"Our hearts are restless, O Lord, until they rest in Thee." - St. Augustine, Confessions.
"Notice who those are that spend most of their time rushing from one distraction to another; they are those who have felt the torment of loneliness so fiercely that they cannot endure to be by themselves. So lonely are they that they spend all their time feverishly pursuing one pleasure after another or one work after another - anything or anybody that will take their minds off the torment of themselves. The oppression that sin effects in them makes them anxious to live to the utmost their lives in the full stream of human existence. Pleasure is heaped up in crowded hours to make them forget the aching void of their hearts. Indeed, it is their greatest punishment that they finally succeed, until they lose at last all perception of their pain, whereas the saints are so full in themselves of love that they must draw off alone to be away from all others; so accompanied are they by the clear presence of their Friend that they cannot stay and waste (as, to them, it seems) the precious hours with any other thought than of Him. Thus sat Mary at the feet of Jesus, while Martha, busied over many things that were unnecessary, hurried to and fro, sometimes in His presence and sometimes out of it. This does not mean that we can show our love only by retiring out of the world to the cloister; but it does imply that only those can stand the loneliness of life who have their hearts aflame with the love of another; while the effect of sin is to produce a feeling of loneliness that irks humanity...Man..was made for love, the diviner part of him for divine love. By sin is all this love dried up.."
-Father Bede Jarrett, O.P.
There are two groups that appear before you each day according to St. Louis Mary de Montfort. The first group is the followers of Christ and the second group the followers of the world. Our Loving Savior's group is to the right and to the left is the world's group, the devils in fact which is far superior in number and seemingly far more colorful and splendid in array. Fashionable folks are all in a hurry to enlist, the highways are overcrowded, although they are broad and ever broadening with the crowds that flow through in a torrent. These roads are strewn with flowers, bordered with all kinds of amusements and attractions, and paved with gold and silver. To the right, the little flock that follow Jesus. Our loving Savior's group , scaling of narrow path made all the narrower by the world's corruption. Our kind Master is in the lead, barefooted, thorn-crowned, robed in His blood and weighed down by a heavy cross. There is only a handful of people who follow Him, but they are the bravest of the brave. His gentle voice is not heard above the tumult of the world, or men do not have the courage to follow Him in poverty, suffering, humiliation and in the other crosses His servants must bear all the days of their life. The followers of Jesus can speak only of tears, penance, prayer and contempt for worldly things. Sobbing in their grief, they can be heard repeating: " Let us suffer, let us weep, let us fast. let us pray, let us hide, let us humble ourselves, let us be poor, let us mortify ourselves, for he who has not the spirit of Christ, the spirit of the Cross, is not Christ's. Those who are Christ's have crucified their flesh with its concupiscence.We must be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ of else be damned!"
ReplyDeleteWorldlings, on the contrary, rouse one another to persist in their unscrupulous depravity. " Enjoy life, peace, and pleasure. " they shout, "Enjoy life, peace and pleasures. Let us eat, let us drink, let us sing, let us dance, let us play. God is good. He did not make us to damn us; God does not forbid us to enjoy ourselves; we shall not be damned for that; away with scruples; we shall not die. " And so they continue.
This website is a little negative for my taste. St Augustine also said:
ReplyDelete"Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward of this faith is to see what you believe."
I feel for you Paul. It seems through your writing that you carry the weight of the world on your shoulders. I'll pray for you so that you might write about something joyful soon, and that the thought illuminates the Christ within.
The truth is too negative for you Terry. I'm sorry to hear that. Let me assure you that I'm not carrying the weight of the world on my shoulders. I live a sacramental life and a joy-filled one in Christ Jesus. The only people who carry an unnecessary weight are those who refuse to repent of their sins. Perhaps you are simply living in denial?
ReplyDeleteFather Thomas Euteneuer, the President of Human Life International, has said, "We’ve got a serious crisis on the horizon. I’m not a prophet of doom but I don’t see this going any other way but a serious political crisis that’s going to affect the globe. The only way we can avert a global collapse is by a moral conversion. Once again, we have to reverse the process. Just to rearrange the deck chairs on the Titanic, is not a way to stop the collapse, the sinking of the Titanic. We have to turn back to God. And if people get fed up and just elect another political party that is just as bad as the previous political party, it does nothing to stem the global crisis that’s going to come upon us. What we need is a conversion of heart."
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2010/jan/10010605.html
No need to feel for me Terry. Your time would be better spent praying for this sin-sick nation and for its conversion.
In his time, Noah was considered "too negative." How did those people outside the Ark fare Terry?