A Word on Wednesday, Wednesday, February 29, 2012, St Mark the Ascetic

'Do not argue with people not under obedience to you when they oppose the truth; otherwise you may arouse their hatred.' 

Cardinal George Speaks Out

Cardinal George of Chicago has some apt observations on the planned HHS mandate:

Freedom of worship was guaranteed in the Constitution of the former Soviet Union. You could go to church, if you could find one. The church, however, could do nothing except conduct religious rites in places of worship-no schools, religious publications, health care institutions, organized charity, ministry for justice and the works of mercy that flow naturally from a living faith. All of these were co-opted by the government. We fought a long cold war to defeat that vision of society.

The strangest accusation in this manipulated public discussion has the bishops not respecting the separation between church and state. The bishops would love to have the separation between church and state we thought we enjoyed just a few months ago, when we were free to run Catholic institutions in conformity with the demands of the Catholic faith, when the government couldn’t tell us which of our ministries are Catholic and which not, when the law protected rather than crushed conscience. The state is making itself into a church.

He paints a bleak picture of what our government is trying to do, but he's can't be far off; something to think about.

The Desert Fathers, Sunday, February 26, 2012, St Gregory The Great

Image via WikipediaHe, therefore, who sets himself to act evilly and yet wishes others to be silent, is a witness against himself, for he wishes himself to be loved more than the truth, which he does not wish to be defended against himself. There is, of course, no man who so lives as not sometimes to sin, but he wishes truth to be loved more than himself, who wills to be spared by no one against the truth. Wherefore, Peter willingly accepted the rebuke of Paul; David willingly hearkened to the reproof of a subject. For good rulers who pay no regard to self-love, , take as a homage to their humility the free and sincere words of subjects. But in this regard the office of ruling must be tempered with such great art of moderation, that the minds of subjects, when demonstrating themselves capable of taking right views in some matters, are given freedom of expression, but freedom that does not issue into pride, otherwise, when liberty of speech is granted too generously, the humility of their own lives will be lost. St. Gregory The Great, Pastoral Care

What the Heck is a Florilegia Anyway?

Image via WikipediaWhat are "florilegia?"  I'm sure you've been asking that question.  Here's a definition from The Catholic Encyclopaedia:

Florilegia (Lat., florilegium, an anthology) are systematic collections of excerpts (more or less copious) from the works of the Fathers and other ecclesiastical writers of the early period, compiled with a view to serve dogmatic or ethical purposes. These encyclopedic compilations — Patristic anthologies as they may be fitly styled — are a characteristic product of the later Byzantine theological school, and form a very considerable branch of the extensive literature of the Greek Catenæ
Two classes of Christian florilegia may here be distinguished: the dogmatic and the ascetical, or ethical. The dogmatic florilegia are collections of Patristic citations designed to exhibit the continuous and connected teaching of the Fathers on some specific doctrine. The first impulse to compilations of this nature was given by the Christological controversies that convulsed the Eastern Church during the fifth century, when, both at the gatherings of the great church councils and in private circles, the practical need had made itself definitely felt, of having at hand, for ready reference, a convenient summary of what the Fathers and most approved theologians had held and taught concerning certain controversial doctrines. Such a summary, setting forth the views of Nestorius and the mind of the orthodox Fathers, was first laid before the Council of Ephesus, in 431, by St. Cyril of Alexandria. Summaries of dogmatic utterances were used also at the Council of Chalcedon in 451, and at the Fifth General Council in 533. But it was not until the seventh century that the dogmatic florilegia assumed a fully developed and definite form. At the Sixth General Council, in 680, two of these collections played a very prominent rôle, one, constructed by Macarius, the Patriarch of Antioch, in favour of the Monothelites, and the other, a counter collection presented by the legates of Pope Agatho. During the Iconoclastic controversy similar collections were produced. Mention is made of one on the cult of relics and images which the Synod of Jerusalem sent to John, Bishop of Gothia, about 760.

I learned from Fr. Michael Casey's excellent book, Toward God, that the term has been applied to compiliations of memorable Scripture passages done by medieval monks and I choose to take that meaning as the title for the lectio texts I post each week.  It's a stretch, but what can be done?

Friday Florilegia

This is the suggested text for your use for lectio during the coming week. It's from Wednesday's readings.

Reading 1 Jon 3:1-10

The word of the LORD came to Jonah a second time:
"Set out for the great city of Nineveh,
and announce to it the message that I will tell you."
So Jonah made ready and went to Nineveh,
according to the LORD's bidding.
Now Nineveh was an enormously large city;
it took three days to go through it.
Jonah began his journey through the city,
and had gone but a single day's walk announcing,
"Forty days more and Nineveh shall be destroyed,"
when the people of Nineveh believed God;
they proclaimed a fast
and all of them, great and small, put on sackcloth.

When the news reached the king of Nineveh,
he rose from his throne, laid aside his robe,
covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in the ashes.
Then he had this proclaimed throughout Nineveh,
by decree of the king and his nobles:
"Neither man nor beast, neither cattle nor sheep,
shall taste anything;
they shall not eat, nor shall they drink water.
Man and beast shall be covered with sackcloth and call loudly to God;
every man shall turn from his evil way
and from the violence he has in hand.
Who knows, God may relent and forgive, and withhold his blazing wrath,
so that we shall not perish."
When God saw by their actions how they turned from their evil way,
he repented of the evil that he had threatened to do to them;
he did not carry it out.

A Word on Wednesday, Wednesday, February 22, 2012, St Therese of Lisieux

Image via Wikipedia

"Look at His adorable face.
Look at His glazed and sunken eyes.
Look at His wounds.
Look Jesus in the Face.
There, you will see how He loves us."

~ St. Therese of Lisieux

Weekly Lectio

I'd like to begin a new series of posts each week consisting of a text selected from the Mass readings for the following week. My hope is these will be useful to you in beginning, or continuing your own practice of daily prayer with the Scripture. I intend to use these texts myself. If this is helpful, or not, or if one text seems especially to touch your prayer, your comments will be welcome. The first text is Psalm 19, from Monday's readings.

PSALM 19
The Works and the Word of God.
For the choir director. A Psalm of David.

                The heavens are telling of the glory of God;

And their expanse is declaring the work of His hands.

    2         Day to day pours forth speech,

And night to night reveals knowledge.

    3         There is no speech, nor are there words;

Their voice is not heard.

    4         Their line has gone out through all the earth,

And their utterances to the end of the world.

In them He has placed a tent for the sun,

    5         Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber;

It rejoices as a strong man to run his course.

    6         Its rising is from one end of the heavens,

And its circuit to the other end of them;

And there is nothing hidden from its heat.

    7         The law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul;

The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple.

    8         The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart;

The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes.

    9         The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever;

The judgments of the Lord are true; they are righteous altogether.

  10         They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold;

Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb.

  11         Moreover, by them Your servant is warned;

In keeping them there is great reward.

  12         Who can discern his errors? Acquit me of hidden faults.

  13         Also keep back Your servant from presumptuous sins;

Let them not rule over me;

Then I will be blameless,

And I shall be acquitted of great transgression.

  14         Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart

Be acceptable in Your sight,

O Lord, my rock and my Redeemer. ^[1]

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^[1] New American Standard Bible : 1995 update. 1995 (Ps 19:1–14). LaHabra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.