"...help us be truthful..." -- Pope Francis

[MariaChristi]

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Commenting on this morning’s Gospel in which we hear Pharisees seeking to ensnare Jesus in His speech, the Pope warns the Church about not speaking the truth.

Jesus, Francis reminded, uses the word “hypocrite” often to describe the doctors of the law, because, as their title illustrates, “they claim to have higher standards or more noble beliefs than is the case, they give opinions and issue judgments, but are false."

Pope Francis concluded…“Let us ask the Lord to guard us from this vice, to help us be truthful, and if this is not possible to keep silent – but never to be a hypocrite.”

Full article can be read HERE

 

[animalis]

I think the key to the drama of truth is mistrust of self with self-knowledge. It opens the door (when provided by grace) to docility. An explanation of self-knowledge is found in The Dialogues of Saint Catherine of Siena. I find it to be a hard effort and many times avoidable or omissions of effort - in order to tackle self-love. I see myself as a drug addict addicted to the drug of self. God help me! And help me if I ever believe that I am the truth.

 

[MariaChristi]

I think the key to the drama of truth is mistrust of self with self-knowledge. It opens the door (when provided by grace) to docility. An explanation of self-knowledge is found in The Dialogues of Saint Catherine of Siena. I find it to be a hard effort and many times avoidable or omissions of effort - in order to tackle self-love. I see myself as a drug addict addicted to the drug of self. God help me! And help me if I ever believe that I am the truth.

Dear animalis,

Thanks for your reply. Yes, I agree that “self” can be the last idol we let go of, in seeking to love and serve only One Master Who is God. We can only serve one master as Jesus told us, either we will love the one and hate the other or hate the one and love the other.

St. Augustine put it this way: the city of man is built by those who love self to the contempt of God, and the City of God is built by those who love God to the contempt of self.

The Dialogues of St. Catherine of Siena is one of my favorite books. I’ve read it more than once and go back to it often. We can learn so much from the testimony of the saints!

I believe it was St. Franics of Assisi who said: “I am what I am before God, no more and no less”. Poverty of spirit is so important in learning to love God more than self, it seems to me. Once we acknowledge, deep within, that without God we are nothing and can do nothing, we can begin to think more of Him and less of ourselves.

Another saint who has helped me immeasurably is St. Louis de Montfort and his little treatise on "True devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary". In learning from him how to consecrate myself totally to Jesus through Mary I have learned much. If you have never read this little gem of a spiritual classic you might be blessed by it. I continue to be blessed in trying to live it! There is an online version HERE

 

[animalis]

Saint Luke says, "Then he told them a parable, "There was a rich man whose land produced a bountiful harvest. He asked himself, ‘What shall I do, for I do not have space to store my harvest?’ And ect.

Thank you for your insight regarding poverty of spirit. Without clear knowledge of ourselves, we easily are deceived that self-dependence is richness. This deception does not give the Spirit room for his harvest, all the while we keep our own harvest of corruption of the flesh. But there is hope, Jesus says, “But I say to you, that to every one that hath shall be given, and he shall abound: and from him that hath not, even that which he hath, shall be taken from him.” (Lk 19:26) Those who hath not a robust harvest of the seven-fold gift of the spirit: “even that which he hath”, i.e., corruption of the flesh, “shall be taken from him”. The “hound of heaven” is patient with all of us.

Thank you again MariaChristi - I wait to learn much from my consecration to Mary, as you did.

 

[MariaChristi]

Saint Luke says, "Then he told them a parable, "There was a rich man whose land produced a bountiful harvest. He asked himself, ‘What shall I do, for I do not have space to store my harvest?’ And ect.

Thank you for your insight regarding poverty of spirit. Without clear knowledge of ourselves, we easily are deceived that self-dependence is richness. This deception does not give the Spirit room for his harvest, all the while we keep our own harvest of corruption of the flesh. But there is hope, Jesus says, “But I say to you, that to every one that hath shall be given, and he shall abound: and from him that hath not, even that which he hath, shall be taken from him.” (Lk 19:26) Those who hath not a robust harvest of the seven-fold gift of the spirit: “even that which he hath”, i.e., corruption of the flesh, “shall be taken from him”. The “hound of heaven” is patient with all of us.

Thank you again MariaChristi - I wait to learn much from my consecration to Mary, as you did.

Yes, dear animalis, the question is: “Who will give us true riches?” – only the Spirit of Truth whom the Father and Jesus sent to the Church at Pentecost.

God is Patient and Merciful and He is Just. How we need to see ourselves as Mary saw herself! Though she was “full of grace” yet she said to the angel: “Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it done unto me according to thy word”. Is it any wonder Mary is named by the Church, our “Mother and Model”? Jesus the Word made Flesh is both God and Man but Mary remains only human and gives us such hope that when we give ourselves completely, God can do great things in us as well.

I hope you will consecrate yourself totally to Jesus through Mary, as St. Louis de Montfort teaches in his little treatise, True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary". I count it as one of the greatest graces of my life.