St. Francis de Sales

The Feast of St. Francis de Sales was celebrated today, according to the traditional Calendar. It was celebrated last week, on the 24th, in the New Calendar.

A Thought from St. Francis de Sales:
Don't lose any opportunity, however small, of being gentle toward everyone. Don't rely on your own efforts to succeed in your various undertakings, but only on God's help. Then rest in His care of you, confident that He will do what is best for you, provided that you will, for your part, work diligently but gently. I say "gently" because a tense diligence is harmful both to our heart and to our task and is not really diligence, but rather over eagerness and anxiety... I recommend you to God's mercy. I beg Him, through that same mercy, to fill you with His love.


St. Frances has been named a doctor of the Church for the wisdom of his teaching. For anyone desiring to draw closer to God, Tan Books sells a helpful book he wrote: An Introduction to the Devout Life. No matter what job you hold, no matter what kind of life you have led in the past, you can follow Christ more faithfully, starting now.

The book describes how to avoid particular sins and how to strengthen particular virtues, with meditations to stir in the soul a love of its Creator. The book's chapters are short and self-contained, allowing you to jump in anywhere from the table of contents, to find advice on particular issues in your life. The brevity, clarity and sincerity of the chapters also make them suitable for evening devotional reading. It is a book that leads the reader directly to prayer and repentance.

"Participatio Nonsensio"?!

The blogger at "Catholic Sensibility" seems to regret the prospect of a greater availability of the traditional Mass, and demands that traditionalists be open to unspecified changes to the Mass and to unspecified "reforms of Vatican II", which to my ears is as vague and vulnerable to abuse as an openness to guidance from "the Spirit of Vatican II".

My reply:

I am one hoping for greater availability of the traditional Mass. Having been born in 1962, I can hardly be nostalgic for the 50’s. Too young to remember the old Mass, I am still old enough to have watched the old sensibilities fade out. After the new Mass arrived, we still knelt for Holy Communion, and genuflected when crossing in front of the tabernacle, and maintained a prayerful quiet before and after Mass, remembering that we were in the house of the Lord.

But over the last 35 years, I have seen the people of my parish behave at Mass more and more like they were in a meeting hall, rather than a church. The traditional piety that was lost here seems to have survived in the traditional Masses. With traditional Catholics less marginalized, it is my hope that some of the practices that led people to sincere worship of God in the past will benefit more people in the future.

The “individualistic, private Sunday experience” that Eric decries is the Mass that spiritually formed St. Francis of Assisi and St. Francis de Sales, St. Teresa of Avila and St. Thérèse of Lisieux, and many more holy saints besides, through which the Catholic Church has been blessed. The traditional Mass is nothing to sneer at.

It is not the mutability of the Mass that makes it a living form of worship; it is the presence of the Lord, and the adoration of His people.

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Saint Paul wrote:

Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle. Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God, even our Father, which hath loved us, and hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts, and establish you in every good word and work. Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may have free course, and be glorified, even as it is with you: and that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men: for all men have not faith. But the Lord is faithful, who shall establish you, and keep you from evil. And we have confidence in the Lord touching you, that ye both do and will do the things which we command you. And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the patient waiting for Christ.

2 Thessalonians 2:15 - 3:5

The Spiritual and Corporal Works of Mercy

How many of these have you done recently? Out of all fourteen Works of Mercy, I think the fourth and seventh from the second list are the most difficult to accomplish in some way. Stretching the point a little, the fourth can be supported by supporting PNCEA Prison Ministries, an organization that serves the spiritual and religious needs of Catholic inmates in American prisons. Doing something personally would be better, but one can't do everything.

How to do something about #7? Maybe contribute to disaster relief, after a major disaster?

The Seven Spiritual Works of Mercy
1. To admonish sinners.
2. To instruct the ignorant.
3. To counsel the doubtful.
4. To comfort the sorrowful.
5. To bear wrongs patiently.
6. To forgive all injuries.
7. To pray for the living and the dead

The Seven Corporal Works of Mercy
1. To feed the hungry.
2. To give drink to the thirsty.
3. To clothe the naked.
4. To visit and ransom the captives.
5. To harbor the harborless.
6. To visit the sick.
7. To bury the dead