The Brothers and Sisters of the Crown of Trent

An idea came to my mind when I was at the monastery and I am throwing it out into the blogasphere for feedback. A group, which I do not think I can call an order, of men and women whose have pledged themselves to pray for priests and seminarians who specifically say the Tridentine Mass.

The group would have to make some commitments to belong.

The name of the group is the Brothers and Sisters of the Crown of Trent.

This is a feeler posting.

First, daily prayer for all sems and priests in Latin Mass orders and seculars who say the Latin Mass, such as Father Z.

Second, a promise to read at least two of the hours of the breviary a day, such as lauds and vespers, or sext and compline, etc.

Third,  a promise to do three hours of adoration before the Blessed Sacrament a week, either in the Exposed Host in a monstrance, or adoring Christ hidden in the tabernacle.

Four, abstinence from meat one day a week.

Five, if possible, if more than one person can join in this endeavor in an area, for those two or more to meet up once a month and pray and communicate, supporting the ministry.

What do you think, readers? Can there be such a grouping starting online?

On offering things up

I would like to challenge an old and useful phrase, "offer it up". For our times, I want to change the sentiment to "absorb it". What do I mean?

The crosses we endure provide us with THE opportunity to become one with God, the Trinity. By absorbing pain of any kind, we cooperate with a mysterious plan in the purgative stage. We cannot live the life of the virtues without absorbing these pains. The illuminative stage, which follows that of purgation, allows the soul to see and experience that all is in God, whether good or evil, loss or gain. Such purgation cleans the heart and mind so that one can love those who hate them, criticize them, spurn them, judge them. Illumination reveals that the love of God is in all things and all people. One can love the enemy.

My mother lost three children. Is this God's Will? I had cancer. Is this God's Will? Some people have horrible experiences, such as abuse as children. Is this God's Will?

He has seen from all time the evil which men and women do to each other. After the Fall, the choice of Adam and Eve to rebel against God's plan for them, the Trinity allowed all of us our free wills, to do good or evil.

We have all done both.

That God allows such freedom is a scandal to some, but Love can only happen in freedom. Love is an act of the free will and heart, not a coercion.

That God freely loves me and that I live and move and have my being in that Love is FREE GIFT.

Does it matter how I came to accept this free gift of love?

What matters is that the illumination of God's love puts all failure and pain into perspective. As I sit in a student flat wondering what will be my next step in God's plan, I move with and in God.  How I got here and where I am going next does not matter. That failures happen does not matter if one sees that God has allowed certain events to break down the self-will and rebellion left from the First Parents' defection from God.

May I add that we are not alone in this journey. We each, those of us who are baptized, have an angel guardian to help us on the way. Pray to your angel. There are other angels who God may send to help one, just as God sent Raphael to help Tobit.

On Perfection and Indifference

Following up this theme of the possibility of the lay person achieving the sanctity of one in the religious life must be presented along with the idea that the lay person has duties and graces from baptism. As the sacrament which makes one a child of God and heir to heaven, the sacrament changes one forever. The ebb and flow of the active and contemplative life can be adjusted in a lay life, but with great difficulty. What the nuns and monks have is a greenhouse situation tailor made for the pursuit of perfection, which therefore, happens more readily and quickly. That we are not in this special environment, or called to the obedience, and strict observance of rules does not let us off the hook in the pursuit of perfection. In addition, I look at the lives of SS. Teresa of Avila, Bernard, and many others, realizing that they were busy in the world as well.

The contemplative prayer and meditation allowed them to be effective in the world. St. Catherine of Siena was a great player in the world, despite or because of her intense interior life. How can we do this, while working or studying, or commuting? Of course, the singing of the seven hours and the silence is not possible, but the ebb and flow of being attuned to grace in a balance of activity and reflection must be possible. The Jesuits managed it for centuries. The key is discipline of a different sort We waste so much time and miss the pursuit of holiness in that waste. We also miss the vision of holiness by concentrating on nonessentials. So, how can a lay person follow the purgative, illuminative and unitive way? First of all, one must find a good spiritual director.

This is very hard, as I know from personal experience. Secondly, one must believe that every event in one's life has been ordained by God. That the pattern of one's life reveals the way to holiness. One may be following, by God's choice, the way of affirmation or the way of negation.

Suffering comes to us all, but the way of negation would include a life of suffering and denial, imposed by the Holy Spirit. Once one realizes the pattern and sees how God is working, through love in one's life, the vocation is seen more clearly. For example, I thought my life was a series of failures. God showed me that none of these events were failures but part of the larger pattern of the breaking down of my desires for worldly things, pleasures, success, a place in the sun. What the nuns learn by being obedient to Mother Prioress, God has taught me through suffering of a different kind. Both ways lead to self-denial and finally, to an indifference.

Indifference is key. One must not care what happens, not in a quietist way (see previous posts on this danger of quietism) but, in the acceptance of the Will of God, and the freedom of the thrall of slavery to things and relationships not ordained by God. Those saints who have been martyred did not come to their martyrdom easily, but through a process of steps, which freed them to experience pain and loss of status, prestige, life. St. Oliver Plunkett, for example, was a great bishop, but slandered and treated with contempt. How many of us could absorb that type of hatred without his humility and the grace of God?

But, laity, this is possible for us as well. Believe me, that the Church and God in His Trinity wants us to reach out and be saints NOW. We are being prepared for heaven daily.

Answer to Jack

A reader notes that being a Catholic seems masochistic. If original sin had not happened and if our natures were not bent on selfishness and narcissism, one could say that such mortification seems harsh. However, the self-love and sin we to experience must be challenged. To put this topic in a positive light, how can we love God with our whole heart, mind, and soul if there is no room in our heart for God? The purgative state cleanses our imagination, purifies our intentions, enlargens our heart in order to really love. Scroll down to my posts on the will, read the articles using material by Saints Bernard and Thomas Aquinas.I just read your second comment. The key is trying not to worry and trusting in Divine Providence, begging for healing and grace. Showing God you are serious about wanting to love Him above all things and people....accepting poverty and even chosing it as He has allowed it. The joy of seeing all suffering as opportunity to love God in reality and not sentimentality is the challenge. Jack, ask for the grace. Ask yourself if you want to love God first.

Suffering and the purgative way

For the lay person, just as with the religious, the first step is found in the purgative way: that is, the ego, the self-will must be destroyed...the losing of one's self. In the monastery, this could mean doing things which seem nonsensical...like not giving a guest a coffee spoon because only so many spoons are allowed in the kitchen; or having to use only water for cleaning and not soap. Obedience over-rules common sense. In the lay life, this could mean being overlooked for a well-earned promotion, or being unemployed and very poor. The suffering, if seen as a moment of grace and accepted, becomes part of the molding of the soul into humility. A great Failure, for example, can be a huge grace. I do not have my computer. I am blogging by phone..a moment of grace, rather than frustration. Criticisms by someone in the church who said I was odd and a burden, becomes a moment of joy, indifference and peace....to be continued.

R.I.P.

My godfather, Uncle Charlie, died this past week. Please pray for his soul. He was a Catholic, very funny, a marathon runner, and a lover of movies. He is responsible for my love of the cinema, especially Audrey Hepburn movies and musicals. He is the first in that maternal side of his generation to pass away. He never married and I last saw him in early 2011. He will be buried in a military cemetary. May the angels take his soul into Paradise.

On the way of perfection....again

One cannot explain spiritual growth for the lay person as easily as one can for the religious simply because the Rule of Benedict, or any rule is objective. Therefore, if one is obeying a simple command, or following carefully the duties of the day in a reflective and humble manner, a religious can somewhat judge by conscience the inner workings of the Holy Spirit. The layperson does not have a rule as such, except, perhaps the Beatitudes and the guidelines in the epistles on love. The point is rather complicated by the fact that the active life has to be lived in an life where things are out of our control-there is no rule.

One thing I noticed was that unless there is contemplation and reflection behind action, the action is useless in and of itself. In other words, caritas, that is love, must inform everything we do. I am to do a series on some of the things I learned about the ability, the skill to pray and work, moving towards contemplation and meditation in the lay life.

If my readers remember the series on the Pope's encyclical on love, I tried to highlight the need to move naturally from one stage to the next. In the monastery, the focus allows one to move quickly in a shorthand manner to accomplish the stages of the purgative, illuminative, and finally, unitive stage. As lay people, you and I can move as well into these stages by allowing the sufferings in our lives to be real and effective. We do not avoid suffering, but accept it as a mortification in order to become humble and pliable to God's Will. In the next few weeks, I shall try and make some progress in showing the connections between the monastic spirituality I experienced and our way of life.

Why do I want to do this? Because we are all called to perfection in order to see God. Only the perfect are allowed into the presence of God.






In the next post, I shall try and explain how the purgative state, which is obvious in the monastic life, happens more organically in the lay life, but cannot be ignored if the benefits of sufferings are to lead us to the next levels.

The Death of Catholic Ireland

Irish citizens last week passed a law which takes away parental authority over children and gives it to the State. http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2012/1111/breaking1.html

Only 33 percent of those who are eligible for voting did vote. This socialistic law will determine the lives of generations of children. If I were a parent in Ireland, I would leave NOW with kids in tow, before that becomes illegal.

One cannot imagine the fall from grace which has led to this law being passed.  And, now there is a Marie Stopes abortion mill in Belfast as well. I am so affected by the godlessness and anti-Catholicism which is spewed out on the radio and television daily, that I can hardly believe it. This hatred is based on a hatred of religion and unforgiven events.  The Irish live in the past in their emotions, and this is killing the country's soul, causing an emotional blindness to rule over reason.

I beg St. Oliver Plunkett to intercede. I am sick of hearing that Ireland is the island of saints. We need saints here now, living, standing up for the one, holy, Catholic and apostolic Church. Christ is being crucified by those who once died for His Church. Holiness is consider the job of the old. The country is committing spiritual suicide. For what? Money? Comfort? To be part of the EU?

Part of the problem is the attitude of entitlement. Part of the problem is the old flirtation of socialism and communism by the labour parties here. Most of the problem is ennui.

Sad, sad days....

The Souls in Purgatory

The theologians and mystics writing on purgatorial suffering state it is the same as that of hell, only temporal, and with a certain joy underlying the pain, as the soul, which is being made perfect, knows he or she is saved. Such a comfort would be great.

St. Gertrude has much to say on these souls and we can join her in praying for them. Years ago, I made the great offering of my merit to go to them, as I loved these souls even as a child. My merits would fill a small tea-cup, but the Crucified Saviour merited heaven for these just.

Today, on the Feast of St. Gertrude, pray for a specific soul and have Masses said for those who have died. I pray for specific people who have died, rather than a general prayer.

Perhaps you could choose someone who has no family to pray for them. Or, a person who seemed not to have died in the Faith. God is merciful.

Hello from the city

Supertradmum is not supertradnun. I could not join the Marines at my age. Up at 4:30, breakfast is tea and toast, period; prayer, work, prayer, work, one hour of solitude; one hour of Adoration; one meal a day-no fresh vegetables but fresh fruit; mostly veggie diet; toast and soup for supper, except for Friday, which is a fast day, on which one only has bread and cheese.

I was ok with the food, believe it or not, as they gave cereal to me and eggs as needed, but not with the hours. No coffee breaks but one, and at the time set only; but the hours were simply too exhausting. If I got up and sang Nocturnes, by four in the afternoon, I was a zombie.

To get one's body into habits at a young age is the only way to do this.

However, God is merciful and has indicated that the lay life can lead to the same states of grace if one cooperates.

Our baptismal graces give us the tremendous gift of the Indwelling of the Trinity. We do not recognize the call or the graces which are there for all of us, no matter what our state in life.

This is the call of the laity-to be perfect, even as our Heavenly Father is perfect. And, only through humility and mortifications, chosen and sent by Him. Each one of us has an individual way. He chooses these, we do not. Having cancer has been one way for me. Being called to be a contemplative in the world is another cross. Being a failure in the eyes of those closest to me is another. No matter. None of this matters.

The other amazingly simple point, which I should have known, is that I am used to being alone and not with people all day. I actually felt claustrophobic, not because of the enclosure, but because of being with people most of the day.

However, I have seven books of notes for plenty of posts on perfection. But, I am simply, exhausted physically. I shall get back to you all soon.

In the meantime, get and read two books--Robert Hugh Benson's None Other Gods, and Lord of the World.

And a special note to Therese and Anita; everyday time we sang the blessings for our absence sisters, I prayed for you especially. God has a plan....

cosmetics

Like my dad, I generally prefer women without makeup. While I appreciate the effort, I don't see the point of covering up things you don't want people to see and embellishing things you want people to see, especially once you have a certain level of intimacy. If you're simply the person you want him to be, how is he ever going to get to know you?

On the other hand, if I were a woman, I would probably be absolutely addicted to the stuff.

So yeah, mum's been encouraging me to do some blogger henshin, and while I'm a bit tsundere about this, I love her too much not to comply.

A few years ago, I took a course on basic design from Fr. Pachomius Meade of Conception Abbey - a charismatic monk and an inspiring artist. I learned, among other things, what the Atari logo meant, how to plot a stained glass window, and why superficially simple tasks take so LONG. Graphic Designers, you work admirably hard for no apparent reason. Please consider a vocation to the priesthood or religious life!

But as mentioned in the previous post, I know nothing about blogging, so if I screw up, please let me know asap.

This evening, I simply removed the background (which I couldn't really see) and went to a slightly lower contrast theme (which is easier on my eyes).

(I'd rather not use themes, I'd rather just edit the css... but apparently google doesn't like you doing that unless you give them money, which is weird, because, y'know, there are all these webdesign geeks out there with large pocketbooks... not).

I'm seriously considering hosting this blog myself, however it does get a lot of traffic and I'd probably need a paid host and not one of my basement servers abroad. (Mum stores water in concrete bunkers in case of global thermonuclear war. I do the same for Japanese anime and silly cat pictures. If I'm dying of radiation, I'm going to want some light humour).

But in the meantime, here's a little shopping list of what I'd like to acheive in my mother's absence:

• A flexible-width template for easier viewing on tablet computers.
• Improved archive navigation.
• A new background.
• Automatic post-preview (since most of mum's posts are very very long).
• General database optimization etc.

If anyone has any suggestions / ideas on this tack, I'd love to hear them!

For those who do not know the reference....

I did not put "So long" as not to infringe....cp. And, happy patronal feast of Our Lady of Walsingham, England............

A Jar of Ointment, the Marines, and Seeds............

Someone asked me on Friday for what the reason the Benedictine Rule existed and what was the purpose of contemplative nuns?

As the person is a Catholic, I was a bit taken aback. But, I have three answers.

I said that the contemplatives were the Marines, hitting the beach first with their prayers while the active orders and laity followed behind in the mop-up.

I believe this is true, as the spiritual life of prayer attacks the unseen enemies and prayer makes the Church strong in battle.

Those soldiers who are the specially trained groups go in and deal with the first lines of the enemy.

Prayer first, action second.

I hope St. Benedict and St. Scholastica would agree with me.

But, that is not the first reason for the Rule or the existence of contemplative nuns. That would be the second reason.

First, the nuns exist to worship God.

Their presence is the presence of the woman with the alabaster jar of ointment who anointed the feet of Jesus. Judas asked  "Why this waste?" He did not understand Love. Judas did not love Christ or he would have never said that.

Christ is God, and in His worship there is no waste. Love does not know the limits of excess. There are no limits in God. Did not St. Francis say, "My God never says 'Enough'".

We should have no limits in our love for God.

The third reason is this:

But Jesus answered them, saying, “The hour has come that the Son of Man should be glorified. Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain. He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. (John 12:23-25)

The Treasures of Mary, Our Queen and Our Mother

A priest once told me that to examine one’s spiritual life is like ripping a plant out of the ground to look at the roots.

This is good advice, but incomplete.

Reflection is necessary and a good examination of conscience is an excellent start.

However, one’s spiritual life is about a relationship with God.

There is nothing wrong with examining a relationship. But, merely concentrating on sin or imperfections is not enough.

One may ask these questions.

What are the priorities of my life?

What do I spend the most time on in my thinking?

On what do I spend most of my money? If I have money, do I give to charity and tithe?

Do I remember that Faith and Works go together? ( Remember one of the readings last week.)

How am I living like Christ?

How am I thinking like Christ?

How do I conform my life to the life of the Church?

Is my love for others real or self-seeking?

Am I living a counter-cultural life-style; that is one of Catholic identity?

Do I sacrifice at all in some way for God, for others?

Do I love Christ directly?

Do I love the Church?

Love is in the will and the actions of our lives should follow the will and not merely

be reactions to people or events.

Such is the control God gave us in the use of our free wills.

There is nothing we can do without grace.

On November 27th, 1830, St. Catherine Laboure had another vision of the Blessed Virgin Mary. On the Blessed Mary's fingers were many rings and rays of light were coming from some of those rings. Those bright rings represented graces pouring out to those who asked for these.

Other gems were dark and Mary said that these were graces for which no one asked.

Ask for those graces, the graces from the rings of Mary. Do not be afraid.

Today is the feast day of St. Padre Pio. However, the Sunday takes precedence. Pray for us, Padre Pio.

GREAT NEWS--BLOG TAKEOVER

My son has offered to continue the blog. He most likely will post once a week. I am so happy about this for the sake of my dear readers. He was a free-lance journalist for four years before going into the seminary. He writes "stuff" of all sorts.

Sign up for updates on the side in your e-mail.

End of Perfection Series for Now

The perfection series was quite popular with readers and you can click on the tag below for the entire set. I am leaving that theme until December.

We are all called to perfection. One of the great lies of the post-Vatican II Church, not in official teaching, but in pastoral mediocrity from the pulpit, has been the Protestantizing of spirituality.

What do I mean?

Protestants, always looking to appease and compromise, lowered the bar for holiness at the Revolt.

Celibacy was not longer valued. The Calvinists changed the view of the Beatitudes in to a prosperity message of those who are saved are blessed with goods in this world.

Feasts and celebrations were ended, and the work-ethic eventually destroyed the day of rest.

The sacraments were declared as unnecessary, especially Confession, which led to the dying of daily examination of conscience.

The Protestants saw man as he was and accepted his imperfections as simply part of life on earth. Salvation was enough, as man was basically evil and God could not expect holiness.

As Christ was no longer present as True God in the Body and Blood of Christ, worship became solely the sermon and scripture with a few hymns, destroying meditation and contemplation.

The Catholic Church was infected by these faults and heresies to the point where the laity have been discouraged from personal holiness and do not even know what that term means.

Some of the reasons I wrote the perfection series form this list.

Be you therefore perfect, as also your heavenly Father is perfect.

The Catholic Church has kept the ideals of Christ. Matthew 5:48 DR.

The Catholic Church holds up an ideal and we are to attempt to cooperate with the sacramental life of  the Church and grace to attain that ideal.

The bar is high.

We, like St. Paul, are the spiritual athletes, who must strive for the prize.

There is no other way to see God. His mercy and the guidance of the Church help us on our way.

There is only one true religion, the Catholic Faith. There is only one True God, the Trinity-Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. There is only one way to get to heaven, in and through Christ the Son of God, who became Incarnate to show us the Father and give us the Holy Ghost.

All the truths you need are in the Teaching Magisterium of the Church, the Church instituted by Christ while He was on earth. Therein lies your perfection.

Rectitude of the Will Two

Perfect Rectitude of the Will from the Master, St. Thomas Aquinas. If God allows me to do so, I just want to study St. Thomas for the rest of my life. There is so much in his work to ponder..............

Whether rectitude of the will is necessary for happiness?

Objection 1: It would seem that rectitude of the will is not necessary for Happiness. For Happiness consists essentially in an operation of the intellect, as stated above (Q[3], A[4]). But rectitude of the will, by reason of which men are said to be clean of heart, is not necessary for the perfect operation of the intellect: for Augustine says (Retract. i, 4) "I do not approve of what I said in a prayer: O God, Who didst will none but the clean of heart to know the truth. For it can be answered that many who are not clean of heart, know many truths." Therefore rectitude of the will is not necessary for Happiness.

Objection 2: Further, what precedes does not depend on what follows. But the operation of the intellect precedes the operation of the will. Therefore Happiness, which is the perfect operation of the intellect, does not depend on rectitude of the will.

Objection 3: Further, that which is ordained to another as its end, is not necessary, when the end is already gained; as a ship, for instance, after arrival in port. But rectitude of will, which is by reason of virtue, is ordained to Happiness as to its end. Therefore, Happiness once obtained, rectitude of the will is no longer necessary.

On the contrary, It is written (Mat. 5:8): "Blessed are the clean of heart; for they shall see God": and (Heb. 12:14): "Follow peace with all men, and holiness; without which no man shall see God."

I answer that, Rectitude of will is necessary for Happiness both antecedently and concomitantly. Antecedently, because rectitude of the will consists in being duly ordered to the last end. Now the end in comparison to what is ordained to the end is as form compared to matter. Wherefore, just as matter cannot receive a form, unless it be duly disposed thereto, so nothing gains an end, except it be duly ordained thereto. And therefore none can obtain Happiness, without rectitude of the will. Concomitantly, because as stated above (Q[3], A[8]), final Happiness consists in the vision of the Divine Essence, Which is the very essence of goodness. So that the will of him who sees the Essence of God, of necessity, loves, whatever he loves, in subordination to God; just as the will of him who sees not God's Essence, of necessity, loves whatever he loves, under the common notion of good which he knows. And this is precisely what makes the will right. Wherefore it is evident that Happiness cannot be without a right will.

Reply to Objection 2: Every act of the will is preceded by an act of the intellect: but a certain act of the will precedes a certain act of the intellect. For the will tends to the final act of the intellect which is happiness. And consequently right inclination of the will is required antecedently for happiness, just as the arrow must take a right course in order to strike the target.

Reply to Objection 3: Not everything that is ordained to the end, ceases with the getting of the end: but only that which involves imperfection, such as movement. Hence the instruments of movement are no longer necessary when the end has been gained: but the due order to the end is necessary.

Rectitude of the Will in Thomas Aquinas-One

The entire reason why we are here is to come to know, love and serve God in this world and to praise Him in the next.

That is right out of my childhood catechism.

We need to seek God. If our will is fixed on knowing, loving and serving God, then we are approaching Rectitude of the Will.

Purification leads to Rectitude of the Will. And Rectitude of the Will leads to holiness...............

Part II.1, Question 3, Article 8: Whether man's happiness consists in the vision of the divine essence?
Objection 1: It would seem that man's happiness does not consist in the vision of the Divine Essence. For Dionysius says (Myst. Theol. i) that by that which is highest in his intellect, man is united to God as to something altogether unknown. But that which is seen in its essence is not altogether unknown. Therefore the final perfection of the intellect, namely, happiness, does not consist in God being seen in His Essence.
Objection 2: Further, the higher the perfection belongs to the higher nature. But to see His own Essence is the perfection proper to the Divine intellect. Therefore the final perfection of the human intellect does not reach to this, but consists in something less.
On the contrary: It is written (1 Jn. 3:2): "When He shall appear, we shall be like to Him; and we shall see Him as He is."
I answer that: Final and perfect happiness can consist in nothing else than the vision of the Divine Essence. To make this clear, two points must be observed. First, that man is not perfectly happy, so long as something remains for him to desire and seek: secondly, that the perfection of any power is determined by the nature of its object. Now the object of the intellect is "what a thing is," i.e. the essence of a thing, according to De Anima iii, 6. Wherefore the intellect attains perfection, in so far as it knows the essence of a thing. If therefore an intellect knows the essence of some effect, whereby it is not possible to know the essence of the cause, i.e. to know of the cause "what it is"; that intellect cannot be said to reach that cause simply, although it may be able to gather from the effect the knowledge of that the cause is. Consequently, when man knows an effect, and knows that it has a cause, there naturally remains in the man the desire to know about the cause, "what it is." And this desire is one of wonder, and causes inquiry, as is stated in the beginning of the Metaphysics (i, 2). For instance, if a man, knowing the eclipse of the sun, consider that it must be due to some cause, and know not what that cause is, he wonders about it, and from wondering proceeds to inquire. Nor does this inquiry cease until he arrive at a knowledge of the essence of the cause.
If therefore the human intellect, knowing the essence of some created effect, knows no more of God than "that He is"; the perfection of that intellect does not yet reach simply the First Cause, but there remains in it the natural desire to seek the cause. Wherefore it is not yet perfectly happy. Consequently, for perfect happiness the intellect needs to reach the very Essence of the First Cause. And thus it will have its perfection through union with God as with that object, in which alone man's happiness consists, as stated above (Articles [1],7; Question [2], Article [8]).
Reply to Objection 1: Dionysius speaks of the knowledge of wayfarers journeying towards happiness.
Reply to Objection 2: As stated above (Question [1], Article [8]), the end has a twofold acceptation. First, as to the thing itself which is desired: and in this way, the same thing is the end of the higher and of the lower nature, and indeed of all things, as stated above (Question [1], Article [8]). Secondly, as to the attainment of this thing; and thus the end of the higher nature is different from that of the lower, according to their respective habitudes to that thing. So then in the happiness of God, Who, in understanding his Essence, comprehends It, is higher than that of a man or angel who sees It indeed, but comprehends It no

SS. Bernard, Thomas Aquinas, and Venerable Fulton J. Sheen

I wrote of St. Bernard's reference to Rectitude of Intention, or the Will a while ago. Here is the link.

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/st-bernard-on-using-knowledge-as.html

Aquinas as well as Bernard knew what this meant. We need to come to perfect rectitude of the will, otherwise we shall not go to heaven, and not straight to heaven.

Venerable Fulton J. Sheen also wrote on this

Rectitude of Intention

By Bishop Fulton J. Sheen

J.M.J.

I might begin by telling you younger people about the way bishops dress. This [pointing to himself] is what is known as 'choir dress.' It is used formally in churches. Then we have another dress, which is really for social purposes, the black cassock, and a long, long scarlet purple garment called the 'feriola' that reaches all the way to the knees. 

I was once giving a lecture in Cleveland. I arrived just a short time before the lecture, and I had nothing to eat so I asked the members of the committee if they would go with me to the dining room while I had a glass of milk and some graham crackers. I was dressed in this black cassock and long feriola. The waitress in the early 'flirties' took the orders of the men that were with me and then she looked at me and said:

"Well, Cock Robin, what will you have?"

Now, this is not the cock robin dress. But let me tell you about this. This is called a 'rochet.' It is, you see, linen down to the waist and then lace to the knees.

I was in the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Los Angeles, a short time ago, and I went up to my room at night and I found my pajamas on one bed and the rochet on the other.

I know, it takes a little time to get that, but you do.

Now, a word to you, younger people, it is very hard for you to realize that your parents lived in a day when no bicycle needed to be locked, when doors were left unlocked at night, when anyone could walk the streets of a large city without being mugged or attacked. Those were the days of peace. You have never seen them. It probably is hard for you to realize that that is the way America once was.

Now, how did this change come about in America? Why suddenly have we had so much dishonesty?

Let me tell you this story about dishonesty. I was in one of the big hotels of this country. The manager told me that he found a cashier stealing money. This woman had a very wide pocket in her skirt and she would reach in the drawer, take bills, and stick them in.

They saw her and one day they caught her in the act and discharged her. The union said to the hotel, "You may not discharge her. If you discharge her, we will call a strike on the hotel and call everyone out of the hotel."

The litigation went on for about three months. The union won. They had to take the girl back. Do you know what their argument was? The union said the hotel manager never told the girl it was wrong to steal.

The hotel agreed that they never told the girl it was wrong to steal. Then [laughing], how would she know?

See how much the world has changed. How? What made it change? It changed because we want no one limiting us.

You people have heard the popular song, "I've got to be me?" You have sung it yourselves, most of you. "I gotta be free." You want no restraint, no boundaries, no limits. "I have to do what I want to do."

Let us analyze that for a moment. Is that happiness? "I gotta be me? I got to have my own identity?" Are you on a basketball or football team? You cannot be yourself; you have got to live for the team.

The coach of the Oakland Raiders, Coach John Madden, asked me one day:

"What's happening to our Catholic schools? I have boys from Catholic colleges coming to my football team and they say 'I've got to do my thing.' How am I ever going to have a football team if everybody has got to do his own thing?"

A team means doing the other person's thing. But, we want no limits, no boundaries.

Just suppose, now, to get very practical, just suppose your parents never gave you potty training. Think it out. You gotta do your thing. Two things would happen. Today, you would hate your parents for never having trained you and second, you would hate yourself. So, you are what you are today simply because your parents laid hold of you and said, "We're going to train you to use the potty." They did not allow you to do your own thing.

Now, if I've made myself clear up to this point, you're living in an age where freedom is described as license, the right to do whatever your please. But that's chaos.

If everyone did what he pleased, drove a car as he pleased, we'd have disorder in the streets. Certainly you can do whatever you please, you can stuff your Aunt Maise's mattress with old razor blades. You can turn a machine gun on your neighbor's chickens. The, freedom becomes just a physical power. And the one who is most free is the one who is most strong.

So, the world has changed. We used to have laws. We had obedience. We have disciplines. Today, no boundaries, no limits. And, you're not happy that way.

To Act Sinfully is Irrational--Perfection Series Reference

Some of these fantastic talks are no longer available. Try. http://catholicaudio.blogspot.co.uk/2007/08/talks-by-fr-chad-ripperger-fssp.html  Some were given in Cedar Rapids, Iowa and two of my friends were actually there. I have mentioned Father Ripperger on this blog at other times.

Una Voce was one of the groups.

Another talk is here. http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/fr-ripperger-on-sacrifice-of-mass-and.html

Enjoy.