Suffering With Joy

Sabbath Moments

March 2, 2013

Awareness of God

Welcome to Sabbath Moments, the meme hosted by Colleen at Thoughts on Grace. Won’t you join us?

Spiritual reading

Each morning as part of  my prayer time during Lent I’ve been reading two meditations from my new treasury of stations which I wrote about here. I’m doing this for the practical reason of getting acquainted with the individual sets in the treasury and also to be inspired by the Lord’s passion. Since I can’t get out for Stations on Fridays, this is a way to participate throughout the week and keeps those Sabbath Moments alive.

Sleet, snow, and rain

God has blessed us with quite a bit of precipitation this week which will help with the drought.  Rain on the roof, sleet striking the windows, and snow swirling in the air are tangible reminders that God is there and always keeping us and our needs in mind.

Good-bye Pope Benedict

I watched the Pope’s exit from St. Peter’s and his final farewell at Castel Gandolfo, the bells tolling in the background. A sentence from his final words really struck me: “I am simply a pilgrim beginning the last leg of his pilgrimage on this earth.” Again his humility, clear vision, and sense of purpose struck me.  What he said applies to me. None of us knows how long we will live, but as we age if we are gripped by the reality of our mortality and our final end, we know as our now Pope Emeritus said, that we are on the last leg of our pilgrimage to the holy site of heaven.

The Church is engaged in a pitched battle with the forces of evil within and without Her Mystical Body. Although this has been true from the beginning, it seems much more intense in this Godless age. If we could hear the sounds of the hell going on around us, we might well be deafened.

St. Jerome, c. mid 1500s, Jan Sanders van Hemessen, oil on panel, Rockox House, Antwerp

The world attacking the Holy Father and the Church is understandable.  More difficult to understand and accept are the attacks from the faithless shepherds, especially those in high places who are polluting Her from within and who are totally committed to Her destruction. The extent of corruption in the Curia and in bishops’ conferences around the world is almost too much to take in.  Judases everywhere. The battle Benedict XVI has taken on now will be fought behind closed doors in prayer and penance.

We have a great history of hermits in the Church. Holy men and women who fled to the desert to devote every hour of their days to silence, prayer, and penance are part of our tradition. God permitted the devil to physically attack many of them and they endured severe hardship.  They were and are the great spiritual warriors who held up the rest of the faithful in prayer. Our Pope Emeritus is joining this band of hermits, although not in an actual desert but in a small monastery on Vatican grounds. He will continue his study and writing, too, as St. Jerome did in his desert, outside of the view of the world.  

I am confident that this last leg of his pilgrimage on earth will help the Church purge Herself of much of the internal corruption, and will help make the New Evangelization fruitful.  We won’t see it, but we will experience the results. Whoever the next Pope is, he will be immeasurably strengthened by Benedict XVI’s prayers. And ours, too. Let us also remember that His Holiness will need our prayers to finish his course on earth valiantly. We’re all in this together.

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V. Praised be Jesus Christ!

R. Now and forever!

(Click on the link above to read why I end my posts this way.)

Tags: Pope Benedict XVI

4 Comments to Sabbath Moments

1. 

   You are right, sadly, Barbara, in that the faithless shepherds are attacking the Church. The devil is clever. How best to attack than from within the Headquarters.

   I believe God spoke to the Pope and having thanked him, asked him to make way for a younger healthier Pope to continue the fight.

   God bless.
   Victor S E Moubarak recently posted..Hard-hearted Unforgiving God?
Victor S E Moubarak on March 2nd, 2013
2. 

   Love your list of sabbath moments. The treasure of stations sounds wonderful. You must feel cozy in your house with that weather going on outside!

   Love your words about the Pope and his final pilgrimage. I am sure he is a powerful intercessor for the Church. And that is what we need.
   Colleen recently posted..Sunday Snippets – March 3
Colleen on March 2nd, 2013
3. 

   It’s tempting to pray for the “right” next Pope by filling in the blank on what I think the Church needs. I have to just trust that the Spirit will make sure we get the Pope God thinks we needs.
   Kathleen Basi recently posted..Sunday Snippets
Kathleen Basi on March 3rd, 2013
4. 

   Kathleen, you are so right. God’s idea of what we need is all that counts. I hope the Cardinals will enter into the conclave submissive to His inspiration.
barb on March 3rd, 2013