Wednesday, June 20, 2012

As Catholics, we are called upon to imitate Mary's "virginally integral" faith, hope and charity


Faith is God’s gift to created persons who are entirely dependent on Him. The proper response to this gift is reverent obedience. Christian faith is characterized by a humble and reverent submission to what God has revealed. Vatican II’s Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation (Dei Verbum) has this to say: “’The obedience of faith’ (Rm 16:26; cf. Rm 1:5; 2 Cor 10: 5-6) ‘is to be given to God who reveals, an obedience by which man commits his whole self freely to God, offering the full submission of intellect and will to God who reveals,’ and freely assenting to the truth revealed by him. To make this act of faith, the grace of God and the interior help of the Holy Spirit must precede and assist, moving the heart and turning it to God, opening the eyes of the mind and giving ‘joy and ease to everyone in assenting to the truth and believing it.’” (Dei Verbum, No. 5).


For many if not most Catholics today, obedience to revealed truth seems difficult if not impossible. The idea of submitting one’s mind and will to another authority is viewed as repugnant. And this largely because, as Dr. Dietrich von Hildebrand reminds us, “The egocentric sovereignty that modern man arrogates to himself bans everything that has the character of coming from above, of imposing bonds upon us, and of calling for an adequate response. Modern man also shuns all the factors in life which are gifts, which he cannot grant to himself: they remind him of his dependence upon something greater than himself and above himself. Thus truth in its implacable sovereignty – absolute truth that judges our reason instead of being judged by it – is denied.” (The New Tower of Babel: Modern Man’s Flight from God, p. 19).

This is most unfortunate for St. Thomas Aquinas reminds us that, after the virtue of religion, obedience is the most perfect of all the moral virtues. And this because the virtue of obedience unites us more closely to God than any of the other virtues, insofar as it detaches us from our own will. For the main obstacle to union with God is self-will.

Obedience unites us to God and enables us to share habitually in His life. Obedience subordinates our will directly to the will of God and, as a consequence, all of our other faculties since these are subordinated to our will.

When we offer our wills as a sacrifice to God through obedience, we enter into communion with God, since we no longer have any other will but God's will. Only then can we make the words of Jesus in His agony our own words: "Not my will, but thine be done." This conformity of our will to the Divine will becomes one with charity. As St. Thomas reminds us, love effects primarily a union of wills.

This is the teaching of St. John, the beloved Apostle. After teaching us that he who claims to love God and keeps not His commandments is a liar, the Apostle declares: "But he that keepeth his word, in him in very deed the charity of God is perfected; and by this we know that we are in him" (1 John 2:5). This is the teaching of Jesus Himself, Who tells us that to keep His commandments is to love Him: "If you love me, keep my commandments" (John 14:15).

True obedience is, in reality, a genuine act of love. And this genuine love, this genuine conformity to the Divine will, purifies us from sin. Moreover, this conformity to the Divine will is what works out our reformation. It is, after all, the disordered love of pleasure - to which we yield through either weakness or malice - which has deformed us.

Happily, as we strive to be perfect as our heavenly Father is perfect (Matthew 5: 48), we have a most perfect model of faith, hope and charity in the Blessed Virgin Mary. Mary is all holy. Her earthly life was characterized by perfect harmony with the person and redeeming work of her Son. Pope John Paul II reminded us that, “The Council urged the faithful to look to Mary so that they may imitate her ‘virginally integral’ faith, hope and charity. To preserve the integrity of faith is a demanding task for the Church, which is called to constant vigilance even at the cost of sacrifice and struggle. The Church’s faith is not only threatened by those who reject the Gospel message, but especially by those who, in accepting only part of the revealed truth, refuse to share fully in the entire patrimony of the faith of Christ’s bride. Unfortunately, this temptation, which we find from the Church’s beginning, continues to be present in her life, urging her to accept revelation only in part, or to give the Word of God a limited, personal interpretation in conformity with the prevailing mentality and individual desires. Having fully adhered to the Word of the Lord, Mary represents for the Church an unsurpassable model of ‘virginally integral’ faith, for with docility and perseverance she accepts the revealed truth whole and entire…” (General Audience of August 20, 1997).

Mary accepted revealed truth whole and entire. She fully adhered in obedience to the Word of God. Shall we do any less?

7 comments:

Ellen Wironken said...

Paul, I know that because you preach this total fidelity to the Church's teaching you are (at least for now) ostracized by your local Church.

But hang in there. You are a voice crying in the wilderness. And for that you are hated. But you are in excellent company.

God bless you!

Wendy said...

We're too proud today. We think we don't need God and can do everything ourselves. How has this attitude worked out for us? Today everything is in a shambles.

We are too proud.

Paul Anthony Melanson said...

Shall we give Jesus only partial obedience? If we hold back our love, which is shown by our obedience (John 14: 15), can we honestly say that we really love Jesus?

Paul Anthony Melanson said...

I am constantly being told that I am "intolerant" because I refuse to condone extramarital sex, contraception, abortion, homosexuality and a host of other sinful actions. But as Archbishop Fulton Sheen reminded us: "Christian love bears evil, but it does not tolerate it. It does penance for the sins of others, but it is not broadminded about sin. The cry for tolerance never induces it to quench i...ts hatred of the evil philosophies that have entered into contest with the Truth.

It forgives the sinner, and it hates the sin; it is unmerciful to the error in his mind. The sinner it will always take back into the bosom of the Mystical Body; but his lie will never be taken into the treasury of His Wisdom.

Real love involves real hatred: whoever has lost the power of moral indignation and the urge to drive the buyers and sellers from the temples has also lost a living, fervent love of Truth.

Charity, then, is not a mild philosophy of "live and let live"; it is not a species of sloppy sentiment. Charity is the infusion of the Spirit of God, which makes us love the beautiful and hate the morally ugly."

I will continue to hold this Catholic truth and live and defend it until I am silenced in the name of "tolerance."

I believe in love. And there is no authentic love without truth. Only a sad counterfeit.

Anonymous said...

Excellent post and comments!

Anonymous said...

MARY, SWEETEST OF ALL MOTHERS

Oh Thou,
most beautiful a woman
most tender of all mothers
most brilliant STAR of DAVID
Masterpiece of God's creation
to the Holy Trinity
most precious Pearl
towards your Son the Golden Bridge
Golden Gate
to the Holy City
thru which our Savior
came and comes
Most sacred Vessel
ever
containing the most Holy
My soul,
is drowning
in the beauty of your eyes
in the sweetness of your smile
in the burning oven of your heart
in the greatness of your littleness
in the eloquence of your silence
in the mystery of your simplicity
Oh Thou,
safest of my earthly havens
dearest hiding-place of mine
truly my refuge
my sweetest, sweetest mother
keep me with your Son Divine
save me from the wordly evils
strengthen my so fragile faith
cover me
with your motherly mantle
Oh Mary, you most gentle
Your child I am FOREVER !!!

Rita Biesemans
August 10 1999 Feast of Saint Lawrence

Anonymous said...

IN T H E S I L E N C E

In the silence of my heart
I come to love You
Oh My Lord
To praise and worship You
My Master and My Savior
No words are spoken between us
Only so soft a whisper
And in my soul
An outpouring of so much
Undeserved love and grace
For
How often do I desert You
Thinking You don't love me
Forgetting about You
Oh, how stupid and ungrateful
Then I am
For
Without You I'm nothing
But a trembling reed
A creature full of fear
But,
Your creature sure I am
For this immensely grateful
Oh You, fullness of my soul
Reason for my existence
Sole purpose of my life
Object of my deepest thoughts
My God and my Almighty
I will serve You and obey
Surrender to Your Will divine
Embrace me with Your burning warmth
Cradle me in Your Fatherly arms
Oh, my well-beloved
Let me borrow from Your Love
Let Your Mercy shine upon me,
Your poor and littlest child
So, that with Your Grace
I will proclaim
Your Greatness,
Your Goodness and
Your Name
Through my work and being !!

Rita Biesemans 7-27-1999

MARY, SWEETEST OF ALL MOTHERS

Oh Thou,
most beautiful a woman
most tender of all mothers
most brilliant STAR of DAVID
Masterpiece of God's creation
to the Holy Trinity
most precious Pearl
towards your Son the Golden Bridge
Golden Gate
to the Holy City
thru which our Savior
came and comes
Most sacred Vessel
ever
containing the most Holy
My soul,
is drowning
in the beauty of your eyes
in the sweetness of your smile
in the burning oven of your heart
in the greatness of your littleness
in the eloquence of your silence
in the mystery of your simplicity
Oh Thou,
safest of my earthly havens
dearest hiding-place of mine
truly my refuge
my sweetest, sweetest mother
keep me with your Son Divine
save me from the wordly evils
strengthen my so fragile faith
cover me
with your motherly mantle
Oh Mary, you most gentle
Your child I am FOREVER !!!

Rita Biesemans
August 10 1999 Feast of Saint Lawrence

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