aeternus

“A first essential setting for learning hope is prayer. When no one listens to me any more, God still listens to me. When I can no longer talk to anyone or call upon anyone, I can always talk to God. When there is no longer anyone to help me deal with a need or expectation that goes beyond the human capacity for hope, he can help me. When I have been plunged into complete solitude …; if I pray I am never totally alone. The late Cardinal Nguyen Van Thuan, a prisoner for thirteen years, nine of them spent in solitary confinement, has left us a precious little book: Prayers of Hope. During thirteen years in jail, in a situation of seemingly utter hopelessness, the fact that he could listen and speak to God became for him an increasing power of hope, which enabled him, after his release, to become for people all over the world a witness to hope—to that great hope which does not wane even in the nights of solitude….

For prayer to develop this power of purification, it must on the one hand be something very personal, an encounter between my intimate self and God, the living God. On the other hand it must be constantly guided and enlightened by the great prayers of the Church and of the saints, by liturgical prayer, in which the Lord teaches us again and again how to pray properly. Cardinal Nguyen Van Thuan, in his book of spiritual exercises, tells us that during his life there were long periods when he was unable to pray and that he would hold fast to the texts of the Church’s prayer: the Our Father, the Hail Mary and the prayers of the liturgy. Praying must always involve this intermingling of public and personal prayer. This is how we can speak to God and how God speaks to us. In this way we undergo those purifications by which we become open to God and are prepared for the service of our fellow human beings. We become capable of the great hope, and thus we become ministers of hope for others. Hope in a Christian sense is always hope for others as well. It is an active hope, in which we struggle to prevent things moving towards the “perverse end”. It is an active hope also in the sense that we keep the world open to God. Only in this way does it continue to be a truly human hope….”

– Spe Salve - Pope Benedict XVI

This prayer was written by our Holy Father in honor of Our Lady of Sheshan. In a letter written to the Catholic Church in China last year, the Holy Father expressed his hope that May 24, the memorial of Our Lady Help of Christians, who is venerated at the shrine of Seshan in Shanghai, would become a day of prayer for the Church in China.

“Virgin Most Holy, Mother of the Incarnate Word and our Mother, venerated in the Shrine of Sheshan under the title ‘Help of Christians,’ the entire Church in China looks to you with devout affection. We come before you today to implore your protection. Look upon the People of God and, with a mother’s care, guide them along the paths of truth and love, so that they may always be a leaven of harmonious coexistence among all citizens.

“When you obediently said ‘yes’ in the house of Nazareth, you allowed God’s eternal Son to take flesh in your virginal womb and thus to begin in history the work of our redemption. You willingly and generously co-operated in that work, allowing the sword of pain to pierce your soul, until the supreme hour of the Cross, when you kept watch on Calvary, standing beside your Son, who died that we might live.

“From that moment, you became, in a new way, the Mother of all those who receive your Son Jesus in faith and choose to follow in His footsteps by taking up His Cross. Mother of hope, in the darkness of Holy Saturday you journeyed with unfailing trust towards the dawn of Easter. Grant that your children may discern at all times, even those that are darkest, the signs of God’s loving presence.

“Our Lady of Sheshan, sustain all those in China, who, amid their daily trails, continue to believe, to hope, to love. May they never be afraid to speak of Jesus to the world, and of the world to Jesus. In the statue overlooking the Shrine you lift your Son on high, offering him to the world with open arms in a gesture of love. Help Catholics always to be credible witnesses to this love, ever clinging to the rock of Peter on which the Church is built. Mother of China and all Asia, pray for us, now and for ever. Amen!”

I’ve been consumed in a project this week and it may continue for a little while. However, I read this little news item from Catholic News Services which I think would be of significance for those who may read this very modest blog. It harkens to our Holy Father JPII calling for the East and Western Churches to unite so that we may again “breathe together with two lungs” (I believe he hoped the Holy Spirit would initiate this unity through the Divine Breath of our Creator.) What a beautiful communion this would be and it will come, God willing, through P R A Y E R !

God Bless our Holy Father Benedict who is leading us this way too!

Here is the article..

Vatican City, May 14, 2008 / 10:18 am (CNA).- Pope Benedict dedicated his weekly general audience in St. Peter’s Square to the teachings of the figure Pseudo-Dionysius the Aeropagite, who is “a greater mediator in the modern dialogue between Christianity and the mystical theologies of Asia.”

“In today’s catechesis we return to the teaching of a sixth century author whose writings have been attributed to the first century disciple of St. Paul, Dionysius the Aeropagite.

Pseudo-Dionysius used Greek polytheism “to show the truth of Christ and transform the polytheistic world into a cosmos created by God” in which “all creatures together reflect the truth of God.”

“Because the creature is a glorification of God, the Pseudo-Dionysius’ theology becomes a theological liturgy. God is found, above all, by praising Him and not just through reflection.”

The Holy Father explained that Pseudo-Dionysius’ “two principal works, the Divine Name and Mystical Theology strive to present a knowledge of God which surpasses rational understanding and culminates in spiritual perfection and transforming contemplation.”

This Father of the Church created the first “great mystical theology. … With him the word ‘mystical’ took on a more personal and intimate meaning: it expresses the soul’s journey towards God. … The Pseudo-Dionysius shows that at the end of the road to God is God Himself, Who comes close to us in Jesus Christ.”

“Today Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite assumes fresh relevance”, said the Holy Father. “He appears as a greater mediator in the modern dialogue between Christianity and the mystical theologies of Asia, the well-known characteristic of which lies in their conviction that it cannot be said who God is, that He can be spoken of only in negative terms, … and that only by entering this experience of ‘no’ can He be reached.”

Pope Benedict also mentioned Pseudo-Dionysius’ influence on other prominent saints. “In the West, Dionysius’ writings influenced the early scholastics and Saint Thomas, as well as Saint Teresa of Avila and Saint John of the Cross. His vision of a great cosmic harmony reflecting the beauty of the Creator and the love freely bestowed on us in Christ, can also inspire our efforts to work for unity, reconciliation and peace in our world.”

Before bestowing his apostolic blessing on all those gathered, the Pope greeted all those English speaking pilgrims who had made it to Saints Peter’s square.

“I welcome all the English-speaking visitors present today, including the groups from England, Ireland, Japan, The Philippines, Trinidad and Tobago, and the United States of America. May your visit to Rome be a time of deep spiritual renewal. Upon all of you I invoke God’s abundant blessings of joy and peace.”

Yesterday’s mass at the Carmelite Monastery was very beautiful and they celebrated not only the Feast of St. Therese but their 144th year of being founded in Saint Louis. The sisters came here from the first Carmel in the United States which was in Baltimore, Maryland. If we wish to work further backward in history, Carmel came to the United States from the Belgium (English speaking) Carmel of Hoogstraet. The Hoogstraet foundress was Mother Ann of Our Lady and that Carmel came from the Carmel at Hopeland-Antwerp whose first Prioress was Blessed Mother Anne of St. Bartholomew. Now, Blessed Mother Anne of St. Bartholomew, (read more here) was the right hand, nurse and closes confidant of Holy Mother Teresa of Avila. WOW, now that is a great history!

In honor of this feast day the Sister’s sung “The Canticle of Love” by Sr. Marie Therese Sokol (of fame for her glorious musical compositions in the film by Luke Productions of St. Therese’s life.) I wish I could hum the tune, but you can go to the film’s website to hear a clip of it. Sr. Marie Therese is and accomplished composer and musician. She had degrees in Music Performance from Indiana University and performed as a cellist with the Omaha, Winnnipeg and Vancouver Symphonies but she left that life in search of the quiet of Carmel where she could devote herself only to serving her Beloved. We are thankful that despite her cloistered life, the Lord made it possible for her to compose the music for the movie and help the world to know Therese through such beautiful music. AMEN!! [Thanks to the Immaculate Heart of Mary's Hermitage Blog for the report on Sr. Marie Therese!]You can purchase a CD of the Soundtrack here. But getting back to the hymn, Canticle of Love, the Sisters sung this lovely piece of music with such perfection and love that I thought my heart would burst. Thank you Sister’s I hope to hear you sing this again soon!!

One more note on the Feast day. When my daughter came home from school we immediately got busy in the kitchen. As I wrote earlier looking for a Feast Day recipe for Saint Therese I thought I would post a photo of our efforts. Please understand my talent lies NOT in the baking department. However, I think the pretty roses and the little image of the Good Shepperd are special details which make the cake taste even better than Betty Crocker predicted! Here is a close-up of the center of the cake. Thanks to all who sent in their suggestions to put on the roses!

BENEDICT XVI’S PRAYER INTENTIONS FOR OCTOBER

VATICAN CITY, OCT 1, 2007 (VIS) - Pope Benedict’s general prayer intention for October is: “That the Christians who are in minority situations may have the strength and courage to live their faith and persevere in bearing witness to it.”

His mission intention is: “That Missionary Day may be a propitious occasion for kindling an ever greater missionary awareness in every baptized person.”

The photo above, in case it is not obvious, is from the Chapel of St. Therese at the Carmelite Monastery in Saint Louis, Missouri.

Last week I was privileged to meet someone quite astounding. We met after mass at the Carmelite Monastery where she had been staying over the past week or so. She was in the United States to meet with colleagues in her organization called “International Research Center for Spirituality in Business Practice” which is a program affiliated with the University of Mystic, at Avila, in Spain.

The aim of her project is to promote spirituality in the workplace by leadership training. They “favor spiritual progress of people at work, as managers and leaders, by giving them answers to meet the challenges of today’s economic world.”

This sounds not unlike what is today quite common in America, Bible Study at lunch with your colleagues (or in a way motivational efforts to lift employees to a higher level in the whole lives not just at work). To challenge these efforts already in place in many places of employment, the center is looking to evangelize through authentic Catholic spiritualites and charisms. They want to make an effort to show the beauty behind our tradition by introducing prayer in pure and time tested fashions. Igniting anew the enthusiasm for those special graces contained within the Church’s observance of prayerful and reverent worship through the many flowering vines of beauty we hold through sacred tradition and history.

The center for spirituality in business practice is an “intellectual frame of Carmelite mystic theology, but in a non exclusive way. The variety of spiritualities within the Roman Catholic Church (Benedictine, Franciscan, Dominican, Ignacian, Rhenan, of the French school, the Opus Dei…), the other religions (other Christian churches, Jews, Muslim…), and agnostics are strongly encouraged to participate.

This sounds great does it not? A blessing indeed! Something to be excited about and shout from the rooftops! But, here is the catch… this wonderful woman is trying to make this happen in France. Do I have to say more, or have you already sighed in a knowing sadness just what seeming futility she is up against? Though she is not the least bit pessimistic about the value and importance of this ministry she is trying to launch, surely I was able to see her holding back tears of frustration over the weight of her task in France.

Not to worry though, I am confident that all will work out for the best. You see, the hero of this story lives just two doors down from “Les Buissonnetes” in Liseiux. For those of you who do not know this famed address, it is the childhood home of Saint Thérèse (the littel flower of Carmel) where her father (Louis) moved after the death of Thérèse’s mother (Zelie). The home is on a little road called “Chemin du Paradis” (“Paradise Way”). It was in this home that Thérèse Martin spent eleven years of her life here, until she joined the Carmelite Convent, and here that our new Carmelite Apostle is beginning her quest to bring Carmelite Spirituality into the workplace. Is it no small consolation to have a friend and neighbor like Thérèse on your side! Not to mention I pray that the other holy Martin Sisters (Carmelites: Mother Agnes of Jesus, Sister Marie of the Sacred Heart, Sister Genevieve of the Holy Face and Visitation Sister Françoise-Thérèse) will be helping too! May they send down the roses from heaven please!

I thought it quite fitting then yesterday when I read of Pope Benedict’s equal frustration with contemporary European Culture and its attempts at playing with this new societal evil which is an irrational new humanism. The pontiff noted “the current cultural crisis in Europe as suffering from “a false dichotomy between theism and authentic humanism.” In its extreme form, this belief sees “an irreconcilable conflict between divine law and human freedom”.”

It seems that in Europe tradition and spirituality are like oil and water. Tradition is a mere “habit” while the actual practice of heritage (like spirituality) is an exercise they are unwilling to partake in. It is like the exact opposite of America. Here we will indulge in plenty of spirituality, though certainly it can be seen that it adhears to no absolute form of tradition. How many protestant churches are there now listed in the Yellow Pages? 5,ooo or so!?!

I pray for the efforts being born in a land which is so desolate. It certainly seems to me that the lands of rationalist Europe are completely opportune to hear a different voice. The voice of truth and love at an objective level. It certainly gets tiresome listening to the secular voice shouting that “everyone is right” no matter how skewed their viewpoint. I pray that instead of following the heard of sheep falling off the cliff of despair that the voice of our Heavenly Father will be heard. It is He who wants to shepherd us all into an enchanted and blissful eternity of ceaseless love with Him.

I would WELCOME any thoughts or ideas about this new “Center for Spirituality in the Workplace”. Is this a project that could happen in America or am I totally wrong? Is there a chance this could happen with a good old grass roots effort? Would not this effort be welcomed by many Third Order community apostolates? Remember this is not just a Carmelite effort. Please forward this article on to any persons you might think could benefit from it and I will send it along to France.

In the meantime, here is the article from the Catholic News Agency:
The Holy Father Reflects on “A New Humanism”

Vatican City, June 24 (CNA).-The Holy Father joined rectors and university professors from all over Europe in the Paul VI Auditorium on Saturday to discuss the theme of a ‘New Humanism.’ The meeting was organized to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the Treaty of Rome, “which gave rise to the present European Union”, the Holy Father noted.

The pontiff first noted the moral climate of Europe: “Europe is presently experiencing a certain social instability and diffidence in the face of traditional values, yet her distinguished history and her established academic institutions have much to contribute to shaping a future of hope.”

Commenting on what this new philosophy might embody, Benedict remarked: “Promoting a new humanism, in fact, requires a clear understanding of what this “newness” actually embodies. Far from being the fruit of a superficial desire for novelty, the quest for a new humanism must take serious account of the fact that Europe today is experiencing a massive cultural shift, one in which men and women are increasingly conscious of their call to be actively engaged in shaping their own history.”

The current moral and intellectual crisis is largely due to the attempt “to build a regnum hominis detached from its necessary ontological foundation.” Modern man has attempted to construct a kingdom of mankind, without any reference to its Creator.

The Holy Father diagnosed the current cultural crisis in Europe as suffering from “a false dichotomy between theism and authentic humanism.” In its extreme form, this belief sees “an irreconcilable conflict between divine law and human freedom”.

Quoting his predecessor, John Paul II, Benedict questioned the result of man’s progress: “we need to ask ‘whether in the context of all this progress, man, as man, is becoming truly better, that is to say, more mature spiritually, more aware of the dignity of his humanity, more responsible and more open to others.’” (Redemptor Hominis, 15).

Benedict spoke of a theme often touched on by John Paul II: Man cannot know himself without knowing Christ. He said, “In my recent visit to Brazil, I voiced my conviction that “unless we do know God in and with Christ, all of reality becomes an indecipherable enigma.”

In conclusion, the Holy Father referred to universities as “laboratories of culture”, stated that they provided a needed service of wisdom to society, and hoped that they would work, with the help of theologians, to address “the questions of particular importance to society.”

Top Photograph: The room of Thérèse’s sister, Marie, where she was cured by the Virgin Mary on Sunday 13th May, 1883.

Pope Says Saint a Model of “Purified Love” Letter Recalls Life of St. Mary Magdalene de’ Pazzi

VATICAN CITY, MAY 29, 2007 (Zenit.org).-

St. Mary Magdalene de’ Pazzi is a symbolic figure of living love that recalls an essential dimension of every Christian life, says Benedict XVI.

The Pope said this in a letter to the Cardinal Ennio Antonelli of Florence, Italy, in honor of the 400th anniversary of the Carmelite mystic’s death (1566-1607).

“She did not let herself be conditioned by the world; the world, though Christian, did not satisfy her desire to become ever more similar to her crucified Spouse,” wrote the Holy Father.

Born in Florence on April 2, 1566, into a noble family, she was baptized with the name Catherine. The future saint entered the Monastery of San Giovannino of the Dames of Malta.

It was there, on March 25, 1576, that she received her first Communion, and then a few days later, she made a vow of perpetual virginity.

When she was 16, she entered the cloistered Carmelite Monastery of St. Mary of the Angels and took the name Mary Magdalene.

In March 1584, she fell ill, but was able to make her religious profession later that year on the feast of the Holy Trinity.

Ecstasies

“Thus began an intense mystical period from which would come her fame as a great ecstatic,” recalled the Pope.

Her confessors, in order to determine if these ecstasies where divinely inspired, obliged her to tell her superiors everything that she was experiencing. Her sisters wrote down her words during and after the ecstasies.

Benedict XVI described these as intense experiences “that, at only 19 years old, rendered her capable of understanding the mystery of salvation — from the incarnation of the Word in Mary’s womb to the descent of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost.”

These experiences were published as “Forty Days” (1584), “Discussions” (1585), and “Revelations and Understandings” (1585).

The volumes describe “eight days of wonderful ecstasy from the vigil of Pentecost to the Feast of the Trinity,” wrote the Holy Father.

He continued: “Five years of interior purification were to follow — Mary Magdalene de’ Pazzi spoke of it in her book ‘Probation,’ in which the Word, her Spouse, removed from her the feeling of grace and left her, like Daniel in the lions’ den, to suffer many trials and temptations.

“Her great desire for Church reform was born during this time, after witnessing rays of light from on high in the summer of 1586, showing her the true state of the Church in the era after the Council of Trent.

“Like Catherine of Siena, she felt ‘compelled’ to write letters to the Pope, cardinals of the Curia, her archbishop and other Church leaders, encouraging them to work for the ‘Renewal of the Church,’ as the title of the manuscript says.”

Calvary

Eventually, tuberculosis forced her to slowly withdraw from the active life of the community.

“Purified love, which beat so strongly in her heart, opened her to the desire for full conformity with Christ, her Spouse, even unto sharing with him the ‘nudo patire’ [naked suffering] of the cross,” the Pope continued. “The last three years of her life were a true Calvary of sufferings for her.”

She died on May 25, 1607. Her incorrupt body is under the altar of the Church of the Monastery of St. Mary Magdalene de’ Pazzi in Careggi, Florence.

She was beatified on May 8, 1626, by Pope Urban VIII, also from Florence, and was canonized by Pope Clement IX on April 28, 1669.

Benedict XVI added: “During her life she would ring the bells and exhort her fellow sisters saying: ‘Come to love Love!’

“The great mystic from Florence, from her convent and from the Carmelite monasteries that aspire to her, we pray that we may still hear her voice in the entire Church, spreading the proclamation of God’s love for every human creature.”

VATICAN CITY, JUN 1, 2007 (VIS) - Pope Benedict’s general prayer intention for June is:

“That the Lord may protect sailors and all those involved in maritime activities.”

His mission intention is: “That the Church in North Africa may bear witness, with its presence and its action, to God’s love for every individual and all peoples.”

VATICAN CITY, MAY 1, 2007 (VIS) - Pope Benedict’s general prayer intention for May is: “That, following the example of the Virgin Mary, all Christians should allow themselves to be guided by the Word of God and always remain attentive to the signs of the Lord in their own lives.”

His mission intention is: “That in mission territories there may be no lack of good and enlightened teachers in the major seminaries and in the institutes of consecrated life.”

In Wednesday’s general audience at the Vatican, Pope Benedict XVI dedicated his catechesis to Origen of Alexandria, a third century historian and “one of the greatest writers” of Church history. The audience was held in St. Peter’s Square in the presence of more than 25,000 people.

The Pope said that Origen “took up the legacy of Clement and carried it towards the future in such an innovative way as to effect an irreversible turn in the development of Christian thought. He was a true master … and an exemplary witness of the doctrine he transmitted.”

The “irreversible turn” effected by Origen, said the Pope, substantially involved “grounding theology in the explanation of Scripture, in other words, the perfect symbiosis between theology and exegesis. Indeed, the characteristic of Origen’s doctrine seems to lie in the constant invitation to pass from the reading to the spirit of Scripture in order to progress in knowledge of God.

Wow, that’s a pretty fine compliment. I thought it might be nice to hear a word from Origen today as a Meditation. So, here is a short excerpt from the beginning of De Principiis, Books I-II by Origen. I am sure it will make you want to hear more from him!

BOOK I. CHAP. I.—ON GOD.

I KNOW that some will attempt to say that, even according to the declarations of our own Scriptures, God is a body, because in the writings of Moses they find it said, that “our God is a consuming fire;” and in the Gospel according to John, that “God is a Spirit, and they who worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth.” Fire and spirit, according to them, are to be regarded as nothing else than a body. Now, I should like to ask these persons what they have to say respecting that passage where it is declared that God is light; as John writes in his Epistle, “God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.” Truly He is that light which illuminates the whole understanding of those who are capable of receiving truth, as is said in the thirty-sixth Psalm, “In Thy light we shall see light.” For what other light of God can be named, “in which any one sees light,” save an influence of God, by which a man, being enlightened, either thoroughly sees the truth of all things, or comes to know God Himself, who is called the truth? Such is the meaning of the expression, “In Thy light we shall see light;” i.e., in Thy word and wisdom which is Thy Son, in Himself we shall see Thee the Father. Because He is called light, shall He be supposed to have any resemblance to the light of the sun? Or how should there be the slightest ground for imagining, that from that corporeal light any one could derive the cause of knowledge, and come to the understanding of the truth?