The rich man’s fate directs our thoughts to hell. We must sometimes meditate on it to help us keep our love of God. There may be moments of darkness when only the fear of eternal torments can keep us to our norms. This is why Jesus so often spoke of hell in instructing people.
Meditation on hell helped St Francis Borgia attain great virtues. Placing himself in spirit on its borders, and fixing his eyes on the awful number of angels and men whom sin had cast in there, he said to himself, ‘There is your place, Francis; there is the torment you have deserved’.
He gained that wonderful humility and contempt of himself. This mistrust of his self, that love of obedience and direction in the smallest things, served to remind him not to ‘fall into the snares of the devil’.
From this proceeded unshaken patience in the hardest trials of his life, his mortification and penances. His fervor and charity continued to increase.
The flames of hell kindled in him the fire of divine love. He gained a zeal which made him undertake great things for the salvation of others.
Let us imitate the saint. The contemplation of hell, ‘made in this way’, will help us progress in every virtue.
Ref: Cf “Practical Meditations” by a Father of the Society of Jesus, 1964, pp693-5
‘Where fire is never extinguished’
Visionaries throughout history have been shown Heaven, hell and purgatory. Jesus tells us to avoid hell at all cost. (cf Mk 9:43-8) The doctrine about hell is probably not well understood by most people.
The three children of Fatima were shown hell in a vision. They all responded by doing severe penances in obedience to Mary’s request to ‘pray and offer sacrifices for poor sinners, for many go there because they have no one to pray for them’.
One of them said, ‘if only men knew what awaits them in eternity, they would do everything to change their lives’. Pope Paul VI reiterated in his Credo of the People of God: “those who refuse God’s love and mercy to the end, will go to the fire that will never be extinguished”.
Many “liberal theologians inside the Church regard the doctrine of hell as being unsuitable for the mentality of modern man and are infecting others with their view. Such theologians are quick to admit God’s love and mercy but not His justice. They maintain this stance despite Jesus stressing the existence of hell some fifteen times in Holy Scripture.” It is significant that hell is never mentioned from the pulpit; confessionals are emptying and sin abounds as never before. (cf Francis W Johnston, “Fatima: The Great Sign”, 1980)
Ref: Ted and Maureen Flynn, “The Thunder of Justice”, 1993, 302-3
Perfection and Sanctity
“Sanctity is the supreme good which we can attain in this life. By its very nature it is something infinitely desirable, but since it is also an arduous and difficult good, it is impossible to tend toward it efficaciously without the strong impulse of a will determined to attain it at any cost. St Theresa of Avila considers it of decisive importance ‘to have a great and very determined resolve not to stop until one reaches it’, without reckoning the difficulties along the way, the criticism of those around us, lack of health, or disdain of the world. Therefore, only resolute and energetic souls, with the help of divine grace, will scale the heights of perfection.” -- (Antonio Royo, OP and Jordan Aumann, OP, “The Theology of Christian Perfection”, p571)
“The worst thing that can befall persons who have good will is to want to be what they cannot be and not want to be what they necessarily must be. They conceive desires to do great things, which perhaps will never be expected of them; in the meantime, they neglect the little things God puts into their hands. There are thousands of acts of virtue as, for example, to bear little troubles and imperfections of our neighbors; to suffer a biting word or some little injustice; to repress a harsh word; to mortify a little attachment or curiosity; to refrain from giving a bit of news; to excuse an indiscretion; to be condescending toward others in little things -- these are for everyone, so why not practice them?
“Very seldom do we have the opportunity to gain large ‘sums’, but we can daily earn little ones. And with the intelligent handling of these little ‘earnings’, many become rich. Oh, how many merits we would earn and what great saints we would become if we were to take advantage of every occasion that our state in life offers us!” -- (St Francis de Sales, “Spiritual Diary”, pp19-20)
Ref: In “The Vatican II Weekday Missal”, 1975, pp1271-2, 1279
Personal sanctity
Only one thing is necessary: an ever-increasing friendship with the Lord. “... the constant object of our heart ... Everything that separates us from this goal, no matter how important it may appear, has to take second place to that which is our ultimate end. Distractions from this goal may even be seen as doing us positive harm.” (Cassian, “Conferences”, 1)
The greatest good we can share with our family, our friends, our colleagues, is our union with the Lord. The ways to this union include keeping presence of God during the day, a serious effort at daily prayer, and frequent Confession.
The greatest harm would result should we neglect whatever leads us to Jesus. This omission might be through disorder, lukewarmness, and yielding to the temptation to prefer other, more attractive activities. St Ignatius of Antioch wrote to St Polycarp that we must desire friendship with God: “As a pilot calls on winds and a storm-tossed mariner looks havenward, so the times call on you to win your way to God.” (“Epistle to St Polycarp”, 2, 3)
Real friendship with the Lord will always enrich all our actions. Its absence will impoverish everything we do. “... seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well.” (Mt 6:33)
“Thank the Lord for the enormous gift He has granted you by making you understand that ‘only one thing is necessary’.” (St Josemaria Escrivá, “Furrow”, 454)
Let us ask Our Lady to help us never be separated from the Lord as we endeavor to perform our daily work to perfection for his glory.
Ref: Cf F Fernandez, “In Conversation with God”, 5:182-3
• “Notre-Dame de Valfleury”. "Seven leagues from Lyons", France. A Black Madonna: "early 12th Century, wood, original found in a flowering broom bush at Christmas 800, entire figure completely reconstructed in 1869, statue black in 19th Century, now dark natural wood with some traces of polychrome." Another history says that the statue was found about 1000 A.D. Pilgrimages began as early as the 8th Century, and gained new vitality after a 1629 plague. Photo of the church. ... Magazine article: Louis Bernard, "La restauration de la statue de Notre-Dame de Valfleury", in Bulletin du Vieux St-Etienne,1969, number 73, pages 14-16. ... (Bénédictins de Solesmes, France, 1849), n. 47. (www.marylinks.org/Mary-Calendar.htm)
• Our Lady of “Valfleurie”, seven leagues from Lyons. This church is so-called, because the image of the Blessed Virgin on the high altar was found by shepherds in some broom, which had flowered about the feast of Christmas. — Triple Couronne, n. 47. (“Catholic Gems or Treasures of the Church” Historical Calendar; www.bethlehemobserver.com)
• Our Lady of “Valfleurie” (Lyons, France). (maryfest.htm / www.starharbor.com/santiago/m_feasts.html); (www/divinewill.org/feastsofourlady.html); (www.iskandar.com/ourlady/ourladyfeasts.html); (www.miraclehunter.com/marian_apparitions/calendar/index.html)
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment