When I was quite young the instructor in my CCD class (religious education for public school children) told a story which made a huge impression on me. Unfortunately, it was not a good one. The story concerned a little girl who dutifully prayed the Rosary, but because she was often distracted, she did not say it well; that is, the prayers were not ‘perfect.’ Thus, when she died, she was barred from Heaven! I was so horrified at this that I feared praying the Rosary, deciding it was better to avoid it altogether than to risk messing it up. Being so young, what I failed to realize was that the teacher falsely implied that God is rather petty, to say the least. Thankfully, as I grew in maturity, and therefore realized the ridiculousness of that story, I learned not only to pray the Rosary, but to love it. I realized that the teacher was trying to impress upon us that we should be attentive rather than rattling off a multiplication of words, but she truly had missed the mark. The truth is that the sincerity of our intention and the love with which we approach God matters more than whether or not we forgot or added one Hail Mary in the decade, or whether a prayer was said ‘properly.’ No human is perfect so we need to let go of the false idea that our prayer is not good enough in some way. The One who receives our prayer is perfect and His love for us is also perfect. Thus, contrary to the message I received as a child, every intention and every prayer we offer is received perfectly because it is received with the unfathomable love and mercy of God. Being nervous about the quality or quantity of our prayer renders the entire point to be lost. For one thing, prayer is not about rattling off words. Saying rote prayers does have great value, but we also need to pray in our own words as well as to prayerfully meditate, (to reflect or ponder). To distrust our prayer is actually to be distrustful of God because prayer is about a relationship, not about a ‘secret formula’ of words. Judging our own prayer as somehow deficient projects our lack of self-acceptance and self-love onto God and therefore limits our experience of His actual love and mercy. Prayer is time spent with God which means that we bring ourselves as we are, not as we think He wants us to be. In short, God does not judge the quality of our prayer and neither should we. Doing so is deadly to our desire to pray since our worries about quality will probably lead to giving up altogether. And best of all, when we sin we will be apt to feel comfortable approaching God for forgiveness and reconciliation knowing He rejoices when He can remove all that comes between us. He never runs out of mercy! Lent is a season when we concentrate on growing in prayer, almsgiving, penance, and abstinence; therefore it is a good idea to ask the Holy Spirit for whatever graces are needed for this process. Remember, it is not about ‘doing Lent’ perfectly, but rather it is about offering our love to God and the world in a more intentional way. It is also good to ponder the value of fasting and abstinence. Fasting allows for purification of our intentions and behaviors which can include more than simply eliminating food. In fact, it seems God has a preference: “This is the fasting that I wish: releasing those bound unjustly, untying the thongs of the yoke; setting free the oppressed, breaking every yoke; sharing your bread with the hungry, sheltering the oppressed and the homeless; clothing the naked when you see them, and not turning your back on your own.” (Isaiah 58:6-7) And throughout His teaching Jesus spoke similarly, best summed up in what we call the Corporal Works of Mercy. (Matthew 25:31-46) In other words, abstaining from food is important, but it should be part of an interior change that leads to living justly with mercy, kindness, and love. Therefore, we might consider ‘fasting’ from one of the following: fear, worry, selfishness, unkindness, lack of faith or hope, greed, gossip, sloth, impatience, anger, neglecting friends and/or family, or unforgiveness. We will need to rely on grace to do this, but by ‘giving up’ one of these things, we become stronger in our love and in our witness to others about the Christian life. Finally, we should consider adding gratitude to whatever we choose to do. Part of what Lent provides is the opportunity for growth in appreciation of the depth of Jesus’ love for His people. In this light, we offer our sacrifices to God while asking His mercy and compassion for us and for the world. Thus, an excellent gift we can offer Him is our gratitude for all that He has done. A grateful heart is an unselfish heart. It is a heart which learns to trust, recognizing that what God desires most is that we bring ourselves to Him as we are. Therefore, let us not fall into the temptation to rate our prayer or our efforts at having a ‘good Lent,’ instead embracing this season as an opportunity for growth in inner peace and outer joy. May we enter into Lent asking the Holy Spirit for the graces we need so that it is meaningful to us and to the Body of Christ! May we have the grace to grow strong against fear, self-doubt, and anything which keeps us from the Lord! May we be beacons of love and mercy so that our actions draw others to Jesus! And may we grow in awareness of the depth of love that Jesus offered through His suffering and death that we may be inspired to deeper gratitude for such an unfathomable gift! Let us meet in the Heart of Jesus! Happy Lent! Peace! ©Michele L. Catanese Images: 1. My photo of a stained glass window, Our Lady of Lourdes, taken in Nevers, France. Notice the Rosary she had hanging from her belt. The first time St. Bernadette saw Our Lady, they prayed a Rosary together. 2. Painting, Old Woman Praying, by Paul Cezanne: Notice that the woman is praying the Rosary, the beads in her hands. 3. Painting of broken bread: To me it symbolizes sharing our bread with others. 4. My photo, taken near Noto, Sicily, Italy. As they day ends, our hearts turn to God in gratitude. 5. Icon, The Holy Spirit The Lord The Giver of Life The Paraclete Sender of Peace, by Fr. William Hart McNichols. The Holy Spirit showers graces upon us in the Sacraments and when we ask. This can be found at https://fineartamerica.com/featured/the-holy-spirit-the-lord-the-giver-of-life-the-paraclete-sender-of-peace-093-william-hart-mcnichols.html NOTE: In compliance with GDPR rules, I wish to make it clear that I do not gather any information on any of my readers at any time. On vacation years ago I had an opportunity to spend a day in the remote Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve in north central Alaska. Part of the visit included a stunning guided journey through the tundra, surrounded by the majestic Brooks Range Mountains. The vastness of the place contributed to a profound sense of my own littleness and insignificance in the grand scheme. But the reality is that it was only a feeling, and not one reserved just for being in the wilderness: all of us have an experience of feeling insignificant from time to time no matter where we are or who we are with. It is normal to feel overwhelmed by that which is larger than we are, but the truth is that none of us are insignificant in the eyes of God. Everyone, including the most forgotten or overlooked person among us, is important and precious in His eyes. Therefore, as members of the Body of Christ we are called to reflect that same attitude toward one another; by treating everyone with reverence and dignity, no matter how insignificant we think our actions may be, we are actually effecting changes in the world. It is easy to be deceived into believing we can do nothing because we are the least likely person God would ever choose to make a difference, but if we look to the people God has chosen throughout salvation history, it seems that He prefers not the seemingly obvious people, but the least likely, most flawed individuals to help Him accomplish His work. The series of unlikely heroes consistently chosen by God shows that His judgment is completely different than ours. For example, in the Old Testament we can see that He chose an exile with a stutter to lead His people out of bondage (Moses), a woman military leader during an era in which only men led armies (Deborah), an unambitious, but conniving man from the smallest clan in the least significant tribe to liberate his people (Gideon), a king so arrogant that he went ‘off the rails’ (Saul), a young shepherd, the last choice of a renowned prophet, to be anointed as the replacement for King Saul (David), prophets from humble backgrounds or with ‘issues’ (Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Amos) and so on. Later we see that Jesus chose His followers similarly: some lowly fishermen, (Andrew and Peter, James and John), one who was prejudiced against Galileans like Jesus (Nathaniel), a Zealot (Simon), and a probable thief who swayed with the wind, ending up as a betrayer (Judas). Then there was the crooked tax collector (Matthew), the hot tempered Pharisee (Paul), and so many more. Of the many Saints who followed, one who might be considered a ‘least likely choice’ is Bernadette Soubirous (1844-1879). When the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to her at Lourdes, the 14 year old Bernadette was illiterate, sickly, and from a family so poor they lived in a jail that wasn’t even suitable for criminals. Yet it was her courage and determination, her deeply ingrained faith and love for God, which propelled her into becoming a great saint. She was the last person anyone would ever have chosen for so great a mission, and yet she obeyed, growing in holiness and humility as she accepted what was placed before her. Many of the Saints were aware of their unlikelihood as choices for service. It was St. Thèrése of Lisieux who wrote (in reference to herself): "He does not call those who are worthy, but those whom He pleases." All of this bears witness to the reality that God can and will choose anyone of faith to be a witness to His love and mercy. Therefore we must never count ourselves out. A suggestion to become more aware of God’s call is to spend time praying and reflecting upon our lives as they are now to see what opportunities are already at hand in our homes, workplaces, and communities. A concrete way we can serve God is to be more intentional about practicing the Corporal and Spiritual Works of Mercy, small actions which make a huge difference in the lives of others. Finally, we need to reflect upon our role as ‘activists.’ To be Christian means to love actively: we cannot sit idly by and wait for someone else to do what we can do ourselves. Imagine if Moses decided to ‘sit this one out,’ or if Peter decided his sins were too great to ever serve Jesus! Imagine if Bernadette had decided not to go back to the grotto and missed the messages Mary wanted her to convey! We do not have to wait for a sign or revelation before we can offer our love and mercy to the world. All we need to do is realize that every act and every word can be healing and life-giving if we live the gospel as taught by Jesus, seeing ourselves and all our sisters and brothers as important and precious to God. Let us reflect upon the words of Gerard Manley Hopkins, SJ, who during his life was of ‘the least likely,’ his poetry acclaimed only after his death: I say more: the just man justices; Keeps grace: that keeps all his goings graces; Acts in God's eye what in God's eye he is -- Christ — for Christ plays in ten thousand places, Lovely in limbs, and lovely in eyes not his To the Father through the features of men's faces. * May we believe in our hearts that we are precious and beautiful to behold in the eyes of God! May we also see others as children of God, precious and beautiful to behold! May we spend time in prayer, discerning how we are called to do small things with great love! And may our hearts be filled with courage, faith, hope, mercy, and love that we may offer these in turn to everyone we encounter! Let us meet in the Heart of Jesus! Peace! ©Michele L. Catanese * As Kingfishers Catch Fire, by Gerard Manley Hopkins, SJ (1844-1889). The entire poem is found at https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44389/as-kingfishers-catch-fire Images: 1. My photo taken in Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve, just north of the Arctic Circle, Bettles, Alaska. This photo was taken out on the tundra near Anaktuvuk Pass; the mountain is part of the Brooks Range. 2. My photo of a mosaic of Moses and the Burning Bush: Basilica of San Vitale, Ravenna, Italy. 3. My photo of a stained glass window in the convent of St. Gildard at Nevers, France, depicting St. Bernadette praying before Our Lady of Lourdes. Bernadette entered the Sisters of Charity in Nevers, remaining until her death at the age of 35. 4. My photo of the original painting, The Good Samaritan by Vincent van Gogh. I took this in the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, TX at an exhibition which included this work. 5. Icon, Fr. Gerard Manley Hopkins the Poet's Poet, by Fr. William Hart McNichols. Note the inset of the Kingfisher in the upper left corner. You can find this at https://fineartamerica.com/featured/fr-gerard-manley-hopkins-the-poets-poet-144-william-hart-mcnichols.html NOTE: In compliance with GDPR rules, I wish to make it clear that I do not gather any information on any of my readers at any time. |
Heart Speaks to Heart
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