"I have loved you with an everlasting love...And I know the plans I have for you says the Lord"
Jeremiah:29-31
Asking Jesus to Lay His Merciful Hands on Us
Our faith does not consist in conquering weakness but in clinging in the midst of suffering to the will of him who suffers out of love for us. We must correct the habit of looking at our dark side instead of the transfiguring light of the Son who can change our dust into pure gold. We too often stop to examine ourselves instead of plunging ourselves into the purifying furnace of the Sacred Heart, which is open to us with a single act of confidence in his love. We believe all too easily in our wretchedness, but not enough in his merciful love. We have to learn how to take advantage of our littleness and failures, our incapacities, even our sins, and to transform them into reasons for trusting. If we can learn how to transpose such things into bold self-abandonment, then for us—as for the good thief, Saint Peter, Saint Paul, all the poor, weak, and sinful—the impossible becomes possible. It is trust and confidence that make what seemed so far away suddenly come within reach. It is trust and confidence that liberate the mercy of God, while a lack of faith constrains it. Our weakness attracts God because it offers him an emptiness that he can fill. Weakness brought in confidence before God becomes, in a sense, the promise of God’s intervention. We must have confidence, not in spite of our weakness but because of it—misery attracts mercy. No matter how deep the abyss of our misery, it cannot be an obstacle to God’s action. Sanctity, says Saint Thérèse, does not consist in this or that practice but in a disposition of the heart which makes us little and humble in God’s arms. Sister Mary David Totah Well, in a continuation of my conversation and reading of Saint John of the cross “Ascent to Mount Carmel” some of my questions got answered. The first 11 chapters were difficult to get through, but I felt inspired and guided to keep reading. It happened in chapter 12 and 13 that some of my questions were being answered and it has been interesting...It seems that everyone on the path of spiritual maturity and Christian perfection will experience a passive or active dark night of the senses, as a way to purge and rid ourselves of things that we no longer need or are a hindrance to the greatest desire of our soul, which is total union with God. Mortal and venial sin, vices or attachment to people or worldly goods can hinder the soul spiritually. God sends us trials and crosses as a way to purge us from these attachments. We have the option to enter into, avoid or ignore these trials. Saint John of the cross tells us that not only carrying our cross, but embracing and fully entering into it fully will help the soul advance in union and perfection with God. If we don’t understand what is happening, it can be easy for a soul to give into despair or desolation and even worse believe that God no longer cares or loves us because of this “dark night”This is not true! These trials are a gift of our loving father to further conform us into the image of his son Imago Dei. The “active night of sense” are things that we engage in by our own will to purge or discipline our senses. This can include Prayer, penance, voluntary sacrifices, spiritual reading etc...The passive night of sense is when God sends us trials or crosses that we must passively receive within ourselves and accept As God’s loving will for us. Examples of this can be death of a loved one, a health crisis, physical suffering, loss of employment or even dryness in Prayer which can lead to a crisis of faith. This is what I’ve learned so far and am looking forward to reading, Learning and sharing more😊 The spiritual life changes through time due to personal experiences and even age. There has been a tremendous amount of suffering, chronic pain, illness, both for myself, my family and throughout the world due in part to the covid-19 global pandemic. Death, fear, anger, and mistrust of our neighbor and government officials is almost a chronic state of affairs in the world today. I have been reflecting on this and on the catholic understanding of the "Dark night of soul" which happens when we engage seriously in our spiritual maturity. We recently celebrated the memorial of St John of the Cross and that got me thinking about his towering work on this subject in his book Ascent to Mount Carmel. I recently felt called at least try to read the book and after reading the prologue was hooked. However, the first 4 chapters were quite intimidating. So I thought "What would it be like if I could ASK Fr John if I was ready to make the ascent or if as a culture are we ready to take the journey for greater union with God?" Here is the letter and I will share in other posts what happened...
Dear fr John, I just started to read your book the Ascent of Mt Carmel. And I don’t yet know if I am ready to go on that journey with you. I do not know if I am sufficiently detached from things I need to let go of. I do not know if I am being invited to enter into the cross with you as my guide. I still desire things, objects, mostly for distraction or comfort but not as an end or pleasure in itself. My relationships on the other hand, have either been taken away by sister death or through some other means, but I am sufficiently alone and have some measure of comfort in solitude and quiet. Physical pain or sickness is always with me. I am becoming increasingly detached from my physical body and am Learning more about the virtue of Hope. Am I ready for this journey? Am I truly entering into the dark night? Pray for me Fr John |
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I'm not really a writer, but it's on my long list of aspirations to become one. The first on the list is to become a great Saint! My hope is to share knowledge and inspiration as we walk together during our pilgrim journey on earth and guide each other, hand in hand to the gates of Heaven... If you for find this website helpful please consider making a donation today! Archives
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