"Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace"

Saint Ignatius of Antioch (?-c.110), Bishop and martyr
Letter to the Romans, 5-7 (trans. J.H. Srawley)

"'Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace.'

"Now I begin to be a disciple. May nothing of things visible or invisible seek to impede me that I may attain to Jesus Christ... Even if the most cruel tortures afflict me, may they only aid me in attaining to Jesus Christ. The furthest bounds of the universe, and the kingdoms of this world shall profit me nothing. It is better for me to die for the sake of Jesus Christ than to reign over the boundaries of the earth. Him I seek Who died for us. Him I desire, Who rose [for our sakes].

"My travail-pains are upon me... Suffer me to receive pure light. When I reach there then shall I be a man indeed. Suffer me to be an imitator of the passion of my God... My Love has been crucified, and there is not within me any fire of earthly desire, but only water that lives and speaks in me, and says from within me, 'Come hither to the Father.' I have no pleasure in the food of corruption nor in the pleasures of this material life. I desire God's bread, which is the flesh of Christ, Who is of the seed of David, and for drink I desire His blood, which is love incorruptible."

--http://www.dailygospel.org/main.php?language=AM&module=commentary&localdate=20101229

"The Lord walks the roads of our daily life"

The Lord walks the roads of our daily life. Today too, in this moment, here, the Lord passes through the piazza. He calls us to go with him, to work with him for the Kingdom of God, in the Galilees of our time. Each of you should think: the Lord passes by today, the Lord looks at me, he is looking at me! What does the Lord say to me? And if one of you feels that the Lord says to him, “Follow me,” be courageous, go with the Lord. The Lord never disappoints. Listen in your heart whether the Lord is calling you to follow him. Let us allow ourselves to be reached by his gaze, his voice, and let us follow him! So “that the joy of the Gospel may reach to the ends of the earth, illuminating even the fringes of our world” (“Evangelii gaudium,” 288).

--Pope Francis, Angelus, 26-Jan-2014
http://www.zenit.org/en/articles/on-following-christ--2

Pope Francis on the 60th anniversary of the discovery of his call

“I want to tell you about a personal experience. Yesterday was the 60th anniversary of the day when I heard the calling from Jesus within my heart.  But I say it not to have you bring me a cake here, no it's not that. But that memory, 60 years from that day, I will never forget, the Lord made me feel strongly that I had to go forward on that path. I was 17 years old, several years had passed before making this decision, this invitation, became real, definitive. Then several years of joy and success went by. But also of failures, of sin. Sixty years on the path of our Lord, within him, beside him, always with him, and I want to say this: I do not regret it! Why not? Because I feel like Tarzan, and that I'm strong enough to keep going forward? No. I do not regret it because always, even in moments of darkness, moments of sin, in moments of weakness, in moments of failures, I have looked to Jesus and I have trusted Him, and He has never left me alone. Always trust Jesus. He always goes forward. He goes with us. But listen, He never lets us down. He is faithful, a trusting companion. Think of this as my testimony, I am happy of these 60 years with the Lord.”

http://www.romereports.com/palio/pope-francis-tells-sardinian-youth-how-he-discovered-his-vocation-60-years-ago-english-11081.html#.UkD8Gq7X9OQ

Mary listens, decides, acts

Vatican City (AsiaNews) - Listening, decision, and action are traits that Mary shows throughout her life, in particular when she visited Elizabeth. They reflect the eternal relationship with God that every Christian should behold as model and example to follow.

Tonight, St Peter's Square resonated with the voices of 20,000 people reciting the Rosary. As candles cast their light on the crowd, a statue of Our Lady was carried through it.

At the end of the Marian prayer led by the Vicar General for Vatican City Card Angelo Comastri, Pope Francis delivered his meditation.

However, before the meeting with the faithful in St Peter's Square, Francis met a group of 22 children, three sisters among them, hospitalised in the Paediatric Oncology Ward of Rome's 'Agostino Gemelli Teaching Hospital'.

The meeting, Vatican Press Office director Fr Federico Lombardi said, took place in an atmosphere of prayer and great emotion, but also of joy, as it does every time children are involved.

The Pope spoke to the little ones and others who were present. He listened to their questions and accepted their small gifts, urging them to feel the presence of Jesus always near them "because Jesus loves them a lot."

After reciting Hail Mary together, the Pope gave them his blessing, which is "like a hug from God."

Lastly, as he usually does, he greeted with great affection all those present, each child with his or her parents.

In tonight's meditation, he was inspired by today's feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary to Elisabeth. "Three words," he said, "sum up Mary's attitude-listening, decision, and action-words that point to a road that stands before what the Lord asks of us in life."

"Listening. Where does the Mary's decision to visit her cousin Elizabeth come from? From a word of the angel of God, 'And behold, Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son . . .' (Luke, 1:36). Mary knows how to listen to God. Don't forget that it is not just 'hearing'; it is 'listening' by paying attention, accepting, and showing openness to God. It is not the careless way by which we sometimes stand before the Lord or others. We hear words, but do not truly listen to them. Mary pays attention to God and listens to God. Mary also listens to the facts; that is, she reads the events of her life, paying attention to the tangible reality and does not stop at the surface; she goes deeper, to grasp the meaning. Another relative, Elisabeth, who is already old, is expecting a child: that is a fact. But Mary pays attention to its meaning, and knows how to grasp it 'for nothing will be impossible for God'."

"This also applies to our lives: listening to God speaking to us, and listening to everyday reality, paying attention to people and facts because the Lord is at the door of our life, and knocks in many ways, places signs on our path. It is up to us to see them."

"Decision" was the second trait the Pope stressed. "Mary does not live 'in a hurry', stressed out, but, as Saint Luke put it, 'Mary kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart.' Even at the decisive moment of the Annunciation by the Angel, she asked, 'How can this be?' Yet, she did not stop to reflect, but took a step forward: she made a decision. She did not live in a hurry, but only when it was necessary did she "go quickly." Mary did not let herself be carried away by events, she did not skirt the difficulty of the decision. This was true both in the fundamental choice that would change her life, the Annunciation, "and in the daily choices, that are also very meaningful," like the marriage of Cana. "Even here, we see Mary's realism, humanity, and pragmatism. She paid attention to facts and issues. She saw and understood the difficulty of the two young newlyweds whose wedding was running short on wine. She thought about and knew that Jesus could do something, and so turned to the Son so that he might act, for 'They have no wine'."

"In life, it is difficult to make decisions; we often tend to postpone them, let others decide for us. We often prefer to be carried away by events, and follow the fashion of the moment. Sometimes, we know what we have to do, but we do not have the courage to do it or it seems too difficult because it means going against the current. In the Annunciation, the Visitation, the marriage at Cana, Mary went against the current. She listened to God, reflected upon and sought to understand reality. And she decided to entrust herself completely to God. She decided to visit, despite her pregnancy, her elderly relative, and was insistent on her Son to save the joy of the marriage."

Last: action. "Mary set out on the road 'in a hurry' . . . . Last Sunday, I pointed out how Mary, despite difficulties and criticism for her decision did not stop at anything. She left 'in a hurry'.  But when she was praying, before God who was talking, and reflecting and meditating on the facts of her life, Mary was not in a hurry; she did not go with the flow and did not let herself be carried away by events. When it was clear what God was asking of her, telling her what she had to do, she did not linger, nor slow down, but went quickly."

"Mary's action is a consequence of her obedience to the Angel's words, together with her charity. She visited Elizabeth to help out. By stepping out of her home, and of herself, for love, she carried what was most precious to her, Jesus: she carried her Son."

"Sometimes, we also stop to listen, and reflect on what we should do. Perhaps, we already know what decision we must take, but fail to act. We especially do challenge ourselves by moving quickly towards others to help them, show them understanding, and charity, so that we too might uphold, like Mary, the most precious thing we received, i.e. Jesus and his Gospel, in words and, above all, concrete deeds."

--http://www.asianews.it/news-en/Pope:-Listening,-decision,-action:-Mary's-deeds-as-a-model-for-Christians-28079.html

Be bold to ask Jesus what he wants of you

 "I would like to ask you: Have you sometimes heard the voice of the Lord, which through a desire, a certain restlessness, invites you to follow him more closely? Have you heard it? ... I can't hear you... (Yes!) ... There you are!!  Have you had any desire to be apostles of Jesus?  Youth must spend itself for high ideals. Do you think so?  (Yes!) Do you agree? (Yes!) Ask Jesus what he wants from you and be brave! Be brave, ask Him! ... Thank you very much for the greetings, but also greet Jesus, call out 'Jesus' out loud. Shout 'Jesus!' Jesus!'"

--Pope Francis, Regina Coeli, 21 April 2013
http://youtu.be/yYDJuh4c0jg

MY CALLING IS TO BE LOVE

Since my longing for martyrdom was powerful and unsettling, I turned to the epistles of St. Paul in the hope of finally finding an answer. By chance the 12th and 13th chapters of the 1st epistle to the Corinthians caught my attention, and in the first section I read that not everyone can be an apostle, prophet or teacher, that the Church is composed of a variety of members, and that the eye cannot be the hand. Even with such an answer revealed before me, I was not satisfied and did not find peace.

  I persevered in the reading and did not let my mind wander until I found this encouraging theme: Set your desires on the greater gifts. And I will show you the way which surpasses all others. For the Apostle insists that the greater gifts are nothing at all without love and that this same love is surely the best path leading directly to God. At length I had found peace of mind.

  When I had looked upon the mystical body of the Church, I recognised myself in none of the members which St. Paul described, and what is more, I desired to distinguish myself more favourably within the whole body. Love appeared to me to be the hinge for my vocation. Indeed I knew that the Church had a body composed of various members, but in this body the necessary and more noble member was not lacking; I knew that the Church had a heart and that such a heart appeared to be aflame with love. I knew that one love drove the members of the Church to action, that if this love were extinguished, the apostles would have proclaimed the Gospel no longer, the martyrs would have shed their blood no more. I saw and realised that love sets off the bounds of all vocations, that love is everything, that this same love embraces every time and every place. In one word, that love is everlasting.

  Then, nearly ecstatic with the supreme joy in my soul, I proclaimed: O Jesus, my love, at last I have found my calling: my call is love. Certainly I have found my place in the Church, and you gave me that very place, my God. In the heart of the Church, my mother, I will be love, and thus I will be all things, as my desire finds its direction.

--St Thérèse of Lisieux

CALLING HAS A TRINITARIAN FORM

We may now go a step further. If we ask ourselves what is the deep meaning of this use of the word “call”, we see that it is one of the doors that open on to the Trinitarian mystery. So far we have spoken of the mystery of the Church of the one God but the Trinitarian mystery also appears. Jesus is the mediator of the call of the Father that happens through the Holy Spirit.

The Christian vocation cannot but have a Trinitarian form, both at the level of the individual person and at the level of the ecclesial community. The mystery of the Church is enlivened throughout by the dynamism of the Holy Spirit, which is a vocational dynamism in the broad and perennial sense, starting with Abraham who was the first to hear God’s call and to respond with faith and action (cf. Gen 12:1-3); until the “behold” of Mary, a perfect reflection of that of the Son of God at the moment when he accepted the Father’s call to come into the world (cf. Heb 10:5-7).

Thus, at the “heart” of the Church — as St Thérèse of the Child Jesus would say — the call of every individual Christian is a Trinitarian mystery: the mystery of the encounter with Jesus, with the Word made flesh, through whom God the Father calls us to communion with him and for this reason wishes to give us his Holy Spirit; and it is precisely through the Spirit that we can respond authentically to Jesus and to the Father within a real, filial relationship. Without the breath of the Holy Spirit the Christian vocation simply cannot be explained, it loses its vitality.

--Benedict XVI, Address to Seminarians of Rome, 2011

THE CALL IS PERSONAL, BUT WE ARE CALLED TO A COMMUNITY

And let us now take a step further. This word “call” is followed by the ecclesial dimension. We have now spoken of the vocation as a very personal call: God calls me, knows me, waits for my personal response. However at the same time God’s call is a call to a community, it is an ecclesial call. God calls us to a community. It is true that in this passage on which we are meditating the word “ekklesia”, “Church”, is not found but the reality is all the more evident. St Paul speaks of a Spirit and a body. The Spirit creates the body and unites us as it were in one body. And then he speaks of unity, he speaks of the chain of being, of the bond of peace. And with these words he refers to the word “prisoner” at the beginning: it is always the same word, “I am in chains”, “chains will bind you”, but behind them is the great, invisible, liberating chain of love.

We are in this bond of peace which is the Church, it is the great bond that unites us to Christ. Perhaps we must also meditate personally on this point: we are called personally, but we are called to a body. And this is not something abstract but is very real.

...accepting, supporting, enlivening the whole parish, the people, those who are likable and those who are not, becoming integrated into this body. Body: the Church is a body so she has structures, she really has a law and this time it is not so simple to integrate. Of course we want the personal relationship with God, but we often do not like the body. Yet in this very way we are in communion with Christ: by accepting this corporeity of his Church, of the Spirit who is incarnate in the body.

--Benedict XVI, Address to Seminarians of Rome, 2011

GOD HAS CALLED EACH ONE PERSONALLY

God, the Lord, has called each one of us, each one is called by name. God is so great that he has time for each one of us, he knows me, he knows each one of us by name, personally. It is a personal call for each one of us. I think we should meditate time and again on this mystery: God, the Lord, has called me, is calling me, knows me, awaits my answer just as he awaited Mary’s answer and the answer of the Apostles. God calls me: this fact must make us attentive to God’s voice, attentive to his word, to his call for me, in order to respond, in order to realize this part of the history of salvation for which he has called me.

--Benedict XVI, Address to Seminarians of Rome, 2011

CHOSEN, CALLED, AND SENT

Here is my servant whom I uphold,
my chosen one in whom my soul delights.
I have endowed him with my spirit
that he may bring true justice to the nations.
He does not cry out or shout aloud,
or make his voice heard in the streets.
He does not break the crushed reed,
nor quench the wavering flame.
Faithfully he brings true justice;
he will neither waver, nor be crushed
until true justice is established on earth,
for the islands are awaiting his law.
Thus says God, the Lord,
he who created the heavens and spread them out,
who gave shape to the earth and what comes from it,
who gave breath to its people
and life to the creatures that move in it:
I, the Lord, have called you to serve the cause of right;
I have taken you by the hand and formed you;
I have appointed you as covenant of the people and light of the nations,
to open the eyes of the blind,
to free captives from prison,
and those who live in darkness from the dungeon.
My name is ‘The Lord’,
I will not yield my glory to another,
nor my honour to idols.
See how former predictions have come true.
Fresh things I now foretell;
before they appear I tell you of them.
Islands, listen to me,
pay attention, remotest peoples.
The Lord called me before I was born,
from my mother’s womb he pronounced my name.
He made my mouth a sharp sword,
and hid me in the shadow of his hand.
He made me into a sharpened arrow,
and concealed me in his quiver.
He said to me, ‘You are my servant (Israel)
in whom I shall be glorified’;
while I was thinking, ‘I have toiled in vain,
I have exhausted myself for nothing’;
and all the while my cause was with the Lord,
my reward with my God.
I was honoured in the eyes of the Lord,
my God was my strength.
And now the Lord has spoken,
he who formed me in the womb to be his servant,
to bring Jacob back to him,
to gather Israel to him:
‘It is not enough for you to be my servant,
to restore the tribes of Jacob and bring back the survivors of Israel;
I will make you the light of the nations
so that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.’
Thus says the Lord,
the redeemer of Israel and his Holy One,
to him whose life is despised, whom the nations loathe,
to the slave of despots:
Kings will stand up when they see you,
and princes will bow,
for the sake of the Lord, who has been faithful,
the Holy One of Israel who has chosen you.
Thus says the Lord:
At the favourable time I will answer you,
on the day of salvation I will help you.
(I have formed you and have appointed you
as covenant of the people.)
I will restore the land
and assign you the estates that lie waste.
I will say to the prisoners, ‘Come out’,
to those who are in darkness, ‘Show yourselves.’
On every roadway they will graze,
and each bare height shall be their pasture.

Isaiah 42:1-9,49:1-9 ©

SHOW ME THE WAY!

Let us return to our Psalm. There we read: “He leads me in right paths for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil; for you are with me; your rod and your staff – they comfort me” (23[22]:3ff.). The shepherd points out the right path to those entrusted to him. He goes before them and leads them. Let us put it differently: the Lord shows us the right way to be human. He teaches us the art of being a person. What must I do in order not to fall, not to squander my life in meaninglessness? This is precisely the question which every man and woman must ask and one which remains valid at every moment of one’s life. How much darkness surrounds this question in our own day! We are constantly reminded of the words of Jesus, who felt compassion for the crowds because they were like a flock without a shepherd. Lord, have mercy on us too! Show us the way!

--Benedict XVI, Homily, Closing of the Year for Priests, 11 June 2010

THE YES OF MARY

When God decided to become man in his Son, he needed the freely-spoken "yes" of one of his creatures. God does not act against our freedom. And something truly extraordinary happens: God makes himself dependent on the free decision, the "yes" of one of his creatures; he waits for this "yes". St Bernard of Clairvaux explained dramatically in one of his homilies this crucial moment in universal history when Heaven, earth and God himself wait for what this creature will say.

Mary's "yes" is therefore the door through which God was able to enter the world, to become man. So it is that Mary is truly and profoundly involved in the Mystery of the Incarnation, of our salvation. And the Incarnation, the Son's becoming man, was the beginning that prepared the ground for the gift of himself; for giving himself with great love on the Cross to become Bread for the life of the world. Hence sacrifice, priesthood and Incarnation go together and Mary is at the heart of this mystery.

BENEDICT XVI
GENERAL AUDIENCE, Papal Summer Residence, Castel Gandolfo, Wednesday, 12 August 2009

Dare to say "Yes!" everyday

... a single great decision is not enough. It is certainly important, it is essential to dare to take the great fundamental decision once, to dare to utter the great “yes” that the Lord asks of us at a certain moment of our lives. But the great “yes” of the decisive moment in our life – the “yes” to the truth that the Lord puts before us – must then be won afresh every day in the situations of daily life when we have to abandon our “I” over and over again, placing ourselves at the Lord’s disposal when deep down we would prefer to cling to our “I”.

An upright life always involves sacrifice, renunciation. To hold out the promise of a life without this constant re-giving of self, is to mislead. There is no such thing as a successful life without sacrifice. If I cast a glance back over my whole life, I have to say that it was precisely the moments when I said “yes” to renunciation that were the great and important moments of my life.

...

Anyone who gives his life – day by day in small acts, which form part of the great decision – that person finds it. This is the challenging, but also profoundly beautiful and liberating truth that we wish to enter into, step by step, as the Cross makes its journey across the continents. May the Lord bless this journey. Amen.

(Benedict XVI, Homily, Palm Sunday--24th World Youth Day, 5 April 2009)

22 Lapidem quem reprobaverunt aedificantes,
hic factus est in caput anguli;
23 a Domino factum est istud
et est mirabile in oculis nostris.

22* The stone which the builders rejected
has become the head of the corner.
23 This is the LORD's doing;
it is marvelous in our eyes.

(Psalm 118:22-23)

Dear Co-worker of Christ,

You had said "Yes" to Jesus--and He has taken you at your word.--The Word of God became Man--Poor.--Your word to God--became Jesus--poor and so this terrible emptiness you experience. God cannot fill what is full.--He can fill only emptiness--deep poverty--and your "Yes" is the beginning of being or becoming empty. It is not how much we really "have" to give--but how empty we are--so that we can receive fully in our life and let Him live His life in us.

In you today--He wants to relive His complete submission to His Father--allow Him to do so. Does not matter what you feel--as long as He feels alright in you. Take away your eyes from your self and rejoice that you have nothing--that you are nothing--that you can do nothing. Give Jesus a big smile--each time your nothingness frightens you.

This is the poverty of Jesus. You and I must let Him live in us and through us in the world.

Cling to Our Lady--for she too--before she could become full of grace--full of Jesus--had to go through that darkness. "How could this be done?--" But the moment she said "Yes," she had need to go in haste and give Jesus to John and his family..

Keep giving Jesus to your people not by words but by your example--by your being in love with Jesus--by radiating His holiness and spreading His fragrance of love everywhere you go.

Just keep the joy of Jesus as your strength.--Be happy and at peace.--Accept whatever He gives--and give whatever He takes with a big smile.--You belong to Him--tell Him I am Yours and if you cut me to pieces every single piece will be only all Yours.

Let Jesus be the victim and the priest in you.

I have started going round our houses in India--so I have beautiful time alone with Jesus in the train.

Pray for me as I do for you.

Yours in Jesus,

M. Teresa, MC

(Blessed Mother Teresa, Letter to a priest, Come Be My Light, pp 275-276)

(A journalist asked Mother Teresa if she was ever in doubt. After all, the journalist said, Christ himself had moments of doubt in Gethsemane.)

No. There was no doubt. It was only for a moment that He felt unsure. That was as a human being. That was natural. The moment you accept, the moment you surrender yourself, that's the conviction. But it may mean death to you, eh? The conviction comes the moment you surrender yourself. Then there is no doubt. The moment Jesus said, "Father, I am at your disposal, Thy will be done," He had accepted. That was His agony. He felt all the things you and I would feel as human beings. That's why He was like unto us in all things, except sin."

[If uncertainty remains] that's the time to go on your knees, eh? .... In that prayer, God cannot deceive you because that prayer comes from within you. That is the time you want Him most. Once you have got God within you, that's for life. There is no doubt. You can have other doubts, eh? But that particular one will never come again. No, I have never had doubt.... But I am convinced that it is He and not I. That it is His work, and not my work. I am only at His disposal. Without Him I can do nothing. But even God could do nothing for someone already full. You have to be completely empty to let Him in to do what He will. That's the most beautiful part of God, eh? Being almighty, and yet not forcing Himself on anyone.

(Blessed Mother Teresa, Come Be My Light, pp 259-260)

The work holds no joy, no attraction, no zeal. I remember, I told Mother Provincial, that I was leaving Loreto--for souls--for a single soul--and she could not understand my words.--I do my best.--I spend myself--but am more than convinced that the work is not mine. I do not doubt that it was You who called me, with so much love and force.--It was You--I know. That is why the work is Yours and it is You even now--but I have no faith--I don't believe.--Jesus, don't let my souls be deceived--nor let me deceive anyone.

(Blessed Mother Teresa, Come Be My Light, p 193)

Of [my] free choice My God and out of love for You--
I desire to remain and do what ever be Your Holy Will in my regard. ...
Even if I suffer more than now--I still want to do Your Holy Will.--
This is the dark night of the birth of the Society.--
My God give me courage now--this moment--to persevere in following your call.

...

Today--my God--what tortures of loneliness.--
I wonder how long will my heart suffer this. ...
My God, give me courage now to fight self and the tempter.
Let me not draw back from the sacrifice I have made of my free choice and conviction.--
Immaculate Heart of my Mother, have pity on thy poor child.
For love of thee I want to live and die an M.C.

...

The more the work is spreading the more clear it becomes [it is] His Will.
Soon it will be one year [since she had left Loreto]--
though there has been plenty of suffering and tears,
there has not been one moment of regret. I am happy to do God's will.

(Blessed Mother Teresa, Come Be My Light, p 134-136)

I am so afraid Jesus--I am so terribly afraid--let me not be deceived.--I am so afraid.--This fear shows me how much I love myself.--I am afraid of the suffering that will come--through leading that Indian life--clothing like them, eating like them, sleeping like them--living with them and never having anything my way. How much comfort has taken possession of my heart.

(Blessed Mother Teresa, Come Be My Light, p 97)

[W]e can refuse Christ just as we refuse others: I will not give You my hands to work with, my eyes to see with, my feet to walk with, my mind to study with, my heart to love with. You knock at the door but I will not open. I will not give You the key of my heart.

(Blessed Mother Teresa, The Private Writings of the "Saint of Calcutta")