No Peace, No God. No God, No Love
A peaceful heart is receptive to the action and movement of the spirit. “The devil is ever solicitous to banish peace from your mind, knowing well that God only dwells there in peace and that it is in peace that he works his wonders.” Saint Francis de Sales said the same thing to one of […]
Our Inability to Trust God
There’s a section in St. Paul’s letter to the Romans entitled “Children of God Through Adoption” which I never thought of much when I heard it or read it over the years. It took on a deep significance after my wife and I adopted two children 20 years ago. There’s a physical aspect of adoption, […]
Confession is like weeding a garden
Confession is like weeding a garden. It’s got to be done on a regular schedule! Otherwise vices, like weeds will take root, grow and choke out your sanctity. If you’ve ever weeded a garden you know you can’t take a break because the weeds are relentless! If you weed out your sins early and often, […]
The Refusal of One’s Own Greatness
This is a 2 minute read. “One of the daughters of acedia, according to St. Thomas, is pusillanimity (having a very small spirit or being mediocre at best). It is the vice contrary to (the virtue of) magnanimity, that is, generousness of soul (being conscious of the potential for greatness). It is the inability to believe […]
Watch!
Isn’t it ironic that the Gospel on the first Sunday of Advent ends with the word “Watch!”? In context Jesus is telling his disciples to be watchful, be alert. “Watch, therefore; you don’t know when the lord of the house is coming… May he not come suddenly and find you sleeping. What I say to […]
Prepare for Lent by concentrating the strongest defense where your ramparts are weakest
The best way to prepare for Lent, about 30 days from now, is not to decide what to give up as if you were 9 years old, but how you are going to send Satan packing. Father John Tauler +1361 wrote that “when evil comes roaring upon poor, weak men, they instantly fall down helpless […]
Five Hard Truths That Will Set You Free
I found this great blog posting from Monsignor Charles Pope – Archdiocese of Washington. Msgr. is the pastor of Holy Comforter-St. Cyprian, a vibrant parish community in Washington, DC. I have re-posted his blog post in its entirety below. Some years ago I read an essay by the Franciscan Theologian Richard Rohr. I will say […]
How the enemy diverts you from righteous deeds and spoils them
For our struggle is not with flesh and blood but with the principalities, with the powers,with the world rulers of this present darkness, with the evil spirits in the heavens. Eph. 6:12 Father Lorenzo Scupoli wrote ‘Il Combattimento spirituale’ originally published in 1589. It remains relevant in 2015 as he describes the spiritual battle that […]