Bishop of Antioch in the 1st century, Ignatius was arrested and condemned to be thrown to the beasts. On his way to Rome, several Christian communities received him with great veneration. He thanked them in letters written during his journey, encouraged them to hold on to the faith and to remain united with the hierarchy “as
St Teresa of Jesus (of Avila) had to grow from a lukewarm Carmelite nun into a fervent one. In The Interior Castle, she describes her mystic experience of deep union with the Lord. God is felt with a quiet, mystic feeling as living in one’s deepest castle. Notwithstanding much opposition, Teresa reformed her Carmel and
The opening words of the Hail Mary, taken from the words of the angel and Elizabeth to Mary, point out Mary’s place in the history of salvation: she is chosen by God to give Christ to the world. This is why in the rosary we meditate on the mysteries of Christ, in which Mary was
As people constantly struggle to grow up to attain Christ’s maturity, we are before God like children, relying on his help more than on our own; for we have experienced that our own forces are not always trustworthy. We know that God protects us, sends us angels to guide us, especially in the person of
Theresa Martin entered the Carmel at the age of fifteen. Nine years later, she died of tuberculosis. In these few years she lived the “little way of spiritual childhood.” It is not an infantile way, but one that demands great strength and much grace. She had to fight her stubbornness and to struggle with aridity
Year II. To the reasoning of his friends that God must be punishing him for his sins, Job answers that he is innocent, that he cannot answer why he suffers, but that God is wise and that he, Job, can only appeal to him for mercy. Gospel. Jesus gave himself totally to his mission. He
Year II. Today we hear the beginning of the book of Job. Job is not historical but a reflection, mostly in poetic form, on the existence of evil, particularly as it comes upon good, innocent, and God-fearing people. For his answer, because he lacks the perspective of eternal life, the author cannot go beyond this:
Year II. The author of the Book of the Preacher is in many ways a modern man. He is a believer; he looks for meaning in life; he seeks happiness, not wildly but in relation to the God of the covenant, and yet life disappoints him constantly. He asks questions: how come? He has no
Year II. In the light of Christ, the famous passage from Ecclesiastes that there is a time for everything becomes much more positive than in the thought of the author. He is puzzled, for God does everything at the right time, yet the endless cycle of change bewilders people, and he doesn’t know how to
Year II. Today we hear a man who is puzzled: Qoheleth, Ecclesiastes, the preacher (the man who speaks in the assembly), in search of answers to the problems of life; he is apparently a disillusioned man, “the inspired pessimist,” as he is sometimes called, but he is a believer, and there must be answers. Gospel.
