall be the last of all and the servant of all.”

The first disciples certainly did ascribe to the fact that Jesus was very probably the Messiah for whom they yearned, and yet he was one with a mission far from the reality that they expected.

Today's Gospel gives a vivid picture of this dilemma in their failure to appreciate the fact that Jesus speaks about his upcoming death and resurrection and the suffering involved in that particular path. The clear unfolding of that prediction met with confusion and fear on the part of his disciples because they found themselves unable to grasp this reality in light of their own expectations, hopes and dreams.

Their perception of their role in the reality of this kingdom led them to argue among themselves. Their expectations naturally convinced them of the importance of their own role in the fulfillment of Jewish hopes for their future and embroiled them in hostility, envy and enmity among themselves. Jesus again clearly demonstrated the importance of their role and how their role would be played out - in ways far different from their own perceptions. The little child in their midst presents clearly the ideal to which his disciples are called. How unaware they seemed to be of the call that was theirs to be of service rather than to be served.

Saint Francis de Sales speaks of the natural difficulty often involved in our acquiescence to the will of God. Often, we find ourselves in the position of the apostles in the Gospel account today, where following the will of God does not conform to our own expectations or desires. In the Treatise on the Love of God (Book 9, Chapter 2), Francis tells us:

“A truly living heart loves God's good pleasures not only in consolations but also in afflictions, but it loves it most of all in the cross, in pain, and labor, because love's principal power is to enable the lover to suffer for the beloved object.”

We need to ask ourselves today how our own expectations, hopes or dreams prevent us from truly acquiescing to the Will of God. Do the difficult times we encounter stifle us in our attempts to follow God's will? Have we been able to abandon our attempts to have God's will conform to our own desires and wills? Do we really appreciate the gift that Jesus is to us?

A prayerful reflection upon these questions will lead to that opportunity needed for us to acquiesce to the Will of God. What a necessary part of our journey of faith this process really is. In the Introduction to the Devout Life (Book 2, Chapter 1), St. Francis de Sales wrote:

“Prayer places our intelligence in the divine love. It is the best way to purge our intelligence of its ignorance and our will of its bad affections...I suggest, above all, Philothea, mental prayer of the mind and heart, especially that which is made on the Life and Passion of Our Lord. In contemplating Him you will be filled with Him; you will learn to act like Him and to conform your actions to His.”

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(September 20, 2021: Andrew Kim Tae-gon, Priest and Paul Chong Ha-sang, and Companions, Martyrs
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“No one who lights a lamp conceals it with a vessel or sets it under a bed; rather, he places it on a lampstand so that those who enter may see the light…”

In his commentary (which he entitles “Laws for Life”) on this selection from the Gospel of Luke, William Barclay offers the following reflections for our consideration:

“Verse 16 stresses the essential conspicuous of the Christian life. Christianity is in its very nature something which must be seen. It is easy to find prudential reasons why we should not flaunt our Christianity in the world’s face. In almost every person there is an instinctive fear of being different, and the world is always likely to persecute those who do not conform to pattern. Hard as it may be, the duty is laid upon us of never being ashamed to show whose we are and whom we serve. The Christian, however humble one’s position and sphere, must never be ashamed to show his or her colors.”

“Verse 17 stresses the impossibility of secrecy. Sometimes we try to hide things from ourselves. Sometimes we try to hide things from other people. Sometimes we try to even hide things form God.” But as we all know from our own experience, things have a way of coming out. As the Bard himself reminds us, “the truth will out”. “Verse 18 lays down the universal law that the man who has will get more, and the man who has not will lose what he has. This is just another way of saying that there is no standing still in life. At all times we are either moving forward of falling back. The seeker will always find, whereas the man who stops seeking will lose even what he has.”

May God help us in our efforts to both live in the light and to share our light with others. May God help us in our efforts to refrain from keeping secrets. May God help us in our efforts to be seekers.

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(September 21, 2021: Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist)
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“Live in a manner worthy of the call you have received…”

In his book This Saint’s for You, Thomas Craughwell writes:

“During the Roman Empire, tax collecting was one of the most lucrative jobs a person could have. With the emperor’s tacit approval, collectors were free to wring all they could from their district’s taxpayers and then keep a portion of the proceeds for themselves. Caesar did not mind the profiteering as long as the total assessed tax was delivered to his treasury. But Jewish taxpayers forced to pay the exorbitant sums were not quite so forgiving, especially when the tax collector was a fellow Jew, like Matthew. Jewish tax collectors were regarded as loathsome collaborators and extortionists who exploited their own people. It’s little wonder, then, that in the Gospels tax collectors are placed on par with harlots, thieves, and other shameless public sinners.”

“Matthew collected taxes in Capernaum, a town in the northern province of Galilee and the site of a Roman garrison. Christ was a frequent visitor there, performing such miracles as healing the centurion’s servant, curing Peter’s ailing mother-in-law, and raising Jairus’ daughter form the dead. One day, while passing the customs house where Matthew was busy squeezing extra shekels from his neighbors, Christ paused to say, ‘Follow me.’ That was all it took to touch Matthew’s heart. He walked out of the customs house forever, giving up his life as a cheat to become an apostle, the author of a Gospel and eventually a martyr.” (Page 12) Just when Matthew thought he had it made – just when he thought he was living la vita loca – Christ changed his life by calling him to live in a manner worthy of what God had in mind for him. Matthew – who clearly recognized an opportunity when he saw one – dropped everything he had valued up until that very moment to follow Jesus. And the rest, as they say, is history.

It is amazing to consider how a handful of words can change the trajectory of one’s life. A few words from Jesus transformed Matthew from being a human being who was all about taking from others into a man who was all about giving to others - even to the point of giving his very life.

Today, how might God’s words invite us to change and to transform our lives?

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(September 22, 2021: Wednesday, Twenty-fifth Week Ordinary Time
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“Jesus summoned the Twelve and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them to proclaim the Kingdom of God and to heal the sick…”

In his commentary on this selection from the Gospel of Luke, William Barclay offers the following reflections for our consideration:

“One thing which stands out about the ministry which Jesus laid upon the Twelve is this – repeatedly in this short passes it joins preaching and healing. It joins concern for our bodies and our souls. It was something which was not to deal only in words, however comforting, but also in deeds. It was a message which was not confined to news of eternity: it proposed to change conditions on earth. This was no ‘pie in the sky’ message. It insisted that health to one’s body was as integral a part of God’s purpose as health to one’s soul.”

In imitation of the Twelve and of Jesus himself, how might we preach a message that heals, in both words and deeds?

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(September 23, 2021: “Padre Pio”, Priest)
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“Born Francesco Forgione, Padre Pio grew up in a family of farmers in southern Italy. Twice (1898-1903 and 1910-17) his father worked in Jamaica, New York, to provide the family income.” “At the age of 15, Francesco joined the Capuchins and took the name of Pio. He was ordained in 1910 and was drafted during World War I. After he was discovered to have tuberculosis, he was discharged from the military. In 1917 he was assigned to the friary in San Giovanni Rotondo, 75 miles from the city of Bari on the Adriatic. On September 20, 1918, as he was making his thanksgiving after Mass, Padre Pio had a vision of Jesus. When the vision ended, he had the stigmata in his hands, feet and side.”

“His life became more complicated after that. Medical doctors, Church authorities and curiosity seekers came to see Padre Pio. In 1924 and again in 1931, the authenticity of the stigmata was questioned; Padre Pio was not permitted to celebrate Mass publicly or to hear confessions. He did not complain of these decisions, which were soon reversed. However, he wrote no letters after 1924. His only other writing, a pamphlet on the agony of Jesus, was done before 1924.”

“Padre Pio rarely left the friary after he received the stigmata, but busloads of people soon began coming to see him. Each morning following the 5:00 AM Mass in a crowded church, he heard confessions until noon. He took a mid-morning break to bless the sick and all who came to see him. Every afternoon he also heard confessions. Over time his confessional ministry would consume ten hours a day; penitents had to take a number in order to handle the crowds of people who came to see him.”

“Padre Pio particularly saw the face of Jesus in the faces of the sick and suffering. At his urging, a hospital was constructed on nearby Mount Gargano. Beginning in 1940 a committee began to collect money: six years later ground was broken. This ‘House for the Alleviation of Suffering’ had 350 beds.”

“Pius of Pietrelcina died on September 23, 1968, was beatified in 1999 and canonized in 2002.” (http://www.americancatholic.org/features/saints/saint.aspx?id=1147)

How might we see the face of Jesus in others today?

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(September 25, 2021: Friday, Twenty-fifth Week Ordinary Time)
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“My spirit continues in your midst; do not fear!”

Pick a place, people or problem. On any given day, there are more than a few things that might cause us to fear. In a letter to Jane de Chantal, Francis de Sales counseled:

“Be brave – we shall win through God’s help. Believe me, this is a better sort of weather for a journey than if the sun were always shining on us. Recently I was watching bees and how they remained quietly in the shelter of their hives when the air is misty. They came out from time to time to see how things were going and yet they did not seem in a hurry to come out. Rather, they were busy eating to fill their honey. Be of good cheer! We have no control over any spiritual light or consolation except what depends on our will, and that is protected and sheltered by our holy resolutions. While the great seal of God’s chancery is upon our hearts there is nothing to fear.” (Stopp, Selected Letters, pp. 99 – 100)

Life can be a scary at times. Tempted as we might be, however, we cannot play it safe forever. We need to venture out from the hives of our minds and hearts on a daily basis – there is work to be done! Whatever challenges or difficulties we might experience today, let us try our level best not to succumb to fear. Remember – God continues in our midst, with us and among us.

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(September 26, 2021: Saturday, Twenty-fifth Week Ordinary Time)

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“Pay attention to what I am telling you.”

Some things in life are more important than others. With the hope of trying to impress upon another person that what we are about to say is of greater importance than other things, often, we might preface our advice with words like “listen up,” “pay attention” or “now hear this”.

While we would like to think that everything that Jesus said is of equal importance, Jesus clearly wanted to impress his disciples with the inevitability of his showdown with the religious leaders of his time. And while we know that Jesus raised this issue more than a few times in the Gospels, the disciples seem to have had difficulty in grasping the importance of this prediction.

In his Treatise on the Love of God, Francis de Sales wrote:

“The more pleasant and excellent are the objects our senses encounter, the more ardently and avidly do they enjoy them. The more beautiful, the more delightful to our sight, and the more effectively lighted they are, the more eagerly and attentively do our eyes look to them. The sweeter and more pleasant a voice or music is, the more completely is the ear’s attention drawn to it. This force is more or less strong in accordance with the greater or lesser excellence of the object, provided that it is proportionate to the capacity of the sense desiring to enjoy it. For example, although the eye finds great pleasure in light, it cannot bear extremely strong light, nor can it look steadily at the sun. No matter how beautiful music may be, if it is too loud and too close to us, it strikes harshly on the ear and disturbs it.” (TLG, Book III, Chapter 9, p. 186)

There are so many things that Jesus wants us to learn about the ways of living in God’s love. How well will we pay attention to what God may be telling us about those ways - just today?

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Spirituality Matters September 26th - October 2nd

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(September 26, 2021: Twenty-sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time)
***** “Anyone who gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong to Christ, Amen, I say to you, will surely not lose his reward.” When we think of serving the Lord, we probably – however unconsciously – image doing something great, something wonderful and/or something awe-inspiring for God or for others. Maybe yes, maybe no. In his Introduction to the Devout Life, Francis de Sales observed:

“You must be ready to suffer many great afflictions for our Lord, even martyrdom itself. Resolve to give God whatever you hold dearest if it should please Him to take it from you – father, mother, brother, husband, wife, child, your eyesight, perhaps even your very life itself. Prepare your heart for any and all such sacrifices as these. However, if divine Providence does not send you great, piercing afflictions and does not demand your eyesight of you, be willing to give god a few of your hairs. What I am suggesting is that we must bear patiently the slight injuries, the little inconveniences and the inconsequential losses that come your way on a daily basis. By means of such little things as these – borne with great love and affection – you will completely win God’s heart and make it all your own.”

“Little acts of charity, a headaches toothache or cold, the bad humor of a husband or wife, a shattered glass, this contempt or that scorn, loss of a pair of gloves, a ring or a handkerchief, the inconveniences associated with going to bed early and getting up early to pray or receive Holy Communion, the feeling of awkwardness one experiences in performing certain acts of devotion in public: – in short, all such trials as these – when accepted and embraced with love – are highly pleasing to God’s mercy. For a single cup of water, God has promised to his faithful a sea of endless bliss. Since such opportunities present themselves each and every moment, it will be a great means of storing up vast spiritual riches if you learn how to use them well.” (IDL, Part III, Chapter 35)

What is the moral to the image of offering something as simple as a cup of water to somebody else because we belong to Christ? When it comes to “Living Jesus”, little things mean a lot! *****
(September 27, 2021: Vincent de Paul, Priest and Founder)
***** Today we celebrate the life and legacy of St. Vincent de Paul. In his book entitled This Saint’s for You, Thomas J. Craughwell wrote: “Vincent de Paul’s…temperament was such that he could never turn away from a person in need, no matter what the need was. The list of troubles he sought to alleviate is astounding. He brought food and medicine to penniless sick people, comforted convicts condemned to row the galleys, and sheltered orphans, the elderly and soldiers incapacitated by war wounds. He opened hospitals, took in abandoned babies and taught catechism to children. He founded an order of nuns (the Daughters of Charity) to serve the poor and another for priests to teach and encourage religious devotion among the urban poor and country peasants. In time, the Vincentians’ (as they came to be called) method for educating people in the faith was adopted by many bishops for use in their own seminaries.” (This Saint’s for You, p. 108) There is nothing new about what St. Vincent de Paul did. After all, countless saints (both those known and many more unknown) have been doing good things for others in the name of God since the time of Jesus Christ. That said, Vincent de Paul is recognized for continuing to do well-known and well-established good things for other people in new and creative ways – specifically, through his founding of the Daughters of Charity. After all, the Daughters of Charity differed from other religious congregations of that time in that they were not cloistered, making them the first of their kind. In addition, they took a vow of charity on an annual basis, enabling them to maintain the necessary mobility and availability required for the type of ministry in which they were engaged in a revolutionary way. In the big scheme of things, perhaps it is true that there may be nothing new under the sun. However, there are always new and creative ways of doing the things that are well established. How might God be inviting us just this day to do something not-so-new for other people in exciting, new and novel ways? Does this mean that we should simply drift through life without putting our hand to anything? Does this mean that we are simply created to pass through this world without trying to contribute something to it? Does this mean that any attempt at leaving some legacy in our wake is simply a waste of time? After all, the Gospel parables of the “talents” makes it quite clear that God expects to (as it were) get a return on the investment that He has made in each and every one of us. The key to understanding what the warning in today’s reading means – as well as what it does not mean – comes from knowing the definition of the word “vanity”. Vanity is defined as, “Excessive pride in or admiration of one’s own appearance or achievements”. The key words here are “excessive” and “one’s own”. What is the lesson for us? We should work while on this earth. We should do our level best to make the world – at least our little part of it – a better place for our having been here. What we do does matter. What we do has results, provided that we do it for God’s glory, and not our own! *****
(September 28, 2021: Wenceslaus, Martyr)
***** “On the way they entered a Samaritan village to prepare for his reception there, but they would not welcome him because the destination of his journey was Jerusalem. When the disciples James and John saw this they asked, ‘Lord, do you want us to call down fire from heaven to consume them?’ Jesus turned and rebuked them, and they journeyed to another village.” In his commentary on this passage from the Gospel of Luke, William Barclay observed: “There is no passage in which Jesus so directly teaches the duty of tolerance as in this. In many ways, tolerance is a lost virtue and often where it does exist, it exists for the wrong reason.” “There are nay ways to God. God has his own secret stairway into every heart. God fulfills himself in many ways, and no person or church has a monopoly on God’s truth. But our tolerance must be based not upon indifference but on love. We ought to be tolerant not because we could not care less, but because we look at the other person with the eyes of love. When Abraham Lincoln was criticized for being too courteous to his enemies and reminded that it was his duty to destroy them, he gave the great answer, ‘Do I not destroy my enemies when I make them my friends?’” Recall the aphorism of St. Francis de Sales: “We attract more flies with a teaspoon of honey that with a barrel full of vinegar.” Tolerance is not merely the practice of putting up with others. Rather, it tolerance is a decision to accept others where and how they are. *****
(September 29, 2021: Michael, Gabriel and Raphael, Archangels)
***** “In the sight of the angels I will sing your praises, Lord…” In his Treatise on the Love of God, Francis de Sales wrote:

“Sacred providence determined to produce all things, both natural and supernatural, for the sake of our Savior so that angels and men might serve him and thus share in his glory. For this reason, although God willed to create both angels and men with free will, free with a true freedom to choose good and evil, still, to testify that on the part of God’s goodness they were dedicated to what is good and to glory, he created all of them in the state of original justice, which is nothing other than a most sweet love which would dispose them for, turn them towards and set them on the way to eternal happiness.” (TLG, Book II, Chapter 4, p.112)

St. Francis de Sales believed that we have at least two things in common with the angels: (1) God created us with freedom and (2) gave us a freedom tending toward all that is good that gives glory to God. Of course, God’s plans went awry in both cases. First, there was a revolt among some of the angels (recall the story of Lucifer) who resented having to pay homage to God. With this revolt God “resolved to abandon forever that sad and wretched legion of traitors who in furious rebellion had so shamefully abandoned him”. Second, (in the persons of Adam and Eve) “man would abuse his liberty, forsake grace and thus lose glory. Yet, God did not will to deal with human nature in so rigorous a way as he had decided to deal with angelic nature…he looked with pity upon our nature and resolved to have mercy on it”. (Ibid, pp. 112 - 113) In the Salesian tradition, then, what distinguishes us from the angels are the lengths to which God will go to redeem us. In the case of the rebellious angels, God simply banished them from his presence. In the case of his rebellious creatures – people like you and me – God not only does not banish us, but he also sent his only Son to redeem us. Francis de Sales says that the problem with many people who wish to pursue a life of devotion is that they make the mistake of trying to live like angels when they should be trying to live like good men and women. Given the fact that even the angels have had their share of challenges, maybe we have more than enough on our plates just being human without trying to be angelic too. What is the moral of the story? Let us do our level best to sing God’s praises in the sight of the angels, but let’s do it as humanly as possible! Today! *****
(September 30, 2021: Jerome, Priest and Doctor of the Church)
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“The precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; The command of the LORD is clear, enlightening the eye…”

In his book This Saint’s for You, Thomas Craughwell writes:

“St. Jerome was a Latin scholar in love with the art of fashioning words into beautiful phrases. About the year 366 he became secretary to the newly-elected pope, St. Damasus. It was Damasus’ dream to produce a new Latin translation of the Bible based on the original Greek and Hebrew manuscripts. Recognizing his secretary’s flair with language, the pope believed that Jerome was the man for the job. In the three years that followed Jerome produced beautiful and accurate translations of the psalms, the four Gospels, all of the Epistles and the Book of Revelation. ”

“To improve the then-current translations of the Old Testament, Jerome studied Hebrew. Frustrated at first, Jerome persisted with language and in twenty-six years he completed his translation of the Hebrew Scripture. During that time Damasus died and Jerome moved from Rome to Bethlehem, after which Rome itself fell to barbarians. One of Jerome’s letters written during the time when Roman refugees were pouring into the Holy Land survives to this day. Addressing a friend, Jerome wrote, ‘I have set aside my commentary of Ezekiel, and almost all of my study. For today we must translate the words of the Scripture into deeds.” (page 55)

What a privilege it was for Jerome to translate the Old and New Testaments! What a gift to – as it were – be the hand of a favoring God in making the greatest love story of all - the love of a just and faithful God for the human family – available to a much wider and more diverse audience? Just today, how can we continue to tell that same love story in words and translate it into deeds in ways that rejoice the heart and enlighten the eye?

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(October 1, 2021: Therese of the Childs Jesus, Religious/ Doctor of the Church)
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“Help us, O God our savior, because of the glory of your name…”

In his book This Saint’s for You, Thomas Craughwell writes:

“There’s no reason why the world should have ever heard of Therese Martin. She grew up in Lisieux, an obscure town in Normandy, and rarely ventured beyond the tightly knit circle of her immediate family and relatives. At age sixteen she entered the Carmelite cloister, which completely isolated her from the outside world, and she died there when she was only twenty-four. Despite her rather isolated life, St. Therese has a following among believers that is on par with St. Joseph, St. Anthony and St. Jude. She even has a nickname, ‘the Little Flower.’ And in 1997 Pope John Paul II declared her a Doctor of the Church, which sets her among the Church’s intellectual and mystical heavyweights. How did this happen, this evolution from obscurity to world-wide fame?”

“It all began the year after Therese’s death, when the Carmelites published her spiritual biography, The Story of a Soul. The crucial point in the book is the idea that even the humblest, most mundane task – if done for love of God – can draw one closer to him and make one grow in holiness. At first, many readers dismissed Therese’s ‘Little Way’ (as she called it) as late-nineteenth-French sentimental piety. But even her fiercest skeptics have been surprised to find that her approach to sanctity is really quite mainstream: saints like John of the Cross and Teresa of Avila advocated the same idea, as did Thomas a Kempis in his book, Imitation of Christ. (Editor’s note: so, too, did St. Francis de Sales in his Introduction to the Devout Life!) Miracles account for the other facet of St. Therese’s popularity. She has a reputation for answering prayers. On her deathbed she promised that – upon reaching heaven – she would rain down miracles on the world ‘like a shower of roses.’”

Therese was a woman who clearly experienced strength during her all-too-short life by rejoicing in the glory of God’s name. How might we follow her example - just this day - by giving glory to God’s name through our love for one another?

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(October 2, 2021: Guardian Angels)
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“Their angels in heaven always look upon the face of my heavenly Father…”

God not only calls us to live a holy life, but God also provides us with the means to live that life – what Francis de Sales calls ‘aids’ – and to help us to become holy people. In a conference (“On Constancy”) given to the Sisters of the Visitation, Francis de Sales remarked:

“The aids that God gives to us are intended to help us to keep steadily on our way, to prevent our falling, or, if we fall, to help us to get back up again. Oh, with what openness, cordiality, sincerity, simplicity and faithful confidence ought we to dialogue with these aids, which are given to us by God to help us in our spiritual progress. Certainly, this is true in the case of our good angels. We ought to look upon them in the same way, since our good angels are called angel guardians because they are commissioned to help us by their inspirations, to defend us in perils, to reprove us when we err and to stimulate us in the pursuit of virtue. They are charged to carry our prayers before the throne of the majesty, goodness and mercy of Our Lord and to bring back to us the answers to our petitions. The graces, too, which God bestows on us, He gives through the intervention or intercession of our good angels. Now, other aids are our visible good angels, just as our holy angel guardians are our invisible ones. Other aids do visibly what our good angels do inwardly, for they warn us of our faults; they encourage us when we are weak and languid; they stimulate us in our endeavors to attain perfection; they prevent us from falling by their goods counsels, and they help us to rise up again when we have fallen over some precipice of imperfection or fault. If we are overwhelmed with weariness and disgust, they help us to bear our trouble patiently, and they pray to God to give us strength so to bear it so as not to be overcome by temptation. See, then, how much we ought to value their assistance and their tender care for us …” (Conference III, pp. 41-42)

In the mind of Francis de Sales, God provide us with invisible support for our journey in this life through those ‘aids’ known as “angel guardians”. It is safe to say that some of the most visible ‘aids’ that God uses to provide support for our journey in this life are known by another name: ‘friends’.

Today, how can we imitate the invisible example of the angel guardians by befriending one another in very visible ways?

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Spirituality Matters September 12th - September 18th

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(September 12, 2021: Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time)
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“Get thee behind me, Satan.”

The saints are heroes of our faith tradition. They are people to whom we look up; they are people we admire. They remind us God can accomplish in us the kinds of things God accomplished in them. But the stories of the saints are more than a consideration of the promise of human strength, courage, fidelity and tenacity. Their stories are also powerful reminders of the reality of human frailty, weakness and infidelity. In a sermon he preached on Palm Sunday, March 1622, Francis de Sales observed:

“All creatures, you see, are a mixture of perfection and imperfection. For this reason, they can be used as symbols of either. Every person, no matter how holy, has some imperfections. Made in God’s image, each person reflects something of God’s goodness while, at the same time, that same person carries some imperfections.” (Pulpit and Pew)

Consider the example of St. Peter in today’s Gospel. When the apostles were asked the question by Jesus, “Who do you say I am?” Peter is the first to proclaim: “You are the Messiah!” A mere few verses following this great public demonstration of faith, Peter takes issue with Jesus’ prediction of his ultimate rejection, death and resurrection, and is subjected to a great pubic humiliation when Jesus turns on him and proclaims: “Get thee behind me, Satan!”

It seems that even saints had their ups and downs. In the case of St. Peter, this would not be the last display of both his perfections and imperfections. In the Treatise on the Love of God, Francis commented:

“Who would not marvel at the heart of St. Peter, so bold among armed soldiers that he alone takes his sword in hand and strikes out with it? Yet just a short time later, among unarmed people, he is so cowardly that at the mere word of a servant girl he denies and detests his master.” (Treatise, Book X, Chapter 9)

Francis de Sales believed that we have as much to learn from the setbacks of the saints as we do from their successes.

“It is a good thing to see the defects in the lives of the saints. It not only shows God’s goodness in forgiving them, but it also teaches us to imitate the saints in their efforts to overcome their failings and to do penance for them. We study the virtues of the saints in order to imitate them; we study the failings of the saints in order to avoid them.” (Ibid)

This way of looking at the saints can be most helpful in our everyday attempts to “Live Jesus.” Seeing the defects of the saints can serve as a strong vaccine against any dismay or discouragement we may experience when faced with our own sins, failings and imperfections. Likewise, seeing the virtues of the saints can dissuade us from becoming smug or satisfied with our shortcomings.

What is the bottom line? The saints are our companions for the journey. They have much to teach us about how to pursue a life of devotion: overcoming our sins and failings, strengthening our practice of virtue. Francis de Sales (himself a saint) challenges us to see the saints as real people, and to realize that we can learn as much from their setbacks as we can from their success.

Beginning today!

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(September 18, 2017: Monday, Twenty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time)
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“I ask that supplications, prayers, petitions, and thanksgivings be offered…that we may lead a quiet and tranquil life in all devotion and dignity.”

True devotion not only does no violence to ordinary, everyday life – in fact, it should also enhance it. Among other things, devotion can produce an abundance of tranquility. Synonyms associated with tranquility include:

• peace

• peacefulness

• restfulness

• repose

• calm

• calmness

• quiet

• quietness

• stillness

• composure

• serenity

• equanimity

• unflappability

St. Jane de Chantal observed:

“Preserve peace of heart and tranquility. Do not disturb yourselves about anything. Never trouble yourselves whatever may happen to you or around you. Tranquility precludes haste and levity. It makes us do everything in the spirit of repose, without hurry. I say not slowly or carelessly, but quietly, as before God.”

Note the distinction – tranquility is not about doing nothing. Tranquility is about doing something – anything – in a careful, composed, calm and unflappable manner.

Today, how might we go about serving God and neighbor in tranquility?

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(September 14, 2021: Exultation of the Holy Cross)
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“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 crystal 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 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. What cross might Christ be asking each of us to carry today?

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(September 15, 2021: Our Lady of Sorrows)
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“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?

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(September 16, 2021: Cornelius – Pope- and Cyprian- Bishop - Martyrs)
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“Attend to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in both tasks, for by doing so you will save both yourself and those who listen to you…”

The two saints we remember today clearly demonstrate the virtue of perseverance.

”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 himself as the rightful successor of Peter.

“A 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 apostatized 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.”

“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. In this work, St. Cyprian wrote, ‘You cannot have God for your Father if you do not have the Church for your mother.... God is one and Christ is one, and his Church is one; one is the faith, and one is the people cemented together by harmony into the strong unity of a body.... If we are the heirs of Christ, let us abide in the peace of Christ; if we are the sons of God, let us be lovers of peace.’”

“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 attempted to use to discredit him. On September 14, 258, however, he was martyred during the persecutions of the emperor Valerian.” (http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint.php?n=596)

Whether in times of tranquility – or in times of trouble – may the examples of Cornelius and Cyprian inspire us to ‘save ourselves and those who will listen to us’….

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(September 17, 2021: Robert Bellarmine, Bishop and Doctor of the Church)
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“Pursue righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience, and gentleness…”

“A contemporary of St. Francis de Sales, St. Robert Bellarmine was the third of ten children. He entered the newly formed Society of Jesus in 1560 and after his ordination went on to teach at Louvain (1570-1576) where he became famous for his Latin sermons. In 1576, he was appointed to the chair of controversial theology at the Roman College, becoming Rector in 1592. He went on to become Provincial of Naples in 1594 and Cardinal in 1598.”

“This outstanding scholar and devoted servant of God defended the Apostolic See against the anti-clericals in Venice and against the political tenets of James I of England. He composed an exhaustive apologetic work against the prevailing heretics of his day. In the field of church-state relations, he took a position based on principles now regarded as fundamentally democratic: authority originates with God, but is vested in the people, who entrust it to fit rulers.”

“This saint was the spiritual father of St. Aloysius Gonzaga, helped St. Francis de Sales obtain formal approval of the Visitation Order, and in his prudence opposed severe action in the case of Galileo. He has left us a host of important writings, including works of devotion and instruction, as well as controversy. He died in 1621.” (http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=101)

Robert Bellarmine’s support of Francis de Sales was not limited to the formal approval of the Visitation Order. In fact, Bellarmine had been helpful to Francis de Sales nearly sixteen years earlier while the latter – then a newly-ordained priest – was engaged as a missionary in the Chablais. In a letter (February 1609) addressed to Pierre de Villars, Archbishop of Vienne, Francis wrote:

“I have some material for introducing beginners to the exercise of evangelical preaching which I would like to follow up with a methodical study for the conversion of heretics by holy preaching. In this last book I should like to demolish – by way of practical method – all the most obvious and celebrated arguments of our adversaries, and that not only in a style that will instruct, but also move, so that the book will not only serve for the consolation of Catholics but for the conversion of heretics. I intend to use towards this project some meditations that I composed during my five years in the Chablais where the only books I had to help me in my preaching were the Bible and those of the great Bellarmine.” (Stopp, Selected Letters, pp. 164-165)

There can be no doubt that Robert Bellarmine did not neglect his God-given gifts. Similarly, there can be no doubt that one of his greatest admirers – Francis de Sales – did not neglect his God-given gifts, either.

Can the same be said of us?

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(September 18, 2021: Saturday, Twenty-fourth Week Ordinary Time)
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“A sower went out to sow…”

How many good beginnings in our lives have been trampled upon and/or consumed by something else? How many of us have hardened our hearts to do good things only to see them perish for lack of care? How many good ideas or intentions have failed to bear fruit because they were chocked off by anxieties and/or other concerns? And still, for all our struggles and setbacks, many of the seeds of God’s goodness in us have taken root and produced a great harvest.

Just for today, let us hear the parable in a different way. Think of all the big plans you have made for others. Think of all the good intentions that you have suggested to others. Think of all expectations that you have cradled in your heart for others. In other words, think of all the good seeds that you have planted in the lives of other people. It is very tempting – and even more discouraging – to focus on how many of those seeds never amounted to much – if anything at all. However, from a Salesian perspective, it is far better – and healthier, to boot – to focus on how the seeds that you may have possibly planted in others have taken root, have grown, and even flourished, sometimes beyond even your wildest dreams.

Can you think of any examples of this growth in your own life? Can you think of examples in the lives of others, especially in those people whom you know and love? If not, just this day how might God ask you to sow good seeds in the heart or mind of another person? How might that same God also be asking you to do your part to help make those good seeds grow?

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Spirituality Matters August 22nd - August 28th

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(August 22, 2021: Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time)
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“Decide today whom you will serve.”

Our worlds change - sometimes constantly. We might tend to think of the “changing world” as something only outside or beyond ourselves. But sometimes the most difficult world to accept with all its changes is the world within each of us, the one with turmoil and vicissitudes that perhaps are known only to ourselves.

Today, we speak of the importance of making good decisions and choices. Everyone wants to be free. Everyone wants autonomy. Well, certainly God wants us to have that freedom as well, as it is the most dramatic and far-reaching gift he has given us. In the first reading today, Joshua addresses this freedom head on: “Decide today whom you will serve”. That is about as direct and as contemporary a message that we could have. What do you want? Well, decide! There is no room for the wishy-washy in Joshua’s approach. There is also no doubt where he stands: “As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”

Paul confronts the same issue in his letter on married life: “Be subordinate to one another out of reverence for Christ.” This opening statement is critical because without it the later advice to be subservient could appear demeaning or even appalling. The ‘subordination’ to which the Christian is called is always presented within and because of love – Christ’s love. The love of Christ is why we serve others, and put ourselves at least second, if not literally last. Christ loved us first and showed us the way to life. To put others first, especially in a relationship – or in a family – is the only way to have life, and to share life, to the full.

It is also the only way to make love truly life-giving.

This teaching of Christ can be “hard”, and the early followers of Christ found it so, but like Peter in the Gospel, when all is said and done, “to whom shall we go?” Again, and again, the losses and trials of life affirm that only He has “the words of eternal life”.

Francis de Sales reminds us that instability in life is inevitable, and it is our failure to recognize the truth that makes us unstable and changeable in our moods. He encourages us to remain firm and steadfast in our resolutions. The challenge of our changing world “within” is one of constancy. And that constancy is achieved by fidelity to the decisions we make in daily life to love and serve the Lord and one another – the very resolution with which we close every liturgy.

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(August 23, 2021: Rose of Lima)

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(August 23, 2021: Rose of Lima)
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“We give thanks to God always…unceasingly calling to mind your work of faith and labor of love.”

You can hear the happiness in Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians. His joy flows from reminding himself of the “work of faith and labor of love” in the members of that early faith community.

In his Treatise on the Love of God, Francis de Sales wrote:

“When our mind is raised above the natural light of reason and begins to see the sacred truth of faith, O God, what joy ensues! The holy light of faith is filled with delight!” (Select Salesian Subjects, #0263, p. 58)

What a contrast with how Jesus describes the scribes and Pharisees! Their faith produces no good works; their love is lacking. Their faith is anything but happy. Jesus simply describes what is painfully obvious about them in his litany of “woes” that begin with today’s Gospel and continue thorough Wednesday’s Gospel. In a word, these people were just plain miserable.

How do people experience the gift of faith in us? Are we sources of happiness – or woe – in the lives of others?

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(August 24, 2021: Bartholomew, Apostle)
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“Your friends make known, O Lord, the glorious splendor of your Kingdom…”

In his Treatise on the Love of God, Francis de Sales wrote:

“You can see how God – by progressive stages filled with unutterable sweetness – leads the soul forward and enables it to leave the Egypt of sin. He leads it from love to love, as from dwelling to dwelling, until He has made it enter the Promised Land. By this I mean that God brings it into most holy charity, which, to state it succinctly, is a form of friendship…Such friendship is true friendship, since it is reciprocal, for God has eternally loved all those who have loved Him, who now love Him or who will love Him in time…He has openly revealed all His secrets to us as to His closest friends…” (TLG, Book II, Chapter 22, pp. 160 - 161)

In today’s Gospel, Jesus is clear and unambiguous about the quality that makes Bartholomew (a.k.a., Nathaniel) a friend of God: “There is no guile in him.” There is no pretense in Bartholomew – nothing fake, nothing phony. Jesus sees him as a man who is real, authentic and transparent - he is an open book.

In his Introduction to the Devout Life, Francis de Sales offered some practical advice regarding how to practice the virtue of guilelessness

“Your language should be retrained, frank, sincere, candid unaffected and honest…As the sacred Scripture tells us, The Holy Spirit does not dwell in a deceitful or tricky soul. No artifice is so good and desirable as plain dealing. Worldly prudence and carnal artifice belong to the children of this world, but the children (the friends) of God walk a straight path and their hearts are without guile.” (IDL, Part III, Chapter 30, p. 206)

Do you want to be a friend of God today? Like Bartholomew, strive to be guileless. Simply try to be yourself – nothing more and nothing less.

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(August 25, 2021: Louis IX, King of France)
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“Walk in a manner worthy of the God who calls you into his Kingdom and glory “St. Louis led an exemplary life. His biographers have told us of the long hours he spent in prayer, fasting, and penance, without the knowledge of his subjects. The French king was a great lover of justice. It was during his reign that the ‘court of the king’ (curia regis) was organized into a regular court of justice, having competent experts, and judicial commissions acting at regular periods.” “He was renowned for his charity. ‘The peace and blessings of the realm come to us through the poor,’ he would say. Beggars were fed from his table, he ate their leavings, washed their feet, ministered to the wants of the lepers, and daily fed over one hundred poor. He founded many hospitals and houses: the House of the Felles-Dieu for reformed prostitutes; the Quinze-Vingt for three hundred blind men and the hospitals at Pontoise, Vernon, and Compiégne.”

“St. Louis was a man of sound common sense, possessing indefatigable energy, graciously kind and of playful humor, and constantly guarding against the temptation to be imperious. His personal qualities as well as his saintliness greatly enhanced the prestige of the French monarchy. Boniface VIII canonized St. Louis at Orvieto in 1297.” http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/09368a.htm

In a letter addressed to Jane de Chantal’s son Celse-Benigne, Francis de Sales wrote:

“Imagine that you were a courtier of St. Louis. This holy king liked the people around him to be brave, courageous, generous, cheerful, courteous, affable, frank and polite – but above all, he wanted them to be good Christians. If you had been with him, you would have seen him laugh merrily when the occasion offered, speak out boldly when the need arose, maintaining a brave outward show of royal splendor and dignity (like another Solomon), and in the next moment you would have seen him serving the poor at the hospitals, and in short marrying civil virtue to Christian virtue, and majesty to humility. And this, in a word, should be your aim: to be no less brave for being a Christian, and to be no less Christina for being brave.”(Stopp, Selected Letters, pp. 189 - 190)

St. Louis was entrusted with promoting both the Kingdom of God and the kingdom of France. In the process of being the kind of king worthy of Christ the King, Louis powerfully displayed his nobility by the manner in which he respected and promoted the dignity of all people, from the most privileged to the most impoverished.

Today, how might we be inspired by Louis’ ability to combine majesty with humility in our relationships with others?

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(August 26, 2021: Thursday, Twenty-first Week in Ordinary Time)
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“May the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all…” In a letter addressed to Jane de Chantal, Francis de Sales wrote:

“Be devoted to St. Louis and admire his great constancy. He became king when he was twelve years old, had nine children, was constantly waging war either against the rebels of enemies of the faith, and reigned as king for over forty years. He made two journeys overseas. In the course of both of these crusades he lost his army, and on the last journey he died of the plague after he had spent much time visiting, helping and serving those who were plague-stricken in his army. He bandaged their sores and cured them, and then died joyfully and with fortitude…I give you this saint for your special patron.” (Stopp, Selected Letters, p. 75)

Continuing with our good friend and guide St. Louis whose feast we celebrated yesterday, this man clearly and convincingly shows how to be a citizen of earth and a citizen of heaven. While King Louis may have had a great many things on his plate, his earthly duties and responsibilities were not an obstacle to living a Christian life - rather, they provided opportunities and occasions in which to practice the Christian life and to pursue a life of virtue. This was a man whose love for others increased by leaps and bounds.

Like St. Louis, how might we grow in our love for others, and for all?

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(August 27, 2021: Monica)
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“For God did not call us to impurity but to holiness…”

“St. Monica was married by arrangement to a pagan official in North Africa, who was much older than she, and although generous, was also violent tempered. His mother lived with them and was equally difficult, which proved a constant challenge to St. Monica. She had three children: Augustine, Navigius, and Perpetua. Through her patience and prayers, she was able to convert her husband and his mother to the Christian faith in 370. He died a year later. Perpetua and Navigius entered the religious life. St. Augustine was much more difficult, as she had to pray for him for seventeen years, begging the prayers of priests who - for a while - tried to avoid her because of her persistence at this seemingly hopeless endeavor. One priest did attempt to encourage her by saying, ‘It is not possible that the son of so many tears should perish.’ This thought, coupled with a vision that she had received, strengthened her in her prayers and hopes for her son. Finally, St. Augustine was baptized by St. Ambrose in 387. St. Monica died later that same year in the Italian town of Ostia, on the way back to Africa from Rome.” (http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=1) We can all relate to Saint Monica. We all have people in our lives for whom we want the best. We all have people in our lives that we want to be happy. We all have people in our lives about whom we have concerns and heartaches. Of course, as much as we might love someone else, we cannot live their lives for them. Sometimes the most we can do is to pray for them, encourage them and support them. As for the rest, we need leave it in the hands of God, trusting that God will bring about the good when the appointed hour has come.

Even before Augustine could name it for himself, his mother prayed that he would turn away from impurity and turn to a life of holiness. While we need to avoid the temptation to live other peoples’ lives for them, there is nothing that says that we cannot pray that they will decide to live their lives in ways that help them to bring out the good – perhaps, even the best – in themselves! It worked for Monica – perhaps, it could work for us!

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(August 28, 2021: Augustine, Bishop and Doctor of the Church)
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“But the man who received one went off and dug a hole in the ground and buried his master’s money.”

“This famous son of St. Monica was born in Africa and spent many years of his life in wicked living and in false beliefs. Though he was one of the most intelligent men who ever lived and though he had been raised a Christian, his sins of impurity and his pride closed his mind to divine truth. Through the prayers of his holy mother and the marvelous preaching of St. Ambrose, Augustine gradually became convinced that Christianity was indeed the one true faith. Yet he did not become a Christian even then, because he thought he could never live a pure life.”

“One day, however, he heard about two men who had suddenly been converted after reading the life of St. Antony, and he felt terribly ashamed of himself. ‘What are we doing?’ he cried to his friend Alipius. ‘Unlearned people are taking heaven by force, while we, with all our knowledge, are so cowardly that we keep rolling around in the mud of our sins!’ Full of bitter sorrow, Augustine cried out to God, ‘How long more, O Lord? Why does not this hour put an end to my sins?’ Just then he heard a child singing, ‘Take up and read!’ Thinking that God intended him to hear those words, he picked up the book of the Letters of St. Paul and read the first passage upon which his gaze fell. It was just what Augustine needed, for in it, St. Paul said to put away all impurity and to live in imitation of Jesus. That did it! From then on, Augustine began a new life.(http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=418) Left to his own devices, Augustine might have suffered the fate of the servant in the Gospel parallel who decided to bury his talents in the ground. However, through the grace of God – and perhaps the prayers of his mother – Augustine came to his senses (if only later in life) and put his God-given talents to great service of God and others. Might there be any talents in us that remain hidden, talents from which God expects a return on God’s investment?

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Spirituality Matters - September 5th - September 11th

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(September 5, 2021: Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time)
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“Show no partiality as you adhere to the faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ.

Listen to what Francis de Sales has to say on this topic. (Introduction Part III, Chapter 36)

“If we like a certain practice, we despise everyone else and oppose everything that is not to our taste. If someone is poor-looking or if we have taken a dislike to that person, we find fault with everything that person does: we never stop plaguing that person and are always looking for an opportunity to run that person down. On the contrary, if we like someone because of their good looks, there isn’t anything that person does that we aren’t willing to overlook.”

“In general, we prefer the rich to the poor…we even prefer those who are better dressed. We rigorously demand out own rights but want others to be considerate when insisting on theirs. We maintain our rank with exactness, but we want others to be humble and accommodating when it comes to theirs. We complain very easily about our neighbor, but our neighbors must never complain about us. What we do for others always seems like such a big deal, but what others do for us seems like nothing at all.”

“In short, we have two hearts. We have a mild, gracious and courteous attitude toward ourselves and another that is hard, severe, and rigorous toward our neighbor. We have two weights: one to weigh goods to our won greatest possible advantage and another, to weigh to our neighbor’s greatest possible disadvantage.”

This is the essence of discriminating against others “in our hearts:” to live with two hearts, to live by a double standard. As James says, when we set ourselves up as judge (and jury) of our neighbor while failing to use the same standard on ourselves, we “hand down corrupt decisions.”

On the other hand, God shows no partiality. As people made in God’s image and likeness, neither should we. How can we remedy our tendency to prefer some over others? Francis de Sales is crystal clear and unambiguous.

“Be just and equitable in all your actions. Always put yourself in your neighbor’s place and your neighbor in yours and you will judge justly. Imagine yourself the seller when you buy and the buyer when you sell, and you will sell and buy justly…This is the touchstone of all reason.”

Reason enough to do our level best to show no partiality when it comes to the things of God, and in giving our neighbor his or her due.

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(September 6, 2021: Labor Day)
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“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 depends 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; 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. How might God employ our cooperation in both receiving and sharing his bounty, not only on Labor Day, but also on every day?

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(September 7, 2021: Tuesday, Twenty-third Week Ordinary Time)
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“When day came, he called his disciples to himself, and from them he chose Twelve, whom he also named Apostles…”

In his commentary on this selection from the Gospel of Luke, William Barclay makes the following observations regarding “the Twelve” (page 75):

“These were ordinary men. There was not a wealthy, nor a famous nor an influential man among them; they had no special education; they were men of the common folk. It is as if Jesus said, ‘Give me twelve ordinary men and I will change the world.’ The work of Jesus is not in the hands of men whom the world calls great, but in the hands of ordinary people like ourselves.”

“They were a strange mixture. To take but two of them – Matthew was a tax collector and, therefore, a traitor and a renegade. Simon was a Zealot, and the Zealots were fanatical nationalists, who were sworn to assassinate every traitor and every Roman they could. It is one of the miracles of the power of Christ that Matthew the tax collector and Simon the Zealot could live at peace in the close company of the apostolic band. When people are truly Christian the most diverse and divergent types can live in peace together. It was said of Gilbert Chesterton and his brother Cecil, ‘They always argued, but they never quarreled.’ It is only in Christ that we can solve the challenges of living together, because even the most opposite people may be united in their love for him. If we genuinely love him, we will also love each other.”

Indeed, “the Twelve” were a pretty motley crew, a mixed bag of imperfect people who did change the world. How might we – ordinary people – continue to change the world for the better in our little corners of it?

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(September 8, 2021: Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary)

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(September 8, 2021: Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary)
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“We know that all things work for good for those who love God…”

When Joachim and Ann welcomed their daughter Mary into the world, who could have known – or imagined – that she was destined to become the mother of the Messiah? Who could have thought that this simple, poor and unassuming woman would be the vehicle through whom God would fulfill his promise of salvation? Who could have anticipated that her simple ‘yes’, as the handmaid of the Lord, would change the course of the world forever? How about you? Who could have thought that God would bring you out of nothingness in order that you might experience the beauty of being someone? Who would have imagined that God would use your ordinary, everyday life to continue his ongoing creative, redemptive and inspiring action? Who could have known that your attempts to say ‘yes’ to God’s will on a daily basis – however imperfectly – could change other peoples’ lives for the better?

God did! God does! And God will continue to do! Forever!

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(September 9, 2021: Peter Claver)
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“Put on, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience…

“A contemporary of St. Francis de Sales, St. Peter Claver was born at Verdu, Catalonia, Spain, in 1580, of impoverished parents descended from ancient and distinguished families. He studied at the Jesuit college of Barcelona, entered the Jesuit novitiate at Tarragona in 1602 and took his final vows on August 8th, 1604. While studying philosophy at Majorca, the young religious was influenced by St. Alphonsus Rodriguez to go to the Indies and save ‘millions of perishing souls.’”

“In 1610, he landed at Cartagena (modern Colombia), the principal slave market of the New World, where a thousand slaves were landed every month. After his ordination in 1616, he dedicated himself by special vow to the service of the Negro slaves - a work that was to last for thirty-three years. He labored unceasingly for the salvation of the African slaves and the abolition of the Negro slave trade, and the love he lavished on them was something that transcended the natural order.”

“Boarding the slave ships as they entered the harbor, he would hurry to the revolting inferno of the hold and offer whatever poor refreshments he could afford; he would care for the sick and dying and instruct the slaves through Negro catechists before administering the Sacraments. Through his efforts three hundred thousand souls entered the Church. Furthermore, he did not lose sight of his converts when they left the ships but followed them to the plantations to which they were sent, encouraged them to live as Christians, and prevailed on their masters to treat them humanely. He died in 1654.” (http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=94)

Peter Claver seems to have taken Paul’s exhortation to “put on heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience…” quite literally by traveling to a different hemisphere and spending over thirty years of his life ministering to African slaves.

How can we model his example of dedicated service to those with whom we live and work close to home today?

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(September 10, 2021: Friday, Twenty-third Week Ordinary Time)
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“I am grateful to him who has strengthened me, Christ Jesus our Lord.”

People around the world – and especially in the United States – prepare to observe tomorrow as a day of remembrance on the twentieth anniversary of the terror attack of September 11, 2001.

“In October 2001, the United States Congress passed a joint resolution designating that every September 11th be observed as "Patriot Day." The resolution requests that U.S. government entities and interested organizations and individuals display the flag of the United States at half staff and that the people of the United States observe a moment of silence in honor of the individuals who lost their lives. In 2009, a presidential proclamation declared that Patriot Day is also a ‘National Day of Service.’ The proclamation calls on Americans to ‘participate in community service in honor of those our Nation lost, to observe this day with other ceremonies and activities, including remembrance services ... to honor the innocent victims who perished as a result of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.’” (http://www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/human-life-and-dignity/september-11/)

St. Paul tells us that he is grateful for the ways in which Jesus Christ has strengthened him. Let us ask that same Jesus for the strength we need to work for both justice and peace in our little corners of the world. Let us ask for the strength we need to confront violence and terrorism in all its forms even as we strive to be sources of reconciliation and healing.

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(September 11, 2021: Saturday, Twenty-third Week Ordinary Time)

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(September 11, 2021: Saturday, Twenty-third Week Ordinary Time)
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“For every tree is known by its own fruit.” Near the beginning of Part I of his Introduction to the Devout Life, Francis de Sales wrote:

“When he created things, God commanded plants to bring forth their fruits, each one according to its kind. In like manner God commands Christians – the living plants of the Church – to bring forth the fruits of devotion, each according to one’s position and vocation. Devotion must be exercised in different ways by the gentleman, the laborer, the servant, the prince, the young girl and the married woman. Not only is this true but the practice of devotion must also be adapted to the strengths, activities and duties of each particular person.” (IDL, Part III, Chapter 1)

We are the living plants of the Church. What kind of fruits can we produce in the lives of others in our attempts to help grow the Good News of Jesus Christ in our own little corners of the world today?

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