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Spirituality – Running to God: Edits, June 15, 2012
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Have you considered the spirituality of clutter?????!!! Check out Larger Gems.
How about a classical reading about child-raising? See St. John Chrysostom in Larger Gems.
Many people find that they never find their niche in life. They feel depressed about this. If you are one
of these or know others who are, let them meet St. Benedict Labre – a holy wanderer.
From Spiritual Classics free spiritual books, read beautiful selections from Blessed Juliana of Norwich, a
walled-in hermitess! If you don’t know what that is, find out.
Dr. Ronda’s take on one aspect of the upcoming election – see Spiritual Gems.
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The Open Door
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“Whoever confesses his sins…is already working with God. God indicts your sins; if you also indict them,
you are joined with God. Man and sinner are, so to speak, two realities: when you hear “man” – this is
what God has made; when you hear “sinner” – this is what man himself has made. Destroy what you
have made, so that God may save what he has made….When you begin to abhor what you have made, it
is then that your good works are beginning, since you are accusing yourself of your evil works. The
beginning of good works is the confession of evil works. You do the truth and come to the light.” St.
Augustine.
More from Dom Helder Camara: “A Thousand Reasons for Living.” (A famous Brazilian priest)
Blocks of concrete, bless ye the Lord!
I was afraid
that with their blocks of concrete
the skyscrapers might wound the
dawn.
But you ought to see
how sensitive they are
to the morning light,
how they disarm
and lose their cutting edge
and steely soul!
They too are caught
in the irresistible spell
of the holy hour
when the whole natural world
in rapture chants
creation’s hymn of praise.
Pilgrim:
when your ship,
long moored in harbor,
gives you the illusion
of being a house;
when your ship
begins to put down roots
in the stagnant water by the quay:
put out to sea!
Save your boat’s journeying soul
and your own pilgrim soul,
cost what it may.
When hard work
soaks the shirts of humble folk,
look about you and you’ll see
angels gathering
drops of sweat
as though gathering diamonds.
Excessive profit-seeking
If the sun were as thirsty
and greedy as you,
not one puddle of water,
not one drop of dew,
would be left on the face of the earth.
If you button a button
in a button-hole not the right one
it then becomes impossible
to button up the other ones right.
From Henri Nouwen’s book Reaching Out:
“The difficult road is the road of conversion, the conversion from loneliness into solitude. Instead of
running away from our loneliness and trying to forget or deny it, we have to protect it and turn it into a
fruitful solitude.
To live a spiritual life we must first find the courage to enter into the desert of our loneliness and to
change it by gentle and persistent efforts into a garden of solitude. This requires not only courage, but
also a strong faith.
As hard as it is to believe that the dry, desolate desert can yield endless varieties of flowers, it is equally
hard to imagine that our loneliness is hiding unknown beauty. The movement from loneliness to
solitude, however, is the beginning of any spiritual life because it is the movement from the restless
senses to the restful spirit, from the outward-reaching cravings to the inward-reaching search, from the
fearful clinging to the fearless play.”
FROM THE BLOG OF Dr. Ronda:
I gave a talk for the prayer leaders of charismatic renewal yesterday. It was going to be about my
charismatic experiences. I thought, suppose I add in something about the election! Okay, since these
leaders tend to be non-political, they could be annoyed if I did this and not invite me to speak
again. They will love me and the talk until I raise election issues. Then I thought, if I want to bishops
to risk losing our tax-exempt status over this issue, I should have the guts to risk losing a few talks!
So, after my "lovely" talk, I said:
"I love immigrants. I wish there were no borders since all the land belongs to God. (I do know that
Catholic teaching is that countries have a right to borders.) On Thanksgiving Day I ran around telling
people who might not want to hear it: Heh, we're celebrating the first illegal immigrants!!!
But, my mother, when she was an atheist, before becoming a Catholic, had 12 abortions. I never
thought when I became a Catholic that any Catholic would ever vote for a party whose platform
allows for 150,000,000 babies chopped up in the womb or chemically flushed out, and a candidate
who voted to kill them as they come out of the womb.
I didn't mention any party or any candidate by name so you can't sue me."
Quite a few clapped and several said they wanted me to speak to their groups.
"Seek ye first the kingdom of heaven, and all things will be added unto you."
LARGER GEMS
8 Quotes from St. John Chrysostom on How to Raise Children
1. On the Naming of Children
“So let the name of the saints enter our homes through the naming of our children, to train not only
the child but the father, when he reflects that he is the father of John or Elijah or James; for, if the
name be given with forethought to pay honor to those that have departed, and we grasp at our
kinship with the righteous rather than with our forebears, this too will greatly help us and our
children. Do not because it is a small thing regard it as small; its purpose is to help us.” — An Address
on Vainglory and the Right Way for Parents to Bring Up Their Children
2. On Raising Children to Be Courageous
“Let us pass to the forceful part of the soul, spirit. We must not eliminate it utterly from the youth nor
yet allow him to use it all the time. Let us train boys from earliest childhood to be patient when they
suffer wrongs themselves, but, if they see another being wronged, to sally forth courageously and aid
the sufferer in fitting measure.” --An Address on Vainglory and the Right Way for Parents to Bring Up
Their Children, 66.
3. On Teaching Your Children the Scriptures
“Never deem it an unnecessary thing that he should be a diligent hearer of the divine Scriptures. For
there the first thing he hears will be this, ‘Honor thy father and thy mother’; so that this makes for
thee. Never say, this is the business of monks. Am I making a monk of him? No. There is no need he
should become a monk. Why be so afraid of a thing so replete with so much advantage? Make him a
Christian.” – Homilies on Ephesisans, Homily 21
4. Raising Children Up in Wisdom is Priority #1
“Let everything take second place to our care of our children, our bringing them up to the discipline
and instruction of the Lord. If from the beginning we teach them to love true wisdom, they will have
great wealth and glory than riches can provide. If a child learns a trade, or is highly educated for a
lucrative profession, all this is nothing compared to the art of detachment from riches; if you want to
make your child rich, teach him this. He is truly rich who does not desire great possessions, or surround
himself with wealth, but who requires nothing…Don’t think that only monks need to learn the Bible;
Children about to go out into the world stand in greater need of Scriptural knowledge.” — Homilies on
Ephesians, Homily 21
5. Raise Them to Know Psalms and Hymns
“Teach him to sing those psalms which are so full of love of wisdom; as at once concerning chastity or
rather, before all, of not companying with the wicked, immediately with the very beginning of the
book; (for therefore also it was that that prophet began on this wise, ‘Blessed is the man that hath not
walked in the counsel of the ungodly”; Ps. i. I, and again, ‘I have not say in the council of vanity’; Ps.
xxvi. 4, Sept., and again, ‘in his sight a wicked doer is contemned, but he honors those that fear the
Lord,’ Ps. xv. 4, Sept.,) of companying the good, (and these subjects thou wilt find there in abundance,)
of restraining the belly, of restraining the hand, of refraining from excess, of not overreaching; that
money is nothing nor glory, and other things such like [...]When in these thou hast led him on from
childhood, by little and little thou wilt lead him forward even to the higher things. The Psalms contain
things, but the Hymns again have nothing human. When he has been instructed out of the Psalms, he
will then know hymns also , as a diviner thing.” — Homilies on Colossians,Homily 9
6. Teaching Them about Eternal Judgment
“Wherefore, I exhort you, when we receive children from the nurse, let us not accustom to old wives’
stories, but let them learn from their first youth that there is a Judgment, that there is a punishment;
let it be infixed in their minds. This fear being rooted in them produces great good effects. For a soul
that that has learnt from its first youth to be subdued by this expectation, will not soon shake off this
fear. But like a horse obedient to the bridle, having the thought of hell seated upon it, walking orderly,
it will both speak and utter things profitable; and neither youth nor riches, not an orphan state, not
any other thing, will be able to injure it, having its reason so firm and able to hold out against
everything.” – Homilies on 2 Thessalonians, Homily 2.
7. Raise Them to Be Chaste
“Youth is wild, and requires many governors, teachers, directors, attendants, and tutors; and after all
these , it is a happiness if it be restrained. For as a horse not broken in, or a wild beast untamed, such
is youth. But if from the beginning, from the earliest age, we fix it in good rules, much pains will not be
required afterwards; for good habits formed will be to them as a law. Let us not suffer them to do
anything which is agreeable, but injurious; nor let us indulge them, as forsooth but children. Especially
let us train them in chastity, for there is the very bane of youth. For this many struggles, much
attention will be necessary. Let us take wives for them early, so that their brides may receive their
bodies pure and unpolluted, so their loves will be more ardent. He that is chaste before marriage,
much more will be chaste after it; and he that practiced fornication before, will practice it after
marriage. ‘All bread,’ it is said, ‘is sweet to the fornicator.’ Garlands are wont to be worn on the heads
of bridegrooms, as a symbol of victory, betokening that they approach the marriage bed unconquered
by pleasure. But it captivated by pleasure he has given himself up to harlots, why does he wear the
garland, since he has been subdued? — Homilies on 1 Timothy, Homily 9
8. Raising Your Child Properly Is a Greater Inheritance than Riches
In children we have a great charge committed to us. Let us bestow great care upon them, and do
everything that the Evil One may not rob us of them. But now our practice is the reverse of this. We
take all care indeed to have our farm in good order, and to commit it to faithful manager, we look out
for it an ass-driver, and muleteer, and bailiff, and a clever accountant. But we do not look out for what
is much more important, for a person to whom we may commit our son as the guardian of his morals,
though this is a possession much more valuable than all others. It is for him indeed that we take such
care of our estate. We take care of our possessions for our children, but of the children themselves we
take no care at all. Form the soul of thy son aright, and all the rest will be added hereafter.” –Homilies
on 1 Timothy, Homily 9.
From Clutterers Anonymous (You can google this name and find out about phone groups if you have
nothing near you.)
Clutter is anything we don't need, want, or use that takes our time, energy or space, and destroys our
serenity. It can be outgrown clothes, obsolete papers, broken toys, disliked gifts, meaningless activity,
ancient resentments, or unsatisfying relationships. We may be selective in some areas, but not in
others. Objects may be strewn about or wedged into drawers; neatly stacked or stowed in storage.
Our clutter seems to have a life of its own, to multiply without effort on our part. We may feel
overwhelmed, controlled by our possessions, and/or doomed to be hopelessly disorganized. No
matter how we deal with our clutter, it can be a source of pain and shame to us and to those we live
with.
Despite this pain, we fear throwing things out. We think we might need it, fix it, or wear it again. We
don't want to be wasteful or ungrateful. We don't know what to keep and what to discard. We don't
know how much is enough.
De-cluttering is not merely eliminating, but gradually transforming our space so that we surround
ourselves only with things that express our purpose. It means turning something useless into
something useful; creating more leisure and space; being more honest in our relationships;
eliminating distractions and simplifying our lives in order to find our spiritual roots.
Although we may cling to our clutter, what we really yearn for are surroundings of beauty, order,
serenity; a balanced life; and harmonious relationships.
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Amazing Stories
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Steve, will the blue come out on SRTG? If so, let me know and I will try to fix them.
St. Benedict Labre
Born 26 March, 1748 at Amettes in the Diocese of Boulogne, France; died in Rome 16 April, 1783.
He was the eldest of fifteen children. His parents, Jean-Baptiste Labre and Anne-Barba Grandsire,
belonged to the middle class and so were able to give to their numerous offspring considerable
opportunities in the way of education. His early training he received in his native village in a school
conducted by the vicar of the parish. The account of this period furnished in the life written by his
confessor, Marconi, and that contained in the one compiled from the official processes of his
beatification are at one in emphasizing the fact that he exhibited a seriousness of thought and
demeanor far beyond his years. Even at that tender age he had begun to show a marked predilection for
the spirit of mortification, with an aversion for the ordinary childish amusements, and he seems from
the very dawning of reason to have had the liveliest horror for even the smallest sin. All this we are told
was coexistent with a frank and open demeanor and a fund of cheerfulness which remained unabated
to the end of his life.
At the age of twelve his education was taken over by his paternal uncle, François-Joseph Labre, curé of
Erin, with whom he then went to live. During the six following years which he spent under his uncle's
roof, he made considerable progress in the study of Latin, history, etc. but found himself unable to
conquer a constantly growing distaste for any form of knowledge which did not make directly for union
with God. A love of solitude, a generous employment of austerities and devotedness to his religious
exercises were discernible as distinguishing features of his life at this time and constitute an intelligible
prelude to his subsequent career.
At the age of sixteen he resolved to embrace a religious life as a Trappist, but having on the advice of his
uncle returned to Amettes to submit his design to his parents for their approval he was unable to win
their consent. He therefore resumed his sojourn in the rectory at Erin, redoubling his penances and
exercises of piety and in every way striving to make ready for the life of complete self-annihilation to
which the voice within his soul seemed to be calling him.
After the heroic death of his uncle during an epidemic in September 1766, Benedict, who had dedicated
himself during the scourge to the service of the sick and dying, returned to Amettes in November of the
same year. His absorbing thought at this time was still to become a religious at La Trappe, and his
parents fearing that further opposition would be resistance to the will of God fell in with his proposal to
enter the cloister. It was suggested, however, by his maternal uncle, the Abbé Vincent, that application
be made to the Carthusians at Val-Sainte-Aldegonde rather than to La Trappe. Benedict's petition at ValSainte-Aldegonde was unsuccessful but he was directed to another monastery of the same order at
Neuville. There he was told that as he was not yet twenty there was no hurry, and that he must first
learn plain-chant and logic.
During the next two years he applied twice unsuccessfully to be received at La Trappe and was for six
weeks as a postulant with the Carthusians at Neuville, he finally sought and obtained admission to the
Cistercian Abbey of Sept-Fonts in November, 1769. After a short stay at Sept-Fonts during which his
exactness in religious observance and humility endeared him to the whole community, his health gave
way, and it was decided that his vocation lay elsewhere. In accordance with a resolve formed during his
convalescence he then set out for Rome. From Chieri in Piedmont he wrote to his parents a letter which
proved to be the last they would ever receive from him. In it he informed them of his design to enter
some one of the many monasteries in Italy noted for their special rigor of life.
A short time, however, after the letter was dispatched he seems to have had an internal illumination
which set at rest forever any doubts he might have as to what his method of living was to be. He then
understood "that it was God's will that like St. Alexis he should abandon his country, his parents, and
whatever is flattering in the world to lead a new sort of life, a life most painful, most penitential, not in a
wilderness nor in a cloister, but in the midst of the world, devoutly visiting as a pilgrim the famous
places of Christian devotion". He repeatedly submitted this extraordinary inspiration to the judgment of
experienced confessors and was told he might safely conform to it. Through the years that followed he
never wavered in the conviction that this was the path appointed for him by God.
He set forward on his life's journey clad in an old coat, a rosary about his neck, another between his
fingers, his arms folded over a crucifix which lay upon his breast. In a small wallet he carried a
Testament, a breviary, which it was his wont to recite daily, a copy of the "Imitation of Christ", and some
other pious books. Clothing other than that which covered his person he had none. He slept on the
ground and for the most part in the open air. For food he was satisfied with a piece of bread or some
herbs, frequently taken but once a day, and either provided by charity or gotten from some refuse heap.
He never asked for alms and was anxious to give away to the poor whatever he received in excess of his
scanty wants.
The first seven of the thirteen remaining years of his life were spent in pilgrimages to the more famous
shrines of Europe. He visited in this way Loreto, Assisi, Naples, Bari, Fabriano in Italy; Einsiedeln in
Switzerland; Compostella in Spain; Parav-le-Monial in France. The last six years he spent in Rome,
leaving it only once a year to visit the Holy House of Loreto. His unremitting and ruthless self-denial, his
unaffected humility, unhesitating obedience and perfect spirit of union with God in prayer disarmed
suspicion not unnaturally aroused as to the genuineness of a Divine call to so extraordinary a way of
existence.
Literally worn out by his sufferings and austerities, on the 16th of April 1783, he sank down on the steps
of the church of Santa Maria dei Monti in Rome and, utterly exhausted, was carried to a neighboring
house where he died. His death was followed by a multitude of unequivocal miracles attributed to his
intercession. The life written by his confessor, Marconi, an English version of which bears the date of
1785, witnesses to 136 miraculous cures as having been certified to up to 6 July, 1783. So remarkable,
indeed, was the character of the evidence for some of the miracles that they are said to have had no
inconsiderable part in finally determining the conversion of the celebrated American convert, Father
John Thayer, of Boston who was in Rome at the time of the saint's death. Benedict was proclaimed
Venerable by Pius IX in 1859 and canonized by Leo XIII 8 December, 1881. His feast is kept on the 16th of
April, the day of his death.
STEVE: This was an earlier version which I couldn’t get into the correct shape, but now I can’t get rid of
it, but you can, smile.
conform to it. Through the years
that followed he never wavered in
the conviction that this was the path
appointed for him by God. He set
forward on his life's journey clad in
an old coat, a rosary about his neck,
another between his fingers, his
arms folded over a crucifix which lay
upon his breast. In a small wallet he
carried a Testament, a breviary,
which it was his wont to recite daily,
a copy of the "Imitation of Christ",
and some other pious books.
Clothing other than that which
covered his person he had none. He
slept on the ground and for the most
part in the open air. For food he was
satisfied with a piece of bread or
some herbs, frequently taken but ANOTHER AMAZING STORY
once a day, and either provided by
charity or gotten from some refuse
heap. He never asked for alms and
was anxious to give away to the
poor whatever he received in excess
of his scanty wants. The first seven
It is that of Fr. Thomas Byles, the Catholic priest who gave up two spots on a lifeboat in favor of
offering spiritual aid to the other victims as they all went down with the "unsinkable" vessel.
A 42-year-old English convert, Fr. Byles was on his way to New York to offer the wedding Mass for his
brother William. Reports suggest that he was reciting his breviary on the upper deck when the Titanic
struck the iceberg in the twilight hours of Sunday, April 14th, 1912.
According to witnesses, as the ship went down, the priest helped women and children get into the
lifeboats, then heard confessions, gave absolution, and led passengers in reciting the Rosary.
Agnes McCoy, one of the survivors, says that as the great ship sank, Fr. Byles "stood on the deck with
Catholics, Protestants, and Jews kneeling around him."
"Father Byles was saying the rosary and praying for the repose of the souls of those about to perish,"
she told the New York Telegram on April 22, 1912, according to the website devoted to his memory,
FatherByles.com.
In the words of the priest's friend Fr. Patrick McKenna, "He twice refused the offer of a place in a
boat, saying his duty was to stay on the ship while one soul wanted his ministrations."
Nearly two weeks after the disaster, The Church Progress in St. Louis, Missouri wrote this moving
tribute to the heroic priest:
In almost every line that has been written, and in every sentence that has been spoken, there stands
boldly out above every other expression a picture of sublime heroism that will be copied into the
pages of history; and well it may, for it is deserving of that honor.
But when it is, mention should be made of one whom pens and tongues have almost forgotten in their
accounts of this awful sea tragedy. Among those who safely reached the land again, no one seems to
have been aware of his presence on the ship; but we may hope that many who meet him in a blissful
eternity will praise God that Father Thomas Byles was there to administer absolution unto them.
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Bob sending Kiss from the Cross audios.
From Living in Love – Living in Love is on www.rondachervin.com under free e-books, but in case you
don’t want to read the whole book, you might want to read these approaches to those who doubt the
existence of a God of Love, or doubt that Christ is our unique Savior different from Buddha, say.
Session 14: Is there a God of Love?
In the last two sessions of The Way of Love: Making Loving Moral Decisions, I want to reflect with
greater emphasis on the way God enters into the making of loving moral decisions.
A person might have a vague belief that there is a first cause of the universe without being religious. The
word “religio” in Latin means bond. Such a vague belief would not necessarily involve a bond with the
intelligent designer of the universe.
By contrast, the God of most religions is seen not only as a cause or force, but also as a person – not a
human person with a body, but nonetheless a consciousness, and especially a love for His creatures.
This type of God clearly has importance for decisions about love. In most world religions, though not all,
it is believed that God loves us and wants us to grow by doing His will.
But how do we know if there is a God of Love? Many of us would say, by faith in the Bible. Here is the
way philosopher, Stephen Schwarz, explains why even those who don’t have such faith can find there
way to the God of Love:
Here is the reasoning of Dr. Stephen Schwarz, a Catholic philosopher and professor teaching at the
University of Rhode Island, a secular campus:
"1. What can I do if the existence and nonexistence of a God of Love are both uncertain?
2. Consider the possibilities:
There is a God of Love
There is not a God of Love
(Note – scanning glitch – omit as you read these half words below – extend the diagonals so that A
reaches There is Not a God of Love and B reaches up to There is a God of Love.)
"In this diagram, the top part represents two possibilities regarding the objective situation, how it really
is. The bottom represents two corresponding positions that can be taken by each person. The four lines
represent four possible combinations among the four elements of the diagram.
Thus:
"3. If there is a God of Love, I should believe in him.
If there is not, I should not believe. So much for the vertical lines, which are clear.
4. But, I may be in error: diagonal lines. Both are tragic in that I am mistaken. I have been deluded. I
have made the wrong commitment. But from this point of view (truth) they are equal.
5. Leaving aside the viewpoint of truth, where they are equal, how do A and B compare otherwise?
6. Line A is tragic because I am fooled—I wasted my time believing in a God who doesn't exist.
7. Line B? Isn't this an infinitely greater tragedy? There was, after all, Infinite Love waiting for me, with
consolation for all my sufferings, with salvation from the evils and absurdities of life. There was Love and
I ignored him. Truly my life was wasted. How much worse to be wrong in this way!
8. And perhaps the God of Infinite Love has prepared an eternity of happiness for those who respond to
him. Can I afford to risk such a loss?
9. The stakes are great if there is a God of Love: the loss or gain of an infinity, an eternity of happiness.
10. But really the deepest and greatest tragedy of B is not my loss, here and afterwards, but that I have
failed to give the response due to Infinite Love. How tragic when human love is rejected, how much
more when Infinite Love is rejected.”
Now that I realize how much is at stake, I ought to seek to find out if there is a God of Love. This can be
done through reasoning, through questioning others who believe, through making contact with God in
prayer.
Schwarz argues that if we seek God then we have to decide whether to trust experiences which seem to
show that there is a God of Love. Failure to seek or trust is tragic for us. Not only does it shut the door
on such infinite love, but also we will be unable to give the due response.
Here are some ways in which belief in the existence of a God of Love affects a person's ethical behavior:
— If the ultimate foundation for the universe is its creation out of love by a God of love, then our
life goals should be related to love.
— If God thinks love is most important, being a loving person takes precedence over amassing
possessions, achieving status or fame, or just "doing your own thing.
-
If God loves love and hates indifference, one's eternal destiny might be a result of how
much one followed the way of love in time.
—A God of love may have given us commandments on how to live in love which we must follow.
—If there is a God of love, our efforts to procure good for those whom we love do not end in failure
because of death. We can live with a horizon of victory over death which prevents ultimate pessimism
and the tendency to give up.
In the case of large personal sacrifices entailed by love for others, we know that God wants these and
will recompense us.
Returning to our original example of the couple making the decision about abortion, let's say that Lisa
and Mark study the traditional arguments for the existence of God and also Schwarz’s argument and
begin to pray more frequently and fervently.
Lisa and Mark start to read the New Testament. Certain main truths become clearer with implications
for ethics:
We Belong to God
In the religious vision of the meaning of life, we are not seen as merely material entities thrown by
chance into the world, but rather as sons and daughters of a loving Father who, therefore, deserves our
obedience. St. Paul writes in his letter to the Ephesians: "He chose us in him before the foundation of
the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him" (Ephesians 1:4). And in the letter to the
Romans it is written: "None of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. If we live, we live to the
Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord; so then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord's"
(Romans 14:7-8).
The Catholic theologian, Hans Urs Von Balthasar, writes: "God and God alone, has the right to demand
all from man because His word is salvation and demands only in order better to give."(A Theological
Anthropology (New York: Sheed & Ward: 1967).
The Protestant theologian, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, explains in his book Ethics: "The question in ethics for
the believers is not how can I be good or do good but what is God's will. If it is the first two questions,
then I and the world would be the center, not God. But God is the ultimate reality.... What is central in
Christian ethics is that God became Christ. The question is not the relationship between is and ought,
motive and act, but rather participation in Christ. Since only God is good, it is only by sharing in Him that
we become good."(Op. cit, pp. 188ff.)
God Blesses Goodness
God loves and cares for us. He has prepared for us an eternal kingdom of bliss. Therefore we ought to be
willing to sacrifice earthly fulfillment if it conflicts with the needs of others—that man may not be the
victim of man. Very often when we are asked to make very difficult sacrifices we are tempted to imagine
that the Church is heartless in demanding so much. And it would be terribly harsh of God to insist that
we give up all hope for human happiness for the sake of the good of others.
The invitation to lay down our lives for others (see John 15:13) contains the promise of our own
personal fulfillment through divine love. How else could Jesus admonish us with the words: "What good
is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?" (Mark 8:36-NlV) It is through an everdeepening appreciation of God's love that we are able to accept the seeming impossibility of the
Christian doctrine that it is better to suffer than to sin. We are willing to take up the cross because we
are following him through the cross to the resurrection.
The Struggle Between Good and Evil
Because of the nature of our fallen humanity, the choice between egoism (the worldly spirit) and
sacrificial love involves a terrible struggle. Being seduced by worldly values means being sensual,
acquisitive, complacent, defensive, proud, contemptuous, fawning, possessive, irritable and vengeful,
whereas: "The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
gentleness, self-control" (Galatians 5:22-23). "Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by
the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and
perfect" (Romans 12:2).
We are not allowed, as Christians, to settle into a compromise position. God does not say, "Be a nice
guy, be a nice gal," but he calls to us with a voice thundering yet thrilling: "You shall love the Lord your
God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.... You shall love your neighbor as
yourself" (Matthew 22:37, 39).
The reader should now read the New Testament, especially the Gospels and Letters, and make notes
regarding:
1) Which instances and words show how loving Jesus was? Which show his knowledge of the lovingness
of God the Father?
2) Which virtues are lauded and which vices condemned?
3) Which attitudes and deeds are considered loving and which unloving?
To follow Christ, however, depends on strongly believing that he is a supreme authority. Several people
in the theology class Lisa and Mark are attending doubted whether it could be shown that Christ was
divine.
The professor brought in the classical argument of C.S. Lewis in The Case for Christianity. The argument
Lewis presents is extremely simple.
There are three possibilities if a man claims to be divine:
a) he is a liar
b) he is a psychotic
c) he really is divine.
Christ appears in the Gospels as an extremely good and truthful person. Far from being judged insane,
he is held by many as the best man who ever lived, so there is good reason to take his claim very
seriously. Otherwise we would be in the absurd position of saying that the most admirable man who
ever lived made the most absurd claims ever!
Doubters have found two main arguments for avoiding these alternatives:
1) Christ did not claim to be divine; disciples and commentators made this assertion later.
2) Christ's claim to be divine was only a way of saying that every man is divine.
To the first statement it can be replied that, in the context of Hebrew thought, to call oneself the Son of
God is to claim divinity, and that the Jewish leaders condemned Christ precisely for this assertion, which
they thought to be blasphemy.
Regarding the second contention—that Christ was only telling us that we are all divine—it must be
noted that Jesus continually emphasized forgiveness of sin. It is incoherent to claim that Christ came to
forgive the sins of men if he was actually trying to tell these same men that they were divine.
Furthermore, instead of teaching them to follow him—to believe that he is the way, life, and truth—he
would have taught them to seek the divine within themselves if he had believed that all men were
equally divine.
A Prayer: Thank you, God of Love, for finding me when I was not consciously looking for You. Thank you
Jesus, for revealing Your Divinity to me when I hardly understood you. Thank you for giving me the
strength after my conversion to make some loving moral decisions. Forgive me for wrong decisions I
made in spite of knowing You.
More from Dr. Ronda’s Course in Spiritual Classics:
Blessed Julian(a) of Norwich [Revelations: Her Three Desires]
Here are the Chapter-heads of the book of her Revelations:
Sickness and Last Rites
Vision of the Crown of Thorns
The Littleness of the Cosmos
Six Things Seen
Of Brotherly Love
Three Methods of the Revelations
The Power of the Passion
Ups and Downs of Weal and Woe
The Fellowship of His Sufferings
On Choosing only Jesus
Three Heavens
The Passion and the Problem of Sin
Of Contentment in the Atonement
All Things Well
The Universality of Sin
The Scourge and Salve of Sin
Choose Pain rather than Sin
Concerning Prayer
Sure and Certain Hope
Reaction and Nightmare
The Soul Christ's Homeliest Home
She Defies the Devil and Sin
Love the Antidote to Impatience
Fear God: Fear Nought Else
CHAPTER I
HER THREE DESIRES
I desired three graces by the gift of God. The first was to have the mind (2) of Christ's Passion. The
second was bodily sickness. The third was to have of God's gift three wounds.
As for the first, it came to my mind with devotion. Me thought I had great feeling in the Passion of
Christ ; but yet I desired to have more by the grace of God. Me thought I would have been at that time
with Mary Magdalene, and with others that were Christ's lovers, that I might have seen bodily the
Passion of our Lord, that He suffered for me: that I might have suffered with Him, as others did that
loved Him.
Notwithstanding that I believed firmly all the pains of Christ, as Holy Church shows and teaches; and
all the paintings of crucifixes that are made, by the grace of God …as far forth as man's wit may reach;
and notwithstanding all this true belief, I desired a bodily sight, wherein I might have more knowing
of the bodily pains of our Lord and Saviour, and of the compassion of Our Lady, and of all His true
lovers that were believing His pains, that time and since. For I would have been one of them, and have
suffered with them.
Other sight or showing of God I never desired, till the soul were departed (6) from the body; for I trust
truly that I should be safe; and this was my meaning. For I wished because of that showing to have
afterwards the more true mind (2) in the Passion of Christ.
As for the second [desire], there came into my mind with contrition, freely without any seeking, a
willful (8) desire to have of God's gift a bodily sickness. And I would that this bodily sickness might
have been so hard as unto death, so that I might in the sickness receive all my rites of Holy Church,
thinking myself that I should die, and that all that saw me might think the same. For I wished to have
no comfort of any fleshly or earthly life. In this sickness I desired to have all manner of pains, bodily
and spiritual, that I should have if I should die : all the terrors and tempests of fiends, and all manner
of their pains, save of the out-passing of the soul. For I hoped that it might be to me a speed (is) when
I should die, for I desired soon to be with my God.
These two desires — of the Passion, and of the sickness — I desired with a condition ; for me thought
that it passed the common course of prayers ; and therefore I said : " Lord, Thou knowest what I
would. If it be Thy will that I have it, grant it me. And if it be not Thy will, good Lord, be not
displeased, for I will nought but as Thou wilt." This sickness desired I in my thought that I might have
it when I were thirty years old.
As for the third [desire], I heard a man tell of Holy Church of the story of Saint Cecilia. In the which
showing I understood that she had three wounds with a sword in the neck, with the which she pined
to her death. … I conceived a mighty desire, praying our Lord God that He would grant me three
wounds in my life time: that is to say, the wound of contrition, the wound of compassion, and the
wound of willful (8) longing towards God.
Right as I asked the other two with a condition, so I asked the third without any condition. These two
desires before said passed from my mind. And the third dwelled continually.
Chapter II
SICKNESS AND LAST RITES
And when I was thirty winters old and a half, God sent me a bodily sickness, in the which I lay three
days and three nights. And on the fourth night I received all my rites of Holy Church, and thought not
to have lived till day.
And after this I languored (10) forth two days and two nights. And on the third night I thought oft
times to have passed [away] ; and so thought they that were about me. But in this I was right sorry,
and loth to die ; but not for anything that was in earth that me liked (ii) to live for, nor for anything
that I was afraid for ; for I trusted in God. But it was because I would have lived to have loved God
better and a longer time, that I might by the grace of that living have the more knowing and loving of
God in the bliss of heaven. For me thought all the time that I should have lived here, so little and so
short in the regard of endless bliss.
I thought thus : " Good Lord, may my living be no longer to Thy worship ? " And I was answered in my
reason, and by the feelings of my pains, that I should die. And I assented fully, with all the will of my
heart, to be at God's will.
Thus I endured till day ; and by then was my body dead from the midst downward, as to my feeling.
Then was I stirred (1) to be set upright, leaning with clothes to my head, for to have the more freedom
of my heart to be at God's will and thinking on Him while my life should last.
And they that were with me sent for the parson my curate to be at mine ending. He came, and a child
with him ; and brought a cross. And by then I had set mine eyes, and might (13) not speak. The parson
set the cross before my face, and said, "Daughter, I have brought thee the image of thy Savior. Look
thereupon, and comfort thee therewith in reverence of Him that died for thee and me."
Me thought then that I was well, for mine eyes were set upward into heaven, whither I trusted for to
come.
But, nevertheless, I assented to set mine eyes on the face of the crucifix, if I might, for to endure
longer till the time of mine ending. For me thought I might longer endure to look straight forward
than upright.
After this my sight began to fail, and it was all dark about me in the chamber, and murky, as it had
been night, save that it was well with me as I was. … all that was beside the cross was ugly to me, as if
it had been much occupied with fiends.
After this the upper part of my body began to die, as to my feeling. My hands fell down on either side;
and also for lack of power'' my head settled down on one side. The most pain that I felt was shortness
of breath and failing of life. Then thought I truly to have been at the point of death.
And in this suddenly all my pain was away from me, and I was as whole, and especially in the upper
part of my body, as ever I was before or after. I marveled at this change, for me thought it was a
secret working of God, and not of nature. And yet by the feeling of this ease I trusted never the more
that I should live. And the feeling of this ease was not full ease to me, for me thought I had (rather)
have been delivered of this world, for my heart was set thereon.
CHAPTER III
VISION OF THE CROWN OF THORNS
And suddenly came into my mind that I should desire the second wound, of our Lord's gift and of His
grace: that He would fulfill my body with mind (2) and feeling of His blessed Passion, as I had before
prayed. For I would that His pains were my pains, with compassion, and afterward longing towards
God. Thus me thought that I might with His grace have His wounds that I had before desired.
But in this I desired never any bodily sight, nor any manner of showing of God, but such compassion
as me thought a kind (14) soul might have with our Lord Jesus, that would for love become mortal
man. With Him I desired to suffer, living in mortal body, as God would give me grace.
And in this suddenly I saw the red blood trickle down from under the Garland, all hot, freshly,
plentifully and lively, right as me thought that it was in that time that the Garland of Thorns was
thrust on His blessed head. Right so, both God and man, He suffered for me.
I conceived truly and mightily that it was Himself that showed it me … and then I said, "Benedicite
Domine." This I said reverently in my meaning with a mighty voice. And full greatly I was astonished
for wonder and marvel that I had, that He would be so homely (intimate) with a sinful creature, living
in this wretched flesh.
Vision of the Crown of Thorns
Thus I took it for that time that our Lord Jesus, of His courteous love, would show me comfort before
the time of my temptation, for me thought it might be well that I should, by the sufferance of God,
and with His keeping, be tempted of fiends before I died.
With this sight of His blessed Passion, with the Godhead that I saw in mine understanding, I saw that
this was strength enough for me — yea, for all creatures living that should be safe — against all the
fiends of hell, and against all spiritual enemies.
CHAPTER IV
THE LITTLENESS OF THE COSMOS
And this same time that I saw this bodily sight, our Lord showed me a spiritual sight of His homely
loving. I saw that He is to us all-thing that is good and comfortable to our help. He is our clothing: for
love wraps us and winds us, embraces us and all betakes us, and hangs about us for tender love, that
He may never leave us. And so in this sight I saw truly that He is all-thing that is good, as to mine
understanding.
And in this He showed me a little thing, the quantity of a hazel-nut, lying in the palm of my hand; and,
to my understanding, it was as round as any ball. I looked thereupon, and thought, "What may this
be?"
And I was answered generally thus; "It is all that is made."
I marveled how it might last, for me thought it might fall suddenly to nought for littleness. And I was
answered in mine understanding: "It lasts, and ever shall, for God loves it." And so hath all-thing its
being through the love of God.
In this little thing I saw three parts :
The first is that God made it.
The second is that He loves it.
The third is that God keeps it.
But what is that to me? Truly [that He is] the Maker, the Lover, the Keeper; for till I am substantially
oned to Him, I may never have love, rest nor true bliss — that is to say, that I be so fastened to Him
that there be right nought that is made betwixt my God and me. And who shall do this deed? Truly He
Himself by His mercy and His grace, for He has made me thereto, and blissfully restored me.
In this God brought Our Lady to mine understanding. I saw her spiritually in bodily likeness a simple
maiden and a meek, young of age, in the stature that she was when she conceived. Also God showed
me in part the wisdom and the truth of her soul ; wherein I understood [the] reverent beholding in
which she beheld her God that is her Maker, marveling with great reverence that He would be born of
her that was a simple creature of His making. And this wisdom of truth, knowing the greatness of her
Maker, and the littleness of herself that is made, made her for to say meekly to the Angel Gabriel, "Lo,
me here, God's handmaiden! "
The Littleness of the Cosmos
In this sight I saw truly that she is more than all that God made beneath her in worthiness and in
fullness. For above her is nothing that is made but the blessed manhood of Christ.
This little thing that is made, that is beneath our Lady Saint Mary, God showed it unto me as little as it
had been a hazel-nut. Me thought it might have fallen for littleness.
In this blessed revelation God showed me three noughts, of which noughts this is the first that was
showed me — of this needs each man and woman to have knowing that desires to live
contemplatively — that it pleases him to [count as] nought all - thing that is made, for to have the
love of God that is unmade….
For this is the cause why they that are occupied willfully in earthly bustle, and evermore seek worldly
weal, are not here of His in heart and in soul, for they love and seek here rest in this thing that is so
little, wherein is no rest, and know not God, that is Almighty, All-wise, and All-good, for He is true
rest.
God willeth to be known, and it pleases Him that we rest in Him. For all that is beneath Him suffices
not to us. And this is the cause why no soul is rested, till it be noughted of all that is made. When he is
noughted for love to have Him that is all that is good, then is he able to receive ghostly (spiritual) rest.
…
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