“Let it be to me according to your word.” (Lc 1:38)
As I conclude this reflection on August 15, I cannot and will not pass by our dear Mother of God, Mary, without thinking of her and writing a few words.
How lovingly our Heavenly Father must have looked upon the one He chose to be the mother of His Son—a holy and pure virgin! As we know from the teaching of the Church, she was exempt from original sin (the Immaculate Conception), just like the woman in Paradise whom we know as Eve.
Ez 34:1-11
The word of Yahweh was addressed to me as follows, ‘Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel; prophesy and say to them, “Shepherds, the Lord Yahweh says this: Disaster is in store for the shepherds of Israel who feed themselves! Are not shepherds meant to feed a flock? Yet you have fed on milk, you have dressed yourselves in wool, you have sacrificed the fattest sheep, but failed to feed the flock. You have failed to make weak sheep strong, or to care for the sick ones, or bandage the injured ones. You have failed to bring back strays or look for the lost. On the contrary, you have ruled them cruelly and harshly. For lack of a shepherd they have been scattered, to become the prey of all the wild animals; they have been scattered. My flock is astray on every mountain and on every high hill; my flock has been scattered all over the world; no one bothers about them and no one looks for them.
“Any false unity that is not founded in Me cannot endure and will crumble.” (Inner word)
We humans long for unity, and when we find it, great peace enters our souls—first with God, and then with other people.
Yet there is one condition for true unity. It can exist only in truth and is therefore founded on God Himself. Certainly, there are many interest groups and various forms of associations. But these are only peripheral in nature and therefore cannot reach the depth that true unity embodies.
Today’s meditation is dedicated to St. Helena, Empress and mother of Emperor Constantine. The 18th of August is considered to be the day of her death, which is why her memory is celebrated on this date in some parts of the Catholic Church.
Instead of taking a biblical reading, we will begin this meditation with a few words from the Magnificat canticle:
The Lord “has cast down the mighty from their thrones, and has lifted up the lowly” (Lk 1:52).
Helen, the great empress who played such an important role in the spread of Christianity, was born into a poor, pagan family in Bithynia (Asia Minor) around the middle of the 3rd century.
There is a rich array of saints to write about, and each time it is a profound experience to witness how God’s grace reaches a person and leads them beyond themselves. They show us what becomes possible when one hears God’s call and follows it. We must not assume that this was not also accompanied by struggles in which these people became aware of their own weakness. Yet they held fast to God, and thus the Lord was able to guide them and be glorified through them. It is moving when a person who holds a high social position is so deeply drawn to the holy faith that they do not shy away from performing the simplest—and often most difficult—acts of service toward their neighbor. Saint Radegund followed such a path and became a model for many other nobles to walk the way of Christ and to give their lives.
Radegund is the first queen to descend from the princely throne into a humble monastic cell to follow the poor Jesus in poverty; she is the first German princess upon whom monastic life exerted its wondrous influence, inspiring many crowned heads to follow her example. Born in 519, she was the daughter of Berthar, King of Thuringia, and was orphaned at an early age when her father was cruelly murdered by his brother Hermanfried out of a lust for power.
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; a good understanding have all those who practice it.” (Psalm 111:10)
We understand the gift of the fear of the Lord as the first of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit. When we practice it, our lives take on a clear and unmistakable direction. We examine our actions in the presence of God to see whether they might offend our Heavenly Father. This is a profound turning point in life, and thus the healing power of the Holy Spirit can unfold radiantly in our souls. At first, this gift may be accompanied more by a holy fear of doing even the slightest thing that might displease God. The memory of what might happen as a consequence if we stray from the path is also very vivid.
“An hour of patience is worth more than several days of fasting” (St. John Vianney)
Today we will hear the Gospel for the Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost, according to the traditional calendar.
Lk 10:23-37
Then turning to the disciples he said privately, “Blessed are the eyes which see what you see! For I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.” And now a lawyer stood up and, to test him, asked, ‘Master, what must I do to inherit eternal life?’ He said to him, ‘What is written in the Law? What is your reading of it?’ He replied, ‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbour as yourself.’ Jesus said to him, ‘You have answered right, do this and life is yours.’ But the man was anxious to justify himself and said to Jesus, ‘And who is my neighbour?’ In answer Jesus said, ‘A man was once on his way down from Jerusalem to Jericho and fell into the hands of bandits; they stripped him, beat him and then made off, leaving him half dead.
“When the devil wants to destroy someone, he begins by instilling in that person a great aversion to prayer.” (St. John Vianney)
We must always expect resistance to our progress in the spiritual life. Although it can happen on our path of following Christ that a certain aversion to vocal prayer may arise in contemplative souls, this aversion is not directed against prayer itself but rather points to the need to seek more silent prayer and contemplation.
Beloved Virgin, how many manifestations of love shine forth in you!
In relation to the Father, we see you as a loving daughter; to the Son you are mother and disciple; to the Holy Spirit you are united in a spousal love.
If already here, in our earthly reality, we are moved by the tender love of a human spouse, and can observe how she blossoms and turns her whole heart and attention to her husband, how much more so is it with you, since your Bridegroom is the Holy Spirit Himself!
Bride of the Holy Spirit… What mystery surrounds this title!
