Christian Mysticism

Just as Christ overcame pain and suffering so can souls united to Him.  In the season of Lent we consider Christ's Passion, during Easter we celebrate His Resurrection.  The soul must unite itself to the Risen Christ.


Mysticism means relating to God on the deepest level of our being. It means knowing and loving him in a transcendent way, in keeping with his infinite and unfathomable nature. This profound communion with the Triune God is the reason for our existence, the true meaning of our lives.


Christian mysticism is rooted in the soul’s encounter with the Risen Christ, and our reception of the divine life that is his gift. The grace that Christ gives is not merely a created substance, but the indwelling personal presence of the Holy Spirit. The “Spirit of Sonship” conforms us to the image of Christ (Rom. 8:29) – allowing us to share, by grace, in Jesus’ own relationship of oneness with God the Father.


Mysticism thus revolves around a central paradox – a central mystery. That paradox is the closeness of the transcendent God, which makes it possible for us, finite creatures though we are, to be united to him.


We humble ourselves before God’s infinitude; but in this very act of worship, we find he is, as St. Augustine said, “closer to us than we are to ourselves.” We cannot reach God by our own power, yet by his grace, we are re-united with him as the very ground of our own being.


The mystical relationship with the Trinity goes beyond human thoughts and words, although thoughts and words can help us enter into it. Mysticism is also deeper than emotions and desires – though they, too, can help us reach the depths of spiritual life. The mystical life is neither mindless nor emotionless, but it puts the intellect and the emotions at the service of something greater.


The word “mysticism” is related to the idea of “mystery.” From a mystical perspective, the paradoxes of faith are not intellectual puzzles to solve, but sacred realities to approach with awe. God reveals himself, yet remains infinitely mysterious – always more unknown than known.


Link

Confession

The Sacraments of Confession removes sin from the soul.  As such the consequences of sin, pain and suffering are also removed.


Here are 21 reasons to go to Confession:

1. God commanded we confess our sins to one another in the Bible. (James 5:16)
2. It is the ordinary way to have our sins forgiven.
3. We receive grace to resist sin through the Sacrament, as well as forgiveness.
4. We learn humility by having to confess to another person.
5. There is built-in accountability.
6. Our relationship with the rest of the Church is healed.
7. We receive counsel from the priest.
8. We can be comforted hearing the words of absolution.
9. All are sins are wiped away.
10. Helps give you the strength to forgive others.
11. It doesn't cost anything.
12. We may not be positive that we have "perfect" contrition without it.
13. Helps us go deep within and think about how we can improve.
14. It feels good emotionally.
15. When we realize (again) we are sinners, it is easier to be patient with others.
16. Always confidential - what is said in the confessional stays in the confessional.
17. No more guilt.
18. We are better prepared to receive the Eucharist.
19. Forgiveness is a necessary part of growing in holiness.
20. Our consciences can be better formed.
21. If we have mortally sinned, then Confession brings us back into the family of God - The Church as well as restores sanctifying grace in our souls!

Link

Silence

AS IN THE DESERT, SILENCE GRANTS A NEW PERSPECTIVE AND VISTA THROUGH WHICH WE RESIST EVIL AND SOLVE PROBLEMS

Have power in silence.

Find power in wordlessness.

Halt the tongue.

Stop the mouth.

It is a "word" for this week.

It says in the Bible: the tongue can torch the world. "If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to bridle the whole body as well," states James 3.

How many times in your life have you found that talking only made things worse?

How many times in your life has it given power to a negative?

When there are problems, it's a great temptation: to talk about it, on and on, in circles, without end. We spin our wheels. We fret out loud. We waste much time that could be spent in prayer handling the circumstance. We hash and rehash and rehash again when we could be silently meditating.

Key word here: temptation. It's what the devil wants from us -- to talk to others instead of to Jesus. When we look to Christ, we see how, in the quiet of a desert, He was able to handle the most powerful, direct temptations from Satan.

The same is true for us: When we are quiet we are clear of spirit and when we have clarity we can see the guises of darkness.

Have clarity -- and thus power -- in silence.

Silence anger.

Silence your angst.

Silence your emotions.

Silence your temper.

Silence your body -- subdue it.

Silence all the fretting which may tend to evil. "For thus says the Lord God, the holy one of Israel, 'By waiting and by calm you shall be saved, in quiet and in trust, your strength lies'" (Isaiah 30:15).

Jesus said it: that worrying can serve the negative. Perhaps that's because besides being a lack of faith, and besides wasting valuable time, besides burning a hole in our emotions, and running down the body, worry sends forth an emotional energy -- a spiritual dynamic -- that feeds the enemy. Antagonistic spirits wait for the energy of anxiety, fright, and anger (and try to cause it to begin with). Talking about a negative can spark a flame and then pour fuel on it.

"See how great a forest is set aflame by such a small fire!" says James 3:5-6. "And the tongue is a fire, the very world of iniquity; the tongue is set among our members as that which defiles the entire body, and sets on fire the course of our life, and is set on fire by hell." 

Silence is a golden rule. This has been true from "silent night" to the silence at Calvary (a silence so powerful that it caused a quake, shaking the Temple). Actions speak louder than words (many arguments are won by simply keeping our mouths shut) and silence weakens the devil, who by nature is loud and likes distractions; he likes to hide behind clamor. He is in the first shout (and the first accusation). He is blaring rock music. He is a chatterbox. He is always speaking. He is always sending thoughts. He is always sending us a ticker-tape of worry. He is always sending worst-case scenarios, which are banished only when we take time out.

It is banished because silence leads to sanctity.

Silence bequeaths power.

Silence heals.

Silence unites.

Silence has mercy.

Silence prays for others.

Silence does not luxuriate over the bad news of others.

It is humble, which is also why the devil flees it; it is where we hear the "still, small Voice." (How many of us hear the Voice of God while we're talking?)

There are times to correct. There are times to speak out.

Never should this be, however, with "angry indifference."

That's when we get mad about something but then do nothing about it.

Instead, say only what is necessary. Pride is loud; humility is understated.

Silence takes discipline. It certainly doesn't gossip.

Have power in silence -- power over the enemy.

Have power in silence, in the way Jesus found power in silence in that desert. When you're worried about something -- maybe even darkly depressed (perhaps in a panic) -- pray for others and you will see your worry diminish.

There is no depression in direct contact with God.

Silence answers many questions.

It solves many crises.

In the beginning was silence; the Creator can be found there, creating new worlds for us.

When we are silent, our thoughts and emotions gather into a cogent pattern that lets us better face whatever good challenge the Lord has sent by which can should find growth (instead of trauma).

Michael Brown

Real Men

True masculinity is rooted in protection and service.  Any man incorporated in the principles of Christ is able to bring peace and healing to a chaotic world.   Through humbly serving God in prayer and worship, a father and husband serves his wife and children in love and protects them from evil.


We need men to focus on their families and to provide an example, to stand up and be counted as the Christian men that we are, to not be afraid to use the word ‘Jesus’ in a daily conversation, to bring our faith into our daily lives.


This is an era of absent men.


It takes a brave man to be charitable and to put his family first. Because society tells us to put yourself first. To be a steward, to be a warrior for Jesus, a man must defend and protect his family. Are you loving your family and raising your sons to be honorable men, to love women, to defend women? Are you raising your sons and daughters to be chaste and—if called to marriage—to seek a spouse for lifelong marriage? Are we open to God’s gift of children and not mangled in the false promises of contraception and abortion?


It’s time for brave hearts.


Link

No Return

People sometimes have the attitude that it is o.k. to sin because God will forgive me.  But this is deceiving.  It's important not to sin in the first place.  Sin causes us pain and suffering and it can be difficult (but not impossible) to return to a life away from sin.


Pope Francis celebrated his daily Mass at St. Peter's Basilica, before 500 members of Italy's Parliament.

During his homily, he talked about corruption. In particular, the Pope explained how back in the time of Jesus, politicians lost touch with people by following their own ideology, which led them to power and corruption.

POPE FRANCIS

"So the heart of these people, of this little group, was so closed that it was impossible for them to hear the voice of God.  From being sinners they spiraled down to corruption.  It's so difficult for a corrupt person to turn back. Sinners can repent, because the Lord is merciful and He waits for all of us. But corrupt people are just centered about their own concerns. Just like corrupt people back then.” 

The Pope then added that, especially during Lent, one must be open to the salvation that can only come from faith and God.

EXCEPRT OF THE POPE'S HOMILY

Source: Vatican Radio

"The hearts of this people, this group, with time became hardened so, so, so much - so that it was impossible to hear the voice of the Lord. And as sinners, they slid (downwards); they became corrupt. It 's very hard for a corrupt person to go back (on his tracks). The sinner, yes, because the Lord is merciful and awaits us all. But the corrupt person is fixated on his affairs, and these people were corrupt. And for this, they justify themselves, because Jesus, with his simplicity, but with his strength in God - he made trouble for them (it: dava loro fastidio). "

"They rejected the Lord’s love and this rejection put them on a path that was not the dialectic of freedom offered by the Lord, but that of the logic of necessity, where there is no room for the Lord. In the dialectic of freedom, there is the good Lord who loves us, who loves us very much! Rather, in the logic of necessity, there is no place for God: this must be done, this must be done, this must…They have become behavioral (it: comportamentali): well-mannered men, but with bad habits. Jesus calls them ‘whitewashed tombs’.”

"On this path of Lent it will do us well to think about this invitation from the Lord to love, about this dialectic of freedom where there is love, and to ask ourselves, all of us, …am I on this path? Do I risk justifying myself and take another path? A road with many junctions (it: strada congiunturale) because it does not lead to any promise ... And we pray that the Lord gives us the grace to always go down the path of salvation, to open ourselves to the salvation that only comes from God, through faith - not from what was proposed by these 'professionals of duty,' (it: dottori del dovere) who had lost the faith, and who led (it: reggevano) the people with this pastoral theology of duty.”