Bishop Robert Baron on Punishment and Gift

I occasionally catch up on Bishop Robert Baron's Word on Fire videos, my nearest attempt to keeping up with popular culture. His commentaries generally start with a current event and connect it with other current events, philosophical thinkers, ecclesial teaching, etc., so I generally find them interesting.

This particular video was fascinating to me. It explores the connection of American comedian Stephen Colbert to J.R.R. Tolkien and John Henry Cardinal Newman.

The historical connection of providence is interesting, but in particular the Tolkien quote that prompted his reflection struck me.

 "Are not all of God's punishments also gifts?"

I noticed this partly because of my own experience and partly because of my Old Testament Narratives course, in which a major focus is the Babylonian Exile and post-exilic period in which the Jewish people had to reexamine their past and relationship to God in light of a traumatic experience.

From the very beginning of human experience when man sinned, God gave punishments not for despair but for hope. Work could be man's burden but also a source of his dignity; childbearing would be painful but also how God himself would enter the world in the most intimate way; the relationships of men and women would be plagued by misunderstanding and strife, but a constant reminder that their search for fulfillment is ultimately a search for God and not each other.

For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope. Then when you call upon me and come and pray to me, I will hear you. When you search for me, you will find me if you seek me with all your heart.         Jeremiah 29:11-13

God has allowed trials and suffering in my life. Often I do not want to reflect on it and speak to God about my experience; often I just want to cry out for relief from pain. 

And how do I see my suffering? Is it a poison or a medicine? 

Jesus entered into the world of suffering and pain not as a teacher but as a priest and victim to make us an offering to God (cf. Friday vespers responsory). He sanctified suffering beyond what God decreed in the Protoevangelium (Genesis 3:15) so that it is no longer simply a spur to rouse us from complacency and reveal our need for God but actually a way to encounter him in our brokenness. 

Nowhere is this more explicit than the message of Divine Mercy. 

I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners (Luke 5:32).

The greater the sinner, the greater the right he has to My mercy (Divine Mercy in My Soul, 723).

My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9).

The icon of this Mercy is Blood and Water flowing from the pierced side of Christ, the grace he pours out in Sacraments to fill suffering sinners beginning at the points of greatest brokenness and pain in our life. 

This means opening the wounds, allowing the dead tissue to be removed and the salve to be applied, which is scary! It demands deep trust, but there is only One who heals the broken hearted and binds up their wounds (Psalm 147:3). 

St. Bernard on the Most Holy Name of Mary

Today is the titular feast of the Congregation of the Oblates of the Virgin Mary, the most important day of the year for us; our birthday celebration, if you will.
It is a day for celebrating our family, giving thanks to God for all the gifts he gives us, and renewing our dedication to serving the Congregation and the Church through the charism we have been given.

Most of the readings from the liturgies of the day recall the Annunciation, when our salvation begins when an archangel speaks the name of Mary, the pronouncement in which the salvation of each individual is bound (St. Louis de Montfort).

Her name bears immense power because of the unique bond between Mary and her Son. When God sent his Son born of a woman, he instituted a once and for all order of salvation in which the union of Mother and Child stands at the center (Romanus Cessario, OP).

Here is an excerpt from the Office of Readings for the day:

Second Reading: Mariam cogita, Mariam invoca, St. Bernard of Clairvaux, Abbot and Doctor

And the Virgin's name was Mary. Let us now say a few words about this name, which is said to mean "star of the sea," and is so becoming to the Virgin Mother... All of you, whoever you are, who feel that in the tidal wave of this world you are near to being tossed about among the storms and tempests than walking on the land, if you do not want to founder in the tempest, do not turn your eyes away from this shining star. When the wind of temptation blows up within you, when you strike upon the rock of tribulation, gaze up at this star, call out to Mary. If you are tossed by the waves of pride or ambition, slander or envy, look to the star, call upon Mary. If anger or greed or the desires of the flesh are battering the ship of your soul, gaze up at Mary. When the immensity of your sin weighs you down and you are ashamed of your guilty conscience, when the terrifying thought of judgment appalls you and you begin to sink into the gulf of sadness or the abyss of despair, think of Mary, call upon Mary. Let her name be even on your lips, ever in your heart. Follow the example of her life and you will obtain the favor of her prayer. Following her, you will not go astray. Invoking her, you will not despair. Thinking of her, you will not wander away. Upheld by her, you will not stumble. Protected by her, you will not fear. Guided by her, you will not tire. Favored by her, you will reach the goal. Then you will know by your own experience how true it is that "the Virgin's name was Mary."

Novice No More: First Profession of Vows

It has been quite a long time since my last update and much has transpired. I am no longer a novice! It was my intention to continue updates throughout the year, but novitiate becomes progressively more intense as the year develops and it becomes hard to divert energy as well as time to sharing the experience as it unfolds. In order to understand this, observe the following illustration that sums up the novitiate year:

On August 5th, novitiate ended and two of us made our first profession of vows in the religious life with the Oblates.

I am very grateful that my parents and siblings were all present. It was not easy for everyone to make it to the furthest tip of the country and I am thankful that they could come. I got to spend time with the family in Boston and during a two-week trip back to Michigan during August.

 

A new phase of my journey in religious life is underway! I am now under temporary vows and have begun studying for a masters degree in theology. As of the last week of August, the gang has returned from vacations and pastoral assignments and reassembled for the academic year. We have two new postulants and a total of ten men in formation for the St. Ignatius Province.