Transcript On the Spiritual Life – Part 1

I want to see God – St. Teresa of Avila
ON THE SPIRITUAL LIFE
WHERE ARE YOU GOING?
WHY ARE YOU HERE?
Who has anything to say on this?
 What does the world say?

What does the music say?
 What do the movies say?


What does God say?
Eye has not seen nor ear heard, nor has it entered into
the heart of man, what things God has prepared for
those who love him. (I Corinthians 2:9)
 God made me to know Him, to love Him, and to serve
Him in this world, so as to be happy with Him forever in
the next – Baltimore Catechism

WHY ARE YOU HERE?

Instant Gratification


Eat, drink, and be merry
for tomorrow we die!
You’re an animal, so act
like it!



Eternal Gratification



Eating, drinking, sex
No possibility of any
other satisfaction
Good things come to
those who wait.
Immortality of the soul
Desire for complete truth
and perfect goodness
Earthly things do NOT
satisfy our desires
 Having more does NOT
solve the problem


Desire for eternity
DEATH

I want to see God, and in order to
see Him, I must die – St. Teresa of
Avila
You will not live forever
 Your earthly life has a definitive end
 There is a stopping point


You will die…any questions?

What is death?

Separation of body and soul
JUDGMENT

Matthew25 – Judgment on the Nations


Come, O blessed of my Father, inherit
the kingdom prepared for you from the
foundation of the world; for I was hungry
and you gave me food, I was thirsty and
you gave me drink, I was a stranger and
you welcomed me, I was naked and you
clothed me, I was sick and you visited
me, I was in prison and you came to
me.…Truly, I say to you, as you did it to
one of the least of these my brethren,
you did it to me.
At the evening of life, we shall be
judged on our love – St. John of the
Cross
HELL

You can go to hell!


Jesus solemnly proclaims that he "will send
his angels, and they will gather . . . all evil
doers, and throw them into the furnace of
fire,” (Mt13:41-42) and that he will
pronounce the condemnation: "Depart
from me, you cursed, into the eternal
fire!”(Mt25:41)


Vatican II (LG, 48); Paul VI (Credo)
CCC, 1037 – God predestines no one to go
to hell; for this, a willful turning away from
God (a mortal sin) is necessary, and
persistence in it until the end.
It’s FOREVER! AND IT’S SUFFERING THAT IS
INCOMPARABLE!
ST. FAUSTINA ON HELL
The First Torture that constitutes hell is:
The loss of God.
 The Second is: Perpetual remorse of
conscience.
 The Third is: That one's condition will
never change.
 The Fourth is: The fire that will penetrate
the soul without destroying it. A terrible
suffering since it is a purely spiritual fire,
lit by God's anger.

ST. FAUSTINA ON HELL
The Fifth Torture is: Continual darkness
and a terrible suffocating smell, and
despite the darkness, the devils and the
souls of the damned see each other
and all the evil, both of others and their
own.
 The Sixth Torture is: The constant
company of Satan.
 The Seventh Torture is: Horrible despair,
hatred of God, vile words, curses and
blasphemies.

ST. FAUSTINA ON HELL

Indescribable Sufferings: There are
special Tortures destined for particular
souls. These are the torments of the
senses. Each soul undergoes terrible
and indescribable sufferings related to
the manner in which it has sinned. I
would have died
ST. FAUSTINA ON HELL

No One Can Say There is No Hell: Let the sinner
know that he will be tortured throughout all
eternity, in those senses which he made use of
to sin. I am writing this at the command of God,
so that no soul may find an excuse by saying
there is no hell, or that nobody has ever been
there, and so no one can say what it is
like...how terribly souls suffer there!
Consequently, I pray even more fervently for the
conversion of sinners. I incessantly plead God's
mercy upon them. O My Jesus, I would rather be
in agony until the end of the world, amidst the
greatest sufferings, than offend you by the least
sin." (Diary 741)
PURGATORY

CCC, 1030 – All who die in God's grace and friendship,
but still imperfectly purified, are indeed assured of their
eternal salvation; but after death they undergo
purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to
enter the joy of heaven.




Those who die with unforgiven venial sins or with unpaid
temporal punishments
How can we be perfectly purified on earth?
CCC, 1031 – …entirely different from the punishment of
the damned…the tradition of the Church speaks of a
cleansing fire:
Rev21: 22, 27

I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God
the Almighty and the Lamb. …But nothing unclean shall
enter it, nor any one who practices abomination or
falsehood, but only those who are written in the Lamb's
book of life.

How are we avoid being unclean?
HEAVEN

A.K.A. – Eternal Life, Eternal Glory, the Beatific
Vision, Eternal Beatitude, Seeing God face-to-face

CCC, 1023 – Those who die in God's grace and
friendship and are perfectly purified live for ever with
Christ. They are like God for ever, for they "see him as
he is," face to face
HEAVEN

Rev21:3-4 – Behold, the dwelling of God is with
men. He will dwell with them, and they shall be his
people, and God himself will be with them; he will
wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death
shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning
nor crying nor pain any more, for the former things
have passed away.
HEAVEN


The joy will be greater than we can
conceive. We shall enter into a great sea of
divine and eternal joy, which will fill us
within and without, and surround us on all
sides. – St. Robert Bellarmine
Heaven is not divided by the number of
those who reign, nor lessened by being
shared, nor disturbed by its multitude, nor
disordered by its inequality of ranks, nor
changed by motion, nor measured by time.
– St. Bonaventure
FINAL JUDGMENT &
RESURRECTION OF THE BODY

When Christ returns, we shall rise again


…all who are in the tombs will hear [the Son
of man's] voice and come forth, those who
have done good, to the resurrection of life,
and those who have done evil, to the
resurrection of judgment (Jn5:28-29)
4 Qualities of the Resurrected Body
Subtlety – able to pass through matter
 Agility – move by thought
 Luminosity – light of glory
 Freedom from pain and suffering


CCC, 1041 – The message of the Last
Judgment calls men to conversion while God
is still giving them "the acceptable time, . . .
the day of salvation.“ (2Cor6:2)
HOW TO GET TO HEAVEN


1 Thessalonians 4:1-3
My brothers, we beg and
exhort you in the Lord Jesus
that, even as you learned
from us how to conduct
yourselves in a way pleasing
to God – which you are
indeed doing – so you must
learn to make still greater
progress. You know the
instructions we gave you in
the Lord Jesus. It is God’s
will that you grow in
holiness…
HOW TO GET TO HEAVEN

Who is called/able to go to Heaven?
 A.
Only Catholics
 B. Old Ladies
 C. People that are not “cool”
 D. Everyone
 E. Only Christians
HOW TO GET TO HEAVEN

The universal call to holiness: BE HOLY

Lumen Gentium, No. 40: Thus it is evident to everyone,
that all the faithful of Christ of whatever rank or status,
are called to the fullness of the Christian life and to the
perfection of charity…They must follow in His footsteps
and conform themselves to His image seeking the will
of the Father in all things. They must devote themselves
with all their being to the glory of God and the service
of their neighbor.
HOW TO GET TO HEAVEN

The universal call to holiness
 Bl.
JPII – …since Baptism is a true entry into the
holiness of God through incorporation into Christ
and the indwelling of his Spirit, it would be a
contradiction to settle for a life of mediocrity,
marked by a minimalist ethic and a shallow
religiosity. (from his Apostolic Letter at the Close of
the Jubilee Year 2000)
HOW TO SUCCEED: AIDS TO HOLINESS

Grace
 God’s
life in us
 John 15:5 – Jesus said: Without Me, you can do
nothing.

Penance
1
John 2:16 – for conquering the world, the flesh,
the Devil
 Luke9:23 – If any man would come after me, let
him deny himself and take up his cross daily and
follow Me
HOW TO SUCCEED: AIDS TO HOLINESS

Life of Virtue
Habitual inclination to do the good with ease,
promptitude, and joy
 Cardinal & Theological Virtues


God’s Guidance
Commandments
 Beatitudes
 Gifts of the Holy Spirit


Prayer (private & public)
Daily conversation with God
 Sacraments (esp, the Eucharist & Confession)

7 CAPITAL SINS
Pride
 Lust
 Greed
 Gluttony
 Envy
 Anger
 Sloth

JOHN 12:24

"Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat
falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone;
but if it dies, it bears much fruit.
FRUITS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
Charity
 Joy
 Peace
 Patience
 Kindness
 Goodness

Generosity
 Gentleness
 Faithfulness
 Modesty
 Self-control
 Chastity

THE PARABLE OF THE BARREN FIG TREE
6And he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree
planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit
on it and found none. 7And he said to the
vinedresser, ‘Look, for three years now I have come
seeking fruit on this fig tree, and I find none. Cut it
down. Why should it use up the ground?’ 8And he
answered him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I
dig around it and put on manure. 9Then if it should
bear fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you
can cut it down.’”
TYPES OF PRAYER

VOCAL
 Personal
– Formal & Informal
 Public (Liturgical)
MEDITATIVE
 CONTEMPLATIVE

VOCAL PRAYER

Formal (traditional prayers) & Informal
 Formal
– liturgical prayer & traditional prayers (Our
Father, Hail Mary, etc.) – teach us how to think, act,
and pray, what to pray for
 Informal – words from the heart
 “Prayer

is a conversation with Him whom my heart loves”
Involving the whole person (body & soul)
 Most
readily accessible to groups
 An initial form leading to contemplative prayer
VOCAL PRAYER: THINGS TO SAY




To adore / praise
To ask pardon
To give thanks
To make petitions




Adoration
Contrition
Thanksgiving
Supplication / Petition
ADORATION: TO ADORE

Recognition (praise) of God’s
perfection and our
dependence upon him.
“the first attitude of man
acknowledging that he is a
creature before his Creator” –
CCC, 2628
 Arises from love of God for who
He is
 Consider the language of two
who are in love: “I adore you”

ADORATION: TO ADORE

From “latria”, Latin word
used only with reference to
God
 Distinct
from “dulia” and
“hyperdulia”

Should consume most of our
time in prayer
CONTRITION: TO ASK PARDON

Begging pardon for our sins


Love Story – “Love means never
having to say you’re sorry” – WRONG!!!
We confess our faults because we
trust in the love of Him to whom we
confess
We are reluctant if we think they’ll stop
loving us, reject us
 “He will love me only if I perform well
enough, only if I prove that I deserve
His love, only if I am worthy”
 Requires humility and honesty

THANKSGIVING: TO GIVE THANKS

Recognizing and appreciating what God has
done
 Arises
from love of God for what He has done
 Recognizing that we have been loved and have
been given an abundance of gifts freely and lovingly
 Characterizes the prayer of the Church (eucharistia
– thanksgiving)
THANKSGIVING: TO GIVE THANKS

This could take awhile – there’s
ALWAYS something to be grateful
for…
Give thanks in all circumstances; for
this is the will of God in Christ Jesus
for you – 1 Thess5:18
 JPII: Thank you, Jesus, for loving me in
that way
 Gratitude is always good medicine for
depression, resentment, fear, doubt,
and lovelessness

SUPPLICATION: TO MAKE PETITIONS

Praying for temporal goods that will lead us to
God
 Temporal
goods for ourselves or for others
(intercession)
 Should be the shortest of all our prayers

Acknowledges our dependence upon our
Father
 “We
are creatures who are not our own beginning,
not the masters of adversity, not our own last end”
– CCC, 2629
SUPPLICATION: TO MAKE PETITIONS

Spend less time on “ourselves” and
more time on “others” b/c there are
more of them
In intercession, he who prays looks "not only
to his own interests, but also to the interests
of others," even to the point of praying for
those who do him harm. – CCC, 2636
 The intercession of Christians recognizes no
boundaries: "for all men, for kings and all
who are in high positions," (1 Tim2:1) for
persecutors, for the salvation of those who
reject the Gospel. – CCC, 2636

VOCAL PRAYER

Remember that, in spite of all your words, there’s still
need to listen


Be still and know that I am God – Ps46:10
STOP, LOOK, LISTEN



STOP: Stop doing everything else you are doing; perhaps the
hardest thing to do! We cannot simply pray on the run; God
is not background music.
LOOK: you cannot communicate with someone unless you
make eye contact with them
LISTEN: If you’re speaking to a wise man, the wise should
speak; the dumb should listen – listen to the Word
LITURGICAL PRAYER

Formal, vocal prayer – official public
prayer of the Church




The voice of the Bride speaking to her
Beloved
Divine Office / Liturgy of the Hours
The Sacrifice of the Mass / 7
Sacraments
Goal: to give honor and praise to God
(worship) & to obtain blessings for
humanity (sanctification)
MEDITATIVE PRAYER


St. Basil the Great: Silence is the beginning of
purification in the soul
…the mind seeks to understand the why and
how of the Christian life, in order to adhere
and respond to what the Lord is asking. The
required attentiveness is difficult to sustain –
CCC, 2705


Use Scripture; sacred art; writings of the Fathers,
Doctors, and Saints; book of creation; book of
history – CCC, 2705
About passing from thought to life

“Lord, what do you want me to do?”
MEDITATIVE PRAYER

Lectio Divina – silent, meditative prayer with
Sacred Scripture
 Dates from the
3rd Centuries)

time of the monks & hermits in the desert (2nd-
The Steps
 Prepare:
get your Bible & find a quiet place
 Read: read the passage you’ve selected slowly & quietly
 Meditate: Put yourself in the passage; use your senses to help
 Pray: talk to God about what you’ve discovered
 Rest: silently wait and listen for something from God
 Act: decide on a way to put this little insight into place in your
daily life
MEDITATIVE PRAYER


The outcome of the fruit of reading Holy Scripture is
by no means negligible: it is the fullness of eternal
happiness…The purpose of the Scriptures, which
come to us from God, is to lead us to this fullness
according to the truths contained in those sayings of
the Apostles…In order to achieve this, we must study
Holy Scripture carefully, and teach it and listen to it in
the same way. – St. Bonaventure
Ignorance of Scriptures is ignorance of Christ – St.
Jerome
MEDITATIVE PRAYER
…necessary in order to deepen our convictions
of faith, prompt the conversion of our heart,
and strengthen our will to follow Christ. – CCC,
2708
 Aids us in drawing closer to God

 From
Him
knowledge of Him to love of Him / union with
CONTEMPLATIVE PRAYER

Two types
 Natural
/ acquired – being recollected, at peace
within our soul
 Supernatural / infused – God making us aware of
His Presence with us
 This
is the ultimate goal of contemplative prayer
CONTEMPLATIVE PRAYER

Contemplative prayer is a close sharing
between friends…taking time frequently to be
alone with Him who we know loves us – St.
Teresa of Avila
 One
makes time for the Lord, with the firm
determination not to give up, no matter what trials
and dryness one may encounter
 our attention is fixed on the Lord Himself (as
opposed to His words)
CONTEMPLATIVE PRAYER
Prayer is a simple look turned
toward heaven – St. Therese
 We let our masks fall…so as to
hand ourselves over to him

 The
poor and humble surrender
to the loving will of the Father in
ever deeper union with his
beloved Son.
CONTEMPLATIVE PRAYER

Contemplative prayer is…
 Prayer
of the sinner having been
loved, who wants to give back
(Love is repaid by love alone)
 A gift from God accepted by the
humble heart
 The pre-eminently intense time
of prayer
CONTEMPLATIVE PRAYER

Contemplative prayer is…
A
gaze of faith: I look at Him
and He looks at me
 Hearing and responding to the
word of God
 Silent love – St. John of the
Cross
 Communion with Christ in the
night of faith
ON THE RIGHT PATH
Just as the body matures through physical/
biological changes, so the soul must mature
 We can’t wait till the last minute
 3 Stages of the Interior Life

 Purgative
 Illuminative
 Unitive
THE PURGATIVE STAGE: THE BEGINNING


I train my body and bring it into subjection – 1Cor9:27
Penance and mortification/self-discipline inspired by
fear of the Lord to subject the flesh and purify the soul
through self-denial





Amount of mortification based on the sins we have
committed after Baptism
Denying our passions & desires (which are contrary to God)
Making room for Him who wishes to fill us with Himself
Marked by MEDITATION
Living in the state of grace (no mortal sins), certain
desire for perfection, but some attachment to deliberate
venial sins
THE PURGATIVE STAGE: THE BEGINNING

Objection: I feel like a liar when I claim to want
perfection because I don’t think it’s a
possibility for me.
 'Your
inconstancy ought not to alarm you, but
inspire you to keep very near to him who is all your
strength. He loves to see that we are making
efforts to be pleasing to him, even when these
efforts are not always as happy as we would have
them‘ – Bl. Columba Marmion
THE ILLUMINATIVE STAGE: ADVANCING
Be followers of me, as I also am of Christ –
1Cor4:16
 Principle duty: imitation of Christ



Practicing the virtues


Must have a profound conviction to remain on the path
Faith, Hope, & Love; Prudence, Temperance, Justice, &
Fortitude
Marked by AFFECTIVE PRAYER
Expressing our love of God & our desire to glorify Him
 Gratitude, praise, and delight in God
 Spirit of sacrifice – desire to give ourselves for God

THE UNITIVE STAGE: THE GOAL

I live, now not I, but Christ lives in me – Gal2:20


Living always in God’s Presence, love of God is the
“only” virtue, life is a perpetual prayer


I do always the things that please Him – Jn8:29
Marked by CONTEMPLATION


Not just fearing God or imitating Him, but Him alive in
me
A loving, lingering thought of God
Such people have: a great purity of heart, great
mastery over self, constant need of thinking of
God
HOW TO GAUGE SUCCESS: ST. PAUL

THE WORKS OF THE FLESH (Galatians5:19-21)
 Now
the works of the flesh are plain: fornication,
impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmity,
strife, jealousy, anger, selfishness, dissension,
factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and the
like. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those
who do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of
God.
HOW TO GAUGE SUCCESS: ST. PAUL

FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT (Galatians5:22-23)


The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,
goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such
there is no law.
1Cor13:4-8 – Love is patient and kind; love is not jealous or
boastful; it is not arrogant or rude. Love does not insist on its
own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at
wrong, but rejoices in the right. Love bears all things,
believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love
never fails…
Last thoughts on Prayer
Almost anyone can love God partially. A saint loves God totally.
ON THE SPIRITUAL LIFE
WHEN TO PRAY


Pray always, without ceasing –
1Thess 5:16
Start where you are, but don’t stay
there…

Start where you are; worst-case
scenario:


Reasonable goal: 30 minutes a day


Start with 10 minutes a day
Consider how much time you give to other
things…
BUT don’t stay there…

It should continue to increase depending
on your vocation
WHAT TO SAY

Start with the basics: A.C.T.S.
It’s okay to use others’ words to get started; it’s like
using training wheels…but you don’t use training
wheels forever!
 If others’ words are the only words lovers use to each
other, they are not lovers but performers.


It’s a relationship of love: I have called you friends
(Jn15:16)

It will become easier; as the friendship deepens, it’ll
just become natural
WHERE TO PRAY

The Church or other Holy
sites
 Being
in the (Sacramental)
Presence of Him to whom
we are speaking
A personal “prayer
corner”
 Everywhere
(because…pray always)

WHY PRAY
He who prays will be saved; he who does not
pray will be damned. – St. Alphonsus Ligouri
 If you’re looking to stop sin in your life, PRAY

 He
who does not give up prayer cannot possibly
continue to offend God habitually. – St. Alphonsus
Liguori

Perfection and simplicity is not an option for
the elite few; it is the prerequisite for Heaven
…the only alternative is hell
QUIZ 1 REVIEW

The 4 last things


What is death? (according to the teaching of the Church)





Separation of body and soul
How many judgments? What are they?


Death, Judgment, Heaven, Hell
2: particular judgment (right after death) and general
judgment (end of time)
Purgatory
4 characteristics of the resurrected body
The universal call to holiness
Who will go to Heaven?








TRUE
FALSE
Union with Christ is the key to growing in holiness
because He is a “nice guy.”
TRUE
FALSE
Those who get to purgatory are assured of going to
Heaven eventually.
TRUE
FALSE
The things which will make you happy (according to the
majority of today’s movies, music, television, etc.) are only mirages that quickly
fade and leave us dying of spiritual thirst.
TRUE
FALSE
The daily choices we make a directly related to our finding
the happiness we desire.
TRUE
FALSE
The majority of today’s movies, music, television, etc.
regularly make reference to the one, true God.
TRUE
FALSE
When we are not satisfied with having acquired “enough”
of the thing we desire, we think that if we simply get more of that thing, we will
be happy.
TRUE
FALSE
Man is made to know God and to love Him.
TRUE
FALSE
From his letter to the Thessalonians, St. Paul shows that
he wants the Church at Thessalonica to make greater progress as this is God’s
will for them.








TRUE
FALSE
The perfection of holiness is the fullness of Christian life
and the perfection of charity.
TRUE
FALSE
The majority of today’s movies, music, television, etc.
suggest that happiness is found only in a relationship with God.
TRUE
FALSE
The perfection of holiness consists only in being nice to
others when we feel like it.
TRUE
FALSE
Every Catholic is guaranteed to go to Heaven if they are
baptized.
TRUE
FALSE
What we do in this world does not matter because God
already knows whether we’re going to Heaven or hell when we die.
TRUE
FALSE
From his letter to the Thessalonians, St. Paul shows that
he was satisfied with the progress in holiness that the Church at Thessalonica
had made.
TRUE
FALSE
At the end of our lives we will be judged on our popularity
and our talents.
TRUE
FALSE
The majority of today’s movies, music, television, etc.
ignore God and/or make no reference to Him.
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TRUE
FALSE
It is possible for anyone to go to hell.
TRUE
FALSE
God would not be so mean as to let anyone go to hell.
TRUE
FALSE
There are certain things which only Catholics can do to
avoid death (separation of body & soul).
TRUE
FALSE
At the end of our earthly life, God will judge us on how we
have loved God and all those around us.
TRUE
FALSE
Even if one is sent to hell, he can “get out” by being good
and asking God for forgiveness.
TRUE
FALSE
Those who go to Purgatory may still end up in hell.
TRUE
FALSE
Purgatory is for those who die with mortal sins.
TRUE
FALSE
The suffering of Purgatory is meant to purify us of
unforgiven venial sins or of temporal punishments not made up for.
TRUE
FALSE
After we die, everyone gets to go to Heaven.