Today is a really-amazing-Catholic-trifecta kind of day. It's PENTECOST; the birthday of the Church; the day the Holy Spirit descended to the Apostles and the world to send them (and us!) out to spread the Gospel to the world. We attended holy Mass at the Cistercian Abbey of Our Lady in Dallas, TX this morning
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| Simplicity, Gregorian Chant...beautiful |
The priest who gave the homily spoke about the non-pandemic occurrence of Pentecost...that Jesus breathed on the Apostles and in those droplets, the Holy Spirit inflamed them to go preach the Gospel message...even to their death. That exhalation began the one, true Church and it has produced so many Saints over the last 2,000 years. Our call, he said, is to give up our plans and ideologies and simply inhale the Holy Spirit so that we may be clear about and fortified in our personal mission.
Today is also the Feast of the Visitation; when Our Lady made haste to her cousin Elizabeth to announce the amazing news of the Incarnation. Upon her arrival, Elizabeth speaks to her as "the mother of my Lord" ... it's one of my very favorite parts of the entire narrative. It is the story of two women coming together to give all glory to God. Wow. These women were exceptional yes but, ultimately, they are perfect examples of those who breathed deeply of the Holy Spirit and went about on their personal mission. No fear, no hesitation, no personal goals...just living out the movement of God in their lives. How grateful we should be to Our Lady for her "yes" and how quickly we should share our "yes" with others.
Third, this is the 4th anniversary of my Consecration to Jesus through Mary. I think it was actually a reconsecration because it was my second or third. Yes, that's right. If you haven't Consecrated yourself, go get one of these
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| this is the more traditional, prayer heavy one |
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| this is a better choice for first-timers |
then plan your Consecration day (helpful charts in the back) and get down to it. I'm not answering all the questions about "but isn't that Mary worship?" Go watch Fr. Gaitley's video lectures...he'll explain it all. For my part, I just want you to work through it and see all the amazing changes Our Lord can make in you, simply by giving yourself to His mother. She will lead you to Him in ways you have never known and help you to stay close even in the most trying situations. If you've made the Consecration, don't forget to reconsecrate yourself periodically, even every day, and go through the readings once a year or so. This is one of my new goals...join me.
So, let's inhale as often as we need to...when we find ourselves low on grace and the Holy Spirit. Inhale the scriptures; inhale the Mass; inhale silence and fasting. Whatever you need to do, call out for the Holy Spirit to come to your aid...in haste (these aren't just funny coincidences...really!)
I would be remiss (and my title would be meaningless) if I didn't also remind you (and myself) to exhale often. Yes, God is in control and yes, He will make all things good. We were blessed to go to Confession as a family yesterday and my very wise priest said, "God is always good...He can't be anything else, but that doesn't mean people and their free will can't do very bad things as well."
I can assure you that was not him speaking...it was Him speaking. How do I know? Well, just that morning, after a week or so of prayer and right hope...of four people listening to the Holy Spirit and agreeing on the goodness that could only come from Him...suddenly and completely derailed by a fifth person who chose to listen to the Earthly voices. I'm not going to beat this person up too badly. I can pontificate about Mary and Elizabeth and everyone's "yes" but, honestly, it's hard to have the strength to stand up to worldly things and say "yes" to God when it might mean persecution for you. We're all called to be saints but many, many of us are too weak to be Saints. It's OK. God works with everyone where they are. We may, in time, gain our "S".
Which brings me back to the Consecration and the exhale. The news of this denial of something that seemed so clearly "of God" and the disappointment resulting for two people whom I love dearly... well, my reaction wasn't "Yes, God, thank you for this cross...allow me to carry it along with you and gain graces for myself and others." I did pray and will continue to pray for the person who didn't embrace their "yes" and for their strength in the future to take the difficult road when needed.
Other than that period of mercy, I acted like a baby for a while. I will say this; the "while" was shorter than it would have been 5 or 6 years ago. It's probably a little bit of aging (and realizing how disappointing people can be, myself included, because of our human weaknesses) but I'm certain that the bigger part is Our Lady reminding me to show mercy. She loves us so much. She wants us to live lives that will insure our future in heaven. She aches when we turn away from our mission. Loving our neighbors...even the trying ones...is part of our mission.
Also, unlike 5 or 6 years ago, I knew what to do. Sacraments impart grace and so we approached the only Sacrament available (see above). Confession, when the sin is fresh, is a great gift. The burden is lifted almost immediately and, although there is still penance to do, it feels wonderful to turn in the right direction- back to God.
Today was a gift, beginning to end. We slept in, watched Mass as a family, then visited each of our three parishes to receive a Pentecost blessing. How wonderful to see Jesus in the Eucharist and know it's only two more days (God-willing) until we are again joined Sacramentally.
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| One of our dear priests, blessing the cars who stop by. |
Tonight we took the ending hour of Adoration at our local parish.
Again, pure joy, knowing that soon the separation of glass and monstrance will be no more. We will once again be directly in His presence. We are so blessed!
This year we had an extended Lenten fast. It has been difficult and long at times and yet so much good has come from it - so many extra hours with family because the added errands and activities were removed, the extra Masses and hours of Adoration, even the return to Mass with only the priest to distribute Communion. Perhaps, going back to some of the "old ways" and with fewer distractions, we will remember why we are here and Who is in charge. So go ahead and take a long, slow inhale...then exhale and get on with your mission. The world is depending on you.
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