Saint John Paul the Great

In my previous seminarian blog I posted about being cantor for the Liturgy of the Hours for the first observance of the memorial of Blessed John Paul II on 22 October. It was very special for me and a memorable occasion, something I said I would never forget. Little did I know that I would have the honor of leading the Office for the first memorial after his canonization as well!

In our conferences about the Liturgy of the Hours over the past two weeks, one of the issues raised from our assigned readings is how monotonous it can be, especially when common texts such as the Common of Pastors are used very regularly. But I had a very different perspective; I find the texts wonderful for reflecting on the life of each different Saint:

Remember your leaders who spoke the word of God to you... consider how their lives ended... imitate their faith... Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
This is a faithful and wise steward; the Lord entrusted the care of his household to him, so that he might give them their portion of food at the proper time.
                                                                        Roman Breviary, Common of Pastors, Lauds and Vespers

But it is very unique to have a Saint (and possible Doctor?) whose life I can recall and whose teaching I am a witness to. His messages of trust in God, trust in his mercy, and hope for the world are what the world was desperately needing and what a whole generation could be inspired and encouraged by.

You renew the Church in every age by raising up men and women outstanding in holiness, living witnesses of Your unchanging love. They inspire us by their heroic lives, and help us by their constant prayers to be the living sign of Your saving power.
                                                                     Preface II of Holy Men and Women

October 22
JOHN PAUL II, POPE

Office of Readings

SECOND READING From the Homily of Saint John Paul II, Pope, for the Inauguration of his Pontificate
(22 October 1978: AAS 70 [1978], 945-947)

Peter came to Rome! What else but Obedience to the inspiration received from the Lord could
have guided him and brought him to this city, the heart of the Empire? Perhaps the fisherman of
Galilee did not want to come here. Perhaps he would have preferred to stay there, on the shores of Lake of Genesareth, with his boat and his nets. Yet guided by the Lord, obedient to his
inspiration, he came here!

According to an ancient tradition. Peter tried to leave Rome during Nero's persecution. However,
the Lord intervened and came to meer him. Peter spoke to him and asked, "Quo vadis, Domine?”
-"Where are you going, Lord?" And the Lord answered him at once: “I am going to Rome to
be crucified again." Peter went back to Rome and stayed here until his crucifixion.

Our time calls us, urges us, obliges us, to gaze on the Lord and to immerse ourselves in humble
and devout meditation on the mystery ofthe supreme power of Christ himself.

He who was born of the Virgin Mary, the carpenter's Son (as he was thought to be), the Son of
the living God (as confessed by Peter), came to make us all “a kingdom of priests.”

The Second Vatican Council has reminded us of the mystery of this power and of the fact that
Christ's mission as Priest, Prophet-Teacher, and King continues in the Church. Everyone, the
whole People of God, shares in this threefold mission. Perhaps in the past the tiara, that triple
crown, was placed on the Pope’s head in order to signify by that symbol the Lord’s plan for his
Church, namely that all the hierarchical order of Christ’s Church, all “sacred power” exercised in
the Church, is nothing other than service, service with a single purpose: to ensure that the whole
People of God shares in this threefold mission of Christ and always remains under the power of
the Lord; a power that has its source not in the powers of this world, but instead in the mystery of
the Cross and the Resurrection.

The absolute, and yet sweet and gentle, power of the Lord responds to the whole depths of the
human person, to his loftiest aspirations of intellect, will and heart. It does not speak the
language of force, but expresses itself in charity and truth.

The new Successor of Peter in the See of Rome today makes a fervent, humble and trusting
prayer: Christ, make me become and remain the servant of your unique power, the servant of your
sweet power, the servant of your power that knows no dusk. Make me a servant: indeed, the
Servant of your Servants.

Brothers and sisters, do not be afraid to welcome Christ and accept his power. Help the Pope and
all those who wish to serve Christ and with Christ’s power to serve the human person and the
Whole of mankind.

Do not be afraid. Open, I say open wide the doors for Christ. To his saving power open the
boundaries of states, economic and political systems, the vast fields of culture, civilization and
development. Do not be afraid. Christ knows “that which is in man.” He alone knows it.

So often today, man does not know that which is in him, in the depths of his mind and heart. So
often he is uncertain about the meaning of his life on this earth. He is assailed by doubt, a doubt
which turns into despair. We ask you, therefore, we beg you with humility and with trust, let
Christ speak to man. He alone has words of life, yes, of life eternal.

The Specific Character of Religious Life

Over the past few weeks I have been doing assigned readings related to Saint John Paul II's encyclical Vita Consecrata (On Religious Life). The encyclical is a call for renewal in religious life by calling every religious to pursue holiness, that is

the Divine Life communicated and received. Nothing impedes this more than attrition of the thinking, attitudes, and values of the world through attachment to the ways of the world.

Attainment of holiness is through participation in the life of Jesus, and Jesus reveals himself through the Scriptures with the presence of the Holy Spirit. This is why contemplative prayer is the heart of religious life.

In both personal life and community life, living holiness requires both self-discipline and spiritual combat. Vigilance and discernment of spirits are always necessary to protect the consecrated life from internal and external dangers.

The reading on internal dangers in religious life was surprising for me. There are more of these than simply personal pride and arrogance. One of the biggest addressed here is the tendency to attempt reinterpretation of the evangelical counsels according to a secularized mentality, such as secular humanism that has been in vogue. "The evangelical counsels are rooted in the Gospel and no one at any point in history can change their meaning."

Something else I found significant was differentiating the religious life from the lay vocation. Especially with an active apostolic institute, there is a danger for defining it by work and characterizing it as "bringing the Gospel into the secular world;" this charge was laid on the lay vocation by the Vatican Council II, so what differentiates it?

Cardinal Jean Danielou, S.J. was very clear in an article for Lay Witness entitled "Specific Character of the Religious Life":
The role of the layperson is entirely different from that of the religious. The laity is charged to make the spirit of the Gospel present in the secular world, while the proper role of consecrated religious is essentially to be witnesses of the spiritual life and to manifest its splendor and value.

Cardinal Danielou becomes even more explicit and warns that secularism is a great danger to religious life today; to the extent that there is confusion with the lay vocation, religious life does not achieve its proper role. It is necessary for religious life to establish its specific character and realize the value that it holds in itself rooted in Scripture and the teaching of the Church. It is a unique call rooted in the life of the Most Holy Trinity, with a spousal character, and a state of being, not one that is entered for service but with the primary end of making Christ present in the world as an agent through which his image is communicated.