ST JOSEPH'S ABBEY, SPENCER MA

Agapeic love is not a sentimental whim or a physical attraction, both of which are doomed to fade away quickly, and anyway do not come at will. No. It is the awareness of God's love for another person. Only God can enable us to understand our neighbor according to the feeling, the intuition of the spirit. Then we perceive in him an irreducible personal existence beyond limitation and errors, Beyond even the disappointment we may have felt for a moment. The other is in the image of God, not of us. When we begin to feel in its fullness the love of God, we begin also to love our neighbor in the experience of the spirit. That is the love of which the Scriptures speak. For friendship according to the flesh breaks down too easily on the slightest pretext. The reason is that it lacks the bond of the spirit. Therefore even if a certain irritation takes hold of the soul on which God is acting, that does not break the bond of love. For if it has b...

We only love if we have first been loved. Hear what the apostle John has to say. He it was who learnt on the masters heart and resting there drank in heavenly secrets... Among the other secrets which the great seer drew from that source he showed us this: We love him because he first loved us (1 John 4:10). Ask how anyone can love God and you will find no other answer than this: God first loved us. He whom we love has given himself first. He has given himself so that we may love him. What was his gift? The apostle Paul states it more clearly: God's love has been poured into our hearts . By what means? Through us perhaps? No. Through whom then? Through the Holy Spirit which has been given to us (Romans 5:5). Full of this testimony let us love God through God... The conclusion imposes itself on us and John states it for us still more succinctly: God is love and he who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him (1 John 4:16). It is...

Christ himself declared, speaking of the bread, This is my body . Who will dare then to hesitate in future? And when he himself asserts categorically that, This is my blood , who will doubt it and say it is not his blood? CYRIL OF JERUSALEM Mystagogical Catecheses, IV,1 For those acquainted with the hidden meaning of the Scriptures, the invitation to the mystery that was given to the apostles is identified with that of the Song of Songs: Eat, O friends, and drink deeply. In both cases, in fact, it is said, Eat and drink deeply ...and the intoxication is Christ himself. GREGORY OF NYSSA Homilies on the Song of Songs , 10

To pray everywhere is not only possible, it is a duty, because the universe is primarily a place of worship. Prayer, by going deep into transcendence and so demonstrating the human being's transcendence, enables grace to penetrate the creation and reveal its secret holiness. OLIVIER CLÉMENT, The Roots of Christian Mysticism; Part 3, Approaches to Contemplation Every Christian, even if he lacks any education, knows that every place is a part of the universe and that the universe itself is the temple of God. He prays in every place with the eyes of his senses closed and those of his soul awake, and in this way he transcends the whole world. He does not stop at the vault of heaven but reaches the heights above it, and, as though out of this world altogether, he offers his prayer to God, led by God's Spirit. ORIGEN  Against Celsus , 7,44

Speaking at the Wednesday, October 18 General Audience , Pope Francis expressed concern for the humanitarian situation in Gaza, calling on all parties to lay down their weapons. The Pope has   invited everyone to join in a day of prayer, fasting, and penance for peace. On Friday, Oct. 27, he is encouraging people of different Christian denominations, other religions, and all those who advocate for peace to participate as they see fit.  The Holy Father also drew attention to the unsettling possibility of the conflict's expansion. "The world already witnesses so many open war fronts." In light of these circumstances, he implored, "Lay down weapons and heed the cries for peace from the poor, the people, and the innocent children." "War solves no problems," he said. "It only sows death and destruction, increases hatred, multiplies revenge. War erases the future." The Holy Father went on to urge all believers to take one side only: that of peace. ...

Two men who wanted to see the sunrise would be very foolish to argue about the place where it will appear and their means of looking at it, then to let their argument degenerate into a quarrel, from that to come to blows and in the heat of the conflict to gouge out each other's eyes. There would no longer be any question then of contemplating the dawn... Let us who wish to contemplate God purify our hearts by faith and heal them by means of peace; for the effort we make to love one another is already a gift from him to whom we raise our eyes Augustine of Hippo Sermons , 23, 18  

He prays unceasingly who combines prayer with necessary duties and duties with prayer. Only in this way can we find it practicable to fulfill the commandment to pray always. It consists in regarding the whole of Christian experience as a single great prayer. What we are accustomed to call prayer is only a part of it. ORIGEN On Prayer, 12 Brother Lawrence felt it was a great delusion to think that the times of prayer ought to differ from other times. We are as strictly obliged to adhere to God by action in the time of action, as by prayer in its season. His own prayer was nothing else but a sense of the presence of God, his soul being at that time insensible to everything but Divine Love. When the appointed times of prayer were past, he found no difference, because he still continued with God, praising and blessing Him with all his might. Thus he passed his life in continual joy. BROTHER LAWRENCE OF THE RESURRECTION The Practi...

”Contemplation must be possible if man is to remain human.”   “Man has an instinctive need for harmony and peace, for tranquility, order, and meaning. None of those seem to be the most salient characteristics of modern society.”   “…there had once existed a more leisurely and more spiritual way of life – and that this was the way of their ancestors.”   “We must face the fact that the mere thought of contemplation is one which deeply troubles the person who takes it seriously. It is so contrary to the modern way of life, so apparently alien, so seemingly impossible, that the modern man who even considers it finds, at first, that his whole being rebels against it.”   “We would like to be quiet, but our restlessness will not allow it.”   “We seek the meaning of our life in activity for its own sake, activity without objective, efficacy without fruit, scientism, the cult of unlimited power, the service of the machine as an end in itself.”   “The reason for this...

The Pharisees went off and plotted how they might entrap him in speech.  They sent their disciples to him, with the Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that you are a truthful man and that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. And you are not concerned with anyone’s opinion, for you do not regard a person’s status.  Tell us, then, what is your opinion: Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar or not?” Matthew 22:15–17 It has been said that “the enemy of my enemy is my friend.” In other words, two people who are enemies with each other will often join together if they see an opportunity to jointly attack an even greater enemy. This is what was happening in today’s Gospel. Jesus was considered the greatest enemy of the Pharisees and the Herodians, and both of these groups joined together in a plot to trap Jesus even though they greatly disliked each other. The Pharisees were very nationalistic and were strict observers of the Law of Moses. It was their view...

“... the Trappist world appeals to me as a model of wisdom...so infinitesimally is the day divided among different occupations. The man who keeps rabbits, for example, hurries from his hutches to the chapel, or the chapter-room, or the refectory, all day long: every hour he has an office to sing, a duty to perform; from two, when he rises in the dark, till eight, when he returns to receive the comforting gift of sleep, he is upon his feet and occupied with manifold and changing business. I know many persons, worth several thousands in the year, who are not so fortunate in the disposal of their lives... We speak of hardships, but the true hardship is to be a dull fool, and permitted to mismanage life in our own dull and foolish manner.”   ―   Robert Louis Stevenson  

"People will tell you that silence in a monastery is something sad, a difficult point of the Rule. Nothing could be more mistaken than that idea. Silence in a Trappist monastery is the most cheerful jargon imaginable! Indeed, if God enabled us to read hearts, we would see that from a glum-looking Trappist who passes his life in silence, there flows in steady streams a gloriously jubilant song to his Creator, a song full of love for and joy in his God, the loving Father who cares for and comforts him." Saint Raphael Arnaz Baron

  Medallion with Saint Luke from an Icon Frame Byzantine  ca. 1100 On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in   Gallery 303 Used with permission Since many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the events that have been fulfilled among us, just as those who were eyewitnesses from the beginning and ministers of the word have handed them down to us, I too have decided, after investigating everything accurately anew, to write it down in an orderly sequence for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may realize the certainty of the teachings you have received. ~Luke 1:1–4 Luke is credited with writing the Gospel of Saint Luke and the Acts of the Apostles. According to the fourth-century historian, Eusebius, Luke “was of Antiochian parentage and a physician by profession, and…was especially intimate with Paul and well acquainted with the rest of the apostles” (3.4). Saint Paul identifies Luke in several of his epistles as being his close companion and as a physician.  Th...

The Monastery speaks to us of a presence, of someone who lives there, and invites us to dwell with Him. We search for God and He for us, and the Abbey becomes a home for a lifetime.

Abbot's Homily: Br. Joseph, the words of the prophet Hosea have been going through my mind in preparation for your solemn profession: “I drew them with human cords, with bands of love. I fostered them like those who raise an infant to their cheeks; I bent down to feed them.” Is this not what Jesus has done for you, drawing you back into this wilderness of Spencer to speak to your heart? Today’s celebration is all about the ways that God has drawn us to himself and you to your monastic consecration.   But what exactly are these bands of love? When Hosea says that we are drawn by God with bands of love and human cords, he is speaking in metaphor. God’s bands of love are not leather straps or harnesses. No, God draws us by his acts of love, sometimes gently, sometimes forcefully—we learn this quickly in monastic life. At one time, he is like a mother lifting her child to her cheeks and gazing into his eyes; at another, like a father who sees his child about to run out onto a busy ...

In a heartfelt call for peace and reconciliation in the Holy Land, the Latin Catholic Patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, has issued a plea for a day of prayer and fasting set for Tuesday, October 17. As tensions and violence escalate in the region, this initiative aims to deliver a resounding message of hope, unity, and solidarity amidst the chaos. The cardinal has urged Catholics to join together in this spiritual endeavor, with a focus on Eucharistic adoration and the recitation of the rosary.  The date, October 17, coincides with the feast of St. Ignatius of Antioch, the first-century bishop and martyr from Syria, adding a layer of spiritual significance to the initiative.

"In this, truly, friendship shines forth with a special right of its own, that among those who are bound by the tie of friendship, all joys, all security, all sweetness, all charms are experienced." "And so in friendship are joined honor and charm, truth and joy, sweetness and good-will, affection and action. And all these take their beginning from Christ, advance through Christ, and are perfected in Christ. Therefore, not too steep or unnatural does the ascent appear from Christ, as the inspiration of the love by which we love our friend, to Christ giving himself to us as our Friend for us to love, so that charm may follow upon charm sweetness upon sweetness and affection upon affection. And thus, friend cleaving to friend in the spirit of Christ, is made with Christ but one heart and one soul, and so mounting aloft through degrees of love to friendship with Christ, he is made one spirit with him." — Aelred of Rievaulx

From the Gospel according to Luke Lk 10:38-42 Jesus entered a village  where a woman whose name was Martha welcomed him.  She had a sister named Mary  who sat beside the Lord at his feet listening to him speak.  Martha, burdened with much serving, came to him and said,  "Lord, do you not care  that my sister has left me by myself to do the serving?  Tell her to help me."  The Lord said to her in reply,  "Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things.  There is need of only one thing.  Mary has chosen the better part  and it will not be taken from her." WORDS FROM POPE FRANCIS Martha’s “philosophy” seems to be this: first duty, then pleasure. In effect, hospitality is not composed of fine words, but demands that you roll up your sleeves, that everything necessary is done so the guest feels welcome. Jesus is well aware of this. And indeed, he acknowledges Martha’s effort. However, he wants to make her understand t...

We are God’s tenants, guests, and stewards. (Is 5:1 - 7 and Mt 21:33 - 43) Jesus said to the chief priests and the elders of the people: “Hear another parable.” St. Matthew seems to be on a roll! Today’s parable of the “Wicked Tenants” is the second of three parables directed to the chief priest and elders. Preceding it is the parable of the two sons, which we heard last Sunday and which confronted the Jewish leaders with their lack of response to John the Baptist, a failure that is compounded by a subsequent lack of faith in Jesus. That parable issued a summons to change their minds and believe in Jesus before it is too late. The third parable, which we will hear next Sunday, is about a king who gives a wedding feast for his son, but the invited guests repeatedly ignore the invitation and refuse to come, and mistreat and even kill the messengers. In the end, the king’s servants are told to go out into the streets and gather everyone they find...

Saint Bruno meditating on a skull Francesco Rosaspina   Italian After   Jusepe de Ribera (called Lo Spagnoletto)   Spanish Publisher   Lodovico Inig   Italian  1780–1840 From the Met Collection, Used with permission Saint Bruno is believed to have been born into the wealthy and influential Hardebüst family in the city of Cologne, in modern-day Germany. His family’s status would have ensured him a good education and a successful career. As a teenager, he was sent to the prestigious Cathedral School of Rheims, in the Kingdom of France, about 200 miles from his hometown. After completing his studies, he returned to Cologne where he was made a canon at Saint Cunibert Church. It is most likely at that time that he was ordained a priest. In 1056, when Canon Bruno was about twenty-six years old, he was called back to Rheims by the bishop, given a canonry at the Cathedral, taught at the School of Rheims, and was later made rector of the school. These distinctions s...

Jesus appointed seventy-two other disciples whom he sent ahead of him in pairs to every town and place he intended to visit. He said to them, “The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest. Go on your way; behold, I am sending you like lambs among wolves.”    Luke 10:1–3 Why would our Lord send His disciples out like lambs among wolves? At first, this might be concerning and cause us to wonder if our Lord were sending them into a situation in which they would encounter harm. Saint Ambrose, in commenting on this, explains that there is no reason for these disciples to fear, since Jesus is the Good Shepherd Who always protects His sheep. It’s helpful to reflect upon what sort of danger these disciples would encounter on this mission and all future missions and to contrast that danger with the only form of danger we should fear. The “wolves” in this situation are especially some of the cruel religious and c...

Saint Francis of Assisi receiving the stigmata Johann Sadeler I   Netherlandish After   Bernardo Castello   Italian 1580–1600 From the Met Collection; Used with permission Francis of Assisi was most likely born in the year 1181 in the small town of Assisi, Italy, about 100 miles north of Rome. He was born into the merchant class, his father being a seller of fine silk. As a youth, Francis was known to be quite lively, often the center of attention among friends. As a teenager, he enjoyed parties and singing and was quite worldly. His father wanted Francis to join him in the family business, which Francis did with disinterest. He was far more interested in his friends and in having a good time than he was in work. This caused tensions at home on a regular basis. As a young adult, Francis had dreams of doing great things. However, the “great things” he dreamt of had much more to do with obtaining worldly honors than with honoring God. One of his chief desires was to become ...