Saint Alphonsus de Liguori1696-1787 A.D.
St. Alphonsus Liguori wrote many books and is a Doctor of the Church. Everything he did was for the glory of God and the salvation of souls. Starting today I'm going to post chapters of his wonderful work titled 'Devout Reflections on Spiritual Subjects,' published in 1773. Amazingly, these writings will touch our hearts in the way St. Alphonsus wanted: to bring us closer to God in the Hearts of Jesus & Mary! Enjoy!
Reflection 1
On the Thought of Eternity
On the Thought of Eternity
Saint Augustine used to call the thought of eternity "The Great Thought." This thought made the Saints count all the treasures and grandeurs of this life as nothing more than straw, mire, smoke and dung. This thought has driven so many anchorites [hermits] to hide themselves in deserts and caves, and so many noble youths, and even kings and emperors, to shut themselves up in cloisters. This thought has given courage to so many martyrs to endure racks and iron nails and red-hot gridirons and even being burned alive.
No, we are not created for this earth. The end for which God has placed us in the world is this, that by our good works we may merit eternal life. "The end [is] life everlasting." (Romans 6:22). And therefore St. Eucherius used to say that the only affair that we should attend to in this life is eternity, that is, to gain for ourselves a happy eternity and escape a miserable one. "The business for which we work is eternity." If we make sure of success in this business, we shall be happy forever; if we fail in it, we shall be forever miserable.
Happy is he who lives with eternity always in view, with a lively faith that he must shortly die and enter into eternity. "The just man liveth by faith," says the Apostle. (Galatians 3:11). It is faith that makes the just live in the grace of God and that gives life to their souls by detaching them from earthly affections and reminding them of the eternal goods which God holds out to those who love Him.
St. Teresa used to say that all sins had their origin in an absence of faith. Therefore, in order to overcome our passions and temptations, we must frequently revive our faith by saying: "I believe in the life everlasting." I believe that after this life, which for me will quickly finish, there is an eternal life, either full of delights of full of torments, which will be my lot according to my merits or demerits.
St. Augustine also was accustomed to say that a man who believes in eternity and yet is not converted to God has lost either his reason or his faith. "O eternity!" these are his words, "he that meditates upon thee and repents not, either has no faith, or if he has faith, he has no heart." In reference to this, St. John Chrysostom relates that the Gentiles, when they saw Christians committing sin, called them either liars or fools. "Woe to sinners who enter into an eternity which is to them unknown because they would not reflect upon it," exclaims St. Caearius; and then he adds: "But alas, O double woe, they enter it and never come forth!" Wretched beings! For them the gates of Hell open only to admit them, not to release them.
St. Teresa used to repeat to her spiritual daughters: "My children, one soul, one eternity!" She meant to say: My children, we have but one soul, and if that is lost, all is lost; and once lost, it is lost forever. In a word, upon that last breath which we draw in dying depends our being either happy forever, or forever in dispair. If the eternity of the next life--if Paradise, if Hell--were mere opinions of lierary men and things of doubtful reality, even then we ought to take every care to live well and not run the risk of losing our soul forever. But no, for these things are not doubtful; they are certainties; they are truths of faith, much more certain than the things which we see with the eyes of the body.
Let us, then, pray to Our Lord to give us more faith, saying with the Apostles: "Lord, increase our faith!" For, if we are not strong in faith, we may become worse than Luther or Calvin. On the contrary, one thought of lively faith in the eternity that awaits us may make us saints.
St. Gregory says that they who meditate on eternity are neither puffed up by prosperity, nor cast down by adversity because, as they desire nothing in the world, so they fear nothing from the world.
When it happens to us to suffer any infirmities or persecutions, let us remember the Hell which we have deserved by our sins. When we do this, every cross will seem to us light, and we shall thank the Lord and say: It is "the mercies of the Lord that we are not consumed." (Lamentations 3:22). Let us say with David, "Unless the Lord had been my helper, my soul had almost dwelt in hell." (Psalms 93:17). If God had not shown me mercy, I should have already been in Hell, even from the time in which I first offended Him by a grievious sin. Through my own fault I was already lost; it is Thou, O God of mercy, that hast stretched out Thy hand and hast drawn me forth from Hell, "Thou hast delivered my soul, that it should not perish." (Isaias 38:17).
O my God, Thou knowest well how often I have deserved Hell; but notwithstanding this, Thou dost command me to hope, and I will hope. My sins terrify me, but Thy death and Thy promise of pardon to him who repents encourage me. "A contrite and humbled heart, O God, Thou wilt not despise." (Psalms 50:19). I have despised Thee in times past, but now I love Thee above all things, and grieve more than for any other evil that I have offended Thee. O my Jesus, have pity on me.
Mary, Mother of God, intercede for me.
[Public domain]
No, we are not created for this earth. The end for which God has placed us in the world is this, that by our good works we may merit eternal life. "The end [is] life everlasting." (Romans 6:22). And therefore St. Eucherius used to say that the only affair that we should attend to in this life is eternity, that is, to gain for ourselves a happy eternity and escape a miserable one. "The business for which we work is eternity." If we make sure of success in this business, we shall be happy forever; if we fail in it, we shall be forever miserable.
Happy is he who lives with eternity always in view, with a lively faith that he must shortly die and enter into eternity. "The just man liveth by faith," says the Apostle. (Galatians 3:11). It is faith that makes the just live in the grace of God and that gives life to their souls by detaching them from earthly affections and reminding them of the eternal goods which God holds out to those who love Him.
St. Teresa used to say that all sins had their origin in an absence of faith. Therefore, in order to overcome our passions and temptations, we must frequently revive our faith by saying: "I believe in the life everlasting." I believe that after this life, which for me will quickly finish, there is an eternal life, either full of delights of full of torments, which will be my lot according to my merits or demerits.
St. Augustine also was accustomed to say that a man who believes in eternity and yet is not converted to God has lost either his reason or his faith. "O eternity!" these are his words, "he that meditates upon thee and repents not, either has no faith, or if he has faith, he has no heart." In reference to this, St. John Chrysostom relates that the Gentiles, when they saw Christians committing sin, called them either liars or fools. "Woe to sinners who enter into an eternity which is to them unknown because they would not reflect upon it," exclaims St. Caearius; and then he adds: "But alas, O double woe, they enter it and never come forth!" Wretched beings! For them the gates of Hell open only to admit them, not to release them.
St. Teresa used to repeat to her spiritual daughters: "My children, one soul, one eternity!" She meant to say: My children, we have but one soul, and if that is lost, all is lost; and once lost, it is lost forever. In a word, upon that last breath which we draw in dying depends our being either happy forever, or forever in dispair. If the eternity of the next life--if Paradise, if Hell--were mere opinions of lierary men and things of doubtful reality, even then we ought to take every care to live well and not run the risk of losing our soul forever. But no, for these things are not doubtful; they are certainties; they are truths of faith, much more certain than the things which we see with the eyes of the body.
Let us, then, pray to Our Lord to give us more faith, saying with the Apostles: "Lord, increase our faith!" For, if we are not strong in faith, we may become worse than Luther or Calvin. On the contrary, one thought of lively faith in the eternity that awaits us may make us saints.
St. Gregory says that they who meditate on eternity are neither puffed up by prosperity, nor cast down by adversity because, as they desire nothing in the world, so they fear nothing from the world.
When it happens to us to suffer any infirmities or persecutions, let us remember the Hell which we have deserved by our sins. When we do this, every cross will seem to us light, and we shall thank the Lord and say: It is "the mercies of the Lord that we are not consumed." (Lamentations 3:22). Let us say with David, "Unless the Lord had been my helper, my soul had almost dwelt in hell." (Psalms 93:17). If God had not shown me mercy, I should have already been in Hell, even from the time in which I first offended Him by a grievious sin. Through my own fault I was already lost; it is Thou, O God of mercy, that hast stretched out Thy hand and hast drawn me forth from Hell, "Thou hast delivered my soul, that it should not perish." (Isaias 38:17).
O my God, Thou knowest well how often I have deserved Hell; but notwithstanding this, Thou dost command me to hope, and I will hope. My sins terrify me, but Thy death and Thy promise of pardon to him who repents encourage me. "A contrite and humbled heart, O God, Thou wilt not despise." (Psalms 50:19). I have despised Thee in times past, but now I love Thee above all things, and grieve more than for any other evil that I have offended Thee. O my Jesus, have pity on me.
Mary, Mother of God, intercede for me.
[Public domain]
No comments:
Post a Comment
Please no anonymous comments. I require at least some way for people to address each other personally and courteously. Having some name or handle helps.
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.