Unfinishable Poetic Attempt at Honor: Feast of St. Joseph

This past weekend I started a poem intended to be published today for the Feast of St. Joseph. My aim was to flash moments of Joseph's life and virtue, their relation to our Holy Queen, and Her Son our Lord. I wanted to start with the choosing of Joseph, and move through to the flight into Egypt. Ridiculously, I procrastinated despite the fact I was excited to work on it. The rushed effort started as well as it could have until I got to the Circumcision of our Lord. I could not push past it. One mangled stanza was not enough. (Three where not enough.) My thoughts on previous moments were juvenilely dull, and the evidence matched.

As Christ wished to fulfill the law and to show His descent according to the flesh from Abraham. He, though not bound by the law, was circumcised on the eighth day (Luke 2:21), and received the sublime name expressive of His office, Jesus, i.e. Saviour.

A significant amount of art and imagery depicts the sacred event being performed by a priest in the temple, or in synagogue. However there are some paintings, and some Catholic authors who in fact have the event being performed by St. Joseph. It is my opinion, along with some of the Doctors of our Faith, that the later is the accurate. As my dribblings on St. Joseph are inadequate, I instead quote from Edward Healy Thompson's book titled: "The Life and Glories of St. Joseph". Emphasis mine:

But who was the minister of the rite? The Evangelist is silent on this point. Imagination has accordingly allowed itself full scope, and painters have been pleased to introduce into their representations a priest in his sacerdotal vestments; but we have no authority for supposing that any priest came to the stable of Bethlehem to circumcise Jesus. The opinion of those doctors who believe that the minister of the circumcision of Jesus was Joseph appears the most probable. St. Ephrem the Syrian, a most ancient writer and contemporary of St. Basil, one who was well acquainted with the traditions of his native land, and highly esteemed both for his science and his piety, says expressly that it was Joseph who circumcised Jesus. Writing in confutation of those heretics who ascribed to our Lord a phantastic body, he says: "If Jesus Christ had not true flesh, whom did Joseph circumcise?" Thus he refers to it as to an unquestioned fact. St. Bernard, Suarez, and many others also believe that Joseph circumcised Jesus, because he who circumcised an infant was the same also who imposed the name; and it was Joseph who gave Jesus His name. This opinion, then, has been generally adopted. The precept of circumcision was addressed to the heads of families; it was the office of the father, unless a priest took his place.

There is nothing written there that is overly remarkable. It contains evidence and facts or support for something much deeper. (Please pray to the Blessed Virgin before reading this next quote.)

Joseph, then, as Isolano says, circumcised Jesus as his son. On him we may believe devolved this solemn and painful duty. Jesus was circumcised by Joseph on Mary's knees, no other eyes beholding the first drops of the Precious Blood flow except those of the holy angels, and no other ears save theirs hearing the wail of the Divine Infant. In this act Joseph accomplished three sacrifices in one: the sacrifice of Jesus, who began the great work of our redemption by suffering in His innocent members; the sacrifice of Mary, who with indescribable sorrow, but with perfect resignation, offered her Son to the Eternal Father, and held, as it were, the victim bound; and the sacrifice of himself, who had to nerve his hand to perform an act so painful and repugnant to his tender heart. It was an act of heroic obedience and fortitude on his part, greater, St. Bernard says, than was that of Abraham in sacrificing his son Isaac; for Joseph loved Jesus incomparably more than Abraham did his son Isaac, and well knew the difference between the son of any mortal man and the Son of the Eternal God. Thus the knife which cut the flesh of Jesus wounded the heart and pierced the soul of Joseph. Here there was no angel to stay his hand. The act must be accomplished, and in performing it Joseph was, indeed, more than a martyr.

Then, too, was that name pronounced over the Divine Infant at which "every knee," as the Apostle tells us, should bow of those who are in heaven, on earth, and under the earth; and it was by the lips of Joseph that it was pronounced. St. Luke only says that His name was called Jesus, without specifying by whom; but from St. Matthew it would appear that it was Joseph; for the angel had said to him: "Thou shalt call His name Jesus". It was, indeed, no little glory to Joseph to receive an embassage from Heaven commissioning him to confer this name. Jesus is the Son of the Eternal Father; to the Eternal Father, therefore, it belonged to impose the name; and yet He commissioned St. Joseph to exercise that right in His place. Joseph, says Isidoro Isolano, is the Enos of the New Testament, who first began to invoke the Name of the Lord. That profound theologian, Salmeron, who was present at the Council of Trent, did not scruple to say that in this sole act of giving to Jesus His name was declared the whole paternal office of Joseph, as by the sole act of feeding the sheep of Christ was signified the full power and jurisdiction of Peter over the Church. Whence Isidoro Isolano draws the conclusion that Joseph in God's sight is superior to all the other saints, because no other was exalted to so high a dignity.

St. Joseph, circumcisor of God, Pray for us.
St. Joseph, name conferrer of God, Pray for us.

Why the Holy Father Really Chose the Name Francis

Which St. Francis is it?

From which saints did our Holy Father name himself? St. Francis of Assisi? St. Francis Xavier? There are many other Saints by that name. This is a shortened list.

1. St. Francis Ch’oe Kyong-Hwan
2. St. Francis Trung Van Tran
3. St. Francis Xavier Bianchi
4. St. Francis of Assisi
5. St. Francis Borgia
6. St. Francis Caracciolo
7. St. Francis Chieu Van Do
8. St. Francis de Morales
9. St. Francis de Sales
10. St. Francis Fasani
11. St. Francis Ferdinand de Capillas
12. St. Francis Galvez
13. St. Francis Gil de Frederich
14. St. Francis Isidore Gagelin
15. St. Francis Jaccard
16. St. Francis Jerome
17. St. Francis Nagasaki
18. St. Francis of Paola a good friend!
19. St. Francis of Pesaro
20. St. Francis of St. Bonaventure
21. St. Francis of St. Mary
22. St. Francis of St. Michael
23. St. Francis Pacheco
24. St. Francis Page
25. St. Francis Rod
26. St. Francis Solano
27. St. Francis Tchang-Iun
28. St. Francis Trung
29. St. Francis Xavier
30. St. Francis Xavier Can
31. St. Francis Xavier Mau

All of the above?

Novena to St. Joseph

Today, March 10th starts the Novena to St. Joseph. The novena could also be started on March 11th. Consider the conclave in your intentions.

O Glorious St. Joseph, * faithful follower of Jesus
Christ, * to thee do we raise our hearts and hands * to
implore thy powerful intercession * in obtaining from
the benign Heart of Jesus * all the helps and graces
necessary * for our spiritual and temporal welfare, *
particularly the grace of a happy death, * and the
special intentions that have been committed to us.
O guardian of the Word Incarnate, * we feel animated
with confidence * that thy prayers in our behalf * will
be graciously heard before the throne of God.

(Then the following V. & R. are to be said seven times,
in honor of the seven joys or sorrows of St. Joseph.)

V. O glorious St. Joseph, through the love thou does
bear to Jesus Christ, and for the glory of His name,
R. Hear our prayers and obtain our petitions.

Let us Pray
O Glorious St. Joseph, * spouse of the
immaculate Virgin, * obtain for me a pure, humble, and
charitable mind, * and perfect resignation to the divine
will. Be my guide, father, and model through life, *
that I may merit to die as thou did * in the arms of
Jesus and Mary.

St. Joseph, friend of the Sacred Heart, pray for us.

(Novena Prayer [PDF] from Audio Sancto)

Conclave Begins on Feast of Pope St. Gregory the Great

The Transalpine Redemptorists have noted that the conclave is set to begin on March 12th, the feast of Pope St. Gregory the Great. I have included an excerpt from the Catholic Encyclopedia entry on Pope St. Gregory the Great. I encourage you to read the article in its entirety.

Gregory and monasticism

Although the first monk to become pope, Gregory was in no sense an original contributor to monastic ideals or practice. He took monasticism as he found it established by St. Benedict, and his efforts and influence were given to strengthening and enforcing the prescriptions of that greatest of monastic legislators. His position did indeed tend to modify St. Benedict's work by drawing it into a closer connection with the organization of the Church, and with the papacy in particular, but this was not deliberately aimed at by Gregory. Rather he was himself convinced that the monastic system had a very special value for the Church, and so he did everything in his power to diffuse and propagate it. His own property was consecrated to this end, he urged many wealthy people to establish or support monasteries, and he used the revenues of the patrimony for the same purpose.

He was relentless in correcting abuses and enforcing discipline, the letters on such matters being far too numerous for mention here, and the points on which he insists most are precisely those, such as stability and poverty, on which St. Benedict's recent legislation had laid special stress. Twice only do we find anything like direct legislation by the pope. The first point is that of the age at which a nun might be made abbess, which he fixes at "not less than sixty years" (Epistle 4.11). The second is his lengthening of the period of novitiate. St. Benedict had prescribed at least one year (Reg. Ben., lviii); Gregory (Epistle 10.9) orders two years, with special precautions in the case of slaves who wished to become monks.

More important was his line of action in the difficult question of the relation between monks and their bishop. There is plenty of evidence to show that many bishops took advantage of their position to oppress and burden the monasteries in their diocese, with the result that the monks appealed to the pope for protection. Gregory, while always upholding the spiritual jurisdiction of the bishop, was firm in support of the monks against any illegal aggression. All attempts on the part of a bishop to assume new powers over the monks in his diocese were condemned, while at times the pope issued documents, called Privilegia, in which he definitely set forth certain points on which the monks were exempt from episcopal control (Epistles 5.49; 7.12; 8.17; 12.11; 12.12; 12.13). This action on Gregory's part undoubtedly began the long progress by which the monastic bodies have come to be under the direct control of the Holy See.

It should be mentioned that in Gregory's day the current view was that ecclesiastical work, such as the cure of souls, preaching, administering the sacraments, etc., was not compatible with the monastic state, and in this view the pope concurred. On the other hand a passage in Epistle 12.4, where he directs that a certain layman "should be tonsured either as a monk or a subdeacon", would suggest that the pope held the monastic state as in some way equivalent to the ecclesiastical; for his ultimate intention in this case was to promote the layman in question to the episcopate.

Hatred of truth...

Why, then, does truth generate hatred, and why does thy servant who preaches the truth come to be an enemy to them who also love the happy life, which is nothing else than joy in the truth -- unless it be that truth is loved in such a way that those who love something else besides her wish that to be the truth which they do love. Since they are unwilling to be deceived, they are unwilling to be convinced that they have been deceived. Therefore, they hate the truth for the sake of whatever it is that they love in place of the truth. They love truth when she shines on them; and hate her when she rebukes them. And since they are not willing to be deceived, but do wish to deceive, they love truth when she reveals herself and hate her when she reveals them. On this account, she will so repay them that those who are unwilling to be exposed by her she will indeed expose against their will, and yet will not disclose herself to them.

Thus, thus, truly thus: the human mind so blind and sick, so base and ill-mannered, desires to lie hidden, but does not wish that anything should be hidden from it. And yet the opposite is what happens -- the mind itself is not hidden from the truth, but the truth is hidden from it. Yet even so, for all its wretchedness, it still prefers to rejoice in truth rather than in known falsehoods. It will, then, be happy only when without other distractions it comes to rejoice in that single Truth through which all things else are true.

-St. Augustine, Confessions

A Fortnight Later...

In 1521 Henry VIII was declared "Fidei Defensor" by Pope Leo X for his pamphlet accusing Martin Luther of heresy. Thirteen years later Henry abandoned Rome completely through the Act of Supremacy. That same year Parliament also passed the Treasons Act which made the king the "Only Head of the Church of England on Earth."

Those were guilty of treason who:

"...do maliciously wish, will or desire by words or writing, or by craft imagine, invent, practise, or attempt any bodily harm to be done or committed to the king's most royal person, the queen's or the heirs apparent, or to deprive them of any of their dignity, title or name of their royal estates, or slanderously and maliciously publish and pronounce, by express writing or words, that the king should be heretic, schismatic, tyrant, infidel or usurper of the crown..."

Anyone who denied in thought, word, or action that Henry VIII was the "Supreme Head of the Church in England" was guilty of treason, punishable by death. St. John Fisher was the only English bishop who refused to swear to the Act of Supremacy. St. Thomas More also joined in committing this praiseworthy act of treason.

Before their deaths, the stripped, emaciated bodies of both St. Fisher and St. More shocked the crowds at the scaffold. They had suffered utter destitution during their fifteen months in the Tower. St. John Fisher marched towards death courageously and was executed on June 22nd. (Interestingly, his sentence and death by beheading greatly paralleled that of his namesake whose feast was the very next day.) A fortnight later on June 6th, his body was laid beside that of St. Thomas More who had been executed earlier in the day.

Both saints serve as a model of courage and strength during these odd political times. Both saints had practiced mortification from early manhood. They had disciplined their bodies with fasting and other penitential acts. They had strengthened themselves with a devout prayer life. These virtuous habits prepared them for the political persecution they endured, and helped them to accept their eventual imprisonment and execution.

In today's world that encourages over indulgence, we run the risk of being weak in times when strength is required. As seen in the example of today's saints, mortification and prayer bolsters our human nature, and cuts out diseases wearing on the soul.

St. Thomas More, St. John Fisher, pray for us so that we may be prepared for what trials God permits us to endure.

Are You Praying, or Just Thinking?

In her book "The Foundations", which tells the story of the establishment of her monasteries, St. Teresa also takes many opportunities to teach on the spiritual life. Although she has many other works on prayer which go into more detail, there is one section in the book where she pauses in recording the history of her doings to talk about prayer in a way which is very helpful to those whom God calls to an active (as opposed to a contemplative) life.

2. First, I want to treat, according to my poor understanding, of the substance of perfect prayer. For I have run into some for whom it seems the whole business lies in thinking. If they can keep their mind much occupied in God, even though great effort is exerted, they at once think they are spiritual. If, on the contrary, without being able to avoid it, they become distracted, even if for the sake of good things, they then become disconsolate and think they are lost. Learned men will not fall victim to these misconceptions, although I have already met learned men who have had some of them. But it is fitting that we women receive advice with regard to all these misunderstandings. I do not deny that it is a favor from the Lord if someone is able to be always meditating on His works, and it is good that one strive to do so. However, it must be understood that not all imaginations are by their nature capable of this meditating, but all souls are capable of loving. I have already at another time written about the causes of this restlessness of our imagination, I think (cf. Life, ch. 17, nos. 5-7; Way of Perfection, ch 31, no. 8; Interior Castle, IV, ch. 1, no. 8); not all the causes -- that would be impossible-- but some. And so I am not treating of this now. But I should like to explain that the soul is not the mind, nor is the will directed by thinking, for this would be very unfortunate. Hence, the soul's progress does not lie in thinking much but in loving much.

3. How does one acquire this love? By being determined to work and to suffer, and to do so when the occasion arises. It is indeed true that by thinking of what we owe to the Lord, of who He is, and what we are, a soul's determination grows, and that this thinking is very meritorious and appropriate for beginners. But it must be understood that this is true provided that nothing interferes with obedience or benefit to one's neighbor. When either of these two things presents itself, time is demanded, also the abandonment of what we so much desire to give God, which in our opinion, is to be alone thinking of him and delighting in the delights that He gives us. To leave aside these delights for either of these other two things is to give delight to Him and do the work for Him, as He Himself said: What you did for one of these little ones you did for Me. (Mt. 25:40) And in matters touching obedience, He doesn't want the soul who truly loves Him to take any other path than the one He did: obediens usque ad mortem (Ph. 2:8, "Obedient unto death").

4. Well, if this is true, from where does the displeasure proceed which for the greater part is felt when one has not spent a large part of the day [or even a small part] very much withdrawn and absorbed in God, even though we are occupied with these other things? In my opinion, there are two reasons for this displeasure: The first and main one is the very subtle self-love that is mixed in here. This self-love does not allow one to understand what it is to want to please ourselves rather than God. For, clearly, after a soul begins to taste how sweet the Lord is, it is more pleasing for the body to be resting without work and for the soul to be receiving delight.

5. ....It would be a distressing thing if God were clearly telling us to go after something that matters to Him and we would not want to do so but want to remain looking at Him becuase that is more pleasing to us. What an amusing kind of progress in the love of God it is, to tie His hands by thinking that He cannot help us except by one path!

From The Foundations, by St. Teresa of Jesus, chapter 5, numbers 2-5, with my emphasis and brackets.

September 29th: St. Michael, St. Gabriel, St. Raphael

Don't You Judge Me

We have all heard that injunction before, in various different forms. Many times, we hear Luke 6:37 quoted, but without any direction on HOW or what this means. It has gotten to the point in recent times that this phrase, from overuse and rampant misuse, gives really no meaning whatsoever anymore. What does "judgement" mean? How is a faithful Catholic, seeking the practice of virtue, to respond when a statement in defense of Truth is met with: "How dare you say that! You judgmental, hateful person"? That faithful Catholic, who really is desiring to follow Truth, and to do so with the love of Christ, becomes torn, and maybe begins to wonder, "Is it more charitable to keep my mouth shut? But then, how am I to follow Christ's command to spread the Truth?"

In Story of a Soul, St. Therese of Lisieux offers wise and helpful words on this subject, that may perhaps help clear up some of the muddy waters we encounter in dealing with the details of everyday life.

Yes, I feel it, when I am charitable, it is Jesus alone who is acting in me, and the more united I am to Him, the more also do I love my Sisters. When I wish to increase this love in me, and when especially the devil tries to place before the eyes of my soul the faults of such and such a Sister who is less attractive to me, I hasten to search out her virtues, her good intentions; I tell myself that even if I did see her fall once, she could easily have won a great number of victories which she is hiding through humility, and that even what appears to me as a fault can very easily be an act of virtue because of her intentions. I have no trouble in convincing myself of this truth because of a little experience I had which showed me we must never judge.

During recreation the portress rang twice; the large workman's gate had to be opened to bring in some trees for the crib. Recreation was not too gay because you were no there, dear Mother (Therese is writing to her own blood sister, who is also her superior in Carmel), and I thought that if they sent me to serve as third party (the religious who accompanied the Procuratrix when laborers had to work in the monastery) I would be happy; at exactly that moment Mother Subprioress told me to go and serve in this capacity, or else the Sister who was at my side. Immediately I began to untie our apron but slowly in order that my companion untie hers before me, for I thought of giving her the pleasure of serving as third party. The Sister who was replace the Procuratrix was looking at us, and seeing me get up last, she said: "Ah! I thought as much that you were not going to gain this pearl for your crown, you were going too slowly."

Certainly, the whole community believed I had acted through selfishness, and I cannot say how much good such a small thing did to my soul, making me indulgent toward the weaknesses of others. This incident prevents me from being vain when I am judged favorably because I say to myself: Since one can take my little acts of virtue for imperfections, once can also be mistaken in taking for virtue what is nothing but imperfection. Then I say with St. Paul: 'To me if is a very small thing to be judged by you, of my any human tribunal, by neither do I judge myself. He who judges me is THE LORD.'

In order that this judgement be favorable or rather I be not judged at all, I want to be charitable in my thoughts towards others at all times, for Jesus has said: 'Judge not and you shall not be judged.'

St. Therese had ample opportunities to practice this form of humility, as indeed we all do. She saw these opportunities as gifts of God, and rarely if ever wasted them. Thus, when she was placed in a position of authority over the novices in the last years of her life, which required her to study them, seek out their imperfections, and help them improve, she was able to clearly see the imperfections without being blinded by any regard for herself or any attachment to her own ideas. Because of the time she faithfully dedicated to prayer and the practice of virtue, she saw everything through the lens of God.

Our judgement then, should rather be called a search for Truth, where we neither attempt to see into the heart of a person, nor allow ourselves to be shaken in our search.

The Incarnation of Our Lord

Luke Chapter 1
To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary. And the angel being come in, said unto her: Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. Who having heard, was troubled at his saying, and thought with herself what manner of salutation this should be. And the angel said to her: Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found grace with God. Behold thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and shalt bring forth a son; and thou shalt call his name Jesus. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the most High; and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of David his father; and he shall reign in the house of Jacob for ever. And of his kingdom there shall be no end. And Mary said to the angel: How shall this be done, because I know not man? And the angel answering, said to her: The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the most High shall overshadow thee. And therefore also the Holy which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. And behold thy cousin Elizabeth, she also hath conceived a son in her old age; and this is the sixth month with her that is called barren: Because no word shall be impossible with God.
And Mary said: Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it done to me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.

Catholic Encyclopedia: The Feast of the Annunciation
All Christian antiquity (against all astronomical possibility) recognized the 25th of March as the actual day of Our Lord's death. The opinion that the Incarnation also took place on that date is found in the pseudo-Cyprianic work "De Pascha Computus", c. 240. It argues that the coming of Our Lord and His death must have coincided with the creation and fall of Adam. And since the world was created in spring, the Saviour was also conceived and died shortly after the equinox of spring. Similar fanciful calculations are found in the early and later Middle Ages, and to them, no doubt, the dates of the feast of the Annunciation and of Christmas owe their origin.

Candlemas Day

Christmas is officially over.

Today is the Feast of the Presentation of Christ in the Temple, Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Candlemas Day, and 40 days after Christmas.

Forty days after the birth of Christ Mary complied with this precept of the law, she redeemed her first-born from the temple (Numbers 18:15), and was purified by the prayer of Simeon the just, in the presence of Anna the prophetess (Luke 2:22).
...
From Jerusalem the feast of the fortieth day spread over the entire Church and later on was kept on the 2nd of February, since within the last twenty-five years of the fourth century the Roman feast of Christ's nativity (25 December) was introduced.

Pope Benedict XVI on St. Joan of Arc

WDTPRS has a copy and some commentary on General Audience recently given by our Holy Father. The topic was a brief biography on St. Joan of Arc.

A couple topics caught my eye: Bad theologians, and military intervention for the sake of peace.

December 6th: St. Nicholas

Recently RCTV posted a Vortex video that shows St. Nicholas punching Arius in the face. I wanted to take the opportunity to share another picture of the event.

Above is a painting of the First Ecumenical Council of Nicea. Notice St. Nick on the left, Arius cowering on the right, and Constantine leisurely observing the incident from his throne.

November 30th: St. Andrew

John the Baptist, with his testimony, paved the way for St. Andrew recognize Jesus as the Messiah. St. Andrew was the brother of Simon (St. Peter), and was the first to introduced him to Christ.

It is generally agreed that he was crucified by order of the Roman Governor, Aegeas or Aegeates, at Patrae in Achaia, and that he was bound, not nailed, to the cross, in order to prolong his sufferings. The cross on which he suffered is commonly held to have been the decussate cross...

For two days after being bound to the cross he continued preaching to the people who gathered near.

The Spiritual Practice of Detachment

So what is "detachment" anyway? In reading through the Carmelite doctors of the Church, one comes across this term constantly. At first, I was baffled by it. Well, I still am to a great extent. How does one go through life as a secular Carmelite (a seeming contradiction in terms if I ever heard one) practicing detachment? Aren't we SUPPOSED to do our best to attach ourselves to our families, our parishes, our work? How can we subject our loved ones to something so cold and unfeeling as "detachment"? The answer is in the way we view attachment. In my recent reading for my Carmelite formation, I was given this to ponder (the author was not named). It is a very helpful description of what St. John of the Cross means when he speaks of "detachment".

ATTACHMENT: a clinging to things, people, ideas, customs, etc., for the pleasure, comfort, or satisfaction they give us.

DETACHMENT: letting go of our need to find pleasure, comfort, or satisfaction in things, people, ideas, customs, etc., so that we seek God first in all things.

The key to detachment in the spiritual life can be quickly summed up in the admonition to "seek first the Kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added unto you."

Detaching ourselves from something or someone can range from very difficult to impossible, unless a greater love overshadows our attraction or affection. The key, then, to detachment, is to center our efforts on seeking to know God better, to love Him more, and to serve Him better. If this becomes our highest priority, as it should, detachment from our lesser gods will follow.

Detachment does not mean that someone or something has to be taken away from us, but that our relationship to the person or things must be purified. In detachment we learn to love people and things in right measure and for the glory of God. Sometimes, however, the Lord does step in and take away our created loves, or allows them to become disappointing to us, sot hat we find it easier to turn to him for what is lacking in our lives.

In the case of our problems, failures and concerns, to which we can also be attached, we will grow in our ability to turn these over to the Lord as we ourselves grow in love of Him, and develop a deeper trust in His loving providence. However, if we spend more time dwelling on these things than we do on loving and serving God, we are not seeking Him or His Kingdom first. But if we can keep these things "on the back burner" while we continually focus our loving gaze upon the Lord, He will certainly take care of them all in the best possible way. Our part in this process is to present our needs to Him in prayer, but without anxiety, trusting that He will hear us and do what is best.

Finally, we need to periodically make a careful examination of how we are spending our time in thoughts and actions. this will quickly help expose whether or not we are really seeking God first and foremost, and provide the key to further detachment.

It is only by detaching ourselves from our carnal and worldly (and therefore selfish) ideas of what is good and fostering a proper and holy attachment to God first that we will be able to form proper and holy and helpful attachments to our loved ones. As I understand it, this is what is meant by the command to love as God loves.

The sole reason why society is perishing...

"The sole reason why society is perishing is because it has refused to hear the word of the Church, which is the work of life, the word of God. All plans for salvation will be sterile if the great word of the Catholic Church is not restored in all its fullness.

"The right to preach and instruct the people which the Church has received from God Himself in the persons of the Apostles, has been usurped by a crowd of prattling newspapermen and the ignorant babblers. The ministry of the word of God, which is the most elevated and important of all -- because by it the earth has been conquered -- has turned from a ministry of salvation to an abominable ministry of ruin. As nothing or nobody could check the triumph of the word of God in the time of the Apostles, so also will no one or nothing be able to repress the ravages of false preaching and doctrines unless by opposing them with the preaching of priests and by the distribution of abundant good books and other holy and profitable works."

-- Saint Anthony Mary Claret, The Autobiography, Chapter 28, Part 3. St. Anthony's feast day was this past weekend.

Well, anyway, happy Feast of St. Teresa of Jesus!

Since my fellow bloggers have current (sad) events pretty well covered, they free me up to post about the Feast of St. Teresa of Jesus, also known as St. Teresa of Avila. The Discalced Carmelites claim her as their Mother, as indeed she is, after Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, of course.

An excerpt from St. Teresa's "Life", taken from the Carmelite Office of Readings for this feast:

Whoever lives in the presence of so good a friend and excellent a leader as is Jesus Christ can endure all things. Christ helps us and strengthens us and never fails; He is a true friend. And I see clearly that God desires that if we are going to please him and receive his great favours this must come about through the most sacred humanity of Christ, in whom he takes his delight.

Many, many times have I perceived this through experience. The Lord has told it to me. I have definitely seen that we must enter by this gate if we desire His sovereign Majesty to show us great secrets. A person should desire no other path, even if he be at the summit of contemplation; on this road he walks safely. This Lord of ours is the one through whom all blessings come to us. He will teach us these things. In beholding his life we find that he is the best example.

What more do we desire from such a good friend at our side, who will not abandon us in our labours and tribulations, as friends in the world do? Blessed is the one who truly loves him and always keeps him near. Let us consider the glorious St. Paul: it doesn't seem that any other name fell from his lips than that of Jesus, as coming from one who kept the Lord close to his heart. Once I had come to understand this truth, I carefully considered that lives of some of the saints, the great contemplatives, and found that they hadn't taken any pther path: Francis, Anthony of Padua, Bernard, Catherine of Siena. A person must walk along this path in freedom, placing himself in God's hands. If His Majesty should desire to raise us to the position of one who is an intimate and shares his secrets, we ought to accept gladly.

As often as we think of Christ we should recall the love with which he bestowed on us so many favours and the great things God showed in giving us a pledge like this of his love; for love begets love. Let us strive to keep this always before our eyes and to waken ourselves to love. For if at some time the Lord should grant us the favour of impressing this love on our hearts, all will become easy for us and we shall carry out our tasks quickly and without much effort.

What does it mean to "live in the presence" of Jesus? I'm not sure I know how to go about carrying this out, practically speaking. Prayer? I think that is what St. Teresa would say. Of all kinds-- most especially a certain amount of every day given in meditative prayer. Simple? Yes, but hard for me to do. I'm very attached to "my" time. But if I never give Him my time, when will the opportunity come that of the Lord "impressing this love on my heart"?

St. Teresa, pray for us, especially that we may be strong enough to give up the illusion that we are masters of our own "time".

St. Therese of Lisieux, the Little Flower of Carmel

Happy Feast of St. Therese!

Marie-Francoise-Therese Martin was born January 3rd, 1873, in Alencon, France, to Zelie and Louis Martin. Her father wrote a rather prophetic poem to commemorate her birth:

Smile and grow quickly
Everything promises you happiness
Tender care, tender Love
Yes, smile at the Dawn,
Bud that just blossomed,
One day you will be a Rose.

After a serious health scare in the first months of her life, she grew healthy, happy and lovely, the openly professed favorite of her sisters and her parents. After her mother died in 1877, Therese entered what she calls the "winter of her life". The death was very hard for her, as she says herself, "I must admit, Mother [Reverend Mother Agnes of Jesus], my happy disposition completely changed after Mama's death. I, once so full of life, become timid and retiring, sensitive to an excessive degree." Still, surrounded by a very loving and tender family, her innocence and purity guarded very carefully by her father, she grew in piety and holiness from a very young age.



She remembers very clearly a turning point for her, when she says she "grew up in an intant", leaving behind her childish, overly-sensitive ways, to take on the strength and courage of Christ. "It was December 25, 1886, that I received the grace of leaving my childhood, in a word, the grace of my complete conversion." She says she "felt charity enter into my soul, and the need to forget myself and to please others, and since then, I've been happy."



Her desire to enter Carmel grew rapidly during this time, causing her to even go so far as pleading with the Pope for permission to enter the Carmel of Lisieux earlier than normally permitted. After a period of intense waiting, she was finally granted permission by the Bishop, and entered Carmel April 9, 1888, at the age of 15.

St. Therese speaks of two great gifts she received in her years as a postulant and novice. Firstly, soon after her entrance, she made a general confession to Father Pichon, where he said, "In the presence of God, the Blessed Virgin, and all the saints, I DECLARE THAT YOU HAVE NEVER COMMITTED A MORTAL SIN.... Thank God for what He has done for you; had he abandoned you, instead of being a little angel, you would have become a little demon." St. Therese says, "I had no difficulty in believing it; I felt how weak and imperfect I was and gratitude flooded by soul. I had such a great fear of soiling my baptismal robe...."

Secondly, she says that "God permitted that [Mother Prioress Genevieve of St. Teresa] was VERY SEVERE without her even being aware of it. I was unable to meet her without having to kiss the floor, and it was the the same thing on those rare occasions when she gave me spiritual direction. What an inestimable grace!... What if I had become the "pet" of the community as some of the Sisters believed?" Instead, she says, "The little flower transplanted to Mount Carmel was to expand under the shadow of the cross. The tears and blood of Jesus were to be her dew, and her Sun was His adorable Face veiled with tears."



She was professed on September 8, 1890. "Mary's nativity! What a beautiful feast on which to become the spouse of Jesus! It was the little Blessed Virgin, one day old, who was presenting her little flower to the little Jesus. Everything was little that day except the graces and the peace I received...." From then until 1897, just a few months before her death, she participated fully in the life of the Lisieux Carmel, offering up her "little sufferings", learning what it means to love as Jesus loves, welcoming joyfully each and every trial. "Now, abandonment alone guides me. I have no other compass! I can no longer ask for anything with fervor except the accomplishment of God's will in my soul without any creature being able to set obstacles in the way."



In April, 1896, St. Therese had the first clear indication that she was suffering from tuberculosis, though she had been evincing smaller symptoms for two years prior. Knowing that she was in her last months, her sister, Sister Marie of the Sacred Heart, asked her to write one final chapter. "You asked me, dear Sister, to write to you my dream and 'my little doctrine' as you call it. I did this in the these following pages...." What follows is the analogy of the little bird, which is the best description of her Little Way. Also, she tells about her final joy:

"I understood that LOVE COMPRISED ALL VOCATIONS, THAT LOVE WAS EVERYTHING, THAT IT EMBRACED ALL TIMES AND PLACES... IN A WORD, THAT IT WAS ETERNAL!"

"Then, in the excess of my delirious joy, I cried out: O Jesus, my love.... my vocation, at last I have found it.... MY VOCATION IS LOVE!"

Her 'little doctrine' flows from this, and can best be summarized in her own words, "I have no other means of proving my love for you other than that of strewing flowers, that is, not allowing one little sacrifice to escape, not one look, one word, profiting by all the smallest things and doing them through love. I desire to suffer for love and even to rejoice through love; and in this way I shall strew flowers before Your throne."



From this time until her death 18 months later, her physical suffering was intense, but it was nothing in comparison to her spiritual and mental suffering due to a great trial of Faith, when she was given the grace to know the darkness of those who refuse to acknowledge the existence and Kingship of God. "During those joyful days of the Easter Season (1897), Jesus made me feel that there were really souls who have no faith, and who, through the abuse of grace, lost this precious treasure, the source of the only real and pure joys. He permitted my soul to be invaded by the thickest darkness, and that the thought of heaven, up until then so sweet to me, be no longer anything but the cause of struggle and torment. This trial was to last not a few days or a few weeks, it was not to be extinguished until the hour set by God Himself, and this hour has not yet come."

Even though burdened by this darkness, St. Therese continued to make many acts of Faith, "...while I do not have the joy of Faith, I am trying to carry out its works, at least."

This severe trial lasted until the day of her death. She was taken to God at about 7:20 in the evening of September 30th, 1897. Her last words, while gazing at a crucifix, were, "Oh! I love him. My God, I love you!"



She was canonized May 17, 1925, by Pope Pius XI.

St. Therese, ora pro nobis!

[This has been condensed from the Study Edition of "Story of a Soul, the Autobiography of St. Therese of Lisieux", translated by John Clarke O.C.D., prepared by Marc Foley O.C.D. ICS Publications, Institute of Carmelite Studies, Washington, DC. 2005.]

September 29th: Archangels

In the current calendar, today is the feast of the Archangels Michael, Gabriel, Raphael. (Until recently it was only the feast of St. Michael.)

Michael the archangel, whose name in Hebrew means "Who is like God?", is revered as the leader of the angelic army who will conquer Satan and his armies of demons, and is considered the defender of the Church. Michael is more often represented in art thank any other angelic being. He is often shown wearing armor, in the act of slaying the great Dragon of the Apocalypse [Satan] in Revelation 12:7-9.

The archangel Gabriel, whose name in Hebrew means "Strength of God", announced the birth of John the Baptist to Zachariah, and soon after, announced to Mary that she was to become the mother of Our Lord. His address to her, "Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with thee" (the "angelic salutation") is familiar to all who say the Rosary.

The archangel Raphael, whose name means medic or ointment of God, is mentioned by name in the Old Testament book of Tobit (Tobias), whom the angel aided by healing him of blindness and guiding him on his travels.

St. Gregory the Great and the apocryphal book of Enoch list names for the other four archangels, but the information varies among different sources.