Ex Milite Sancto [From soldier to saint]

Feast of St. Ignatius of Loyola

July 31, 2014

FROM SOLDIER TO SAINT – the life of St. Ignatius of Loyola marks the most impactful conversion in the history of the Church after that of St. Paul the Apostle and the Emperor Constantine. The Jesuit order that he founded went on to bring the Word of God to every corner of the world, fulfilling with evangelical zeal the commission of Christ to, “go therefore and make disciples of all nations”.

But whom God chooses to carry his message may sometimes be surprising. For the apostles, the choice of St. Paul was a consternation, as he had spent his life fervently persecuting Christians. Ignatius’s conversion may not have been such an 180-degree turn as St. Paul’s but it was significant that a man of such worldly ambition and deftness of sword should seek to dedicate his life so completely to God and the Church.

In his early life, Íñigo López de Loyola might be described as a typical youngest son in a big family: always desiring attention and more recognition. He luxuriated in the aristocratic life of the court of Castile, taking pleasure in fine clothing, enjoying the attention of the ladies, a little gambling, and participating in occasional thuggery against enemies of his family. All-in-all, not someone his peers would expect to take to the cloth.

But as they saying goes, “God moves in mysterious ways; His wonders to perform”. And a wonder was indeed performed when the 30-year-old Ignatius, now an officer in the Spanish army was spared death when he was hit by a cannon ball, which broke one of his legs and severely injured the other. Near-death experiences are often the catalyst for conversions, but not in the case of Ignatius. While undoubtedly brave in facing numerous operations on his broken leg, including the sawing-off of a protruding knob of bone without anaesthetic, he was far from grateful to God for still being possession of his life. He remarked that to have one leg longer than the other was a fate worse than death because he would no longer be able to wear his tight-fitting pants and because walking with a limp would make him unattractive to his many lady fans. His vanity nearly killed him as he sought to have his shorter leg stretched to its previous length.

It was only by chance that, while he recuperated, his request for some racy romance novels was met, instead, with a copy of De Vita Christi (The Life of Christ) by monk-cum-theologian Ludolph of Saxony. Bored out of his wits, Ignatius began reading the book and so began his page-by-page conversion. One of the most notable points about this conversion is how he felt a sense of calm and fulfilment when reading about the life of Christ and the saints. This sense of peace and satisfaction was in direct contrast to the restlessness and anxiety he felt when pondering his own convoluted life. Eventually he began to be more and more drawn to the peace that only Christ can give and began a journey of spiritual discernment that would lead to his great work, the Spiritual Exercises.

It should be encouraging for us all to see how the conversion of St. Ignatius unfolded, because it happened in stages rather than in a moment of great divine intervention. We can see how he struggled and overcame obstacles through a process that he would call “discretio” or the ability to discern, through contemplation, between spirits that are good and bad and would act on our soul for either the glory of God or for capitulation to Satan. Ignatius came to understand himself and all mankind to be essentially torn between two real and opposing forces, capable of both acts of great goodness and of profound evil; the direction in which man is drawn to action being dependent on his ability to examine his conscience in the grace of God, in order to avert the expression of evil desires. It should, perhaps, not come as a surprise that such a master of battle strategies should come to express his faith in terms of spiritual warfare, and that he would become as sought after in the art of spiritual direction as he had been in the direction of war.

If there was a moment of decisive turning to the Lord for Ignatius, it would have been when he raised his sword for the last time, to lay it down upon the altar of Our Lady of Montserrat, at the Benedictine shrine bearing the same name. He had just witnessed how his own soul had teetered on the brink of damnation when he was tempted to strike down a Moor he met on his journey and who had denied the perpetual virginity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Fortunately he was pulled back from the brink by an act of pure chance: he decided to dismount his mule at a fork in the road and kill the Moor if his mule followed him, or spare him if the mule took the alternative route. The mule followed the other path and the Moor’s life was spared, but Ignatius had been a hairsbreadth from committing murder. Whether he had been saved by chance or the intervention of God in directing his mule was irrelevant to Ignatius. The fact he had come so close to the point of no return in his conversion was enough to move him to kneel in vigil before Our Lady’s altar and leave there his weapons and fine clothing – trappings of a lifestyle that he had once loved above all else.

Thankfully, we live in times when the real opportunity and impetus to commit such horrendous crimes as murder do not present themselves for the vast majority of us. Still, the temptation of evils equally malicious, though arguably less deadly, are very real. Just as the human mind is a powerful tool in the hands of Satan, so too is the human conscience a powerful tool for good if accessed prayerfully and in a spirit of humility before our Creator. There are actions, great and small, for which our consciences weep and send out that familiar twinge of regret. Accessing that twinge before thought of sin becomes action is the spirit of discernment that we must try to master in the occasion of all manner of sin, so that our lives may be lived here on earth as we desire them to be lived one day in heaven: for and with God alone.

The Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius, like his own conversion, is a process of experiencing God, at each stage deeper than the last, until the trajectory of human life itself intersects with the joy of the resurrection and the eternal glory of God. The result is a highly structured and divinely guided journey of a soul towards the true knowledge of redemption, lasting 30 days and arranged as a programme of contemplation and prayer grounded in Holy Scripture, taking each soul on its unique conversion to Christ through acknowledgement of our failed human state; of the gift of God in Christ; of the need for and nature of Christ’s passion and our own acceptance of suffering; to the sharing of the Blessed Virgin’s joy in the glory of her Son’s resurrection. It is a journey through the story of our salvation, undertaken precisely for the salvation of our souls.

No article can do justice to the great gift that the conversion of St. Ignatius of Loyola has given to the world in the four-and-three-quarter centuries since the foundation of the Society of Jesus. No single day of celebration can adequately memorialise the ministry rooted in the charisms of St. Ignatius of Loyola, which have seen the evangelisation of the Gospel of Christ by the Jesuit Fathers to over one hundred countries in every continent bar the frozen one, through the foundation of schools, colleges, universities and seminaries, and through the conversions of millions of souls, all ad maiorem Dei gloriam – for the greater glory of God. 

Though our reading stop here may our living begin in earnest, in St. Ignatius’ spirit of conversion "to conquer oneself and to regulate one's life in such a way that no decision is made under the influence of any inordinate attachment."

Etenim Caritas Dei [For the love of God]

In remembrance of
Malaysia Airlines
Flight MH17

Friday, 18 July, 2014.

FOR THE LOVE OF GOD must prevail in our lives even amidst the profoundest of trials.

There are times of personal sorrow; there are times of national grief; there are times of international horror and mourning. We are living in all of these times today. In the face of evil of such magnitude, it can be difficult to discern the presence of God in our world. But despite the atrocities that man inflicts on mankind, we must hold fast to the love of God – in the words of the Apostle Paul, “For I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord” [Romans 8:38-39].

For we have witnessed what the rejection of the love of God can inflict. For in its neglect is the source of depraved ambition, lust for power and domination, vengeance, wrath – evil. Without the love of God we are hollow men waiting to be preyed upon by the Evil One who seeks to twist men’s souls from the path of the living God to journey in darkness and death. With the love of God every blessing is possible, but likewise when that love is abandoned, there are no limits to the depths of depravity to which the human soul may sink.

Today we have witnessed the repudiation of God’s love in the actions of a few men and the tragedy that has ensued. Let us pray that the whole world may, in these troubled times, hold strong in the love of God so that further manifestations of Satan’s power in the world may be halted. Wars have been ignited for less than we have witnessed on our TV screens this night passed. May we instead pray for the peace and love of Christ to prevail; to transform and convert; and to comfort and heal.

Anger is natural, but it is not of God. A desire for revenge is natural, but not of God. A need to apportion blame is natural, but to judge is for God alone. And He will judge. Just as sure as night follows day, so too may we be assured that our God, who sees and knows all things, will receive the blameless into his bosom and turn his face from those who embrace the rule of sin and death in their lives.

For those responsible, directly and indirectly, for the tragic loss of life on MH17, let us pray:

That God may strike in their very souls a profound understanding of the evil of their actions and that His Spirit may fill them with such deep remorse that for their whole lives they may weep unceasingly at the feet of Our Blessed Lord begging for forgiveness and desiring nothing but to be freed from Satan and his evil grasp.

For the friends and especially the families of those who lost their lives on MH17, let us pray:

That God may give them consolation in their mourning, hope that will lift their souls from the depths of anguish into the certainty of the love of God, and His strength to be steadfast in faith and love and to rise anew from the broken pieces of their lives.

And for all of the victims of this tragedy, who perished in such unspeakable circumstances, let us pray:

Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord; and let perpetual light shine upon them. May they rest in peace. Amen.

Simon James Phillips

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Beati Oculi Vestri [Blessed are your eyes]

15th Sunday of Ordinary Time

July 13, 2014

BLESSED ARE YOUR EYES, for they see, and your ears, for they hear. We, who gather at the table of the Lord today are but twenty percent of the one in six people in the world who have been baptised into the Catholic faith. Faith is indeed a gift from God but what we do with the seed of faith once it is planted in our hearts is entirely up to us. Whilst the Holy Spirit continues to work through the Church and her people, there is no let up and in fact a marked increase in secular rhetoric that seeks to undermine any and all belief systems, preferring to exalt the god of self with the litany of sins that such an existence brings.

Today, in the Parable of the Sower, the Lord gives us an opportunity to reflect upon the state of our own faith. Just what is the state of the faith even among the twenty percent of us who faithfully go to church every week? We can perhaps be grateful that our seed of faith has not fallen upon the path but that does not necessarily mean that our faith is in a healthy state.

If our hearts are of stone then for sure the seed of faith will not have a chance to put down solid roots. The Lord gives us a clear description of the results of faith that lacks the soil to grow roots: "As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately he falls away” [Mt.13:20-21]. Sometimes life events might trigger a need for hope, which faith is apt to provide but when the situation subsides the first fervour is forgotten and the flame of faith slowly dies. There are many things that can attract people to Catholicism; external things like the compassion of our priests, the authenticity and history of our teaching, and the outer beauty of our liturgy and churches. These externals are a great pull factor but if faith is not internalised and propagated, then, when the novelty wears off (as it does with new phones, new cars, and practically new anything), faith withers. Then there are those who come to church out of habit or obligation but do not live the faith outside the walls of the church. They might meet the bare minimum requirement of arriving at Mass before the Gospel and then leaving immediately after communion, but they have abandoned all other expressions of faith. They are most in need of the fellowship of the parish community, to help foster growth in faith, but they keep themselves on the fringes of parish life, where their faith languishes in the shadows. Obligation may not seem like an altogether bad reason to attend Mass, but with the passing of time, these people too will drift away from the faith.

And what of those whose faith is stronger but choked by thorns? There are many temptations and distractions that would shift our focus from God, both within our church communities and in the world beyond. Secular self-indulgence and even other religions that seemingly offer a more comfortable fit for our lifestyles and preferences may spring-up and lure us away from our faith. When the Lord speaks of “the delight in riches” [Mt.13:22] it is not just the temptation of material gain that he warns against. The desire for praise and the riches of acclaim are an unwelcome distraction from the focal point of church life, which should be God. Cliques and elite groups abound within the lay ministries, where seemingly strong faith finds pleasure in the seeking of fame or notoriety. Like the seed planted among thorns, faith stands little chance to grow before it gets caught-up in worldly concerns and suffocated.

It might appear that faith is fickle and hard to cultivate but it is always our action or inaction that stunts the seed’s growth. Faith cannot be lost in the way we might lose a wallet or our keys. It’s not about being forgetful or careless. To ‘lose faith’ there has to be a conscious action to discard it; to discard the very explicit teaching of Christ himself on how to propagate it. The “good soil” of which Jesus speaks in the Parable of the Sower is the Word of God and “he who hears the word and understands it; he indeed bears fruit” [Mt.13:23]. Whatever first called us to the faith, and however the seed of faith was first planted in our hearts, we must constantly seek to root it firmly in the good soil of the Scriptures. Prayer, of course is vital, but like many externalised expressions of faith, even prayer can become rote and devoid of the true understanding of the faith that we are called to embrace. The conscious act of reading or listening to the Word of God, however, is a practice that can only ever lead to spiritual growth and a blossoming of faith. Whether through more frequent attendance at Mass, to participate in the Liturgy of the Word and to internalise the Word through Holy Communion; or by developing a practice of following the daily scripture readings in the Missal; or even by setting aside time each day to read and contemplate a random verse of scripture; regular turning to the Word of God will nourish your faith because it is the means by which God speaks to us in every situation (be it good or bad) that we find ourselves in.

And there will be bad times. Our faith is no cure-all or talisman against misfortune. Our faith is more powerful than that. Some might tell you that their gods can protect and bring luck. People might pray and when the luck they seek does not come, or when obstacles in life are not removed, they move on to the next, more powerful deity. But as Christians living the faith, we are “strong in the Lord and the power of his might” [Ephesians 6:10]. We know that life is more than a numbers game and the next cutthroat step up the corporate ladder. We know that our God does not send us trials to hold us to ransom for prayers and offerings. Trials are of this world; how we deal with these trials is witness to the world to come “[f]or our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all” [2 Corinthians 4:17].

Strong in faith and armed with the Gospel of Christ and the counsel of his Spirit we must aspire to face adversity with the charity, love and hope we have been given through our faith – A charity that that finds expression in tolerance and kindness, even of those who seek to harm us. A love of neighbour (even the not so nice ones) that emulates “the kind of mercy and grace that our Saviour showed those who were crucifying him” [James 1:17]. A love of God that is unfailing, even through personal tragedy, and endures even as God’s love endures for us despite our failings. And a hope that transcends mortal desires (“for who hopes for what he sees? [Romans 8:24]) and keeps our souls’ gaze always on the Kingdom of God.

This is faith. Faith tempered by the endurance of suffering, in the name of Christ and with the strength of Christ, which lifts the human spirit to share in the divine. A faith that shines as an unshakable testament to our God for the world to see.

When we immerse ourselves in the Word of God and allow our faith to bear fruit, that is when we become evangelists in deed and word. It is this strength of faith through both the joys and pains of life, which finds expression in our demeanour and the way we live, that will be the rallying call of the communion of the saints militant – a call to live, day-by-day, in the joy of the Gospel. For as the Holy Father says, “[i]t is not by proselytising that the Church grows, but ‘by attraction’” [Evangelii Gaudium,  §15]. We shall each be known by the fruits that our seed of faith bears. Let us, then, constantly seek to nourish our faith “on every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” [Mt.4:4], that our faith may grow stronger, like the seed planted in good soil, and bear the fruit of the true joy that only Christ can give and, indeed, has already given in the Good News of salvation. And may our joy be a magnetic witness to our faith, which calls back to us our brothers and sisters who have drifted from the faith and all those who seek and desire the joy of being loved by God.

Vae Vobis Pharisaeis [Woe to you Pharisees]

14th Sunday of Ordinary Time

06 July, 2014

WOE TO YOU PHARISEES, who have taken the simple and pure love of God and made of it hoops through which you pleasure in watching God’s children jump. There is nothing tortuous about embracing the love of God, for God even gives us the love which we return to him in faith. Nothing could be simpler than the invitation Christ makes today. And yet there are those who would adjudge themselves more worthy and others less so, of the divine gift of life that is so freely given by the Lord.

“Come to me,” says the Lord. How more unambiguous can he get? The relationship we are invited to participate in is personal; a direct response to his call in the Gospels. It is the call of the Lord your God to a personal conversion of life, a re-orientation of your being towards his light. And nothing can block the light of Christ’s love but you alone. There may be those who seek to intercept this light, to withhold it, to tell you that you are not worth of it, to insist that you follow their way towards it, but they are not of God. Respond from the depth of your heart to the call of Christ, “arise, shine: for your light has come.” The Church of Christ’s faithful is lit not by the light of Christ upon an elite, select few but by the glory of the Lord magnified in the hearts of each one of those he has called by name. And what a light for a world in darkness this produces, if only we would let it shine.

“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest,” says the Lord. Struggles that burden us and make our faith laborious are not sent from God but created by us. Whenever we struggle in our faith or wrestle with following God’s plan for us, the distress comes not from God but ourselves. Our place, like that of the disciple Jesus loved, is resting on the Lord’s chest. We can pull ourselves away from him, for sure. But when we lament that God seems far away and unconcerned about our struggles, we need to see that it is we who have removed ourselves from the repose of his embrace. He remains, as does always his invitation to rest assured in him through faith. The Lord does not test us. Life just happens, the good and the bad. It is up to us whether we use all that life throws at us to get closer to the Lord and accept the peace he extends to us, or otherwise.

"Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and lowly in heart,” says the Lord. Accepting the invitation of Christ is to learn his ways; as I have said before, to live how he lived and to love those whom he loved. Just as He has said, let he among you who is without sin cast the first stone, therefore should we refrain always from judgment, for there is a time destined for judgment and one destined to judge and we do not know the former and dare not presume to know the heart of the latter. We all stand before him unworthy of his gift of eternal life, each of us in need of his mercy and compassion. And for each time that we condemn in word or deed, we forgo the chance of manifesting the divine mercy that has brought us into communion with God’s love and could too have softened the heart of a sinner.

There is no ‘in-crowd’ in the house of God. God has no favourites. The moment we build the barriers of judgment between people “[t]he mark of Christ, incarnate, crucified and risen, is not present; closed and elite groups are formed, and no effort is made to go forth and seek out those who are distant or the immense multitudes who thirst for Christ. Evangelical fervour is replaced by the empty pleasure of complacency and self-indulgence.” [Evangelii Gaudium, §95]

“My yoke is easy and my burden is light,” says the Lord. So it is that the hallmark of our faith must necessarily be the free expression of the joy of God’s love and the magnification of that love in the community of the Church and beyond. The hallmark of our faith needs to be the expression of Christ’s own mercy and compassion through service of our neighbour that is, like Christ, “gentle and lowly of heart”. That is how we are to make ourselves known as disciples of Christ. Our faith is spread through the Word of God but the actions of His people. Never has the old adage “practise what you preach” been more appropriate than today, in the context of the New Evangelisation.