“Do not look for rest in any pleasure, because you were not created for pleasure: you were created for Joy. And if you do not know the difference between pleasure and joy you have not yet begun to live. - Thomas Merton
(How/when do you experience joy? Pray for the grace to experience the joy of the Holy Spirit.)
Readings of the Day
Acts 18:9-18; Ps 47:2-3, 4-5, 6-7
Jn 16:20-23
Jesus said to his disciples: "Amen, amen, I say to
you, you will weep and mourn, while the world rejoices; you will grieve, but your grief will become joy. When a woman is in labor, she is in anguish because her hour has arrived; but when she has given birth to a child, she no longer remembers the pain because
of her joy that a child has been born into the world. So you also are now in anguish. But I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away
from you. On that day you will not question me about anything. Amen, amen, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in my name he will give you."
The cross for Jesus was not defeat but victory - victory over sin, over the forces of evil in the world, and over the devil - the arch-enemy of God and the human race. Through his atoning sacrifice on the cross Jesus won for us new
abundant life and freedom over the power of sin, despair, and death. He was raised in power from the tomb on the third day and his glorified body will never taste death again. The Easter victory of the Lord Jesus gives us courage, strength, and confident hope in the face of suffering and death. In the resurrection of Jesus Christ our fears are laid to rest. His resurrection is total and final triumph over death, and for us peace and joy in the confident hope that we, too, will be raised to
everlasting life with Christ.
We will have trials in this present age - .but, through the eyes of faith, we know the final outcome - complete victory over sin, suffering, and death in Jesus Christ. That is why we can pray confidently now, knowing that the Father in heaven will give us everything we need to live as his children and as disciples of our Lord Jesus Christ. Do you know the Easter joy of Christ's
victory over sin and death?
Lord Jesus, we are an Easter people, and alleluia is our song. Fill us with your Holy Spirit that we may we radiate the joy of your Resurrection and live in the reality of your great victory over sin and
death.
III. THE CRISIS AND EFFECTS OF MODERN ANTHROPOCENTRISM
The Need to Protect Employment
127. We are convinced that “man is the source, the focus and
the aim of all economic and social life”.[100] Nonetheless, once our human capacity for contemplation and reverence is impaired, it becomes easy for the meaning of work to be misunderstood.[101] We need to remember that men and women have “the capacity to improve their lot, to further their moral growth and to develop their spiritual endowments”.[102] Work should be the setting for this rich personal growth, where many aspects of life enter into play: creativity, planning for the future,
developing our talents, living out our values, relating to others, giving glory to God. It follows that, in the reality of today’s global society, it is essential that “we continue to prioritize the goal of access to steady employment for everyone”,[103] no matter the limited interests of business and dubious economic reasoning.
128. We were created with a vocation to work. The goal should not be that
technological progress increasingly replace human work, for this would be detrimental to humanity. Work is a necessity, part of the meaning of life on this earth, a path to growth, human development and personal fulfilment. Helping the poor financially must always be a provisional solution in the face of pressing needs. The broader objective should always be to allow them a dignified life through work. Yet the orientation of the economy has favoured a kind of technological progress in which the
costs of production are reduced by laying off workers and replacing them with machines. This is yet another way in which we can end up working against ourselves. The loss of jobs also has a negative impact on the economy “through the progressive erosion of social capital: the network of relationships of trust, dependability, and respect for rules, all of which are indispensable for any form of civil coexistence”.[104] In other words, “human costs always include economic costs, and economic
dysfunctions always involve human costs”.[105] To stop investing in people, in order to gain greater short-term financial gain, is bad business for society.
Listed below are several traditional methods of prayer and reflection. As St. Frances de Sales noted, we learn to pray by praying, but it is also good to try different methods to see which seem to help facilitate connection with God. Indeed, the more we learn different methods, the better we can sense how the Spirit is moving us to pray for any given prayer time.
First, you choose a passage of Scripture that you will pray with. It might be the Gospel reading used in the liturgy of the day, or anything else you want. The process then follows these steps:
Reading (lectio) After settling in and quieting yourself,read the passage slowly, prayerfully. Just let it sink in for a minute or two, then read it a second time, paying closer attention to the words or phrases that speak to you.
Reflecting (meditatio) What do you hear God saying to you in this passage? What words or phrases caught your attention?
Responding (oratio) What do you want to say to God in response to what you've heard? Here you can also voice your prayers of petition, remorse, thanksgiving, praise, and so forth. If you sense God speaking to you in your thoughts, feelings or imagination, you respond as you would in any conversation.
Resting (contemplatio) If, at any time, you feel drawn to simply rest in the awareness of God's loving presence, you let yourself do so. Remain in loving silence as long as you feel comfortable, perhaps using a simple word or phrase from the Scripture passage to
help deepen your openness to rest in God (see Centering Prayer method, below)
(Works best after a period of Lectio Divina, as described above; two 20 minute periods a day are recommended.)
This term, centering prayer, is of recent origin, but the method is described in many places, most notably The Cloud of Unknowing.
1. Choose a sacred word as the symbol of your intention to consent to God's presence and action within. (This can be any word.)
2. Sitting comfortably and with eyes closed, settle briefly, and silently introduce the sacred word as the symbol of your consent to God's presence and action within.
3. When you become aware of thoughts, return ever-so-gently to the sacred word.
4. At the end of the prayer period, remain in silence with eyes closed for a couple of minutes.
Hesychast Prayer ("quiet" prayer)
(This form of contemplative practice was widely used by the fathers and mothers of the desert in the early days of Christianity and is still very popular in Eastern Christian churches. At least two 20 minute prayer periods are recommended.)
1. Sit quietly, with back straight and hands resting in the lap, palms up.
2. Lovingly introduce into your mind the prayer, "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me." (Note: this may be shortened as the prayer proceeds).
3. Let this prayer move in synchrony with your breath, praying the first part with your inhalation, the second with exhalation.
4. When distracting thoughts attempt to break in, persist with the Jesus Prayer. Allow yourself to feel your emotions, however.
Practice of this prayer may lead to feelings of warmth in the heart and perception of inner light. Enjoy. . .
Christian Meditation (The World Community for Christian Meditation)
John Main was a Benedictine monk who recovered the Christian tradition of using one word in meditation, as practised by the Desert monks especially John Cassian, and taught it as a spiritual discipline for people from all walks of life.
The way to stillness of spirit and transcendence of the self, is to learn to recite interiorly one word over and over again for the duration of the meditation session. WCCM recommend the word "maranatha" (come Lord). Say it in equally stressed syllables, silently and not moving the lips, and listen to it with all your attention. Let go of thoughts, ideas and the use of the imagination, and each time
distractions occur return to saying the word.
In remaining faithful to the one word or mantra, and by reciting it in twice daily sessions of between 10 and 30 minutes with poverty of spirit and humility, it will open the heart to the Spirit of Love. Purity of heart is the main concern. The rest is God's gift.
Praying With Scripture (Benedictine Approach)
1. Relax. Settle in. Be aware that God is here, now, loving you.
2. Read a short passage of Scripture as though God were speaking directly to you in it.
3. Choose a phrase from the passage that strikes you and repeat it slowly, prayerfully, non-analytically.
4. When your heart is full, express to God the needs and sentiments awakened by your meditation. When you're done, read another passage and repeat steps 3 and 4.
5. If, at any time, you feel moved to simply be present to God in loving silence, put the Scripture aside and rest in God.
Here is a practice used by many at the end of the day to see what lessons can be learned and how God was present and active through the day. Set aside fifteen to twenty minutes at the end of the day for prayer and review of your day. A suggested format is described below:.
1. Take a few moments of quiet. Breathe deeply. Ask God to help you see yourself as you truly were during the day.
2. Look back over your day - not to see what you did wrong but to honestly acknowledge what was going on with you and others.
What happened? What did I do today?
How did I feel? Why did I feel that way?
Were my expectations and beliefs reasonable?
3. Affirm the healthy things you recognize.
4. Admit to yourself and God the unhealthy things. Ask God's forgiveness, believe it is yours, then decide if you need to apologize or make amends.
5. Use creative visualization to grow stronger. Honestly acknowledge the troubling situations of the day. See and feel yourself acting honestly and lovingly in these situations. Ask God for the grace to help you act in this new way.
6. Close with simple awareness of the sights and sounds around you, grateful for the good things in your life.
This process can be undertaken as a daily journal exercise or by prayerfully reviewing your day in your own mind. I like to take a walk before bedtime for examen. The important thing is to do it. It is a discipline, to be sure, but a very important one.
