Tag: peace
The Value of Submitting to Necessity
Any prolonged exercise of self-will injures our intrigrity, whether its purpose is the direct pursuit of pleasure or, more indirectly, the avoidance of pain. To the extent that our will is concerned principally with pleasing ourselves, we can anticipate trouble. On the other hand, learning to live with situations that cannot be changed is a… Read More ›
The Wisdom That Comes From On High
Vatican City, Sep 20, 2009 / 09:18 am (CNA).- Pope Benedict XVI turned to the . . . the Letter of James and noted that while reflecting on true wisdom may not “resolve all problems of daily life,” it aids in confronting “them more serenely and effectively.” St. James “describes true wisdom in contrast to… Read More ›
The Great Christian Task of Our Time
Prayers and sacrifice must be used as the most effective spiritual weapons in the war against war, and like all weapons they must be used with deliberate aim: not just with a vague aspiration for peace and security, but against violence and against war. This implies that we are also willing to sacrifice and restrain… Read More ›
Yoda, Yoga, and Merton
“Do or do not, there is no try, Young Skywalker.” I love Yoda. I have a rather large rubber hand puppet of Yoda perched on the sill looking out of my office window at home. When you pull into my driveway you can look up and see Yoda peering down at you. I see this… Read More ›
The Fruits of the Spirit
John of Lycopolis said, ‘This is what it means to renounce the Devil and all his works. For through any sinful act or the onset of a perverse desire the Devil enters into our hearts, for vices are from him just as virtues are from God. So if there are vices in our heart, when… Read More ›
It’s 2009. Do You Know Where Your Soul Is?
I am in Midtown Manhattan, where drivers still play their car horns as if they were musical instruments and shouting in restaurants is sport. I am a long way from the warm breeze of voices I heard a week ago on Easter Sunday. “Glorify your name,” the island women sang, as they swayed in a… Read More ›
“Give thanks to the Lord for he is good;…”
Divine Mercy reaches human beings through the heart of Christ crucified: “My daughter, say that I am love and mercy personified”, Jesus will ask Sr Faustina (Diary, p. 374). Christ pours out this mercy on humanity though the sending of the Spirit who, in the Trinity, is the Person-Love. And is not mercy love’s “second… Read More ›
Try and Make Peace
There were two brothers who lived the monastic life together, and the evil devil was doing his best to sow discord between them. One day the younger brother went as usual to light the lamp at vespers, and by the machinations of a demon he knocked the candlestick over and the light was extinguished. The… Read More ›
Everything Occurs Through God’s Providence
Do not wish for everything to be done according to your determination, but wish that it is how it should be, and in this way, you will attain peace with everyone. And believe that everything that happens to us, even the most insignificant, occurs through God’s Providence. Then you will be able to endure everything… Read More ›