December 7 Fast

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JMJ

"The child’s father and mother were amazed at what was said about him; and Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, 'Behold, this child is destined for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be contradicted and you yourself a sword will pierce so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.'” (Lk 2:25-35) 

As one matures in the spiritual life, he comes to accept and understand the efficacy of the crosses allowed by God.  But finality still brings relief and a definitive conclusion engenders more willing acceptance.  

What becomes difficult is not necessarily the intensity of the burden but its unknown duration. Indeterminacy tempts the soul to despondency, leaving it to think of hope as a romantic notion rather than the indispensable gift from God it must cling to.

In those times when weariness of heart sinks in, when one thinks-"When will it be enough that I have suffered?" - it would do well to recall that He never asks anything of us that He did not ask of His Mother and Joseph. For it was not enough that they had to leave their home so close to the birth; not enough that Mary could not deliver in a warm room; not enough that their shivering Babe had to be laid on rough straw; not enough that they had to leave Bethlehem on a moment's notice after Joseph finally secured a house; not enough that they had to be aliens on a foreign soil. 

For then again, it was not enough that Our Lord should betrayed and abandoned; not enough to be mocked and ruthlessly scourged; not enough to fall multiple times. . .couldn't He have just died there? No, only when He had suffered all His strength could endure was it enough to satisfy the infinite love Christ has for us.

God asks a great trust of those who carry the cross of slow, silent suffering. Do not grow weary, but recall the thrice repeated question of Our Lord to St. Peter:"Do you love me?" And answer with certitude and hope:"Yes, Lord, you know that I do."

"I forget the past and take good care not to anticipate the future. If we grow disheartened, if sometimes we despair, it is because we have been dwelling on the past or the future." (St. Therese)

November 2nd Fast

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JMJ

"It is my desire to be worthy of you, that has made me so severe on myself.  If I am constantly preserved from the excesses common to my age, and which the world so readily excuses, it is not because I have not had the chance to sin; but rather, it is that the thought of you constantly perseveres me. Thus, I have kept myself intact, thanks to you, the sole treasures I can offer you on the day of marriage; a pure body and virginal heart."

(Victor Hugo, writing to his fiancee)

One who has found his beloved is driven to demonstrate his devotion by numerous acts of thoughtfulness.  Yet even more so,  he is motivated to slough off old habits in order to be more deserving of his noble love.  His desire for reform emanates from intense admiration and an understanding that his worthiness depends on a true conversion. As Fulton Sheen once wrote:

"A passion dethroned is not a virtue enthroned. . . Something must be loved; it is not enough to hate evil."

It is not enough to detach from the temporal forces that drag one down or to recognize but simply shrug at the situations/amusements that perhaps polite society "readily excuses." Rather, it is imperative to actively and zealously pursue the virtues that will prevent former vices from returning.  Spouses, friends, and family members can encourage one another in this striving for nobility of character by their patient and selfless example. A peaceful home with an atmosphere of joyful service is a fertile ground for the cultivation of ardent spirits, eager to labor industriously, and so be found worthy of the one they so dearly love and cherish.

October 5th Fast

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JMJ

"It is to God alone that all value must be attributed; there's nothing of value in my little nothingness." (St. Therese) 

When reading a beautiful novel it is natural that one is drawn to the more noble characters portrayed.  Perhaps comical or insidious personalities may amuse but the heroic ones often leave the most indelible impression.  It is not so much the courageous deeds themselves that inspire; rather, it is the inconspicuous manner in which they are performed that gives pause for reflection.  So too, when one studies the living nobility, i.e. the saints, he discovers the great paradox that their most salient attribute is the very hiddenness their hearts embraced. 

They not only eschewed worldly honors but legitimate praises from peers as well.  They fought the temptation to enumerate the day's accomplishments to others, and were satisfied to serve unpretentiously.  Certainly, they did not feign false humility by disavowing a deed done, but the saints also did not cleverly lead others to the discovery of their labors either.  Truly, to be detached from accolades, even trifling ones, is an arduous discipline for few do not crave the attention of others. Yet, it is imperative to pray for the desire for- not simply humility- but hiddenness.  And in accepting the sacrifice of silence, one can more easily draw near to the hidden Christ, learning, like St. Therese, that "love lives only by sacrifice."

September 7 Fast

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JMJ

When Lucia dos Santos, the eldest of the 3 Fatima children, asked her cousin, St. Francisco Marto, whether he preferred to console the Lord or convert sinners, he replied:

“ I prefer to console the Lord. Did you not see how sad Our Lady was when she said to us that men should no longer offend the Lord, who is so much offended?” I would like to console the Lord and then convert sinners so they will no longer offend the Lord. Soon I will be in heaven, and when I get there I will console very much Our Lord and Our Lady." 

After one wounds someone he loves, he is usually quick to beg forgiveness; yet, knowing that an apology is insufficient to remove the pang caused by his thoughtless words or actions, he immediately proceeds to prove his contrition in word and deed; his mea culpa acknowledges the hurt, but his subsequent acts repairs the offense.

But what of the injuries of others, whom we did not sin against? A mother does not simply pity her child when he is mistreated; instead, she strives to do all she can to console the tender heart so poorly treated.  When hearing of evil perpetrated on the innocent, one's immediate reactions may run the emotional gauntlet resulting in the feeling of helplessness that threatens to trap him in a spiritual inertia.   He must repel the temptation to stew in the froth of his frustration and pour his energies into offering reparation to the Sacred Heart so cruelly abused.  Sacrifices can be the salve that soothes the smarting sores of the Body of Christ.

August 3rd Fast

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JMJ

"There has to be another source of power outside our will.  We do not nourish ourselves; we are dependent upon the plant and animal world outside. . . our spirits, too, are continuous with a larger spiritual world.  We are not cisterns, but wells; we grow less by our own power than by assimilating with outside forces. . . As we establish contact with the atmosphere, which cannot be seen or tasted by breathing, so we establish commerce with the Divine Source of Power by prayer and the sevenfold channels which the Good Lord Himself offers to our depleted human forces."

(Life is Worth Living, Venerable Fulton Sheen)

St. Katherine Drexel was well known for her generosity, freely choosing to share her immense inheritance in order to build the Church through her missionary activities in America.  But behind her zeal for the Gospel, was a great love of prayer, especially Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, a devotion she practiced continuously for the last twenty years of her life.  In this she was profoundly influenced by the example of her father.  Upon returning home from work each day, Francis Drexel, a wealthy Philadelphia banker, would retreat to his study where he would spend time in prayer until his soul was sufficiently refreshed, and then he would rejoin his family, eager to share in their joys.

Just as our bodies require nourishment so too our souls demand the spiritual nourishment that flows from prayer and the Sacraments. Unfortunately, one can confuse the two needs, and satisfy the senses when really it is the soul that is longing for comfort.  And so one turns to food or to a screen or perhaps he indulges his emotions in gossip or an angry outburst; anything to momentarily provide relief to the unsettled spirit.  It is the quick and easy remedy that attracts, but sadly, the consequences that follow only dull and deafen the soul to the quiet entreaties of Our dear Lord:

"Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest." (Mt 11:28)

How He desires us! He wants us to spend time with Him, in prayer, in Adoration, in receiving Him in the Holy Eucharist.  Can one be surprised if he has a difficult time maintaining his peace when he fails to communicate with the Prince of Peace?  Katherine Drexel had recourse to vast material wealth, but she recognized her greater asset was her recourse to the infinite wealth that poured out from the "Divine Source of Power by prayer and the sevenfold channels which the Good Lord Himself offers. . ."

"Unite a dedicated will with this Divine Energy and a character is transformed into inner peace and outer service. 'I can do all things in Him Who strengthens me.' " (Ven. Fulton Sheen)

July 6th Fast

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JMJ

"Yes, you frank souls, leave to God what is His business and carry on peacefully with your work.  Be quite sure that whatever happens to your spiritual life or to your activities in the world is always for the best.  Let God act, and abandon yourself to Him. Let the chisel and brush do their work, even though the brush covers the canvas with so many colors that, instead of a picture, it seems there is only a daub.  Let us work together with the will of God by a steady and simple submission, a complete forgetfulness of self and concentration on our duties." (Abandonment to Divine Providence, Fr. Jean-Pierre de Caussade)

There are many attachments the common man will admit to, but power is usually not one of them.  Believing he is content to leave ambition to the important and gifted, he quickly exonerates himself of that desire.  Temporal power is out of his reach, and therefore holds no allurement.  But, on closer examination, one should recognize that affinity for power is nothing more than the inordinate desire for control.  (This is different than the healthy need for order, an antidote for the chaos that would ensue if a life was undisciplined.)  One who refuses to relinquish control proves a detriment to himself, and those near him as this attachment weakens the trust that must be the foundation of any relationship.  

Yet, more than this, when one clings to the illusion that he is complete master, vexation becomes his constant companion for, of course, his designs, however simple they are, may not always be His Designs. To repel the impulse to control a relationship or situation one must completely surrender himself to Divine Providence, even in trivial matters, for nothing is inconsequential to Our Lord.   One must allow himself to be vulnerable in the hands of the Heavenly Father, not fearing or dreading His plan.  Surrendering will not suddenly ameliorate a situation, nor make it less painful, but it will bring peace from being "quite sure that whatever happens to your spiritual life or to your activities in the world is always for the best."  

May 4th Fast

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JMJ

"Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty but associate with the lowly; never be conceited. Repay no one evil for evil, but take thought of what is noble in the sight of all." (Romans 12:14-18)

The characteristic that must define a Christian, and reveal his faith to others is the merciful love he practices in the manner of His Master.  This love can be witnessed in many exterior deeds of selfless charity, but to truly radiate from the soul, it needs to be cultivated interiorly as well. 

Sometimes it can be easier to help those in want rather than be happy for those in plenty. St. Paul's exhortation is too easily perverted when one rejoices at another's misery, and weeps at another's gain.  Frequently forgotten is our kinship with our brethren through the Mystical Body of Christ, and subsequently the truth that all is in God's Providence.  To envy another's good fortune is to begrudge the generosity of Our Heavenly Father, and question the wisdom of His will.   

She, who bore Wisdom Incarnate, gives us the supreme example of a compassionate heart, devoid of all bitterness.  Though He belonged to her for thirty years, she peacefully accepted His departure and allowed others to attend to His needs.  Mary intimately knew Her Son, gladly giving her whole self to Him, but was not jealous nor selfish when she saw He would now give His whole self to the world.  We can imitate her by willfully choosing generosity over jealousy, gratitude over self-pitying.  

It was revealed to St. Gertrude that when she thanked God for the blessings given to another, she was given many more graces than if she had received those particular blessings herself. Let us praise God for His gifts for us and for others.

March 2 Fast

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JMJ

"My most beloved Jesus, I embrace all the sufferings You have destined for me until death.  I beg You, by all you have suffered in carrying out Your cross to help me to carry mine with Your perfect peace and resignation." (Meditation on the 2nd Station of the Cross by St. Alphonsus Liguori)

Patience: the elusive yet most desirable virtue.  As with any virtue, it remains unattainable if it is only to be wistfully gazed at a height we do not really wish to mount.  The climb is too tedious and difficult, and we believe ourselves too entrenched in disabling habits.  Fr. John Hardon, in his work "The Catholic Family in the Modern World", clarified the struggle with this fruit of the Holy Spirit when he noted that the word patience comes from the Latin verb pati which means "to suffer". He goes on to say:

"It is impossible to practice patience unless you suffer."

Patience necessitates bearing faults quietly, not critically; yielding tranquilly to events outside one's control; and suffering inconveniences, bereft of bitterness.  Yet, above all, patience demands "the perfect peace and resignation" that comes with accepting our cross.  In the second Station of the Cross, we meditate on Our Savior's acceptance of the cup of suffering that He must drink for our salvation.  Acceptance must be done with loving trust, not accompanied by petulancy or fruitless anxiety. It must be an act of the will to say, "not my will but thine be done."  The cross may not lighten, but our load will be easier to carry when we relinquish the burdensome bitterness and angst that parasitically drained our strength to shoulder it.

January 5 Fast

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JMJ

"The heart down- discouraged at the constant failure in good resolution; so soon disturbed by trifles; so little interior recollection and forgetfulness of His constant presence. The reproaches of disobedience to the little ones much more applicable to myself. So many Communions and confessions with so little fruit often suggest the idea of lessening them- to fly from the fountain while in danger of dying from thirst! But, in a moment, He lifts up the soul from the dust." (St. Elizabeth Ann Seton)

Each January brings the fresh hope of a more determined resolve to begin anew one's interior conversion.  With a heart still light from the joy of Christmas and the reminder that his Redemption has been won, he strives to smooth the rough edges.  Alas, failure greets him all too soon, and he is quickly disheartened by the lack of marked improvement. 

Observing the flooded dike, whose holes are too numerous to count, it is tempting to tackle all weaknesses at once.  Yet, of course, this is impossible.  It is necessary to prayerfully discern the largest aperture; for often, the other fissures in the wall can follow their line back to the initial opening, and so by sealing the primary one, the secondary ones may more easily be mended as well.

When the lacking virtue is discovered, pray for it and practice it! As St. Francis de Sales advised, first detach from the comfort of the habitual sin; it is a disconcerting realization when one discovers that he is not so much attached to the sin, as the pleasure he derives from it. Then, one must go the Source of grace as often as possible in prayer and the Sacraments, and know that even when he does not notice growth in the targeted virtue, he is at least growing in the supreme virtue of humility by acknowledging his fault. If one truly desires to amend, surely Our Lord will grant his ardent prayer.