3rd Week of Lent 2025 - Wednesday - Simply Obey

Summing up the entire spiritual life, Saint Francis de Sales, Patron Saint of Spiritual Directors said: “Simply Obey.  God does not ask anything else of you.” 

Saint Francis de Sales spoke about the importance of obedience because our Lord spoke about the importance of obedience, as we heard in our Lenten Gospel today: “But whoever obeys and teaches these commandments will be called greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.”

Obedience to the commandments keeps us in right relationship with God, and obedience to the inspirations of His Holy Spirit make us instruments of his grace in the world.

All of our Lenten prayer, fasting and almsgiving is really at the service of helping us to be more obedient to the commands and inspirations of God.  Fasting can strengthen our wills against disordered tendencies, and almsgiving flows out of that command to love our neighbor as ourselves. Prayer helps us to love God and to hate offending him through disobedience. Prayer, fasting, and almsgiving are like unfurling the sails of our soul, so that we can be directed by the Will of God.

Obedience is not always easy, just ask Adam and Eve and every human being that has ever lived. However, to the soul who loves God, obedience becomes a delight.

Our Lord is clear that, Obedience and disobedience have eternal consequences. Adam and Eve’s disobedience brought about a fracture with God that is felt in every human life. The Lord teaches about the eternal consequences of disobedience in today’s Gospel too, when he says, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do so will be called least in the Kingdom of heaven.

Where disobedience brought about broken communion with God, Christ’s obedience brought salvation, he who was, as St. Paul says, “obedient unto death, death upon a cross”.

The Lenten journey leads us to encounter Christ and emulate Christ who is totally obedient to his Father’s will; the Sacred Heart is an obedient heart, it is the heart of one which has surrendered everything to the Holy Will. 

We cannot err in obedience to God, rather we ought to strive, as the Lord teaches to obey the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter of God’s will, as did Christ his Son for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

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Trusting in the goodness of our Heavenly Father, who calls us to obedient and faithful lives, let us present our prayers with humility and confidence.

For the Church, especially during this Lenten season, that all her members may grow in obedience to God’s commandments and openness to the inspirations of the Holy Spirit. Let us pray to the Lord.

For all spiritual leaders, bishops, priests, deacons, and religious, that inspired by the example of Saint Francis de Sales, they may guide the faithful toward greater obedience and trust in God. Let us pray to the Lord.

For world leaders and all in positions of authority, that they may seek the wisdom of God and lead with integrity, justice, and a spirit of obedient service to truth and peace. Let us pray to the Lord.

For all who struggle with obedience to God’s will, especially those battling temptation, addiction, or disordered desires, that through prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, they may find strength and freedom in Christ. Let us pray to the Lord.

For the success of our parish Lenten mission this weekend, and for blessings upon our mission leader Fr. Laniaskas.

For the sick, the suffering, and those experiencing hardship or loss, that they may obediently unite their trials with Christ’s own suffering and experience His comforting presence. Let us pray to the Lord.

For the deceased members of our families, friends, parish, and benefactors: may they come to share in the eternal joy of heaven. Let us pray to the Lord.

Loving Father, help us always to respond with joyful obedience to your holy will. Hear these prayers we offer you through Christ our Lord.

January 24 2025 - St. Francis de Sales - Growing in spiritual maturity

 

At the age of 35, St. Francis de Sales was installed as bishop of Geneva, Switzerland, which at the time had become the epicenter of Protestant Calvinism. 

Many Catholics were experiencing tremendous social pressure to leave the Church, so to assist his flock, Bishop Francis wrote extensively on the spiritual life. He knew that if Catholic grew to spiritual maturity, they would not only have the strength to withstand those social pressures, but they would be able to fulfill their vocation to witness to the truth of Jesus Christ. 

Two of his books are spiritual classics which continue to be published and read to this day: The Introduction to the Devout Life, and The Treatise on the Love of God. Both books offer practical advice for Catholics living in the midst of the world to pursue a life of sanctity. 

Growth in the spiritual life is not automatic. In this way, it is different from the physical life. A child will naturally develop into a young adult, then an adult, then an older adult, just by doing what comes naturally. But growing in spiritual maturity is different.

Spiritual growth requires discipline, intentionality, focus on overcoming our errors and vices, seeking to advance in the virtues of faith, hope, and especially charity. 

To advance in holiness means to become more like God, who Himself is selfless and boundless charity. We see this love embodied in Jesus who makes a complete gift of himself to his Father for our salvation.  He says in the Gospel for today, “If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and remain in his love”

St. Francis de Sales taught that all people, in all walks of life, are called by God to a devout life—a holy life. Growing in holiness is a process, and “the Lord delights in every little step you take.”  But taking steps in the right direction is up to us. God will not force us into spiritual maturity. And sadly, many people go their entire lives advancing very little, because they are unwilling to take those steps. 

As we celebrate the feast of St. Francis de Sales, let us be inspired by his life and teaching to take those small but significant steps toward spiritual maturity. He reminds us that holiness is not reserved for the clergy or religious but is a universal call for every Christian, no matter their state in life. By seeking to grow in virtue, remaining faithful to God's commandments, and embracing a life of intentional prayer and self-giving love, we become more like Christ and fulfill the purpose for which we were created. With God’s grace, those small steps, taken daily, lead us closer to the ultimate goal of union with Him. May St. Francis de Sales intercede for us and inspire us to live devoutly and courageously in the midst of the world for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

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Presider: Inspired by the example and teaching of St. Francis de Sales, let us bring our prayers before God, seeking His grace to grow in holiness and serve Him faithfully.

For the Church: That all Christians may heed the universal call to holiness and embrace a life of devotion and charity, as taught by St. Francis de Sales.

For bishops, priests, and religious: That they may follow the example of St. Francis de Sales in shepherding their flocks with wisdom, compassion, and courage.

For all who work in education and communication: That, like St. Francis de Sales, they may use their gifts to spread truth, foster understanding, and inspire others to grow in faith

For ourselves: That we may embrace intentionality in our spiritual lives, striving to overcome sin and grow in faith, hope, and charity.

For those who struggle because of addiction, mental illness, chronic sickness, unemployment, or ongoing trials of any kind: that they may be healed and strengthened in Christ. And for the victims of the fires in California. 

For the departed: That all who have died in faith may find eternal rest in God’s presence, we pray to the Lord.

Presider: Heavenly Father, you gave us St. Francis de Sales as a model of holiness and a guide for living devoutly in the world. Hear the prayers we offer through his intercession, and grant us the grace to grow in your love and truth. We ask this through Christ our Lord.

January 23 2023 - St. Francis de Sales - "The measure of love is to love without measure"

 “Love one another as I love you,” the Lord said to his disciples the night before he died. And St. Francis de Sales—remembered and honored by the Church today—took seriously those words. 

St. Francis believed this and spent his life seeking to conform himself with that love, and as a good priest, bishop, and spiritual director, helped others do the same. Due to his writings and his labors, he was granted the title, doctor of the Church. In fact, he is even known as the Doctor of Charity, for his great insights into helping Christians love as Christ loves.

Echoing the sentiments of the Master, St. Francis de Sales wrote, “the measure of love is to love without measure”.  

Christ’s love was love without measure. He died for the greatest of sinners. He bore the weight of my sin and yours. Forgiveness is available to everyone who seeks it because Christ’s love is without measure. As the Father loves me, so I love you. I love you. 

And that indeed is part of our mission, isn’t it? To make known the love of God. The love of God that impelled Christ to lay down his life for us. The love of God that is to become the foundation of our lives. The gentle charity and mercy of the Father that is available to every sinner. If this does not motivate you, what does? 

To advance in holiness is to advance in love—to love without measure. Give without counting the cost, the Lord teaches in the Gospel, and he doesn’t offer this teaching, without backing it up by his own example. 

St. Francis de Sales wrote, “It is not those who commit the least faults who are the most holy, but those who have the greatest courage, the greatest generosity, the greatest love, who make the boldest efforts to overcome themselves, and are not immediately apprehensive about tripping.”

Sometimes Christians get in this mindset, if I just go throughout life without committing faults, then I’ll go to heaven. But the Lord teaches that the way to heaven
is not just avoiding sin, but also involves growing in charity—seeking to become more generous—courageously generous—day by day--being transformed into love. 

Through the example and prayers of St. Frances de Sales may we learn to love without measure those God brings into our lives for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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To God the Father Almighty we direct the prayers of our heart for the needs and salvation of humanity and the good of His faithful ones.

For the holy Church of God, that the Lord may graciously watch over her, care for her, and aid her in her mission.

For the peoples of the world, that the Lord may establish and preserve harmony among us.

For all who are oppressed by any kind of need, that the Lord may grant them relief and move Christians to come to the aid of the suffering.

For our beloved dead, for the poor souls in purgatory, and for X, for whom this Mass is offered.

O God, our refuge and our strength, hear the prayers of your Church, for you yourself are the source of all devotion, and grant, we pray, that what we ask in faith we may truly obtain. Through Christ our Lord.

January 24 2022 - St. Francis de Sales & the Calvinists

 St. Francis de Sales was an outstanding and highly influential bishop, spiritual director, author, and preacher whose life spans the turbulent decades following the Protestant Reformation.  He was born at Savoy in France in 1567.  He studied with the Jesuits at Paris, and finally at Padua, Italy where he obtained doctorates in both civil and canon law.  It was hoped by his father, that he would become a lawyer and follow in his footsteps as a senator; instead, Francis desired to serve the Church.  

He was ordained a priest in 1593 and dedicated himself to the re-evangelization of the many Catholics who had fallen away to Calvinism.  Between 1595 and 1598 he won many converts to the Catholic Church by his persuasive preaching but at the same time he was often in danger of his life at the hands hostile Calvinists.  

At the young age of 32 Francis was ordained a bishop and made coadjutor of the Calvinist stronghold of Geneva, and was installed as ordinary 3 years later.  For 20 years he labored zealously for the conversion of the Calvinists. You may have come across his most famous books: The Introduction to the Devout Life and Treatise on the Love of God, written primarily for lay people who were in danger of being assimilated by the calvinist culture.

In the Treatise on the Love of God he writes: “In holy Church all is by love, in love, for love and of love.”  Meaning that God, who is love, is the source of all of the Church’s activity we do and all is directed to him. 

That Christians could grow in holiness and likeness of God because God desires our sanctification; that we can in fact become more and more filled with the life of God while still here on earth by cooperating with his grace and disciplining our vices were ideas that flew in the face of the Calvinist theology at the time. And they are still profound for us today. 

To advance in holiness is to advance in love.  We see this love embodied in Jesus who makes a complete gift of himself to his Father for our salvation.  “If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and remain in his love” We see this love in the saints, we seek to conform themselves to Jesus through grace, following his command at the end of the Gospel today: “This I command you, love one another”

May we take up this great adventure that St. Francis de sales, this great Doctor of the Church, the Doctor of Charity, as he is known, lays out for us.  Through the example and prayers of St. Frances de Sales may we progress in holiness and charity for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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For the holy Church of God, that the Lord may graciously watch over her, care for her, and give her strength and courage in her mission.

For the peoples of the world, that the Lord may preserve harmony among us.

For openness to the example and teachings of the holy saints.

For all who are oppressed by any kind of need, that the Lord may grant them relief and move Christians to come to the aid of the suffering.

For our beloved dead, for the poor souls in purgatory, and for X, for whom this Mass is offered.

O God, our refuge and our strength, hear the prayers of your Church, for you yourself are the source of all devotion, and grant, we pray, that what we ask in faith we may truly obtain. Through Christ our Lord.

3rd Week of Lent 2019 - Wednesday - Simply Obey

Both Moses in the Old Testament Reading and Jesus in the Gospel extol a very important moral virtue this morning: obedience; particularly obedience to the commandments of God.

Summing up the entire spiritual life, Saint Francis de Sales, Patron Saint of Spiritual Directors said: “Simply Obey.  God does not ask anything else of you.”

Obedience to the commandments keeps us in right relationship with God, and obedience to the inspirations of His Holy Spirit make us instruments of his grace in the world.  The word obedience comes from the latin word for turning your ear and harkening to the voice of another.  Communion with God and communion with the Church requires obedience to God’s commands and the teachings of the Church.

All of our Lenten fasting and almsgiving is really at the service of helping us to be more obedient to the commands and inspirations of God.  Fasting can strengthen our wills against disordered tendencies, and almsgiving flows out of that command to love our neighbor as ourselves. Prayer helps us to love God and to hate offending him through disobedience.

Obedience and disobedience have eternal consequences. As Jesus teaches today: whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do so will be called least in the Kingdom of heaven, and whoever obeys and teaches these commandments will be called greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.” Adam and Eve jeopardized the eternal life of all of humanity through an act of disobedience. Satan and a third of the angels were expelled from heaven for disobedience. Our own souls will be judged by this measure: did we simply obey, or not.

Simple obedience is not always easy; for we have often allowed rebelliousness to run rampant in our hearts; we have fabricated quite sophisticated justifications for our bending and breaking of the rules; we act as if the rules are for others. But True Faith is the call to simple obedience.

The Lenten journey leads us to encounter Christ who is totally obedient to his Father’s will; the Sacred Heart is an obedient heart, it is the heart of one which has surrendered everything to the Holy Will.  Let us truly harken to the Great Command to love God with our whole hearts, minds, and strengths. By God’s grace may we be free from all that keeps us from following the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter of God’s law and from faithfulness to God’s inspirations for his glory and salvation of souls.

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That obedience to all the commands of Christ and the Church may mark the life of every Christian.
That all families will recommit themselves to fervent prayer this Lent so as to grow in greater love and holiness.  We pray to the Lord.
That this Lent we will be faithful to fasting and to all the ways that the Lord sanctifies us.  We pray to the Lord.
For generous giving for the needs of the poor, the hungry, the homeless, those who are sick, unemployed, victims of natural disaster, terrorism, war, and violence, the grieving and those most in need.  We pray to the Lord.
For all those who have died, for all the poor souls in purgatory, for those who have fought and died for our country’s freedom, and for [intention below], for whom this Mass is offered.  We pray to the Lord.
Mercifully hear, O Lord, the prayers of your Church and turn with compassion to the hearts that bow before you, that those you make sharers in your divine mystery may always benefit from your assistance.

4th Sunday in OT 2018 - Practical Sanctity and Belonging fully to Christ

 This last Wednesday was the feast of one of my favorite saints, one of the great Doctors of the Church, St. Francis de Sales.

Francis de Sales was a bishop in France in the turbulent decades following the Protestant Reformation. At the age of 35, he was installed as bishop of Geneva, Switzerland, the epi-center of Protestant Calvinism. Through his persuasive preaching he saved many souls from the errors of Calvinism, winning many converts to the Catholic Church; yet at the same time his life was often threatened by hostile Calvinists.

To serve his flock, as Bishop, St. Francis de Sales became a prolific writer—his writings comprise 26 volumes.  Two of his books have become spiritual classics and continue to be published and read to this day: The Introduction to the Devout Life, and The Treatise on the Love of God, both books offering practical advice for Catholics living in the midst of the world who wish to pursue a life of sanctity. Either one would be perfect spiritual reading for Lent, which is approaching very quickly.

Also, ordinary folk would often write to Bishop Francis for spiritual guidance. Once, a young mother asked him, “Bishop I’m trying very hard to live a good life, to be holy. I’d like to get to Mass every day, but I can’t because I have these seven children who are driving me crazy.”  Francis de Sales wrote back to her and said “Madam, it’s not necessary that you go to Church every day; you become a Saint by being the best mother you can be.” 

I thought of Francis de Sales, one, because his feast was last week, but also, after hearing St. Paul’s words to the Corinthians this week: “An unmarried man is anxious about the things of the Lord, how he may please the Lord. But a married man is anxious about the things of the world, how he may please his wife, and he is divided. An unmarried woman or a virgin is anxious about the things of the Lord, so that she may be holy in both body and spirit. A married woman, on the other hand, is anxious about the things of the world, how she may please her husband.”

St. Paul is in no way denigrating marriage here. He even says so. He says, “I tell you this not to impose a restraint”, in other words, I’m not telling you this so you don’t get married, but so that married and unmarried alike may seek to serve the Lord according to their own vocation. I think, St. Paul would very much agree with the advice St. Francis de Sales gave to that young mother. Madam, you are to become a saint…and your road to sanctity involves being the best wife and mother you can be.

St. Paul is showing the dual value of marriage and celibacy. Some members of the Church are called to celibacy “for the sake of the kingdom”, to be about the work of the Church with undivided devotion. I know so many priests and nuns and religious brothers whose lives are filled with joy and profound love for the Lord. They are not unhappy because they aren’t married. Celibate service to the Church is not an unhappy, lonely existence. It’s a profound immersion into the charitable life of the Church, and I think every young Catholic needs to discern if God might be calling you to some form of celibate service.

Celibate priests and religious serve as a sign to the whole Church that the Lord calls all of us to offer offer up the whole of our lives to God. I celebrated a wedding a few years ago on the Feast of St. Agnes, which is on January 21, another good January saint. And so for part of the wedding homily I told the story of saint agnes, who was a virgin martyr of Rome.

When Agnes was about thirteen years old, the son of the Roman governor became infatuated with her.  He asked for Agnes’ hand in marriage, but already at that young age, Agnes had given her heart to Christ—and consecrated herself to the Lord’s service.

The governor’s son became bitter and angry, he tempted her with priceless jewels, but she resisted.  He then threatened her, and told her that he would accuse her of being a Christian.  This meant that she would face death if she did not give in, since it was against the law to be a Christian. But, with her heart belonging to Christ, she boldly resisted him.  So, he accused her of practicing the Christian faith, and she was beheaded.

Pope Benedict, in a reflection on Saint Agnes, said, “Her martyrdom illustrates “the beauty of belonging to Christ without hesitation.” And here’s the lesson for young married couples and old married couples. For each of us, no matter our vocation, are called to belong to Christ without hesitation.

St. Paul, writing about these married and unmarried people recognizes that marriage is often a very difficult Christian vocation. So many of you here no doubt could relate. How hard it is to balance your faith obligations with your obligations to family. How hard it is to balance prayer with laundry and yard-work and changing diapers and teaching your children reading, writing, and arithmetic, and getting them to sports practice.

So again, St. Paul isn’t denigrating marriage here. The Church needs happy, healthy, holy marriages, where parents set good religious example for their children, teaching them to balance faith and worldly obligation. But it’s certainly an admonition isn’t it, a reminder, that amidst all the busy-ness of your temporal affairs, you need to ensure that you keep Christ at the center of it all. That you as spouse and parent seek to belong to Christ without hesitation.

To keep Christ at the center, he needs to be at the beginning and at the end. So, it’s important to begin your day with prayer and end your day with prayer, begin and end meals with prayer, begin and end car trips, and yardwork and housework.

Listen to this simple, practical prayer, composed by St. Francis de Sales. A wonderful prayer that you might consider beginning your day with: “My God, I give you this day. I offer you, now, all of the good that I shall do and I promise to accept, for love of you, all of the difficulty that I shall meet. Help me to conduct myself during this day in a manner pleasing to you. Amen.”

To offer God all the good that we shall do, means to remember God when you are driving to work so you can provide for your family, in folding the laundry, in putting the kids to bed, taking care of a sick spouse. It doesn’t necessarily mean going to mass every day, though, if you can, you should. But it certainly means belonging to Christ in whatever you do, thinking with his mind, loving with his heart, becoming the best mother, the best father, the best spouse, the best student, the best nun, the best priest you can be, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.