An Internal Voice: A Forever Moment

The Sunday after Christmas I awoke with a deep sense of inconsolable longing that has often visited me at unexpected moments since early childhood. (I've written about this before.) C.S. Lewis referred to this longing as a desire for our own far-off country. I suspect that in your heart of hearts you have the same inconsolable longing that hurts with such primordial sweetness that it breaks your heart.

Lewis described this longing like a desire for our own past, though this description falls short. He said this longing or desire is like "the scent of a flower we have not found, the echo of a tune we have not heard, news from a country we have never yet visited." (The Weight of Glory). Such was my yearning that Sunday morning.

And so I transferred from bed to wheelchair and made my way to the kitchen of my house to look out the window. There before me lay a fresh blanket of snow and a frigid Canadian December morning. Thick hoarfrost bedecked every limb of every tree in white: God's Christmas card to all who would accept it. It was magical! Nature's concert to the soul played a tribute to purity and holiness -- like a divine music box resonating across the ages -- for all who stop to listen.

An internal voice whispered to me Get dressed. Go to Mass. The Eucharist awaits. And so I drove my electric wheelchair up the Beaumont hill toward the church. A wintry fog hung low in the cold air obscuring my view of the church, except for the bell-tower that could be faintly seen rising through the white fog. That same voice whispered again, "He waits to bless you."

Inside the old red-brick church, four Advent candles flickered to announce the arrival of the Christ-child. God made man. A Nativity scene at the front of the sanctuary welcomed all. A choir sang familiar carols. The magic of the Christmas Season continued as Mass began leading us inexorably to its climax with the Blessed Sacrament of the Eucharist which is "the source and summit of the Christian life." In the Eucharist is Christ himself by which we unite ourselves with Him and anticipate eternal life. I basked in this union.

When Mass ended I made my way back out into the crisp, cold, clean winter air and started back down the hill to my little house at the bottom of the hill. At one point on my way home, a canopy of evergreen trees arches over the sidewalk; a slight wind shook hoarfrost from the branches which fell around me like confetti. Something of Him told me to turn around and look back up the hill. And so I did.

As hoarfrost floated to the ground around me I saw the old church at the crest of the hill, where I had just been. The church-bell began to ring. God was blessing me and filling my heart with His peace and joy. It was a forever moment. I knew I'm loved by the Author of love and life.

In his book entitled Miracles, C.S. Lewis said that the Incarnation is the central miracle asserted by Christians. God became a man. He wrote, "Every other miracle prepares for this, or exhibits this, or results from this."

Christ was among us. He remains with us even to the end of the age.

MP

Taking care of our bodies

Recently I experienced what doctors call a transient ischemic attack (TIA). It is to the brain what angina is to the heart. Often referred to as a "mini stroke", my TIA was a warning that I am at risk of having a major stroke. I decided to pull back a bit, relax, and take some time off. That is why my blog output has slowed.

I want to take the opportunity to warn readers of my blogs to take heed to the warning signs of risks for stroke for themselves or loved-ones. There are a number of risk factors; some can be controlled and some cannot.

According to the American Stroke Association, the risk of having a stroke doubles every decade after the age of 55 years. A family history of heart disease or stroke (cardiovascular disease) raises the risk of having a stroke. (In my case, every male over fifty has suffered from either heart disease or stroke.)

Another risk factor is gender: more men have strokes than women. Ethnicity is also a risk factor for stroke. Aboriginal Canadians are at increased risk of stroke due, in part, to higher incidences of diabetes. People of African heritage are at much higher risk of dying from stroke than Caucasians. These risk factors can not be changed but there are a number of risks that can be changed, treated or controlled.

High blood pressure can be controlled through medications, exercise and reducing excess body weight. Smoking is a risk factor that can be eliminated by quitting. Cholesterol should be monitored. If you discover that it is high, your doctor can prescribe medications to reduce bad cholesterol and advise you on changing your diet.

Cardiovascular disease is the number one killer in the world and is the cause of one in three deaths! According to the World Health Organization, heart disease and stroke kills 17.1 million people every year.

We must take care of our bodies. The Bible tells Christians that our bodies are a temple of the Holy Spirit within us (1 Corinthians 6.19). The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches us that the "human body shares in the dignity of the "image of God."" (No. 364). It says that man is to "regard his body as good and to hold it in honor since God has created it and will raise it on the last day." (365) We must take care of our bodies and not abuse them.

At this point, I must make a cautionary note: It is important that we not get carried away with concern for our bodies and fall into a cult of the body that permeates our culture by idolizing physical perfection or prefering the strong over the weak. This is a distortion of the concept of honouring our bodies and can pervert or degrade human relationships. It can even harm our relationship to God. We must take care of our bodies not idolize them.

Christians should live modest and moderate lives. It is healthy for the body, mind and soul and can be a striking witness to an immodest and excessive age. Vanity is unbecoming. Gluttony or excessive use of alcohol is unduly punishing to the body and may even be indicative of underlying emotional or spiritual problems that may need a healing touch from the Master.

When all is said and done, we can trust the sicknesses of our lives to Christ -- whether they are physical, emotional or spiritual. We who follow Jesus Christ can rest placing our fate completely in His loving care. After all, whether we live or die, we are Christ's. Saint Paul said it best for me in his letter to the Romans: "For if we live, we live for the Lord, and if we die, we die for the Lord; so then, whether we live or die, we are the Lord's. ... For this is why Christ died and came to life, that he might be Lord of both the dead and the living."

This is why I can rest easy. Jesus Christ is in control.

MP

Our time here is short, eternity awaits

Saint Gregory the Great (c. 540-604) said:

"Whatever you possess must not possess you; whatever you own must be under the power of your soul; for if your soul is overpowered by the love of this world's goods, it will be totally at the mercy of its possessions."

"In other words, we make use of temporal things, but our hearts are set on what is eternal. Temporal goods help us on our way, but our desire must be for those eternal realities which are our goal. We should give no more than a side glance at all that happens in the world, but the eyes of our soul are to be focused right ahead."

"Whatever is vicious must be utterly eradicated, wrenched away not merely from being put into act but even from being so much as thought of. No carnal pleasure, no worldly curiosity, no surge of ambition must keep us from the Lord's supper. But further, our minds should merely skirt even the good deeds we perform in this life; in this way, the physical things which give us pleasure will serve our bodily needs without hindering the soul's progress. You see, my brothers, I dare not say to you, give up everything. Yet, if you will, you can give everything up while keeping it, providing you handle temporal things in a way that your whole mind is directed toward what is eternal. A man can use the world as if he were not using it, if he makes all external things minister to the support of his life without allowing it to dominate his soul. They remain external to him and under his control, serving him without halting the soul's drive to higher things. For such men, everything in this world is there for their use, not to be desired. Nothing should interfere with your soul's longing; no created pleasure in this world should ensnare you."

"If the object of love is what is good, then the soul should take its delight in the higher good, the things of heaven. If the object of fear is what is evil, then we should keep before ourselves the things that are eternally evil. In this way, if the soul sees that we should have a greater love and a greater fear about what concerns the next life, it will never cling to life."

"To help us to achieve all this we have the help of the mediator between God and man. Through him we shall obtain all this the more quickly, the more we burn with a great love for him, who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit, for ever and ever. Amen."

WE HAVE AN ADVOCATE

These words by Saint Gregory the Great help put the things of this world into perspective with the greater things of heaven. He reminds sinful men like me that I do not strive alone toward heaven. We have an advocate in Jesus Christ. We have forgiveness from sin through confession, repentence and faith that Christ bore our penalty on the cross. In Christ, we are reconciled with God.

The Apostle John wrote: "My little children, I am telling you this so that you will stay away from sin, there is someone to plead for us before the Father. His name is Jesus Christ, the one who is all that is good and who pleases God completely. He is the one who took God's wrath against our sins upon himself, and brought us into fellowship with God." (1John 2.1-2)

Knowing this, we who are children of God (John 1.12) should be about His business (see 1 Corinthians 7.29). Do not grow weary. Our time here is short , the world is fading away, eternity awaits.

MP