secular Institute for the laity under religious vows

Here is Today's Saint of the day! from Americancatholic.org


January 5, 2006
St. John Neumann
(1811-1860)



Perhaps because the United States got a later start in the history of the world, it has relatively few canonized saints, but their number is increasing.

John Neumann was born in what is now the Czech Republic. After studying in Prague, he came to New York at 25 and was ordained a priest. He did missionary work in New York until he was 29, when he joined the Redemptorists and became its first member to profess vows in the United States. He continued missionary work in Maryland, Virginia and Ohio, where he became popular with the Germans.

At 41, as bishop of Philadelphia, he organized the parochial school system into a diocesan one, increasing the number of pupils almost twentyfold within a short time.

Gifted with outstanding organizing ability, he drew into the city many teaching communities of sisters and the Christian Brothers. During his brief assignment as vice provincial for the Redemptorists, he placed them in the forefront of the parochial movement.

Well-known for his holiness and learning, spiritual writing and preaching, on October 13, 1963, he became the first American bishop to be beatified. Canonized in 1977, he is buried in St. Peter the Apostle Church in Philadelphia.

Comment:

Neumann took seriously our Lord's words, "Go and teach all nations." From Christ he received his instructions and the power to carry them out. For Christ does not give a mission without supplying the means to accomplish it. The Father's gift in Christ to John Neumann was his exceptional organizing ability, which he used to spread the Good News.

Today the Church is in dire need of men and women to continue in our times the teaching of the Good News. The obstacles and inconveniences are real and costly. Yet when Christians approach Christ, he supplies the necessary talents to answer today's needs. The Spirit of Christ continues his work through the instrumentality of generous Christians.

Quote:

"All people of whatever race, condition or age, in virtue of their dignity as human persons, have an inalienable right to education. This education should be suitable to the particular destiny of the individuals, adapted to their ability, sex and national cultural traditions, and should be conducive to amicable relations with other nations in order to promote true unity and peace in the world. True education aims to give people a formation which is directed towards their final end and the good of that society to which they belong and in which, as adults, they will have their share of duties to perform." (Declaration on Christian Education, 1, Austin Flannery translation).


(This entry appears in the print edition of Saint of the Day.)

You know homosexuality is a hot topic in the Catholic Church today!
What are your feeling on the subjuct?

Nancyann

Prepared pursuant to a 1994 request by then-Pope John-Paul II for a study on the admission of homosexual men to seminary training and from thence ordination into the priesthood, the document Instruction on Criteria of Vocational Discernment regarding Persons with Homosexual Tendencies in View of their Admission to the Priesthood and to Holy Orders neither is anything "new" nor a "response to The Church's recent pedophilia embarassments". It is the result of a decade long endeavor conducted by The Congregation for Catholic Education, an effort which involved consultation with and among all the bishops of The Church, testimony from experts in psychology and sacramental and moral theology, educators, and philosophers. It was vetted through all the Roman Curia, and found to be not in error in any particular and wholly congruent with the Eternal Teachings and Traditions of The Church. Looking back 2 decades prior to the initiation of the Instrucion's preparation process, we find:



Any who profess surprise or dismay at the content and tenor of the Instruction do so in ignorance, or at the very least denial, of The Church and Her Teachings. That else than what this Instruction asserts and portends might have been expected stretches the bounds of credulity. Disingenuousness does not serve to describe the necessary mindset entailed by such surprise or dismay; only stupidity approaches the reality. Nobody who failed to see this coming should be allowed near moving traffic without an escort.

Under the theory that God would not prohibit us from doing anything beneficial, would the prohibition against homosexuality perhaps be for our own good?

After all, has anyone ever touted homosexuality as a healthy lifestyle?

Thanks Timber for all of the information and for the editorial and highlighting! And Neo thanks for the added questioning for all of to think about! Anyone else have any thoughts at all?

n

St Thomas Aquinas
from americancatholic.org

Saint Thomas Aquinas
Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) lived at a critical juncture of western culture when the arrival of the Aristotelian corpus in Latin translation reopened the question of the relation between faith and reason, calling into question the modus vivendi that had obtained for centuries. This crisis flared up just as universities were being founded. Thomas, after early studies at Montecassino, moved on to the University of Naples, where he met members of the new Dominican Order. It was at Naples too that Thomas had his first extended contact with the new learning. When he joined the Dominican Order he went north to study with Albertus Magnus, author of a paraphrase of the Aristotelian corpus. Thomas completed his studies at the University of Paris, which had been formed out of the monastic schools on the Left Bank and the cathedral school at Notre Dame. In two stints as a regent master Thomas defended the mendicant orders and, of greater historical importance, countered both the Averroistic interpretations of Aristotle and the Franciscan tendency to reject Greek philosophy. The result was a new modus vivendi between faith and philosophy which survived until the rise of the new physics. Thomas's theological writings became regulative of the Catholic Church and his close textual commentaries on Aristotle represent a cultural resource which is now receiving increased recognition. The following account concentrates on Thomas the philosopher and presents him as fundamentally an Aristotelian.

From St Thomas Aquinas


ASK ANYTHING





"Ask anything."



My Lord said to me.



And my mind and heart thought deeply

for a second,



then replied with just one word,



"When?"



God's arms then opened up and I entered Myself.

I entered myself when I entered

Christ.



And having learned compassion I

allowed my soul



to stay.





From "Love Poems From God" by Daniel Ladinsky.
Copyright © 1999 by Daniel Ladinsky. Reprinted by permission of the author.

from Wikipedia

from also St. Thomas Aquinas' theory on moral theology, an exerpt:

7) The "Summa theologica" -- This work immortalized St. Thomas. The author himself modestly considered it simply a manual of Christian doctrine for the use of students. In reality it is a complete scientifically arranged exposition of theology and at the same time a summary of Christian philosophy (see SUMMÆ). In the brief prologue St. Thomas first calls attention to the difficulties experienced by students of sacred doctrine in his day, the causes assigned being: the multiplication of useless questions, articles, and arguments; the lack of scientific order; frequent repetitions, "which beget disgust and confusion in the minds of learners". Then he adds: "Wishing to avoid these and similar drawbacks, we shall endeavour, confiding in the Divine assistance, to treat of these things that pertain to sacred doctrine with brevity and clearness, in so far as the subject to he treated will permit." In the introductory question, "On Sacred Doctrine", he proves that, besides the knowledge which reason affords, Revelation also is necessary for salvation first, because without it men could not know the supenatural end to which they must tend by their voluntary acts; secondly, because, without Revelation, even the truths concerning God which could be proved by reason would be known "only by a few, after a long time, and with the admixture of many errors". When revealed truths have been accepted, the mind of man proceeds to explain them and to draw conclusions from them. Hence results theology, which is a science, because it proceeds from principles that are certain (Answer 2). The object, or subject, of this science is God; other things are treated in it only in so far as they relate to God (Answer 7). Reason is used in theology not to prove the truths of faith, which are accepted on the authority of God, but to defend, explain, and develop the doctrines revealed (Answer 8). He thus announces the division of the "Summa": "Since the chief aim of this sacred science is to give the knowledge of God, not only as He is in Himself, but also as He is the Beginning of all things, and the End of all, especially of rational creatures, we shall treat first of God; secondly, of the rational creature's advance towards God (de motu creaturae rationalis in Deum); thirdly, of Christ, Who, as Man, is the way by which we tend to God." God in Himself, and as He is the Creator; God as the End of all things, especially of man; God as the Redeemer -- these are the leading ideas, the great headings, under which all that pertains to theology is contained.

(a) Sub-divisions

The First Part is divided into three tracts:

* On those things which pertain to the Essence of God;
* On the distinction of Persons in God (the mystery of the Trinity);
* On the production of creatures by God and on the creatures produced.

The Second Part, On God as He is in the End of man, is sometimes called the Moral Theology of St. Thomas, i.e., his treatise on the end of man and on human acts. It is subdivided into two parts, known as the First Section of the Second (I-II, or 1a 2ae) and the Second of the Second (II-II, or 2a 2ae).

* The First of the Second. The first five questions are devoted to proving that man's last end, his beatitude, consists in the possession of God. Man attains to that end or deviates from it by human acts, i.e. by free, deliberate acts. Of human acts he treats, first, in general (in all but the first five questions of the I-II), secondly, in particular (in the whole of the II-II). The treatise on human acts in general is divided into two parts: the first, on human acts in themselves; the other, on the principles or causes, extrinsic or intrinsic, of those acts. In these tracts and in the Second of the Second, St. Thomas, following Aristotle, gives a perfect description and a wonderfully keen analysis of the movements of man's mind and heart.
* The Second of the Second considers human acts, i.e., the virtues and vices, in particular. In it St. Thomas treats, first, of those things that pertain to all men, no matter what may be their station in life, and, secondly, of those things that pertain to some men only. Things that pertain to all men are reduced to seven headings: Faith, Hope, and Charity; Prudence, Justice, Fortitude, and Temperance. Under each title, in order to avoid repetitions, St. Thomas treats not only of the virtue itself, but also of the vices opposed to it, of the commandment to practise it, and of the gift of the Holy Ghost which corresponds to it. Things pertaining to some men only are reduced to three headings: the graces freely given (gratia gratis datae) to certain individuals for the good of the Church, such as the gifts of tongues, of prophecy, of miracles; the active and the contemplative life; the particular states of life, and duties of those who are in different states, especially bishops and religious.

WHO CAN JUDGE? WHAT DO YOU THINK?



Cardinal O'Connor's Homily



Palm Sunday

Error of Clintons' Communion occasions cardinal's discourse on the Eucharist

This is the text of Cardinal O'Connor's homily at Palm Sunday Mass in St. Patrick's Cathedral April 5.

I would ask that all of you here remember in this Mass today, in the generosity of your prayers, the soul of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King who was tragically assassinated 30 years ago yesterday. Moreover, may I remind you that Passover begins the day after Good Friday and runs through Easter. We pray for a fruitful and a holy season for our Jewish brothers and sisters, together with us sons and daughters of the One God and descendants of Abraham.

Permit me to begin with a beautiful passage from St. Andrew of Crete who reminds us specifically of what Palm Sunday means. The meaning is much deeper than the external aspects of today's beautiful ceremonies. St. Andrew says:

"Let us go together to meet Christ on the Mount of Olives. Today he returns from Bethany and proceeds of his own free will toward his holy and blessed passion, to consummate the mystery of our salvation....

"Let us run to accompany him as he hastens toward his passion and imitate those who met him then, not by covering his path with garments, olive branches or palms, but by doing all we can to prostrate ourselves before him by being humble and by trying to live as he would wish. Then we shall be able to receive the Word at his coming, and God, whom no limits can contain, will be within us.

"...So let us spread before his feet, not garments or soulless branches, which delight the eye for a few hours and then wither, but ourselves clothed in his grace, or rather, clothed completely in him. We who have been baptized into Christ must ourselves be the garments that we spread before him...Let our souls take the place of the welcoming branches as we join today in the children's holy song: Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, Blessed is the king of Israel."

With a certain sadness, I wish to read a statement about a recent widely publicized event in South Africa. I am fully conscious, of course, that today is Palm Sunday. I read this statement not despite the fact that it is Palm Sunday but in part precisely because it is Palm Sunday and we begin the holiest week of the year. It was during this week that Jesus gave us the most precious gift that even he could give us, himself in the Holy Eucharist. No gift could be more sacred.

This statement is in no way a political statement, nor is it a questioning of anyone's character or good will. It is a statement of a bishop required to teach what the Church teaches, the pastor of a major archdiocese whose silence could otherwise mislead many faithful people.

Many letters have been received from Catholics perplexed by the reports that a South African priest gave Holy Communion to the President of the United States and his wife. Purportedly, a number of other non-Catholics received, as well. I share their perplexity.

My statement has nothing whatsoever to do with the person of the President or his wife or any of the allegations concerning any alleged misbehavior. It has everything to do with Church law and our teaching about the Holy Eucharist, this rarest of gifts.

First, Church law. Following the event in South Africa the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments in Rome made clear once again, on March 31, at the Vatican, what I had assumed every bishop and priest has always known and practiced. I quote: "Since this is a person who is not a Catholic, he cannot be admitted to Eucharistic Communion. This is a canonical norm...and therefore no bishops' conference can advance a different rule." That would include the Bishops' Conference of South Africa.

The Congregation's spokesman went on to say that exceptions authorized by Church law were limited and designed for situations in which other Christians are unable to worship in their own churches. So, for example, an Orthodox Christian unable to find an Orthodox Church in his or her area could receive Holy Communion in the Roman Church.

This, however, is not the only requirement, that is that there not be a church of one's denomination available. As a spokesman of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity stated relative to this same incident in South Africa, "...in general the Catholic Church permits access to its Eucharistic Communion...only to those who share its oneness in faith, worship and eternal life." The Church's official Code of Canon Law permits non-Catholics to receive Communion in the Catholic Church in cases of "grave necessity," when certain other circumstances are fulfilled as noted above, and if, and this is critical, they believe what Catholics believe about the Eucharist.

This brings us to the second crucial point, Church doctrine. I quote from the Catechism of the Catholic Church, the authoritative articulator of Church doctrine: "The Eucharist is the efficacious sign and sublime cause of that communion in the divine life and that unity of the People of God by which the Church is kept in being...In brief, the Eucharist is the sum and summary of our faith. 'Our way of thinking [as Catholics] is attuned to the Eucharist, and the Eucharist in turn confirms our way of thinking.' [St. Iranaeus]." The Eucharist is our way of life, the essence of our faith.

In other words, Holy Communion means not only our union with Christ in the Eucharist, but our union with other Catholics holding the same beliefs in the real presence of Christ, Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity. To receive Holy Communion in the Catholic Church means that one believes one is receiving, not a symbol of Christ, but Christ Jesus himself. One is not engaging simply in a memorial gesture toward the Last Supper and the crucifixion, however reverent and well intended. The Eucharist is the fruit of the Sacrifice of the Mass today. Christ is spiritually, mysteriously sacrificed today. This is what we believe. We are receiving the same Christ the Apostles received at the Last Supper. We are receiving in actuality the same Christ conceived and born of Mary, crucified and risen. It is not a symbolic Christ, it is the same Christ. It is our belief in this reality that is essential to our being a Catholic community, that unity, as the Catechism says, "By which the Church is kept in being...the sum and summary of our faith."

Permit me to digress for a moment from this formal statement to cite a letter along these lines unrelated to the incident in South Africa that I received just the other day from a priest in Louisiana. This priest writes to me:

"Recently, I received a letter from a young woman with whom I went to Catholic grade school who has recently left the Catholic Church. In her letter to me, she begged me to accept Jesus as my Lord and Savior and to give up the Catholic Church. In reflecting upon her letter, I thought about all that I would miss were I no longer a part of the one, holy, Catholic and apostolic Church. In my response to her, I gave a simple profession of faith concerning what I know I would miss the most, the gift of the Eucharist."

What would our faith be without our belief in this gift of the Eucharist?

Here is what our Holy Father, Pope John Paul II, says of the Holy Eucharist.

"The sacrifice of the Cross is so decisive for the future of man that Christ did not carry it out and did not return to the Father until he had left us the means to take part in it as if we had been present. Christ's offering on the Cross--which is the real Bread of Life broken--is the first value that must be communicated and shared. The Mass and the Cross are but one and the same sacrifice. Nevertheless the Eucharistic breaking of bread has an essential function, that of putting at our disposal the original offering of the Cross. It makes it actual today for our generation. By making the Body and Blood of Christ really present under the species of bread and wine, it makes--simultaneously--the Sacrifice of the Cross actual and accessible to our generation, this Sacrifice which remains, in its uniqueness, the turning point of the history of salvation, the essential link between time and eternity."

From such words it should be clear that Holy Communion is neither to be received nor to be given as merely an act of courtesy or a spiritual gesture. This introduces one more critical factor, applicable to ourselves and to all Catholics. Believing what we believe about the Holy Eucharist, we are forbidden to receive this Holy Mystery, this "turning point of the history of salvation" unless we are in the state of grace. We may not receive if we are in the state of grave sin until we have first received the sacrament of penance or reconciliation, in other words, "gone to confession."

Clearly, it is not for me to judge the conscience nor the motivation of a priest, or certainly of the President and First Lady of the United States. Nor am I the responsible authority to determine what must be done anywhere except in the Archdiocese of New York. But the Church is, the Code of Canon Law is, the Holy See is the responsible authority everywhere. According to such authority and in my own unconditional conviction, the action taken by the priest in South Africa, however well intentioned, was legally and doctrinally wrong in the eyes of Church law and Church doctrine.

Some of the mail I have received comes from struggling Catholics, who, because of some grave impediment, such as an invalid marriage, may not receive Holy Communion. Only last Sunday, I met with some 400 such individuals; it was a deeply moving meeting. More than anything else, they expressed as their primary sadness their denial of Holy Communion. They also expressed their desire to have their marriages validated, if possible. My heart goes out to them. I understand how an event such as that in South Africa could scandalize and pain them. Some undoubtedly believe that if one has enough prestige or money, anything goes, just as some believe that with enough prestige or money one has no trouble in having an invalid marriage validated. Neither belief is rooted in reality, but in my judgment, priests, bishops, the Church herself must avoid every action which might be perceived to give credibility to such beliefs.

Let it be clear that in the Archdiocese of New York only those practices are acceptable which accord fully with Church law, Church doctrine and the authority of the Holy See. Our bishops and priests, in fact, adhere to these practices without need of reminder from me.

I say all that I have said, again sadly, with malice toward none and charity toward all. Let this be a teaching moment for all of us.



Return to Cardinal O'Connor's Homily Archives

Aquinas' Summa is exquisite, a masterpiece of Aristotelean logic. Only problem with it is that it proceeds from the illicit premise that there may be, must be, and therefore is, a God.

From The NCR


Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary -- The Mother of God January 1, 2006


Thomas J. Gumbleton
Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese
of Detroit, Michigan *

This week's readings **

Numbers 6:22-27
Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, "Speak to Aaron and to his sons, saying, 'Thus you shall bless the sons of Israel. You shall say to them: The LORD bless you, and keep you; the LORD make His face shine on you, and be gracious to you; the LORD lift up His countenance on you, and give you peace.' So they shall invoke My name on the sons of Israel, and I then will bless them."

Galatians 4:4-7
But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!" Therefore you are no longer a slave, but a son; and if a son, then an heir through God.
Luke 2:16-21
So they came in a hurry and found their way to Mary and Joseph, and the baby as He lay in the manger. When they had seen this, they made known the statement which had been told them about this Child. And all who heard it wondered at the things which were told them by the shepherds. But Mary treasured all these things, pondering them in her heart. The shepherds went back, glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, just as had been told them. And when eight days had passed, before His circumcision, His name was then called Jesus, the name given by the angel before He was conceived in the womb.


* A longtime national and international activist in the peace movement, Bishop Gumbleton is a founding member of Pax Christi USA and an outspoken critic of the sanctions against Iraq.
He has appeared on numerous radio and television programs, and has published numerous articles and reports.

* Scripture texts in this work are in modified form from the American Standard Version of the Bible and are available as part of the public domain.

For your convenience, the Scripture texts, as they appear in the Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States, second typical edition, Copyright ©1998, 1997, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Washington, D.C., may be found at the website of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCC).
http://www.usccb.org/nab/

**The Web link to Pax Christi is provided as a service to our readers.


As we reflect on the scripture lessons today we of course will be continuing to probe the mysteries of Jesus as son of God and son of Mary as we conclude the Christmas season- the mystery of Jesus who is fully human and yet also totally son of God. But we also at this point in our reflection on the coming of Jesus into our world look at this event of his baptism which is recorded in Matthew, Mark and Luke, the three Gospels that kind of go together. And in each of them the scene is a very pivotal point in the life of Jesus, a very important turning point. But as we reflect on what is happening here in the life of Jesus it's very important for us to connect it with our own lives, with our baptism and what that means for each one of us.

There's a difference in the way that Mark describes the baptism of Jesus and the way that Matthew does, in the same way that Luke does. Mark was written first, very soon after Jesus had died and risen from the dead and was raised to heaven, and the early community at that point was still trying to grapple with the whole idea of who Jesus is. And so they're very aware of his humanness. So these are disciples who had lived with him and seen him as one like us in every way and they were still trying to get used to the idea that this Jesus is also son of God! Fully divine! And so in Mark's Gospel as you read about the baptism of Jesus you discover that Jesus, in a sense, in his humanness isn't even sure about himself and what God wants of him.

And so when Jesus, in Mark's Gospel, arises from the water Mark describes what happens as a spiritual experience of Jesus. No one else knows what's happening when Jesus deep in his own spirit hears those words: "Here is my chosen one, my beloved, in whom I am well pleased." And Jesus hears that within himself and because he immediately connects it, as he would since he knows the scriptures so well, with that passage from Isaiah which is our first lesson today; "Here is my servant, my chosen one in whom I am well pleased." Jesus would begin to have a sense of what his call was.



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And in Matthew's Gospel, as you heard a moment ago it's somewhat different. Not a lot different, but this is quite a bit later and by this time the Christian community is totally aware that Jesus is fully God and even put more emphasis on that. And it's a time when the followers of John the Baptist, still some of them, are refusing to follow Jesus. And so Matthew has God speaking for everyone to hear so that it's a way of the church declaring, "Jesus is God. God says it all here, "This my beloved, my son, my chosen one in whom I'm well pleased." It shows us how gradually the church began to understand Jesus and came to accept fully the profound mystery that Jesus is son of God and son of Mary. Fully human and fully divine. A mystery that we rejoice and celebrate as we have these past few weeks every year.

But then, the other thing that's so important today is what Jesus hears about himself and what this means. He's beginning to understand his call and so he hears God saying, "You are my beloved, my chosen one in whom I am well pleased.." And again I remind you that Jesus would have known immediately, or at least as he started to reflect on those words, what that meant. "I, Yahweh have called you for the sake of justice. I will hold your hand to make you firm. I will make you as a covenant to the people and as a light to the nation to open eyes that do not see, to bring out captives from prison, to bring out to light those who sit in darkness." So Jesus has a mission to change the world, to go out into the world and transform it, but what is especially important, and Jesus had to reflect on this deeply, how he was to bring justice to all the nations, to be a light for all the nations, for everyone. How? "Here is my servant whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight. I have put my spirit upon him. He does not shout or raise his voice. Proclamations are not heard in the streets. A broken reed he will not crush nor will he snuff out the light of the wavering wick. He will make justice appear in truth."

It's clear, isn't it, that Jesus has a very special way in which he's called to bring justice. Not by proclamations cried out in the street, a call to war, to violence. That's what those words mean in the Hebrew text. Calling out in the streets was calling people to arms. No, that's not the servant of God. Rather you will act always with gentleness, with love, with compassion, in a nurturing way cause he will not quench the wavering flame, rather nurture it, draw it to fullness. Not break the bruised reed, again nurture, bring to life, to care and tenderness and love. That's the way of the servant and clearly Jesus begins to understand that's how he must act. This is how he is to bring true justice which will bring true peace to all the nations, truly to change our world from a place of violence and hatred, killing and war to as close an image to the reign of God as possible.

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This January 1st when Pope John Paul published his peace day statement for the world day of peace, you remember now for thirty some years on January 1st throughout the world we celebrate a world day of special prayer, special work, special commitment for peace. In his peace day statement this year at one point Pope John Paul says, "To attain the good of peace there must be a clear and conscious acknowledgment that violence is an unacceptable evil and that it never solves problems." He's picking up on the message of Jesus. Violence is an unacceptable evil. It never solves problems. He goes on to say, "Violence is a lie. It goes against the truth of our faith, the truth of our humanity, the truth about Jesus. Violence destroys what it claims to defend, the dignity, the life, the freedom of human beings. What is needed is a great effort to form consciences and to educate the younger generation to goodness, to nonviolence, to love." But not just the younger generation, John Paul was looking to the future and is trying to guarantee that we will become a church that will raise our children to reject violence. But each of us must first do that if we're going to be able to be good teachers to our children. We have to reject violence and killing and war. All of that, as John Paul says, is a lie! It can't and never will solve problems.

I mentioned before mass about the Michigan Peace Team and the display in the back of the church. These are people who say no to violence and with such commitment that they're willing to go and place themselves in places of violence, put themselves between violent factions and preach a different message. And as I mentioned the young woman who took these pictures, a Palestinian woman whose home was destroyed, her whole neighborhood was destroyed, but because she was so inspired by the U.S. person on a peace team, Rachel Corrie, who was killed some time ago she has now committed her life to intervene in that terrible conflict there in a nonviolent way. It's an extraordinary example about what we must try to do.

Clearly the violence of war that we know about and is happening right now in the world, the war in Iraq... I read this morning about the mistake that our military made yesterday or last night- just by thirty miles they drop a 500 pound bomb, missed by thirty miles and it destroys a home and a neighborhood at least 14 people blown apart. That will never bring peace! War only brings hatred and killing and violence. We must as a nation turn away from war. And each of us an individual must say no to war. It can't be. It's violent and it's a lie. It will not bring peace. That's what Jesus is telling us. That's how he lived his life.

But it also comes down to personal violence, violence of the streets. As I mentioned John Harris was killed on Thursday. And what a struggle it is not to want to retaliate, to get even. But somehow we have to go deep into our faith life and find a way to respond as Jesus did- with love, with forgiveness. That's the only way we can bring healing to our ourselves and to the violence that exists in our city and in our nation. The members of Pax Christi from our parish have mentioned to me that they want to go through, once more, a renewal of ,those who have made it, the vow of nonviolence. And they suggested that perhaps there would be other people in the parish who would like to learn more about this and sometime later on after some preparation and some prayer that others would want to commit themselves, through private, personal vows, to give up violence, to make that commitment. Not that we can guarantee that we never would turn to violence again, but at least to make that commitment, "I want to follow the way of Jesus, the way of nonviolence." Today I ask you to think about that and perhaps in a few week, in a couple of months or so, after some preparation more and more of us will be willing to make that step.

It's a very important way to further commit ourselves through the commitment we've already made in baptism. You see, when we are baptized we enter into the life of Jesus, don't we? We say we want to follow Jesus. We commit ourselves to him and to his life and to this way and on this feast of the baptism of Jesus we will be celebrating the baptism of a new member of our parish community, but as we do it all of us are invited to renew our commitment in baptism by repeating the promises of baptism committing ourselves once more to follow Jesus as faithfully as we can. And as we do it today my prayer, my hope is that all of us will make that commitment in a very special way, a commitment to follow Jesus who heard God saying within his heart, "This is my beloved, my chosen one, in whom I am will pleased. He does not cry out loud in the streets, does not break the bruised reed or the wavering flame, quench the wavering flame, but brings true justice and true peace to the world." We must try to make the same commitment, hear God saying that to us. Make the same commitment to bringing God's justice and peace to the world not through violence but through healing, forgiveness, compassion and love. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

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I feel that only Catholics should receive holy communion. But then as I shared in a conversation with someone just yesterday, I receive daily and who am I to receive. I am a sinner!

n

How easy in life it is to not to forgive others when they have wronged us. We have the upper hand when we do that, don't we? As a pastoral counselor and as a spiritual director I have seen little miracles happen when the burden of life of hate and meanness id lifted and someone forgives someone for what they have done to us! We all have been there! Yes we all have been there and all are there! If we cannot forgive the person dirctly, then in prayer, try to forgive them with God, let God handle it with you!


The Women's Book of Empowerment
By Charlene M. Proctor PhD.


Moving Past Pain
Use these affirmations to help you overcome the past and focus on moving forward.

By Charlene M. Proctor, PhD



According to Charlene M. Proctor, PhD, "Every day we have an opportunity to choose our attitude and focus our intentions in the present moment." The following excerpts from her new book, "The Women's Book of Empowerment: 323 Affirmations That Change Everyday Problems into Moments of Potential," explains ways to help overcome the past.

Never allow the past to hold you back from enjoying a full life. What have you got to lose, except a heavy burden? Forgiveness is usually the key to moving forward, which is why it's on the path to gaining insight. When you forgive yourself, and those who have hurt you, you are able to release negative patterns that visit you over and over again. More important, you will finally sever the control that a memory of another person has over you. Stay in the present, affirm the good that has been a result of a bad situation, and love your authentic self even more than you did yesterday. You can do it!

If You Have a Bad Attitude

Today I change my focus by championing a new cause. I am the ambassador of positive thinking. I spread health, wealth, love, and happiness wherever I go. I love watching how my positive statements dissolve negativity in others. I am my own instrument of renewal of positive energy, and my positive outlook is stored deep within me. Every positive statement I make is rewarded.

What was your formation growing up? What is your formation now?

Growing up I had a totally public education. I chose to go to Public Universities, studied classical literature, English liturature, expository writing, pastoral counseling studied under two bishops in the US, studied at the Boston Theological Institute for three years, and continue to take theology and spirituality courses. I long for continuous formation. I wish for you to have continuous formation, to pray, to question your heart daily, this is why I began this forum. I want you to love Holy Church, to question her here and to discuss her here. To discuss your hearts here, to discuss the direction of your life here; this is why I began this forum: to give your heart a fresh start to grow and to think and to begin again each day with your God!

Formation here is primary! Formation with God is my goal! Presentation of the orthodox, the classical with the liberal to show both sides so as to think as mature thinkers--so you can decide for yourselves what is right and wrong for your formation each day with God!

This artical is taken from cruxnew.com

Any thoughts, my friends????????????????


PLATO VS. DEWEY
Pagans or Apostates?

March 2004By Alice von Hildebrand

He who aims at changing society -- for good or for evil -- knows that he should gain control over three things: education, the news media, and entertainment. These are the keys that shape a society.

My concern is education. Great men have always emphasized its crucial importance. To form young minds is to build the future of a society. There is no nobler task, and education begins at home. The mother is the primary educator of her child, for she will spend more time with her babies than the father can, even though his role is also crucial. To educate is to lead, to draw, to guide. The child, inexperienced and unknowing, needs a guiding hand to teach him the elementary rules of human existence. This hand should be both firm and gentle: firm because morally, intellectually, and physically, the child is not yet steady on his legs; gentle because this firmness should be an expression of loving concern for his welfare. Granted that these two qualities are not easily combined, it is typical of great personalities that they manage to unite what -- at first sight -- are irreconcilable opposites.

It is commonly said today that "we have fallen back into paganism." This claim is a gross oversimplification. Granted that man's nature has been wounded by Original Sin, it is definitely not true to claim -- as the Calvinists do -- that it is totally corrupt. We only need turn to the great works of pagan antiquity to see that the best among the pagans were sincere lovers of truth and that their contributions are remarkable even though they were inevitably incomplete. They did not benefit from Christian revelation, but their works prove that there is a natural law inscribed in man's heart, and that men of good will can easily read its dictates. Plato was such a man.

Plato devoted most of his writings to education. His two major works, The Republic and The Laws, are dedicated to this all-important topic. This article aims partly at etching the accomplishments of this great pagan.

Had Plato met Peter Singer (who advocates infanticide at Princeton), he would have been outraged. To place animals on the level of man would have kindled his ire. Some animals can be trained, that is, forced to do the will of the trainer; one can train a dog to take a few steps on two legs. Children can be trained as far as certain physical activities are concerned, but education addresses children as human beings. In this case, the educator worthy of the name does not impose his will upon his pupils; he guides them to do, in collaboration with them, what they ought to do, so that, one day, they will freely do it on their own. The knowledge of this "oughtness" will benefit the child: Knowing the moral law and living up to its norms is essential to man's true development.

Animals are trained so that they can serve us or entertain us. Children are educated because they are worth educating. Plato was keenly conscious of the metaphysical dignity of human beings. Raised in a society where beauty played a prominent role, he tells us that the aim of education is to make a masterpiece of man. A successful educator will help the child become a true man, that is, a human being in whose soul all his potentialities have blossomed.

Education must have a definite aim and purpose. The universe is a book that teaches us how we should approach this awesome task. For it is ruled by harmony: According to The Republic, whether we contemplate the firmament, the mysterious succession of the seasons, or the beauty of the world, we are struck by its harmony and order. Man, on the other hand, if left unguided, is capable of spreading chaos wherever he goes. Education should therefore aim at duplicating the harmonious order of the cosmos in the child's soul.

Moreover, the child possesses both positive and negative qualities which are war with each other. If virtues are overcome by vice, man becomes his own worst enemy. Education should aim at the child's unification, according to The Republic, but this unification should be "in the good." He should become one.

Plato was not acquainted with Genesis, and could not know of man's fall from grace. But he knew that there are two horses in man's soul: a rebellious one and an obedient one, and that the charioteer has great difficulty guiding his chariot because of the unruliness of the disobedient horse. Four centuries before Christ, Plato saw, with remarkable acuteness, that we are split personalities, perceiving what is good, but tempted by evil. The real educator will help the child to develop his good qualities while uprooting his evil tendencies. If he succeeds in doing so, he will help create a type of human character "that heaven can approve of" (The Republic). Education should teach a child "to make up his mind that he will be one of the followers of God…" (The Laws). To revere God (at times Plato writes "the gods") is not only a must, but also crucial to the welfare of a society. For, Plato tells us, ignorance of the highest caused the ruin of the Dorians. He adds: "That was then, and is still, and always will be the case" (The Laws).

The gods are best served by teaching children to pursue moral goodness. A key virtue is reverence -- reverence toward the gods, toward antiquity, toward the moral law. Reverence, little practiced today, is a key word in both The Republic and The Laws. Disrespect for it inevitably leads to ruin.

This duplicity in human beings is also manifested by a tendency to confuse appearance with reality. The awesome task of the educator is to teach his pupil to distinguish between the two, and then to turn to "true reality" (The Republic). What is is, independently of whether or not it is acknowledged to exist.

In The Republic Plato tells us that men are living in a dark den where all that they can perceive is shadows of reality projected on a wall. Inevitably, the "prisoners" will believe that these shadows are the real world. One of them (a true philosopher) manages to escape from the dark cave, and penetrates into the true world, whose brightness at first blinds him. For this reason, he believes he is worse off than before. But slowly his eyesight becomes accustomed to the light, and he discovers that, up to then, he has lived in illusions. Man's spiritual eyesight being weak, the sun -- in all its brightness -- will be perceived last, even though it is the source of light.

Then the philosopher chooses to go back to the den to share his joyful discovery with his fellow prisoners. But alas, when he tries to open their eyes, they want to kill him (a clear reference to the fate of Socrates). Plato knew that men tend to prefer darkness to light. This painful discovery explains why the work of education is so difficult. Yet, Plato does not give up.

It is irrational indeed to prefer darkness to light. For light is lovable; darkness is not. This perverse attitude must be corrected. Once again, it is the task of the educator to guide the child to hate what he ought to hate, and to love what he ought to love (The Laws). It is hard to formulate a better educational program. Though Plato was "a pagan," these few words include what we should all be aiming at: to love what deserves to be loved. Why is the task of the educator so difficult? Plato saw, with a sagaciousness that we can only marvel at, that there are obstacles coming from inside us as well as outside us; their alliance renders the educator's task extremely difficult. What are these enemies of the soul? To ignore their existence is to expose oneself to a certain defeat.

One of the great temptations to which all of us are exposed is pleasure. This is so obvious that shallow thinkers such as Jeremy Bentham see the craving of pleasure and the rejection of pain as the linchpins of ethics! Some will openly declare that if one cannot do what one pleases, "life is not worth living." The educator should aim at liberating the child from the fascination of pleasure. Why is it, Plato asks, that an athlete is willing to undergo a severe training that calls for effort, fatigue, and pain in order to gain an earthly award, but is unwilling to make similar efforts to achieve the greatest victory, the victory over pleasure? This is one of the great aims of education.

But pleasure is not the only enemy lying in wait to ruin the efforts of the educator. We all know that the child (and not only the child) assumes that he needs neither help nor guidance. His immaturity (and maturity does not come with wisdom teeth) is such that he believes he knows better. The story of Pinocchio is so endearing because it is so true. The child will have many unpleasant experiences (such as burning himself) in order to discover that he was mistaken. Some are willing to learn from their mistakes; some never do and ruin their lives. Arrogance becomes particularly dangerous at the age of puberty, when adolescents believe that they know everything (The Laws). They disdain their elders for being old, presuming that being younger makes them wiser. The problem is compounded by the fact that when the adolescent fails, he promptly puts the fault on others. Today, this disease has reached such proportions that tua culpa has replaced the mea culpa of yore.

Numerous are also the obstacles "from outside." Inevitably, the child will observe the conduct of the people he lives with. In the fourth century B.C., Plato laments the practice of "free love" (The Laws), which undermines the structure of family life. Shamelessness among old men was rampant. The child will hear time and again that "might is right," and that moral laws are taboos that should be thrown overboard. Over 24 centuries later, we are exposed to the very same intellectual temptations. We too hear that "falsehood and deceit can be legitimate at time" (The Laws); we too are exposed to "novelties in dancing and music" (The Republic), the rhythm of which is an incentive to shameful passions. In both The Republic and The Laws, Plato warns us of the danger of musical compositions which are "expressive of meanness, insolence and frenzy," the very opposite of the harmony at which education should aim. Immoral arts join forces and destroy man's sense of reverence, which Plato rightly considers to be a key to ethics. The educator should inculcate in his pupils a "reverence for tradition." This reverence must be duplicated in the educator himself, who in educating gives the final touch to his own education. What he is as a person will leave as deep a mark upon his students as what he says, if not deeper.

The child should, from an early age, be exposed to true beauty. Once he has acquired sensitivity for its noble message, he will instinctively reject defect and ugliness in art and nature. "Such deformities will disgust him" (The Republic).

How right Plato was when he wrote that there is "no desire in man to be made good" (The Laws). The child will try to sabotage any effort on the part of the educator to chisel his soul. Plato warns us that there is wickedness in the human heart, which makes man unwilling to listen to the truth. As a matter of fact, man tends to "prefer himself to truth" (The Laws).

The most disastrous temptation to which we are exposed is atheism, which Plato tells us was rampant in Athens in the fourth century B.C. He knew that some men view religion as "a cooking up of words and…make believe" (The Laws). This aberration was deeply upsetting to Plato. "Who can avoid hating and abhorring the men who are and have been the cause of this argument?" (The Laws). Nevertheless, he advocates "persuasion" rather than brutal strength. He also recommends prayer to the gods for their assistance.

What we have said suffices to show that man, when sincerely loving truth, can acquire deep insights about the nature of the universe, and is potentially open to the supernatural. St. Augustine praises Plato as the greatest Greek thinker. He knew that Socrates was not a Christian, for very obvious reasons, but would have agreed with Kierkegaard who wrote that he was "certain that Socrates had now become one." I dare say it also applies to Plato.

This brief sketch now brings us, by comparison, to the present and to the way education has evolved. Most Americans assume that John Dewey deserves to be crowned as the greatest educator of our time. If one is to judge the greatness of a person by his influence and success, this judgment seems to be justified. He certainly is "famous." But the praise of men is rarely an objective judgment: There is an abyss between being famous and being great. The two can match, but unfortunately such is not always the case.

What are the main contributions Dewey has made to education, whose fruits we are reaping today? Being an atheist and materialist, this modern "giant" approaches education from a viewpoint completely opposed to that of Plato. He is a hard-boiled relativist, and rejects ab ovo any claim that there are objective values that should be recognized by everyone and taught to all pupils. According to Dewey, every child is unique, and each one has different needs that must be recognized and nurtured. To have a core curriculum implicitly denies these differences. The obvious consequence is that "the curriculum must be based on the child's individual needs, interest and abilities" (And Madly Teach by Mortimer Smith). This makes as much sense as asking a toddler what he wants to eat for lunch. Chesterton, endowed with a merciless common sense, reminds us that every educator worthy of the name must authoritatively open to the child the great truths that have been handed down by tradition.

If the child should not be taught anything which does not interest him personally, he will practically be taught nothing: Just as men are not particularly anxious to be made good, neither are they particularly anxious to learn. The child as the judge of the curriculum will certainly throw out most subjects. Once again, it is Chesterton who wittily remarks that no child is born with a craving to learn Greek accents. Yet, it is a pursuit which is so enriching that it will open his horizons and benefit him for the rest of his life. Children (and not only children) believe that the purpose and meaning of life is to enjoy themselves; they do not want to work. Most people view work as punishment, and everyone tries to escape its unpleasant demands. This sort of approach will certainly not prepare men for a life that is full of duties that are not always to their taste.

But according to the discoveries of modern pedagogues, every child should be given free rein to express his personality; the less he is controlled, the better it will be for his development.

Such educational principles inevitably give birth to small tyrants who assume that they are entitled to do their own will, and will fight any obstacle in their path that militates against their right to "pursue happiness." Plato knew that "if he be insufficiently or ill educated, he is the most savage of earthly creatures" (The Laws), adding that "the boy is the most unmanageable."

Had he known of Dewey's teachings, Plato would have not been surprised by the Columbine massacre. Is it any wonder that many products of such education should perpetrate the horrors one hears about in our schools -- and universities? Should we be surprised that brutality, crimes, immorality, and cheating are rampant? If the purpose of life is to follow one's wishes -- to have a good time and make money -- teachers are right in being increasingly afraid to enter their classrooms. Morally speaking, the results of this type of education are disastrous. Intellectually, they are no better. Granted, most young people master computers and the Internet, but how many college graduates are capable of holding an intelligent conversation, of writing an elegant letter, of spelling correctly, and having an intellectual horizon transcending what they read in popular magazines? Still less surprising is that they prove incapable of any serious commitment: The breakdown of marriages is an inevitable consequence of this type of education. As long as one's "partner" gives one satisfaction, the agreement will hold. As soon as someone else promises to give one greater "self-fulfillment," it comes to an end -- a simple end, because in point of fact there never was any meaningful commitment.

Dewey spent his life writing and speaking about "education." In fact, this is one thing he knows nothing about. He reminds one of Freud, whose whole life was dedicated to the study of sex, and who -- to cite Dietrich von Hildebrand -- had not even mastered its ABCs. The gist of Dewey's thought is that there is no need for educating a child; he educates himself by following the bend of his wishes and tendencies. Should schools be abolished? No, they are there to help train a child to make money, to succeed. Training replaces educating. In this Dewey is perfectly consistent: Being an animal, all we can do is to help train him.

This critique should not be interpreted as a denial that some of Dewey's contributions could be valuable if interpreted by a wise mind. Plato was right when he wrote that even in the worst of authors there can be something to the point (Phaedrus). We do not deny that fields such as computer sciences, industrial hygiene, community health, home decorating, embalming, etc., have some interest. One thing is certain: They are much more likely to bring money than to teach an objective philosophy, which goes very much against the Spirit of the Times.

The abyss separating Plato from Dewey is their antithetical conception of man: Does man have a nature clearly distinguishing him from animals, or is he just another animal that happens to have a more developed brain? Plato opts for the former, Dewey the latter. One can legitimately ask: Has our "wisdom" kept pace with our scientific development? Compared to modern accomplishments, the Greeks were dwarfs. But when it comes to the science of living (wisdom), we are the midgets, and would do well to acknowledge that our ancestors, who could not fly to the moon, knew better than we how to live.

Dewey's educational system reminds one of a skiff without oars, tossed about by the waves, and always on the brink of disaster.

This leads me to the title of my article: "Pagans or Apostates?" It makes sense to speak of paganism in the sense of a pre-Christian world that had not received the blessing of divine revelation, and was inevitably blind to certain values. One can also refer to certain practices of paganism that fully deserve to be called abominable. But the best among the pagans were open to the light, and made contributions that keep their full value. This is why I have expounded some key ideas of the thinker I personally consider the greatest mind that pagan antiquity has produced.

But there is an abyss between not knowing the light and rejecting it. The latter case applies to many in our society: Having received the plenitude of revealed truth, they do not find it palatable. This is why the world in which we live is threatened by dissolution. It has betrayed the unique heritage that it has received. Being an apostate is much worse than being a pagan. The pagans were ante lucem (before the light). Today, some leading educators try to extinguish what is left of the light of the Gospel.

But there is a note of hope. Many committed Catholics, fully aware of the damage done in schools, have started a counter-revolution: There is a growing number of parents who homeschool their children (some 380,000 families in the U.S.), and more and more real Catholic schools are emerging to replace those that have betrayed their mission to teach the faith in all its integrity. And I hear constantly about new grammar schools, high schools, colleges, and universities that are proud to fly the Catholic flag and to teach their students to appreciate the gift of their faith.

But these schools do not limit themselves to teaching the faith. (After all, Catholic schools and universities are not seminaries.) They aim at educating the mind and heart of those confided to their care. The humanities, languages, art, and science have their legitimate place in the curriculum. But authentic Catholic educators know that an intellectual formation worthy of the name also calls for a moral formation. Such schools offer constant occasions to form the character of students. They should be taught that honesty is an essential virtue, not only in business and human relationships, but also in one's intellectual work. Plagiarism (not an infrequent sin) is widespread; cheating on tests and exams has reached epidemic proportions. Brutality is common. We all know that in secular colleges, students take drugs, enjoy getting drunk on the weekends (if they show such restraint), can be cruel and brutal toward those they do not like, usually because of prejudices.

What a splendid task to guide students to see the beauty of honesty, kindness, generosity, and that the reward is peace. How crucial it is to show that most intellectual errors have been perpetrated by thinkers who "preferred themselves to truth." The most disastrous errors have been produced by "famous" minds.

There is not a word of Plato's educational theories that we cannot fully endorse. But as admirable as Plato's recommendations are, he could never have suspected that man is made in God's image and likeness, and that the meaning of human life is to serve God on this earth, hoping to join Him forever in Heaven.

Alice von Hildebrand is Professor Emerita of Philosophy at Hunter College of the City University of New York. She is the author, most recently, of The Soul of a Lion (Ignatius), about her late husband, the Catholic philosopher Dietrich von Hildebrand; The Privilege of Being a Woman (Veritas Press); and By Love Refined (Sophia Institute Press). She has written extensively for many Catholic periodicals and appears frequently on Mother Angelica's EWTN.




Back to March 2004 Issue

Great Britain
Young career women will soon be routinely freezing their eggs so they can have children after their fertility has declined, experts are predicting.

San Francisco
As he prepares to be deposed in San Francisco next week, Archbishop William Levada may have to come clean about a priestly child molester he protected in Portland.

Austria
Church authorities have discovered that for 25 years a German carpenter has been hoodwinking God-fearing parishes across Austria and Germany into believing he was a Catholic priest.

Slovakia
An attempt by the Vatican to reduce the number of abortions in one of central Europe's most staunchly Roman Catholic countries is being challenged by the European Union.

United States
Bishops and rectors participating in the Vatican-sponsored visitation of American seminaries do not believe it will result in sweeping changes, although some foresee a "tightening up" in the area of moral theology.

Rwanda
The Rwandan government has formally requested France to arrest and extradite a senior Rwandan Catholic priest who is charged with alleged genocide crimes.

New Zealand
A study linking abortion and mental health problems has ignited controversy internationally and may prompt changes to advice for women seeking abortions.

Germany
A German state has said that Muslims applying to immigrate will be singled out for tougher questioning on their views of homosexuality, in a decision blasted in Berlin as discriminatory.

more news...


© 2004 New Oxford Review. All Rights Reserved. March 2004, Volume LXXI, Number 3.

Neo,Timber,Chai and all of you out there, could you suggest any good spiritual books to read for all of us for reading?

I love Scripture just opening it up ang reading it! Also I like reading the readings of the day from mass and also I like asking God a question, praying, then opening the bible and getting my answer! I often do that! What do the rest of you do? Do you read any good books for us to read? Any good suggestions for growth? Prayer? For everyone????

Nancyann

January 7, 2006


St. Raymond of Penyafort


(1175-1275)



Since Raymond lived into his hundredth year, he had a chance to do many things. As a member of the Spanish nobility, he had the resources and the education to get a good start in life.

By the time he was 20, he was teaching philosophy. In his early 30s he earned a doctorate in both canon and civil law. At 41 he became a Dominican. Pope Gregory IX called him to Rome to work for him and to be his confessor. One of the things the pope asked him to do was to gather together all the decrees of popes and councils that had been made in 80 years since a similar collection by Gratian. Raymond compiled five books called the Decretals. They were looked upon as one of the best organized collections of Church law until the 1917 codification of canon law.

Earlier, Raymond had written for confessors a book of cases. It was called Summa de casibus poenitentiae. More than just a list of sins and penances, it discussed pertinent doctrines and laws of the Church that pertained to the problem or case brought to the confessor.

At the age of 60, Raymond was appointed archbishop of Tarragona, the capital of Aragon. He didn't like the honor at all and ended up getting sick and resigning in two years.

He didn't get to enjoy his peace long, however, because when he was 63 he was elected by his fellow Dominicans to be the head of the whole Order, the successor of St. Dominic. Raymond worked hard, visited on foot all the Dominicans, reorganized their constitutions and managed to put through a provision that a master general be allowed to resign. When the new constitutions were accepted, Raymond, then 65, resigned.

He still had 35 years to oppose heresy and work for the conversion of the Moors in Spain. He convinced St. Thomas Aquinas to write his work Against the Gentiles.

In his100th year the Lord let Raymond retire.

Comment:

Raymond was a lawyer, a canonist. Legalism is one of the things that the Church tried to rid herself of at Vatican II. It is too great a preoccupation with the letter of the law to the neglect of the spirit and purpose of the law. The law can become an end in itself, so that the value the law was intended to promote is overlooked. But we must guard against going to the opposite extreme and seeing law as useless or something to be lightly regarded. Laws ideally state those things that are for the best interests of everyone and make sure the rights of all are safeguarded. From Raymond, we can learn a respect for law as a means of serving the common good.

Quote:
"He who hates the law is without wisdom,/and is tossed about like a boat in a storm" (Sirach 33:2).


(This entry appears in the print edition of Saint of the Day.)

A great part of spiritual growth if finding a good spiritual director, one who is trained, one who can understand you, onw who will walk with you on your journey! They are called a spiritual director!

Can can anyone address how important this person can be in one's life? I have had a spiritual director since I was in high school. I always had a priest. I currently do not have one. But up until last year, I had one since high school! I always had a priest spiritual director. I always went to confession at the end of my spiritual direction session. I found that helpful!
I am telling you all of these personal things to help any one on the journey toward looking for one!

I was very, very young when I knew I wanted to be a spiritual director. I was in my first year of college, only 18 years old! The priest asked me if I knew what I was doing! Then there was not even talk of a program or even a degree program yet for the field. In 1977 when I applied for the program, it was bearly a degree program and certainly not for girls and certainly not for lay women in the church. So I was in for a wide earth shaddering! And boy was it! Through the 70's the women who graduated, they graduated with collars on, yes roman collars, I just has my regular college robe. I was shunned! But I knew I was right! I stood up for what I knew what was right. I did not want to be a priest in the Church and those in the program ALL DID! I was the ODD BALL! I loved the doctors of the church and the saints; they hated me for that! they wouldn't talk to me--most of them. They said I was old-fashioned. I said I was in love with holy church and was very happy! Same as today--never waivered! Just full of gray hair now!

So that was the journey for spiritual direction and my formation! What about yours????????????????????????Let me and all of hear!!!!!


Nancyann


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In the technical sense of the term, spiritual direction is that function of the sacred ministry by which the Church guides the faithful to the attainment of eternal happiness. It is part of the commission given to her in the words of Christ: "Going, therefore, teach ye all nations . . . teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you" (Matthew 28:19 sq.). She exercises this function both in her public teaching, whether in word or writing, and in the private guidance of souls according to their individual needs; but it is the private guidance that is generally understood by the term "spiritual direction".

I. In one way, the Church requires all her adult members to submit to such private direction, namely, in the Sacrament of Penance. For she entrusts to her priests in the confessional, not only the part of judge to absolve or retain the sins presently confessed, but also the part of a director of consciences. In the latter capacity he must instruct his penitents if ignorant of their duties, point out the wrong or the danger in their conduct, and suggest the proper means to be employed for amendment or improvement. The penitent, on his part, must submit to this guidance. He must also, in cases of serious doubt regarding the lawfulness of his action, ask the advice of his director. For a person who acts in a practical doubt, not knowing whether he is offending God or not, and yet consenting to do what he thinks to be morally wrong, thereby offends his Creator. Such consultation is the more necessary as no one is a good judge in his own cause: a business man is sometimes blind to the injustice of a tempting bargain, and passion often invents motives for unlawful indulgence.

II. Still more frequently is spiritual direction required in the lives of Christians who aim at the attainment of perfection (see PERFECTION). All religious are obliged to do so by their profession; and many of the faithful, married and unmarried, who live amidst worldly cares aspire to such perfection as is attainable in their states of life. This striving after Christian perfection means the cultivation of certain virtues and watchfulness against faults and spiritual dangers. The knowledge of this constitutes the science of asceticism. The spiritual director must be well versed in this difficult science, as his advice is very necessary for such souls. For, as Cassian writes, "by no vice does the devil draw a monk headlong and bring him to death sooner than by persuading him to neglect the counsel of the Elders and trust to his own judgment and determination" (Conf. of Abbot Moses).

III. Since, in teaching the Faith, the Holy Ghost speaks through the sovereign pontiff and the bishops of the Church, the work of the private spiritual director must never be at variance with this infallible guidance. Therefore the Church has condemned the doctrine of Molinos, who taught that directors are independent of the bishops, that the Church does not judge about secret matters, and that God and the director alone enter into the inner conscience (Denziger, Enchiridion, nos. 1152, 1153). Several of the most learned Fathers of the Church devoted much attention to spiritual direction, for instance, St. Jerome, who directed St. Paula and her daughter St. Eustochium; and some of them have left us learned treatises on ascetic theology. But while the hierarchy of the Church is Divinely appointed to guard the purity of faith and morals, the Holy Spirit, who "breatheth where he will; and thou hearest his voice, but thou knowest not whence he cometh, and whither he goeth" (John 3:8), has often chosen priests or religious, and even simple laymen and women, and filled them with supernatural wisdom in order to provide for the spiritual direction of others.

IV. Whoever the director be, he will find the principal means of progress towards perfection to consist in the exercise of prayer (q. v.) and mortification (q. v.). But upon the special processes of these two means, spiritual guides have been led by the Holy Spirit in various directions. Different is the type for the solitary in the desert, the cenobite in the community, for a St. Louis or a Blanche of Castile in a palace, St. Frances of Rome in her family, or a St. Zita in her kitchen, for contemplative and for active religious orders and congregations. Another marked difference in the direction of souls arises from the presence or absence of the mystical element in the life of the person to be directed (see MYSTICISM). Mysticism involves peculiar modes of action by which the Holy Ghost illumines a soul in ways which transcend the normal use of the reasoning powers. The spiritual director who has such persons in charge needs the soundest learning and consummate prudence. Here especially sad mistakes have been made by presumption and imprudent zeal, for men of distinction in the Church have gone astray in this matter.

V. Even in ordinary cases of spiritual direction in which no mysticism is involved, numerous errors must be guarded against; the following deserve special notice: (1) The false principles of the Jansenists, who demanded of their penitents an unattainable degree of purity of conscience before they allowed them to receive Holy Communion. Many priests, not members of the sect, were yet so far tainted with its severity as gradually to alienate large numbers of their penitents from the sacraments and consequently from the Church. (2) The condemned propositions summarized under the headings "De perfectione christianâ" in Denziger's "Enchiridion Symbolorum et Definitionum" (Würzburg, 1900), page 485, which are largely the principles of Quietism. These are specimens: To obtain perfection a man ought to deaden all his faculties; he should take no vows, should avoid external work, ask God for nothing in particular, not seek sensible devotion, not study science, not consider rewards and punishments, not employ reasoning in prayer. (3) The errors and dangers pointed out in the Encyclical of Leo XIII, "Testem Benevolentiæ". In it the pope singles out for particular condemnation: "First, all external guidance is set aside for those souls which are striving after Christian perfection as being superfluous, or indeed not useful in any sense, the contention being that the Holy Spirit pours richer and more abundant graces into the soul than formerly; so that, without human intervention, He teaches and guides them by some hidden instinct of His own." In the same document warnings are given against inculcating an exaggerated esteem of the natural virtues, thus depreciating the supernatural ones; also against casting contempt on religious vows, "as if these were alien to the spirit of our times, in that they restrict the bounds of human liberty, and that they are more suitable to weak than to strong minds".

VI. An important document of Leo XIII bearing specifically on the direction of religious souls is the decree "Quemadmodum" of 1890. It forbids all religious superiors who are not priests "the practice of thoroughly inquiring into the state of their subjects' consciences, which is a thing reserved to the Sacrament of Penance". It also forbids them to refuse to their subjects an extraordinary confessor, especially in cases where the conscience of the persons so refused stands greatly in need of this privilege; as also "to take it on themselves to permit at their pleasure their subjects to approach the Holy Table, or even sometimes to forbid them Holy Communion altogether". The pope abrogates all constitutions, usages, and customs so far as they tend to the contrary; and absolutely forbids such superiors as are here spoken of to induce in any way their subjects to make to them any such manifestations of conscience. (See the decree "Quemadmodum", with explanations, in the American Ecclesiastical Review, March, 1893.).

VII. Catholic literature is rich in works of ascetic and mystical theology; of which we mention a few below. But it must be noticed that such works cannot be recommended for the use of all readers indiscriminately. The higher the spiritual perfection aimed at, especially when mysticism enters into the case, the more caution should be used in selecting and consulting the guide-books, and the more danger there is that the direction given in them may be misapplied. Spiritual direction is as much a matter for the personal supervision of an experienced living guide as is the practice of medicine; the latter deals with abnormal defects of the body, the former with the acquisition of uncommon perfection by the soul.

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Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance - an Inquiry into Values

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A useful, if sometimes a little over thoughty, companion piece is
Guidebook to Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance