Paul Zalonski – Page 325

Attention in Prayer

This morning on my train ride into the City, I was reading a monograph by Archabbot Lambert Reilly, OSB, the emeritus archabbot of St Meinrad Archabbey, “Prayer: A Conversation with God.” I recommend it. Why? Because I need to be reminded that prayer is not a monologue but a dialogue; it is the heart speaking to the Heart. I also have to remember it is not about me exclusively but about Him who is greater than I.

The Archabbot is conversational in his presentation; one would be tempted to think that there’s a lot of words but no content because he’s narrating his experience. On the contrary, this essay-turned-talk is full of good advice on prayer; it was prepared for Benedictine Oblates but is applicable to many others. Get the piece if you can.

Archabbot Lambert speaks of three types of attention in prayer:

1. “the attention by which we are lost in God.” A short-lived experience of God; a gift from Himself; no strings attached; +Lambert quotes Saint Teresa of Avila: “Don’t seek the consolations of God; seek the God of consolations.”

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Saint Stephen of Hungary

On this feast of Saint Stephen of Hungary let us pray for civil leaders, especially for Hungary, for missionaries and for those who work with stone.

Saint Stephen of Hungary, pray for us.

Clelia Merloni’s canonization cause advances, miracle investigated

The Apostles of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the congregation of sisters founded by the Servant of God Mother Clelia Merloni (1861-1930), are thankful that the diocesan phase of a miracle attributed to Mother Clelia was closed on 11 April 2011. The documentation is now at the Congregation for the Causes of Saints at the Holy See. These efforts move Merloni one step closer to beatification.

The Diocese of Rome which is handling the study for Mother Clelia’s cause finished its work on 1 April 1998; on 7 August 1999, approval from the Congregation for Saints the diocesan work. The postulator is Father Luca M. DeRosa, OFM.

This year marks Mother Clelia’s 150th anniversary of birth; she was a native of Forli, Italy. Her mother died when Clelia was 4 years old and her grandmother raised her. She died on November 21, 1930.

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Assumption of Mary, Mother of God

In the Ascension, the Lord, with His Resurrection, has
become the Master of the World. Therefore, there is One among us who will save
everything that we are, who is so powerful as to save our life, as to preserve
it entire in order to give it back to us whole by forgiving our sins. The
demonstration of this is the mystery of the Assumption, when He took Our Lady’s
humanity and did not leave her in the clutches of death even for an instant.

With
the mystery of the Assumption, the Lord says, “You see, I will not let you lose
anything of what I have given you, of what you have used, of what you have
tasted, even of what you have misused, if you are humble with me. Blessed are
the poor in spirit, that is to say: if you acknowledge that everything is
grace, that everything is mercy, because your criteria are nothing, my
criterion will be everything.” Our Lady is already at this ultimate, profound
level of Being from which all beings draw substance, life, and destiny. This is
why she was bodily lifted into heaven, where the Mystery of God dwells: so that
she would be for us, daily, the Mother of the event.

The glorification of Our
Lady’s body indicates the ideal of Christian morality, the valuing of every
moment, every instant. Therefore it is the prizing of life, of our existence,
the life of the world’s body, it is the exaltation of matter lived by the soul,
lived by the consciousness which is relationship with God. It is the prizing of
our earthly life, not because it is a lucky one due to particular
circumstances, but because through even the smallest things is borne our
relationship with the Infinite, with the mystery of God

(Luigi Giussani, The
Holy Rosary)

In the Virgin Mary’s Assumption we have a path to our destiny in the God

Today’s feast celebrates the ultimate fulfillment of Mary’s
journey as God’s faithful and humble servant. As we reflect on this joyful
feast, we hopefully realize that she is inviting us and teaching us to sing the
Magnificat [the text for today’s Gospel] along with her as we continue along
our own journeys, however near or far the fulfillment of our journey remains.
We too are invited to proclaim in joy and humble service the compassion and
justice of our God. Today’s feast assures us that like Mary, in serving the
reign of God, we too will one day share in her destiny. (Father Damian, Abbot of Saint Joseph’s Abbey, Spencer)

The Office of Readings leads us to shout for joy:

Dearest brethren, this is a time
when all flesh should shout for joy, because the Mother of the Word made flesh
is assumed into heaven; nor should human mortality desist from singing songs of
praise on this glorious festival, when the nature of man is elevated in the
Virgin to solitary eminence, high above all the orders of immortal spirits. (Saint Bernard, Second Nocturn)

Saint Maximillian Kolbe

“Without sacrifice, there is no love. May his intercession further purge us of our idolatries and the sentimentalities that so mar our worship, our loves, our fatuous claims to modernity and maturity.”

(Saint Maximilian Kolbe writing to a fellow priest)

a small garden with a punch

Father Giussani spoke of sacrifice in our context as including what we do with our spare time. When we have time to spare, do we read, do we pray, do we spend quality time with family, friends, or our beloved, do we watch hours of TV, or, do we help the poor and needy? How we spend our free time reveals who we are as persons. How we use time speaks of our values and how we flourish.

Some of my free time –which time is a premium these days– is spent with two gardens. Spending time in the garden is relaxing and keeps me grounded (pun intended) and it allows me to unwind, and to pray. Plus, it keeps me connected with my heritage. My grandparents would be so proud.

My large garden is a flower garden (under the patronage of St Francis of Assisi) and the small garden (see above is under the patronage of St Fiacre) is a vegetable garden.

Thus far, I’ve harvested lots of cucumbers of which I made pickles but some went to salads, others went to family and other cukes went to a local monastery. Tomatoes are coming now; I had my first two yesterday. AND, I picked my first cayenne pepper for my pickles today and I am waiting for my habaneros. Oh, yea, my horseradish is finally showing signs of growth.

Today, the leaks replaced the cucumbers and the squash plants are growing daily.

The pickles I made two weeks ago are delicious, if I say so myself; they have a slight kick due to the hot peppers added and garlic. The pickle recipe comes from my friend and colleague Tom.

Today’s pickle batch were prepared for a CL picnic at the end of the month.

Silence is the environmental condition to listen to God

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Mentioned earlier this week, the Pope spoke of silence and monasteries as places of beauty and the environment that opens the soul to deeper things. I have a particular interest in what the Pope speaks: I love the monastic culture and the heritage it has given us in order to seek the Face of God. Here’s more of the papal text of August 10, 2011:

In every age, men and women who have consecrated their lives to God in prayer – like monks and nuns – have established their communities in particularly beautiful places: in the countryside, on hilltops, in valleys, on the shores of lakes or the sea, or even on little islands. These places unite two elements which are very important for contemplative life: the beauty of creation, which recalls that of the Creator, and silence, which is guaranteed by living far from cities and the great means of communication. Silence is the environmental condition that most favors contemplation, listening to God and meditation. The very fact of experiencing silence and allowing ourselves to be “filled,” so to speak, with silence, disposes us to prayer. The great prophet, Elijah, on Mount Horeb – that is, Sinai – experienced strong winds, then an earthquake, and finally flashes of fire, but he did not recognize the voice of God in them; instead, he recognized it in a light breeze (cfr. 1 Rev 19:11-13). God speaks in silence, but we need to know how to listen. This is why monasteries are oases in which God speaks to humanity; and there we find the courtyard, a symbolic place because it is a closed space, but open toward heaven.

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Author: Paul Zalonski