'LIghting the Path'

(Excerpts from a preface writing in a January issue

of a Christian magazine by Gilles Monegeau, S.J.

More and more,we are coming to realize that the particular ways we have had of understanding the world and the Church are breaking apart. As change accelerates and as the political and ecclesial and crises succeed one another, the sets of meanings and values we have used to make sense of reality in the realm of politics, continuity versus discontinuity with tradition in the Church ~ are as much of the problem as anything else.

In the face of all this, some try to cling to the old ways of thinking ~ even going so far as to try to violently enforce the return of a 'golden age.' Others give up on the attempt to make sense of anything ~ and retreat into their own little private worlds ~ or celebrate 'anything goes' as if it were genuine freedom. How can a Christian discover fresh meaning and value (a direction for his or her life) and direction for the Church and society in the midst of all this?

Light in the darkness comforts us ~ serving as a point of anchor.
It creates a small circle within which things can make sense.
But light in the darkness can also help us get moving:
it accompanies us revealing obstacles and help us distinguish the path

we are on from the brambles to either side.

Finally, a 'light in the distance can lead us...attract us...and give us direction in the stream of life...

a goal to reach.' Christ is the 'light' in all these ways. If we listen to Him as a community, we can articulate for our day the meaning and value he brings into history. He provides direction

and a goal to reach in the joy of Easter as we join him in redeeming the present time.
So, with the prophet Isaiah, we can truly say:
“You have made our gladness greater ~ you have made our joy increase;
we rejoice in your presence as people do at harvest time.

Quotes and Prophecies

He who sows courtesy and reaps friendship,
and he who plants kindness gathers love. (St. Basil)

Try to keep your soul always in peace and quiet,
always ready for whatever our Lord may wish to work in you. (St. Ignatius Loyola)

It is with the smallest brushes that the artist paints
the best paintings. (St. Andre Bessette)

May the God of love and peace set your hearts at rest
and speed you on your journey. (St. Raymond of Penyafort)

Act as if every day were the last of your life,
and each action, the last you perform. (St. Alphonsus Liguori)

There is no space where God is not;
space does not exist apart from him. (St.Hilary)

Resentment is like drinking poison

and waiting for the other person to die. (St.Augustine)

Grace is nothing else but a certain beginning
of glory within us. (St. Thomas Aquinas)

I no longer fear God, but I love him.
For love casts out fear. (St. Anthony)

We meed to find God and he cannot be found
in noise and restlessness. (St. Teresa of Calcutta)

Christ made my soul beautiful with the jewels of grace and virtue.
I belong to him whom the angels serve. (St. Agnes)

Remember that the Christian life is one of action.

Not of speech and daydream.
Let there be few words and many deeds ~

and let them be done well. (St. Vincent)

Act and God will act. (St. Joan of Arc)

Since love grows within you, so beauty grows.
For love is the beauty of the soul. (St. Augustine)

The tree that is beside the running water
is fresher and gives more fruit. (St. Teresa ofAvila)

Whatever you do, think of the glory of God
as your main goal. (St. John Bosco)

The things that we love tell us what we are.
(St. Thomas Aquinas)

Prayer

Prayer of the orphan, the widow and the stranger,

“ Instill in our hearts a deep sense of hospitality.

Open our eyes and hearts when you ask us to feed you, to clothe you and to visit you

.May our churches participate in the ending of hunger, thirst and isolation
 and overcoming barriers that prevent the welcome of all people.

 We ask this in the name of your Son, Jesus.

Written by Merle Baird-Kerr...February 4, 2020
Comments always welcome: mbairdkerr@cogeco.ca