A beautiful and inspirational letter from the Novice Master of the USA-Philippines Delegation for the Chapter Fathers and all the religious of the Order. Below is the full text:
April 28, 2021
Several days ago, I came across a homily preached on December 17, 2019 at the Cathedral of Mary Our Queen by the Archbishop of Baltimore, William E. Lori. It dealt with the need for patience. He explained the meaning of the word “patience” in this way:
The word “patient”, you’ll be happy to know, comes from the Latin word “patiens” which is the present participle of the deponent Latin verb “patior” which, taken literally, means, “I am suffering”. So, “patience” is the quality, the virtue of being “long-suffering”. In moral theology it is actually a branch of the virtue of fortitude or courage. As one writer described it, “It enables [us] to endure present evils without sadness or resentment [and to do so] in conformity with God’s will” – and often these evils are caused by other people in our lives.
The reason I bring this up is because the sense of patience is often lacking in many of our brother religious, including myself at times. There is a resistance in some to accept or bear any hardship, sudden change or inconvenience of any kind. Sometimes we manifest attitudes like, “I cannot live with this religious”, “I cannot leave my comfort zone”, “I will not do this type of work or accept this assignment”, “what’s in it for me”, “the mission should adjust to me and not I to the mission”, “I cannot accept constructive criticism”, etc. Such attitudes prove themselves to be devastating within the context of community and service to the Church.
How can we overcome this? We can begin by again reflecting on these words from Archbishop Lori. He again preached that “Patience, like most other virtues, admits of degrees. It’s not enough merely to say that we’re no longer impatient or to say that we’ve acquired the virtue of patience and that’s that! No, spiritual writers suggest there are actually three degrees of patience, which I’ll briefly describe in ascending order. First is to bear difficulties without complaining – either out loud or in our hearts. Just think, that’s Patience 101, that’s “entry level” patience! Second is to bear hardships as a means of making progress in virtue, a means of acquiring self-mastery over all our unruly tendencies, whatever they may happen to be. Third, is to willingly accept and even desire the cross and afflictions out of love for God and to accept them with spiritual joy.”
We need the virtues of Fortitude and Patience to better live our religious lives. It is for this reason that such virtues should first be instilled in the minds and hearts of those in formation. These two virtues were quite evident in the lives of our Founders. Let me illustrate. In the case of St. Francis Caracciolo, Piselli in his work “Compendio della vita, virtú e doni del Ven. Servo di Dio Francesco Caracciolo” writes that:
Since man’s life on earth is a militia, and since he is in continual conflict with three enemies who are bound to fight him, he who wishes to resist and triumph over them must be clothed with fortitude, which is the garment of virtue, and which keeps the soul alive. Francis, who was a true soldier of Christ, provided himself with such powerful armor, with which, clothed, he not only resisted the assaults, but also triumphed in the conflicts he had with the world and with Hell. He had already given singular proofs of this virtue, in his generous contempt for flattering vanities, in the continual mortification of the liveliest passions, and in the absolute domination of those appetites, which are all the more difficult to conquer, the more difficult they are to fight (page 145-146).
Referring to John Augustine Adorno. G. Maragoni in his work “Vita del Venerabile Padre Giovannagostino Adorno Primo Fondatore della Ven. Religione de’Cherici Minori” wrote about how Adorno began to change as he deepened his spiritual life. In his poetic language, he noted that:
In the Divine school of holy prayer, where the Holy Spirit is the master of the soul, the soul, which is like a disciple, learns from Him the most important and necessary lessons for employing itself in that state, to which by God it is destined. Adorno soon learned the practice of those virtues, which are so necessary for one who has been elevated to the degree of Founder of an Order. In a short time he found himself inflamed with so much love of God, that not content to close up his heart, he was burning with continuous sighs and exclamations, and by his words he spoke to those who approached him. There he partook of that incomparable zeal towards the salvation of sinners, procuring, as far as he could, in his still secular state to admonish sinners, and to persuade them to leave the career of vice, and to embrace penance. In holy and fervent prayer he learned fortitude of spirit, which was so necessary for him to undertake a work for the glory of God, and with invincible constancy he overcame all the difficulties that he had to encounter to bring it to its desired end. Then, finally, from this celestial wellspring, he filled his whole spirit with the waters of Divine Wisdom, which he was to bring to the heart of all his future Order.….(page 45-46).
Let us take to heart the words of Pope Francis addressed to consecrated religious and those in formation on July 6, 2013 in Rome. In our fervor to live the religious life, he noted that:
True joy does not come from things or from possessing, no! It is born from the encounter, from the relationship with others, it is born from feeling accepted, understood and loved, and from accepting, from understanding and from loving; and this is not because of a passing fancy but because the other is a person. Joy is born from the gratuitousness of an encounter! It is hearing someone say, but not necessarily with words: “You are important to me”. This is beautiful…. And it is these very words that God makes us understand. In calling you God says to you: “You are important to me, I love you, I am counting on you”. Jesus says this to each one of us! Joy is born from that! The joy of the moment in which Jesus looked at me. Understanding and hearing this is the secret of our joy. Feeling loved by God, feeling that for him we are not numbers but people; and hearing him calling us. Becoming a priest or a man or woman religious is not primarily our own decision. I do not trust that seminarian or that woman novice who says: “I have chosen this path”. I do not like this! It won’t do! Rather it is the response to a call and to a call of love. I hear something within me which moves me and I answer “yes”.
When the Lord calls us, there should be “no strings attached” from our part. We should never put conditions on our following of the Lord. In the Rite of Solemn Profession, one of the beautiful symbolisms that we have is the “Giving of the towel and washing of feet”. While the newly solemn professed religious wash the feet of a confrere in the community, the lector quotes the following articles of the Constitutions:
“Our Founders wanted the Clerics Regular Minor to add to the vows of chastity, poverty and obedience, as an ulterior and more profound assimilation to the humble Christ, the solemn vow of not seeking ecclesiastical dignities (Const. 6).
The humble presence of Jesus in the Eucharist, and his action of washing the feet of his disciples, are for us particular motive for dedicating ourselves to the poor, the sick, the suffering and the marginalized of all kinds, for their complete human and Christian promotion. “(C. 89).
This beautiful gesture symbolizes what should be a frame of mind for us. In simplicity and oneness of heart, we are called to serve. May our service and our commitment to religious life be reflected with these attitudes and never with attitudes of entitlement or tepidity.
Rev. Michael Marotta, CRM
Novice Master-Vinzons