July 31 2024 - St. Ignatius of Loyola - For the greater glory of God (AMDG)

 

While convalescing from a military injury, the young soldier Ignatius of Loyola discerned that the pursuits of the flesh, fame, wealth, and power brought him emptiness and disappointment, where the pursuits of the spirit, as lived out in the lives of the saints brought him a sense of peace and joy.

Ignatius uncovered a truth that runs through Scripture and the spiritual tradition. Seeking God, seeking to please God, obeying God, conforming to God’s will brings peace, where serving idols, seeking selfish aim, obeying only bodily appetites, conforming to the world brings exhaustion, unhappiness, guilt, and restlessness.

Vanity and the pursuit of renown animated his youth, but St. Ignatius came to recognize the importance of living for the greater glory of God.

In the reading from first Corinthians, St. Paul writes, “Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God.” Those words no doubt inspired St. Ignatius’ formulation of the Jesuit motto, "Ad Maiorem Dei Gloriam", which translates to "For the Greater Glory of God," 

And yet, the motto encapsulates a spiritual principle for every Christian—the need to orient our entire lives towards glorifying God in all we do. 

Even mundane tasks, when offered up to God—glorify him. This is why we do well to say a short prayer before meals, before undertaking tasks, before setting off for travel, before a difficult conversation. We pray that all that we do may be directed by God, for God, and towards God. 

Doing everything for the glory of God also means that we are to strive for excellence in our endeavors, our careers, our study, our relationships, our personal growth, our decision making—allowing our faith to guide everything we do. Excellence requires diligence, wisdom and openness to growth. 

Many of us are not in the habit of praying before our tasks. It requires us to slow down, to ensure that we are doing things for the right reasons with the proper preparation and seriousness. Excellence is rarely impulsive or hasty, it’s certainly not thoughtless and absentminded. 

In the lives of the saints we see that intentionality in their actions, they are careful to avoid offending God in their pursuit of obeying him and glorifying Him. They also cultivate a real sense of gratitude to God—for their life, for their blessings, for their salvation. They put away the foolish vain pursuits which leave us empty and sad, in order to pursue the highest good.

With the help of St. Ignatius, may we commit to the holy pursuits which will bring us joy—holy penances, holy work that will bring us the fulfillment God desires for us. 

May whatever we do today, be done with the intention of serving not ourselves, but the heavenly kingdom, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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For the Church, that we may always seek to glorify God in all our actions and decisions, and for world leaders, that they may put aside selfish pursuits and instead work for the good of all people, guided by wisdom and true charity. 

For the Society of Jesus and all religious orders, that they may continue to inspire and lead others to a deeper relationship with God through their dedication and service, and for those discerning their vocation or making important life decisions, that they may be open to God's guidance and choose paths that bring glory to Him.

For those battling addictions or unhealthy attachments, that they may find strength in God's grace to overcome their struggles and reorient their lives towards Him, and for those struggling with emptiness or dissatisfaction in life, that they may find true peace and joy in seeking God's will.

For all the needs of the sick and the suffering, the homebound, those in nursing homes and hospitals, the underemployed and unemployed, immigrants and refugees, victims of human trafficking, natural disaster, war, and terrorism, for the unborn, for all those who grieve the loss of a loved one, and those who will die today, for their comfort, and the consolation of their families.

For all who have died, and for all the poor souls in purgatory, and for X. for whom this Mass is offered.

Priest: Heavenly Father, graciously hear the prayers we bring before you. Through the intercession of St. Ignatius of Loyola, grant us the grace to grow in wisdom and love in order to serve you more faithfully on earth and so win a greater share of glory in heaven. Through Christ our Lord.

July 31 2023 - St. Ignatius of Loyola - Discernment

 While convalescing from a military injury, the young soldier Ignatius of Loyola discerned that the pursuits of the flesh, fame, wealth, and power brought him emptiness and disappointment, where the pursuits of the spirit, as lived out in the lives of the saints and the famous spiritual volume, The imitation of Christ, brought him a sense of completeness and true peace.

Ignatius uncovered a truth that runs through Scripture and the spiritual tradition. Seeking God, seeking to please God, obeying God, conforming to God’s will brings peace, where serving idols, seeking selfish aim, obeying only bodily appetites, conforming to the world brings exhaustion, unhappiness, guilt, and restlessness. St. Paul writes to the Galatians: “the one who sows for his flesh will reap corruption from the flesh, but the one who sows for the spirit will reap eternal life from the spirit.”

Ignatius initial discernment led him to give his life over to the greater glory of God. AMDG, Ad maiorem Dei gloriam “for the greater glory of God”, became the motto of the Jesuit Order which he founded, which took the traditional vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience, as well as a special fourth vow of unconditional obedience to the Holy Father: to go wherever the pope should send them for the salvation of souls.

We all do well to engage in this type of discernment: examining our life and identifying the things and pursuits that take away our spiritual peace and joy and begin detaching ourselves from them. Sin brings me exhaustion and guilt, well, let’s root out the sin. Service brings me happiness and fulfillment, well let’s engage in more of that then. Where can I work more service into my life. 

In addition to this basic type of discernment, Ignatius’ developed rules for discerning God’s will for our lives. We know we are all called to cultivate virtue, to remain faithful in temptation, and engage in prayer and works of charity, and that God wants all of us to be united with Him, to serve Him, to utilize our gifts in service, but how? For each of us that’s different. Ignatius’ rules can be utilized to discern is God calling me to priesthood or religious life. Is God calling me to some form of missionary activity, a particularly serious penance for the good of souls, a change of career. 

Ignatius also developed what is called the daily examen, a daily discernment prayer, prayed at  at the end of the day, to reflect on the day’s activities, to review the events of the day and consider, did I follow God’s initiative or my own, did I sew in the field of the flesh, or the field of the spirit. Then, in silence and peace, to express thankfulness for the gifts and blessings of the day, and ask repentance for our failure to live up to our Christian identity. Then finally, to ask God to help us resolve to grow and trust in the loving guidance of God tomorrow.

Rather than following our own whims, St. Ignatius helps us to remember that we must apply the wisdom of the scriptures and the saints to discerning God’s will in our lives—for our sanctification, and for the glory of God and the salvation of souls. 

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For deliverance from all disordered affections and attitudes, for detachment from earthly goods in order to value the goods of heaven, that the Holy Spirit may guide our discernment for God’s service. We pray.

For an increase in vocations to the priesthood and consecrated life, for the Society of Jesus, and that we may all be dedicated to the greater glory of God. 

That the love of Christ, the divine physician, may bring healing to the sick and comfort to all the suffering. 

For the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, and all the poor souls in purgatory, for deceased priests, religious, especially for all deceased Jesuits who have served our local Church, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom. We pray.

O God, who know that our life in this present age is subject to suffering and need, hear the prayers of those who cry to you and receive the prayers of those who believe in you. Through Christ our Lord.

15th Sunday in Ordinary Time 2021 - God has chosen me

 I always feel bad for our lectors when they have to proclaim this weekend’s second reading. In the Greek, those 12 long, complicated, overflowing, and theologically dense verses from the introductory chapter of Paul’s letter to the Ephesians form one, single, sentence. And even with the periods and breaks in our English translation, his thought is still somewhat difficult to follow. 

Did he want to confuse the Ephesians? You can imagine the first recipient of the letter maybe rubbing his temples, certainly reading over those verses more than a time or two.

But what was Paul thinking? What’s he doing here? It appears his purpose for this dense chunk of text, wasn’t to provide a systematic explanation of Christian doctrine like he does later in his letter. Rather, these 12 verses appear more to be a profound expression of Paul’s wonder and awe. He’s trying to put into words, something ineffable, something beyond words.

The medium, in a sense, is the message. He’s writing his heart out. He’s composing a hymn of praise to the God of the universe who he’s come to realize has done something, Paul could not fathom prior to his conversion to Christ. The Father of Jesus has chosen Him, personally, and has chosen each member of the Church for a wonderous vocation—to the life of holiness and grace.  

“God has chosen me. God has chosen me” the little ones sing in their religion classes. And they do so with smiles on their faces. I’ve seen them. Now, Paul wrote these words from prison. And yet, this knowledge, of being chosen by God brought him a light and joy that prison could not contain. He’s compelled to compose these words to the Church, that we might share his joy. 

Here Paul gives us an insight into what it means to be a Christian. It’s to recognize this calling, our election to be holy, and to allow the knowledge of being chosen by God to reach all the way down to the depths of our being, so that not even prison could cause us to lose our faith. 

This experience of being chosen by God fueled Paul’s missionary work. It impelled him to carry the Gospel through rapid rivers, steep mountains, malaria-plagued lowlands, and bandit-ridden passages, enabled him to endure robbers, attempted assassinations, imprisonment, torture, and martyrdom all for the sake of the Gospel, all out of love for Jesus Christ. He risked his life to share the Gospel, trusting that this is the most important message ever. We’re chosen by God to be holy. 

“He chose us in him, before the foundation of the world, to be holy and without blemish before him.”

To be holy…if you are sitting in this church and listening to these words, you have been chosen by God for this—to grow in virtue, to restrain vice, to practice deep, soul-stiring prayer, to share the Gospel, to attend to the needy. You aren’t here by accident. You are part of God’s plan. Your sanctification is part of God’s plan. Paul wants Christians to know this because God wants Christians to know this. 

The pursuit of holiness is to animate our lives not just for an hour a week, but always. Don’t run away from your election. 

Paul later writes, everything is rubbish, compared to being taken possession of by Christ Jesus. Everything is loss, that keeps me from the supreme good of knowing Christ Jesus. So, if holiness isn’t your greatest pursuit. Start Now. If you aren’t examining your life daily, and working on moderating, and getting rid of anything that keeps you from living this vocation to your fullest potential. Start Now.

Last night, in our second Friday of the month faith formation, we studied the life of St. Ignatius of Loyola…the other Ignatius, the founder of the Jesuits. In his youth, he thought the most important thing in life was seeking after earthly fortune and glory, so he entered military service in the hopes of becoming this soldier of great renown. But a cannonball to the leg, changed his life. Talk about a wake up call from God. God wants us to know we are chosen, sometimes he needs to use a cannonball to the leg to help us figure that out.

Anyways, while convalescing, Ignatius had nothing to do but consider his life and read. And there was only one book he had access to, a book on the lives of the saints. And he began to read, not of glorious knights in shining armor, but of saints clothed in holiness. He read of Dominic solid in his faith preaching to and converting the Albigensian heretics. He read of Francis practicing Christ-like poverty, so closely united to Christ he bored the holy stigmata. He read of Benedict pursuing radical holiness in monastic simplicity, in simple work and prayer. In his solitude, in his reflection on the saints, Ignatius came to recognize that he too was chosen, not just to be another Francis, another Benedict, another Dominic, but called to be himself totally conformed to Christ. He had been chosen, and he changed the world forever. And we too have been chosen. 

If you are having difficulty believing this or recognizing this, ask for help today to recognize your calling. Holy Communion, especially, is an opportunity to express our great gratitude for the blessings of the Lord, but also to hear the Lord calling us by name, pouring his royal treasure of grace into our hearts, and giving us the strength we need to become saints, to be his faithful followers and instruments in the world in the coming week.

Let holy Mass be a new beginning today, of living ever more faithfully and God’s chosen sons and daughters, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

July 31 2019 - St. Ignatius of Loyola - The pearl of great price

In today’s Gospel we encounter a powerful theme: the preciousness of the Kingdom of Heaven, which is to say, the preciousness of Jesus Christ himself. 

He is the treasure—he is the pearl of great price.  We learn that if we truly wish to possess this pearl of great price, we must sell all that we have.  That means, in order to possess this pearl, we must set aside our pride, we must set aside our attachment to our way of doing things, we must detach from our idea of the good life, and do everything in our power to strive after union with Christ. 

The source of our world’s sadness is that it does not know Christ. It assumes it knows Christ without truly knowing him.  The source of the Church’s joy, the joy of the saints, is that she does know him, she does possess him, she is united with him, in his suffering, in his dying, and in his rising. 

St. Ignatius of Loyola, whom we honor today, spoke of how this truth when he wrote, “Few souls understand what God would accomplish in them if they were to abandon themselves unreservedly to him and if they were to allow his grace to mold them accordingly." 

Ignatius, a knight for the king of Spain, was wounded in battle—a cannonball shattered his leg. And while convalescing he read the lives of the saints. He began to notice how the heroic sufferings of the saints for the Gospel brought him much joy, while thoughts of worldly pursuits which were to a large extent self-centered, left him inwardly dry and discontented.

He made a decision: to seek the pearl of great price, to abandon himself unreservedly to seek the greater glory of God—ad maiorem Dei gloriam, which became the motto of the Jesuit Order which he founded.

To strive after holiness, to focus on our personal holiness is not prideful, but necessary.  This means we seeking to overcome our vices, our self-centeredness, the effects that sin has had in our life, and strive to greater love today than we exercised yesterday.

Christ is the greatest of treasures, and to find him, we must strive daily to find Him by imitating His love, His Obedience to God, His embrace of the Cross for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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We unite our prayers today with St Ignatius of Loyola and with all the community of saints. 

For Pope Francis, himself a member of the Jesuit Order, for wisdom and courage as he leads and guides our Church, and that all members of the Society of Jesus may strive for fidelity to Christ in all of their ministerial endeavors.

That all Christians may strive daily for sanctity. For a rekindling of faith for the lukewarm, hope for the despairing, belief for the unbelieving.

For the safety and success of all missionaries.

That our young people may turn away from the empty promises of the world and from all self-centeredness, for blessings upon all Christian families, for the protection of the unborn.

That the sick and suffering may find comfort in the promises of Christ and the consolation of the Spirit.

For the repose of the souls of our beloved dead, the souls in purgatory, deceased bishops, priests, and religious, those who fought and died for our freedom, and for N. for whom this Mass is offered.

Hear Our Prayers, O Lord, and through the intercession of St. Ignatius, help us to live for your greater glory. Through the same Christ Our Lord.

8th Week in OT 2019 - Tuesday - Offering ones life to God

God's Word commands us not to come before the Lord empty-handed (Sir 35:4). This means we must come to the Lord with our offerings — with the fruit of our service, finances, parenting, work, and life.

One of the prayers you may have learned in Catholic Grade School is The Morning Offering: O Jesus, through the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I offer You my prayers, works, joys and sufferings of this day for all the intentions of Your Sacred Heart, in union with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass throughout the world, in reparation for my sins, for the intentions of all my relatives and friends, and in particular for the intentions of the Holy Father.

It is good to begin the day calling to mind the need to offer everything to God, to not appear before the Lord empty-handed.

One of the great mysteries of our faith which we contemplate during the upcoming season of Lent, is the Lord’s willingness to give everything to His Father. He was “obedient unto death, death on a Cross” writes Paul to the Philippians. And Our Lord himself said, “the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many”.

Following the commandments to love God and love neighbor, imitating Jesus, all require this willingness to give of ones-self, to hold nothing back in service to God. This of course does not mean we need to spend 16 hours a day in Church. We give of our selves at the altar, in order that, we might give of ourselves OUT THERE.

When Peter says today in the Gospel, 'We have given up everything and followed you.” Jesus detects that Peter was just giving lip-service. He hadn’t given up everything, for he did not possess the willingness to give his life.

The OTHER St. Ignatius—Ignatius of Loyola—also has a wonderful prayer of offering, called the suscipe prayer, that we do well to pray often: “Take Lord, and receive all my liberty, my memory, my understanding, and my entire will, all that I have and possess. Thou hast given all to me. To Thee, O lord, I return it. All is Thine, dispose of it wholly according to Thy will. Give me Thy love and thy grace, for this is sufficient for me.”

By offering everything to God in union with Jesus we becoming receptive to an abundance of graces which can truly transform the world for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That the upcoming season of Lent may be a source of renewal and spiritual growth for the entire Christian Church.

For the freedom and willingness to make of ourselves a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God.

For the Holy Father’s prayer intention for the month of March: for respect for the rights of persecuted Christian communities and their closeness to Christ.

For all those who share in the sufferings of Christ—the sick, the sorrowful, and those who are afflicted or burdened in any way.  We pray to the Lord.

For the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, for the deceased clergy and religious of the diocese of Cleveland, for the poor souls in purgatory, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom. We pray to the Lord.

O God, who know that our life in this present age is subject to suffering and need, hear the prayers of those who cry to you and receive the prayers of those who believe in you. Through Christ our Lord.