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Morning Offering:
O Jesus, through the most pure heart of Mary, I offer you all the
prayers, works, joys and sufferings of this day for all the intentions
of your divine heart, in union with the holy sacrifice of the Mass. I
offer them especially for the Holy
Father's intentions:
His mission intention is: "That missionaries, with the proclamation of the Gospel and their witness of life, may bring Christ to all those who do not yet know Him."
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Friday of the third week of Lent A-1
Prayers today: Lord, there is no god to compare with you; you are great and do wonderful things, you are the only God. (Ps 85:8, 10)
Merciful Father, fill our hearts with your love and keep us faithful to the gospel of Christ. Give us the grace to rise above our human weakness. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,...
(April 1) St. Hugh of Grenoble (1052-1132)
Today’s saint could be a patron for those of us who feel so overwhelmed by all the problems in the world that we don’t know where to begin. Hugh, who served as a bishop in France for 52 years, had his work cut out for him from the start. Corruption seemed to loom in every direction: the buying and selling of Church offices, violations of clerical celibacy, lay control of Church property, religious indifference and/or ignorance. After serving as bishop for two years, he’d had his fill. He tried disappearing to a monastery, but the pope called him back to continue the work of reform. Ironically, Hugh was reasonably effective in the role of reformer — surely because of his devotion to the Church but also because of his strong character. In conflicts between Church and state he was an unflinching defender of the Church. He fearlessly supported the papacy. He was eloquent as a preacher. He restored his own cathedral, made civic improvements in the town and weathered a brief exile. Hugh may be best known as patron and benefactor of St. Bruno, founder of the Carthusian Order. Hugh died in 1132. He was canonized only two years later. (AmericanCatholic.org)
Scripture today: Hosea 14:2-10; Psalm 80; Mark 12:28-34
One
of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had
given them a good answer, he asked him, Of all the commandments, which is the
most important? The most important one, answered Jesus, is this: 'Hear, O
Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your
heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.'
The second is this: 'Love your neighbour as yourself.' There is no commandment
greater than these. Well said, teacher, the man replied. You are right in saying
that God is one and there is no other but him. To love him with all your heart,
with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your
neighbour as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.
When Jesus saw that he had answered wisely, he said to him, You are not far from
the kingdom of God. And from then on no-one dared ask him any more questions.
(Mark 12: 28-34)
With all our heart
Many different goals face each person as he or she sets
out on life, even though the drama of this may not strike home. He is born into
a particular family, within a particular culture and society, and various goals
grow on him — perhaps mainly by force of circumstances. He is urged to study
hard, or to do well at sport, or to get on well with his acquaintances. Time
passes, he begins to take up certain goals, and the direction of his life takes
shape. He aims at marrying, settling down, raising a
family,
securing sufficient income for this purpose — and that is what his life will be
as he envisions it. Alternatively, his concentration could be on success in a
chosen profession. He is enamoured of sporting success, or he could aim to have
a successful business — say, a real estate business which he plans to extend. In
all of these things he might remember God, or he might not. As the years pass,
it slowly dawns on him that life is short — it has passed quickly. His childhood
has gone, as has his adolescence, and early manhood. He has married, has
children and now finds himself in middle age. Perhaps the fundamental chance,
the most important opportunity, has passed him by. What is that? It is the
chance of friendship with God and of living out one’s days in the service of
him. Each person has but one shot, one life to live, one run of the race, one
attempt at the wheel. After that, it is all over forever with no turning back.
It will then all be gone, never to be seen again. It is critical, then, that
each be alive to the fundamental opportunity ahead — and that relates to God.
However, there is something more. There are great numbers of persons who make
this right choice that I have been referring to. They would never allow
themselves to forget God. But the issue is, is this as far as they will go? Will
they coast along as religious persons, or will they give to God their “best
shot”? There are plenty of persons who give to their chosen goals their “best
shot.” Perhaps they have forgotten God, perhaps they have not. But how many are
there who, having understood that God must not be forgotten, give to him their
all?
This is the issue, because it is actually not an option as far as God is concerned. We are God’s creatures, and he is, from an ontological perspective, our life and our all — we depend on him radically and totally. Our very being is his gift, moment by moment. If we wish to live and to flourish, it can only be on the basis of doing the will of our Creator, and with love. Further, he has condescended to give us his friendship, indeed his love. He sent his only-begotten Son to die for each of us that we might live forever with him. Now, God commands us not merely to remember and acknowledge him, but to love him. Further, this love must be absolutely total. It is to be the work of life, to attain a perfect love for God our Creator, our Father and our Redeemer. We are required to give this our “best shot.” In our Gospel today (Mark 12: 28-34), our Lord is asked what the foremost of God’s commandments is. Is it, say, the Sabbath rest? Or would it be the care of the stranger, or the honour that we must give to our parents? Or would it be that no other god must ever be allowed? All these and very many besides were commanded in the Scriptures. Which, though is the most important? It must have been a pressing matter for the scholars of the Law and for those instructing the people because the sacred books contained numerous religious injunctions. It is a pressing matter for each of us too. Jesus Christ gives us the answer. The foremost duty imposed on us by the living God is that we work at the perfection of love for him. “The most important one, answered Jesus, is this: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' The second is this: 'Love your neighbour as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these.” A religious person can spend the years of his or her life serving God, but failing to work at loving him the more, and giving to him the very best. Christ wants us to struggle at the perfection of love. It will not do to reach a certain level, and thereafter to coast along. He wants us to be pressing on the accelerator and speeding up.
The challenge for the person who lives for this life forgetful of God, is to discover the true Reality for whom he should be living. The challenge for the person who knows and loves God is to resist mediocrity. The challenge of every marriage and of every good friendship is, how far shall I go in this? Am I prepared to give it my very best, and to be open to light on how this is to be done? Far more so is this the case in religion. Christ asks of each of us that we seek to love and serve God to our fullest capacity. He wants all our heart, our whole mind, soul and strength — as expressed in the loving fulfilment of his daily will. Let us take up this greatest of adventures and duties. It will take us to life everlasting.
(E.J.Tyler)
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Second reflection: (Mark 12:28-34)
What
we have to live for
Occasionally we hear of people who have very little to
live for, or so they believe. Perhaps it is because the great things they had
possessed and had been living for — their family, their work, their business, or
whatever — had been taken away from them. Perhaps they had never discovered
anything they could live for. Whatever be the case, God has revealed that no
matter what our circumstances, there is something absolutely fundamental that
every single person is called to live for — the love of God. We have a great
object in life, and it is to work at the total love of God in our life, and in
God, the love for others. We are to work at the perfection of love. Every
occasion, every circumstance, is to be turned to account, turned into an
occasion when we love God with all our heart, and others in Him.
This perfection of love is a very great work that requires the application of all our powers. It is the work of a lifetime. It is God’s command to us, it is our happiness, and it is our calling.
(E.J.Tyler)
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Each
person in his own situation should lead a pure life, courageously lived. We have
to learn to say No for the sake of that great Love, Love with a capital letter.
(The Forge, no.413)
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Saturday of the third week of Lent A-1
Prayers today: Bless the Lord, my soul and remember all his kindnesses, for he pardons all my faults. (Ps 102:2-3)
Lord, may this Lenten observance of the suffering, death, and resurrection of Christ bring us to the full joy of Easter. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,...
(April 2) St. Francis of Paola (1416-1507)
Francis of Paola was a man
who deeply loved contemplative solitude and wished only to be the "least in the
household of God." Yet, when the Church called him to active service in the
world, he became a miracle-worker and influenced the course of nations. After
accompanying
his parents on a pilgrimage to Rome and Assisi, he began to live as a
contemplative hermit in a remote cave near Paola, on Italy's southern seacoast.
Before he was 20, he received the first followers who had come to imitate his
way of life. Seventeen years later, when his disciples had grown in number,
Francis established a Rule for his austere community and sought Church approval.
This was the founding of the Hermits of St. Francis of Assisi, who were approved
by the Holy See in 1474. In 1492, Francis changed the name of his community to
"Minims" because he wanted them to be known as the least (minimi) in the
household of God. Humility was to be the hallmark of the brothers as it had been
in Francis's personal life. Besides the vows of poverty, chastity and obedience,
Francis enjoined upon his followers the fourth obligation of a perpetual Lenten
fast. He felt that heroic mortification was necessary as a means for spiritual
growth. It was Francis's desire to be a contemplative hermit, yet he believed
that God was calling him to the apostolic life. He began to use the gifts he had
received, such as the gifts of miracles and prophecy, to minister to the people
of God. A defender of the poor and oppressed, Francis incurred the wrath of King
Ferdinand of Naples for the admonitions he directed towards the king and his
sons. Following the request of Pope Sixtus IV, Francis travelled to Paris to help
Louis XI of France prepare for his death. While ministering to the king, Francis
was able to influence the course of national politics. He helped to restore
peace between France and Brittany by advising a marriage between the ruling
families, and between France and Spain by persuading Louis XI to return some
disputed land. Francis died while at the French court.
(AmericanCatholic.org)
Scripture today: Hosea 5:15-16:6; Psalm 50; Luke 18: 9-14
To some who were confident of their own righteousness
and looked down on everybody else, Jesus told this parable: Two men went up to
the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee
stood up and prayed about himself: 'God, I thank you that I am not like other
men— robbers, evildoers, adulterers— or even like this tax collector. I fast
twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.' But the tax collector stood at a
distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said,
'God, have mercy on me, a sinner.' I tell you that this man, rather than the
other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be
humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.
(Luke: 18: 9-14)
The conscience
There are many things, of course, that distinguish man from the animals
— and many things which both have in common. The common definition that “man is a
rational animal” acknowledges one major difference — his rationality — and
places this in the context of the many things he has in common with animals. Man
is an “animal” with rationality. But his rationality is not the only difference.
Many would place just as much emphasis on his religious character. He
acknowledges God or the gods, and this 
pervades his life. Another difference,
part and parcel of his rationality (understood broadly), is that man has a
conscience. An animal has no idea of right and wrong. So when an animal attacks
and kills a human being, it is not tried in a court of law and sentenced to
prison or death. It is not “executed,” rather it is “put down.” The animal
cannot help itself — it is driven by its instincts and has no sense of what
should be done. The animal is not “blamed” — whereas its owner might be, or
those looking after the reserve, or any other human beings who overlooked
something in wildlife management, or the tourists. Allowing for some
aberrations, all men have a conscience, which is to say a sense of right and
wrong which to a greater or lesser extent they translate into practical
judgments and decisions. Man is aware that there is such a thing as right and
wrong, that he should do certain things and avoid others. He is also aware of
the numerous times he has failed to live according to what he knows to be right.
He has a guilty conscience. But there is another important feature of this
common element of conscience in man. The sense of right and wrong seems to lead
very many people to the thought of God. Our conscience, telling us to do this or
that, includes in its dictate the sense that is the echo of a Voice within, yet
beyond. While the analysis of this is tricky and elusive, by and large people
have the sense that the conscience is sacred, ultimate, and, vaguely, the voice
of God. If one were to say that this is an illusion or a mere manner of speaking
— well, at the very least this would be saying that “40,000 Frenchmen” are
wrong, and that there is no authority in “the voice of mankind.”
Cardinal Newman, in his Sermon Notes (July 24, 1864 — “The Pharisee and the Publican”), comments on the prayer of the Publican and its admission of sin. He writes that in the appeal, “God be merciful to me a sinner” there is contained the essence of true religion. The words of this prayer refer to the conscience leading a person to God. He says that all men have a conscience (i.e., a consciousness) of right and wrong, (Rom. 2: 14-15), but in some it does not lead them, when they transgress it, to God. They are, rather, angry with themselves. They know they are wrong, and are distressed, but it does not lead them to religion; at the utmost it leads them to understand a sin against their neighbours — such as cruelty, etc. But when it leads the soul to think of God, then that soul may be very sinful, but at least it has something of true religion in it. Now, what this comment of Newman’s suggests is that while all have a “conscience,” which includes a sense of guilt, their religion will turn on their readiness to perceive in this an echo of the judgment of God. The instinct of conscience is to accept this in some sense, but other considerations can lead a person quietly to reject the thought. So then, the thought of a living God is within the reach of everyone, and that thought is contained in the dictate and feeling of conscience. The Publican of our parable (Luke: 18: 9-14) gives a picture of the proper and healthy functioning of the conscience. He had done wrong, and his conscience made him aware of it. He instinctively understood that his sense of guilt manifested the judgment of God. As a result he raised his mind and heart to God asking for mercy. In his sinfulness, the Publican represents mankind. In his acknowledgment of sin before God, and in his prayer for pardon, he shows what the conscience can do for man if it is interpreted aright. It can lead him to God. Due to the blessing of his conscience, the Publican prayed in the light. He saw his true situation, which was that of a sinner before God. He was able, with head bowed in the presence of God, to appeal for mercy. The conscience was his friend, for it took him in his sins before God. By contrast, the Pharisee, who was also a sinner, had gradually blinded his conscience, which God places in us as our friend.
Let us not fear to examine our consciences regularly, indeed, daily. If we have no sense of guilt, let us fear lest we be somewhat like the Pharisee. If we do have a sense of guilt, let us acknowledge this but in the presence of God, which our conscience will also tend to suggest to us. It is not difficult to pray the prayer of the Publican, and our conscience is our friend in the doing of this. Cardinal Newman once famously called the conscience the “aboriginal Vicar of Christ.” That is to say, it is the representative of Christ within our very nature, bringing us to him who is the One who takes away the sin of the world. Let us treasure the prayer of the Publican. It should be — if our conscience is functioning properly — easy to pray. It will take us to God.
(E.J.Tyler)
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Second reflection: (Hosea 5:15-6:6)
The
God of the Old Testament, a God of love
At times it has been said that God as portrayed in the Old Testament is a
God of judgment and punishment, whereas by contrast God as portrayed in the New
Testament is a God of love and mercy. It is true that the love and mercy of God
is given its full revelation in the New Testament (as is the judgment and
punishment of God). But it is not true that God does not reveal his love and
mercy in the Old. There is a gradual revelation of the nature of God in both the
Old and the New. Among the clearest Old Testament revelations of God’s love and
mercy (together with his judgments) is in the prophetical tradition, — one
instance being the book of the prophet Hosea. In our passage today (Hosea
5:15-16:6), God appeals to his people for their love, while reminding them of
his judgments. God wants the love of his people, not just their animal
sacrifices. God can be depended on for his mercy, even though he has punished
his people for their sins. The pattern of God’s punishment and mercy is
described — “He has torn us to pieces, but he will heal us; he has struck us
down, but he will bandage our wounds; after a day or two he will bring us back
to life, on the third day he will raise us and we shall live in his presence.”
Two days of punishment and then a third when the people will be raised to life.
This would be exemplified in the Messiah.
Jesus bore the weight of the sins of the world, and on the third day he rose. Our Lord’s passion, death and resurrection was the supreme revelation of the Father’s love.
(E.J.Tyler)
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There
is a Spanish saying which speaks clearly enough — “Between holy man and holy
maid, a wall of solid stone be laid.” We have to watch our hearts and our
senses, and pull ourselves away from all occasions of sin. No matter how holy it
may appear, passion must not have its way.
(The Forge, no.414)
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Prayers today: Rejoice, Jerusalem! Be glad for her, you who love her; rejoice with her you who mourned for her, and you will find contentment at her consoling breasts. (Isaiah 66: 10-11)
Father of peace, we are joyful in your Word, your Son Jesus Christ, who reconciles us to you. Let us hasten toward Easter with the eagerness of faith and love. We ask this through Christ our Lord
(April 3) St. Benedict the African (1526-1589)
Benedict held important posts in the Franciscan Order and gracefully adjusted to other work when his terms of office were up. His parents were slaves brought from Africa to Messina, Sicily. Freed at 18, Benedict did farm work for a wage and soon saved enough to buy a pair of oxen. He was very proud of those animals. In time he joined a group of hermits around Palermo and was eventually recognized as their leader. Because these hermits followed the Rule of St. Francis, Pope Pius IV ordered them to join the First Order. Benedict was eventually novice master and then guardian of the friars in Palermo— positions rarely held in those days by a brother. In fact, Benedict was forced to accept his election as guardian. And when his term ended he happily returned to his work in the friary kitchen. Benedict corrected the friars with humility and charity. Once he corrected a novice and assigned him a penance only to learn that the novice was not the guilty party. Benedict immediately knelt down before the novice and asked his pardon. In later life Benedict was not possessive of the few things he used. He never referred to them as "mine" but always called them "ours." His gifts for prayer and the guidance of souls earned him throughout Sicily a reputation for holiness. Following the example of St. Francis, Benedict kept seven 40-day fasts throughout the year; he also slept only a few hours each night. After Benedict’s death, King Philip III of Spain paid for a special tomb for this holy friar. Canonized in 1807, he is honoured as a patron saint by African-Americans. (AmericanCatholic.org)
Scripture today: 1 Samuel 16:1.6-7.10-13; Psalm 22; Ephesians 5:8-14; John 9:1-41
As he went
along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, Rabbi, who
sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind? Neither this man nor
his parents sinned, said Jesus, but this happened so that the work of God might
be displayed in his life. As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who
sent me. Night is coming, when no-one can work. While I am in the world, I am
the light of the world. Having said this, he spat on the ground, made some mud
with the saliva, and put it on the man's eyes. Go, he told him, wash in the Pool
of Siloam (this word means Sent). So the man went and washed, and came home
seeing. His
neighbours
and those who had formerly seen him begging asked, Isn't this the same man who
used to sit and beg? Some claimed that he was. Others said, No, he only looks
like him. But he himself insisted, I am the man. How then were your eyes opened?
they demanded. He replied, The man they call Jesus made some mud and put it on
my eyes. He told me to go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed, and then I
could see. Where is this man? they asked him. I don't know, he said. They
brought to the Pharisees the man who had been blind. Now the day on which Jesus
had made the mud and opened the man's eyes was a Sabbath. Therefore the
Pharisees also asked him how he had received his sight. He put mud on my eyes,
the man replied, and I washed, and now I see. Some of the Pharisees said, This
man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath. But others asked, How can
a sinner do such miraculous signs? So they were divided. Finally they turned
again to the blind man, What have you to say about him? It was your eyes he
opened. The man replied, He is a prophet. The Jews still did not believe that he
had been blind and had received his sight until they sent for the man's parents.
Is this your son? they asked. Is this the one you say was born blind? How is it
that now he can see? We know he is our son, the parents answered, and we know he
was born blind. But how he can see now, or who opened his eyes, we don't know.
Ask him. He is of age; he will speak for himself. His parents said this because
they were afraid of the Jews, for already the Jews had decided that anyone who
acknowledged that Jesus was the Christ would be put out of the synagogue. That
was why his parents said, He is of age; ask him. A second time they summoned the
man who had been blind. Give glory to God, they said. We know this man is a
sinner. He replied, Whether he is a sinner or not, I don't know. One thing I do
know. I was blind but now I see! Then they asked him, What did he do to you? How
did he open your eyes? He answered, I have told you already and you did not
listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you want to become his disciples,
too? Then they hurled insults at him and said, You are this fellow's disciple!
We are disciples of Moses! We know that God spoke to Moses, but as for this
fellow, we don't even know where he comes from. The man answered, Now that is
remarkable! You don't know where he comes from, yet he opened my eyes. We know
that God does not listen to sinners. He listens to the godly man who does his
will. Nobody has ever heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind. If this man
were not from God, he could do nothing. To this they replied, You were steeped
in sin at birth; how dare you lecture us! And they threw him out. Jesus heard
that they had thrown him out, and when he found him, he said, Do you believe in
the Son of Man? Who is he, sir? the man asked. Tell me so that I may believe in
him. Jesus said, You have now seen him; in fact, he is the one speaking with
you. Then the man said, Lord, I believe, and he worshipped him. Jesus said, For
judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who
see will become blind. Some Pharisees who were with him heard him say this and
asked, What? Are we blind too? Jesus said, If you were blind, you would not be
guilty of sin; but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains.
(John 9:1-41)
Christ the light
Years ago when I was doing missionary work in Peru,
I once was coming home on horseback from one of the villages I had been
visiting. Night fell, and I had to make the rest of my way back in darkness, on
foot, pulling my horse behind me. The ground was rocky and full of bushes
impeding my way. There was no moon, no lights anywhere. Finally in the distance
I saw the light of a farm. It was a tremendous blessing to see that light, so
small, so far, but something to head for, because I simply could not
see
my way. I had no light in the darkness. Let that be a parable. There is an
intriguing feature of human knowledge. It is that people can be absolutely
certain they are right precisely when they are in absolute contradiction with
one another. A Christian who is quite certain that Jesus Christ is the Son of
God is confronted by a Muslim who is quite certain that Jesus Christ is but a
prophet — and not the greatest of them anyway. Each is certain of his position,
but at least one of them has to be in error. So it is quite possible to think
that one is in the light of truth while being in the darkness of error. Not only
is it possible, but it is common. Christ described himself as the light of the
world — the whole world! Without him, then, we are in the dark in respect to
what Christ came to offer, which is the knowledge of the triune God and our
salvation. As fallen human beings, we shall think we are in the light. We shall
not realize that, of ourselves, we are to a large extent blind. It is an
extraordinary situation we are in, because it is so unlike our physical sight.
We see things with our eyes, and know when we are in the dark and are unable to
see at all. Perhaps it is because of the relative reliability of physical sight
that we assume that our spiritual sight is similarly dependable. But we can be
tragically deceived. Our Lord in today’s Gospel passage (John 9:1-41) tells us
quite plainly that there is only one light for the whole world, one light in
those things that concern the way to reach God and attain heaven. Without that
light the whole world is in darkness. Only he is that Light: “As long as I am in
the world, I am the light of the world.”
Consider the numerous religions of man. They bear tribute to the grandeur of man, and yet how distant from and often contradictory to what Christ has revealed, are many of their teachings! Of course, very many of their teachings contain truth. Inasmuch as Christ states that he is the light of the world, and elsewhere that no-one can access the Father except through him, this has implications for the religions of man. It is that whatever truth there is in the religions of man that avails to our salvation and eternal destiny with God, must come from the Spirit of Christ graciously assisting. Those elements of saving truth, if they are there, are seeds of the word of God scattered there by the divine mercy. However, they are but seeds in comparison with the lush forest of divine truth present in what Christ has entrusted to the Church. We who are baptized have been mercifully blessed with this light of Christ. We have been baptised into his Church, and have received the gift of the Holy Spirit and the light of his grace and his teaching. Now, it is very easy for us to take all this for granted. We ought try to appreciate the immense treasure that we have, this light and grace of Christ that is able to flood our minds, our hearts and our souls. Let us but think of the great numbers who have not this light. Thinking of them, we ought thank God for the gift of our faith putting us in union with Christ the light of the world. But we must resolve to make this light shine, and be at work within us. For this we have the wonderful help of the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Blessed Trinity who has been given to us to guide us, to enlighten us with Christ’s teaching, and to inspire us to follow it with all the generosity we can summon. As we look back on our life, let us recognise that we have failed to let this light shine brightly. Let us begin again. We have the Holy Spirit dwelling within us as in a Temple. He enlightens our intellect and our conscience as to the meaning and the bearing of Christ’s teaching, and he wishes to inspire us to follow it generously. Let us learn to be taught and led by the Holy Spirit, the gift of Christ. Our life must be this, one that is led by the Spirit of Christ.
The Holy Spirit is our divine friend and he dwells within us as within his home. He abides there in order to make a saint of us, if we will but be guided by him. He makes us holy by means of the word of God and the sacraments. But if this is to happen, we must accept Christ as our light. That light of Christ is proclaimed in the Scriptures and in the Church’s preaching and teaching. Guided by this light, let us devoutly receive the sacraments, especially the sacraments of Penance and the Eucharist. Aided by the Holy Spirit, let us resolve to be faithful to him who is the Light of the world, being ever ready to be led by it.
(E.J.Tyler)
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Dear
Lord, I find beauty and charm in everything I see! I will guard my sight at
every moment, for the sake of Love.
(The Forge, no.415)
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Monday of the fourth week in Lent A-1
Prayers today: Rejoice, Jerusalem! Be glad for her, you who love her; rejoice with her, you who mourned for her, and you will find contentment at her consoling breasts. (See Is 66: 10-11)
Father of peace, we are joyful in your Word, your Son Jesus Christ, who reconciles us to you. Let us hasten to our Easter with the eagerness of faith and love. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,..
or
God our Father, your Word, Jesus Christ, spoke peace to a sinful world and brought mankind the gift of reconciliation by the suffering and death he endured. Teach us, the people who bear his name, to follow the example he gave us: may our faith, hope, and charity turn hatred to love, conflict to peace, death to eternal life. We ask this through Christ our Lord.
(April 4) St. Isidore of Seville (560?-636)
The 76 years of Isidore's life were a time of conflict and growth for the Church in Spain. The Visigoths had invaded the land a century and a half earlier and shortly before Isidore's birth they set up their own capital. They were Arians—Christians who said Christ was not God. Thus Spain was split in two: One people (Catholic Romans) struggled with another (Arian Goths). Isidore reunited Spain, making it a centre of culture and learning, a teacher and guide for other European countries whose culture was also threatened by barbarian invaders. Born in Cartagena of a family that included three other saints, he was educated (severely) by his elder brother, whom he succeeded as bishop of Seville. An amazingly learned man, he was sometimes called "The Schoolmaster of the Middle Ages" because the encyclopaedia he wrote was used as a textbook for nine centuries. He required seminaries to be built in every diocese, wrote a Rule for religious orders and founded schools that taught every branch of learning. Isidore wrote numerous books, including a dictionary, an encyclopaedia, a history of Goths and a history of the world—beginning with creation! He completed the Mozarabic liturgy, which is still in use in Toledo, Spain. For all these reasons Isidore (as well as several other saints) has been suggested as patron of the Internet. He continued his austerities even as he approached 80. During the last six months of his life, he increased his charities so much that his house was crowded from morning till night with the poor of the countryside. (AmericanCatholic.org)
Scripture today: Isaiah 65:17-21; Psalm 29; John 4:43-54
After two days
Jesus left for Galilee. (Now Jesus himself had pointed out that a prophet has no
honour in his own country.) When he
arrived in Galilee, the Galileans welcomed
him. They had seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, for
they also had been there. Once more he visited Cana in Galilee, where he had
turned the water into wine. And there was a certain royal official whose son lay
sick at Capernaum. When this man heard that Jesus had arrived in Galilee from
Judea, he went to him and begged him to come and heal his son, who was close to
death. Unless you people see miraculous signs and wonders, Jesus told him, you
will never believe. The royal official said, Sir, come down before my child
dies. Jesus replied, You may go. Your son will live. The man took Jesus at his
word and departed. While he was still on the way, his servants met him with the
news that his boy was living. When he enquired as to the time when his son got
better, they said to him, The fever left him yesterday at the seventh hour. Then
the father realised that this was the exact time at which Jesus had said to him,
Your son will live. So he and all his household believed. This was the second
miraculous sign that Jesus performed, having come from Judea to Galilee.
(John 4:43-54)
Grace
One of the distinctive features of the Christian
religion is that it is historical. While it presents itself as an answer to
man’s truest religious longings — especially the longing for friendship with God
and cleansing from sin — nevertheless it is grounded in history. If we had lived
at the time, we would have seen the facts that are narrated. So it is that the
Christian’s piety relishes the memory of what then happened, as given to us in
the Gospels. We repeatedly remember what happened in the past, and these
memories,
sustained by the Gospel accounts, nourish our faith in Jesus Christ.
This essentially historical character of the Christian religion leads the
Christian to be deeply interested in what actually happened, even though there
are many frustrations ahead in trying to reconstruct it. Let us then try to
reconstruct a few things in relation to our Gospel today. We notice that in his
Gospel, St John seems to contrast our Lord’s reception in Jerusalem and Judea
with that of Samaria and Galilee. John’s account of our Lord’s ministry begins
with Christ going to Judea for the baptism of John the Baptist. There he meets
his first disciples, who, coincidentally, come from Galilee. He returns to
Galilee and works the first of his miracles at Cana. He let his glory be seen
and his disciples believed in him. Having moved to Capernaum, he went up to
Jerusalem for the Passover. There he cleansed the Temple, taught there, and was
confronted by “the Jews,” — the religious authorities based in the Temple. There
were those who believed in him, including some among the very leaders (such as
Nicodemus), but we get the impression that in Jerusalem our Lord met his main
resistance. By contrast, he had an excellent response from some Samaritans, and
a fairly good response from the cosmopolitan Galileans. John presents our Lord
going back and forth from Galilee to Jerusalem, and it seems to me that one
feature of this is a contrast John wishes to bring out between the acceptance
and non-acceptance of Jesus Christ. It is as if John is presenting a seminal
pattern of what will be later manifest, that the Church will be drawn mainly
from those far from the heart of Judaism. God’s grace has surprising wins, and
has a long reach.
Let us take the point further. Our Lord has just come from Samaria where “many more believed because of his word.” They believed not just because of the word of the Samaritan woman but because of what they heard Jesus say — and as a result they knew (oidamen) “that this man is truly the Saviour of the world” (John 4: 42). It was a stark contrast with the response of Jerusalem. And so our Lord returns to Galilee, and “the Galileans received him” for they had seen what he had done in Jerusalem. With that, he came once again to Cana in Galilee, where earlier, at the request of his mother, he had changed the water into wine. This time an official of the court (basilikos) came to him to plead the case of his son who was dangerously ill at Capernaum. We are in Galilee, so it is not unlikely that this man was connected with the court of Herod Antipas, the tetrarch of Galilee. Challenged by our Lord as to his faith, he responded by appealing to Jesus to do something for his son. At this, our Lord told him to go — his son would live. He believed, set off for home, and we read that he and his entire family believed (John 4:43-54). Of course, we do not know who this man was for the simple reason that John does not tell us. But we do notice that in Luke 8:3, among the women who assisted our Lord and the disciples in their demanding work of preaching in every town and village was Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod’s steward. Was the man who spoke to Jesus, and who subsequently believed, Chuza? We cannot tell, but it is not impossible. Chuza of course had his work at Herod’s court to do, and so, were he the disciple at Herod’s court whose son was cured, he could not follow our Lord physically among the towns and villages. But his wife may have, as a profoundly grateful disciple — and with Chuza’s active encouragement. Chuza may also have told her to assist our Lord generously with provisions. Moreover, Herod himself came to hear of our Lord, and in his superficial manner wanted to see him. His interest may have been aroused by Chuza speaking of our Lord at the court — with the intent of bearing witness. Joanna observed our Lord dying on the cross (Luke 23:49), and was certainly at the tomb when told by the angels of his resurrection (Luke 24:1-10).
The point I am drawing out here is that faith in our Lord is found in unlikely places. Grace has a long reach, and surprising wins. Jerusalem, the apple of God’s eye, was not distinguished in its response to the Son of God. He came unto his own, and his own received him not. It was from Galilee that he received his closest disciples. It was in Samaria that he received at least one excellent response. In our Gospel today, a man of the court — probably that of Herod — became a believer, together with all his household. In Acts 13:1 we read that Manaen, a foster-brother of Herod the tetrarch, was among the teachers of the Church at Antioch. I wonder if Chuza had anything to do with Manaen’s conversion by speaking to him of Jesus. All this is imaginative conjecture. Let us, though, entrust ourselves to the grace of God, seeing its power at work in the Sacred Scriptures.
(E.J.Tyler)
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Second reflection: (John 4:43-54)
Faith
in Jesus
It is clear from our Lord’s words in today’s Gospel
(John 4:43-54)
that everything depends on faith in him:
“So
you will not believe unless you see signs and wonders”, he said to the
synagogue official. Our Lord worked numerous and striking miracles in order to
elicit faith, but it is clear that he did not want faith in him to depend on
miracles. So what is it to depend on? Faith in Jesus and in who he is, is a gift
from God. We see this in our Lord’s declaration to Peter after Simon had said
that he, Jesus, was the Messiah the Son of God. Flesh and blood had not revealed
it to Simon, but the Father in heaven. Faith is a gift from God. But also it
depends on our trying to get to know Jesus personally. For example, we remember
how the two disciples of John the Baptist followed Jesus and stayed with him for
the rest of that day. The next day one of them, Andrew by name, went to find his
brother Simon and told him that they had found the Messiah. They had come to
know and accept this — they had arrived at faith — because they took the effort
to be with Jesus and to come to know him.
We must spend time with Jesus if we hope to arrive at a deep faith in him. We must spend time with him in prayer, getting to know him personally, and exercising our faith in that context. Blessed are they, the risen Jesus told Thomas, who have not seen and yet believe.
(E.J.Tyler)
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You
are a Christian and, as a Christian, a son of God. You should feel a grave
responsibility for corresponding to the mercies you have received from the Lord,
showing careful vigilance and loving firmness, so that nothing and nobody may
disfigure the distinctive features of the Love he has imprinted upon you soul.
(The Forge, no.416)
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Tuesday of the fourth week in Lent A-1
Prayers today: Come to the waters, all who thirst; though you have no money, come and drink with joy. (Isaiah 55:1)
Father, may our Lenten observance prepare us to embrace the paschal mystery and to proclaim your salvation with joyful praise. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, . .
(April 5) St. Vincent Ferrer (1350?-1419)
The polarization in the Church today is a
mild breeze compared with the tornado that ripped the Church apart during the
lifetime of this saint. If any saint is a patron of reconciliation, Vincent
Ferrer is. Despite parental opposition, he entered the Dominican Order in his
native Spain at 19. After brilliant studies,
he was ordained a priest by Cardinal Peter de
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Luna—who would figure tragically
in his life. Of a very ardent nature, Vincent practiced the austerities of his
Order with great energy. He was chosen prior of the Dominican house in Valencia
shortly after his ordination. The Western Schism divided Christianity first
between two, then three, popes. Clement VII lived at Avignon in France, Urban VI
in Rome. Vincent was convinced the election of Urban was invalid (though
Catherine of Siena was just as devoted a supporter of the Roman pope). In the
service of Cardinal de Luna, he worked to persuade Spaniards to follow Clement.
When Clement died, Cardinal de Luna was elected at Avignon and became Benedict
XIII. Vincent worked for him as apostolic penitentiary and Master of the Sacred
Palace. But the new pope did not resign as all candidates in the conclave had
sworn to do. He remained stubborn despite being deserted by the French king and
nearly all of the cardinals. Vincent became disillusioned and very ill, but
finally took up the work of simply "going through the world preaching Christ,"
though he felt that any renewal in the Church depended on healing the schism. An
eloquent and fiery preacher, he spent the last 20 years of his life spreading
the Good News in Spain, France, Switzerland, the Low Countries and Lombardy,
stressing the need of repentance and the fear of coming judgment. (He became
known as the "Angel of the Judgment.") He tried, unsuccessfully, in 1408 and
1415, to persuade his former friend to resign. He finally concluded that
Benedict was not the true pope. Though very ill, he mounted the pulpit before an
assembly over which Benedict himself was presiding and thundered his
denunciation of the man who had ordained him a priest. Benedict fled for his
life, abandoned by those who had formerly supported him. Strangely, Vincent had
no part in the Council of Constance, which ended the schism.
(AmericanCatholic.org)
Scripture today: Ezechiel 47:1-9, 12; Psalm 46:2-3, 5-6, 8-9; John 5:1-16
Some time later, Jesus went
up to Jerusalem for a feast of the Jews. Now there is in Jerusalem near the
Sheep Gate a pool, which in Aramaic is called Bethesda and which is surrounded
by five covered colonnades. Here a great number of disabled people used to lie—
the blind, the lame, the paralysed.
One
who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him
lying there and knowing that he had been in this condition for a long time, he
asked him, Do you want to get well? Sir, the invalid replied, I have no-one to
help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in,
someone else goes down ahead of me. Then Jesus said to him, Get up! Pick up your
mat and walk. At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked. The
day on which this took place was a Sabbath, and so the Jews said to the man who
had been healed, It is the Sabbath; the law forbids you to carry your mat. But
he replied, The man who made me well said to me, 'Pick up your mat and walk.' So
they asked him, Who is this fellow who told you to pick it up and walk? The man
who was healed had no idea who it was, for Jesus had slipped away into the crowd
that was there. Later Jesus found him at the temple and said to him, See, you
are well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you. The man went
away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well. So, because
Jesus was doing these things on the Sabbath, the Jews persecuted him.
(John 5:1-16)
Christ’s mercy
There are some references in the Gospel of St John to our
Lord healing numerous sick people, but they are not nearly as numerous as in the
Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke). John’s purpose is different. John
tends to take particular scenes and dwell on them in more depth. In chapter
6:1-2 of his Gospel there is a reference to our Lord’s healing ministry. Our
Lord
went
“across the sea of Galilee and there was a great multitude following him; they
had seen the miracles he performed over the sick.” In chapter 9:6-7 our Lord
heals a blind man with something of a ceremony, and the rest of the chapter is
an unfolding of the meaning and results of this action. Our Gospel today is
situated prior to these events, and is an isolated and private action of our
Lord’s, away from the gaze of the multitudes. The crowds and spectators are not
in tow — our Lord is back again in Jerusalem for the feast, and we get the
impression that he is mingling somewhat incognito among the crowds. Presumably
he has a few of his disciples with him — John provides us with a lot of detail,
so we can assume he was with his Master. The scene is near the Sheep Gate pool.
Incidentally, St John tells us that “there is in Jerusalem” this Sheep Gate pool
— which is to say that he puts it in the present tense as if it is still there.
I wonder whether this indicates that at least this particular section of the
Gospel was written before the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD, rather than
near the end of the century which is commonly claimed for this Gospel. Be that
as it may, there we find our Lord quietly moving among the people, perhaps on
his way to or from the Temple. He is near the Pool, and the implication of St
John’s text (5: 2-4) is that there were probably many sick persons there, but
our Lord does not proceed to deliver them from their sicknesses. This is yet
another indication that generally God expects us to ask him for his special
favours and graces. But mysteriously there is one before whom our Lord does stop
to speak. Why did he pause before this one? We do not know.
It is not as if this particular sick person was especially deserving. Our Lord knew that he had been there a long time — in fact, he had been there since before our Lord’s very birth. I wonder if our Lord had seen him over those years when as a youth and young man he came up to Jerusalem for the feasts. St John is able to tell us exactly how long he had been there. Let us notice our Lord’s question to this long-standing invalid. “Do you want to be well again?” It is as if there is doubt about it — it might indicate that the sick person was semi-content in his life-long inactivity. This would have a bearing on his spiritual state. Our Lord, concerned and compassionate as ever, may have been challenging him to do something better with his life. In his mercy he may have been calling him to something greater and richer. “Do you want — really want — to be well again?” The invalid appears to offer an excuse — someone always beats him to it when the water is stirred. Our Lord immediately proceeds to cure him, giving him a new chance in life. But we also notice later in the chapter that our Lord, now in the Temple and seemingly incognito again, says to the restored man, “You are healed. Do not sin any more, or something worse might befall you.” It does not look as if our man was especially admirable, for our Lord is warning him not to sin any more. But then we notice that the man “went and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had healed him” — and he must have known that the “Jews” (the Temple aristocracy) were enemies of our Lord, and out to do him harm. We cannot tell, but it does not look as if this once-crippled man, now in full and active health, became all that our Lord hoped for him. “Do you want to be well again?” had been the question (John 5:1-16). This had an immediate reference to physical health, but my surmise is that also in our Lord’s mind was spiritual health. For his own reasons, and as a gratuitous act of divine mercy, our Lord chose to bestow a signal benefit on one who was but one of the crowd of sick persons. The man’s response, such as it seems to have been, is a lesson to us, for we too are recipients of divine mercy. Whatever God does for us constitutes a call to be generous in return.
Let us lovingly contemplate the divine mercy. Jesus stops and powerfully assists an unknown, unnoticed individual. We, most of us, are ordinary fish in the stream. But God has us constantly before his gaze. He sees our sins and limited spiritual state. Nevertheless he looks upon us kindly. He has done so much for us, and will continue to do so. He asks us to look on what he has done for us — and, with a grateful heart, to resolve not to sin. Let us identify with that cripple, restored to health, but in contrast, let us give ourselves over to following the Lord.
(E.J.Tyler)
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You
have reached a level of real intimacy with this God of ours, who is so close to
you, so deeply lodged in your soul. But what are you doing to increase and
deepen this intimacy? Are you careful not to allow silly little hindrances to
creep in which would upset this friendship? Show courage! Don’t refuse to break
with every single thing, no matter how small, which could cause suffering to the
One who loves you so much.
(The Forge, no.417)
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Wednesday of the fourth week of Lent A-1
Prayers today: I pray to you, O God, for the time of your favour. Lord, in your great love, answer me. (Ps 68: 14)
Lord, you reward virtue and forgive the repentant sinner. Grant us your forgiveness as we come before you confessing our guilt. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, .
(April 6) St. Crescentia Hoess (1682-1744)
Crescentia was born in 1682 in a
little town near Augsburg, the daughter of a poor weaver. She spent play time
praying in the parish church,
assisted those even poorer than herself and had so mastered the truths of her
religion that she was permitted to make her holy Communion at the then unusually
early age of seven. In the town she was called "the little angel."
As she grew older she desired to enter the convent of the Tertiaries of
St. Francis. But the convent was poor and, because Crescentia had no dowry, the
superiors refused her admission. Her case was then pleaded by the Protestant
mayor of the town to whom the convent owed a favour. The community felt it was
forced into receiving her, and her new life was made miserable. She was
considered a burden and assigned nothing other than menial tasks. Even her
cheerful spirit was misinterpreted as flattery or hypocrisy. Conditions improved
four years later when a new superior was elected who realized her virtue.
Crescentia herself was appointed mistress of novices. She so won the love and
respect of the sisters that, upon the death of the superior, Crescentia herself
was unanimously elected to that position. Under her the financial state of the
convent improved and her reputation in spiritual matters spread. She was soon
being consulted by princes and princesses as well as by bishops and cardinals
seeking her advice. And yet, a true daughter of Francis, she remained ever
humble. Bodily afflictions and pain were always with her. First it was headaches
and toothaches. Then she lost the ability to walk, her hands and feet gradually
becoming so crippled that her body curled up into a foetal position. In the
spirit of Francis she cried out, "Oh, you bodily members, praise God that he has
given you the capacity to suffer." Despite her sufferings she was filled with
peace and joy as she died on Easter Sunday in 1744. She was beatified in 1900
and canonized by Pope John Paul II in 2001.
(AmericanCatholic.org)
Scripture today: Isaiah 49:8-15; Psalm 144; John 5:17-30
Jesus
said to them, “My Father is always working and I, too, am working.” For this
reason the Jews tried all the harder to kill him; for not only was he breaking
the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal to
God. Jesus gave them
this answer: “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing
by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the
Father does the Son also does. For the Father loves the Son and shows him all he
does. Yes, to your amazement he will show him even greater things than these.
For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son
gives life to whom he is pleased to give it. Moreover, the Father judges no-one,
but has entrusted all judgment to the Son, that all may honour the Son just as
they honour the Father. He who does not honour the Son does not honour the
Father, who sent him. I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes
him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over
from death to life. I tell you the truth, a time is coming and has now come when
the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live. For
as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son to have life in
himself. And he has given him authority to judge because he is the Son of Man.
Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves
will hear his voice and come out— those who have done good will rise to live,
and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned. By myself I can do
nothing; I judge only as I hear, and my judgment is just for I seek not my own
will but the will of the one who sent me.”
(John 5:17-30)
Reliable witness
There are two obvious things about Jesus Christ that are
intimately linked with one another, and which when linked, have very important
implications. The first thing is that Jesus Christ is universally admired for
his moral stature, and the second thing is that he made unparalleled claims as
to his own person. Of course, the Christian accepts Jesus Christ as the moral
exemplar for mankind without peer. The greatest Christian saints have regarded
themselves as nothing before him, and have sought
with all their hearts to
benefit from a share in his spirit — which is the Spirit of God. But the world
at large also accepts, to say the least, the high holiness of Jesus of Nazareth.
Islam counts him to be a great prophet — not as great as Mahomet, but great
nevertheless. They would view it as absurd to deem him less than this. The
Buddhist speaks reverently of Christ — I recall that on one occasion the Dalai
Lama spoke of Jesus as an instance of the Buddha in history. This was high
praise for him, from the perspective of the Dalai Lama. He would never dream of
denigrating Christ’s moral stature. Hinduism looks upon Christ with respect — many Hindus admire Jesus as a great teacher, saint and even a god, that is, as
one of many gods. Gandhi admired Jesus Christ while criticizing Christians for
not living his moral teaching. Gandhi seems to have been of the opinion that the
Church distorted Christianity when it became the religion of the Emperor and the
Empire. Of course, he did not allow that Jesus Christ was the only-begotten Son
of God, nor that Christ is the only name by which men can be saved, and the only
way to the Father. But he fully accepted Christ’s high virtue and the excellence
of his moral teaching. There is even what is called Christian atheism — an
ideology in which the God of Christianity is rejected but the moral teachings of
Jesus are followed. Such persons think of Jesus as a wise and good man, and
accept his moral teachings while rejecting the idea of his divinity. Christian
atheists look to Jesus as an example of what a Christian should be, but of
course they do not see him as God. All these variants allow for his moral
greatness.
Much could be said about all this, but there is a simple question to be asked. If Jesus Christ was a great Saint in mankind’s history, what is to be made of his extraordinary claims, if they are deemed to be untrue? That they are extraordinary is as plain as the day, and our Gospel passage today illustrates this. He refused to conform to the Pharisaical notions of the Sabbath rest, saying that “My Father is always working, and so do I.” The implication was clear to the leaders of the Jews: Christ was calling God his own natural father. He therefore shared the life and nature of God himself. He was divine. Our Lord goes on to declare that whatever the Father does, the Son — himself, that is — does too. The Father shows him, the Son, all that he does. Just as the Father gives life to the dead, so the Son gives life to whomsoever he pleases. God is man’s judge, but all judgment has been entrusted to him, the Son. The Scriptures taught that life comes to the one who hears the word of God and obeys it. Christ claims here that “whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life” (John 5:17-30). He, Jesus, has life in himself and he has full authority to judge mankind. All these are divine claims, and the Jewish authorities had the perception to be very alive to them. The Gospel of St John is replete with them. Gandhi did not accept them, nor does Islam, nor does Hinduism, nor does the modern Western secularist, let alone the atheist. So, was Jesus Christ deluded, a little mad, or was he a deceiver? Those leaders of the Jews who implacably opposed our Lord (and not all the leaders did — Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea were disciples) considered him a deceiver. They certainly did not think him deluded or mad — his intellectual apparatus was so superior to anything on their side that they finally were reduced to silence before him. We read that a point was reached when they did not ask him any more questions. Our Lord was left the winner of all debates. It does not look as if any case could possibly be made for Christ being deluded or mad. Of course, one could assert that the Church and the New Testament completely distorted the historical Jesus. But this is a gratuitous claim, without any evidence. If then his exalted claims are untrue, he was a deceiver. If it were the case, his moral status is in ruins — and this is something nobody thinks.
What I am saying is that the sanctity of our Lord’s character is itself a very important ground for assent to his claims. His claims are unique and exclusive. Can anyone of you convict me of sin? he asked his enemies. He who sees me sees the Father, he told his disciples. No one comes to the Father but through me. I am the Light of the world — apart from me, you are in the darkness. Why should we believe such extraordinary assertions? We should believe them mainly because the one who uttered them is so perfect and hence so credible. The one who comes to know Jesus Christ sees that it is incredible that he would deceive, and absurd to claim that he was demented. The all-holy Christ is absolutely worthy of the world’s belief.
(E.J.Tyler)
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If
we are faithful to him, Jesus’ own life will somehow be repeated in the life of
each one of us, both in its internal development (the process of sanctification)
and in our outward behaviour. Give thanks to him for being so good.
(The Forge, no.418)
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Thursday of the fourth week in Lent A-1
Prayers today: Let hearts rejoice who search for the Lord. Seek the Lord and his strength, seek always the face of the Lord. (Ps 104: 3-4)
Merciful Father, may the penance of our lenten observance make us your obedient people. May the love within us be seen in what we do and lead us to the joy of Easter. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, . .
(April 7) St. John Baptist de la Salle (1651-1719)
Complete dedication to what he saw as
God's will for him dominated the life of John Baptist de la Salle. In 1950, Pope
Pius XII
named
him patron of schoolteachers for his efforts in upgrading school instruction. As
a young seventeenth-century Frenchman, John had everything going for him:
scholarly bent, good looks, noble family background, money, refined upbringing.
At the early age of 11, he received the tonsure and started preparation for the
priesthood, to which he was ordained at 27. He seemed assured then of a life of
dignified ease and a high position in the Church. But God had other plans for
John, which were gradually revealed to him in the next several years. During a
chance meeting with M. Nyel of Raven, he became interested in the creation of
schools for poor boys in Raven, where he was stationed. Though the work was
extremely distasteful to him at first, he became more involved in working with
the deprived youths. Once convinced that this was his divinely appointed
mission, John threw himself wholeheartedly into the work, left home and family,
abandoned his position as canon at Rheims, gave away his fortune and reduced
himself to the level of the poor to whom he devoted his entire life. The
remainder of his life was closely entwined with the community of religious men
he founded, the Brothers of the Christian School (Christian Brothers, or De La
Salle Brothers). This community grew rapidly and was successful in educating
boys of poor families using methods designed by John, preparing teachers in the
first training college for teachers and also setting up homes and schools for
young delinquents of wealthy families. The motivating element in all these
endeavours was the desire to become a good Christian. Yet even in his success,
John did not escape experiencing many trials: heartrending disappointment and
defections among his disciples, bitter opposition from the secular schoolmasters
who resented his new and fruitful methods, and persistent opposition from the
Jansenists of his time, whose moral rigidity and pessimism abut the human
condition John resisted vehemently all his life. Afflicted with asthma and
rheumatism in his last years, he died on Good Friday at 68 and was canonized in
1900. (AmericanCatholic.org)
Scripture today: Exodus 32:7-14; Psalm 105; John 5:31-47
Jesus said, If I testify about myself, my testimony is
not valid. There is another who testifies in my favour, and I know that his
testimony about me is valid. You have sent to John and he has testified to the
truth. Not that I accept human testimony; but I mention
it that you may be
saved. John was a lamp that burned and gave light, and you chose for a time to
enjoy his light. I have testimony weightier than that of John. For the very work
that the Father has given me to finish, and which I am doing, testifies that the
Father has sent me. And the Father who sent me has himself testified concerning
me. You have never heard his voice nor seen his form, nor does his word dwell in
you, for you do not believe the one he sent. You diligently study the Scriptures
because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the
Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life. I
do not accept praise from men, but I know you. I know that you do not have the
love of God in your hearts. I have come in my Father's name, and you do not
accept me; but if someone else comes in his own name, you will accept him. How
can you believe if you accept praise from one another, yet make no effort to
obtain the praise that comes from the only God? But do not think I will accuse
you before the Father. Your accuser is Moses, on whom your hopes are set. If you
believed Moses, you would believe me, for he wrote about me. But since you do
not believe what he wrote, how are you going to believe what I say?
(John 5:31-47)
Belief
Let us notice two obvious parts of what our Lord says in
today’s Gospel passage. Firstly, he speaks of the testimonies which give
credibility to him and his message. Our passage today is part of a long
discourse in chapter 5 of John, which follows the reference to the “Jews”
beginning to persecute Jesus for his healing on the Sabbath day (John 5: 16).
With respect to this particular passage we may suppose the same challenge
addressed to our Lord on other occasions: show us evidence of your authority to
do and say these
things. When our Lord cleansed the Temple of commercial
activity, the “Jews” said to him, “What sign can you show us” to support what
you are doing (John 2:18)? In Matthew 21: 23, our Lord is asked, “By what
authority do you do these things?” The same recurs in Mark 11: 28: “By what
authority do you do these things? Who gave you this authority?” In our passage
today, our Lord points in general terms to what ought be sufficient evidence of
his authority to anyone of good will. To begin with, there was the testimony of
Israel’s most recent prophet. All the people counted John as a prophet, and John
is shown by each of the Gospels as having declared for Jesus. Our Lord’s appeal
to John’s testimony before his critics shows that the “Jews” — the Temple
aristocracy, perhaps — were also well aware that John had thrown his prophetic
weight behind the person and mission of Jesus. He had made it clear that Jesus
was the Messiah. The second testimony was our Lord’s very works: “I have
testimony weightier than that of John. For the very work that the Father has
given me to finish, and which I am doing, testifies that the Father has sent
me.” So if John had not appeared on the scene, still, what Christ had been doing
ought to have been ample testimony of his heavenly authority. But then there was
the testimony of the Father himself. “The Father who sent me has himself
testified concerning me.” Finally, there was the testimony of the Scriptures:
“You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess
eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to
come to me to have life.” The appeal to John the Baptist, to his own works, the
testimony of the Father and of Sacred Scripture, were all elements of an
apologetic which had their origin in our Lord’s own defence of himself.
But there is a second part to our passage today. Having given what may be termed the “evidence” of his authority, our Lord turned to what was of greater moment. Despite the testimonies thus cited, they did not believe. Let us look carefully at this, because it indicates that they did not believe, not because of a lack of evidence, but because of their moral and religious condition. “These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life.” They lacked love for God, and this resulted in their not coming to Jesus: “I know you. I know that you do not have the love of God in your hearts.” Further, they were incapable of believing in Jesus because they sought the praise of men and not of God: “How can you believe if you accept praise from one another, yet make no effort to obtain the praise that comes from the only God?” So the lack of true religion in them rendered them unable to believe. It also involved a lack of belief in the religion they actually professed — that of Moses. They did not believe Moses: “Your accuser is Moses, on whom your hopes are set. If you believed Moses, you would believe me, for he wrote about me.” They believe neither Moses nor what he wrote, for he wrote about the Christ who was to come. “But since you do not believe what he wrote, how are you going to believe what I say?” (John 5: 31-47). So in respect to those among the Jews who refused our Lord the credence that was his due, their fault was a fundamental one. They lacked religious faith. They did not accept John as a prophet, nor did they even believe Moses — though they doubtlessly thought they did. Fundamentally they did not know God, nor did his word dwell in them, for “the Father who sent me has himself testified concerning me. You have never heard his voice nor seen his form, nor does his word dwell in you, for you do not believe the one he sent.” This lack of religion and belief resulted in their refusal to come to Jesus, as a matter of moral choice and religious belief.
Our Lord is saying that the foundation of faith in him is a moral and religious spirit. Without these personal moral qualities, all the evidence in the world will avail but little. Our Lord is putting his finger on the root issues within our hearts, matters that may be out of man’s own sight. He may not see where he is coming from, a flawed moral foundation. Let us pray to God, asking that he give us the right starting points for all our thoughts and desires. We need to be coming from the right moral basis, and preserving it all the while if we are to arrive at the saving truth of Jesus Christ, and remain in him thereafter.
(E.J.Tyler)
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It
seems an excellent idea to me that you should tell the Lord often about your
great and ardent desire to be a saint, even though you see yourself filled with
wretchedness. Tell him — precisely because of this!
(The Forge, no.419)
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Friday of the fourth week in Lent A-1
Prayers today: Save me, O God, by your power, and grant me justice! God, hear my prayer; listen to my plea. (Ps 53:3-4)
Father, our source of life, you know our weakness. May we reach out with joy to grasp your hand and walk more readily in your ways. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, . .
(April 8) St. Julie Billiart (1751-1816)
From a family of well-to-do farmers, young Marie Rose Julia Billiart showed
an early interest in religion and in helping the sick and poor. Though the first
years of her life were relatively peaceful and uncomplicated, Julie had to take
up manual work as a young teen
when
her family lost its money. However, she spent her spare time teaching catechism
to young people and to the farm labourers. A mysterious illness overtook her
when she was about 30. Witnessing an attempt to wound or even kill her father,
Julie was paralysed and became a complete invalid. For the next two decades she
continued to teach catechism lessons from her bed, offered spiritual advice and
attracted visitors who had heard of her holiness. When the French Revolution
broke out in 1789, revolutionary forces became aware of her allegiance to
fugitive priests. With the help of friends she was smuggled out of Cuvilly in a
haycart; she spent several years hiding in Compiegne, being moved from house to
house despite her growing physical pain. She even lost the power of speech for a
time. But this period also proved to be a fruitful spiritual time for Julie. It
was at this time she had a vision in which she saw Calvary surrounded by women
in religious habits and heard a voice saying, "Behold these spiritual daughters
whom I give you in an Institute marked by the cross." As time passed and Julie
continued her mobile life, she made the acquaintance of an aristocratic woman,
Francoise Blin de Bourdon, who shared Julie's interest in teaching the faith. In
1803 the two women began the Institute of Notre Dame, which was dedicated to the
education of the poor as well as young Christian girls and the training of
catechists. The following year the first Sisters of Notre Dame made their vows.
That was the same year that Julie recovered from the illness: She was able to
walk for the first time in 22 years. Though Julie had always been attentive to
the special needs of the poor and that always remained her priority, she also
became aware that other classes in society needed Christian instruction. From
the founding of the Sisters of Notre Dame until her death, Julie was on the
road, opening a variety of schools in France and Belgium that served the poor
and the wealthy, vocational groups, teachers. Ultimately, Julie and Francoise
moved the motherhouse to Namur, Belgium. Julie died there in 1816. She was
canonized in 1969. (AmericanCatholic.org)
Scripture today: Wisdom 2:1.12-22; Psalm 33; John 7:1-2.10.25-30
Jesus moved around in Galilee; he did not wish to travel in Judea, because the Jews were trying to kill him. The Jewish feast of Tabernacles was near. When his brothers had gone up to the feast, he himself also went up, not openly but as it were in secret. Some of the inhabitants of Jerusalem said, "Is he not the one they are trying to kill? And look, he is speaking openly and they say nothing to him. Could the authorities have realized that he is the Christ? But we know where he is from. When the Christ comes, no one will know where he is from." So Jesus cried out in the temple area as he was teaching and said, "You know me and also know where I am from. Yet I did not come on my own, but the one who sent me, whom you do not know, is true. I know him, because I am from him, and he sent me." So they tried to arrest him, but no one laid a hand upon him, because his hour had not yet come. (John 7:1-2, 10, 25-30)
Christ the Lord
We notice in our Gospel
passage today that in respect to our Lord’s freedom of movement, John
distinguishes between Galilee and Judea. While Jesus moved around in Galilee, he
“did not wish to travel in Judea, because the Jews were trying to kill him.” Our
Lord’s homeland was Galilee, which, though within the pale of the chosen people,
was much more cosmopolitan than Judea. It was more difficult of reach for the
religious authorities in Jerusalem, and hence our Lord was safer in his ministry
there.
When he went up to Jerusalem, the conflict intensified. On this occasion,
the feast of Tabernacles, our Lord went up “in secret” — his relatives had gone
before him, thinking he was staying behind. Within the melee of the feast, the
“Jews” were on the look-out for him as they expected him to be there. John tells
us that they had determined to put him to death, and the people of Jerusalem
were aware of this: “Some of the inhabitants of Jerusalem said, "Is he not the
one they are trying to kill?” Now, who were the “Jews” of St John’s Gospel? They
were certainly not the average Jewish citizenry, nor the ordinary inhabitant of
the City. The “Jews” were principally the leading Temple authorities, an
influential hard core of the Sanhedrin that took all before them, the highest
echelons of the Jerusalem priesthood, and their associates. We could say they
were the Temple aristocracy together with those who were especially associated
with them. They were not all of the Sanhedrin, nor all of the Pharisees, though.
We do not know the extent of the implacable opposition to our Lord in these
circles, but at least one of the Pharisees (Nicodemus) — a “ruler of the Jews” — was a disciple. Another member of the Sanhedrin who was a disciple and who
disagreed with the prevailing hatred was Joseph of Arimathea. Further, John
tells us that “among the rulers many believed in him” (12: 42). It seems, then,
that our Lord had won the minds of many of the religious ruling class in the
City. They were not, though, the dominant clique, and “because of the Pharisees
did not confess him for fear of being put out of the Synagogue” (John 12: 42).
This was the situation, and humanly speaking, the net was closing.
But the real situation was that Christ was entirely in control of his own destiny. He had shown time and again that nothing and no-one could dominate him. In any confrontation he invariably came out the winner. In debate on the meaning Scripture, in debate on the Law of Moses, in the understanding of the Sabbath observance — whatever it might be, he proved himself Master in every circumstance. Apart from confrontations, his power over nature and the underworld was irresistible. On one occasion his very life was threatened by his own townsmen — but he passed through their midst and went on his way. Just what this meant in detail, we are not told. But it certainly does mean that no circumstance was superior to Jesus Christ. In moments of showdown with the highest authorities in Jerusalem he plainly stated his divine sonship, and they took up stones to stone him — but he effortlessly escaped from them. In storms at sea, he was superior to the situation. No demon, or combination of demons, could resist his power. He could not be tricked into a course which was not according to the divine plan. At the beginning of his ministry, the Prince of demons tried his best and was sent off, learning that nothing could divert this Man. In respect to situations of sudden embarrassment — such as the presence of great crowds, now hungry and lacking any food — he was in no way unequal. He fed them all at a word and with a blessing. In the Garden of Gethsemane, he told Simon Peter that at a word he would be given twelve legions of angels to defend him. That is to say, there was nothing on earth which could overwhelm Jesus Christ unless he consented to it. There was no-one like him in the history of the world, and had it been his intent and had he chosen to use his manifest power, he could clearly have been the Lord of the world in a temporal sense. But the divine plan for the salvation of the world was radically different. The Father willed that our Lord freely submit to the sinful persecution which was being mounted against him. His triumph would be effected by suffering and death. All of this is indicated in our Gospel today, when John writes that “they tried to arrest him, but no one laid a hand upon him, because his hour had not yet come” (John 7:1-2, 10, 25-30).
The most important thing in life, the rocklike basis of all our security, is the divine will. What God wants is the very best for us. Jesus Christ is our exemplar in this. Let us then resolve to follow closely in his footsteps, no matter what might be the cost. That is our truest security, therein lies our life.
(E.J.Tyler)
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You
have seen very clearly that you are a child of God. Even if you were never again
to see it — it won’t happen! — you should continue along your way forever, out
of a sense of faithfulness, without ever looking back.
(The Forge, no.420)
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Saturday of the fourth week in Lent A-1
Prayers today: The snares of death overtook me, the ropes of hell tightened around me; in my distress I called upon the Lord, and he heard my voice. (Ps 17:5-7)
Lord, guide us in your gentle mercy, for left to ourselves we cannot do your will. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, . .
(April 9) St. Casilda (11th century)
Some
saints’ names are far more familiar to us than others, but even the lives of
obscure holy persons teach us something. And so it is with St. Casilda, the
daughter of a Muslim leader in Toledo, Spain, in the 10th century. Casilda was
herself raised as a Muslim and showed special kindness to Christian prisoners.
She became ill as a young woman but was not convinced that any of the local Arab
doctors could cure her. So, she made a pilgrimage to the shrine of San Vicenzo
in northern Spain. Like so many other people who made their way there — many of
them suffering from haemorrhages — Casilda sought the healing waters of the
shrine. We’re uncertain what brought her to the shrine, but we do know that she
left it relieved of illness. In response, she became a Christian and lived a
life of solitude and penance not far from the miraculous spring. It’s said that
she lived to be 100 years old. Her death likely occurred around the year 1050.
Tensions between Muslims and Christians have often existed throughout history,
sometimes resulting in bloody conflict. Through her quiet, simple life Casilda
served her Creator.
(AmericanCatholic.org)
Scripture today: Jeremiah 11:18-20; Psalm 7:2-3, 9bc-12; John 7:40-53
On hearing his words, some of the people said, Surely
this man is the Prophet. Others said, He is the Christ. Still others asked, How
can the Christ come from Galilee? Does not the Scripture say that the Christ
will come from David's family and from Bethlehem, the town where David lived?
Thus the people were divided because of Jesus. Some wanted to seize him, but
no-one laid a hand on him. Finally the temple guards went back to the chief
priests and Pharisees, who asked them, Why didn't you bring him in? No-one ever
spoke the way this man does, the guards declared. You mean he has deceived you
also? the Pharisees retorted. Has any of the rulers or of the Pharisees believed
in him? No! But this mob that knows nothing of the law— there is a curse on
them. Nicodemus, who had gone to Jesus earlier and who was one of their own
number, asked, Does our law condemn a man without first hearing him to find out
what he is doing? They replied, Are you from Galilee, too? Look into it, and you
will find that a prophet does not come out of Galilee. Then each went to his own
home. (John 7:40-53)
No-one speaks as He
The scene is in the holy City, Jerusalem.
Christ is in the Temple, teaching. We read that our Lord “cried out” in the
Temple, “teaching and saying, ....” (John 7: 28). John’s use of these three
verbs one after the other — he cried out, teaching, saying — is an emphatic way
of describing the drama of our Lord’s gripping announcement. You do not know the
One I know, our Lord continued. “I know Him, because I am from Him and He sent
me.” We read that many of the crowd believed in him because of
his words and his
miracles. The Pharisees heard that the crowd were saying such things, so they
and the chief priests sent officers to arrest our Lord. Then the scene shifts
again back to our Lord and his powerful words, announcing his coming departure
from them. We read that “on the last day, the great day of the feast, our Lord
stood there and cried out, saying...” Once again, St John is emphasising the
solemn and dramatic character of our Lord’s address — he “cried out, saying..” I
am not aware of any prophet assuming so much authority as in the words that
follow. “If any man thirsts, let him come to me and drink. The one who believes
in me shall have living water flow from within him” (John 7:37-38). John
explains that our Lord was speaking of the Holy Spirit, which those who believe
in him would receive once he was glorified. The people were divided . “Many of
the people, when they heard these words, said, truly, this man is the Prophet.”
They heard and saw him, and they believed. He had to be the Prophet predicted by
Moses (Deuteronomy 18:18), who was held to be Judaism’s greatest prophet
(Deuteronomy 34: 10). Others said he was the Messiah, in response to observing
him and listening to him. Others raised the objections that he did not seem to
have fulfilled the prophecies, for the Messiah would come from Bethlehem and not
from Galilee. So there was a division of opinion, and in all of this the Temple
guard was in the crowd, likewise listening to Jesus and observing him. They had
been sent to arrest him, but “no man laid hands on him.” So they returned to
their superiors, and without their man.
The reason why they could not bring their prisoner was that “never had any man spoken as he has.” They had seen him, heard him, come to know him somewhat, and found him to be utterly convincing. They could not bring themselves to arrest him. It is yet another indicator of the fact that the best evidence of Christ’s truth and authority came from the direct knowledge of him with an open and good heart. The Pharisees called him a “deceiver” — are you also deceived? they said to the guard. Look around you — “have any of the rulers or of the Pharisees believed in him?” In fact, some had, but for fear of the leaders, they were not bearing witness to their belief. Nicodemus spoke up — should we not give him a hearing? This very question, together with the testimony of the Temple guard, illustrates the critical importance of approaching Jesus, listening to him, contemplating his person, and allowing one’s heart to be filled with his reality. Christian belief will not primarily be the result of mastering the evidences for Jesus Christ. It will come from coming to know him personally. This is what the chief priests and many of the Pharisees refused to do. Let us then take our cue from the testimony of very many of the crowd who heard our Lord, from the Temple guard, and from Nicodemus — whom we can take as representing those among the ruling class who were all-too silent believers. We must spend time listening to Jesus and being with him. We must contemplate his person, and allow the love for him to take possession of our hearts. We must place ourselves in the Temple, as it were, gazing at Jesus as he makes his electrifying announcement. Come to me! he says. If you are thirsty, come and drink from me. I shall provide for your life’s thirst. If you believe in me, the Scriptures will be fulfilled — out of you will flow rivers of living water. The Holy Spirit will guide and sustain you along your way. This nourishment will never fail, and it will assuredly take you to where you should go. I am the only One who can provide this for you, and it is unlocked for you by your faith. So come! Come to me and believe. Place your total faith in me, for I am all you have been made for.
Christianity is not just a doctrine about God and about right human living. It is not just a way of life. It is the knowledge and love of a Person, and that Person is Jesus Christ. By listening to him and loving him we fulfill the purpose of our having been created. Before the world began, St Paul writes, God chose us, chose us in Christ to be holy and full of love in his sight. All this is fulfilled by our knowledge and love of Jesus Christ, and our persevering desire to follow in his footsteps.
(E.J.Tyler)
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Second reflection: (John 7:40-53)
No one
has ever spoken as has Christ
St Paul writes that in Christ we have
received every heavenly blessing. He is our greatest
possession, God’s greatest
gift. St Paul writes elsewhere that God’s plan for us is “Christ in you, your
hope of glory.” In him lies all our hope. Now, a startling feature of this
wondrous fact of Christ is that Christ was not accepted by all. Indeed many did
not accept him. We read that “the people could not agree about him”
(John 7:40-53). It appears that
the majority of the Pharisees did not accept him. And so it has been down
through the ages since then — the person of Christ was, has been, and remains controverted. Nevertheless, the words uttered by the police sent to arrest him
were full of meaning for all history. They were profoundly moved by the words of
our Lord: “There has never been anyone who has spoken like him.” How truly they
spoke! Neither Aristotle, Plato, Buddha, Mahomet, no-one in history has spoken
like Jesus. He speaks now in and through the voice of the Church to each one of
us. We remember the words of the Father speaking from the bright cloud which
covered the three apostles who would be the “pillars” of the infant Church:
“This is my beloved Son. Listen to him.”
“Listen to him!” Let us listen to him constantly, and obey.
(E.J.Tyler)
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A
resolution: to be faithful to my timetable — heroically faithful and without
excuses — on ordinary days and on extraordinary days.
(The Forge, no.421)
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Prayers today: Give me justice, O God, and defend my cause against the wicked; rescue me from deceitful and unjust men. You, O God, are my refuge. (Psalm 42: 1-2)
Father, help us to be like Christ your Son, who loved the world and died for our salvation. Inspire us by his love and guide us by his example. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ your Son in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God for ever and ever.
(April 10) St. Magdalen of Canossa (1774-1835)
Wealth and privilege did nothing to prevent today’s saint from following her calling to serve Christ in the poor. Nor did the protests of her relatives, concerned that such work was beneath her. Born in northern Italy in 1774, Magdalen knew her mind—and spoke it. At age 15 she announced she wished to become a nun. After trying out her vocation with the cloistered Carmelites, she realized her desire was to serve the needy without restriction. For years she worked among the poor and sick in hospitals and in their homes and among delinquent and abandoned girls. In her mid-twenties Magdalen began offering lodging to poor girls in her own home. In time she opened a school, which offered practical training and religious instruction. As other women joined her in the work, the new Congregation of the Daughters of Charity emerged. Over time, houses were opened throughout Italy. Members of the new religious congregation focused on the educational and spiritual needs of women. Magdalen also founded a smaller congregation for priests and brothers. Both groups continue to this day. She died in 1835. Pope John Paul II canonized her in 1988. (AmericanCatholic.org)
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Anyone who reads the history of Eastern Europe cannot help but chance on the
name of Stanislaus, the saintly but tragic bishop of Kraków, patron of Poland.
He is remembered with Saints Thomas More and Thomas Becket for vigorous
opposition to the evils of an unjust government. Born in Szczepanow near Kraków
on July 26, 1030, he was ordained a priest after being educated in the cathedral
schools of Gniezno, then capital of Poland, and at Paris. He was appointed
preacher and archdeacon to the bishop of Kraków, where his eloquence and example
brought about real conversion in many of his penitents, both clergy and laity.
He became bishop of Kraków in 1072. During an expedition against the Grand Duchy
of Kiev, Stanislaus became involved in the political situation of Poland. Known
for his outspokenness, he aimed his attacks at the evils of the peasantry and
the king, especially the unjust wars and immoral acts of King Boleslaus II.. The
king first excused himself, then made a show of penance, then relapsed into his
old ways. Stanislaus continued his open opposition in spite of charges of
treason and threats of death, finally excommunicating the king. The latter,
enraged, ordered soldiers to kill the bishop. When they refused, the king killed
him with his own hands. Forced to flee to Hungary, Boleslaus supposedly spent
the rest of his life as a penitent in the Benedictine abbey in Osiak.
One needn’t live a long life to leave a
deep imprint. Teresa of Los Andes is proof of that. As a young girl growing up
in Santiago, Chile, in the early 1900s, she read an autobiography of a
French-born saint — Therese, popularly known as the Little Flower. The
experience deepened her desire to serve God and clarified the path she would
follow. At age 19 she became a Carmelite nun, taking the name of Teresa. The
convent offered the simple lifestyle Teresa desired and the joy of living in a
community of women completely devoted to God. She focused her days on prayer and
sacrifice. “I am God’s, ” she wrote in her diary. “He created me and is my
beginning and my end.” Toward the end of her short life, Teresa began an
apostolate of letter-writing, sharing her thoughts on the spiritual life with
many people. At age 20 she contracted typhus and quickly took her final vows.
She died a short time later, during Holy Week. Teresa remains popular with the
estimated 100,000 pilgrims who visit her shrine in Los Andes each year. She is
Chile’s first saint.
When Martin I became pope in 649,
Constantinople was the capital of the Byzantine empire and the patriarch of
Constantinople was the most influential Church leader in the eastern Christian
world. The struggles that existed within the Church at that time were magnified
by the close cooperation of emperor and patriarch. A teaching, strongly
supported in the East, held that Christ had no human will. Twice emperors had
officially favoured this position, Heraclius by publishing a formula of faith
and Constans II by silencing the issue of one or two wills in Christ. Shortly
after assuming the office of the papacy (which he did without first being
confirmed by the emperor), Martin held a council at the Lateran in which the
imperial documents were censured, and in which the patriarch of Constantinople
and two of his predecessors were condemned. Constans II, in response, tried
first to turn bishops and people against the pope. Failing in this and in an
attempt to kill the pope, the emperor sent troops to Rome to seize Martin and to
bring him back to Constantinople. Martin, already in poor health, offered no
resistance, returned with the exarch Calliopas and was then submitted to various
imprisonments, tortures and hardships. Although condemned to death and with some
of the torture imposed already carried out, Martin was saved from execution by
the pleas of a repentant Paul, patriarch of Constantinople, who was himself
gravely ill. Martin died shortly thereafter, tortures and cruel treatment having
taken their toll. He is the last of the early popes to be venerated as a martyr.
The breviary of the Orthodox Church pays tribute to Martin: “Glorious definer of
the Orthodox Faith...sacred chief of divine dogmas, unstained by error...true
reprover of heresy...foundation of bishops, pillar of the Orthodox faith,
teacher of religion.... Thou didst adorn the divine see of Peter, and since from
this divine Rock, thou didst immovably defend the Church, so now thou art
glorified with him.”