Work

1. God created man master of the world. He commanded him to populate it and to rule it (Cf. Gen. 1: 28). He placed him in an earthly paradise, to till it and to keep it (Gen. 2:15).

As long as man remained in the state of innocence, however, work was a pleasure. It gave him the joy of collaborating with God in the work of creation. Today work is still a pleasure. By working we co-operate with God, because it was His intention that the resources of the earth should be exploited by human industry and intelligence and should benefit both the individual and society. Work is a noble occupation, because it involves co-operation with God's work of creation and conservation. If anybody tries to deprive it of its lofty human character and to reduce it to the level of mere toil, regarding it as nothing more than an instrument of production or a handy system of exchange, he is debasing the worker and robbing him of all spiritual incentive.

2. Since the fall of Adam, work is not only a pleasure, but a burden and an atonement as well. It is deceitful to hold out the promise of a paradise of workers, a possibility in which no intelligent person could be expected to believe. The so-called plan for workers, designed to create a paradise upon earth, produces only a system of regimentation in which men cease to be free and become insignificant parts of the all-powerful sate mechanism. We must oppose this degradingly materialistic conception of labour. Work is a command of God Who, after the sin of Adam, told him and his sons: In the sweat of your brow you shall eat bread (Gen. 3:19).

Let us accept from God this high responsibility of co-operating with Him in His work of creation and redemption. Let us accept it alike when it is a pleasure and when it is a sacrifice. Let us accept it with the cheerfulness of the Saints, or at least with resignation. Let us realise that by working we purify our souls and atone for our sins. We also make ourselves useful to our brothers on earth, because the work of our hands and of our minds exercises a social function, especially on behalf of the abandoned classes. It is an apostolate of expiation and redemption for large numbers of souls who are sunk in ignorance and sin.

3. Work is both a right and a duty. It is a right because God created the wealth of the earth for all men. All men, therefore, have the right to exploit these resources and to receive the reward of their labour. If anyone denies or obstructs this fundamental right to work, he is opposing God and committing a grave injustice against his fellowmen and against society. If society does not provide work for all its citizens, it become an unjust organisation capable of bringing into being all types of disorder. If anyone has the opportunity of providing employment and does not do so, he is sinning. If anyone has great wealth and stores it away uselessly, enjoying it himself in pleasant idleness, not only does he sin, but he can sin very seriously. They are guilt of grave sin also who through selfishness do not pay a just wage to their employees, or who through greed for profit create an unchristian and inhuman social gulf between employees and their employers. Meditate seriously on these sacrosanct principles, which have their basis in the Gospel.

Work is also a duty. Everybody must work, either manually or intellectually. So God decreed to Adam in the garden of Eden. St. Paul says very clearly: If any man will not work, neither let him eat (2 Thess. 3:10).

It is wonderful to see how anxious Jesus was to sanctify labour, first of all as a humble workman for thirty years, then as Teacher and Redeemer for the last three years of His life. This is a magnificent example for manual and intellectual workers alike. It is an example which the Saints followed until they had exhausted all their strength.

The Purification of Our Lady

1. Today the church commemorates the presentation of the Child Jesus in the temple and the purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary. These ceremonies were carried out in order to comply with a twofold Mosaic law. One part of this law referred to women who had become mothers; the other part was concerned with first-born male children. According to the first law a mother was officially regarded as impure for forty days after she had given birth to a child. When this period was over she had to present herself in the temple and make an offering of a lamb and a turtledove. If she were poor, she could substitute a second young pigeon for the lamb (Cf. Lev. 12). The second law (Cf. Es. 13:2; 34:19; Num. 8:16; Lev. 27:26) commanded the mother to offer and consecrate to God her first-born son. She was to do this in memory of the miracle in Egypt when the Angel of God destroyed all the first born sons of the people of the country and spared those of the Israelites. In later times when the ritual worship of God became the special obligation of the tribe of Levi, the first-born sons of the other tribes had to be presented in the temple and bought back by an offering.

It is quite clear that Jesus and Mary were not bound by this twofold law. But they voluntarily subjected themselves to it in order to give an example of humility and obedience.

2. When we meditate on the subject of this feast, we find two outstanding examples to be imitated. The first is given by Mary. She was perfectly pure and holy, conceived without original sin and full of grace. She knew well that she had conceived her Divine Son by the power of the Holy Spirit. So she was not obliged to observe the humiliating law of purification. Nevertheless, she fulfilled it and gave God the offering of the poor as a lesson for us in humility and poverty. It is so easy for us to excuse ourselves from obeying the law and to make a display of our special privileges before others. Let us learn from Mary to love silent submission and detachment from worldly wealth and honours.

The other example is given us by Jesus. Being God, there was no need for Him to be bought back in the same way as the first-born sons of the Israelites. He was the Saviour Who had come to redeem the human race from sin and make them heirs to the kingdom of Heaven. But He said of Himself: I have not come to destroy, but to fulfil (Mt. 5:17). A few days earlier He had submitted to the painful and humiliating rite of circumcision. Now He allows Himself to be offered in the temple as a victim of expiation for all mankind. These are glorious examples, before which our pride should bow in shame. We should be moved to offer ourselves to God lovingly and without reserve.

3. In the Gospel narrative of St. Luke (Cf. Luke 2:22-31) another character also appears. He intrudes upon the scene without any apparent right to be there, but he had been inspired by God. This is the old and saintly Simeon. He was not a priest. He was an upright man, careful in his observance of the law, who was waiting longingly for the coming of the promised Redeemer. The Holy Spirit dwelt in him and had revealed that he would not die until he had seen the Saviour. He was inspired to go to the Temple, where he saw Jesus. He took Him in his arms and was overcome by joy. Then he blessed God and declared that he was prepared to accept death now that he had been able to see and embrace the Saviour as God had promised. Now thou dost dismiss thy servant, O Lord, according to thy word, in peace (Luke 2:29). It was a beautiful way to meet death, to be able to hold Jesus close to his heart and see his long life of hope and expectation rewarded by the loving embrace of his Lord. Let us try and live like Simeon, with our minds and hearts turned towards Jesus. Let us think chiefly of Him, love Him above everything else, and work only for Him. Then our death will be as beautiful as His. In fact we shall have been even more fortunate, for we can go further than receiving Jesus in our arms. We shall be able to receive Him into our hearts. He will be at hand to give us the supernatural strength which we shall need on our great journey into eternity.

True Peace

1. Everybody desires peace, but very few people possess it. A good many profound and beautiful definitions have been attempted. Cicero called it "tranquilla libertas," which one might translate as "undisturbed freedom". His general idea was that there can be no peace without liberty. St. Augustine defined it as "hominum ordinata concordia" (De. Civ. Dei, XIX, 13) or "ordered agreement among men". St. Thomas followed on the same lines when he said that peace was "tranquillitas ordinis" (Summa, II-II, q. 29, a. 1 ad. 1) or "tranquillity of order." There are three necessary elements in peace. They are order, harmony, and liberty. Right order is the most important. Everything in us must be in its proper place. As we have shown in the preceding meditation, our lower faculties must be entirely subordinate to right reason, and this must be completely subject to the law of God.

Every act of rebellion against this proper order creates confusion in our nature and makes peace impossible. Furthermore, there must be harmony and agreement. This means that our minds must voluntarily accept and embrace this just order, and not merely endure it with reluctance. As St. Thomas says, peace is an act of charity; it comes indirectly from justice and directly from charity (Summa, II-II, q. 29; a. 1, ad. 3). We have perfect peace when this just order holds sway within us, provided that we are not enduring it as if it were a yoke, but lovingly accepting it under the inspiration of divine charity. This is that genuine peace which gives us the liberty of the sons of God, that freedom from evil with which Christ has set us free (Cf. Gal. 4:31; 2 Cor. 3:17). True peace flourishes in an atmosphere of goodness and perishes when it encounters evil. Whether it is in the field of social relations or in the spiritual life, peace without liberty is not peace at all, but slavery and death.

2. when He came into the world, Jesus proclaimed peace. The Angels hovering over His humble manger sang, songs of glory to God on high and of peace to men of good will on earth. During His earthly pilgrimage He often spoke of peace. When He forgave sinners their faults, He said to each of them: God in peace, and sin no more (Luke 7:50; 8:48; John 8:11). When He was leaving this earth He bequeathed His peace to His Apostles as if it were a sacred heirloom: Peace I leave with yo, my peqace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you (John 14:27). We can see from these words that the peace of Jesus is not the same as worldly peace. The Church in its liturgy implores from God that peace which the world cannot give. When the world speaks of peace, it means nomrally the external, public peace which flows from respect for the law and for the established regime. This is peace; there is no doubt about that. It is necessary and is a gift from God. But it is not enough. We need the inner peace of soul of which we have already spoken, for it is the only true and solid foundation for external peace. Without this peace of soul, external peace is uncertain and fleeting. We have said that true peace is based on three things: Right order, harmony, and liberty. But in order to obtain full and perfect peace still one more thing is necessary; complete and loving abandonment to the will of God. The beginning of real peace and holiness lies in doing the will of God in every detail. The perfection of peace and holiness is to do the will of God in everything purely from love for Him. Dante expresses this profound idea when he describes the peace of the blessed in Heaven, now unshakeable in their joyful compliance with the divine will.

"E la sua volontate é nostra pace:
Ella é quel mare, al qual tutto si move
ciò ch' ella crea e che natura face."
(Paradiso, III, 85-87)

"His will is our repose:

He is the ocean into which everything flows
Which He has created in the universe."

3. This absolute and loving abandonment to the will of God in all things bring complete inner peace, but it does not exclude conflict. Interior peace is the result of the practice of virtue and therefore of the struggle against evil. When Our Lord had repeated several times that He had given us His peace, He said also: Do not think that I have come to send peace upon the earth; I have come to bring a sword, not peace ((Mt. 10:34). These apparently contradictory words of Our Lord are explained by the fact that the peace of Jesus does not consist inactivity, but demands action and strife and the conquest of evil. It is a militant peace which Our Lord desires us to possess. Only when we have controlled our passions, when we have made our wills entirely subject to the will of God and have renounced ourselves so that the justice and charityof Jesus Christ can triumph in us, only then shall we reach those serene heights where storms from below cannot come near us and the peace of God reigns supreme.

We find examples of this true and perfect peace among the Saints, Martyrs and Apostles. We read of the Apostles that they departed ... rejoicing that they had been counted worthy to suffer disgrace for the name of Jesus (Acts 5:41). This is an example of that genuine peace which is the result of victory in the combat against evil and of complete and loving submission to the will of God.

Blessed Are Those Who Love Peace

1. Blessed are the peacemakers, Our Lord says, for they shall be called children of God (Mt. 5:9).

All those who are in the state of grace, and therefore living on the supernatural plane, are the adopted sons of god and sharers in His divine nature (Cf. 2 Peter 1:4), which they will enjoy one day in the Beatific Vision. Our Saviour, however, refers to those who love peace as being in a special way the sons of God. Why is this? St. Augustine offers the real explanation (Cf. De Serm. Domini, lib. I, Cap. 2). God is perfect peace and harmony. In Him there is no conflict. His being and His activity are identical. He is perfect unity and simplicity, eternal and unaffected by the limitations of space and time. Now, the son should be a living image of the father. Those who reflect, although necessarily in a limited way, this peace, harmony and serene activity in their own personality, deserve to be called in a special way the sons of God. They are the true lovers of peace.

2. How can one achieve this calmness of approach and manner of behaviour? We can consult St. Augustine again (Ibid.). It is particularly necessary that the faculties and movements of our lower nature should be under control and subjects to right reason. It is reason which should govern us. It should guide us constantly and exercise complete control over all those parts of our nature which are common to men and animals. It is disastrous if the desires of the flesh rebel against the spirit, and worse still if they gain the upper hand. Then there can be no more peace of heart. There is no longer that reflection of the divine harmony which the grace of God had bestowed on us. There is only slavery, the slavery which takes away liberty and peace. It is very necessary, therefore, that "that part of man which is the highest and most perfect should rule without opposition the remaining parts which are common to men and animals; but in its turn this supreme faculty, that is, the intellect or reason, should be subject to God Almighty." (Ibid.)

It is clear from thse words that peace in us is the result of two kinds of necessary obedience, the obedience to right reason of the lower faculties, and the obedience of right reason to God, our Creator.

"This is the peace which God gives on earth to men of good will; this is the most perfect wisdom." (Ibid.)

3. Peace is especially opposed to sentiments of anger and hatred against our brothers. It commands us to love and help them. Hatred is the heritage of Cain, because God says that he who does not love abides in death. Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer. And you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him (I John 3:15). A man who hates his brother may not actually kill him, but he is guilty of murdering him in his heart. As a result he loses peace of soul, because, as St. Augustine point out (Sermon 82), by hating somebody you create disorder in yourself and destroy that divine harmony which was the gift of divine grace and charity.

If we wish to preserve interior peace, we must cast out from our hearts every vestige of hatred for our neighbour and entertain love, understanding and forgiveness for all. By loving our enemies we place ourselves above them by an act of true Christian nobility. We imitate Jesus, Who forgave His executioners and prayed for them from the Cross. A fit of anger is like a moment of madness. It is a great misfortune for anyone to yield to it. He speaks and acts like aman who has lost his reason and allows himself to be carried away by blind passion. When the moment of insanity is over, he will be ashamed of himself and of all that he has said and done.

It is necessary to be masters of ourselves and of our feelings. Never speak or act until anger has subsided within you. By persevering in co-operation with the grace of God, preserve that inward calmness which is a reflection of the peace of God.

How to Guard Holy Purity

1. Purity of heart is a quality which attracts everybody, even those who are evil themselves. It makes a man seem like an angel in human form, for it shines from his countenance. Unfortunately, the virtue of purity is as difficult as it is beautiful. It is fatal for anyone to cast himself into the mire. The first sin of impurity is a disaster, because it is often the first link in a tragic chain which makes him the slave of his lower impulses and of the tyrannical enemy of souls, the devil.

We must resist the earliest suggestions of the flesh by every means in our power, both natural and supernatural.

St. Thomas Aquinas tells us that none of the passions dethrones reason so much as sensuality (Summa, II-II, q. 53, a. 6). St. Augustine warns us also in his Confessions that lust has its cause ina perverse will and if anybody surrenders to it he acquires the evil habit. If this habit is not resisted, the sin becomes a frightening necessity. Resist from the beginning if you wish to avoid ruin and the slavery of the devil, who cunningly uses this passion to capture souls. If a man is overcome by violent temptation and falls into sin, however, he should not lose courage. God is infinitely good and merciful. He knows our weakness. When anyone falls, let him rise immediately. Let him return to God by repenting and making a good confession. Let him resolve to make any sacrifice rather than fall again.

2. Because it is so difficult to preserve the angelic purity of the soul, it is absolutely essential to make good use of the measures favoured for this purpose by the masters of the spiritual life. The first of these is prayer; the spirit of prayer will keep us close to God. If our mind and heart are united to God in the performance of every action, we will never allow ourselves to be separated from Him by impurity. This spirit of prayer must be based on humility and the consciousness of our continual need of God, and must be kept alive by love for Him.

The second measure is to avoid the occasions of sin. "Sensuality is best conquered by flight." (Summa, I-II, q. 35) St. Thomas advises us. "He who loves danger will perish in it." (Ecclus. 3:25) Battles like this said St. Francis de Sales, are won by the soldiers who retreat. As soon as an impure thought or image intrudes itself, drive it away as if a serpent were attacking you. It is fatal to allow the thought or image to gain ground, for at this stage victory becomes extremely difficult.

Thirdly, it often helps to occupy the mind and imagination immediately with things in which we are interested. The greatest danger of all in these moments of temptation is idleness.

3. Let us examine our conscience now and we shall perceive that every time we have fallen in any way it was always because we did not put into practice the remedies suggested. So let us not lose courage but renew our determination to employ at the first sign of danger the necessary means of defending our purity. It will be a hard struggle at times. But the grace of God will never let us down as long as we do our best to co-operate with it. Each one of us should remember that God is faithful and will not permit you to be tempted beyond your strength, but with the temptation will also give you a way out that you may be able to bear it (I Cor. 10:13). Our first reward will be the exhilaration of having fought hard and won.

Blessed Are the Clean of Heart

1. Understood in its entirety as embracing its higher grade, that is, perpetual virginity consecrated to God, purity of heart is a gift which only Christianity can give (Encyclical, Sacra Virginitas, Pope Pius XII, 1954). If we have been called to recieve this wonderful gift, let us humbly thank God. It is a sublime dignity to belong, body and soul, to God.

Sacred Scripture says of men: What is man that you should be mindful of him, or the son of man that you should care for him? You have made him a little less than the angels, and crowned him with glory and honor. You have given him rule over the works of your hands, putting all things under his feet (Ps. 8:5; Heb. 2:7). But under a certain aspect those who are living in virginity can be said to be superior to the angels. Since an angel has no body, he offers god only the homage of his spirit. A virgin, on the other hand, must bear the burden of an earthly body. He must offer continually on the altar of his heart (and often after a heroic battle) not only his soul with its appetitites and will, but also all the impulses and lower faculties which wage war against the soul (I Peter 2:11).

This is a double sacrifice, which St. Ambrose calls a continual martyrdom of body and soul. But the reward lies in the joy and peace which flow from this perpetual offering of soul and body to the Immaculate Lamb. This happiness is a compensation for any conflict which must be endured, and is a foretaste of the joys of Heaven.

2. There is a purity of heart and chastity which is an obligation for everybody, even for those who are married or preparing for marriage. Everybody is obliged to avoid any act of impurity in so far as it is opposed to his own particular state, to the natural law and to the divine law. Do not think that this degree of chastity is any easier than the first. Sometimes the obligations it imposes are even more difficult than those of absolute virginity.

There is only one rememdy for impurity. It is the practice of virtue to the point of sacrifice. Only a man who is ready with the help of God to make any sacrifice can preserve purity of heart. It is a hard struggle, but only those who win can see God. Our Lord has said: Blessed are the clean of heart, for they shall see God (Mt. 5:8). Only the clean of heart will be able to see and enjoy Him for ever in Heaven and by means of His grace will be able to see Him in a less perfect manner on earth. St. Thomas says that mental blindness is the main effect of impurity (Summa, II-II, q. 53, a. 6). This is because anyone who gives himself up to impurity loses all spiritual enlightenment and easily loses his faith as well. He no longer sees God, and he does not believe any more, because his heart is steeped in the mire of impurity. The sensual man does not perceive the things that are of the Spirit of God, for it is foolishness to him and he cannot understand ... (I Cor. 2:14) He is like the blind mole which creates its own dark little underground world and cannot see the sky any more.

3. St. Paul warns us in the following words: Do you not know that your members are the temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought at a great price. Glorify God and bear him in your body (I Cor. 6: 19-20)

We who are temples of the Holy Ghost, redeemed by the Precious Blood of Jesus, must keep unsullied the purity of our hearts, the lily of our innocence. We must do this no matter what sacrifices it may cost us. Those stern words from the Gospel, if thy right eye is an occasion of sin to thee, pluck it out and cast it from thee (Mt. 5:29), refer in a special way to the obstacles we must overcome and the sacrifices we must make to preserve this beautiful virtue. There can be no half-measures. We must be prepared to go to any length, even to accept death if necessary, like St. Maria Goretti. Even as we should be ready to face martyrdom for the faith, so we must be ready to face martyrdom in order to preserve purity of soul.

Blessed Are the Merciful

1. If we want God to show mercy on us, we must be merciful to those who are in material or spiritual distress.

Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. (Mt. 5:7)

Let us recall the Gospel parable about the king who was making out the accounts of all his servants. One man was brought before him who owed him the enormous sum of ten thousand talents. He had no means of paying the debt. In order to obtain at least some compensation, the king ordered that this servant should be sold, together with is wife and children. But the servant wept and implored, so that the king was moved with pity and pardoned him completely. When the servant had left the king's presence, he met a fellow servant who owed him a small sum, namely, one hundred pieces of silver. He threw himself angrily upon him and caught him by the throat, demanding that he should pay the debt immediately. The unfortunate fellow began begging for mercy with tears in his eyes, but it was no use. He was flung into prison and condemned to forced labour until such time as the debt would be paid. Soon afterwards the king came to hear of this incident. He was furious with the cruel servant and ordered him to be put in prison and severely punished (Mt. 18:23-25).

This prable refers to all of us. What debts we have contracted before God! Nevertheless, He is prepared to forgive us everything, provided that we are also merciful towards our fellowmen. This should be a comforting assurance.

2. Some day each one of us will stand before the judgment seat of God and will have to render an account of all his actions. Are we anxious that God will be merciful to us at that crucial moment? Let us be forgiving and charitable towards others now. It is clear from the words of the Gospel that we shall be pardoned or condemned largely in accordance with the measure of our mercifulness and charity. God will show mercy towards us as we show mercy towards others. In fact, the Eternal Judge will say to the good: "Come, blessed of my Father, take possession of the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me to eat; I was thirsty and you gave me to drink; I was a stranger and you took me in; naked and you covered me; sick and you visited me; I was in prison and you came to me." Then he will turn to the wicked and deliver this terrible sentence. "Depart from me, accursed ones, into the everlasting fire which was prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry, and you did not give me to eat; I was thirsty and you gave me no drink; I was a stranger and you did not take me in; naked and you did not clothe me; sick, and in prison, and you did not visit me ... Amen I say to you, as long as you did not do it for one of these least ones, you did not do it for me." (Mt. 25: 34-46)

These are terrifying words. They should persuade us to exercise charity towards all who are suffering in any way.

3. Works of mercy can be either corporal or spiritual. The former cannot be practised much by those who are poor, but any generous-minded Christian can perform the latter. Sometimes there is greater charity in speaking a kind word than in giving a large alms. Often it is worth more in the sight of God to comfort a sorrowful heart or to revive in some soul a dying hope than it is to fill a hungry belly. There are so many spiritual miseries which are crying out to be assuaged. The suffering of the soul is much deeper than that of the body. This is why anything done to soothe and encourage the soul is so valuable before God. We can also do something about the remorse, disgust and darkness which are the result of the state of sin. If we can succeed in enlightening or healing one of these poor souls, we shall have accomplished a work of mercy which is most beautiful and meritorious in the eyes of God.

The Rich

1. Sacred Scripture has some very severe and terrible things to say to the rich. Woe to you rich! for you are now having your comfort (Luke 6:24). Amen I say to you, with difficulty will a rich man enter the kingdom of heaven. And further I say to you, it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven (Mt. 19:23-24; Cf. Mark 10:24-25, Luke 18:24-25). St. James adds: Come now, you rich, weep and howl over your miseries which will come upon you. Your riches have rotted, and your garments have become moth-eaten. Your gold and silver are rusted, and their rust will be a witness against you, and will devour your flesh as fire does. You have laid up treasure in the last days. Behold, the wages of the labourers who reaped your fields, which have been kept back by you unjustly, cry out, and their cry has entered into the ears of the Lord of Hosts. You have feasted upon earth, and you have nourished your hearts on dissipation in the days of slaughter. (James 5:1-5)

These passages are not concerned with the rich as such, for men like Abraham, Job, and St. Louis, the King of France, were very wealthy. They are directed against those who have become absorbed in their wealth (Mark 10:24) and have grown deaf to the rightful promptings of justice and of charity.

Nevertheless, it is not only the wealthy and unjust who should reflect seriously on these stern words, but also those who have more than they need in life and are never moved by compassion for their less fortunate fellowmen. Can we be counted amonst these?

2. Wealth is a gift from God. Therefore it is good, like everything else which comes from God. Wordly wealth, as St. Thomas says, can be an instrument of virtue. But is good only in so far as it leads to holiness. If it interferes with the practice of virtue, it is evil. (Summa Contra Gentiles, Bk III, 134)

God created the wealth of the earth, not for a few, but for all mankind. All men have the right, therefore, to draw their means of subsistence from the earth. If any individual with large private possessions, however lawfully acquired, battles against this right to live, he commits a grave sin. This could happen either because a man is lacking in justice or in charity. Both justice and charity are commanded by God, however, and it matters very little whether a man goes to hell because he has offended against justice or because he has offended against charity. Hell is Hell in either case.

Let us examine ourselves and see if we are lacking in either of the virtues. It is certain that there would not be so much misery and want in the world if the Gospel teaching on the virtues of justice and charity had ever really triumphed.

3. A very rich man who was convinced that he was a good Christian went to confession one day. He discussed his doubts and worries about the passages in Sacred Scripture which have just been quoted. The peance which he received from the confessor was that he should go and read and meditate in a certain city suburb. This area was full of cabins and cabes where large numbers of poor, abandoned people were seeking out an existence. He drover there in his large streamlined car. He stopped and began reading slowly. After a while he became greatly affected and wept ... He has left his car and, as if driven by some irresistible force, began to distribute all the money which he had with him to those poor people. At last he understood fully, and without the need of any glossary, the command of Our Lord: Give that which remains as alms; and behold, all things are clean to you (Luke 11:41). From that day he was no longer a self-complacent Christian, but a just and charitable rich man.

We can all learn a lot from this story. Even if we are not rich, we certainly have a little more than we need. Let us give it to the poor. They are suffering members of the Mystical Body of Christ. We shall never be worthy members of this Mystical Body if we do not see the image of Jesus Christ in His poor.

Blessed Are the Poor

1. "Blessed are the rich." This is the judgment of the world. But Jesus says: Blessed are you poor (Luke 6:20). Whom are we to believe? Naturally, we must believe Jesus. A certain amount of confusion could arise, however, in our understanding of this maxim. It becomes clear from the context of St. Luke, and still clearer in the words of St. Matthew, who writes: Blessed are the poor in spirit (Mt. 5:3). It is necessary, therefore, as St. Jerome and others have commented, to be poor in our detachment from our possessions.

If a poor man longs for riches, and envies and hates the wealthy because of their possessions, he is not poor in spirit. So he cannot receive the blessing of which Our Lord spoke. In the same way, a rich man may be attached to his great wealth. Perhaps he aims at nothing else but to increase it and, because he is thinking of it all the time, neglects his duty to God and to his neighbour. Above all, love of riches may cause him to be lacking in justice and charity. The behaviour of such a man is contrary to the law of God. Meditate carefully on this point and do not neglect to make whatever resolutions seem necessary.

2. Detachment from riches implies the obligation of using them as a means of reaching eternal life and in accordance with the principles of justice and charity. This is a positive commandof God which nobody can ignore without falling into sin to a greater or less extent. But over and beyond this general rule there is an evangelical counsel to which only the privileged few are called in their search for perfection. This evangelical counsel says to us: "If thou wilt be perfect, go, sell what thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me." (Mt. 19:21; Mark 10:21; Luke 12:33, 18:22)

If we have received this great call to evangelical perfection, we must listen to it and follow Jesus promptly and generously. But even if our vocation does not lie in that direction, let us take care not to become too attached to the passing things of this world. Our hearts were not made for them, but for God.

Remember the striking words of St. Paul: Brethren, the time is short; it remains that those who have wives be as if they had none; and those who weep, as though not weeping; and those who rejoice, as thou not rejoicing; and those who buy, as thou not possessing; and those who use the world, as thou not using it, for this world as we see it is passing away. (I Cor. 7:29-31)

3. Those who are really poor should not be too disturbed. If they are resigned to their poverty and are not consumed by the desire for riches, the blessing of the Gospel is theirs.

Let them remember that when Jesus became Man in order to redeem us, He did not choose to be wealthy. He chose to be the poorest of men. Similarly, Our Blessed Lady, St. Joseph and all the Saints were free from all desire of worldly possessions, so that there was room in their hearts only for God, their supreme good.

Let them remember also for their consolation that it is much easier for them to gain Heaven, because they are not weighed down by worldly cares.

Mediocrity

1. A Christian cannot be satisfied with mediocrity. He must strive for perfection. This is the command of Jesus. You therefore are to be perfect, even as your heavenly Father is perfect (Mt. 5:48). The same counsel is given in the Old Testament. You shall make and keep yourselves holy, because I am holy (Lev. 11:44). The Apostles had the habit of referring to all the Christians of their time as holy. For instance, St. Paul addresses the faithful of the church of Ephesus in this way (Eph. 1:1), while St. Peter describes the Christian community as a holy nation, a purchased people (I Peter, 2:9).

We cannot be content with half-hearted efforts, but must work hard to become holy. I come, says Jesus, that they may have life, and have it more abundantly (John 10:10). Some day we shall either be saints in Heaven or among the damned in Hell. Whoever is satisfied with mediocrity betrays the mssion of Christ. He returns ingratitude for His infinite goodness and squanders His divine grace.

2. There is no such thing as half-way virtue.

Virtue is a struggle and a sacrifice. It presupposes a generous heart which gives itself to Jesus without reserve. Did He not give Himself completely for our sakes? Did He not die upon the cross for our salvation and reopen Heaven, which had been closed to us by sin? Moreover, did He not remain hidden in our midst under the Eucharistic speices in order to become our sustenance and our support?

When we are faced with such goodness and generosity, can we be so niggardly as to offer God only a part of ourselves and perhaps a part which is worthless and perishable, as CAin did when he offered sacrifices from his fields and flocks? God would certainly turn away from us and refuse our gift. And then we should be lost for ever.

3. Mediocrity in the spiritual life inevitably paves the way for sin. Indifference at prayer, listlessness in practicing charity, and habitual neglect of our duties in life lead first to deliberate venial sin and finally to mortal sin. If we are not generous with Jesus, Jesus will cease to be generous with us. He will no longer shower us with His graces. Deprived of this heavenly dew, our souls will grow dry and incapable of producing fruits worthy of eternal life.

Let us get rid of any tendencies toward lassitude. Let us revive the divine charity in ourselves. Let us make firmer resolutions and pray more fervently that the grace of God will make us capable of greater effort.

Following Jesus

1. When we have renounced ourselves and have embraced our cross with resignation and love, we must follow Jesus. We must follow Him in a special way as the infallible Teacher of truth. The teachings of men cannot satisfy our intellects. Still less can they satisfy our hearts. What they teach is either incomplete or false. This is proved by the fact that the doctrines of men have succeeded and replaced one another down through the centuries, while "the word of the Lord endures forever." (I Peter, 1:25)

The teaching of Christ produces an extraordinary renovation in the individual, in the family, and in society. It is this renewal which we call Christianity and Christian civilisation. There is a wide chasm between paganism and Christianity. This gulf would be even wider only for the fact that Christianity has not yet been fully put into practice throughout the universe. There is only one reform necessary. This is to realise the Christian ideal everywhere. We must begin by carrying it out ourselves. Let us follow Jesus, Who is saying to us: "I am the way, and the truth, and the life." (John 14:6) "He who follows Me does not walk in darkness." (John 8:12)

Let us follow our divine Master and we shall be sure that we are travelling towards Heaven.

2. Jesus is not only Truth; He is also Life. He is not only our Teacher: He is our Saviour as well. He has given us something which human philosophers could never give. For He hs given us more than doctrine; He has also given us the means of putting it into practice in our lives. He has given us grace and the Sacraments. He has given us Himself in the Blessed Eucharist. It would be impossible for us to carry out His divine precepts if He did not gie us the necessary spiritual strength to do so. We should be grateful to Jesus for His goodness and mercy. We should cherish the gifts which He has given us for our sanctification.

Follow Jesus, the Giver of grace and holiness. Make advantageous use of His Sacraments. Above all, receive the nourishment of His Divine Body with fervour and with love. In this Sacrament we can discover the unique spiritual force which makes men saints.

3. Jesus is also the Divine Model wom we ought to follow and imitate. In Him the virtues possess both the infinite splendour of the Divinity and the gentle appeal of glorified Humanity. Jesus does not dazzle us with His brightness, but kindly invites us to love and follow Him. Learn from me, He says, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for your souls. (Mt., 11:29) After He has indicated humility, meekness and interior peace as the foundations of the spiritual life, He invites us to take up the yoke of His law and assures us that we shall find it light. (Mt. 11)

If we follow Jesus, even though we are bowed with Him beneath the weight of the Cross, we shall experience even in this life a reflection of the peace and joy which will be our reward in Heaven.

Carrying Our Cross

1. When we have renounced ourselves in order to do the will of God in every detail, we must embrace our cross every day. We must carry it with resignation and love in the footsteps of Jesus. Each of us has his cross. It might be ill health or financial distress. It might be some person whom we feel to be intolerable and with whom we have to live. It might be humiliation or calumny. It might be some temptation which we find hard to fight and which is continually causing us to fall. It might be all these things together. Whatever it is, it is our cross.

To rebel would be to make things far worse. Our cross would only become heavier and more unbearable. Jesus tells us to embrace it as He did. He tells us to bow beneath its weight and follow Him. If we accept His invitation, at once our cross will seem lighter. A man who is in love does not feel fatigue. We must carry our cross out of love of God and in the hope of a heavenly reward. Then we can say with St. Francis de Sales: "Suffering passes, but the experience of having suffered for the love of God remains." We shall understand how true were Our Lord's words: "Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest." (Mt. 11:28)

The cross which we accept from the hands of Jesus and out of love for Him is a sweet burden.

2. There is only one way to become holy and to win Heaven. This is the way of the Cross. "The Imitation of Christ" contains some moving thoughts on the subject of the royal way of the Cross. We shall summarise them here.

The words of Jesus seem hard to many: "Renounce yourself, take up your cross and follow Me." But it would be much harder to hear on the last day those terrible words: "Depart from Me, you cursed, into everlasting fire." Those who listen now and accept the message of the Cross need not be afraid of hearing this irrevocable sentence on that day. Why avoid the way of the Cross if it is the only road which leads to Heaven? In the Cross there is salvation; in the Cross there is life; in the Cross there is protection from our enemies. If we carry our cross with submission and love, we shall find peace of soul. If we intertwine our cross with the Cross of Jesus, we shall obtain energy of mind, joy of spirit and perfect holiness. If we die on the Cross with Jesus, we shall live with Him in eternal happiness. If we are His companions in suffering, we shall also be with Him one day in glory. (Rom. 6:8)

Everything depends on our dying on the Cross with Jesus. There is no other way to life and to true interior peace but the way of the holy cross and of daily mortification. (Imitation of Christ, Bk. II, Chapter 12)

3. We also read in The Imitation of Christ: "No man hath so heartfelt a sense of the Passion of the Christ as he whose lot it hath been to suffer like things." If you carry your cross willingly, it will lead you to your longed-for destination, where suffering ends and everlasting joy begins. If you carry it unwillingly, the weight will become unbearable, and you will have to carry it in any case. If you fling away the cross which you are carrying, immediately an even heavier one will be laid upon you. So be prepared to put up with whatever trials God sends you. Look upon them as wonderful consolations, because the sufferings of this life cannot be regarded as the measure of that glory which will be ours in Heaven ... (Rom. 8:18) We are fortunate if we deserve to suffer a little for the name of Jesus ... Only when we begin to die to ourselves can we begin to live in God ... Nothing is more acceptable to God and more helpful for us in this world than to suffer willingly for love of Christ. (Imitation of Christ, Bk. II, Chapter 12)

Self-Denial

1. Even though it may not have been put into practice very much, contempt for riches had been taught by some of the ancient pagan philosophers. Nobody before Christ, however, even thought of demanding self-renunciation as well. Self-denial might seem to be a degradation and almost an annihilation of human nature. It might appear quite impossible. Nevertheless, Jesus has said: "If anyone wishes to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and followe me." (Mt. 16:24)

Would God have commanded us to do something impossible? Certainly not. As St. Augustine says, our divine Redeemer did not order us to do anything impossible, but to do whatever is perfect. Perfection is admittedly difficult, but it is not impossible. Should we answer Jesus Christ's command in the same way as the disciples did on one occasion: This is a hard saying. Who can listen to it? (John 6:61) No, our reply must be that which St. Peter gave when Our Lord asked reproachfully: "Do you also wish to go away?" (John 6:68) We must repeat with Peter: "Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou hast words of eternal life, and we have come to believe and to know that thou art the Christ, the Son of God." (John 6:69)

2. Let us examine carefully what is meant by this self-denial. It makes two main demands on us. Firstly, we must renounce all those lower impulses and desires which besiege the soul (I Peter 2:11). This means that we have to control and discipline our passions. Since original sin has corrupted our nature, these passions must be restrained and conquered, and then directed towards good objects. Our passions must be changed into virtues. This is a hard task, to accomplish which we must employ both natural and supernatural means.

But we cannot stop at this. The second requirement will cost us even more. We must renounce our own ego, our own will. How can we do this? We must no longer desire whatever is pleasing to us, but whatever is pleasing to God. Our will must cease, as it were, to belong to us in order to become the will of God. Is it the will of God that we should be sick, or poor, or humiliated? Thank God for it. Does He desire to give us consolations or honours or success? Thank Him for this, too. Desire nothing else but what He desires. We are no longer ourselves. Our will is completely absorbed in the will of God. This is not a degradation of human nature; it is its sublimation. Self-renunciation makes it possible for God to live and act in us. Anyone who reaches this goal can say with St. Paul: "It is now no longer I that live, but Christ lives in me." (Gal. 2:20)

3. This denial of ourselves to the extent of identifying our will with the will of God produces in us a profound peace. The Saints scaled this height and found there that tranquility of spirit which led them to rejoice in martyrdom and dishonour. It was this peace of soul which made the dying St. Aloysius Gonzaga smile and say: "I am happy to be going." It was this which enabled the saintly Cardinal Fisher, when he was going to the scaffold, to behold a light which does not fail and say: Commit to the Lord your way ... He will make justice dawn for you like the light (Ps. 36:5-6). This, too, is why the "Imitation of Christ" tells us that nobody is so free as he who knows how to deny himself.

Humility

1. Humility is the most difficult of all the virtues because it requires us to deny ourselves. Jesus warns us that anyone who wishes to follow Him must deny himself. If anyone wishes to come after me, let him deny himself. (Mt. 16:24)

Humility is necessary if we wish to go straight to Jesus, Who was the first to humble Himself by becoming obedient unto death, even to the death of the Cross (Phil. 2:8). The Imitation of Christ contains some profound remarks upon this subject. "Seldom do we find anyone so spiritual as to be stripped of all things ... If a man gives his whole substance, still it is nothing. And if he do great penance, it is but little. And if he attain to all knowledge, he is far off still. And if he have great virtue and very fervent devotion, there is still much wanting to him, namely, the one thing which is supremely necessary for him. What is that? That having left all things else, he leave also himself, and wholly go out of himself, and retain nothing of self-love." (Imitation of Christ, Bk II, Ch. 2:4)

When he has done all this, remember, he has only given God all that he received from Him. He has given nothing which was really his. He has only fulfilled an obligation of restitution. When he has arrived at this stage of humility, therefore, he should repeat the words of Jesus. "When you have done everything that was commanded you, say, 'We are unprofitable servants; we have done what it was our duty to do.'" (Luke 17:10)

This is genuine humility as preached in the Gospel.

2. Humility is, in fact, truth. Many think that it is a mental fiction or a pious exaggeration, and that only a few souls can really achieve it.
In other words, we must disregard ourselves. We must be content to be unknown and unesteemed. This might seem to be contrary to, or at least superior to, human nature, but it is based on the simple, naked truth. What have we that is not a gift of God? All that we have in the natural and supernatural order, we have received from God: "What hast thou that thou hast not received? And if thou hast received it, why dost thou boast as if thou hadst not received it?" (I Cor. 4:7)

Our defects and sins are the only things which are really ours. So we have a double motive for humility. Everything good about us is a gift from God. Only our sins belong to us!

3. Some people realise that they can achieve something good or beautiful by making use of their natural gifts along with the grace of God. Meanwhile they see others failing where they succeeded. As a result they are lacking in humility. Theirs is a mistaken attitude. Do we know what difference there is between the gifts God has given us and those He has given to others?

Even if God has granted us greater natural and spiritual gifts, surely this is a motive for humility rather than pride? St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus was accustomed to ask God's forgiveness not only for the sins which she had committed, but also for those which she would have committed if God had not given her such exceptional graces.

The graces and favours which God has bestowed on us should present new reasons for being humble when we reflect on how ungratefully we have used them. Let us always remember that "God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble." (James 4:6)

The Pope

1. The words with which a great Bishop and orator, Bossuet, began the funeral oration of a great king, are well remembered in history: "God alone is great." This is true in the absolute sense of the word. We are all insignificant, because any greatness which we can possess is not ours, but comes from God.

There is in the world, however, one man in whom the greatness of God is reflected in the most outstanding way of all. He participates in the authority and in a certain sense in the personality of Christ. This man is the Vicar of Jesus Christ, the Pope.

It is necessary to think deeply about certain words of our Redeemer which the Protestants and schismatics of every age seem to be anxious to forget. These words were addressed to Peter and through him to all his successors in the Church which was destined to last till the end of time (Mt. 28:20). "Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed also in heaven." (Mt. 16:18-19) And again: "Feed my lambs ... Feed my lambs ... Feed my sheep." (John 21:15-17)

These words need to be though about rather than explained. The church is compared to a building which must rest upon one foundation stone: the Pope. The Church is compared to a flock which has only one shepherd: the Pope. To him is entrusted the divine power of binding and loosing upon earth. This power is granted to him personally. It is given to the other Apostles only as a group united to him.

2. The greatness of the Pope derives entirely from the words of the Gospel just quoted. But is probable that nobody commented them so beautifully as St. Bernard when he wrote to his former pupil who had ascended the throne of St. Peter. "Quis es? Sacerdos Magnus, Summus Pontifix, tu princeps episcoporum, tu heres Apostolorum ... dignitate Aaron ... potestate Petrus, unctione Christus. Tu es, cui claves traditae sunt, cui oves creditae sunt. Sunt quidem et alii caeli ianitores et gregum pastores; sed tu tanto gloriosius, quanto et differentius prae caeteris nomen hereditasti. Habent illi assignatos greges singuli singulos; tibi universi crediti sunt, uni unus: nec modo ovium sed et pastorum omnium, tu unus pastor." (St. Bernard of Clairvaux, De Consdieratione II, [15])**

These words , almost incapable of being translated because of their tremendous power, fully express the greatness of the Pope. He is Priest and Supreme Pontiff, the Prince of Bishops, the heir of the Apostles, the living Peter, Christ Himself ... To him are entrusted the keys of Heaven which he can open or close; to him alone, as to one supreme Pastor, is entrusted the whole flock of the faithful and to shepherds alike. His power extends to the ends of the world and is under the protection of God, Who has promised to confirm in Heaven whatever he will decree upon earth. His dignity and authority, then, are almost divine.

3. Let us bow humbly before such greatness. Let us promise to obey the Pope as we would Christ. When he defines doctrine as supreme Head of the Church, he is infallible. When he commands or exhorts, he does so in the name of God. We cannot dispute or murmur against anything which he teaches or decrees. To disobey the Pope is to disobey God. To argue or murmur against the Pope is to argue or murmur against Jesus Himself. When we are confronted with His commands, we have only one choice --- absolute obedience and complete surrender. Moreover, we owe the Pope our veneration and love. If we love the Pope, it is like loving Christ. Pray for the Pope, that his commands and desires may be fully realised for the greater triumph of God's kingdom upon earth.

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** Translation by John D. Anderson & Elizabeth T. Kennan (Taken from Cistercian Fathers Series: The Works of Bernard of Clairvaux, Vol. 13, Kalamazoo, MI, 1976)

Five Books On Consideration: Advice to a Pope
Bk II, 15

Entire passage

" Come, let us investigate even more diigently who you are; that is, what part you play in the Church of God at this time. Who are you? The high priest, the Supreme Pontiff. You are the prince of the bishops, you are the heir of the Apostles; in primacy you are Abel, in governing you are Noah, in patriarchate you are Abraham, in orders you are Melchisedech, in dignity you are Aaron, in authority you are Moses, in judgment you are Samuel, in power you are Peter, by anointing you are Christ. You are the one to whom the keys have been given, to whom the sheep hae been entrusted. It is true that there are other doorkeepers of heaven and shepherds of flocks; but you are more glorious than all of these, to the degree that you have inherited a name more excellent than theirs. They have flocks assigned to them, one flock to each; to you all are assigned, a single flock to a single shepherd. You are the one shepherd not only of all the sheep, but of all the shepherds. Do you ask how I can prove this? From the word of the Lord. For, to whom, and I include not only bishops but also Apostles, were all the sheep entrusted so absolutely and completely? 'If you love me, Peter, feed my sheep.' What sheep? The people of this or that city or region, or even of this or that kingdom? 'My sheep,' he said. To whom is it not clear that he did not exclude any, but assigned them all? There is no exception where there is no distinction. And perhaps the rest of the disciples were present when the Lord, entrusting all to one man, commended unity to all in one flock with one shepherd according to the statement, 'One is my dove, my beauty, my perfect one. Where unity is, there is perfection. Other numbers do not possess perfection but division, as they depart from unity. Thus it is that each of the other apostles received a single community, for they understood this mystery. James, who appeared as a pillar of the Church, was content with only Jerusalem, leaving to Peter the universal Church. It was fitting for him to be placed there to raise up offspring for his dead brother in the place where he had been killed, for James was called the brother of the Lord. Now if the brother of the Lord yields to Peter's prerogative, who else can lay claim to it?"

The Church

1. Jesus Christ did not found the Church only as the mystical Body of which He is the Head and we are the members. He also made it a visible and hierarchical society, the supreme authority in doctrine and morals, the distributor of His grace and of the means of Redemption. If He had not done this, it would be impossible to understand how men could have carried on the saving work of the Redeemer throughout the centuries.

The Church is Jesus' masterpiece. It is empowered by His grace and authority to enlighten men and guide them safely along the path of sanctity. Jesus said to His Apostles and through them to their successors: He who hears you, hears me; and he who rejects you, rejects me (Luke 10:16). He also said: I am with you all days, even unto the consummation of the world (Mt. 28:20).

This is why obedience is our first duty to the successors of the Apostles, in other words, to the hierarchical church. We must obey the Church as we would obey Christ. Anybody who makes exceptions or compromises in this matter is not a true Christian.

2. Besides being our infallible teacher, the Church is also our affectionate Mother. Along with the inexhaustible treasury of His graces, it has inherited from Jesus His infinite love for all mankind. Let us consider what the Church does and has done for us. As soon as we are born into this mortal life, She gives us through the waters of Baptism a second life which is supernatural and everlasting. When we are a little older and exposed to the onslaughts of evil, She strengthens us in grace by means of another Sacrament, and makes us soldiers of Christ. If in spite of this we fall into sin, She is by our side once more. She raises us up. In the Sacrament of Penance She gives us God's forgiveness and the spiritual strength to rise again. Moreover, She gives us Jesus Christ Himself in the Blessed Eucharist. By means of another Sacrament She elevates those who receive the power of Orders. In yet another She blesses and consecrates matrimonial love and the pure marriage union. When we are dying, She comes compassionately to our side again and through the final Sacrament gives us strength and purity of purpose for the great journey into eternity. Nor is this enough. She is present with her prayers and blessings even by our coffin and by our graveside.

We owe the Church more than obedience. We owe Her our love. We should love very much this good Mother who accompanies us from the cradle to the grave, from our birth upon earth to our spiritual birth into everlasting happiness.

3. But this love should not be so much empty sentiment. Do we see the Church insulted, despised and persecuted? We must defend Her by every means at our disposal. If necessary, we must even die for Her.

Do we hear the Church slandered even as Jesus was slandered? If so we must learn to be on our guard against these calumnies and to contradict them in front of others. If She is suffering we must comfort Her. If She is in need, we must succour Her. If She requires more Apostles who will extend Her sway amongst heretics and pagans, we must be generous in offering our money and our prayers.

Pray very especially and very often for the Church and for Her triumph, which is the triumph of the kingdom of God upon earth.

The Veneration and Imitations of the Saints

1. If anyone has the good fortune during his lifetime to meet a Saint, he should be very grateful to God. What a wonder a Saint is! He is a man in whom God lives in the fulness of His grace, in such a way that St. Paul could say: "It now no longer I that live, but Christ lives in me." (Gal. 2:20)

He is a man of great spiritual tranquility who by being master of things outside himself as well as of the inner powers of his own being, can pay the full homage of love and obedience to God. He is a man from whose glance there flashes the living image of God. He can be found on a bed of pain, in the rags of a beggar, beneath the purple of a Cardinal, in the solitude of a hermitage, or in the hurly-burly of modern life. It is all the same, because he is no longer involved with himself nor with the world. He seeks God alone, Who is his love and his glory. Such is a Saint. If we are not lucky enough enough to meet him in reality, we can and should read and meditate about his life. The literature of the Saints is a practical complement to the Gospel, because it shows us how the Gospel should be lived.

2. Those Saints should be venerated who have been recognised as such by the Church. There is nothing to prevent us having devotion also to holy souls who have not received this formal recognition, and to baptised infants who died before reaching the use of reason. In the latter cases, however, only a private cult can be exercised.

The worship of the Saints is an act of veneration (dulia), not of adoration (latria), which can be given only to God. It is wrong to imagine, as many Protestants do, that by praying to and venerating the Saints we subtract something from the homage we owe to God. The veneration of the Saints and the adoration of God are entirely distinct activities. Moreover, the Saints are the faithful servants of God and intercede with Him on our behalf. By venerating and invoking them, we honour the Giver of all holiness. If anyone, on the other hand, were to disregard the worship of God in favour of devotion to the Saints, he would be making a serious mistake. A person who goes into a church and rushes over to a statue of the Blessed Virgin or of one of the Saints, without giving a thought to the living and real presence of Jesus in the Blessed Eucharist, is developing a false and sentimental piety.

3. It is not enough simply to honour the Saints. We should love and imitate them as well. Following the example of the Saints, as St. Paul says, is the same as imitating Jesus Christ Himself (I Cor. 4:16). It is a step towards Christian perfection. NO matter what our circumstances, we have outstanding models to follow. From St. Francis of Assisi we can learn to be detached from worldly things, even to the point of loving poverty. From St. Philip Neri we can learn to despise honours and to make God and Heaven the object of our desires and actions. St. Francis de Sales, although he was by nature resentful and scathing, can teach us to be gentle and calm in all the trials of life. We can learn heroic love for the poor and unfortunate from St. Vincent de Paul. We can imitate the fervent apostolic work of St. Francis Xavier. St. Charles Borromeo sold his goods and gave all to the poor. During the plague in Milan he dedicated himself lovingly to the care of the unfortunate victims, selling his household furniture and even his bed, so that he had nothing left to sleep on but a table. We can learn from his example how the flame of Christ's charity can transform the heart and overcome all human wretchedness. Avove all, let us remember that our devotion to the Saints will be valueless if it is not accompanied by untiring efforts to follow their example.

The Vicissitudes of Life

1. There are times when life is like a stream which flows peacefully between two flower-strewn grassbanks. The sun shines brightly overhead and the whole world seems to smile. The days pass pleasantly and the future is full of fair promise. Virtue itself seems to flower effortlessly in our hearts. But God grants these intervals of rest during our earthly voyage so that we may renew our energy.

Life is a battle. Therefore we have to be armed and ready and always on the alert (Job 7:1). "Wait here and watch." (Mt. 26:38) We must resolve to be prepared from the earliest hour of the morning to face the difficulties and temptations which can arise at any moment. We must be armed with the weapons of the spirit which we can easily obtain if we live all the time in the presence of God. If we fail to acquire this habit of spiritual watchfulness, the trials and temptations of the day will catch us off our guard and there is a danger that we may yield.

2. There are three kinds of trial which we have to express:

(a) Suffering in the guise illness or accidents.
(b) The insults, lack of understanding, and ingratitude of our fellowmen.
(c) Temptations and the allurements of sin.

We must make a spiritual preparation at the beginning of every day and surrender ourselves with filial confidence into the hands of God. Sorrow, illness and misfortune may come. Let us offer ourselves to God in our morning prayer. Like Jesus and with Jesus, let us bow beneath the cross which is laid upon us. Perhaps men will insult us and misunderstand us. Let us accept all this resignation and love for God and our neighbour, whoever he may be. In this we shall be like our Divine Redeemer Who, when He was nailed to the cross, not only forgave but prayed to His Eternal Father for those who had crucified Him. The enchantment of sin may disturb the peace and purity of the soul. In this matter especially we must prepare to resist from the very beginning of the day. We must intercede with God, fervently renew our resolutions, and turn our attention when necessary to other worthwhile thoughts and activities. Let us never panice, but place our trust in God; He will enable us to conquer.

3. Let this be our resolution and the result of our meditation. When we are tempted to sin, especially against holy purity, let us resist immediately and take flight. When we encounter misunderstanding on the part of others, or even coldness or calumny or injustice, let us not be depressed or annoyed. The only thing which should concern us is the evidence of our conscience before God. Offer everything else to God --- joy or sorrow, praise or blame, honour or humiliation. ask only for His grace. If we have that, we shall have peace of mind as well.

The Help of God

1. Both in the natural and in the supernatural order, we are in continual need of the help of God. We did not exist, and God in His infinite goodness created us. It is He Who preserves us in existence from day to day and from moment to moment. The act of conservation is like a continuous creation. If God did not sustain us, we should return immediately to the dust from which we came: Remember, man, that dust you are and unto dust you shall return (Gen. 3:19).

We are continually dependent on our Lord and Creator for our existence and activity. If we remained always aware of this tremendous fact, we would never offend God. We would showHim a filial gratitude and humbly implore His assistance.


We are so poor, and He is so rich. We are so weak and He is so strong. We are blind, and He is the true light which illumines every man who comes into the world (John 1:9). Ask for God's help with confidence, perseverance, and resignation to His holy will. As St. Augustine says, we are the beggars of God.

2. There are several passages in Sacred Scripture which emphasise clearly and effectively our utter weakness and dependence on God. "Not that we are sufficient of ourselves," says St. Paul, "to think anything, as from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God." (2 Cor., 3:5)

Jesus warns us that without Him we can do nothing: Without me you can do nothing (John 15:5). He uses the allegory of the vine and the branches as an illustration of this. I am the vine, He says, and you are the branches. So it is necessary for you to remain united to me, and I to you. In the same way as a branch that does not live on in the vine can yield no fruit of itself, so you can do nothing if you do not live on in Me. If anyone does not remain united to Me he will be like a withered branch which is thrown into the fire to be burned (John 15).

We must remain united to Jesus, therefore, if we wish to do anything good and to merit everlasting life. Otherwise the supernatural life of grace will not be transmitted to us. If Jesus is not there, death comes into our souls. Let us remain close to our Divine Redeemer. If we continue to live in Him, He will give us everything we ask as He has promised: If you abide in me, and if my words abide in you, ask whatever you will and it shall be done to you (John 15:7).

3. Do not think, however, that it is sufficient to ask for God's help in order to do good. There is no doubt that His assistance is absolutely essential; but our co-operation with divine grace is equally necessary. The branch on the vine is not inactive. It derives its vitality from the vine and in its turn bears fruit. In the same way we must nurture the supernatural life which God infuses into our souls so that it will mature in good works.

The essence of a holy apostolate is co-operation with the grace of God. This spirit of generous co-operation must transform us personally so that we may be able to change others. This is how the Apostles and Saints acted; this is how we must all act. "By the grace of God I am what I am," St. Paul tells us, "and his grace in me has not been fruitless --- in fact, I have laboured more than any of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me." (I Cor. 15:10).

Implore God's help with humble perseverance. Be faithful to it in an ardent spirit of sacrifice. This is what it means to be a Christian.

The Proper Use of Time

1. "Time is money", runs an old English proverb. But for a Christian time is something much more important. It is the price of eternity. With time well spent or badly spent we can purchase a life of eternal happiness with God or of eternal suffering in hell. Since our true destiny is God and everlasting happiness with God or of eternal suffering in hell. Since our true destiny is God and everlasting happiness, all the time which we spend with this in view is well spent, whereas all that is not devoted to this end is useless or harmful.

We must make a special effort to avoid sloth. There is good reason for aclling it the father of vices. When a man surrenders to laziness he is squandering a priceless treasure which was intended to be used in the service of God and for the sanctification of his own soul and the souls of his fellowmen. He is also disobeying the clear command which God issued after the sin of Adam: In the sweat of your brow you shall eat bread (Gen. 3:19).

The man who is steeped in sloth, moreover, is more vulnerable to the temptations of the devil, the suggestions of the flesh and the frivolous attractions of the world. If our hands are not employed in labour or our minds occupied in study or prayer, we can easily be diverted from our proper purpose and drawn towards sin.

2. The high value of the divine gift of time imposes an obligation on us to avoid laziness. The obligation to avoid sin is still greater. Sin is the most serious way in which we can abuse this gift of God. It is also an act of deep ingratitude in that we turn this treasure which God has bestowed on us into a weapon to be used against the giver of ever good. To use time properly it is necessary to direct all our actions, intentions, and desires towards God, Who is the source of our being and the goal of our earthly pilgrimage.

If everything we do, intend, or desire springs from our love of God and is aimed at the manifestation of His glory and the expansion of His kingdom upon earth, then even our most humble and apparently indifferent actions are precious in the sight of the Most High and receive His blessing. But if we are working for ourselves, for our own satisfaction and petty glorification, we ruin everything. All that we do is barren. If we seek ourselves instead of God, we shall Hear Him say one day: You shall have no reward with your Father in Heaven (Mt. 6:1).

3. As we have said, work, whether manual or mental, is a command of God. We must all work in accordance with our position in life. But work is more than a duty and a natural right. It is also a pleasure. One might say that when we work we are participating in God's work of creation and conservation.

Work makes man noble. Laziness reduces him to an animal level. The Imitation of Christ says: "Rejoice in the evening if you have spent the day profitably." But if we wish this joy to be complete and to last throughout eternity, we must work all the time for God. The effect of this meditation should be a constant dedication of all our actions to God.

Christian Friendship

1. Forget the series of useless and often academic questions which the philosophers asked concerning the nature of friendship. Cicero's definition, however, is worth recording, because it is not far from the Christian concept of friendship. Friends, he says, are those who are united by a bond of affection and of agreement in matters of spiritual and human importance. True friendship is the result of a mysterious and mutual attraction between two person, who grow to know, respect and love one another (De Amic., VI). This friendship would be fleeting and even dangerous if it were nourished by the body rather than by the soul. The soul is eternal. Therefore its love is lasting and passes on into eternity. The body, like the flowers in the fields, is pleasing for a while, then fades and dies. St. Augustine tells us in his Confessions that he was passionately attached to a young man of his own age, who was blooming with the flower of adolescence. But he adds immediately that this was not a genuine friendship, because it did not spring from the charity which the Spirit of God pours into our hearts (St. Augustine, Confessions IV, 4:7). These so-called particular friendships should be avoided as dangerous and contrary to Christian teaching.

2. Cicero also saw virtue as the basis of friendship (De. Amic., XXVII). He said rightly that sincere frienship can exist only between good people (De Amic. V). But the Christian concept of friendship is even deeper. It touches on the supernatural order. True friends love one another in God. Their love must be founded on divine charity (Confessions IV, 4:7).

There is something sacred about friendship in the Christian sense of the word. Mutual love is fostered and elevated by divine charity. Friends love one another not only in this life but also in eternal life. They give one another not only in this life but also in eternal life. They give one another advice. They help one another along the ascending path of virtue, and not merely towards human achievements. They know that their love will last for ever in Heaven.

We should be very grateful to God if we can find a real friend in the full Christian sense. He will be a great consolation and help to us in temporal matters, but above all in our spiritual needs.

3. We should always remember what The Imitation of Christ has to say about friendship. "In me the love of thy friend ought to stand," God is represented as saying, "and for me is he to be loved who ever he be, that appeareth to thee good and much to be loved in this life. Without me friendship can neither profit nor endure; nor is that love true and pure which I do not bind together." (Imit. of Christ, Bk. III, Chapter 42:1)

If we allow ourselves to be guided by these principles, a friend will be a real treasure. He will be a treasure which we shall not lose on earth and which will help us to gain Heaven. The words of St. Augustine are consoling. "We cannot lose a friend, if he is dear to us in God Who is never lost." (Confessions IV, 4:7)

Let us cultivate friendship, but let it be Christian friendship founded on these principles, which come from God and lead us back to Him.

Heaven

1. Faith teaches us that the soul which is in the state of grace and has expiated all the temporal punishments due to its sins, goes immediately to Heaven when it is separated from the body. There the soul enjoys eternal happiness. It sees God face to face. It sees Him without any intervention of created things, but as He is in Himself in the Unity of Trinity of His infinite perfections.

In this beatific vision the intellect remains completely satisfied, because in God there is every truth, beauty and goodness. The will abandons itself entirely to the will of God, desiring nothing else and loving nothing else but God alone. There springs from this abandonment a love which satisfies every desire, an inexpressible joy and a boundless peace. The happy soul will see the Blessed Virgin, too, and she will smile upon it with maternal tenderness. It will see the Angels and Saints gathered around the King of Kings and the Queen of Heaven, singing their praises. St. Paul, who was taken up to the third Heaven, tells us that it is impossible to imagine or to describe the unknown joys which are experienced there. In comparison with the eternal happiness of Heaven, the poor pleasures of this world are empty shadows. We cannot imagine the happiness of those who have gained Heaven by their good lives upon earth. The concept of Heaven is so beautiful and immense that it caused the Saints to desire death as a means of going there. They welcomed suffering, too, because it brought them nearer to their goal.

2. Our souls have an innate desire to be ahppy. God Himself has placed this desire in our hearts. What else are we doing all our lives but trying by every possible means to be happy? Unfortunately, we seek happiness where it is not to be found. Some seek it in material gain, others in honours, others in pleasure. But our hearts are much wider than the riches and honours and pleasures of this world. In comparison with the riches of the human spirit, worldly wealth is a very insignificant thing. Worldly honours are shadows which pass. As the "Imitation of Christ" reminds us, we are what we are before God, not what we appear before men (Bk. III, Chapter 50:8). Pleasure also passes quickly, and when it is immoderate it leaves in our hearts a sense of emptiness and disgust. St. Augustine had a good deal of experience of the deceptiveness and complexity of human happiness. He had reason to exclaim: You have made us for Yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless except in You (Confessions, II, 2:4). We should follow the example of the Saints and aim at Heaven in everything we do. This should be the goal of our earthly journey. We should make sure that all our actions are in conformity with the will of God and directed towards this end.

3. God desires our salvation. God wishes all men to be saved (1 Tim. 2:4). We are all aspirants of Heaven. We shall not be denied the grace of God so long as we ask for it with confidence and perseverance. St. Augustine tells us that Paradise is ours if we wish: You are not called to embrace the earth, but to prepare yourselves for Heaven; not to be the successes of this world nor to a short-lived and transient prosperity, but to eternal life together with the Angels (Serm. 296, 6:7).

Contemplate this true and everlasting happiness. Let us direct towards it our intentions and desires and all our work. Then the day will come when we shall be really happy for all eternity.

Hell

1. In whatever you do, remember your last days, and you will never sin (Ecclus. 7:36).

The meditation considered by the masters of the spiritual life to be the most useful for rousing the soul from sin, or from a state of torpor, is that on the last things, in other words, on what will happen to us at the end of life. Amongst these last things, hell is the most terrifying. Yet, if the mercy of God did not sustain us, we could fall into hell at any moment. St. John Chrysostom meditated on hell every day. All the Saints have found in this meditation the first steps on the way to perfection. Remember that a single mortal sin would merit hell for us. In that moment the sinner could have been already hurled into that abyss of torments. Let us imagine that we are there...and that the goodness and mercy of God has released us from those everlasting, all-devouring flames. If this should happen, all the sacrifices which virtue demands would seem so easy and pleasant. How ready we should be to do anything sooner than retrun to that chasm of eternal sorrow!


2. In that place of never-ending suffering there will be three punishments to torture us. There will be the worm of conscience which does not die: Their worm dies not (Mark 9:43). This is the awful realisation that we could have saved ourselves, but are lost for all eternity; that God gave us so many graces and we damned ourselves by abusing them. Now there is no longer any remedy, because the mercy of God has been succeeded once and for all by His justice.

In the second place, there is fire. This is a real fire, but altogether different from the material fire we know in this world, which was created by God for our benefit and service. The fire of hell, on the other hand, was created by Divine Justice purely to punish us. It is a special kind of fire which tortures body and soul, and the rebel angels as well as damned human beings. It could be called discerning in so far as it torments more or less mercilessly according to the gravity of the sin. These flames embrace every evil and exclude every good. They are flames which will never be exstinguished, flames which burn, but do not consume, flames without light, dark and accompanied by the shrieking of eternal despair. The very thought of this horrible dungeon of torments should spur us on to begin immediately a life of virtue and Christian perfection.

3. The greatest punishment, however, will be that of loss. This is the knowledge that we have lost for ever our one, true, and highest good, God Himself. The soul will now understand fully what it means to have lost God for ever. It will feel irresistibly the need to be united with Him, and to see, enjoy and love Him. But at the same time it will know that God has cast it away from Himself for all eternity. "Go, accursed soul, into everlasting fire!" Then the irresistible need for God will turn to hate and eternal malediction.

The terrifying reality of hell should not leave us amazed, as if it were an act of implacable severity. Rather should it be a warning to us. God should not seem to us to be a pitiless judge, but a judge who is infinitely just and infinitely good. Rather than send us to hell, God gave us His only-begotten Son, Who died on the cross for our sins. Just as the Redemption is a work of infinite love and goodness, so hell is a work of infinite justice.

If we reflect on the mystery of the Incarnation, on the Redemption and on the death of the Son of God, it will appear that, omnipotent though He is, He could not have done more to save us. The divine work of Redemption explains the mystery of the eternity of hell. It is not God Who is relentless. It is the damned soul which was relentlessly ungrateful towards the infinitely good and merciful God.

The Particular and General Judgments

1. It is appointed unto men to die once and after this comes the judgment (Heb. 9:27). To have to appear before the face of the Living God is terrifying for everybody. How much more terrifying will it be for the sinner? Weighed down by numberless sins, he will stand before the scrutinising gaze of God. He will be able to hide nothing. Everything will be evident and clear. The countenance of our Divine Redeemer, which was mild and merciful during life, will at that moment be that of a severe and just judge. After having scorned so many graces, after having spurned so many calls to conversion and so many secret inspirations to change his life, after dying unrepentant...behold the sinner in the presence of his Eternal Judge. At that moment he will hear the irrevocable sentence resounding in his ears: Depart from me, accursed ones, into the everlasting fire which was prepared for the devil and his angels (Mt. 25:41). This terrible condemnation will be publicly repeated, moreover, at the general judgment.

2. How consoling, on the other hand, the last judgment will be for those who have led good lives. They will see God looking upon them with love and mercy and will hear from Him the wonderful invitation: Come, blessed of my Father, take possession of the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world (Mt. 25:35).

On the day of the general judgment these words will be repeated for the confusion of the wicked and the consolation of the good.

Now that we have considered both sides of the picture, let us think deeply about it. We shall have to render an account for all the evil we have done, of all the good things we did badly or from distorted motives, of all the good actions we omitted to do, and of all the time we wasted. Let us examine our consciences carefully before God, our supreme Judge. Let us form whatever firm and worthwhile resolutions seems to be demanded by the circumstances of our lives. Remember that as we have lived, so shall we die, and we shall be judged accordingly.

3. St. Catherine of Siena believed that loyalty to the church and devotion to the Blessed Virgin were two pledges of salvation. In one of her letters she wrote that "he will not die forever who serves the church faithfully." Elsewhere she said that "out of reverence for the Word, the Divine Goodness has granted Our Lady the privilege that any man, good or sinful, who pays her due honour, will not be taken captive by the devil." Consequently, we need not be inordinately afraid of death or of the final judgment, if we love the Church, obey her commandments, and work generously for her triumph in the universe, and if we show a filial devotion to the Blessed Virgin, pray to her and imitate her in virtue as far as possible.

It will be profitable for us to think about death and the last judgment (Cf. Ecclus. 7:36). It will moderate our impatience in tribulations and our inordinate pleasure in consolations. It will be a stimulus to perseverance in good action.

The Death of the Sinner as opposed to that of the Just man

1. The sinner must die also. For him death is really terrible. Imagine him lying on his deathbed, instinctively aware that his life is over. The past will rise up to reproach him, a past full of sin and of ingratitude towards his Creator and Redeemer. The plans which he has centred around profit, ambition, and honour will have vanished like smoke. His friends will have either deserted him or will be at hand to utter useless words which will have no power to comfort him. Now he must stand alone, alone before God.

What will happen at that moment? Perhaps despair will overcome his soul, as it overcame the soul of Judas? Perhaps the innumerable graces which he has despised will tip the balance of Divine Justice towards the abyss of damnation? Or will a final ray of mercy pierce his tired mind, burning with remorse, so that with its last throb his poor heart will turn towards God and implore His pardon? Who can say? It is certain, however, that of the two thieves dying beside the Cross of our Redeemer, only one heard him say: "This day you will be with me in Paradise!" The other remained obdurate in his sin. It is the height of stupidity to wait to be converted at the hour of death.

2. Consider now the death of the just man. Through his dying tears he also will see the world slipping away from him. But one thing will remain to comfort him, namely, the memory of his good actions, of the virtues he acquired, of his fervent prayers, and of his voluntary mortifications. Above all, there will remain his great love for God, for Whom he has lived, worked and drawn breath. In that moment, this love will even increase the flaming desire consuming his poor, frail body to be united to God. He will be able to say, as some of the Saints have said: "I never thought it would be so sweet to die." With St. Louis, he will be able to say: I am going joyfully to meet my God. He will be able to exclaim with St. Charles: "I long for my body to be dissolved so that I may be with Christ!" (Phil. 1:23)

In the sight of God, the death of the good man is a very precious thing. Precious in the eyes of the Lord is the death of His faithful ones (Ps. 115:6).

3. Now that we have witnessed these contrasting scenes, let us examine ourselves in the presence of God. Let each of us ask: What will be my fate? If we can rank ourselves amongst the just, let us thank God. We are not there on our own merits. By the grace of God I am what I am (I Cor. 15:10).

Perhaps we need only reproach ourselves with some deficiency or weakness, but have at the same time a strong desire to serve God and a great love for Him. In this case, we can take heart. We can cast ourselves into the merciful arms of God. But if, on the other hand, we are hardened and habitual sinners, then woe betide us! Perhaps this meditation is the last grace which God will bestow on us.