Livestream of the Wake for Fr. Anthony Bailleres, LC June 13, 2024 4-8pm EST
Livestream of the Wake for Fr. Anthony Bailleres, LC June 13, 2024 4-8pm EST Read More »
June 13, 2024
St Anthony of Padua
Dear Toni,
I empathize with your frustration. Your fellow Compass members must be related to my guards – they too make absolutely no response to my many requests and entreaties. But maybe the problem isn’t with THEM; maybe it’s with US. Maybe nobody listens to our great ideas and eloquent harangues because our lives discredit us. Your predicament makes me think of a couple sentences spoken centuries ago by today’s saint, a true marvel among men.
Anthony was born in Lisbon, Portugal, and entered religious life when he was only 15. For nine years he prayed and studied and grew in the love of God, especially through spending time with the Holy Scriptures. Then he met some Franciscans and felt called to join up so he could become a martyr while trying to convert the Muslims in North Africa. He set sail, but a storm drove them off course and he ended up disembarking on the shores of Italy. Soon he had met St Francis of Assisi and was assigned to a hermitage in northeastern Italy.
One day, during the celebration that followed a large ordination ceremony, he was serendipitously invited to give the traditional speech (he hadn’t been scheduled to do so, but miscommunication had produced an embarrassing situation in which neither the Dominicans nor the Franciscans present had prepared the required talk). His eloquence and learning, acquired so humbly during his years back in Portugal and his long commute to Italy, so shocked the assembly that he was immediately sent out to preach among all the towns and cities of northern Italy. His fame erupted overnight, as did a sweeping moral reform and widespread return of heretics.
His holiness was so palpable that often just the sight of him brought sinners to their knees. People used to spend the night inside churches in order to assure a good seat for the morning’s sermon. Once he converted a heretic mule driver when he inspired the mule to genuflect in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament. Soon he added a professorship in theology to his list of responsibilities, and when he died at the young age of 34, he had sufficiently impressed the Pope and the people of Italy with his fervent and contagious love for God and the Holy Scriptures that he was canonized in less than a year.
In one of his remarkable sermons, Anthony gave the following observation: “Actions speak louder than words; let your words teach and your actions speak. We are full of words but empty of actions, and therefore are cursed by the Lord, since he himself cursed the fig tree when he found no fruit but only leaves. It is useless for a man to flaunt his knowledge of the law if he undermines its teaching by his actions.” Maybe if you and I took that little lesson to heart, and started ACTING more like Christ instead of just TALKING about Christ, we would have a better effect on people. It’s worth considering, anyway.
Your devoted uncle,
Eddy
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June 13, 2024 – Keep Your Words Short and Sweet
Memorial of Saint Anthony of Padua, Priest and Doctor of the Church
Matthew 5:20-26
Jesus said to his disciples: “I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter into the Kingdom of heaven. You have heard that it was said to your ancestors, ‘You shall not kill; and whoever kills will be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you, whoever is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment, and whoever says to his brother, ‘Raqa,’ will be answerable to the Sanhedrin, and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ will be liable to fiery Gehenna. Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar, and there recall that your brother has anything against you, leave your gift there at the altar, go first and be reconciled with your brother, and then come and offer your gift. Settle with your opponent quickly while on the way to court with him. Otherwise your opponent will hand you over to the judge, and the judge will hand you over to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison. Amen, I say to you, you will not be released until you have paid the last penny.”
Introductory Prayer: Father of love, source of all blessings, you have led me throughout my life, and you lead me still. Thank you for your paternal care. Jesus, Son of God, you died for me on the cross to pay for my sins and manifest your unconditional love for me. Thank you for showing me the way home to the Father. Holy Spirit, sweet guest of the soul, you heal me and strengthen me and set me on fire from the most intimate depths of my soul. Thank you for your loving presence within me.
Petition: Jesus, meek and humble of heart, make my heart more like yours.
- Anger in Our Hearts: Jesus is speaking here in particular about anger, that is, a desire for revenge or an attitude that simply refuses to forgive. Jesus always brings us back to the human heart. Actions flow from decisions made in the heart, even if not immediately evident. When we cultivate a sentiment in our heart—be it good or evil—it will eventually find ways of coming to fruition. “Be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun set on your anger, and do not leave room for the devil” (Eph 4:26-27). Any unwillingness to forgive leads to resentment in the heart and ultimately destroys lives and relationships. “What does it mean to forgive, if not to appeal to a good that is greater than any evil?” (Pope Saint John Paul II, Memory and Identity, p. 15).
- Insults Are Grave Matters: “Sticks and stones may break my bones…” Each one of us knows firsthand the penetrating power of words. With them one may edify or destroy, enhance or tarnish, heal or wound. It is rather striking that Jesus refers to insults towards “a brother or sister”: in other words, insulting those closest to us, especially those closest to our heart. It is no revelation that those we love the most are also the ones most capable of wounding us deeply, and vice versa. What dagger could ever penetrate more than an unkind word from a loved one? The true revelation is that God takes each word we speak seriously. In fact, he will hold us accountable for them because the words are an outward manifestation of what we have in our hearts. The power of words reveals the weight of words.
- Hold No Grudges: “If you remember that your brother or sister has something against you…” This phrase makes us shift a little in our seats. Jesus gives us a tremendous view into God’s heart. God’s very essence is a unity of love—three persons, one nature. We are made in God’s image, and we are made to live forever in union with God. But so too are my brothers and sisters. If we have done anything to wound the union of love with those around us, then we must repair the breach. In fact, it is so important to God (and so important for us) that God will not accept our “offering” if we have consciously wounded the unity with those around us. Bring those particularly difficult relationships to prayer and draw the strength from God to love as we should. He will not ask for some virtue and then refuse his grace.
Conversation with Christ: Lord, teach me to love, and help me to be a saint. You have created me and called me to the Catholic faith. Help me to live that faith generously, living the primacy of love in my daily life. Mother Most Pure, make my heart only for Jesus.
Resolution: Today I will do three hidden acts of charity.
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