[405] 14. Consider, then, the primitive Church, and see if it was not pervaded and most fiercely assailed by the "terror of the night." For then surely it was night, when everyone who slew the saints thought he was doing a service to God. But when this temptation had been overcome and the tempest had passed over, the Church appeared [406] in glory, and, according to the promise made to it, soon occupied the place of pre-eminence in the world. Then the enemy, enraged by his previous disappointment, cunningly exchanged the "terror of the night" for the "arrow that flieth in the day," and with it, as St. Paul speaks, wounded "some of the Church." For there arose vain men, who hungered after earthly glory and sought to make a name for themselves. Going forth from the Christian body, they began to afflict their holy mother by teaching diverse and perverse doctrines. But this second plague found a remedy in the wisdom of the doctors, as did the first in the patience of the martyrs.
15. The present generation, my brethren, is, through the mercy of God, free from both of these dangers. But it is manifestly corrupted by the "business that walketh about in the dark." Woe to this generation by reason of the leaven of the Pharisees! I mean, because of its hypocrisy, if indeed that ought to be called hypocrisy which is now too prevalent to lie concealed and too impudent to seek concealment. To-day the foul disease has spread itself throughout the whole body of Christ's mystical Bride, the more incurable in proportion as it is widely extended, and the more deadly the more deeply it penetrates. Were one to rise up against holy mother Church, teaching open heresy, he would be cut off like an infected member, and cast forth to rot. Were a persecuting enemy to appear against her, she might perhaps hide herself from his violence. But now whom shall she cast forth, and from whom shall she hide herself? All are her friends and nevertheless all are her enemies. All are her children and, at the same time, all are her adversaries. All are her domestics, yet none [407] give her peace. All are her neighbours [sic], whilst all seek the things that are their own. They are Christ's ministers, but they serve Antichrist. Honoured [sic] with the goods of the Lord, they refuse to render due honour to the Lord. Hence that worldly ornamentation which daily meets our eyes, that showy style of dress, more befitting a stage-player than a Christian cleric, that splendour [sic] of appointment which even kings might envy. Hence the gold mountings on bridles, saddles, and spurs; for such trappings are more carefully embellished than the altars of God. Hence the splended tables, furnished with costly plate and delicate viands. Hence the "drunkenness and revellings" [sic]. Hence the music of the harp and the lyre and the flute. Hencce the brimming winepresses, and the "storehouses full, flowing out of this into that." Hence the phials of sweet perfumes. Hence the well-filled coffers. It is for the sake of such things that they desire to be, and do actually become provosts of churches, deans, archdeacons, bishops, archbishops. For these dignities are not now bestowed upon merit, but are given to that "business that walketh about in the dark," namely, to ambition.
16. It was said of old, and now we see the fulfillment of the prediction, "Behold in peace is my bitterness most bitter" (Is. 38:17). Bitter was the bitterness of holy mother Church in the early ages whilst the martyrs were being slaughtered; it was more bitter during her struggle with heresy; but it is now become most bitter owing to the corrupt morals of her own children. These she can neither drive away nor flee from, so powerful have they grown, and "they are multiplied beyond number" (Gen. 22:17; Heb. 6:14). She is now attacked by an internal and incurable distemper [408], and therefore "in peace is her bitterness most bitter." But in what peace? There is peace and there is no peace. There is peace from infidels and peace from heretics, but she has no peace from her children. "I have brought up children and exalted them, but they have despised me" (Is. 1:2). Such is her plaintive cry in our day. "They have heaped contempt and dishonour [sic] on me by their shameful lives, by their shameful love of lucre [i.e. money], by their shameful traffic, by their devotion to the 'business that walketh about in the dark.'" It only remains now for the "noon-day devil" to make his appearance in order to seduce, if he can, the remnant who still abide in Christ, persevering in their simplicity. For he has already swallowed up the "rivers" of the wise and the "torrents" of the powerful, "and he trusteth that the Jordan—that is to say, the simple and humble children of the Church—may run into his mouth." This is Antichrist [1] who simulates the day, yeah, and the Meridian, "and is lifted up above all that is called God, or that is worshipped" [sic]. Him may the Lord Jesus slay "with the Spirit of His Mouth and with the brightness of His coming," as the truth and never-fading Meridian, the Bridgroom and Advocate of the Church, Who is over all things, God be blessed for ever. Amen.
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Footnotes:
1. From the translator: It may be of interest to observe that in St. Bernard's own day the coming of Antichrist was believed to be at hand. St. Norbert, Founder of the Premonstratensians, claimed to have received a revelation to that effect. He was visited by the Abbot of Clairvaux, who has left us an account of the interview in his 56th Epistle: "He declared that he knew for certain that Antichrist was to be revealed in the present generation and that he himself would live to see a general persecution. Still I was not convinced."
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Source: St. Bernard of Clairvaux, Sermons on the Canticle of Canticles, trans. by a priest of Mount Melleray (Dublin: Browne and Nolan, Limited, 1920), 405–408, Sermon 33: "On the Three Objects of the Devout Soul's Quest, On the Mystical Meridian, and the Four Kinds of Temptation" or "Ends to Be Pursued—The Mystical Noontide; Temptations to Be Avoided," nn. 14–16.
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For the last temptations of the Church, St. Bernard seems to give no indication of a solution except Christ's own second coming as when he says, "Him [i.e. the devil or Antichrist] may the Lord Jesus slay 'with the Spirit of His Mouth and the with the brightness of His coming'."
Showing posts with label bernard of clairvaux. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bernard of clairvaux. Show all posts
Friday, June 5, 2015
Wednesday, March 19, 2014
Holiness is like an Overflowing Fountain, not a Pipeline
I attended a talk the other day on theology and culture, and one of the speakers shared an experience he had speaking with his spiritual director. He told his spiritual director that he had an insight that we are to be holy, and in effect, our holiness is a kind of pipeline through which God's grace pours out onto other souls for their sanctification; he also compared this to how the image of God within us shines through most effectively when it is Christ (the image of God) that is seen rather than our ego (the image we put up). The spiritual director said that a better "image" is a fountain that overflows since a pipeline keeps nothing for itself and hence isn't "holy" itself. I was a bit surprised by the response since it's exactly what St. Bernard said in one of his sermons (perhaps the spiritual director was/is familiar with it!).
I copy the sermon below in its entirety for the benefit of the reader since it is not a very long sermon. Imagine hearing this on Sunday! It's a brilliant compendium of the entire spiritual life and the apostolate that flows from contemplative love. One thing I'm struck by in this sermon is how many times St. Bernard insists that we are safe to undertake apostolic work only after and insofar as we have been fully penetrated by the love of the Holy Ghost. Then, he says, will apostolic works be performed "truly and safely," implying before we reach such a state, we do these works at our spiritual peril. And yet one can already hear the cascade of objections amounting to especially, "But then nothing will get done!"
Well, take it from the Mellifluous Doctor, or leave it.
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"Your name is oil poured out." Of what truth of our interior life does the Holy Spirit wish to assure us by means of this text? He refers to the experience of a twofold operation, one by which he inwardly strengthens the virtues that lead us to salvation, the other by which he outwardly endows us with serviceable gifts. The former is of benefit to ourselves, the latter to our neighbors [NB: these are the charismatic gifts, some of which are listed by St. Paul in his letters; St. Thomas Aquinas expands on them in his Summa Theologiæ]. For example, faith, hope and charity are given to us for our own sake, without them we cannot be saved. But the gift of wise and learned speech, the power to heal, to prophesy, and endowments of this kind without which we can fully achieve our own salvation, are undoubtedly meant to be used for our neighbor's salvation. And these operations of the Holy Spirit, that we take note of either in ourselves or in others, are named from their method of functioning: we call them infusion and effusion. To which of them may we suitably apply the words: "Your name is oil poured out"? Is it not to effusion? If he had meant infusion he would have said "poured in." When the bride says: "Your name is oil poured out," she refers to the perfumes sprinkled on her breasts, attributing their scent to the Bridegroom's name, as if it were an unguent poured on her breasts. Any man who perceives that he is endowed with an exterior grace enabling him to influence others, can also say to the Lord: "Your name is oil poured out."
2. At this point we need to be warned not to give away what we have received for our own welfare, nor to retain for ourselves what must be expended for others. For example, you keep for yourself what belongs to your neighbor, if along with your full endowment of interior virtues you are also adorned with the external gifts of knowledge and eloquence, and, through fear or sloth or ill-judged humility, smother this gift of speech that could be of help to so many, in a useless and even pernicious silence; for "the people's curse is on the man who hoards the wheat." On the other hand, you squander and lose what is meant to be your own if, before you are totally permeated by the infusion of the Holy Spirit, you rashly proceed to pour out your unfulfilled self upon others; you contravene the law which says: "You must not put the first-born of your herd to work, nor shear the first-born of your flock." You deprive yourself of the life and salvation which you impart to another if, lacking right intention and inspired by self you become infected with the poison of worldly ambition that swells into a deadly ulcer and destroys you.
3. The man who is wise, therefore, will see his life as more like a reservoir than a canal. The canal simultaneously pours out what it receives; the reservoir retains the water till it is filled, then discharges the overflow without loss to itself. He knows that a curse is on the man who allows his own property to degenerate. And if you think my opinion worthless, then listen to one who is wiser than I [NB: the Saint here is subtly appealing to the authority of the Holy Ghost in confirming his teaching by quoting Him as speaking through Solomon]: "The fool," said Solomon, "comes out with all his feelings at once, but the wise man subdues and restrains them." Today there are many in the Church who act like canals, the reservoirs are far too rare [NB: Bernard spoke these words in the 1130s!]. So urgent is the charity of those through whom the streams of heavenly doctrine flow to us, that they want to pour it forth before they have been filled; they are more ready to speak than to listen, impatient to teach what they have not grasped, and full of presumption to govern others while they know not how to govern themselves.
I am convinced that no degree of the charity that leads to salvation may be preferred to that suggested by the Wise Man: "Have pity on your own soul, pleasing God." If I have but a little oil, sufficient for my own anointing, do you suppose I should give it to you and be left with nothing? I am keeping it for myself, utterly unwilling to proffer it to anyone except at the Prophet's bidding. And should any of you, thinking me to be better than I seem or than my words suggest, insist on asking for it, here is my answer to him: "There may not be enough for us and for you; you had better go to those who sell it and buy some for yourselves." But charity, you reply, does not seek what is its own. And do you know why? It does not seek what is its own precisely because it has it. Who seeks for what he possesses? Charity never lacks what is her own, all that she needs for her own security. Not alone does she have it, she abounds with it. She wants this abundance for herself that she may share it with all; and she reserves enough for herself so that she disappoints nobody. For charity is perfect only when full.
4. But you, my brother, your salvation is not yet assured; your charity as yet is either non-existent or so meager and reed-like that it bends with every breeze, puts its trust in every spirit, and is carried along by every wind of doctrine; or it is so great that you transcend the limits of the commandment by loving your neighbor more than yourself, or yet again so unsound that, contrary to the commandment, it bows to flattery, flinches under fear, is upset by sadness, shriveled by avarice, entangled by ambition, disquieted by suspicions, tormented by insults, exhausted by anxieties, puffed up by honors, consumed by envy. If you discover this chaos in your own interior, what madness drives you to insinuate yourself into other people's business? But listen to what a prudent and vigilant charity advises: "This does not mean that to give relief to others you ought to make things difficult for yourselves: it is a question of balancing." "Do not be over-virtuous." It is enough that you love your neighbor as yourself; this is the balancing to which the Apostle refers. David says: "My soul will feast most richly, [and after feasting, then shall there be] on my lips a song of joy and, in my mouth, praise." To preclude a mere empty yawning, he wishes that infusion should precede the effusion, an infusion to the fullest capacity that gushes out. In this he shows prudence, his relieving of others does not embarrass himself; and he has a right intention, since he imitates him of whose fullness we have all received. You too must learn to await this fullness before pouring out your gifts, do not try to be more generous than God. The reservoir resembles the fountain that runs to form a stream or spreads to form a pool only when its own waters are brimming over. The reservoir is not ashamed to be no more lavish than the spring that fills it. And so, he who is the primal Fountain of life, full in himself and filled with himself, gushed forth and danced into the secret places of the heavens about him, to fill them all with his favors. And having endowed these remotest heights and recesses, he burst upon our earth, saving men and beasts through his munificence, multiplying his mercies everywhere. When he had first filled up the secret places, his teeming mercies billowed over; they poured upon the earth and drenched it, to multiply its riches. You must imitate this process. First be filled, and then control the outpouring. The charity that is benign and prudent does not flow outwards until it abounds within. "My son," said Solomon, "do not let yourself drift away." And the Apostle says: "We ought then to turn our minds more attentively than before to what we have been taught, so that we do not drift away." See what is involved here. Are you holier than Paul, wiser than Solomon? [NB: Or St. Bernard, for that matter?] Besides, I cannot see myself being enriched by your wasting of your powers. For if you are mean to yourself, to whom will you be good? Help me out of your abundance if you have it; if not, then spare yourself the trouble.
5. But I wish to remind you now of the principles necessary for our salvation and how to apply them, the truths that must be infused into us and their order of importance, before we can presume to pour ourselves out. Circumstances oblige me to be as brief as possible, for the time's quick passage demands that I bring this sermon to a close. Just as a doctor comes to a wounded man, so the Holy Spirit comes to the soul. Is it possible to find any person whom the devil's sword does not wound, even after the wound of original sin has been healed by the medicine of baptism? Therefore, when the Spirit draws near to a soul that says: "My wounds grow foul and fester because of my foolishness," what is the first thing he should do? Before all else he must amputate the ulcerous tumor that has grown upon the wound and prevents its healing. This ulcer, caused by inveterate bad habits, must be sliced away with the scalpel of piercing sorrow. The pain will be bitter, but it can be alleviated with the ointment of devotion which is nothing other than the joy born of the hope of pardon. This in turn springs from the power of self-control, from victory over sin. Soon the victor is pouring out words of thanks: "You have loosed my bonds, I will offer you the thanksgiving sacrifice." He then applies the medicine of penance, a poultice of fastings, vigils, prayers, and other tasks that penitents perform. And as he toils he must be fed with the food of good works that he may not falter. We are not left in doubt about what the necessary food is: "My food," said Christ, "is to do the will of my Father." Hence works motivated by love, that are a sure source of strength, should accompany the performance of penances. For instance it is said: "Alms is a most effective offering for all those who give it in the presence of the Most High." Food causes thirst, therefore one must drink, so let the food of good works be moistened with the beverage of prayer, that a work well done may rest quietly in the stomach of conscience and give pleasure to God. In prayer one drinks the wine that gladdens a man's heart, the intoxicating wine of the Spirit that downs all memory of the pleasures of the flesh. It drenches anew the arid recesses of the conscience, stimulates digestion of the meats of good works, fills the faculties of the soul with a robust faith, a solid hope, a love that is living and true; it enriches all the actions of our life.
6. The sick man has had his food and drink; what should he do now but take his ease and let the sweat of his labors dry while he enjoys the quiet of contemplation? Falling asleep in the midst of his prayer he dreams of God; what he sees is a dim reflection in a mirror, not a vision face to face. However, although it be but a vague apprehension and not an actual vision, a fleeting glimpse of the sparkling glory as it passes, utterly delicate in its impact, yet he burns with love and says: "At night my soul longs for you and my spirit in me seeks for you." A love like this is full of zeal; it is a love becoming the Bridegroom's friend, the love that must inspire the faithful and prudent servant whom the Lord appoints over his household. It fills the soul's capacity, grows heated and brims over, gushing with abandon into streamlets. This is the love that cries out: "Who is weak and I am not weak? Who is scandalized and I am not inflamed?" Let such a man preach, let him bear fruit, let him show new signs and do fresh wonders, for vanity can find no toehold in the man whom charity totally possesses. A total love is the law in all its fullness, it can effectively fill the heart's capacity. Finally God himself is love, and nothing created can satisfy the man who is made to the image of God, except the God who is love, who alone is above all created natures. The man who has not yet attained to this love is promoted to office at the gravest risk to himself, no matter how distinguished he be with other virtues. Even if he knows everything, if he gives all his goods to the poor and lets his body be taken for burning, without charity he is worthless. See how precious the graces that must first be infused, so that when we venture to pour them out we may dispense them from a spirit that is filled rather than impoverished.
We need first of all compunction of heart, then fervor of spirit; thirdly, the labor of penance; fourthly, works of charity; fifthly, zeal for prayer; sixthly, leisure for contemplation; seventhly, love in all its fullness. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, accomplished by the process called infusion [NB: to reiterate, all of the above form the process of personal sanctification; afterwards comes "effusion," or in modern terminology "apostolate" or "evangelization"]; and, in so far as it has taken place those services called effusion can be truly and hence safely performed to the praise and glory of our Lord, Jesus Christ, who with the Father and the same Holy Spirit lives and reigns, God, for ever and ever. Amen.
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Source: St. Bernard, "Sermon 18 on the Song of Songs: The Two Operations of the Holy Spirit," Pathways of Love, accessed March 19, 2014, http://www.pathsoflove.com/bernard/songofsongs/sermon18.html.
I copy the sermon below in its entirety for the benefit of the reader since it is not a very long sermon. Imagine hearing this on Sunday! It's a brilliant compendium of the entire spiritual life and the apostolate that flows from contemplative love. One thing I'm struck by in this sermon is how many times St. Bernard insists that we are safe to undertake apostolic work only after and insofar as we have been fully penetrated by the love of the Holy Ghost. Then, he says, will apostolic works be performed "truly and safely," implying before we reach such a state, we do these works at our spiritual peril. And yet one can already hear the cascade of objections amounting to especially, "But then nothing will get done!"
Well, take it from the Mellifluous Doctor, or leave it.
---
"Your name is oil poured out." Of what truth of our interior life does the Holy Spirit wish to assure us by means of this text? He refers to the experience of a twofold operation, one by which he inwardly strengthens the virtues that lead us to salvation, the other by which he outwardly endows us with serviceable gifts. The former is of benefit to ourselves, the latter to our neighbors [NB: these are the charismatic gifts, some of which are listed by St. Paul in his letters; St. Thomas Aquinas expands on them in his Summa Theologiæ]. For example, faith, hope and charity are given to us for our own sake, without them we cannot be saved. But the gift of wise and learned speech, the power to heal, to prophesy, and endowments of this kind without which we can fully achieve our own salvation, are undoubtedly meant to be used for our neighbor's salvation. And these operations of the Holy Spirit, that we take note of either in ourselves or in others, are named from their method of functioning: we call them infusion and effusion. To which of them may we suitably apply the words: "Your name is oil poured out"? Is it not to effusion? If he had meant infusion he would have said "poured in." When the bride says: "Your name is oil poured out," she refers to the perfumes sprinkled on her breasts, attributing their scent to the Bridegroom's name, as if it were an unguent poured on her breasts. Any man who perceives that he is endowed with an exterior grace enabling him to influence others, can also say to the Lord: "Your name is oil poured out."
2. At this point we need to be warned not to give away what we have received for our own welfare, nor to retain for ourselves what must be expended for others. For example, you keep for yourself what belongs to your neighbor, if along with your full endowment of interior virtues you are also adorned with the external gifts of knowledge and eloquence, and, through fear or sloth or ill-judged humility, smother this gift of speech that could be of help to so many, in a useless and even pernicious silence; for "the people's curse is on the man who hoards the wheat." On the other hand, you squander and lose what is meant to be your own if, before you are totally permeated by the infusion of the Holy Spirit, you rashly proceed to pour out your unfulfilled self upon others; you contravene the law which says: "You must not put the first-born of your herd to work, nor shear the first-born of your flock." You deprive yourself of the life and salvation which you impart to another if, lacking right intention and inspired by self you become infected with the poison of worldly ambition that swells into a deadly ulcer and destroys you.
3. The man who is wise, therefore, will see his life as more like a reservoir than a canal. The canal simultaneously pours out what it receives; the reservoir retains the water till it is filled, then discharges the overflow without loss to itself. He knows that a curse is on the man who allows his own property to degenerate. And if you think my opinion worthless, then listen to one who is wiser than I [NB: the Saint here is subtly appealing to the authority of the Holy Ghost in confirming his teaching by quoting Him as speaking through Solomon]: "The fool," said Solomon, "comes out with all his feelings at once, but the wise man subdues and restrains them." Today there are many in the Church who act like canals, the reservoirs are far too rare [NB: Bernard spoke these words in the 1130s!]. So urgent is the charity of those through whom the streams of heavenly doctrine flow to us, that they want to pour it forth before they have been filled; they are more ready to speak than to listen, impatient to teach what they have not grasped, and full of presumption to govern others while they know not how to govern themselves.
I am convinced that no degree of the charity that leads to salvation may be preferred to that suggested by the Wise Man: "Have pity on your own soul, pleasing God." If I have but a little oil, sufficient for my own anointing, do you suppose I should give it to you and be left with nothing? I am keeping it for myself, utterly unwilling to proffer it to anyone except at the Prophet's bidding. And should any of you, thinking me to be better than I seem or than my words suggest, insist on asking for it, here is my answer to him: "There may not be enough for us and for you; you had better go to those who sell it and buy some for yourselves." But charity, you reply, does not seek what is its own. And do you know why? It does not seek what is its own precisely because it has it. Who seeks for what he possesses? Charity never lacks what is her own, all that she needs for her own security. Not alone does she have it, she abounds with it. She wants this abundance for herself that she may share it with all; and she reserves enough for herself so that she disappoints nobody. For charity is perfect only when full.
4. But you, my brother, your salvation is not yet assured; your charity as yet is either non-existent or so meager and reed-like that it bends with every breeze, puts its trust in every spirit, and is carried along by every wind of doctrine; or it is so great that you transcend the limits of the commandment by loving your neighbor more than yourself, or yet again so unsound that, contrary to the commandment, it bows to flattery, flinches under fear, is upset by sadness, shriveled by avarice, entangled by ambition, disquieted by suspicions, tormented by insults, exhausted by anxieties, puffed up by honors, consumed by envy. If you discover this chaos in your own interior, what madness drives you to insinuate yourself into other people's business? But listen to what a prudent and vigilant charity advises: "This does not mean that to give relief to others you ought to make things difficult for yourselves: it is a question of balancing." "Do not be over-virtuous." It is enough that you love your neighbor as yourself; this is the balancing to which the Apostle refers. David says: "My soul will feast most richly, [and after feasting, then shall there be] on my lips a song of joy and, in my mouth, praise." To preclude a mere empty yawning, he wishes that infusion should precede the effusion, an infusion to the fullest capacity that gushes out. In this he shows prudence, his relieving of others does not embarrass himself; and he has a right intention, since he imitates him of whose fullness we have all received. You too must learn to await this fullness before pouring out your gifts, do not try to be more generous than God. The reservoir resembles the fountain that runs to form a stream or spreads to form a pool only when its own waters are brimming over. The reservoir is not ashamed to be no more lavish than the spring that fills it. And so, he who is the primal Fountain of life, full in himself and filled with himself, gushed forth and danced into the secret places of the heavens about him, to fill them all with his favors. And having endowed these remotest heights and recesses, he burst upon our earth, saving men and beasts through his munificence, multiplying his mercies everywhere. When he had first filled up the secret places, his teeming mercies billowed over; they poured upon the earth and drenched it, to multiply its riches. You must imitate this process. First be filled, and then control the outpouring. The charity that is benign and prudent does not flow outwards until it abounds within. "My son," said Solomon, "do not let yourself drift away." And the Apostle says: "We ought then to turn our minds more attentively than before to what we have been taught, so that we do not drift away." See what is involved here. Are you holier than Paul, wiser than Solomon? [NB: Or St. Bernard, for that matter?] Besides, I cannot see myself being enriched by your wasting of your powers. For if you are mean to yourself, to whom will you be good? Help me out of your abundance if you have it; if not, then spare yourself the trouble.
5. But I wish to remind you now of the principles necessary for our salvation and how to apply them, the truths that must be infused into us and their order of importance, before we can presume to pour ourselves out. Circumstances oblige me to be as brief as possible, for the time's quick passage demands that I bring this sermon to a close. Just as a doctor comes to a wounded man, so the Holy Spirit comes to the soul. Is it possible to find any person whom the devil's sword does not wound, even after the wound of original sin has been healed by the medicine of baptism? Therefore, when the Spirit draws near to a soul that says: "My wounds grow foul and fester because of my foolishness," what is the first thing he should do? Before all else he must amputate the ulcerous tumor that has grown upon the wound and prevents its healing. This ulcer, caused by inveterate bad habits, must be sliced away with the scalpel of piercing sorrow. The pain will be bitter, but it can be alleviated with the ointment of devotion which is nothing other than the joy born of the hope of pardon. This in turn springs from the power of self-control, from victory over sin. Soon the victor is pouring out words of thanks: "You have loosed my bonds, I will offer you the thanksgiving sacrifice." He then applies the medicine of penance, a poultice of fastings, vigils, prayers, and other tasks that penitents perform. And as he toils he must be fed with the food of good works that he may not falter. We are not left in doubt about what the necessary food is: "My food," said Christ, "is to do the will of my Father." Hence works motivated by love, that are a sure source of strength, should accompany the performance of penances. For instance it is said: "Alms is a most effective offering for all those who give it in the presence of the Most High." Food causes thirst, therefore one must drink, so let the food of good works be moistened with the beverage of prayer, that a work well done may rest quietly in the stomach of conscience and give pleasure to God. In prayer one drinks the wine that gladdens a man's heart, the intoxicating wine of the Spirit that downs all memory of the pleasures of the flesh. It drenches anew the arid recesses of the conscience, stimulates digestion of the meats of good works, fills the faculties of the soul with a robust faith, a solid hope, a love that is living and true; it enriches all the actions of our life.
6. The sick man has had his food and drink; what should he do now but take his ease and let the sweat of his labors dry while he enjoys the quiet of contemplation? Falling asleep in the midst of his prayer he dreams of God; what he sees is a dim reflection in a mirror, not a vision face to face. However, although it be but a vague apprehension and not an actual vision, a fleeting glimpse of the sparkling glory as it passes, utterly delicate in its impact, yet he burns with love and says: "At night my soul longs for you and my spirit in me seeks for you." A love like this is full of zeal; it is a love becoming the Bridegroom's friend, the love that must inspire the faithful and prudent servant whom the Lord appoints over his household. It fills the soul's capacity, grows heated and brims over, gushing with abandon into streamlets. This is the love that cries out: "Who is weak and I am not weak? Who is scandalized and I am not inflamed?" Let such a man preach, let him bear fruit, let him show new signs and do fresh wonders, for vanity can find no toehold in the man whom charity totally possesses. A total love is the law in all its fullness, it can effectively fill the heart's capacity. Finally God himself is love, and nothing created can satisfy the man who is made to the image of God, except the God who is love, who alone is above all created natures. The man who has not yet attained to this love is promoted to office at the gravest risk to himself, no matter how distinguished he be with other virtues. Even if he knows everything, if he gives all his goods to the poor and lets his body be taken for burning, without charity he is worthless. See how precious the graces that must first be infused, so that when we venture to pour them out we may dispense them from a spirit that is filled rather than impoverished.
We need first of all compunction of heart, then fervor of spirit; thirdly, the labor of penance; fourthly, works of charity; fifthly, zeal for prayer; sixthly, leisure for contemplation; seventhly, love in all its fullness. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, accomplished by the process called infusion [NB: to reiterate, all of the above form the process of personal sanctification; afterwards comes "effusion," or in modern terminology "apostolate" or "evangelization"]; and, in so far as it has taken place those services called effusion can be truly and hence safely performed to the praise and glory of our Lord, Jesus Christ, who with the Father and the same Holy Spirit lives and reigns, God, for ever and ever. Amen.
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Source: St. Bernard, "Sermon 18 on the Song of Songs: The Two Operations of the Holy Spirit," Pathways of Love, accessed March 19, 2014, http://www.pathsoflove.com/bernard/songofsongs/sermon18.html.
Monday, March 10, 2014
St. Bernard on the Holy Name of Jesus
"And after eight days were accomplished that the child should be circumcised, his name was called Jesus" (Lk 2:21).
O great and wonderful mystery! The Child was circumcised and called Jesus. What connection does the Evangelist wish to show between these two facts? Circumcision would seem to belong more properly to the saved than to the Savior. It was more befitting Him Who was the great High Priest to perform the rite to others than to submit to it Himself. He allowed it to be administered to Him in order to teach us that He is the Mediator between God and man, Who by His Nativity united His Divinity to our human nature—what is highest to what is lowliest.
He was born of a woman, but of a woman in whom the flower of virginity flourished together with the fruit of fecundity. He was wrapped in swaddling-clothes, but He was honored with the praises of the angelic host. He lay in an obscure manger, but a radiant star from heaven pointed Him out. In like manner, by undergoing the rite of circumcision, He gave further proof of His human nature, but the adorable name of Jesus which He then received is above every other name and declares the glory of His majesty. He was circumcised as a true son of Abraham; as Son of God He is called Jesus. This my Jesus bears not, as others do, an empty name; it is not in Him a shadow of greatness but the reality. Heaven assigned it to Him, for the Evangelist testifies that the angel gave it to Him. And mark the depth of the mystery. It was after His birth that He was called by men Jesus, the name which had been given Him by the angel before His birth. For He is truly the Savior of both angels and men; of men by His Incarnation, of angels from the beginning of creation. Before His birth the angels, who possessed the secrets of God, were allowed to know and utter the sacred name of salvation, but till this day of the Circumcision we knew it not. On this day it was first given me to pronounce confidently the blessed name of my Jesus, the name of my eternal salvation. Can we now doubt or hesitate to proclaim that He Who has condescended to dwell amongst us will work out the salvation of all those who are His own?
Circumcision is necessary for us also, in order that we may receive this name of salvation—a circumcision not according to the letter, but one in spirit and in truth. After the fall of our first parents human nature was wholly infected with the venom of sin. While the human race was yet, as it were, in infancy as to faith and love, man received a commandment suited to his imperfect condition. When he had grown to the age of the more perfect man he received the command of baptism, by which the entire man is circumcised. In like manner our Savior was circumcised in His infancy, and, in His perfect manhood, was pleased to be crucified and to endure a penalty which caused every member of His body and every power of His soul to suffer. What, then, is our moral circumcision if not what the Apostle recommends, "Having food and raiment, with these we are content" (1 Tim 6:8)? [...]
We should, therefore, admit nothing into the soul which we fear would not be acceptable to Him Whose Name is a name of salvation.
Source: St. Bernard, Sermon on the Circumcision, in Sermons of St. Bernard on Advent and Christmas (London: R. & T. Washbourne, Ltd., 1909), 136-138.
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No Christian can now ask why Christ willed to be circumcised. For us He was born, for us He was circumcised, for us He suffered and died. Nothing of all this was for Himself, but all for His elect. He was not circumcised for His own sins, but for ours. The name He was called by the angel before His birth was His name from all eternity. This name of Savior was His natural right; it was born with Him, not imposed by either angel or man. The illustrious Prophet Isaias, predicting the birth of this Divine Child, calls Him by many great titles, but he seems to have been silent on this one name which the angel foretold, and to which the Evangelist bears testimony. Isaias, like Abraham, exulted that might see Christ's day; he, too, saw it and was glad. Rejoicing and praising God, he says: "A child is born to us, a son is given to us, and the government is upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, God the Mighty, the Father of the world to come, the Prince of Peace" (Is 9:6). These are indeed great names, but where is the name which is above all names, the name of Jesus at which every knee should bow? Perhaps we may find that one name expressed, or poured out in all, for it is the same that was spoken of by the Spouse in the canticle of love, "Thy name is as oil poured out." Therefore, from and in all these names and titles we have but the one name of Jesus. His office of Savior includes all. If one had been wanting, He could neither have been called nor have been the Savior.
Has not each one of us found by experience that He has been Wonderful in the conversion and change of our wills? For is it not the beginning of salvation when we loathe what we formerly loved, grieve over what we once delighted in, embrace what we had feared, follow after that which we had fled from, desire what we had contemned? He that has wrought such wonders in us is assuredly Wonderful.
Jesus shows Himself to be the Counsellor by directing us in the choice of penance and of a well-ordered life, lest our zeal be without knowledge and our good-will without prudence.
It was likewise necessary that we should experience Him to be God the Mighty. God in the remission of our past sins, for none but God can forgive sin, and Mighty when enabling us to fight victoriously those sinful passions which are ever warring in us, and which are liable to render our last state worse than the first.
Does anything still seem wanting to the office of Savior? Yea, truly, the chief thing would be lacking were He not also the Father of the world to come, so that we who are engendered in this world unto death may by Him be raised up to a glorious immortality.
A further title and quality is required—that of the Prince of peace Who has reconciled us to His Father, to Whom He is to give back the kingdom. Otherwise, as children of perdition, we might have risen again to punishment instead of reward.
The government, which is upon His shoulder, shall be magnified by the number of the saved, that He may be truly called the Savior; that there may be no end of peace; and that we may know our salvation to be a true salvation which leaves no fear of failure.
O blessed Name! O sacred Oil! how widely hast thou been spread, how profusely poured out! Whence did this oil come? It came from heaven to Judea, and thence was diffused over the whole earth, to its uttermost bounds. The Church cries out, "Thy name is oil poured out." Poured out, indeed, to overflowing, since it is spread abroad, not only over the heavens and earth, but its influence reaches even to hell; so that "in the name of Jesus every knee shall bow, of those that are in heaven, on earth, and under the earth; and every tongue shall confess" (Phil 2:10) and say, "Thy name is as oil poured out." Behold the name of Christ and the name of Jesus were both communicated to the angels and poured out upon men. I am, then, made a participator in this salutary and life-giving name. I am a shareholder in His inheritance. I am a Christian. I am a brother of Christ. If a brother, then an heir also of God and co-heir with Christ.
And what wonder that the name of the Divine Spouse is poured out? In His passion He emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant. By this pouring out the plenitude of His divinity is diffused or spread abroad upon the earth, and of His plenitude all shall receive; and when refreshed with the life-giving perfume of this mystic oil they will exclaim, "Thy name is as oil poured out."
[This point forward is an excerpt from Sermon 15 on the Canticle of Canticles, "On the Name of Jesus"; full sermon here: http://www.pathsoflove.com/bernard/songofsongs/sermon15.html.]
But why is this name compared to oil? There is undoubtedly a similitude between the name of the Spouse and oil, and not without reason has the Holy Ghost drawn a comparison between them. Oil gives light, nourishes and strengthens the body, and alleviates pain. Hence it is light, food, and medicine. All these qualities may be recognized in the holy name of Jesus. It shines and gives light when preached, it feeds and strengthens by its remembrance, it alleviates sorrow and anoints the wounds of the soul by its invocation. Let us consider these three qualities singly.
How was it that the light of faith shone forth so suddenly over the whole earth, if not by the preaching of the blessed name of Jesus? Is it not by the light of this name that God has called us "into his marvelous light" (1 Pt 2:9), so that, being enlightened by it, we shall see as the Apostle declares, "For you were heretofore darkness, but now light in the Lord" (Eph 5:8). The Apostle was commanded to carry this name before kings and nations and the children of Israel. He carried it as a brilliant torch, so that he could exclaim: "The night is past, and the day is at hand. Let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and put on the armor of light. Let us walk honestly as in the day" (Rom 13:12). He lifted the light on high, and announced everywhere the name of Jesus and Him crucified. How brilliantly, too, did this light shine forth and attract the gaze of all when from the mouth of Peter the sacred name gave strength to the feet of the lame man at the Beautiful Gate of the Temple! Was he not diffusing this light when he said to this name, "In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth arise and walk" (Acts 3:6)? And to how many did he not restore sight, and health, and faith, by the power of this same name?
But the name of Jesus is not only light, it is likewise food. Are you not strengthened and consoled as often as you call it to mind? There is no thought that so replenishes and fills the soul with sweetness and spiritual joy; no exercise so efficaciously recruits and refreshes the wearied spirit, and even the senses; so repairs the inward strength, gives vigor to virtue, and cherishes pure affections, as the frequent invocation of the name of Jesus. All food of the soul is unsavory to me if this oil be not poured upon it; it is insipid to me if not seasoned with this name. If you write, it does not relish if I read not there the name of Jesus. If you dispute or instruct, it does not satisfy me if I hear not the sweet sound of the name of Jesus. Jesus is honey to the mouth, music to the ear, jubilee to the heart.
The name of Jesus is, moreover, a sovereign medicine. If there be anyone overwhelmed with sorrow, let Jesus come into his heart, and thence to his lips, and behold, at the rising light of this sacred name all darkness and clouds will be dispersed, peace and joy will return, and the serenity of his mind will be restored. If there be anyone stained with crime and driven headlong by despair to the pit of destruction, let him call upon this life-giving name, and he will speedily be restored to hope and salvation. Is there anyone amongst you in hardness of heart, in sloth, or tepidity, in bitterness of mind, if he will but invoke the name of Jesus his heart will be softened, and tears of contrition will flow gently and abundantly. In dangers and distress, in fears and anxieties, let him call on this name of power, and his confidence will return, his peace of mind will be restored. Doubts and embarrassments will be dispelled and give place to certainty. There is no ill of life, no adversity or misfortune, in which this adorable name will not bring help and fortitude. It is a remedy whose virtue our dear Savior invites us to test. "Call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me" (Ps 49:15).
Nothing so efficaciously bridles anger and subdues the fire of all unruly passions as this holy name. When I pronounce the name of Jesus, I represent to myself a man meek and humble of heart, benevolent, chaste, merciful, a man endowed with all sanctity, all graces, all virtues, and I call to mind that this man is Divine, is the Almighty God, Who heals me by His example and strengthens me by His power. All manner of good things come to my mind when the sacred name of Jesus sounds in my ear. I will, therefore, make to myself a sweet and sovereign ointment from the virtues of His humanity and the Omnipotence of His Divinity. It shall be to me a healing balsam, the like to which no physician was ever able to compound. And this electuary, my soul, thou hast laid up in the little vessel of the name of Jesus.
Let, then, this name of power be ever in my heart, that all my thoughts, desires, and actions may be directed by Jesus and unto Jesus. To this He Himself urges me: "Place me as a seal upon thy heart, as a seal upon thy arm."
Source: St. Bernard, Sermon on the Holy Name of Jesus, in Sermons of St. Bernard on Advent and Christmas (London: R. & T. Washbourne, Ltd., 1909), 141-147.
O great and wonderful mystery! The Child was circumcised and called Jesus. What connection does the Evangelist wish to show between these two facts? Circumcision would seem to belong more properly to the saved than to the Savior. It was more befitting Him Who was the great High Priest to perform the rite to others than to submit to it Himself. He allowed it to be administered to Him in order to teach us that He is the Mediator between God and man, Who by His Nativity united His Divinity to our human nature—what is highest to what is lowliest.
He was born of a woman, but of a woman in whom the flower of virginity flourished together with the fruit of fecundity. He was wrapped in swaddling-clothes, but He was honored with the praises of the angelic host. He lay in an obscure manger, but a radiant star from heaven pointed Him out. In like manner, by undergoing the rite of circumcision, He gave further proof of His human nature, but the adorable name of Jesus which He then received is above every other name and declares the glory of His majesty. He was circumcised as a true son of Abraham; as Son of God He is called Jesus. This my Jesus bears not, as others do, an empty name; it is not in Him a shadow of greatness but the reality. Heaven assigned it to Him, for the Evangelist testifies that the angel gave it to Him. And mark the depth of the mystery. It was after His birth that He was called by men Jesus, the name which had been given Him by the angel before His birth. For He is truly the Savior of both angels and men; of men by His Incarnation, of angels from the beginning of creation. Before His birth the angels, who possessed the secrets of God, were allowed to know and utter the sacred name of salvation, but till this day of the Circumcision we knew it not. On this day it was first given me to pronounce confidently the blessed name of my Jesus, the name of my eternal salvation. Can we now doubt or hesitate to proclaim that He Who has condescended to dwell amongst us will work out the salvation of all those who are His own?
Circumcision is necessary for us also, in order that we may receive this name of salvation—a circumcision not according to the letter, but one in spirit and in truth. After the fall of our first parents human nature was wholly infected with the venom of sin. While the human race was yet, as it were, in infancy as to faith and love, man received a commandment suited to his imperfect condition. When he had grown to the age of the more perfect man he received the command of baptism, by which the entire man is circumcised. In like manner our Savior was circumcised in His infancy, and, in His perfect manhood, was pleased to be crucified and to endure a penalty which caused every member of His body and every power of His soul to suffer. What, then, is our moral circumcision if not what the Apostle recommends, "Having food and raiment, with these we are content" (1 Tim 6:8)? [...]
We should, therefore, admit nothing into the soul which we fear would not be acceptable to Him Whose Name is a name of salvation.
Source: St. Bernard, Sermon on the Circumcision, in Sermons of St. Bernard on Advent and Christmas (London: R. & T. Washbourne, Ltd., 1909), 136-138.
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No Christian can now ask why Christ willed to be circumcised. For us He was born, for us He was circumcised, for us He suffered and died. Nothing of all this was for Himself, but all for His elect. He was not circumcised for His own sins, but for ours. The name He was called by the angel before His birth was His name from all eternity. This name of Savior was His natural right; it was born with Him, not imposed by either angel or man. The illustrious Prophet Isaias, predicting the birth of this Divine Child, calls Him by many great titles, but he seems to have been silent on this one name which the angel foretold, and to which the Evangelist bears testimony. Isaias, like Abraham, exulted that might see Christ's day; he, too, saw it and was glad. Rejoicing and praising God, he says: "A child is born to us, a son is given to us, and the government is upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, God the Mighty, the Father of the world to come, the Prince of Peace" (Is 9:6). These are indeed great names, but where is the name which is above all names, the name of Jesus at which every knee should bow? Perhaps we may find that one name expressed, or poured out in all, for it is the same that was spoken of by the Spouse in the canticle of love, "Thy name is as oil poured out." Therefore, from and in all these names and titles we have but the one name of Jesus. His office of Savior includes all. If one had been wanting, He could neither have been called nor have been the Savior.
Has not each one of us found by experience that He has been Wonderful in the conversion and change of our wills? For is it not the beginning of salvation when we loathe what we formerly loved, grieve over what we once delighted in, embrace what we had feared, follow after that which we had fled from, desire what we had contemned? He that has wrought such wonders in us is assuredly Wonderful.
Jesus shows Himself to be the Counsellor by directing us in the choice of penance and of a well-ordered life, lest our zeal be without knowledge and our good-will without prudence.
It was likewise necessary that we should experience Him to be God the Mighty. God in the remission of our past sins, for none but God can forgive sin, and Mighty when enabling us to fight victoriously those sinful passions which are ever warring in us, and which are liable to render our last state worse than the first.
Does anything still seem wanting to the office of Savior? Yea, truly, the chief thing would be lacking were He not also the Father of the world to come, so that we who are engendered in this world unto death may by Him be raised up to a glorious immortality.
A further title and quality is required—that of the Prince of peace Who has reconciled us to His Father, to Whom He is to give back the kingdom. Otherwise, as children of perdition, we might have risen again to punishment instead of reward.
The government, which is upon His shoulder, shall be magnified by the number of the saved, that He may be truly called the Savior; that there may be no end of peace; and that we may know our salvation to be a true salvation which leaves no fear of failure.
O blessed Name! O sacred Oil! how widely hast thou been spread, how profusely poured out! Whence did this oil come? It came from heaven to Judea, and thence was diffused over the whole earth, to its uttermost bounds. The Church cries out, "Thy name is oil poured out." Poured out, indeed, to overflowing, since it is spread abroad, not only over the heavens and earth, but its influence reaches even to hell; so that "in the name of Jesus every knee shall bow, of those that are in heaven, on earth, and under the earth; and every tongue shall confess" (Phil 2:10) and say, "Thy name is as oil poured out." Behold the name of Christ and the name of Jesus were both communicated to the angels and poured out upon men. I am, then, made a participator in this salutary and life-giving name. I am a shareholder in His inheritance. I am a Christian. I am a brother of Christ. If a brother, then an heir also of God and co-heir with Christ.
And what wonder that the name of the Divine Spouse is poured out? In His passion He emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant. By this pouring out the plenitude of His divinity is diffused or spread abroad upon the earth, and of His plenitude all shall receive; and when refreshed with the life-giving perfume of this mystic oil they will exclaim, "Thy name is as oil poured out."
[This point forward is an excerpt from Sermon 15 on the Canticle of Canticles, "On the Name of Jesus"; full sermon here: http://www.pathsoflove.com/bernard/songofsongs/sermon15.html.]
But why is this name compared to oil? There is undoubtedly a similitude between the name of the Spouse and oil, and not without reason has the Holy Ghost drawn a comparison between them. Oil gives light, nourishes and strengthens the body, and alleviates pain. Hence it is light, food, and medicine. All these qualities may be recognized in the holy name of Jesus. It shines and gives light when preached, it feeds and strengthens by its remembrance, it alleviates sorrow and anoints the wounds of the soul by its invocation. Let us consider these three qualities singly.
How was it that the light of faith shone forth so suddenly over the whole earth, if not by the preaching of the blessed name of Jesus? Is it not by the light of this name that God has called us "into his marvelous light" (1 Pt 2:9), so that, being enlightened by it, we shall see as the Apostle declares, "For you were heretofore darkness, but now light in the Lord" (Eph 5:8). The Apostle was commanded to carry this name before kings and nations and the children of Israel. He carried it as a brilliant torch, so that he could exclaim: "The night is past, and the day is at hand. Let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and put on the armor of light. Let us walk honestly as in the day" (Rom 13:12). He lifted the light on high, and announced everywhere the name of Jesus and Him crucified. How brilliantly, too, did this light shine forth and attract the gaze of all when from the mouth of Peter the sacred name gave strength to the feet of the lame man at the Beautiful Gate of the Temple! Was he not diffusing this light when he said to this name, "In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth arise and walk" (Acts 3:6)? And to how many did he not restore sight, and health, and faith, by the power of this same name?
But the name of Jesus is not only light, it is likewise food. Are you not strengthened and consoled as often as you call it to mind? There is no thought that so replenishes and fills the soul with sweetness and spiritual joy; no exercise so efficaciously recruits and refreshes the wearied spirit, and even the senses; so repairs the inward strength, gives vigor to virtue, and cherishes pure affections, as the frequent invocation of the name of Jesus. All food of the soul is unsavory to me if this oil be not poured upon it; it is insipid to me if not seasoned with this name. If you write, it does not relish if I read not there the name of Jesus. If you dispute or instruct, it does not satisfy me if I hear not the sweet sound of the name of Jesus. Jesus is honey to the mouth, music to the ear, jubilee to the heart.
The name of Jesus is, moreover, a sovereign medicine. If there be anyone overwhelmed with sorrow, let Jesus come into his heart, and thence to his lips, and behold, at the rising light of this sacred name all darkness and clouds will be dispersed, peace and joy will return, and the serenity of his mind will be restored. If there be anyone stained with crime and driven headlong by despair to the pit of destruction, let him call upon this life-giving name, and he will speedily be restored to hope and salvation. Is there anyone amongst you in hardness of heart, in sloth, or tepidity, in bitterness of mind, if he will but invoke the name of Jesus his heart will be softened, and tears of contrition will flow gently and abundantly. In dangers and distress, in fears and anxieties, let him call on this name of power, and his confidence will return, his peace of mind will be restored. Doubts and embarrassments will be dispelled and give place to certainty. There is no ill of life, no adversity or misfortune, in which this adorable name will not bring help and fortitude. It is a remedy whose virtue our dear Savior invites us to test. "Call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me" (Ps 49:15).
Nothing so efficaciously bridles anger and subdues the fire of all unruly passions as this holy name. When I pronounce the name of Jesus, I represent to myself a man meek and humble of heart, benevolent, chaste, merciful, a man endowed with all sanctity, all graces, all virtues, and I call to mind that this man is Divine, is the Almighty God, Who heals me by His example and strengthens me by His power. All manner of good things come to my mind when the sacred name of Jesus sounds in my ear. I will, therefore, make to myself a sweet and sovereign ointment from the virtues of His humanity and the Omnipotence of His Divinity. It shall be to me a healing balsam, the like to which no physician was ever able to compound. And this electuary, my soul, thou hast laid up in the little vessel of the name of Jesus.
Let, then, this name of power be ever in my heart, that all my thoughts, desires, and actions may be directed by Jesus and unto Jesus. To this He Himself urges me: "Place me as a seal upon thy heart, as a seal upon thy arm."
Source: St. Bernard, Sermon on the Holy Name of Jesus, in Sermons of St. Bernard on Advent and Christmas (London: R. & T. Washbourne, Ltd., 1909), 141-147.
Monday, March 3, 2014
Fr. Antonio Royo Marin's Commentary on the Hail Mary, pt. 7: "Jesus"
Jesus
This word was added by the Church to the end of the first part of the Hail Mary because it is effectively the Name of the blessed fruit of Mary: Jesus.
The Gospel of St. Luke tells us that "after eight days were accomplished, that the child should be circumcised, his name was called Jesus, which was called by the angel, before he was conceived in the womb" (Lk 2:21).
Etymologically, the name of Jesus means "the salvation of YHWH," which the angel hinted at when revealing to St. Joseph the mystery of his virgin spouse: "And she shall bring forth a son: and thou shalt call his name Jesus. For he shall save his people from their sins" (Mt 1:21).
St. Thomas Aquinas argues for the fittingness of the name of Jesus given to the Savior of the world since names ought to correspond to the internal essences of things, reminding us of their natures. Since we know that He is the Savior of the world, no name is more fitting than Jesus (cf. Summa Th., III, q. 37, a. 2; http://www.newadvent.org/summa/4037.htm#article2).
Fr. Luis de León [1527–1591] ends his immortal work The Names of Christ mostly explaining all the other meanings applicable to which the name of Jesus encompasses and summarizes. St. Bernard has commented on this name with his usual devotion and tenderness in his Sermons on the Canticle of Canticles, and the Church uses his other sermons in the liturgical Office for the feast of the Most Holy Name of Jesus, but these inimitable pages truly ought to be read in their entirety.
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Source: Fr. Antonio Royo Marín, La Virgen María, trans. by R. Grablin (Madrid, Spain: BAC, 1996), 455.
Sunday, March 2, 2014
Fr. Antonio Royo Marin's Commentary on the Hail Mary, pt. 6: "And Blessed Is The Fruit of Thy Womb"
And blessed is the fruit of thy womb
1. Exegesis. These words of St. Elizabeth reveal their full significance in the words that immediately follow: "And from where is it that the Mother of my Lord should visit me?" (Lk 1:43). Through the internal inspiration of the Holy Ghost (cf. v. 41), St. Elizabeth knew clearly that she was in the presence of the Mother of the Lord, or the Messiah announced through the prophets, which Mary carried within her womb. Hence she humbled herself before Mary, wondering exceedingly that Mary, who was not Elizabeth's neighbor but the "Mother of the Lord," should visit her. With good reason then has an excellent contemporary exegete said that "because the Holy Ghost at this moment reveals to Elizabeth the mystery of Nazareth, it seems that she did not discover this mystery only partly but was, rather, instructed about the messianic and divine prerogatives of the Son of Mary."
2. Theology. Here is the theological commentary of St. Thomas [(Expositio salutationis angelicæ, article 3: "Blessed is the fruit of your womb"; trans. by Joseph B. Collins (New York 1939); available here: http://dhspriory.org/thomas/AveMaria.htm)]:
2. Theology. Here is the theological commentary of St. Thomas [(Expositio salutationis angelicæ, article 3: "Blessed is the fruit of your womb"; trans. by Joseph B. Collins (New York 1939); available here: http://dhspriory.org/thomas/AveMaria.htm)]:
The sinner often seeks for something which he does not find; but to the just man it is given to find what he seeks: “The substance of the sinner is kept for the just” [Prov 13:22]. Thus, Eve sought the fruit of the tree (of good and evil), but she did not find in it that which she sought. Everything Eve desired, however, was given to the Blessed Virgin.
Eve sought that which the devil falsely promised her, namely, that she and Adam would be as gods, knowing good and evil. “You shall be,” says this liar, “as gods” [Gen 3:5]. But he lied, because “he is a liar and the father of lies” [Jn 8:44]. Eve was not made like God after having eaten of the fruit, but rather she was unlike God in that by her sin she withdrew from God and was driven out of paradise. The Blessed Virgin, however, and all Christians found in the Fruit of her womb Him whereby we are all united to God and are made like to Him: “When He shall appear, we shall be like to Him, because we shall see Him as He is” [1 Jn 3:2].
Eve looked for pleasure in the fruit of the tree because it was good to eat. But she did not find this pleasure in it, and, on the contrary, she at once discovered she was naked and was stricken with sorrow. In the Fruit of the Blessed Virgin we find sweetness and salvation: “He who eats My flesh... has eternal life” [Jn 6:55].
The fruit which Eve desired was beautiful to look upon [Gen 3:6], but that Fruit of the Blessed Virgin is far more beautiful, for the Angels desire to look upon Him: “You are beautiful above the sons of men” [Ps 44:3]. He is the splendor of the glory of the Father.
Eve, therefore, looked in vain for that which she sought in the fruit of the tree, just as the sinner is disappointed in his sins. We must seek in the Fruit of the womb of the Virgin Mary whatsoever we desire. This is He who is the Fruit blessed by God, who has filled Him with every grace, which in turn is poured out upon us who adore Him: “Blessed be God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with spiritual blessings in Christ” [Eph 1:3]. He, too, is revered by the Angels: “Benediction and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving, honor and power and strength, to our God” [Rev 7:12]. And He is glorified by men: “Every tongue should confess that the Lord Jesus Christ is in the glory of God the Father” [Phil 2:11]. The Blessed Virgin is indeed blessed, but far more blessed is the Fruit of her womb: “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord” [Ps 117:26].Let us listen now to the commentary of St. Bernard (Hom. 3 in laud. Virg. Mat., n. 5-6):
"Blessed are you among women." To these words, which St. Elizabeth spoke, we ought to add: "And blessed is the fruit of your womb." It is not because you are blessed that the fruit of your womb is blessed as well, but because He has come to you with the blessings of sweetness, you are therefore blessed. Truly is the fruit of your womb blessed, for in Him shall all nations be blessed; and from His fullness you also have received as we have as well but you in a way far more excellent than we. Thus not without reason are you blessed, blessed among women; further blessed is He, though not among men, nor angels precisely, but as the Apostle says, "above all things, God blessed for ever" (Rom 9:6). We usually speak of blessed men, blessed women, blessed earth, and to speak of other creatures which we know to have received a blessing, but singularly blessed is the fruit of your womb, being He Who is above all things, God blessed for ever.
Blessed, then, is the fruit of your womb. Blessed in His fragrance, blessed in His savor, blessed in His beauty.
a) It is the fragrance of this sweet-smelling fruit of which it has been said [by Isaac]: "This is the odor of my son as of a field blessed to the full by the Lord" (Gen 27:27). Is He not truly blessed to whom the Lord has bestowed His blessings?
b) Of the savor of this fruit, one who has tasted it would say: "Taste and see how sweet is the Lord" (Ps 33:9); and in another place: "How great, O Lord, is the abundance of Your sweetness, which you have hidden and reserved for those who fear You!" (Ps 30:20). And in another place as well: "If you could only taste and see how sweet the Lord is" (1 Pet 2:3). The Fruit Himself spoke of Himself, inviting all: "Those who eat Me shall hunger even more, and those who drink Me shall thirst even more" (Sir 24:29). He was speaking of the sweetness of His savor, which when tasted excites the appetite even further. This good fruit is food and drink in this life for souls who hunger and thirst for righteousness and sanctity.
c) You have heard of His odor, of his savor. Listen also regarding His beauty. For if it is true that the fruit of death was not only sweet to eat but also, according to the testimony of Scripture, agreeable to behold, how much more ought to be the vivifying beauty of this living fruit, upon which, as Scripture equally testifies, the angels desired to look? Contemplating this beauty in spirit and desiring to see the same in the flesh the psalmist has said: "Out of Sion comes the splendor of His beauty" (Ps 49:2). And so that you may not think that he was praising some merely ordinary beauty, remember what you have heard written in another psalm: "You surpass the beauty of all the sons of men; grace is poured upon your lips; thus God has blessed you for ever" (Ps 44:3).---
Source: Fr. Antonio Royo Marín, La Virgen María, trans. by R. Grablin (Madrid, Spain: BAC, 1996), 453-455.
Tuesday, February 18, 2014
Fr. Antonio Royo Marin's Commentary on the Hail Mary, pt. 4: "The Lord Is With Thee"
The Lord is with thee
1. Exegesis. Let us listen to a contemporary exegete:
This phrase—writes Fr. Juan Leal—is related to the exhortation to rejoice and with the fullness of grace. Fr. Holzmeister has studied its remote context:
a) In the Bible, the phrase has been applied only to those exceptional persons during special and outstanding circumstances. It is given by God to indicate a singular and difficult mission, which is being realized or about to be realized.
b) The presence of the Lord is always active and efficacious in the success of the imposed mission.
The remote context is not enough. Its proximate meaning, which makes concrete its general meaning, has more importance. Here the context immediately speaks to us of the foretold Messianic joy and the fullness of grace. The presence of the Lord, which is the cause of joy and grace, determines its supernatural character. Although there are three phrases that grammatically make up the angel's salutation, there is a logical subordination among each. The Virgin could rejoice with this Messianic joy of the prophets because God was pleased to dwell in her in the fullness of grace and "has done great things for her," which is all proof of the exceptional presence of God with Mary. This presence had already been established, for the angel did not say, "The Lord will be with thee" but "the Lord is with thee," now and after as before. The presence of God here is dynamic on the order of the person and on the order of the mission.2. Theology. Let us listen in the first place to the commentary of St. Thomas Aquinas [(Expositio salutationis angelicæ, article 1: "The Lord is with you"; trans. by Joseph B. Collins (New York 1939); available here: http://dhspriory.org/thomas/AveMaria.htm)]:
[In the second place,] the Blessed Virgin excels the Angels in her closeness to God. The Angel Gabriel indicated this when he said: “The Lord is with you”—as if to say: “I reverence you because you art nearer to God than I, because the Lord is with you.” By the Lord, he means:
1) the Father with the Son and the Holy Spirit, who in like manner are not with any Angel or any other spirit: “The Holy which shall be born of you shall be called the Son of God” [Lk 1:35].
2) God the Son was in her womb: “Rejoice and praise, O you habitation of Sion; for great is He that is in the midst of you, the Holy One of Israel” [Is 12:6]. The Lord is not with the Angel in the same manner as with the Blessed Virgin; for with her He is as a Son, and with the Angel He is the Lord.
3) The Lord, the Holy Ghost, is in her as in a temple, so that it is said: “The temple of the Lord, the sanctuary of the Holy Spirit,” [Benedictus antiphon from the Little Office of Blessed Virgin], because she conceived by the Holy Ghost. “The Holy Ghost shall come upon you” [Lk 1:35].
The Blessed Virgin is closer to God than is an Angel, because with her are the Lord the Father, the Lord the Son, and the Lord the Holy Ghost—in a word, the Holy Trinity. Indeed of her we sing: “Noble resting place of the Triune God.” “The Lord is with you” are the most praise-laden words that the Angel could have uttered; and, hence, he so profoundly reverenced the Blessed Virgin because she is the Mother of the Lord and Our Lady. Accordingly she is very well named “Mary,” which in the Syrian tongue means “Lady.”And now let us listen, following the custom of our exposition, to the mystical commentary of St. Bernard (Hom. 3 in laud. Virg. Mat., n. 3):
The angel did not say: "The Lord is in you," but "the Lord is with you." Although God is equally in all parts in the simplicity of His substance as with all things, He nevertheless exists in a different mode in rational creatures than with others, and even among rational creatures, He exists through His efficacy in a different way, depending on whether He is in the good or the bad. In the above mode, without doubt, He exists in irrational creatures who are unable to comprehend Him. In rational creatures who can know He is there by concepts, nevertheless He can be truly grasped only by the good who love Him. It can be said that the Lord is with them only among the good who by their manner of life are united in harmony with the will of God. When they have subjected their wills to His justice, there is no indecency done to God, for they desire to do simply what He desires, and they do nothing apart from that will, by which they are especially joined to God. If these things may be said of all the saints, more particularly may they be said of Mary, to whom God was joined not only through her will but even through her flesh so that of His substance and that of the Virgin's, He formed one Christ, or put better, He formed one Christ, who was not entirely the substance of God and entirely the substance of the Virgin, despite belonging fully both to God and to the Virgin. And there were not two sons, but one son from One and the other. The angel, therefore, says, "Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with thee." Not only is the Lord, the Son, with you, to Whom you gave your flesh, but also the Lord, the Holy Ghost, by Whom you conceived, and the Lord, the Father, who begot the One you conceived. The Father, I repeat, is with you, who has given you His Son as well. The Son is with you, Who in order to work in you an admirable mystery, closed Himself within you in a most marvelous way in the hidden depths of your womb and for you guarded your virginal seal. The Holy Ghost is with you, Who with the Father and the Son sanctifies your womb. The Lord, then, is with you.---
Source: Fr. Antonio Royo Marín, La Virgen María, trans. by R. Grablin (Madrid, Spain: BAC, 1996), 449-451.
Fr. Antonio Royo Marin's Commentary on the Hail Mary, pt. 3: "Full of Grace"
Full of Grace
2. Theology. First, let us listen to the magisterial commentary of the Angelic Doctor [(Expositio salutationis angelicæ, article 1: "Full of grace"; trans. by Joseph B. Collins (New York 1939); available here: http://dhspriory.org/thomas/AveMaria.htm; for the reader's benefit, I quote more of St. Thomas's commentary here than Fr. Marín originally did)]:
The Blessed Virgin was superior to any of the Angels in the fullness of grace, and as an indication of this the Angel showed reverence to her by saying: “Full of grace.” This is as if he said: “I show you reverence because you dost excel me in the fullness of grace.”
The Blessed Virgin is said to be full of grace in three ways. First, as regards her soul she was full of grace. The grace of God is given for two chief purposes, namely, to do good and to avoid evil. The Blessed Virgin, then, received grace in the most perfect degree, because she had avoided every sin more than any other Saint after Christ. [For sin is either original, and from this she was cleansed in the womb, or mortal or venial, and from these she was free.] Thus it is said: “You are fair, My beloved, and there is not a spot in you” [Sg 4:7]. St. Augustine says: “If we could bring together all the Saints and ask them if they were entirely without sin, all of them, with the exception of the Blessed Virgin, would say with one voice: ‘If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.’[1 Jn 1:8]. I except, however, this holy Virgin of whom, because of the honor of God, I wish to omit all mention of sin” [De natura et gratia 36]. For we know that to her was granted grace to overcome every kind of sin by Him whom she merited to conceive and bring forth, and He certainly was wholly without sin. [...]
She exercised the works of all the virtues, whereas the Saints are conspicuous for the exercise of certain special virtues. Thus, one excelled in humility, another in chastity, another in mercy, to the extent that they are the special exemplars of these virtues—as, for example, St. Nicholas is an exemplar of the virtue of mercy.
The Blessed Virgin is the exemplar of all the virtues. In her is the fullness of the virtue of humility: “Behold the handmaid of the Lord” [Lk 1:38]. And again: “He has looked on the humility of his handmaid” [Lk 1:48]. So she is also exemplar of the virtue of chastity: “Because I know not man” [Lk 1:34]. And thus it is with all the virtues, as is evident. Mary was full of grace not only in the performance of all good, but also in the avoidance of all evil.
Again, the Blessed Virgin was full of grace in the overflowing effect of this grace upon her flesh or body. For while it is a great thing in the Saints that the abundance of grace sanctified their souls, yet, moreover, the soul of the holy Virgin was so filled with grace that from her soul grace poured into her flesh from which was conceived the Son of God. Hugh of St. Victor says of this: “Because the love of the Holy Spirit so inflamed her soul, He worked a wonder in her flesh, in that from it was born God made Man.” “And therefore also the Holy which shall be born of you shall be called the Son of God” [Lk 1:35].
[Thirdly, t]he plenitude of grace in Mary was such that its effects overflow upon all men. It is a great thing in a Saint when he has grace to bring about the salvation of many, but it is exceedingly wonderful when grace is of such abundance as to be sufficient for the salvation of all men in the world, and this is true of Christ and of the Blessed Virgin. Thus, “a thousand bucklers,” that is, remedies against dangers, “hang therefrom” [Sg 4:4]. Likewise, in every work of virtue one can have her as one’s helper. Of her it was spoken: “In me is all grace of the way and of the truth, in me is all hope of life and of virtue” [Sir 24:25]. Therefore, Mary is full of grace, exceeding the Angels in this fullness and very fittingly is she called “Mary” which means “in herself enlightened”: “The Lord will fill your soul with brightness” [Is 48:11]. And she will illumine others throughout the world for which reason she is compared to the sun and to the moon.
Following this authoritative theological commentary of the Angelic Doctor, let us listen to the mystical commentary of St. Bernard, full of mildness and affection [(Hom. 3 in laud. Vir. Mat., nn. 2-3)]:
We have here, then, what the angel presented to Mary, saying: "Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with thee." We read in the Acts of the Apostles of St. Stephen who was "full of grace" (Acts 6:5) and of the apostles who also were "full of the Holy Ghost" (Acts 2:4), but quite differently from Mary; because, among many other reasons, neither in the former did the fullness of the divinity dwell bodily as it did within Mary, nor did the latter conceive by the Holy Ghost as did Mary. "Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with thee." To what extent was she full of grace if the Lord was with her! What we ought to admire more is how the angel found the One who sent him to the Virgin already present with her. Was God faster than the angel so as to arrive on earth before His messenger? I ought not be surprised because while the King was in his rest, the nard of the Virgin was spreading its scent, and the perfume of its aroma was rising up before the presence of His glory, and in this way she found grace in the eyes of the Lord, while those around Him cried out: "Who is this, rising up from the desert as a column of smoke, formed by the perfumes of myrrh and frankincense?" (Sg 3:6). And at once the King set out from His holy place, rejoiced as a giant to run his course (Ps 18:6), and although He came from the highest height of heaven, He wished with the most ardent desire that He should arrive before His messenger to the Virgin, whom He loved, whom He had chosen for Himself, whose beauty He desired. To Him does the Church, full of rejoicing, say upon seeing Him come from the distance: "Behold how He comes leaping over the mountains, passing over the hills" (Sg 2:8).
With good reason does the King desire the beauty of the Virgin, who was doing what David, her father, said to her from long before: "Listen, daughter, and see: incline your ear and forget your people and your father's house." And if you do this, "The King shall desire your beauty" (Ps 44:11). She heard, then, and saw, not as those who hear but do not listen nor those who see but do not understand, but as one who hears and believes, as one who sees and understands. She inclined her ear to obedience and her heart to teaching, and forgot her people and her father's house. For she did not think of increasing her people through succession, nor did she intend to give the house of her father to an heir, but all the honor which she might have had from her fathers, she abandoned as if it were worthless, so that she might gain Christ (Phil. 3:8). And she did not think falsely, for she attained, without violence to the integrity of her virginity, to bear Christ for her Son. Thus with great reason may we call her "full of grace," for she both maintained the grace of virginity and, more than that, achieved the glory of motherhood.
Footnotes:
1. In a well-documented study on the meaning of the expression "full of grace," an excellent contemporary exegete has come to the following conclusion: "The fullness of grace is a thing of "fuller sense" [sensus plenior] pertaining to a second group, and within which are certainly contained all the graces that God has arranged to give to the Virgin Mary in preparation for her divine maternity; and within which probably are also included the same graces which God arranged to give to His Mother in electing her to the divine maternity (cf. Manuel de Tuya, O.P., Exegetical-theological Evaluation of "Hail, full of grace": Ciencia Tomista, Jan-Mar 1965 [translator's note: this year is a typo; the actual year of publication is 1956; volume number is 83], p. 27).
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Source: Fr. Antonio Royo Marín, La Virgen María, trans. by R. Grablin (Madrid, Spain: BAC, 1996), 447-449.
Thursday, February 13, 2014
Fr. Antonio Royo Marin's Commentary on the Hail Mary, pt. 2: "Mary"
Mary
This word—Mary—figures in the Gospel text of the Annunciation, but it is not from the mouth of the angel (cf. Lk. 1:27). The Church has included it in the salutation because the angel in fact addressed its greeting to Mary.
Mary! "The most beautiful music which could be formed in [four] letters" (Pemán) [translator's note: four letters in English; five in Spanish: "María"]. It is a most sweet word, the most tender and endearing of a Christian enamored by his Mother: "And the name of the virgin was Mary" (Lk. 1:27). In the brief biography of the Virgin that was included at the beginning of this work, we indicated some of the many meanings which are attributed to the word "Mary" by philologists. Its most probable meaning is that of Lady, which can also signify Beautiful Woman, from the Hebrew root mará. And how we should desire it to have been such—the beauty and majesty of Mary always wins us over, even to the point of causing us to fall into ecstasy, which has been given to some who contemplated her heavenly qualities in this life (St. Bernadette of Lourdes, the shepherds of Fatima...) and shall constitute for us all one of the greatest accidental joys of eternal beatitude.
The eloquence and fervor of St. Bernard come from the summits of his contemplating the sweetness and beauty of the name of Mary. He commented on the significance of the Star of the sea—which is one of the many meanings attributed to the name of Mary—, writing in the inimitable style of the Mellifluous Doctor (Homily 2 on the Virgin[; cf. Second Nocturn of Matins for September 12]):
The evangelist says at the end of the verse: And the virgin's name was Mary. Let us speak a few words upon this name, which signifies Star of the Sea and very well suits the Virgin Mary, who may very appropriately be likened unto a star. A star gives forth her rays without any harm to herself, and the Virgin brought forth her Son without any harm to her virginity. The light of a star takes nothing away from the star itself, and the birth of Mary's offspring took nothing away from the integrity of her virginity. She is that noble star which was to come out of Jacob (cf. Nm. 24:17), whose rays illumine all the earth, whose splendor is most brilliant in heaven and penetrates even unto the abyss of hell, lighting up earth midway and warming souls rather than bodies, strengthening virtues and destroying vices. She, I repeat, is a clear and singular star, brilliant in merits, resplendent in example, needfully set to look down upon the surface of this great and spacious sea.
Oh! Whoever who may be battered by the frequent storms of this life's ocean: keep your eyes fixed upon this star's clear resplendence if you would not be overwhelmed by the tempest. If the hurricanes of temptation rise against you, or if you are running upon the reefs of trouble, look to the star, call on Mary. If the waves of pride, of ambition, of slander, or of envy toss you about, look to the star, call on Mary. If the billows of anger, of avarice, or of the enticements of the flesh beat violently against the little boat of your soul, look to Mary. If the memory of the enormity of your sins troubles you, if the foulness of your conscience confounds you, if the horror of judgment dreads you, and if you begin to slip into the soil of depression, into the abyss of desperation, think of Mary.
In dangers, in difficulties, in doubts, think on Mary, invoke Mary. Let her not be apart from your mouth, let her not be far from your heart, and so that you may possess the support of her prayers, do not turn away from the example of her virtue. If you follow her, you will not go astray. If you pray to her, you will not lose hope. If you think of her, you will not perish. If she holds you in her hands, you will not fall. If she protects you, you will not be afraid. If she guides you, you will not grow weary. If she helps you, you will easily come to the door of your home safe and so will you understand in yourself why with reason it is said: And the virgin's name was Mary.Providing an echo of the sublime thoughts of St. Bernard, the author we previously cited also writes (Cf. Barcon, pp. 91-92):
Mary signifies Star of the sea. Just as a star guides sailors to port, so does Mary guide all men to heaven, to the light of God by means of her intercession.
Just as a star gives a breath of air and hope through the gloom, so Mary gives strength to the soul in the midst of spiritual perils.
Just as a star consoles in the midst of the tempest, so Mary, in the midst of spiritual torments, cheers and comforts us.
Just as a star stands in the heights and can be seen by all, so Mary has been given a preferential place in our churches, our shrines and sanctuaries, and on the tops of hills and mountains.
The Christian people express this notion of consideration towards Mary as Star of the sea when it generously ascribes to her these titles: Virgin of the Star, Virgin Guide, Virgin of Aid, of Refuge, of Hope, of Consolation, of the Helpless, of Perpetual Sorrow...
She is star of the sea because this life is a sea far more dangerous than other seas. In the sea are gales of wind, storms of waves, and the hidden dangers of the reef. In the sea of life there are demonic temptations, temptations from other men, and temptations from our passions.
The Virgin Mary is our Star of the sea, which dissipates the clouds of deceit and error by which the devil seduces us, the persecutions and evil example of men and the inclinations and clever seductions of our affections and passions.
For that reason, we ought frequently to have the name of Mary on our lips and in our hearts.
Mary signifies Lady. Lady of the angels, of men, and of grace. Lady of her Son, who is Lady of the Lord of lords. Lady, who is mistress and queen of heaven and of earth, to whom all the powers of hell are subject.
The dispenser of all graces, and therefore to whom we ought to go in life, in death, in prosperity, and in adversity.
Oh my Lady! Oh my mother! I offer all of myself to you!
Mary signifies bitter sea: bitter sea because of the immensity of her pains during the passion of her Son; for the sorrow of her tears in losing her Child Jesus; for the ingratitude of sinners; for sorrow because of their condemnation.
Mary, Mother of grace, Mother of mercy, defend us from the enemy.---
Source: Fr. Antonio Royo Marín, La Virgen María, trans. by R. Grablin (Madrid, Spain: BAC, 1996), 444-447.
Saturday, December 28, 2013
Fr. Dom Vitalis Lehodey on Receiving Humiliations
The humiliations we procure for ourselves are always too delicate and too infrequent to cause the destruction of self-love. What we require is that others should put us to shame, should bluntly tell us the truth about ourselves, should expose us, should repeatedly denounce us, and make us feel the world of misery and corruption that is seething within us. That is the reason why God deprives us of health, weakens our natural faculties, leaves us in helplessness and darkness, or afflicts us with other interior trials. That is why He buffets us by the hand of Satan, why He moves our superiors to reprehend us, and has imposed on the community the obligation of co-operating with us, according to our usages, in the correction of our faults. It is especially through our associates that He subjects us to the painful but salutary action of humiliation. He employs all in this enterprise, making use of both enlightened and bitter zeal, virtues and defects, good intentions, frailties, and even malice itself. Men are only His responsible instruments; and He will punish or reward them according to their works in His own good time. Let us allow Him this directive role. And attending only to Him, our God, our Savior, our Friend par excellence, let us forget whatever may be disagreeable to nature, and accept as from His hand this very beneficial, if distasteful, treatment of humiliations. Generally, they are light and passing. But if they were more painful and enduring, they would also be, through the mercy of God, in fuller measure "a compensation for our sins of the past, a title to the pardon of our daily offenses, a remedy for our infirmities, a treasure of merits and virtues, a proof of our loyal devotion to God, the purchase-price of intimate relations with Him, and the means of our perfection."
Humiliations foster pride when they are rejected with anger or accepted with discontent. This fact explains why "so many are humbled without becoming humble," as St. Bernard remarks. He alone profits by his humiliations who receives them with welcome; and he profits the more according as he receives them the more humbly, as from the hand of God, saying to himself, for example: "I have richly deserved this confusion, and have also great need of it. Since a slight offense, a little want of consideration, a disagreeable word suffices to fill me with trouble and agitation, pride must still be living and vigorous in my heart. Hence, far from regarding the humiliation as an evil, I ought rather to look upon it as a remedy; I ought to bless God Who deigns to cure me; and I ought to feel thankful to my brethren for the assistance they give me in conquering self-love. And besides, what I should really consider a proper subject for shame, confusion, and humiliation, is to feel myself still so full of pride, after my many years spent in the service of the King of the humble." Ah! if we but clearly realized our past transgressions and our present miseries, we should find it easy enough to convince ourselves that no creature can ever make us endure as much contempt, injury, and disgrace as we deserve. And instead of murmuring when God sends us humiliations, we should rather thank Him as for a wonderful favor, since in return for our acceptance of a slight and transient confusion, He conceals from nearly all mortal eyes the view of our countless miseries, and spares us the everlasting confusion of the lost. Let us not say that we are guiltless in the present instance. For there are doubtless many faults to our charge which have never been punished, and the expiation thereof is not the less due because so long deferred.
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Source: Dom Vitalis Lehodey, Holy Abandonment, trans. Ailbe J. Luddy (Rockford, IL: TAN Books, 2003), 216-218.
Humiliations foster pride when they are rejected with anger or accepted with discontent. This fact explains why "so many are humbled without becoming humble," as St. Bernard remarks. He alone profits by his humiliations who receives them with welcome; and he profits the more according as he receives them the more humbly, as from the hand of God, saying to himself, for example: "I have richly deserved this confusion, and have also great need of it. Since a slight offense, a little want of consideration, a disagreeable word suffices to fill me with trouble and agitation, pride must still be living and vigorous in my heart. Hence, far from regarding the humiliation as an evil, I ought rather to look upon it as a remedy; I ought to bless God Who deigns to cure me; and I ought to feel thankful to my brethren for the assistance they give me in conquering self-love. And besides, what I should really consider a proper subject for shame, confusion, and humiliation, is to feel myself still so full of pride, after my many years spent in the service of the King of the humble." Ah! if we but clearly realized our past transgressions and our present miseries, we should find it easy enough to convince ourselves that no creature can ever make us endure as much contempt, injury, and disgrace as we deserve. And instead of murmuring when God sends us humiliations, we should rather thank Him as for a wonderful favor, since in return for our acceptance of a slight and transient confusion, He conceals from nearly all mortal eyes the view of our countless miseries, and spares us the everlasting confusion of the lost. Let us not say that we are guiltless in the present instance. For there are doubtless many faults to our charge which have never been punished, and the expiation thereof is not the less due because so long deferred.
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Source: Dom Vitalis Lehodey, Holy Abandonment, trans. Ailbe J. Luddy (Rockford, IL: TAN Books, 2003), 216-218.
Thursday, October 31, 2013
St. Bernard of Clairvaux and Pope Benedict XVI on Desiring Eternal Life
“Nightlong in my little bed I sought him whom my soul loves.” It is a great good to seek God; in my opinion the soul knows no greater blessing. It is the first of its gifts and the final stage in its progress. It is inferior to none, and it yields place to none. What could be superior to it, when nothing has a higher place? What could claim a higher place, when it is the consummation of all things? What virtue can be attributed to anyone who does not seek God? What boundary can be set for anyone who does seek him? The psalmist says: `Seek his face always.' Nor, I think, will a soul cease to seek him even when it has found him. It is not with steps of the feet that God is sought but with the heart's desire; and when the soul happily finds him its desire is not quenched but kindled. Does the consummation of joy bring about the consuming of desire? Rather it is oil poured upon the flames. So it is. Joy will be fulfilled, but there will be no end to desire, and therefore no end to the search. Think, if you can, of this eagerness to see God as not caused by his absence, for he is always present; and think of the desire for God as without fear of failure, for grace is abundantly present.Source: St. Bernard of Clairvaux, Commentary on the Song of Songs, trans. by Killian Walsh, Paths of Love Website, accessed October 31, 2013, http://www.pathsoflove.com/bernard/songofsongs/sermon84.html, Sermon 84.1.
“What do you ask of the Church?” Answer: “Faith”. “And what does faith give you?” “Eternal life”. According to this dialogue, the parents were seeking access to the faith for their child, communion with believers, because they saw in faith the key to “eternal life”. Today as in the past, this is what being baptized, becoming Christians, is all about: it is not just an act of socialization within the community, not simply a welcome into the Church. The parents expect more for the one to be baptized: they expect that faith, which includes the corporeal nature of the Church and her sacraments, will give life to their child—eternal life. Faith is the substance of hope. But then the question arises: do we really want this—to live eternally? Perhaps many people reject the faith today simply because they do not find the prospect of eternal life attractive. What they desire is not eternal life at all, but this present life, for which faith in eternal life seems something of an impediment. To continue living for ever —endlessly—appears more like a curse than a gift. Death, admittedly, one would wish to postpone for as long as possible. But to live always, without end—this, all things considered, can only be monotonous and ultimately unbearable. [...]
Obviously there is a contradiction in our attitude, which points to an inner contradiction in our very existence. On the one hand, we do not want to die; above all, those who love us do not want us to die. Yet on the other hand, neither do we want to continue living indefinitely, nor was the earth created with that in view. So what do we really want? Our paradoxical attitude gives rise to a deeper question: what in fact is “life”? And what does “eternity” really mean? There are moments when it suddenly seems clear to us: yes, this is what true “life” is—this is what it should be like. Besides, what we call “life” in our everyday language is not real “life” at all. Saint Augustine, in the extended letter on prayer which he addressed to Proba, a wealthy Roman widow and mother of three consuls, once wrote this: ultimately we want only one thing—”the blessed life”, the life which is simply life, simply “happiness”. In the final analysis, there is nothing else that we ask for in prayer. Our journey has no other goal—it is about this alone. But then Augustine also says: looking more closely, we have no idea what we ultimately desire, what we would really like. We do not know this reality at all; even in those moments when we think we can reach out and touch it, it eludes us. “We do not know what we should pray for as we ought,” he says, quoting Saint Paul (Rom 8:26). All we know is that it is not this. Yet in not knowing, we know that this reality must exist. [...]
This unknown “thing” is the true “hope” which drives us, and at the same time the fact that it is unknown is the cause of all forms of despair and also of all efforts, whether positive or destructive, directed towards worldly authenticity and human authenticity. The term “eternal life” is intended to give a name to this known “unknown”. Inevitably it is an inadequate term that creates confusion. “Eternal”, in fact, suggests to us the idea of something interminable, and this frightens us; “life” makes us think of the life that we know and love and do not want to lose, even though very often it brings more toil than satisfaction, so that while on the one hand we desire it, on the other hand we do not want it. To imagine ourselves outside the temporality that imprisons us and in some way to sense that eternity is not an unending succession of days in the calendar, but something more like the supreme moment of satisfaction, in which totality embraces us and we embrace totality—this we can only attempt. It would be like plunging into the ocean of infinite love, a moment in which time—the before and after—no longer exists. We can only attempt to grasp the idea that such a moment is life in the full sense, a plunging ever anew into the vastness of being, in which we are simply overwhelmed with joy. This is how Jesus expresses it in Saint John's Gospel: “I will see you again and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you” (16:22). We must think along these lines if we want to understand the object of Christian hope, to understand what it is that our faith, our being with Christ, leads us to expect.Source: Pope Benedict XVI, Spe Salvi, Encyclical letter on Christian hope, Vatican Website, November 30, 2007, accessed October 31, 2013, http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/encyclicals/documents/hf_ben-xvi_enc_20071130_spe-salvi_en.html, numbers 10-12.
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