A Treasure!
Look at what I stumbled across in my searches: The Paradoxes of Catholicism, a collection of Sermons by Robert Hugh Benson. (I was actually looking for Come Rack, Come Rope which I know has been reprinted, but my book budget for such things is, shall we say, abstemious in the extreme.) Following an excerpt from a Sermons preached on Easter Day:
from Paradoxes of Catholicism--"Life and Death" Preached on Easter Day Robert Hugh BensonIt is easy, then, to see why it is that the Church dies daily, why it is that she is content to be stripped of all that makes her life effective, why she too permits her hands to be bound and her feet fettered and her beauty marred and her voice silenced so far as men can do those things. She is human? Yes; she dwells in a body that is prepared for her, but prepared chiefly that she may suffer in it. Her far-reaching hands are not hers merely that she may bind up with them the brokenhearted, nor her swift feet hers merely that she may run on them to succour the perishing, nor her head and heart hers merely that she may ponder and love. But all this sensitive human organism is hers that at last she may agonize in it, bleed from it from a thousand wounds, be lifted up in it to draw all men to her cross.
She does not desire, then, in this world, the throne of her Father David, nor the kind of triumph which is the only kind that the world understands to be so. She desires one life and one triumph only -- the Risen Life of her Saviour. And this, at last, is the transfiguration of her Humanity by the power of her Divinity and the vindication of them both.
Harry Potter (redux)
I have just recently finished the fifth book in the series and have no real insights or helps for anyone. However, I do think I would recommend that everyone interested in working with children acquaint themselves with the series. It is astounding to me that thirteen year-olds would take enough time away from their busy gameboy filled lives to read a book approaching nine-hundred pages long. As with the fourth, I have some reservations about allowing children to read this without some discussion/supervision. But I also don't have a teenager, so it may not be as possible as I am thinking. My reservations stem from some very sophisticated topics and handling thereof that might be disconcerting to some younger children. I still stand directly in opposition to the opinion of Michael O'Brien who exhibits a slender knowledge of the uses of enchantment. More about this somewhat later at Catholic Bookshelf.
Pleased to Announce
That the home machine has been fixed, and I once again have access. Praise God!
On the downside, I opted to install a new operating system (actually, it will be two operating systems once I put Linux in the separate partition created for it.) So I'm having some system maladjustments as I get used to the new OS.
Sanctificarnos
Please be sure to visit Sanctificarnos, a website dedicated to giving a Catholic Perspective on Marriage and Divorce. What you learn there may well help someone you know who is struggling with these issues. Moreover, it may also help us all understand better essential Catholic teachings and the real necessity of preparing for marriage.
Thanks to Mary
A Wonderful and touching story that goes to show that you never know who is listening nor what it is that will touch them. Thanks, Mary.
Too Interesting to Ignore
Minute Particulars says in a coherent, succinct way much that I would have liked to say on the abortion debate. How one does something is as important as what one chooses to do. When any means are used, the end, however good is sullied and diminished in the eyes of surrounding observers.
A Message from Sir Walter Raleigh
A short letter upon his death. Touching, tender, and practical. "To Day a Man, To Morrow none."
from "To Day a Man, To Morrow none," a Letter of Sir Walter Raleigh awaiting Death in the Tower As for me I am no more yours, nor you mine, death hath cut us asunder, and God hath divided me from the world, and you from me: Remember your poore childe for his fathers sake that comforted you, and loved you in his happiest times, I sued for my life (But God knowes) it was for you and yours that I desired it: for know it (deare wife) that your sonne is the childe of a true man, and who in his owne heart despiseth death, and his mishapen and ugly forms. I cannot write much: God knoweth how hardly I stole this time when all were asleep, and it is now time to separate my thoughts from the world. Beg my dead body which living was denyed you, and either lay it in Sherborne or in Exeter Church by my father and mother. I can say no more, time and death call me away. The everlasting God, infinite, powerfull, and inscrutable God, That Almighty God which is goodnesse it selfe, mercy it selfe, the true light and life, keep you and yours, and have mercy upon me. Teach me to forgive my persecuters and false accusers, and send me to meet him in his glorious Kingdome. My true wife farewell, God blesse my poore boy, pray for me, my true God hold you both in His Armes.
Presumption
Looking over the things I have written in the past couple of weeks, I realize that I might legitmately be accused of the grave character flaw of presumption. That is, who am I to be doling out advice or recommending a course of action. I know these things less well than many of my co-bloggers. And yet, even if I am not perfect (or even very good) in practicing most of what I recommend, I'm certain the advice is good, because it is not my own.
So when reading my posts, often addressed to "you" please recall that I am within that collective "you" and part of the purpose of writing is to continually reinforce what I know to be true and what I have experienced to be effective (when I was actually doing it). And please forgive me any presumption you may see here. It isn't intentional--it is an artifact of language and a tracing of personality.
The Mechanics of Trusting God--Part I--Start By Listening
Trusting God must be one of the great hurdles many people have in progressing in holiness. This makes a certain sense. If you cannot believe what you see around you each day, how do you learn to believe what you cannot see. This isn't about faith, most people reading this blog already have faith, some in abundance. It is about trust.
In a sense, trusting God must become like trusting chemical bonds. Most people don't give a moment's thought to the fact that we are held together (literally) by the most tenuous connections between particles far too small to see. We trust electrons, ionic bonds, van der Waal's bonds, covalent bonds, all manner of other chemical theories to hold our bodies and our world together. We trust reality.
We need to learn to trust God in the same way. After all, it is His constant attention and love that make possible all that we see and are. He supports each of those chemical bonds by His omnipresent attention. Without it, there would be nothing that exists.
How do we learn to trust? One way is to trust our experiences. God speaks to us every day. He speaks to us in the events of the day. We often do not listen. We do not train ourselves to hear the message of everyday; we take it for granted. But a careful perusal of past events would show us clear examples of places along the path where God has walked closely with us and supported us.
Here I suggest another useful technique garnered from the Ignatian Long Retreat--examen. In this particular form of the examen, you are not looking for places where you have failed in the course of the day. Rather, you are looking for places where God spoke to you. You are training yourself to become aware of the opportunities God makes for you each day. By examining the events of the day and recognizing where God was present, you become more sensitive to His presence.
Many people, myself included, go through daily life under the influence of spiritual novacaine. We're aware that the spirit is present, but we don't really sense anything other than the ringing, tingling, numbness that marks our own absence. We need to turn our attention to that void and become aware that it is not a void, but it is the door to the kingdom of heaven. Jesus said repeatedly, "The Kingdom of God is at hand." By this, I don't think He meant, it is coming soon. I interpret what He said to mean that it is nearby, it is close. It is so close that we are completely unaware of its proximity. The Kingdom of Heaven is within us, and we need merely open the door and walk through. But we cannot open a door we do not recognize as a door, and we cannot walk through a portal until the door is opened. It is up to us to open it. God can hammer down the door and barge through--but it is unlikely that He will do so. So we need to exert ourselves to be aware of the presence of God in our lives and to become aware of His kingdom within. Only in such a way of complete submission will we find peace, love, and the crucial ability to trust.
Back After a Weekend Hiatus
Yes, and still have no computer at home. Will not have at least until Thursday when I shall have to quickly bring it up to speed and attempt to get online before a brief sojourn to Sanibel.