Can We Be Saints?
by Frank Duff
by Frank Duff
Contents
WHAT IS A SAINT ?
- Who are Called to be Saints?
- The Two Successes
- I Am a Bundle of Weakness
- A Changed Outlook
- A New Ambition
- Being Really in Earnest
- Perseverance
- The Secret of Perseverance is Prayer
- Pray! Pray! Pray!
THE DAY IN DETAIL
- The Foundation Stone
- The Morning Offering
- Our Daily Work
- A Right Idea of Duty
- Praying at Our Work
- The Mechanism of Frequent Prayer
HINDRANCES AND PITFALLS ON THE WAY
- Sin
- Discontent
- When Discontent is Banished
- Another Big Obstacle -- Human Respect
- Discouragement and Pride
WEAPONS AND AIDS
- Devotion to Mary
- St. Joseph
- The Necessity of Spiritual Reading
- We Must Read the Lives of the Saints
- The Question of the Newspaper
- Meditation, Realisation, Action
- Meditation is so Very Difficult
- I Am Not Able to Meditate At All
- Our Work for Our Neighbour
- The Influence We Can Exert
- Trials that show Progress
- Some Responsibilities of Holiness
- Attacks Against the Church
- The Call to Good Works
- How can we do Big Things
- "Thou Shalt Love Thy Neighbour As Thyself"
- Promoting the Week-End Retreats
- Breaking New Ground
- Some Homely Ways of Doing Great Work
THE SECRET OF INFLUENCING OTHERS
GOD IN HIS WORKS
- All Things are but Signposts that Point to God
- You are the Temple of the Holy Spirit, Who is in You
- Heaven and Earth are Full of Thy Glory
- God's Dealing with Men
- Trust as a Characteristic of the Saints
- Our Love for Him
WHAT IS A SAINT ?
In the heart of every right-thinking Catholic, God has implanted the desire to become a
Saint. Yet few make a serious attempt to realise the ambition. The cause for this is to a
large extent discouragement, due to the misunderstanding of what a Saint really is.
What is a Saint? The answer usually returned to this question is: one who does
extraordinary penances and works miracles. Now, this is an incorrect description, for
neither miracles nor great penances are essential. The man who works a miracle does
not raise himself in God's eyes by it; and, while penance in some shape is necessary,
still the teaching of the Saints on this difficult question is encouraging.
What they direct is not bodily penances of a terrifying kind, but rather the strict
avoidance of delicacies, softness, comfort. We are told to beware of injuring our health,
and to eat enough plain food to enable us to work and pray without hindrance. There is
ample opportunity for the severest mortification in the restraint of eyes and tongue, and
in a warfare against the seven Deadly Sins.
Thus, there is another definition of what a Saint is. It is this: One who, with the object of
pleasing God, does his ordinary duties extraordinarily well. Such a life may be lived out
without a single wonder in it, arouse little notice, be soon forgotten, and yet be the life
of one of God's dearest friends.
It is obviously an encouragement to look on sanctity in this way. When we see that
those things which so terrified us in the lives of the Saints, because we felt we could not
do them ourselves, are not the important part of their sanctity at all, we should feel
heartened to begin to-day and make a serious effort for great holiness. Believe this: it
is only the first few wrenches given to the will that really hurt. Perhaps the following
words of Cardinal Newman will tempt us to take a step forward on the road:
"If you ask me what you are to do in order to be perfect, I say, first do not lie in bed
beyond the time of rising; give your first thoughts to God; make a good visit to the
Blessed Sacrament; say the Angelus devoutly; eat and drink to God's glory; say the
Rosary well; be recollected; keep out bad thoughts; make your evening meditation well;
examine yourself daily; go to bed in good time, and you are already perfect."
Who are Called to be Saints?
Every person that is born is called to be a Saint. Take it as most certain that you -- no
matter how unfitted your life may seem for holiness -- are being given graces sufficient,
if corresponded with, to bring you to sanctity. We have already seen that nothing
beyond our strength is expected; neither is sanctity the exclusive property of any grade
or manner of life. Among the Saints canonised by the Church are kings and beggars,
and representatives of every trade, slaves, hermits, city people, mothers of families,
invalids, soldiers, and persons of every race and colour.
As a canonised Saint is a pattern provided by God, it is evident that an invitation to
become Saints is extended to men and women of every type. It is equally a fact that to
those who seriously try to respond to His invitation, He gives help sufficient to carry
them to the goal.
The Two Successes
Watch how the thought of fame or gold moves men. What sufferings they will endure for
a mere chance of earthly gain. And in the end, though disappointed themselves, they
will fill the minds of their children with the same longings for worldly success, so that
each generation sees the same weary beat of the pendulum -ambitious youth to soured
age. Is it really worth the trouble? So many are handicapped by lack of health or
knowledge or brains that it never is a fair fight. Except for a few, striving is pure waste of
time.
How differently God deals with anyone striving after holiness. Here all is certain. Every
effort gets its reward. Everything is made to favour us; for alike out of health and
sickness, poverty and wealth, what looks good and what looks evil -- can the man of
good-will extract spiritual gain. Every reasonable request granted; obstacles removed
for the asking; no trial beyond our strength permitted. In the ears of the world, this
would sound like a fairy-tale, but it is in sober truth God's way of dealing with the
earnest seeker after Heavenly riches.
Surely, to announce calmly, as so many good people do, that they have no ambition to
be Saints, is very ungenerous treatment of One so kind. As He has so plainly set His
Heart upon our doing great things, let us resolve to please Him and return generosity
for generosity.
I Am a Bundle of Weakness
"I am appalled at the thought of a life of constant effort to crush my nature into a new
form. I have no strength of will and such a life is beyond my powers."
With such reasonings, we harden ourselves against the call which rings so often in our
ears. We forget that the same holy lips which say, "Come follow Me," say also to all,
"My yoke is sweet and My burden light," What, then, is wrong with us that we fear the
yoke of Christ?
It is this... our point of view. Unimportant ideas occupy the strongholds of our minds and
shape our thoughts; while He, the owner of Eternity, is left only as one of the hundred
interests in our lives, so that it is not surprising that the zeal, the courage, the ardour,
that do big things, are spent on gains or pleasures which give a visible and rapid return.
In a word, we undervalue holiness.
Once alter this -- and little is required to do it -once accept the fact that holiness is the
most important thing in the world for us, and it will become the most natural thing in the
world for us to strive after it. There lies the whole secret of effort. Make the goal
attractive and reasonable, and we pursue it in spite of hardships, and almost in spite of
ourselves. The human mind works in that way.
A Changed Outlook
The secret of bringing this about is contained in a few words; we must face facts. Now
and then we must give the mind a chance to raise itself above the sea in which it is
immersed, of things that do not matter, and face in all coldness the grim truths which
group themselves around the central facts of Death and Eternity. Think of the
immortality of the Soul; the insanity of preferring temporal to eternal; the shortness of
our stay on earth; the nearness of that moment which will decide all; and the
pricelessness of each minute of time, which, short as it is, yet shapes our undying life
beyond the grave.
To occupy oneself deliberately with these solemn considerations and still remain
indifferent is impossible. Dwelt upon so that they become familiar, these thoughts bring
a new force into our lives. There is operated in us a wonderful change. As if the needle
of the compass were to turn from the North and point due South, worldliness will not
repel, and reason drive us on to God. Add a little love and the stock-in-trade for a Saint
is there.
But we have already been deliberating too long. Whilst we have been in doubt, "the
precious days have slipped away, and we find ourselves in the rapids above the great
waters of the grave, and we hear the falling of the waters into the immeasurable abyss,
and we feel the suction of eternity."
Eternity!! What a thought!
So, in God's Name, let us begin, while yet we have the time, and while the thirst is still in
us to love Him ardently.
A New Ambition
Fear the postponed beginnings. A chill grows up, and our great destiny is forgotten.
Oh, my God! Grant that I have not in my indecision let that day come upon myself. I
confess that Your work has never been anything to me but occupations for an idle
moment. My heart has been set upon the things that pass. But henceforth I will give
myself entirely to You. Give me the time, and faithfully do I promise now to serve You.
Give me back the years that the worm and the locust have devoured, that I may one
day restore them to You full of achievement.
And I do not ask for the big things -- the life of the missionary or the monk, or those
others I see around me so full of accomplishment. I do not ask for any of these; but
simply set my face to follow out unswervingly, untiringly, the common life which day by
day stretches before me, satisfied in it I love You, and try to make You loved. Nature
rebels against this life with its neverending round of trivial tasks and full of the
temptation to take relief in amusement or change. It seems so hard to be great in the
small things, to be heroic in the doing of the commonplace, but still this life is Your Will
for me. There must be a great destiny in it. And so I am content.
And then to crown the rest, dear Jesus, I beg of You to give me this... fidelity to the
end... to be at my post when the final call comes, and to take my last weary breath in
your embrace. A valiant life . . . and faithful to the end. A short wish, dearest Jesus, but
it covers all.
Being Really in Earnest
Good will is the very foundation of our progress. By good will is meant not an empty
wish to reach the goal, but a readiness to toil along the road that leads to it. Now the
symbol of our religion is a Cross. Our Lord has told us that we must carry it daily if we
desire to be perfect. What excuse, therefore, can there be for being upset when trials
come upon us? He that is discouraged by them evidently began without thought. But he
who gives up altogether plainly never was in earnest. Of such Our Lord Himself has
said: "These have no roots."
Perseverance
There is usually a sweetness in beginnings. God gives this aid freely then in order to
encourage, just as a helping hand is given to children learning to walk. It is not for our
good that we should always be carried, so after a while the sweetness is lessened.
Then comes the critical time when our resolution is being tested. Guardian angels must
weep to see so many who gave hopes of high sanctity stop short in their course.
Now, to give up because our fervour is gone is to admit that we never had in view God's
pleasure, but our own. Our pleasure in the work having gone, we labour no more. It
apparently matters little to us that God's pleasure in the work is still the same -- greater,
perhaps, for the offering made from a sick heart and tired brain is always the most
precious.
Perseverance is the last grace that will be given to us, and the greatest. It is the test of
our good will. Excitement, novelty, or any one of a dozen other merely human things
may start something, but they will not keep it going. What is wrong with all these who
begin so splendidly and stop so soon? Call for volunteers for any good work. There are
many -- full of enthusiasm -but hardly one who remains steadfast, hardly one who
keeps his hands to the plough to the end . . . And the good intentions of a Retreat . . .
How short-lived they are!
Is there any definite reason why all these people lack the quality of perseverance?
Here is the answer in the words of the celebrated Pere de Ravignan:
"I do here affirm that all deceptions, all spiritual deficiencies, all miseries, all faults, and
even the most serious wanderings out of the right path, all proceed from this single
source -- a want of constancy in prayer."
The Secret of Perseverance is Prayer
From reading the lives of the Saints, one would conclude that they fall, roughly, into two
classes: those who gave themselves to contemplation, and those who spent their lives
in active works. In reality they were all alike. All were souls whose whole lives were
prayer. Prayer was their business. Their good deeds were only valuable because they
sprang from prayer; they bore the same relation to prayer that the trunk of a tree bears
to the roots; good deeds are a visible part of prayer; and good deeds cannot live
without prayer.
The present is a period when successful appeal is being made to Catholics to show by
works of charity the Faith that is in them. That the most ordinary act may become holy
when inspired by a holy intention is well understood and the words of Christ Himself,
assuring us that "Just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my
family you did it to me," draws us powerfully on to the service of our neighbour.
The possibilities of holiness here are immense. But it is not sufficiently recognised that
a proper balance of regular prayer and good works is essential to perseverance in the
latter. There is a tendency to consider good works as prayerful enough in themselves.
Their variety makes them easy, while prayer is difficult. Besides, we like to see results,
and usually we do not see the results of prayer. So we reduce our prayers to little or
nothing satisfying ourselves with the recollection that we are doing plenty of practical
work for our neighbour.
Readers of Canon Sheehan will remember how a similar course of reasoning ended in
the case of Luke Delmege in complete loss of spirituality and in disaster.
Of course, this is an extreme case. But we all know of many with noble qualities, holy
intentions, and high promise, who just reach a certain point and no further. In a way,
these makings of Saints who give up advancing are most to be pitied. It is far easier to
pick a sinner out of the mire than to induce such people to get out of the rut of mere
goodness, which God never intended for them.
Let us sound once more the note upon which we began a little while ago. The cause of
all this pitiful failure is this: there is not Prayer enough.
Pray! Pray! Pray!
This is how St. Teresa stated she would summarise all her teachings.
People do not understand the importance of prayer. They say it is difficult. What
wonder, considering that they make no effort to learn. The man who thinks it quite
natural to put his son to a six years' apprenticeship to learn a trade, would think it
absurd to spend six hours reading a book which might teach him how to pray.
Prayer must be brought to occupy a most prominent and definite place in our lives. This
does not mean that we have to spend many hours each day on our knees. The duties
of our state probably prevent that. But certainly we must aim at more than the saying of
prayers twice a day, or even three or four times a day. He prays little who only prays on
his knees.
Just as a gong or a tuning-fork could be kept quietly sounding all day by an occasional
tap, so will the soul of itself send up incessant prayer, if now and then we apply the tap
of an aspiration, a thought, an ejaculation. Never let the mind be too long away from
God. The great disinclination to pray which most of us feel when the time set apart for
prayer comes is plain proof that we are not, as it were, living with Him.
THE DAY IN DETAIL
The Foundation Stone
Foremost in the consideration of our day -- and on an eminence apart, like the Cross
itself -- must stand the daily Mass and daily reception of the Holy Eucharist. These are
so obviously the greatest means of Grace that they need not be urged at length. The
person who is able easily to go to morning Mass, and does not do so, only deceives
himself if he thinks he is aiming at great holiness.
Mass and Communion mean a day perfectly begun -- and that is half the battle. But out
of this great act come two smaller obligations: (a) to your neighbour. There are many
whom lack of thought alone keeps from Daily Mass. Lend a book; say a word to
awaken them; (b) to yourself; read to increase knowledge and reverence.
The Morning Offering
The day should have opened with the morning offering of all our thoughts, words, and
actions to Jesus through Mary. This offering must be the guiding idea of the whole day.
We do not need to repeat the words many times, but the thought of it must lie in the
heart, and govern our daily life in such a way that we feel ourselves to be working for
God and not for the world.
Our Daily Work
First, let no one pride himself on having what he considers a dignified occupation. In
despising menial or manual labour, he is parting company with Christianity and allying
himself to paganism, which in all ages has counted such work the greatest of all evils.
sanctification and as a penance for our sins. Thus it is the foundation of our spiritual
life. He who neglects his work and yet thinks, because he says many prayers, that he is
leading a holy life, deludes himself.
A Right Idea of Duty
We are to do what it is our duty to do -- and at the right time. Duty is not something
which is to be thrown off with our working clothes, as so many people imagine. It is as
strictly our duty to keep an appointment or a secret as it is to do our work. A duty goes
before even "Devotions." It is your duty to wash the dishes, do not run off to
Benediction instead.
There are many duties in the day which seem less , important than others, and for this
reason we think very little of setting them aside to suit the convenience of the moment.
Such conduct is wrong, and it does not build up a strong character. The real value of
our day lies in the exact performance of all our obligations. The greater ones take care
of themselves -- their importance makes them easy to do. So look particularly to the
small things.
Consider your whole day as a picture where every line has its proper place. And where
the smallest may be the most essential. Do everything that you are supposed to do,
and do it down to the tiniest detail -- not because somebody is supervising you, but
simply because you are supposed to do it.
There is a proverb: "Death is light as a feather. Duty as heavy as lead," and a life lived
in devotion to duty is going to be a hard life. But it is going to be the life of a Man. Here
is a lesson from the Far East.
A Japanese craftsman was observed to be spending days in perfecting the inside of an
article he was making. He was asked "Why waste all this time? Nobody will ever see
your work." He replied, "Do I not see it myself?" To this answer, may not we, as
Christians add, "And God sees it, too."
Praying at Our Work
We see that Work and Duty are holy things when the idea of God is in them. But, by
themselves, they are not holy enough for those who are trying to be Saints. We must
bring God closer to our work than by the mere offering of it in the morning. We must
keep Him at our side by frequent thought of Him.
It is told by a Spanish Nun who had charge of the refectory that in order never to be
distracted she imagined those she served to be Our Blessed Lord and His Mother and
the Apostles. In this way her work became a great means of prayer to her, and the
hours spent in it were amongst the most devotional in the whole day.
While this may be above the reach of our poor minds, distracted by a thousand things,
we may at least confidently seek after a quiet sense of God's Presence. This does not
mean that we have actually to feel Him near us. If we have by the regular practice of
prayer and frequent thought of Him, so drilled the mind that there is a tendency to
swing back to Him when left free, we are doing very well. For this means that however
distracting our occupations are, the soul is giving Him a quiet attention all the time. We
shall have reached the stage of praying always.
The Mechanism of Frequent Prayer
In endeavouring to build up a spirit of prayer such as this, there is little use in relying on
vague resolutions made in moments of fervour -- to pray frequently. Vague resolutions
have no influence over people so strongly drawn away from prayer as we unfortunately
are. We must set up certain of the events of each day as regular calls to a word or
thought of prayer.
Some of these reminders we already have: the Angelus, grace at meals, the passing of
a Church, and so forth. This number can be largely increased, so that quite a number
of items of our daily life will in the end cause an easy and natural lifting of the mind to
God.
A passing funeral, the meeting of a friend, the hearing of a death, the striking of a
clock, the ringing of a bell, the writing of a date, the sharpening of a pencil, the
threading of a needle -- one could go on for ever with suggestions for such a list. But
the occupations of each one will determine what is best. Do not mind how foolish your
expedients seem. They may have all the more love in them. In any case nothing is
foolish that leads to God.
It is better that the acts be not too frequent. They might tire out one's good intentions
or interfere with attention to work. But above all, they must, for the beginner, be
definite. That is, the resolution must take this shape: "Whenever I look at my watch (or
whatever else it may be), I will say such an ejaculation." Do not stop because this
practice may at first seem mechanical and undevotional and tiring. Habit will soon come
to your aid and make it less difficult. But determination will always be needed, as the
Tempter will make many an effort to hinder so excellent a practice.
While progress is being made in acquiring the spirit of prayer those things which are a
hindrance must go. Not until there is quiet within us, can an attempt be made to build
up a real spiritual life.
HINDRANCES AND PITFALLS ON THE WAY
Sin
Sin in its various forms is, of course, the greater barrier. Such serious things as
dishonesty, wronging one's employer or those who work for one, gambling,
intemperance, cursing, might be gone into at length. But surely this is unnecessary. We
are considering a person who is making a serious effort for sanctity; who is fully aware
of the gravity of such failings, and who has probably already cut them out of his life.
Then, there is the host of commoner faults: self-love, lying, backbiting, vanity, envy, and
so forth, in direct attacks on which a life-time could be spent with poor results. A surer
success will quietly come of itself if prayerfulness and love develop. These will induce a
frame of mind to which anything wrong will be distasteful. Such failings become no
longer temptations, and simply drop out of one's life.
All the foregoing are plainly labelled "sin." When we are guilty of any of them, we know
that it is an occasion for repentance and amendment. But there are other enemies to
sanctity that are more hidden, and which constantly deceive even well-intentioned
people by assuming an innocent and commendable appearance. Amongst these may
be mentioned discontent, human respect, an uncontrolled tongue, ill-temper,
discouragement, conceit. The seriousness of these is that they are harboured by good
people, when sin has been driven out, in ignorance that they do sin's work.
Discontent
This is the great fault of the good. "There is no harm in being dissatisfied," they will say.
Or they will call it ambition, and make a virtue of the turmoil which it makes in their
minds. There would be some advantage in discontent if it spurred us on to aim at better
things. But unhappily, discontent tends only to make us despise what we have. So
warped are we by it that we envy today in someone else what yesterday we scorned in
ourselves.
Now, this spirit of discontent particularly concerns us when it sets up the delusion that
our particular mode of life and surroundings are unsuited to sanctity. Very often we
entertain the thought as a holy one. We feel sure we could be Saints if God made us
Priests or Nuns, or indeed anything else but what we happen to be.
Than such a delusion, no greater obstacle to progress can exist. The conditions of
each man's life, as it is, are the raw materials out of which he has to fashion his future.
Disbelief in the possibilities of doing any good with what he has is unlikely to lead to
effort. A man is just as likely to start digging in his back garden for diamonds, as to
seek for the jewels of sanctity where he does not believe they exist.
It may be that our present manner of life really is unfavourable to higher things. If this
be so, God will in good time open up another door to us, that is, provided we are doing
our duty in making the best of what we now have.
Most probably, however, far from being unfavourable, our present life is just the only
one which will bring us to sanctity. God, Who sees all things, did not choose it over all
others for us without ample reason. By discontent we are setting ourselves up as
judges over His actions. Now let us pay Him the compliment of thinking deeply over this,
and then bind ourselves with a stern resolution to put away every such disturbing
thought. Its place will be filled by a grace. A calm will steadily grow up within us. We will
find ourselves less and less put out by the worries of everyday life. We are getting on.
When Discontent is Banished
Those who have always been in the close friendship of God cannot fully value the
greatness of this treasure -peace of mind -- which they have always possessed. But to
those who have known the opposite, this feeling of cahn, as it develops, carries a plain
message of the presence of the Holy Spirit in the soul. One is on the way to that
tranquillity which was a notable feature in the lives of the Saints. For instance, it is
written of St. Vincent Ferrer:
"Whether in the streets, or the choir, or his own cell, or preaching, or on a journey, or
whatever he did, he was always tranquil because he made an oratory in his heart, and
there conversed uninterruptedly with God without any outward thing disturbing him."
Another Big Obstacle -- Human Respect
The danger of Human Respect is not sufficiently recognised. In almost every Catholic it
is a weak spot. In the case of some, it is a defect so grave as to put real holiness out of
the question. Human Respect may be defined as the putting of the opinion of others in
the place of our conscience. It sets up ridicule and unpopularity as the thing most to be
avoided even at the risk of offending against truth and principle. Beginning in small
things, if constantly yielded to Human Respect brings about a general lowering of
principle. A state of mind is reached which is as different from sanctity as chalk is from
cheese.
You have always been in the habit of blessing yourself when at your meals. When not
at home, through a form, of shame, you do not do this. This is Human Respect.
You always touch your hat as you pass a Church -except when with Protestants? You
would not have a religious picture in your drawingroom. You are shy about making the
Stations of the Cross. You would be mortified if your Rosary Beads fell from your
pocket in Protestant company or in the bus. All these are signs of the disease we are
discussing.
In a word, you are so taken up with making your conduct acceptable to others that you
have no room for the thought that God might have been pleased by these little open
professions of Faith. You have treated Him as the rich are supposed to treat their poor
relations -acknowledging them in private, ignoring them in public.
In the life of St. Philip Neri, we read how that Saint was in the habit of imposing very
humiliating penances upon his disciples in his anxiety to destroy in them any trace of
this mean spirit. Such practices would nowadays be termed extreme. Here is a
suggestion which is not extreme. It will help anyone resolved upon the destruction of
this failing . . . Wear openly something Catholic; some little devotional badge or emblem
that will mark you as a Catholic, who is not ashamed to be known as one. The feeling of
unwillingness to do this which will come to many, is the best test of its value; it is the
spirit you seek to kill that is protesting in you.
Such objection as: "I don't believe in badge-wearing," and "I don't believe in making a
parade of my religion," are usually not sincere. Those who speak in this way seldom
seem to have any objection to wearing political or trade badges. Be honest with
yourself. The trouble is that you are not really proud of being a Catholic. It is human
nature to publish the fact if you are.
The priest and the nun advertise themselves to the world for what they are. Let the laity
also, in the little ways that are open to them, confess Christ before men that He may
one day confess them before His Father in Heaven. But in this let there be wholesome
moderation. Do nothing that will earn for yourself the name of mere eccentricity, for this
would destroy much of your influence. To cover yourself with religious emblems or to
make an unnecessary show of devotion in a Church is to err in this way.
Discouragement and Pride
This spiritual value of any work you do is not to be judged by the little or much result
you see from it, but by the purity of intention and the effort which you have put into it.
The powerful sermon or book that converts many might bring less merit to its author
than the smallest act of self-sacrifice. Thus it is as foolish to be discouraged by lack of
visible results as it is to be puffed up by apparent success. Many average people have
seen wonderful things come of their labours, while Saints often have been faced with
constant failure.
Whatever you take up -- act well your part. Let this be your only concern. Be not
anxious for results, which may bring conceit -- one touch of which can destroy the
beauty of any work in God's sight.
Should some success cause stings of self-conceit, summon common sense to your side
to tell you how little self-denial there is in your life; how little you do; and how much
more you could easily do if you liked. And then contrast yourself with those multitudes
of good people over the world who have given up everything for the Master's sake, and
yet count themselves as idlers in His sight.
Let your frequent prayer be: "Jesus, meek and humble of heart -- make my heart like
unto Thy Heart." If you become perfectly humble, God will certainly use you for some
great work.
O Jesus, I desire to become a saint -- not that I may be great, but that You may be
greatly loved.
WEAPONS AND AIDS
Devotion to Mary
"Show me how you say your hail Mary's," said a great Saint, "and I will tell you how to
love God." The fingertips of the other Saints -- hardened by the use of their beads --
show this same idea in practice.
You must have a tremendous love for Mary. Read and pray, and pray again, until you
get that love. Implore Our Lord to give you just the love for her that He would wish you
to have. A great love for her is a great sign of sanctity.
Do not treat her only as the Queen of all Saints. She is much more than that. She is the
most beloved Daughter of the Father, the Mother of the Son, and the Spouse of the
Holy Spirit. When you pray to any one of these Three Divine Persons, let her be near
to recommend your prayer.
And she is also our Mother. Is this idea real to us? The love of our own dear earthly
mothers is a wonderful thing. What seas of fire and water would they not go through for
us! Yet their love is faint and weak compared with hers.
There is a beautiful traditional custom which unhappily seems less common than it was
-- the consecration of babies by their parents to this Blessed Mother. The terrible
power of the Evil One over the bodies of people possessed by him should be the best
recommendation of this Devotion. More than he can do for evil, a millionfold, she can do
for good.
Let us consecrate to her not only our children, but ourselves in the most solemn
manner -- remembering that what belongs to Mary is all for Jesus.
St. Joseph
Our Lord and His blessed Mother looked to St. Joseph for their daily bread. What
wonder then that the Church tells us: "Go to Joseph."
He was very dear to the Saints. In particular that great master of prayer -- St. Teresa --
has glowing things to say of the fruits of devotion to him.
There seems to be no occupation or condition of life which cannot claim some point of
likeness to him, from which to draw encouragement. Above all, as the Patron of those
who work hard and are hard used, we address ourselves to him, knowing that to be like
him in this way brings at once the arms of the Divine Babe around us.
We might make a frequent practice of saying some little prayer to him, such as "St.
Joseph, called Father by Jesus pray for us."
This was his greatest dignity.
The Necessity of Spiritual Reading
Read good literature; get others to read good literature; and later, all of us will do good
deeds.
We must form a taste for religious literature. It must take a definite place in each day.
From it we will acquire an interest in our religion; extend our knowledge of the doctrines
of the Church; learn of its history, glories, institutions, opponents, and be able to
answer the innumerable questions and objections which constantly proceed from friend
and enemy.
There is a dearth of good religious libraries. Probably we shall have to buy the books
we wish most to read. But let there be a little sacrifice, an occasional book purchased
and read thoroughly, and more than once. If an author has put deep thought into his
work, this will not be appreciated in one reading.
After that, let its mission be not to gather dust, but souls. Send it on a busy apostolic
round amongst those friends who can be trusted to return a borrowed book. Some
good religious periodical should enter our home regularly -- one which will keep us in
touch with the wideworld doings of the Universal Church.
We Must Read the Lives of the Saints
We were taught to read by means of a headline. Unconsciously, we shape our lives by
some headlines, too. God's purpose in bringing about the Canonisation of the Saints
was to provide a headline which would draw us on to goodness and heroism.
Saints are the doctrines and practices of holiness made visible. If we frequent their
company, we will soon imitate their qualities.
The Question of the Newspaper
We are inclined to think it necessary to read the daily papers in order to keep in touch
with what is going on in the world. Let us beware lest they place us in the world's grip.
The modern newspaper is so well written, so attractive to the eye, that it tends to
become an absorbing taste. It is a tendency of the day to wallow in the daily papers.
Endless discussion, a prejudiced outlook, a little scrappy knowledge, a distaste for
serious or good literature, loss of power of concentration, faulty memory -- such are the
products of those wasted hours during which God's Kingdom could have been so
powerfully advanced.
Meditation, Realisation, Action
Reading is a direct preparation for prayer and intimacy with God. To meditate on
religious matters, one must have read, otherwise there is nothing to meditate on The
lamp has no oil. But, read slowly and think upon what has been read. Books rapidly run
through and unreflected upon are as valueless as food eaten but no digested.
We must, therefore, accuse ourselves of waste of time if we read without the desire to
profit by our reading Yet such is our ordinary habit. We do not meditate hence we do
not realise. We leave in the unexplored depths of our souls the divine truths which
should be governing our intellects and driving us on to grea things.
There is a wonderful difference between merely believing and realising. Here are some
truths we all believe in:
1. Death is inevitable-- then judgment.
2. Grace is the greatest possession in the world.
3. Sin even venial -- is infinitely the greatest misfortune in the world.
Now to what extent do we realise these truths and act upon them?
And again. We know that the Infinite God became Man for our sake: not a King -- He
wanted love, not fear -- but the shivering babe of poor people; a roughhanded
working-man; a homeless wanderer -- one might almost say an outcast... and then He
was taken and tortured and put on a cross to die, an object of contempt; all, that He
might win our love or even our pity, which is akin to love.
Oh ! the horror of it ! Saints have cried out in anguish to think that love so great should
be so unwanted by the world. For so it isl The Crucifix is only a piece of wood or metal
to us. We have tears for any friend but Him!... Loyalty for every cause but His!... and
why?
Because we neglected the means which common-sense directs us to use. Prayer and
meditation would make Him real and vivid to us; but in our indifference, we leave Him a
shadow -- and who can love a shadow? Thus it is we miss the greatest force in the
world -- that personal love for Jesus, which looks for no reward, laughs at death, makes
sacrifice delightful, and sanctity easy.
Meditation is so Very Difficult
There are very many who really are unable to meditate in a regular manner. These
should not be so discouraged as to avoid meditation altogether. Meditation is very
advisable, and some such simple method as the following can be used.
Endeavouring to bring the Master vividly before our minds, we must attentively consider
that Divine Model. His slender Form, and serene, lovely Face, His words, His actions --
take them one by one, and as best we can reflect upon them with affection. What an
incomparable beauty beams forth in all! Such mildness, wisdom, purity, patience,
tenderness; and a love which is true to us in all our waywardness and disloyalty. Look
and admire, and seek to draw a breath of their loveliness into ourselves.
We can take consolation from this... we do not seek fruitlessly. The treasury of
perfection in Him is not like the treasures of the world, behind bars or in museums -- to
be admired but not possessed. Each perfection shining in Jesus is there solely to be
communicated to us. With all His Heart, He desires to give them to us. So look on them,
and long to have them, and they will become yours.
Of this simple character may be our meditation. No regular system is necessary, though
it helps. There need be no effort, resolutions even -- only a wish to love Him and to be
like Him. Yet our advance will be by leaps and bounds. And why is this? It is because,
as theologians put it, Our Lord and His qualities are not only holy but sanctifying: that
is, the mere looking upon the2` with good intentions will imprint them on our hearts and
make them part of us.
And let our gaze be as Mary's must have been. Ask her help in this contemplation. It
was her employment from the night she first looked upon her new-born babe's face.
I Am Not Able to Meditate At All
Those to whom even a simple form of meditation is difficult, will find it very profitable to
take some spiritual book before the Blessed Sacrament, and then very slowly to read it
-- more in the manner of prayer than of ordinary reading. Pause frequently -- after all,
every second word represents an idea -- and frequently speak to the Eucharistic
Presence. The longer one spends on each sentence, the better. Ability to dwell on the
reading for a time means that a very satisfactory form of meditation is being made.
Our Work for Our Neighbour
The fact that God in His Providence has left us in the world, instead of giving us a
religious vocation, indicates that He wishes the world to be our vocation. That is, the
persons and everyday things around us are to be the means of sanctity to us. It may be
taken that the practical service of our neighbour is essential for our all-round
development. We should bear in mind that serving our neighbour out of love of God
means that what we do to him we do to God.
The Influence We Can Exert
The power each one of us has to influence others to good or evil is so great that it is
almost without limit. The explanation of this is that when God finds a willing, a humble, a
dependable worker, He uses him as a channel for His grace to others. And horrible to
say, there are many who lend themselves in similar manner to be the instruments of the
Devil, and accept the dreadful destiny of aiding him in his work.
A thought on names such as St. Paul, St. Dominic, St. Francis of Assisi, and on the
other hand, Luther or Voltaire, will serve to show what it lies in one man to do -- to
influence a whole world, century after century.
Man is small, but a man who is in earnest about an idea is not small. He is going to
influence others, and nobody knows where that is going to end. Let our dominating
idea be the glory of God and the salvation of souls.
Trials that show Progress
Certain trials may be expected. We shall be sneered at as would-be Saints, milksops,
and upbraided with narrowmindedness and intolerance.
The latter charge should be welcome to us. It lifts us out of that numerous class who
are considered and consider themselves as broadminded, when in reality they are only
trimmers. Yet the charge possesses just a grain of truth which will make it hurtful to us.
For, to have definite rules of principle and conduct does mean that we shall appear
narrow to those who are not similarly hampered. It is part of the penalty of being right.
Some Responsibilities of Holiness
To become associated in people's minds with religion, as you undoubtedly will if you
work for it, involves a responsibility. It may be unreasonable of them, but nevertheless
people will judge religion in general from you. If you play a manly part, you are doing
religion a benefit in making it attractive to others. If you make yourself a Universal Good
Samaritan, whose tongue like St. Alphonsus Liguori's does not know how to say harsh
or sarcastic things, and whose deeds are in keeping -you will draw men to you, and
better still, you will make them love God, because in your goodness they will catch a
glimpse of Him.
On the other hand, if you are careless at your work, dirty in your dress, mean in your
conduct, you have done your religion an injury. It sinks into the gutter with yourself.
It is a big thing that Christ should thus have placed His honour in your keeping. If you
are but half a man, it will stimulate you. Furthermore, it means that even the more
worldly side of your life, your work in the factory or in your home, in the technical school
or university or trade union, your athletics, your music, your painting, so on, can all be
made to tell for Him in a very practical way.
Attacks Against the Church
Wherever you go, at your work or in clubs or societies, you will hear difficulties raised
and questions asked which, perhaps, strike at the foundations of the Church or of Faith
itself, and in aiding others, do not forget the danger to yourself.
Many of these objections you will be able to meet effectively from your own knowledge.
Others may appear so strong as to frighten you. It is useful then to reason thus to
oneself: "Whatever the objection is, there is an answer to it. All these difficulties have
been raised and answered before. Great men have in all ages endeavoured to pick
holes in the doctrine of the Church, and they and their philosophies have gone, while
the Church lives on."
Always remember that the truth of Catholic doctrines does not depend on your ability to
prove them true. Ten lifetimes would not be long enough to satisfy oneself on every
point. The real proof of them lies in the declaration of the Church, which is the pillar and
the ground of truth.
So do not let what someone in the works has said unsettle you. Let his objection --
even if it raises a difficulty in your mind -- only give you the opportunity for an Act of
Faith:
"I don't understand, Dear Lord, but I believe because the Church teaches it, and the
Church is infallible."
Read the promise of Our Lord: "Upon this Rock I will build My Church . . . and the gates
of Hell shall not prevail against it."
Then hear the words of Loed Macaulay, who was no friend of the Church, and see how
that promise stands after nineteen centuries: "When we reflect on the tremendous
assaults which the Catholic Church has survived, we find it difficult to conceive in what
way she is to perish."
The Call to Good Works
In times of retreat, or at your prayers, or by the invitation of a friend, a call to some
good work will come. It may be from on high, so do not lightly refuse. You may miss
your life's vocation. St. Augustine speaks solemn words: "Fear Jesus passing by ... He
may not again pass your way."
How can we do Big Things
With industry, self-sacrifice, and some knowledge of human nature, we can produce
results: (a) by organising -- by making things ready for people who will not make them
ready for themselves; (b) by bringing to people, who would never get them for
themselves, things that would benefit them; (c) by apealing individually to people who
would never respond to a general appeal.
In other words, we are to be a bridge that covers the chasm between what people will
do of themselves, and what God wants them to do. For example:
1. A Pilgrimage is organized. Everything is cut-and-dried. All that one has to do is to
buy a ticket and take one's place. One thousand persons go. Would any have gone
had the Pilgrimage and its details never been arranged?
2. An appeal is made from the pulpit to support a certain religious publication. Only a
handful of people respond. A house-to-house canvass later on, bringing the paper
directly under the people's notice, produces hundreds of fresh readers.
3. Everybody in a town knows the needs of a local charity. Yet few subscribe, until a
door-to-door call is organised. Then all give.
"Thou Shalt Love Thy Neighbour As Thyself"
The foregoing are only indications of what might be done. Your own tastes,
surroundings, conscience, will suggest many powerful means of benefiting your own
soul by benefiting the souls of other people. "Love thy neighbour as thyself" is a hard
saying. But keep in mind Who said it, and neglect no way of helping others on towards
good. Ask St. Vincent de Paul, who is the Patron of all such works, to inspire you with
knowledge of what will suit you best. Perhaps you might make a beginning by joining
the Society which bears his name.
Here are some additional suggestions:
1. You know an excellent Sodality. Work hard for it. Be prefect of a guild. Train the
sub-prefect to do the work, and then when you are sure you can be done without form
another guild for yourself. Thus you will increase the Sodality membership and keep
yourself keen.
2. You know a night-school which sends many of its pupils into the Priesthood or the
Convent. Tell anybody who might be interested. Many will join, and their settling down
to work will be just the step which will turn into solid resolutions what otherwise would
never be anything but hazy desires.
3. There is some organisation which you know has produced great spiritual
improvement in its members. Bring your friends into it.
4. There is a religious magazine or paper which you think good. Extend its circulation.
5. You know someone who has the gift of making those he meets enlist themselves in
social work. Introduce people to him.
6. You have read a book which did you great good. Buy a copy or two and lend it round.
Promoting the Week-End Retreats
You might work for the Enclosed Retreats, those drilling-grounds of Christian perfection
-- as the latest Pontiff has termed them -- producing wherever they exist, hosts of
tireless workers in the cause of religion, sanctifying the good, uplifting the degraded.
If you would wish to see far-reaching good accomplished, here is your means to hand,
speedy and certain.
So where these Retreats are, organise for them, spread abroad the idea of them, and
where they are not yet established, aim to have this done.
Breaking New Ground
Perhaps you could band together others in association to do good, and give the first
impulse to what St. Vincent calls the sacred contagion of charity.
Start a little organisation. Gather a few around you for some good work. Hold a regular
meeting -- weekly, if possible -- and discuss your little efforts under the auspices of
prayer. You have it on His own word that He, Who can make your efforts fruitful, is
there in the midst of you.
Do not soar too high. Do not be over-anxious. Look above all to the routine duties and
the small details of the meeting. A punctual start, carefully-written minutes,
attendance-roll regularly marked up, discussion of business and business only,
affection among the members, these -- far more than organising ability or exceptional
workers -- will ensure a lasting success.
It cannot be over-emphasised that the progress and the permanence of the
organisation depend upon the meetings, and that the meetings in turn depend upon
the system, the prayerfulness, and the fraternity which are found in them. Act mindfully
of this: face calmly the inevitable ups and downs and your work may be multiplied
exceedingly. All the great movements have had just such simple origins.
Some Homely Ways of Doing Great Work
The following are some of the many ways in which a multitude of men and women are
spending their free time serving God. Judgment Day alone will show the joy they have
given Him, and the good they have effected.
The few examples given will make it clear that such work is within the capacity of
anyone with perseverance.
(a) The Catechism Teacher
The saintly Pius X was once asked by a lady who was desirous of doing some really
good work for God, what he would suggest to her. He surprised her by answering:
"Teach children the Catechism."
Take a class and put your heart into it. Acquire a large stock of anecdotes by which
you can both train and interest these little ones who are, as has been beautifully said,
wax to receive, marble to retain. Many of them will some day do great things for God.
And it will be through you.
(b) The Holy Childhood
Organise and run, with the sanction of your Parish Priest, a branch of the Holy
Childhood. Keep a double object in view: first, the spreading of devotion to the Foreign
Missions together with the aiding of them financially; and secondly, to get into touch
with the children, who by the rules have to pay their little subscriptions once a month.
Let them pay in person. Get to know them well. Tell them stories, and teach them little
devotions and the art of making sacrifices. Tell them to collect used postage stamps;
the practice itself is a prayer, and the stamps are valued on the Foreign Missions.
Such a work can be made the mould of Saints. Not that you will see a wonderful
advance suddenly made by the children. That is not their way. But do you keep on
without slacking and the years to come will see a rich harvest of holiness from amongst
them.
(c) Visiting the Sick
The first concern of St. Ignatius of Loyola and his companions on coming to each new
town was to visit the sick in the hospitals, knowing that in doing this, they did it to Christ
Himself.
Pick some hospital, by preference a workhouse hospital, and find one or more of the
very many patients who are without friends or visitors. Be you both friend and visitor to
them. Visit them regularly. Your smiling face and cheerful words will make your visits
longed for. And what wonderful prayers will ring up to high Heaven for you from these
poor suffering ones of Christ, whom you have succoured.
(d) Spreading Good Literature
There are many who act as promoters for a certain valuable little religious periodical,
packed full of instructions in simple and interesting form. These promoters have worked
up a list of people who are willing to subscribe to the paper, and month by month each
home is visited -- and it is delivered. Father, mother and children will read it and be
influenced by it. It is the setting up in the home of a regular lighthouse of grace.
A poor widow had a large family and had to work hard during the day to keep them. Yet
the day began with Mass and Holy Communion. She had almost a hundred subscribers
who took this periodical. She delivered it herself to their widely scattered homes in the
evenings when she must have craved for rest. She knew all their families well and used
this intimacy to interest them in those things that were dearest to her own heart: Daily
Mass and Communion, the Apostleship of Prayer, the Maynooth Mission to China.
And again. Some years ago in New York a negro washerwoman, who had spent her life
in just this same way, received a semi-public funeral and was laid to rest amid the
mourning of thousands to whom her face had constantly been a needed reminder of
their duty to God.
Loving Jesus and making Him loved... There it is in practice! Who can assess the true
value of such lives?
(e) The Duly Authorised Outdoor Collector
His or her little book in hand showing the sanction and approval of the Parish Priest,
the outdoor collector may be seen, usually on a Sunday, toiling up long flights of
tenement stairs, diving into alleys and back lanes where the most charitable of all
people -- the poor -- live. Here he gets week by week his pennies and twopences for
some Church Building Fund, or other charitable work sanctioned by the Parish Priest.
Always a holy work, his round may be made a genuine apostolate. He need not take up
a preaching tone. A quiet word here and there can do all the work. And he can add to
his words weapons more powerful -the Scapulars, Medals, Badges, approved by the
Church. In spreading devotion to these he is setting up channels along which grace will
certainly flow.
He finds time for a short chat in each home, and he is keenly interested in each
member of the family. How are the Children's Communions? Are Paddy and Molly
enrolled in the Brown Scapular? Here is a miraculous medal for one and a little picture
for another. He has an eye to see that the elders are in some Sodality. He probably
has the father in his own guild.
He does not talk about what is in the papers. They know enough about that without
him. Besides, he may differ in opinion from some, which often results in hot words,
bitterness left behind and his influence gone. There is more than enough to talk of in
the shape of Church and Parish matters, the private concerns of the family, and
occasionally a suggestion about the First Fridays Devotion, the Enthronement of the
Sacred Heart, etc. Many are the stories he relates of the blessing of the Family Rosary,
and the way in which it saved the Faith in the Black Times.
His reference to the approaching Missions will be more powerful than poster-covered
walls.
Moreover, people will talk about their neighbours. So he will gain a good knowledge of
his district, and his report on anything amiss is always useful to the Priest.
And it will come to this, that his very step, his face, will be like a breath of religion to all,
and a special reminder to those that are negligent. People will go to Mass or the
Sacraments simply because they saw him and it reminded them of their neglect.
THE SECRET OF INFLUENCING OTHERS
There is an art in the moving of others, and those that work for their neighbour must
study it.
Do not say "I cannot," or "I am not fitted," or "Nobody heeds me." For there is one thing
that can clothe you with power in your dealings with others -affection for them. This is
the great secret of all real influence. To possess it, follow this simple rule -- Look only
for good qualities in anyone you meet; you will find them. Never look for faults, for you
would find them. Act thus, and you will easily develop the habit of love. Convince those
around you, by deeds, not phrases, that you truly have this feeling for them, and you
can lead them where you like.
GOD IN HIS WORKS
All Things are but Signposts that Point to God
We have been considering at some length methods of serving God. Let us try to
remember they are only methods. There is always a tendency for the interest of any
work to absorb us so that we forget why and for Whom we began it.
It is natural that this should happen. The work is visible; the supernatural is not; and we
unthinkingly allow the visible things to push the supernatural into the background of our
lives. This takes from the value of all our acts as offerings to God.
Instead, a little thoughtfulness would turn those very things which were inclined to lead
us away from God, into visible reminders of His presence in the world.
When we see a Church, even though it is only a spire in the distance, it induces a
feeling of reverence at the thought of His Presence with us in the Eucharist. But then
Churches are rare. We want that feeling of reverence over all our life. We can make it
habitual if we cultivate the practice of seeing Him in all things.
In the beginning He created all things from nothing. But he did not then cease to work.
It requires His omnipotent power to keep all these things there now. Were His Hand
removed this second from any object we see, it would at once disappear from our vision
into its original nothingness.
Thus everything we see should tell us that God's Hand is upon it. A sense of awe
should fill us to think that we can touch what He is touching. The waving leaves on the
trees tell us of the presence of the breeze which we do not see. Why not make trees
and leaves and wind, and all else around us, speak plainly to us of the wonderful Power
which holds them in existence?
We pick up an insect, or a flower, or bread, or a book. Each one proclaims Him to the
thoughtful mind.
St. Bonaventure said of St. Francis of Assisi that he made everything in nature a step in
the ladder by which he went to Heaven. He loved the very stones beneath his feet
because there were the works of his Creator.
All the Saints saw without effort God in His works. Everything was a cause of prayer to
them. But there was a time when they were only beginners as we are. They persevered;
shall we?
You are the Temple of the Holy Spirit, Who is in You
In considering God in His works around us, we are not to forget His presence in
ourselves.
It is of Catholic doctrine that the Holy Spirit makes a dwelling in anyone who is free from
mortal sin. Life would be greatly brightened if we could bring home to ourselves this
wonderful truth.
How could we ever again feel sorrowful, or lonely, or think ourselves poor!
If we consider God in His heavenly Kingdom, we are apt to think of Him as at a great
distance. We know Him as a loving Father, but this sense of remoteness diminishes the
sense of His protection. Rather let us think of Him living in each of us -- giving our
hearts their beat and listening to our inmost thoughts.
Look at the great Sun blazing in the sky with enough light and heat for the entire world.
He Who made it is within us with a Glory infinitely greater.
There is holiness in the very thought of this; and the idea of sin as something that will
drive out this Divine Tenant acquires a clearer and more repulsive meaning.
Heaven and Earth are Full of Thy Glory
The greatness and the loveliness of God, being infinite, cannot while we live be
measured by us. We can only feebly search after an idea of them by representing to
ourselves the pick and cream of what we know, and then trying to raise our minds
above that.
Take from what is around, all that is delightful, mighty, pure, exquisite, glorious. Gaze
upon them, and their beauty takes the very breath away. But their beauty is only the
shadow of His Beauty.
In the light of this truth, will not the delicate flower, or sky tinted with splendour, speak
to us with a new meaning? Before, we admired them for what they are; now rather, let
us reverence them for what they suggest.
God's Dealing with Men
His goodness is equally beyond our comprehension. Our Lord's life on earth, or the
Host and Chalice lifted up in the Mass, should give us an idea of the depth of the love
He has for each individual one of us, however wretched.
We are being dealt with in a princely way. One of the first results of our increases in
holiness will be the gradual realisation of the wonderful goodness which is lavished
upon us from morning until night. We grumble at the apparent afflictions and
punishments that come to us, though each one of them bears, as the saying is, a jewel
in its head. We are blind to the fact that nothing which is the bearer of a blessing can
really be punishment at all.
God is good . . . Let this be the great thought whenever the shadows thicken. There is
nothing from Him which is not kind -- though it may seem hard. Whether it is one of
those things that people dread most, such as death, or cancer, or bankruptcy; or only a
headache, we may be sure it is for the best. There is some hidden mercy in it. God is
good... God is so good.
Trust as a Characteristic of the Saints
In this spirit of trusting faith did the Saints receive whatever came to them. Aware that
they were enfolded in the arms of a loving Providence, it was equally a cause of thanks
to them whether they were cradled to the left or to the right.
This holy spirit is not beyond imitation by all, for we see it in the poor of our day. The
greatest calamity is met with fortitude. "There is no Cross but breaks a heavier," they
will observe. and then -- even though the tears are falling fast -- "God's will be done;
welcome be the Holy Will of God."
We must follow the holy ones of all times in this childlike confidence, this perfect
knowledge that He is their Good Father.
Our Love for Him
Our hearts were made to hold the biggest and the purest of loves. For nothing less
than this did God intend them. It is dishonouring such vessels to keep in them a love
based only on motives of reward or punishment, wholesome though these are. So let us
try to send our love for the Good Shepherd to summits far above such thoughts of self,
and love Him... "not that in Heaven we may reign... not to escape eternal pain... nor in
the hope of gain"... but for Himself, and that we may satisfy with something clean that
great love of His which craves for our love.
And as this pure love strengthens in our hearts, it will soon, like the eagle, grow
impatient even of the mountain peaks, and hunger after heights of heights, till -- with
the Little Flower -- we will cry out in longing: "Jesus! . . . Jesus! . . . I would so wish to
love you... Iove you as you never yet have been loved.!'
Can We Be Saints?
By Frank Duff
Nihil Obstat: Joseph P. Newth. C.C., Censor Theol. Deput.
Imprimi Potest:IOANNES CAROLUS,
Archeip. Dublinen, Hiberniae Primas.
Dublini die 80 Julii ano 1958.
Reprinted 1998
Legion of Mary,
De Montfort House,
Morning Star Ave, Brunswick St., Dublin 7, Ireland-
Legion of Mary - Diocese of Phoenix, AZ
Grateful acknowledgement for the use of this
material to:
http://www.arlingtonregia.com/legionsaints/cwbs.html
| Can We Be Saints ? by Frank Duff |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |