Happiness and fullness of being in communion, not suffering, did God make us

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God did not create us for suffering and renunciation, but for happiness, for life; not for an ephemeral happiness during life in this world, but for an eternal and unfailing life, which can be found in God alone. However, God passes by unnoticed by our senses, whereas the things of this world press upon us and entice us from all sides, leading us to seek our happiness in them.

From this arises the necessity of controlling and mortifying their immoderate tendency toward pleasure, their looking for satisfaction in creatures. For those who desire to attain to the fullness of life in God, St. John of the Cross, in full accord with the gospel, suggests that they gradually accustom themselves to gving up any sensory satisfaction that is not purely for the honor and glory of God. . .out of love for Jesus Christ. In his life, he had no other gratification, nor desired any other, than the fulfillment of his Father's will which he called his meat and food (Ascent of Mount Carmel I 13-4).

Again it is a question of not seeking our joy and delight in pleasures of sense, which satisfy selfishness, self-love, and attachment to creatures, but in the will of God, in what pleases him. If we would be spiritual persons, we must force ourselves to change the direction of our inclination toward pleasure by detaching it from the goods of earth and turning it decisively toward God, until we can repeat with Jesus: I always do what is pleasing to him (John 8:29).

Father Gabriel of St. Mary Magdalen, OCD
Divine Intimacy

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Paul A. Zalonski is from New Haven, CT. He is a member of the Fraternity of Communion and Liberation, a Catholic ecclesial movement and an Oblate of Saint Benedict. Contact Paul at paulzalonski[at]yahoo.com.

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This page contains a single entry by Paul Zalonski published on March 27, 2012 6:12 AM.

Pope Benedict tells Cuba: We can no longer continue in the same cultural and moral direction was the previous entry in this blog.

The Golden Rose given to Our Lady of Charity of Cobre, Cuba is the next entry in this blog.

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