“Unless
you leave your father and mother, sisters and brothers, and your very self, you
are not worthy of me.” -Luke 14:26
That
is one of those Jesus’ saying that is really hard to get to the bottom. Some translations have it as “…hate your father
and mother, sisters and brothers…” Is Christ telling you to hate you parents
and family? The Catholic devotional
magazine, Magnificant, which I love and think any Catholic should
have, has a meditation of the day, and earlier this month they had a passage
from St. Catherine of Siena—the patron saint of this blog—explaining it. Apparently it came from one of her letters,
but the passage is not identified, so I don’t know which letter.
I long to see you
making your home in the cell of self-knowledge, so that you may attain perfect
love, for I know we cannot please our Creator unless we love him, because he is love and wants nothing but love. If we do not know ourselves we find this
love. Why? Because we see our own nothingness, that our
very existence is ours by grace and not because we have a right to it, and
every grace beyond our existence as well—it is all given to us with boundless
love. Then we discover so much of God’s
goodness poured out on us that words cannot describe it. And once we see ourselves we so loved by God,
we cannot help loving him. And within
ourselves we love God and our own rationality, and hate sensuality that would
take inordinate pleasure in the world.
Some people delight in
wealth or status, or would rather please creatures than the Creator. These build their foundation in worldly appearance,
pleasure, and enjoyment. Then there are
some who love their children or spouse or mother or father excessively, with
too sensual a love. Such love gets
between their soul and god and keeps them from a clear knowledge of the truth
of real heavenly love. This is why
gentle First Truth said, Unless you leave
your father and mother, sisters and brothers, and your very self, you are not
worthy of me. God’s true servants
have always been conscious of this, and quickly strip their heart, soul, and
affection of the world and its pleasures and ostentation, and of loving anyone
apart from God. Not that they don’t love
other people, but they love them only for God’s sake, as creatures boundlessly
loved by their Creator.
-St. Catherine of Siena
I
am always amazed at that little lady. For
a woman with no formal education, she was quite a thinker and writer. There is a lot there, including the concept
of “the cell of self-knowledge,” by which Catherine means that one reaches the
truth by going into the self and understanding that we are not and God is. It’s a rather mystical (perhaps even Buddhist-esk
notion) but from there one can then understand what Jesus is fully saying. You have to lose your self—your will—to find Christ,
and what is more integrated with the self than your family. Ponder, then, Christ’s first Beatitude: “Blessed
those who are poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Mat 5:3)
What does it mean “to be poor in spirit”?
((( “Unless you leave your father and mother, sisters and brothers, and your very self, you are not worthy of me.” -Luke 14:26 )))
ReplyDeleteBoy! "I" mean Man!, "I" mean Manny, that is "ONE" big spiritual reality Algebra problem that is best, Right, "I" mean left for US (usual sinners) "I" mean us godly cells and "I" sea, "I" mean "I" see that like St. Catherine of Siena, YA long to make your home in the cell of self-knowledge... there's nothing wrong with that... as long as YA don't take "IT" too far and start walking the insanity line... Yes true that the funniest stuff can be found there and as YA know a little about (D X (d.c.) + (d.c.) X D) = a full circle of SUM, "I" mean for some but then again for OHthor "I" mean Others. "IT" can be a little square, "I" mean "IT" can really be hard to fathom, "I" mean Fathom... http://ncronline.org/news/vatican/vatican-lifts-ban-married-priests-eastern-catholics-diaspora
Anyway Man, "I" hope YA don't expect too Many, "I" mean Manny Victors, "I" mean Victor' seven per sent age cell is the only "ONE" crazy enough to try and analyze what "Jesus" said but then again, Victor only does "IT" to keep from going insane these days and... and............................................................and...............................................and...
END YA SAY sinner vic? DON'T BE LIKE THAT! BE NICE NOW!
I hear YA! I understand Victor! YAR just being yourself again!
YA really think so Manny? LOL ;)
God Bless you and yours
Interesting on the lifting of the marriage ban for Eastern Catholics. I'm not particularly opposed to priests married, but it would seem different having to relate to a priest who has a family and not just the parish. It would change the nature of our Catholic culture if the western church followed.
ReplyDeleteMore Victors? The more the merrier...lol.
I love writings about the meaning of detachment. I have read DeMontfort a bit on it.
ReplyDelete"Interesting on the lifting of the marriage ban for Eastern Catholics. I'm not particularly opposed to priests married, but it would seem different having to relate to a priest who has a family and not just the parish."
ReplyDelete"I" also is not opposed to married people being fathers cause after all I am a father and a grand father but then again I'm also a great grand father... long story short, the alien gods have taken my fatherly family away from me at an early age... to be fair, my wife keeps telling me not to be so silly because truth is that they never took our children from us, the aliens simply reduced the parental age of control so that our five girls could do what the aliens, "I" mean what their sex cells wanted to do at an earlier age... "IT" would certainly be a LOT easier to achieve without a mean dad around, "I" mean if the aliens didn't have to worry about human puppets, "I" mean human animals, no, no, "I" meant to say good human beings sticking their nose in their business and................................................................and......................................................and...
END YA SAY sinner vic? BE NICE NOW!
"It would change the nature of our Catholic culture if the western church followed."
It sure would change the nature of our Catholic culture but then again as "IT" not changed already?
As for more Victors, well we already have Victor #1 and Victor #2 but then again the more the merrier is so true... "IT" would be nice to all be called Victors but then, don't you think that as long as our soul is "Baptized" and our spiritual reality cells teach our human cells to follow in the footsteps of "Jesus"... again i ask, don't you think that even Matthew can become a Victor? Spiritually speaking that is...lol
I'm a little tired right now and like "I" just told my wife... honey my Annoying Super Sinner, "I" mean my ASS has just done his job and if mother nature no longer needs me, "I" think i will go and lie down for awhile...in so many words she said, no it is not snowing and you are re... "I" mean retired now so go and rest if YA want to...
Check out your post later but in the mean time I'll try and recall some of what our Lord put UP with for our sins...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9ZRDjqMV9Q
God Bless and keep your family safe
I guess Matthew can change his name to Victor if he wants to. ;)
Delete"I guess Matthew can change his name to Victor if he wants to. ;)"
ReplyDeleteSee, See Manny! We can do just about anything we like as long as we legalize "IT" first so what more do we really need nowadays?...lol