The learned will shine like the brilliance of the firmament, and those who train many in the ways of justice will sparkle like the stars for all eternity.
O God, you made Saint Thomas known for his zeal for holiness and his dedication to sacred doctrine. Help us to grow in wisdom by his teaching and in holiness by imitating his faith.
The liturgical year of the Church brings to the front burner of the spiritual life a number of things at this time of year: questions about salvation, death, hell, heaven, purgatory, Christ’s kingship, conversion, and the like. In fact, a central piece of our spiritual work in the School of Community (of Communion and Liberation) right now is understanding what it means to convert, to live in spirit of conversion, to live as though we REALLY believe in Christ, turning away from sin, and turning toward the Lord. Father Julian Carron is hitting members of Communion and Liberation pretty hard with the call to conversion. However, if truth be told, Father Carron is taking his cue from Pope Benedict. Nevertheless, on the human level, for finite beings we have to be concerned with such things because we don’t live forever, just in case you didn’t know this fact; we are rightly concerned now because once we’re dead, there is no way of making a conversion (sorry, there is no reincarnation).
A professor at the Institute of Philosophy and Theology of Shkodër (Albania), Jesuit Father Mario Imperatori, wrote an essay that caught my eye, “Eschatology and Resurrection of the Body in St. Thomas Aquinas,” published in the current issue of La Civiltà Cattolica (issue # 3849; pp. 257-268). As you know, this periodical is reviewed by the Secretary of State of the Holy See prior to publication.
In the article, Father Imperatori argues, “St. Thomas’s doctrine regarding glorified bodies
is based on the resurrection of the flesh, interpreted in an
anti-spiritualistic manner. For him, in fact, the intellectual soul is the
unique and subsisting shape of the human being; after the resurrection carried
out by God, the body too will share with the soul the same incorruptibility and
bliss; it will be a spiritual body not because it becomes spirit, but because
everything will be subjected to the spirit. Aquinas adds that the human body,
because of its wholeness, will continue to be sexual, despite the absence of
procreation. The Eschatology of St. Thomas has proven controversial, but it has
the merit of asserting the bodily-spiritual reality of man as the ultimate
purpose of creation.”
So, the human body will relate as a sexual being in the eternal life. Interesting. Thanks for letting me know. What joy that will be, don’t you think? I wonder what relating sexually means for a glorified body.
St Thomas Aquinas didn’t have a theological opinion on America’s Independence for obvious reasons, but he did have at least two thoughts on the virtue of the fatherland and a Catholic’s perspective in honoring one’s homeland. He sets in clear terms the proper order of our praise for our origins. Aquinas wrote:
“The virtue of
piety helps us pay worship not only to one’s father but also to one’s
fatherland” (II-II, Q. 102, a3).
And in another place he said, “Our existence and guidance in life come
primarily from God, secondarily from our parents and our native country.
Religion gives expression to the faith, hope and charity which fundamentally
unite us to God; in the same way loyalty expresses the love we have for our
parents and native country” (II-II, Q101, a2).
Just as Holy Thursday and then Corpus Christi focuses our attention on the beauty of Christ’s fulfillment of His promise to remain with us –in the Holy Eucharist– so every Thursday ought to be a day of special prayer (time spent in adoration, Mass, confession of sins, reflection using the works of “eucharistic saints”). And this is the point of this blog: sharing in Communio lived with Christ in the Church among all people. But to the point here, I think any time spent with the Blessed Sacrament “touches eternity, highlighting the relationship between the Eucharistic banquet (the Mass) and the eschatological banquet in the Father’s Kingdom (heaven)” (GIRM 281).
Of the glorious Body telling,
O my tongue, its mystery sing,
and the Blood, all price excelling,
which the Gentiles’ Lord and King,
in a noble womb once dwelling,
shed for this world’s ransoming.
Given for us, for us descending
of a Virgin to proceed,
man with man in converse blending,
scattered He the gospel seed,
till His sojourn drew to ending,
which He closed in wondrous deed.
At the last great Supper lying,
circled by His brethren’s band,
meekly with the Law complying,
first He finished its command,
then, immortal Food supplying,
gave Himself with His own hand.
Word-made-flesh, by word He maketh
very bread, His Flesh to be;
man in wine Christ’s Blood partaketh,
and if senses fail to see,
faith alone the true heart waketh
to behold the mystery.
Therefore we, before Him bending,
this great Sacrament revere;
types and shadows have their ending,
for the newer Rite is here;
faith, our outward sense befriending,
makes the inward vision clear.
Glory let us give and blessing
to the Father and the Son;
honor, might, and praise addressing,
while eternal ages run,
ever too His love confession,
who from Both with Both is One.
Amen.
Blessed be the Lord; for love of him Saint Thomas Aquinas spent long hours in prayer, study, and writing. (Gospel antiphon for Lauds)
The Church has been given the gift of the enduring Presence of the Lord in the Eucharist. Last week celebrated Trinity Sunday and today Corpus Christi. This feast dates to when Pope Urban IV (1261-64) inaugurated the Feast of Corpus Christi and asked Saint Thomas Aquinas (1225-74) to compose the the Liturgy for the Church. A striking feature of today’s Liturgy is singing of a poetic called a sequence, one of four done in the current liturgical life of the Church, though historically there were poetics for all the major feast of the Lord and others for saints. Today’s marvelous sequence Lauda Sion,is sung prior to the proclamation of the Gospel. As all sacred texts do, Lauda Sion expresses Catholic faith in the Body and Blood of Christ. The three verses of Lauda Sion are given here but you may pray the entire text by visiting here.
Words a nature’s course derange,
that in Flesh the bread may change
and the wine in Christ’s own Blood.
Does it pass thy comprehending?
Faith, the law of light transcending,
leaps to things not understood.
Hail! Bread of the Angels, broken,
for us pilgrims food, and token
of the promise by Christ spoken,
children’s meat, to dogs denied!
Shown in Isaac’s dedication,
in the Manna’s preparation,
in the Paschal immolation,
in old types pre-signified.
Jesus, Shepherd mild and meek,
shield the poor, support the weak;
help all who Thy pardon sue,
placing all their trust in You:
fill them with Your healing grace!
Source of all we have or know,
feed and lead us here below.
grant that with Your Saints above,
sitting at the feast of love
we may see You face to face.
Amen. Alleluia.
The Lord led the just in the right paths. And showed him the kingdom of God.
O God, Who does enlighten Thy Church by the wonderful learning of blessed Thomas, Thy Confessor, and makes it fruitful by his holy works; we beseech Thee, grant us both to understand what he taught and to follow his example in what he practiced.
“The law of divine love is the standard for all human actions”
It is evident that not all are able to labor at learning and for that reason Christ has given a short law. Everyone can know this law and no one may be excused from observing it because of ignorance. This is the law of divine love. As scripture says, The Lord will quickly execute sentence upon the earth.
This law should be the standard for all human actions. In the case of products of human manufacture, each product is considered right and good when it conforms to a standard. So also each human act is considered right and virtuous when it conforms to the standard of divine love. But when a human act does not conform to the standard of love, then it is not right, nor good, nor perfect.
This law of divine love accomplishes in a person four things that are much to be desired. First, it is the cause of one’s spiritual life. For it is evident that by the very nature of the action what is loved is in the one who loves. Therefore whoever loves God possesses God in himself; for scripture says, Whoever remains in love remains in God and God in him. It is the nature of love to transform the lover into the object loved. And so if we love God, we ourselves become divinized; for again, Whoever is joined to God becomes one spirit with him. Augustine adds, “As the soul is the life of the body, so God is the life of the soul.” Thus the soul acts virtuously and perfectly when she acts through charity, and through charity God lives in her; indeed, without charity she cannot act; for scripture says, Whoever does not love, remains in death. If a person possesses all the gifts of the Holy Spirit, but lacks charity, that person has no life. For it matters not whether one has the grace of tongues, or the gift of faith, or any other gift such as prophecy; these do not bring life without charity. Even if a dead body should be adorned with gold and precious jewels, it nevertheless remains dead.
The second point about charity is that it leads to the observance of the divine commandments. Gregory the Great says that charity is not idle. For charity is present if one is occupied about great things; but if one is not so occupied, charity is not present. We see a lover do great and difficult things because of the one loved, and that is why the Lord says, Whoever loves me will keep my word. Whoever keeps this command and the law of divine love fulfills the whole law. A third point about charity is that it provides protection against adversity. For misfortune cannot harm one who has charity; rather it becomes useful to that person; as scripture says, All things work for good for those who love God. Furthermore, misfortune and difficulties seem pleasant to the lover, and our own experience verifies this.
A fourth point about charity is that it truly leads to happiness, since eternal blessedness is promised only to those who have charity. For all other things are insufficient without charity. You must note that it is only the different degrees of charity, and not those of any other virtues, which constitute the different degrees of blessedness. Many of the saints were more abstemious than the apostles, but the apostles excel all the other saints in blessedness because of their higher degree of charity.
From a conference by “St. Thomas Aquinas” (Opuscula, In duo praecenta… Ed. J.P. Torrel, in Revue des Sc. Phil. Et Théol., 69, 1985, pp. 26-29.
Saint Thomas Aquinas by Joseph Pieper
Saint Thomas Aquinas by Father Bernhard Thomas Blankenhorn, OP
Various stimulating resources on Aquinas