Spirituality Matters: May 19th - May 25th
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“Each of us hears them speaking in our own tongue about the marvels that God has accomplished.”
Despite the fact that they were speaking to many people from many languages and many cultures, the apostles were understood by all of their listeners as they proclaimed the marvels that God had accomplished. How was this possible?
Inflamed by the power of the Holy Spirit, the apostles were speaking the language of the heart. They were speaking with enthusiasm. They were speaking with gratitude. They were speaking with praise and thanksgiving. They were speaking from their core. They were speaking from their soul. In short, they were speaking the universal language – the language of the heart.
We are most human - we are also most divine - when we speak the language of the heart, when we speak the language of love, when we speak and listen from the soul and when we are grounded in the Word Made Flesh.
Communicating is often easier said than done. We misunderstand one another. We presume to know what others are thinking or feeling. We use the same words for which we have different meanings. We have different ways of saying the same thing. We hear, but we fail to listen. We are always talking, but we so seldom share something of the soul.
St. Francis de Sales tells us that the Holy Spirit comes to inflame the hearts of believers. When we speak and listen from hearts inflamed with joy, truth and gratitude, conflict gives way to understanding, confusion gives way to clarity, estrangement gives way to intimacy, hurt gives way to healing, frustration gives way to forgiveness, violence gives way to peace and sin gives way to salvation.
Today, be it through speaking or hearing, how might we become more fluent in the language of love?
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“All these devoted themselves with one accord to prayer, together with some women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers.”
In his Treatise on the Love of God, Francis de Sales made the following observation regarding the Blessed Virgin Mary, who is both Mother of the Messiah and Mother of the Church:
“Since maternal love is the most urgent, the most active and the most ardent of all forms of love, how much it must have worked in the heart of such a Mother and for the heart of such a Son?...Hence, it is true that this Mother is ‘the mother of fair love’, that is, the most worthy of love just as she is the most loving, and the most loving just as she is the most beloved Mother of this unique Son. He is, in turn, the most worthy of love, the most loving and the most beloved Son of this unique Mother.” (BK 3, Chapter 8)
Just today, how might we imitate the love of so unique and loving a Mother in our relationships with one another?
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“Where do the wars and where do the conflicts among you come from?”
In his Introduction to the Devout Life, Francis de Sales offers some insight regarding the question raised in today’s selection from the Letter of James:
“It often happens that good people, all with good intentions, because of conflicting ideas stir up great persecutions and attacks on one another.”
What is the source of conflicts among us? Often times, it’s because while we may agree on the things in life that really matter, we may have very different ideas regarding how to make those priorities a reality, especially when we may “dig in” or become uncompromising in our dealings with others.
What is a remedy for such conflicts, which of course are part and parcel of our lives as human beings? It may be high theology, but it might be helpful to remember this image: when it comes to addressing/resolving conflicts, perhaps the reason that God gave us two ears and one mouth is with the hope that we would listen more and speak less.
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“Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we shall go into such and such a town, spend a year there doing business, and make a profit’– you have no idea what your life will be like tomorrow.
In this selection from the letter of James, we hear in one of Jesus’ disciples wisdom from the Master himself. In the Gospel of Matthew (chapter 6: 28 – 36), Jesus observed:
“Can any of you by worrying add a single moment to your life-span? Why are you anxious about clothes? Learn from the way the wildflowers grow. They do not work or spin. But I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was clothed like one of them. If God so clothes the grass of the field, which grows today and is thrown into the oven tomorrow, will he not much more provide for you, O you of little faith? So do not worry and say, ‘What are we to eat?’ or ‘What are we to drink?’ or ‘What are we to wear?’ All these things the pagans seek. Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you besides. Do not worry about tomorrow; tomorrow will take care of itself. Sufficient for a day is its own evil.”
Let’s be clear – it’s prudent to have a plan. It’s prudent to prepare for tomorrow. It is only natural to anticipate what the future may bring. But, as our own lived experience repeatedly reminds us, the only time we actually have at our disposal is today: now, this hour and this moment. We can hope for tomorrow, but we can’t always count on tomorrow.
Of course, Jesus’ insight was clearly not lost on Francis de Sales. In a letter of spiritual direction, Francis wrote:
“Do not look forward to what might happen tomorrow. The same everlasting Father who cares for you today will take care of you tomorrow and every day. Either He will shield you from suffering or He will give you unfailing strength to bear it. Be at peace then, and put aside all anxious thoughts and imaginations.”
With an eye to tomorrow, let us do our level best to pursue that which is within our power – to live TODAY well!
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“Keep salt in yourselves and you will have peace with one another."
Salt is essential for life in general, and saltiness is one of the basic human tastes. Salt is one of the oldest and most ubiquitous food seasonings, and salting is an important method of food preservation. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salt)
In his commentary on this closing verse of today’s Gospel of Mark, William Barclay made the following observation:
“Here we must take salt in the sense of purity. The ancients declared that there was nothing in the world purer than salt because it came from the two purest things – the sun and the sea. The very glistening whiteness of salt was a picture of purity. So, this will mean, ‘Have within yourselves the purifying influence of the Spirit of Christ. Be purified from selfishness and self-seeking, from bitterness and anger and grudge-bearing. Be cleansed from irritation and moodiness and self-centeredness, and then – and then only – will you be able to live in peace with your fellow men and women.’ In other words, Jesus is saying that it is only the life that is cleansed of self and filled with Christ that can live in real fellowship with others.” (Daily Bible Series, Mark, p. 236)
In a letter of spiritual direction, Francis de Sales wrote:
“Self-love, then, is one of the sources of our disturbance. The other is the importance we give ourselves. Why is it that when we happen to commit some imperfection or sin, we are so surprised, upset and impatient? Without doubt, it is because we thought we were something special, resolute and steady, and therefore, when we discover that in reality, we are nothing of the kind and have fallen flat on our face, we are disappointed, and consequently we are vexed, offended and upset. If we really knew ourselves well, instead of being astonished at finding ourselves on the ground we would marvel that we ever manage to remain standing up. That’s the other source of our disquiet: we want nothing but consolation and are taken aback when we see and experience our misery, our nothingness and our weakness.”Nothing will make us lose our taste for life and love more quickly than self-love. Nothing will help us maintain – and increase – our taste for life and love more quickly than the love of God.
And neighbor!
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“Do not complain, brothers and sisters, about one another, that you may not be judged.”
In his Introduction to the Devout Life, Francis de Sales observed:
“Complain as little as possible about the wrongs you suffer. Undoubtedly, a person who complains commits a sin by doing so, since self-love always feels that injuries are worse than they really are. Above all, do not complain to irascible or fault-finding persons. If there is just occasion for complaining to someone either to correct an offense or restore peace of mind, do so with those who are even-tempered and who really love God. Otherwise, instead of calming your mind said others will stir up worse difficulties and instead of pulling out the thorn that is hurting you they will simply drive it deeper into your foot.” (IDL, Part III, p. 130).”
In a letter of spiritual direction, Francis wrote:
“Strong and staunch hearts only complain when there is really something important to complain about, and even then they do not harbor resentment – at least, they do not succumb to fuss and agitation.” (Stopp, Selected Letters, p. 207)
What’s the takeaway from today’s first reading? If you must complain (1) do it for something really important, (2) do it with people who won’t make it worse and (3) move on when you’re done.
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“Let the children come to me.”
In his commentary regarding this Gospel passage from Mark, William Barclay makes the following observations. What is it about the child – and/or children – that Jesus liked and valued so much?
“First, there is the child’s humility. A child has not yet learned to think in terms of place and pride and prestige. A child has not yet learned to discover the importance of self.”
“Second, there is the child’s obedience. A child’s natural instinct is to obey, that is, to listen. A child has not yet learned the pride and false independence which separates a person from others and God.”
“Third, there is the child’s trust. We see this is a child’s acceptance of authority and in a child’s confidence in other people.”
“Finally, a child has a short memory. A child has not yet learned to bear grudges and nourish bitterness. “
Indeed, of such is the Kingdom of God! How might we follow/imitate the example of such little ones as adults just today!?