The passing Christmastide has been for me a season of grace unmatched in my years of Earthly pilgrimage.
I have known and continue to know my sinfulness; that knowledge is leading to ever greater knowledge of God's mercy. The former must have an end, even if it is to be found just short of the principle of my creation. The latter endures forever.
There have been graces, some in the corners and recesses of my memory, made present by that which seemed chance, but could not be.
I wept, for instance, at "The Little Drummer Boy", having heard a few strains of the song that brought to mind its lyrics, at a moment in which I was being sorely tempted to the kind of false humility that is rooted in laziness and leads to ungrateful shiftlessness - the burying of talents.
I have been reminded of the brevity of Earth, and the depth of eternity.
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The Basilica of St Cecilia in Cologne.
2 hours ago
4 comments:
I know all about the burying of talents.
The antidote for me? "Be not afraid." He doesn't reap where he hasn't already sown.
"Be not afraid!" has its complement in, "Be vigilant!" We are usually cowering and sleepy creatures. I remember it in my better moments. "Mercy, Lord," are the words I hope will be on my lips when I breathe my last.
That's true.
God plants the gift of the Spirit (divine love) in the human heart in order to yield the fruits of the Spirit in abundance: a heart that is neither fearful or slothful. There is nothing more confident or vigilant than a heart that is in love.
That is true, Clayton. We are emphasizing two different aspects of the spiritual life. It may even be that we are looking at the same moment of spiritual battle from different vantage points.
I am working on a post regarding joy as vocation - and therefore a duty.
It is also related to gratitude; I am given pause each time I read 1 Th 5:16-18, and consider that St. Paul is issuing imperatives - a triad of imperatives that are rooted in his Apostolic communication of Christ's will for us, which is to say, that when we fail in gratitude, cease our prayer and, most difficult and most important, find joy impossible, we are failing to do Christ's will.
I'll have more later.
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