Chapter Four: Signs of Holiness in Today's World
110. The Pope begins by telling us that "within the framework of holiness offered by the Beatitudes and Matthew 25: 31-46, I would like to mention a few signs or spiritual attitudes that, in my opinion, are necessary if we are to understand the way of life to which the Lord calls us."
Then he tells us that he will not pause to explain the means of sanctification already known to us. Then he just names them and as they are important, I am repeating them here: "the various methods of prayer, the inestimable sacraments of the Eucharist and Reconciliation, the offering of personal sacrifices, different forms of devotion, spiritual direction and many others as well."
The Pope only wants to speak of certain aspects of the call to holiness that he hopes will prove especially meaningful to us.
We will continue with this on Monday as tomorrow is Sunday and Mother's Day and, in most places, we also are celebrating the Feast of the Ascension.
Pope Francis says that "a community that cherishes the little details of love, whose members care for one another and create and open and evangelizing environment, is a place where the risen Lord is present, sanctifying it in accordance with the Father's plan. There are times when, by a gift of the Lord's love, we are granted, amid these little details, consoling experiences of God." From #145 in Gaudete et Exsultatae.
We are now on the last paragraph of Chapter Three and will begin Chapter Four tomorrow. This Exhortation on Holiness says that "Jesus' words are few and straightforward, yet practical and valid for everyone, for Christianity is meant above all to be put into practice. It can also be an object of study and reflection, but only to help us better live the Gospel in our daily lives. I recommend rereading these great biblical texts frequently, referring back to them, praying with them, trying to embody them. They will benefit us; they will make us genuinely happy."
In Gaudete el Exsultatae, #105, Pope Francis tells us that the "best way to discern if our prayer is authentic is to judge to what extent our life is being transformed in the light of mercy. For 'mercy is not only an action of the Father; it becomes a criterion for ascertaining who his true children are.' Mercy is the very foundation of the Church's life.'"
Skipping to #107, "Those who really wish to give glory to God by their lives, who truly long to grow in holiness, are called to be single-minded and tenacious in their practice of the works of mercy."
108. Hedonism and consumerism can prove our downfall, for when we are obsessed with our own pleasure, we end up being all too concerned about ourselves and our rights, and we feel a desperate need for free time to enjoy ourselves. We will find it hard to feel and show any real concern for those in need, unless we are able to cultivate a certain simplicity of life, resisting the feverish demands of a consumer society, which leave us impoverished and unsatisfied. anxious to have it all now....
The Pope also mentions letting ourselves be caught up in superficial information, instant communication...these cause us to waste precious time and become indifferent to the suffering flesh of our brothers and sisters. But, he tells us "Yet even amid this whirlwind of activity, the Gospel continues to resound, offering us the promise of a different life, a healthier and happier life."
Plenty today to reflect on and to make that examination of conscience in dialogue with the Lord that the Pope is asking all of us, all Christians, to make daily.
The importance of the welcoming others is brought out by Pope Francis' going back to Scripture. In #102 Jesus tells us that in welcoming the stranger we welcome him (cf. Mat 25:35) and in the Old Testament, "You shall not wrong a stranger or oppress him, for you yourselves were strangers in the land of Egypt." (Ex 22:21) and so on. He assures us that "this is not a notion invented by some Pope, or a momentary fad. In today's world too, we are called to follow the path of spiritual wisdom proposed by the prophet Isaiah to show what is pleasing to God. "Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover him, and not to hide yourself from our own kin? Then your light shall break froth like the dawn" (58:7-8).
The Pope tells us that the ultimate criterion on which our lives will be judged is what we have done for others. Then he adds in #104 Prayer is most precious, for it nourishes a daily commitment to love. Our worship becomes pleasing to 'God when we devote ourselves to living generously, and allow God's gift, granted in prayer, to be shown in our concern for our brother and sisters."
There is much to reflect on here and to make that daily examination of conscience in dialogue with the Lord. And we have much to be grateful for each day, too.
Another harmful ideological error that the Pope points out in #101 is found in "those who find suspect the social engagement of others, seeing it as superficial, worldly, secular, materialist, communist or populist. Or they relativize it, as if there are other more important matters, or the only thing that counts is one particular ethical issue or cause that they themselves defend." Here the Holy Father wants us to know that our defence of the unborn needs to be clear, firm, and passionate, but "equally sacred are the lives of the poor, those already born, the destitute, the abandoned and the underprivileged, the vulnerable infirm and elderly exposed to covert euthanasia, the victims of human trafficking, new forms of slavery, and every form of rejection."
He goes on to say that we "cannot uphold and ideal of holiness that would ignore injustice in a world where some revel, spend with abandon and live only for the latest consumer goods, even as others look on from afar, living their entire lives in abject poverty."
The Pope, in #100 of his Exhortation to Holiness, reminds us that "there is the error of those Christians who separate Gospel demands from their personal relationship with the Lord, from their interior union with him, from openness to his grace."
Then the Pope names some of the great saints and tell us:
"For these great saints, mental prayer, the love of God and the reading of the Gospel in no way detracted from their passionate and effective commitment to their neighbors; quite the opposite."
Holy people always seem to have time to help, to take an interest in others.
This Exhortation is really calling me to discern what the Lord may be asking of me. How am I spending my time? What needs to change in my life?
Collect: Grant, almighty God, that we may celebrate with heartfelt devotion these days of joy, which we keep in honor of the risen Lord, and that what we relive in remembrance we may always hold to in what we do.
The Gospel of John is so beautiful (Jn 15:9-17):
"Jesus said to his disciples, 'As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love.'"
Just that first verse is enough to keep us in prayer all week!
Jesus also tells us: "I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and your joy might be complete. This is my commandment: love one another as I love you...."
One thing that the Pope states later in his Exhortation on Holiness is: "I ask all Christians not to omit, in dialogue with the Lord, a sincere daily examination of conscience. (#169)
I guess we could all examine ourselves on love.
From Gaudete et Exsultate continued: (underlining is mine)
96. "Holiness, then, is not about swooning in mystic rapture....In this call to recognize him in the poor and the suffering, we see revealed the very heart of Christ, his deepest feelings and choices, which every saint seeks to imitate.
97. "Given these uncompromising demands of Jesus, it is my duty to ask Christians to acknowledge and accept them in a spirit of genuine openness, sine glossa. In other words, without any 'ifs or buts' that could lessen their force. Our Lord made it very clear that holiness cannot be understood or lived apart from these demands, for mercy is 'the beating heart of the Gospel.'"
How often do I have some ifs or buts? Why do I procrastinate?
I have energy for what I really want to do, but often use the excuse "if I just had more energy" and that really is no excuse!
I am continuing with the Pope"s Exhortation but trying now to only give some of his thoughts for reflection. I will give the number so you can look up the entire paragraph later.
98. "If I encounter a person sleeping outdoors on a cold night, I can view him or her as an annoyance, an idler, an obstacle in my path, a troubling sight, a problem for the politicians to sort out, or even a piece of refuse cluttering a public space. Or I can respond with faith and charity, and see in this person a human being with a dignity identical to my own, a creature infinitely loved by the Father, an image of God, a brother or sister redeemed by Jesus Christ. That is what it is to be a Christian!
Can holiness somehow be understood apart from this lively recognition of the dignity of each human being?"
I hope we can always respond with faith and charity. The underlining is mine!
Pope Francis begins by reminding us that if we seek holiness pleasing to God's eyes, this text offers us one clear criterion on which we will be judged. "I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me" (Mt 25: 35-3).
In fidelity to the Master
96. "Holiness, then, is not about swooning in mystic rapture....
In this call to recognize him in the poor and suffering, we see revealed the very heart of Christ, his deepest feelings and choices, which every saint seeks to imitate.
97. Given these uncompromising demands of Jesus, it is my duty to ask Christians to acknowledge and accept them in a spirit of genuine openness, sine glossa. In other words, without any "ifs or buts" that could lessen their force. Our Lord made it very clear that holiness cannot be understood or lived apart from these demands, for mercy is "the beating heart of the Gospel".
I thought that I could finish the Third Chapter on the Beatitudes today, but Pope Francis has quite a bit to say about this last Beatitude: " Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." I will just give some of this Beatitude and go on to Chapter 4 tomorrow.
90. Jesus himself warns us that the path he proposes goes against the flow, even making us challenge society by the way we live and, as a result, becoming a nuisance. He reminds us how many people have been, and still are, persecuted simply because they struggle for justice, because they take seriously their commitment to God and to others. Unless we wish to sink into an obscure mediocrity, let us not long for an easy life, for
"whoever would save his life will lose it" (Mt 16:25)
91. In living the Gospel, we cannot expect that everything will be easy, for the thirst for power and worldly interests often stands in our way....
92. Whatever weariness and pain we may experience in living the commandment of love and following the way of justice, the cross remains the source of our growth and sanctification....
93. Here we are speaking about inevitable persecution, not the kind of persecution we might bring upon ourselves by our mistreatment of others....
94. Persecutions are not a reality of the past, for today too we experience them, whether by the shedding of blood, as is the case with so many contemporary martyrs, or by more subtle means, by slander and lies. Jesus calls us blessed when people "utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account" (Mt 5:11). At other times, persecution can take the form of gibes that try to caricature our faith and make us seem ridiculous.
Accepting daily the path of the Gospel, even though it may cause us problems: that is holiness.
