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Feb242023

St Ignatius’ rejection of Erasmus

As seen already, the piety of Inigo (St Ignatius of Loyola) from childhood was imbued with a deep and tender devotion to the Mother of God. Even in his wild days, he would turn to her at critical times, as when he was about to fight a duel. A vision of her during the first stage of his conversion at Loyola confirmed him in his good resolutions and filled him with loathing for his past sins against purity. Then he copied her words from the Gospels into his notebook, writing them as beautifully as he could, and all in distinctive blue. On his feet again, his first business was to visit her shrine at Aránzazu. To her he made his vow of chastity on the road to Montserrat, and for her honor he strove with the Moor. On the holy mountain, he kept his vigil before her altar, and surrendered to her there his sword, as token of his undying loyalty. At Manresa, he said her Office daily and prayed at every altar to her that he could find. In storms at sea, we may be very sure that no one sang Salve Regina with fuller heart than he did, and that on his journeyings by land in Spain and Italy her wayside shrines were the only milestones he reckoned with at all. Hercules, Hector, Achilles, Socrates, Plato, Horace, and the rest of them are given liberal mention in the Manual of Erasmus, but the name of Holy Mary occurs in 287 pages only once and that in an equivocal context. No wonder that the humble and loving heart of Inigo felt frozen. –Saint Ignatius of Loyola: The Pilgrim Years 1491-1538 by James Broderick S.J.

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Feb222023

Little Sufferings

The embracing of suffering, I am convinced, must be reduced to the simple. The daily little sufferings. Suffering is not only the tragic events of loss, death, and disease. The little sufferings are holding our tongue and thoughts when we receive unpleasant words. Disciplining our thoughts, uniting them with the Cross, when we observe the world horribly conflicting with our beliefs. When others do not recognize our discernment, nor care to hear our opinions, we remain at peace. When others are convinced we are inferior, it causes no harm. When God infuses consolations of wisdom, we do not use them as a means of drawing attention. We can worship hidden amongst the crowd. We are content to remain quiet—no festering or harboring bitter resentful thoughts when others seek control. We cease arguing in our head, suffering the reality that we are small, mediocre in a world of highly intelligent people. Faith is not about being a superior individual. We are at peace with ourselves, comprehending multitudes possess higher IQs, competently able to do things we are unable to do. We lose the need to see ourselves as something special. Comparing and contrasting are eliminated. It is enough to recede into the love and mercy of God, grateful for the opportunity of life.

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For this reason the apostle Paul said of Christ: In him are hidden all the treasures of the wisdom and knowledge of God. The soul cannot enter into these treasures, nor attain them, unless it first crosses into and enters the thicket of suffering, enduring interior and exterior labors, and unless it first receives from God very many blessings in the intellect and in the senses, and has undergone long spiritual training.

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Would that men might come at last to see that it is quite impossible to reach the thicket of the riches and wisdom of God except by first entering the thicket of much suffering, in such a way that the soul finds there its consolation and desire. The soul that longs for divine wisdom chooses first, and in truth, to enter the thicket of the cross.

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The gate that gives entry into these riches of his wisdom is the cross; because it is a narrow gate, while many seek the joys that can be gained through it, it is given to few to desire to pass through it.

St John of the Cross

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Feb212023

Ultimate Wisdom: Creation

All wisdom comes from the LORD
and with him it remains forever, and is before all time
The sand of the seashore, the drops of rain,
the days of eternity: who can number these?
Heaven’s height, earth’s breadth,
the depths of the abyss: who can explore these?
Before all things else wisdom was created;
and prudent understanding, from eternity.
The word of God on high is the fountain of wisdom
and her ways are everlasting.
To whom has wisdom’s root been revealed?
Who knows her subtleties?
To whom has the discipline of wisdom been revealed?
And who has understood the multiplicity of her ways?
There is but one, wise and truly awe-inspiring,
seated upon his throne:
There is but one, Most High
all-powerful creator-king and truly awe-inspiring one,
seated upon his throne and he is the God of dominion.
It is the LORD; he created her through the Holy Spirit,
has seen her and taken note of her.
He has poured her forth upon all his works,
upon every living thing according to his bounty;
he has lavished her upon his friends.

Book of Sirach

James Webb Telescope

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Feb192023

Praying the Rosary on the A Train

By Matthew Kirby

The night takes back her rest, having grown warm,
but I remembered you, bound as I am
by this lovely and unexpected chain.
One thing is necessary, one my aim.
I leaped the terrible leap of having been born
and ever since have sought peace between darknesses.
The world knows many things and man preaches gain,
but one thing is necessary, one my aim.
The night sets up her kingdom; it’s a science
of emigrants, best learned by osmosis,
on the train to the Rockaways in warm rain.
God I remember you, bound as I am.

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Feb182023

Pilgrims sailing the Mediterranean Sea

Now, with deepest respect to Ignatius, things were far from being as simple as that. It is surprising that he did not at least mention a detail recorded by both Füssli and Hagen. No sooner did the pilgrims, crowded in the bows of the ship, sight the coast of Palestine than they joyfully burst into the Te Deum and the Salve Regina. The Salve had long been adopted as the special hymn of mariners and other sea-faring folk. The sailors on the Santa María of Columbus sang it lustily when the New World first dawned on their sight. It was indeed their customary prayer and the prayer of all sailing men when the shades of night began to close in on their little ships, isolated in the vast, unpredictable sea. –‘St Ignatius of Loyola: The Pilgrim Years’ by James Brodrick, S.J.

 

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Feb172023

Spiritual Canticle

XXXV

In solitude she lived,
And in solitude built her nest;
And in solitude, alone
Has the Beloved guided her,
In solitude also wounded with love.

XXXVI

THE BRIDE

Let us rejoice, O my Beloved!
Let us go forth to see ourselves in Your beauty,
To the mountain and the hill,
Where the pure water flows:
Let us enter into the heart of the thicket.

XXXVII

We shall go at once
To the deep caverns of the rock
Which are all secret,
There we shall enter in 

St John of the Cross

St John of the Cross Adoring

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