LOVING CARE

From a letter by Saint John Bosco, Priest


I have always labored out of love

First of all, if we wish to appear concerned about the true happiness of our foster children and if we would move them to fulfil their duties, you must never forget that you are taking the place of the parents of these beloved young people. I have always labored lovingly for them, and carried out my priestly duties with zeal. And the whole Salesian society has done this with me.

My sons, in my long experience very often I had to be convinced of this great truth. It is easier to become angry than to restrain oneself, and to threaten a boy than to persuade him. Yes, indeed, it is more fitting to be persistent in punishing our own impatience and pride than to correct the boys. We must be firm but kind, and be patient with them.

I give you as a model the charity of Paul which he showed to his new converts. They often reduced him to tears and entreaties when he found them lacking docility and even opposing his loving efforts.

See that no one finds you motivated by impetuosity or wilfulness. It is difficult to keep calm when administering punishment, but this must be done if we are to keep ourselves from showing off our authority or spilling out our anger.

Let us regard those boys over whom we have some authority as our own sons. Let us place ourselves in their service. Let us be ashamed to assume an attitude of superiority. Let us not rule over them except for the purpose of serving them better.

This was the method that Jesus used with the apostles. He put up with their ignorance and roughness and even their infidelity. He treated sinners with a kindness and affection that caused some to be shocked, others to be scandalized, and still others to hope for God’s mercy. And so he bade us to be gentle and humble of heart.

They are our sons, and so in correcting their mistakes we must lay aside all anger and restrain it so firmly that it is extinguished entirely.

There must be no hostility in our minds, no contempt in our eyes, no insult on our lips. We must use mercy for the present and have hope for the future, as is fitting for true fathers who are eager for real correction and improvement.

In serious matters it is better to beg God humbly than to send forth a flood of words that will only offend the listeners and have no effect on those who are guilty.

WE ARE

John 20: [21] Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you.

[22] And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost:

[23] Whosoever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whosoever sins ye retain, they are retained.

Creatures of God

Christians

Catholic & Orthodox

Sacramental

Baptized

Confirmed

Communicated

Confessed

Prepared

Married

Ordained

Neighbor

Child

Sibling

Parent

Friend

Citizen

(in this order)

John 16: [33] These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

In Christ's love,
Fr. Robert Pax

FOR LOVE OF CHRIST

From a homily by Saint John Chrysostom, Bishop


For love of Christ, Paul bore every burden.

Paul, more than anyone else, has shown us what man really is, and in what our nobility consists, and of what virtue this particular animal is capable. Each day he aimed ever higher; each day he rose up with greater ardour and faced with new eagerness the dangers that threatened him. He summed up his attitude in the words: I forget what is behind me and push on to what lies ahead. When he saw death imminent, he bade others share his joy: Rejoice and be glad with me! And when danger, injustice and abuse threatened, he said: I am content with weakness, mistreatment and persecution. These he called the weapons of righteousness, thus telling us that he derived immense profit from them.

Thus, amid the traps set for him by his enemies, with exultant heart he turned their every attack into a victory for himself; constantly beaten, abused and cursed, he boasted of it as though he were celebrating a triumphal procession and taking trophies home, and offered thanks to God for it all: Thanks be to God who is always victorious in us! This is why he was far more eager for the shameful abuse that his zeal in preaching brought upon him than we are for the most pleasing honours, more eager for death than we are for life, for poverty than we are for wealth; he yearned for toil far more than others yearn for rest after toil. The one thing he feared, indeed dreaded, was to offend God; nothing else could sway him. Therefore, the only thing he really wanted was always to please God.

The most important thing of all to him, however, was that he knew himself to be loved by Christ. Enjoying this love, he considered himself happier than anyone else; were he without it, it would be no satisfaction to be the friend of principalities and powers. He preferred to be thus loved and be the least of all, or even to be among the damned, than to be without that love and be among the great and honoured.

To be separated from that love was, in his eyes, the greatest and most extraordinary of torments; the pain of that loss would alone have been hell, and endless, unbearable torture.

So too, in being loved by Christ he thought of himself as possessing life, the world, the angels, present and future, the kingdom, the promise and countless blessings. Apart from that love nothing saddened or delighted him; for nothing earthly did he regard as bitter or sweet.

Paul set no store by the things that fill our visible world, any more than a man sets value on the withered grass of the field. As for tyrannical rulers or the people enraged against him, he paid them no more heed than gnats. Death itself and pain and whatever torments might come were but child’s play to him, provided that thereby he might bear some burden for the sake of Christ.

DOUBT & ABANDONMENT

2 Corinthians 13: [11] Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfect, be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace shall be with you.

[12] Greet one another with an holy kiss.

[13] All the saints salute you.

[14] The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen.

            Doubt is such a scary event for so many believers.  Do not fear it.  Many of the ancient and modern believers have felt the same loss.  Let it drive you on to greater prayer and study.  Seek the guidance of a spiritual elder.  Seek wisdom.  Remember, it is in God’s love that we find God’s peace.  And if you fall, fall praying.  It cushions the landing.  Prayer is your aid to rising again.

            In Christ’s commands we see the alleviation of abandonment.  We care for physical needs and emotional need.  We also reach out to care for spiritual needs.  As members of the Body of Christ we seek to insure no one is abandoned.  The world does not always share such a vision.  We must be committed to the hope that no creature of God will be abandoned.

            It is loneliness that feeds the demons.  In community we find his love.  It is in community that we find peace.

            We have been given a course fully charted: live in faith, hope, and love.  Stay the course.  Pray.  Worship.  Be silent and open yourself to listen.  God will teach us peace.

Romans 10: [15] And how shall they preach, except they be sent? As it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!

In Christ's love,
Fr. Robert Pax

WORK OF LOVE

Matthew 10: [16] Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.

            We look to the commands of our Lord to find our actions for peace in love.  We must provide for those who are without.  We give food and water, clothing, and shelter to those in need.  We must visit widows, orphans, shut-ins, and prisoners.  We must not judge.  We must spread the Gospel of our Lord by word and deed, baptizing and communing those who come to the Lord.  We must forgive.  We must pray and worship as the Body of Christ.

            In the Summary of the Law our Lord makes it clear that we must love our God above all else, and our neighbors as ourselves.

            We must love!  If we love we know God’s peace.  That doesn’t mean Satan won’t try us.  Usually this demon, with his demons, doesn’t have to do anything.  He likes to let us damn ourselves.  Many humans encumber themselves with sins and do not seek God’s healing.  Seek God and holiness and this punk will try to pull us away from God.  This fallen creature will lure us with the same temptations as he did with our Lord:  wealth, power, and pride.  There is no power or salvation in any demonic enticement.  We must be harmless as doves. 

Ephesians 2: [14] For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us;

[15] Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace;

[16] And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby:

[17] And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh.

[18] For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.

In Christ's love,
Fr. Robert Pax

ST. BASIL THE GREAT ON LOVE

From the Detailed Rules for Monks by Saint Basil the Great, Bishop 
 

The ability to love is within each of us

Love of God is not something that can be taught. We did not learn from someone else how to rejoice in light or want to live, or to love our parents or guardians. It is the same-perhaps even more so—with our love for God: it does not come by another’s teaching. As soon as the living creature (that is, man) comes to be, a power of reason is implanted in us like a seed, containing within it the ability and the need to love. When the school of God’s law admits this power of reason, it cultivates it diligently, skillfully nurtures it, and with God’s help brings it to perfection.

For this reason, as by God’s gift, I find you with the zeal necessary to attain this end, and you on your part help me with your prayers. I will try to fan into flame the spark of divine love that is hidden within you, as far as I am able through the power of the Holy Spirit.

First, let me say that we have already received from God the ability to fulfill all his commands. We have then no reason to resent them, as if something beyond our capacity were being asked of us. We have no reason either to be angry, as if we had to pay back more than we had received. When we use this ability in a right and fitting way, we lead a life of virtue and holiness. But if we misuse it, we fall into sin.

This is the definition of sin: the misuse of powers given us by God for doing good, a use contrary to God’s commands. On the other hand, the virtue that God asks of us is the use of the same powers based on a good conscience in accordance with God’s command.

Since this is so, we can say the same about love. Since we received a command to love God, we possess from the first moment of our existence an innate power and ability to love. The proof of this is not to be sought outside ourselves, but each one can learn this from himself and in himself. It is natural for us to want things that are good and pleasing to the eye, even though at first different things seem beautiful and good to different people. In the same way, we love what is related to us or near to us, though we have not been taught to do so, and we spontaneously feel well disposed to our benefactors.

What, I ask, is more wonderful than the beauty of God? What thought is more pleasing and wonderful than God’s majesty? What desire is as urgent and overpowering as the desire implanted by God in a soul that is completely purified of sin and cries out in its love: I am wounded by love? The radiance of divine beauty is altogether beyond the power of words to describe.

BOOKS, AGAIN

I have gathered two wonderful anthologies of peace writings.  The first is THE POWER OF NONVIOLENCE: Writings by Advocates of Peace.  The introduction is by Howard Zinn.  It is a very broad collection of great writing.  The other book is CHRISTIAN PEACE AND NONVIOLENCE: A Documentary History, edited by Michael G. Long.  It is a chronological collection of Christian writings/documents and commentaries on them.  Much of the Church has advocated for peace for nearly 2,000 years.  Here are the documents.  I hope, if you have a chance, you will enjoy them.

In Christ's love,
Fr. Robert Pax

LOVE OF MOTHERS & CHILDREN

Romans 5: [1] Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:

[2] By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

[3] And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;

[4] And patience, experience; and experience, hope:

[5] And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.

            In many places on this planet people of the same religion or culture, even nation, are killing each other right now.  They have for centuries.  From Ireland to Indonesia to Iraq human creatures kill human creatures.  The only great hope for peace is in our Lord.

            Our first loving teacher, a reflection of the mother of our Lord, is often our own mother.  A great awareness of God’s awesome reality comes to us in the miracle of children.  Our hope for peace may come from the enemies of peace waking to the realization that they love their mothers and their children.  That reflection of love may lead them to God, and enemy becomes tolerant.  Then we may know peace.  Without God, though, the well-spring of love, we will know only war.  Peace comes from the love of God.

Luke 19:38 [37] And when he was come nigh, even now at the descent of the mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen;

[38] Saying, Blessed be the King that cometh in the name of the Lord: peace in heaven, and glory in the highest.

In Christ's love,
Fr. Robert Pax

ANY SOCIETY

Luke 1: 76-79 76] And thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the Highest: for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways;

[77] To give knowledge of salvation unto his people by the remission of their sins,

[78] Through the tender mercy of our God; whereby the dayspring from on high hath visited us,

[79] To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.

            Any society that works to perfect its ability to kill its members would seem to be premeditating murder.  So few highly civilized societies have continued the barbaric practice of death penalties, or state sanctioned murder.  This is not what our Lord has asked of us to do.  We must ask our cultures to remain above the judgment and blindness of a death penalty in the realm of punishment.  There is no peace in such penalties.  Vengeance belongs to God, not humans.

            Any society, culture, nation, or religion that advocates the destruction of another is rogue to God’s plan for His creation.   We must learn to tolerate differences, love the different, and not kill those who are different.  We must tolerate to know peace.  To have peace we must love even our enemies.  This is what our God asks of us.

            Any society that does not care for God’s creation is an agent of the devil.  God’s creation, in the beginning, was the very definition of beauty, harmony, and peace.  So much of this creation is being destroyed that we have begun to see demonic disaster.  We must preserve to know peace.  We are the gardeners in the garden.  We must care for it.  Destruction of creation will leave no room for peace.  Species competition will lead to the end of life on this planet.  Environmental collapse will be irreversible.  If we love God and His creation we must stop this sinful destruction.  We need creation to know peace.

Philippians 4: [11] Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.

In Christ's love,
Fr. Robert Pax