Jesus' Granny And Granddad

 

The feast of SS Anne and Joachim, Jesus' Grandmother and Grandfather.  As Our Lady and St Joseph had to keep an eye on the little darling, this holy couple, like all grandparents, could afford to spoil him.  The door was always open and on the table the ancient Jewish equivalent of Coke and cookies supplied, among other treats, by loving and indulgent grandparents

 

Here again is another dimension to the mystery of the Incarnation: God made man living in the midst of normal and beautiful human relationships, blessing and sanctifying ours by his.  So today, as we wish all grandparents a happy feast day, let us give thanks for those the Lord has given us and through whom he reveals his love.

The Way Of St James: Pilgrim Path To Holiness

St James the Greater in prayer

 

I can't let this day pass without mentioning the great St James whose feast it is.  Every year as I celebrate this feast I wish I was at his Shrine in Spain, having walked the Camino.  For the past few years I have been plotting with some friends of mine to take five weeks and walk the pilgrim way.  Of course that is not possible at the moment - it would be difficult to get the time off, but perhaps in a few years should I ever be fortunate enough to get a Sabbatical. 

 

In the meantime we ask his prayers and reflect on his life and teaching.  A son of thunder, as Jesus called him, James was no shrinking violet, he was ambitious, but his ambition was not ordered correctly.  The Lord had to chasten his heart, but once that process was complete, James, now humble Apostle of the Lord, was happy to renounce his life for Christ's sake, becoming the first of the Apostles to be martyred.

 

So when I reflect on the example of St James I see that my own heart must be chasten, my will oriented towards the Lord's, and that at times the Lord may employ things and events which may seem distasteful and difficult to help the process of transformation.  When this happens (and it will for those committed to living a life of virtue and seeking holiness) we take comfort in the presence of the Lord and the example of those who have gone before us, like St James.

 

Today is my parents' 49th wedding anniversary, could you please say a prayer for them?   Happy feast day.

St Bridget, Apostle Of The Passion



 

On a trip to Rome a few months ago I visited the Church of St Bridget of Sweden in the Piazza Farnese.  I had visited the church before, but this time I made a point of calling in to greet the sisters and request a visit to the rooms of St Bridget.  The sisters were very kind and I got a wonderful tour by a lovely German sister.  I learned a great deal about the Saint, including one snippet of information which had particular interest for me as an Irishman:  St Bridget of Sweden was called after St Brigid of Ireland. St Bridget's mother had a devotion to our Brigid and so named her daughter after her, though the spelling is slightly different.

 

St Bridget always fascinated me, partly because my own mother bears her name, but also because Bridget was part of that spiritual movement in the 14th century which sought to rekindle a renewal of spiritual life, one to which a later Saint, St Catherine of Siena, would dedicate her life.  At the heart of St Bridget's plan of reform was meditation on the passion of the Lord. Later reformers would take up this spirituality, notably St Alphonsus Ligouri and St Paul of the Cross.  St Bridget was credited with writing the famous Fifteen Prayers which are said to be the fruit of various visions.  Now, while we cannot prove for certain that Bridget actually wrote these prayers, we do know that they share her spiritual vision and can lead us to understand her spirituality.

 

We cannot escape the passion of the Lord, and it is necessary for us to meditate on it frequently.  For one thing as we pray the passion we realise that we were redeemed by the death of Christ, offered as free gift in love; a gift we cannot earn, but one we are asked to receive and live, re-orienting our lives to conform with the love that is revealed on the cross.  Why does the Church ask us to follow the Gospel? Because it is the way our Crucified Lord laid out for us, it is the way to heaven and it takes us into the pierced Heart of Christ where we will find our salvation and our eternal life.  The truth of the Gospel is guaranteed by the Suffering and Risen Saviour, and so in abandoning ourselves to the passion of the Lord, we come to understand the Gospel and we are inspired to live it, not as a daily toil, but as daily offering of love.

Hail Great Elijah!

 

In Carmel today we celebrate the feast of our Father, St Elijah the Prophet. When the first monks made their home on Mount Carmel, they looked to this great Biblical figure and saw in him the model for their lives and their teacher in prayer.  To this day, Carmelites venerate his memory, and we honour him as a great Saint, believing that he is interceding for us and guiding us from heaven.

 

Elijah offers us many lessons, one of which is dedication to the truth, and to the God of truth.  In an age when many believe truth is relative, may the zeal of St Elijah touch our hearts and make us true servants of the living God. 

 

Of course he was a man of prayer - a real mystic, but one whose mystical experiences led him to action, to proclaim the word of God and to honour the Holy Name.  In a sense we can see in him the union of Martha and Mary: like Mary he chose the better part, sitting at the feet of the Lord in contemplation, but then, like Martha, going out to serve.  However, unlike Martha in the Gospel story, he was not distracted, but rather kept his mind and heart focused on God. 

 

On Carmel's Heights

 

Today in Carmel we celebrate our great Patronal Solemnity, Our Lady of Mount Carmel.  I will be keeping you all in prayer today, please remember all of us members of the Orders - the Discalced, and our brothers and sisters in the O Carms.

 

With regard to devotion to Our Lady of Mount Carmel, one of our friars, Fr Gabriel, once wrote:

[it is] a special call to the interior life, which is pre-eminently a Marian life. Our Lady wants us to resemble her not only in our outward vesture but, far more, in heart and spirit. If we gaze into Mary's soul, we shall see that grace in her has flowered into a spiritual life of incalculable wealth: a life of recollection, prayer, uninterrupted oblation to God, continual contact, and intimate union with him. Mary's soul is a sanctuary reserved for God alone, where no human creature has ever left its trace, where love and zeal for the glory of God and the salvation of mankind reign supreme. [...] Those who want to live their devotion to Our Lady of Mt. Carmel to the full must follow Mary into the depths of her interior life. Carmel is the symbol of the contemplative life, the life wholly dedicated to the quest for God, wholly orientated towards intimacy with God; and the one who has best realized this highest of ideals is Our Lady herself, 'Queen and Splendour of Carmel'.

 

 

To Our Married Couples: A Happy Feast Day

A quick post.  Today in Carmel is the feast of Blesseds Louis and Zelie Martin, the parents of St Therese of Lisieux.  I would like to wish all married couples a happy feast day.  May this holy couple intercede for all your needs, and be your friends and constant companions.

The Deed Is Done...

 A friend of mine just sent me a text:

 

"Well, the deed is done. 31 opposed, 6 of them because it wouldn't kill enough babies.  So only 25 prolife TDs. Amazing."

 

The Bill now goes before the Senate, which will, no doubt, pass it in the same manner as the Dail - the government has a majority there and the whip will be imposed.  Then it goes to the President.  As he is a Labour president who was no friend of the pro-life cause when he was a TD himself, he may well sign the Bill quickly, introducing it into law. And abortions will begin.  Enda Kenny, will get his wish:  abortions beginning over the summer.

 

This is a sad day for Ireland.  But the battle is only beginning - in the legislature, in the courts, on the streets, in the hearts of the Irish.

Let us pray for the pro-life cause, for the children whose lives are now in immediate danger.  And for those TDs tonight who voted for this bill.  The Catholics among them are now no longer eligible to receive the Eucharist until they publicly repent of the evil they have done. And pray for our bishops and priests: that they may have the courage to do what the law of the Church requires.

I wish to thank and congratulate Lucinda Creighton and the other twenty-four TDs who opposed this Bill, many of them now suffering for their stand.  They are men and women of integrity and represent all that is good in Ireland and in the political profession.  As their colleagues have gone bad, they refused to violate their conscience when tempted, browbeaten and even threatened.  They are an example to us all: may God bless them this night.  Pro-life people, do not forget these TDs.

Now, time for bed.  Tomorrow is a new day, and the fight continues.  As Blessed John Paul II told us in life and now tells us from heaven: Do not be afraid!  God is on our side! 

"Don't Lose The Head"

 

There are many things today's Saint can teach us, and one of the most important is that we do not lose our head!  St Benedict, Father of Western Monasticism and Patron of Europe teaches us moderation and calm through his Rule and his holy life.

 

All of us are prey to our passions, and passion is not a bad thing - oriented in the right way it can be virtuous, nourishing zeal and making us determined to do what is right and good.  But sometimes it can take over us and we can lose the plot and even sin.  Passions must be governed by reason and charity, and the Rule of St Benedict has these qualities in abundance.  His way is a way of moderation - not boring not committal moderation, but a moderation which helps the soul live an ordered life of work and prayer and forms the personality so the person may be level-headed as well as devout.

 

Today let us remember all our monks and nuns, particularly those who follow the Rule of St Benedict.  I greet Dom Mark and the monks of the new Silverstream Priory, who have brought Benedictine life back to our diocese: may the Lord grant them many blessings. 

 

Let us also pray for Europe in these challenging times.

 

And of course let us not forget our Pope-Emeritus, Benedict XVI, a true model of reason, charity, and a passion for God.  Like his namesake, Pope Benedict, through his writings, preaching and holy life has rekindled in the hearts of many the fire of faith.

It's Tonight...

Tonight the Irish Parliament, the Dail, will vote on the Abortion Bill.  By all accounts it will pass, but a minority of TDs, men and women of integrity will oppose it and face political consequences.  This may well be the saddest day for Ireland since the foundation of the state.  Let us pray for Ireland, for our unborn children, for women with unwanted pregnancies, and for our TDs and senators who stand for conscience and life despite the temptations and intimidations inflicted on them over the past few weeks: we commend them to the intercession of St Thomas More and St Patrick.

 

If you can, join a vigil outside Leinster House this evening. 

Something To Chew On...

Comin' right at ya!

 

As I enjoy these days of my vacation, I try and get some reading done - not just Scripture, theology and hagiography, but also some history and literature.  One of the books in the case, the one I am reading at the moment is Max Brooks' World War Z.  Yes, zombies!  I saw the movie a couple of weeks ago and I was intrigued, so I bought the book and I must say it is very good - much better than the movie.

 

Well, it seems the great Fr Robert Barron shares my view - so if a zombie apocalypse should break out there are two priests who are ready for it.  Drawing on the doctrine of original sin, Fr Barron sees the zombies as an image of that fault which is at the heart if our fallen human nature - a fault or weakness that is spread like a contagion. It is a very interesting thesis.  He writes: "Do you see now why the zombie -- a human being so compromised by the effects of a contagion that he is really only a simulacrum of a human -- is such an apt symbol for a person under the influence of sin?"    In the movie, as in the book, there are desperate attempts to escape the zombies. The Israelis, for example, build a massive wall around Jerusalem - but they cannot keep the zombies out, no physical construction can halt sin, and when it comes to original sin there is no escaping it.  There is, however, healing, and that healing is found in Christ and in his Sacrament of Baptism.

 

Every generation has its ghoul - that supernatural creature that strikes fear into us.  We had ghosts, vampire, werewolves, and now we have zombies.  And who are zombies?  Ultimately they are the ordinary people who surround us who have been infected by a mysterious contagion and then turn on us seeking to tear us to pieces or make us zombies too.  What does this mean?  I suppose one answer to that is that we are afraid of the other - we have become so individualised that the other is now a source of fear and a potential threat, even if that other is a close relative - no one can be trusted. And really when you get down to it, it is really a fear of ourselves - we are uncomfortable in our own skin, and such is the malaise of modern life.  And why are we afraid of ourselves, of the other? 

 

I would suggest it is because we have lost God.  If our Creator has been abandoned, then our humanity will not be far behind.  We have become what Sartre predicted we would be - lonely, lost, without hope, strangers to ourselves.  Interestingly, as Fr Barron points out, the World War Z movie offers a corrective, a hope: love - love of family, love of friends and the determination to protect, even to the point of sacrificing ourselves.  In other words what Jesus says: he who loses his life saves it.

 

Read Fr Barron's article - it is very good, particularly his reflection on how Brad Pitt's character is like Jesus.   As a friend of mine always says at our monthly film club: This film is about redemption.