Another Year. By: C.C.

                                

"Here we are at the end of the old year; tomorrow will be the beginning of the new. We must bless the Lord for the many graces we have received. May it please God that by means of these fleeting years we may happily arrive at the permanent year of a blessed eternity! Let us make good use of these small passing moments, living them out in that kindness and humility which Jesus, right from the time He was a child, taught us."-St. Francis de Sales (Letters 883; O. XV, p. 315) 

   The end of another year often brings about a particular self examination. Our sentiments and ways of assessing the successes and down falls of our year will vary immensely in accordance to our diverse values and expectations.

  Do we pause and bless the Lord for the many graces we have received? Or have some events left us hard of heart? 

    It is by setting our gaze toward the infinite and recognizing that these passing and fleeting moments are only a shadow of the brightness of eternity that we may gain proper perspective. 

   We are able to arrive at a more pleasing acceptance of our experiences; seeing all the "good, the bad, and the ugly" as part of a beautiful divine plan. Through faith we come to understand that the arrival of a new calendar year does not carry any more importance than the breaking of a new dawn. The gift of every new day brings us closer to the opportunity to love and serve God, and to live our lives with a humble kindness as we strive to achieve our goals. 

   Our joys and our new beginnings do not reserve themselves for midnight on December 31st. Our loving Father peperpetually pours forth His loving kindness, unconditional love, and His mercy.

   As we pause and reflect at the end of this 'old year' may we come to recognize the value and gift of the small and passing moments filled with the immensty of God's grace. May we begin 2015 in thanksgiving to our Lord for the gift of another moment and opportunity to experience His love by sharing this love with one another. (CC)

  

Lessons From a Monastery: Christ is Enough. By: C.C.

"Still as we all know, even we monks who ostensibly have decided that Christ is enough for us. That is why we have locked ourselves in the monastery and thrown away the key at solemn profession. It is easier said than done. It is a lifetime of conversion, even in the monastery, to accept that Christ is enough for us. That in choosing Him we are choosing everything. That we are losing nothing. That nothing is slipping by us as we keep our eyes on Him. It does not feel that way and that is why we, even in the monastery, start making up for lost time or taking up the very things we had left behind because we find Christ too narrow and too boring. The problem is not Christ. It is our own unconverted hearts that are divided and are weak in faith and want to have our cake and eat it too. This is the cause of the most unhappiness in monasteries as well. That Christ is not enough for us. We come to find Him and then start looking 
elsewhere."(Abott Gerard D'Souza)
  The humble simplicity of a surrendered monk reveals the beautiful complexity of Divine mystery and intimacy with God. It allows one to reflect upon the meaning of true joy and true peace. It invites one to renew a once burdensome idea of solitude as loneliness and find instead the radical fulfillment of the greatest human need. It is not an easy way of life and ultimately the idea of life as easy in any state that one may find themselves is not authentically living but settling for a disillusioned sense of reality.
    The monastery is a place that models the importance of overcoming oneself in order to experience a relationship with the Lord Himself who desires our love, our trust, and our full surrender. If one is open there is a lesson on attachment and dependency;welcoming the embrace of complete reliance on God.  We see that our lives are most rich in the blind giving of ourselves into the service of God. It is a willing and beautiful surrender made out of love for the greatest Love of all time.
     My first encounter with the Abbey of the Genesee, some years ago, was one that called me to question the notion of surrendering to God and how I  lived this out in my own life. Though I live outside of a monastic enclosure and my life differs in many ways, the one unifying reality shared with all of these men is that of belonging to the love of the same Father through faith.
   In a radical way these monks have decided that "Christ is enough". To many who battle with this idea then the monastery may seem more like a prison than a sacrificial paradise. It leads one with a worldly lens to measure happiness and freedom based upon material aspects, financial gain, and self chosen liberties.
  The secular focus of the holiday season can often highlight the reality of consumerism and material consumption. We may forget that the reason for the season is Christ, and lose sight of Him within our families, our celebrations, and our shared time with those we love. 
   By choosing Christ let us strive to acknowledge that He is enough, and through this may we come to believe that "in choosing Him we are choosing everything. That we are losing nothing. That nothing is slipping by us as we keep our eyes on Him." -CC

Confession: Continuing to Prepare The Way. By: C.C.

"Daily we can make an Advent examination. Are there any feelings of discrimination toward race, sex, or religion? Is there a lingering resentment, an unforgiven injury living in our hearts? Do we look down upon others of lesser social standing or educational achievement? Are we generous with the gifts that have been given to us, seeing ourselves as their stewards and not their owners? Are we reverent of others, their ideas and needs, and of creation? These and other questions become Advent lights by which we may search the deep, dark corners of our hearts." (Fr. Edward Hays)
    As we continue our Advent journey and reflect upon our interior preparations for welcoming the Lord, we are encouraged to acknowledge the 'deep, dark corners of our hearts' for those things that keep us at a distance from the Lord and our neighbours. 

     We take great care in preparing our homes for company throughout the holiday season by patiently cleaning out each room to ensure that everything is presentable. We must do the same within. We must take the time to clean out the inner rooms of our heart and soul in order to make a welcoming abode for our Lord.  It is important that we clean up the clutter and mess around our heart and soul so that Jesus can truly dwell within us. We must take this time and continue to inwardly prepare ourselves.  

    The Sacrament of Confession is a time for us to cleanse within. It is a time to break through the clutter that prevents us from properly receiving Christ. Confession is an opportunity for us to allow Christ to remove the burdens that hold us prisoner within ourselves. Confession is the beginning of a great process in our healing and our freedom.

   Advent provides the perfect avenue for beginning again. 

      On Wednesday, December 10th, 2014 parishes across the Archdiocese of Toronto will open their doors for a Day of Confessions. You can find the schedule  and helpful information here http://www.archtoronto.org/confession/ .

   For those of you living outside the Archdiocese of Toronto may your hearts be open to The Sacrament of Confession and may you seek the opportunity this Advent to prepare within!

    Lord I pray that You continue to help us prepare the way for the birth of Christ within us. Help us to acknowledge and bring the "dark corners of our hearts" to light. Provide courage to those who have fallen away from the Sacrament of Confession. May each one of us seek to clean out every room of our soul so that You may fully dwell within us. Lord thank You for Your mercy and forgiveness. Thank you for the gift of reconciliation. 

    Watch over our Priests Lord and provide them with Your wisdom to guide those who are seeking counsel and peace. Give them the patience, understanding, and strength to endure the long hours of Advent confessions. May we all continue to reflect Your light this season and share our joy with those around us. Amen. (C.C.)

Preparing with Prayer. By:C.C.

"Advent is a season of penance, it is traditionally a time of fasting and self-denial, a kind of pre-Christmas purification from guilt of sin and of practical measures to arrive at inner detachment from the pleasures that bind us to those activities that are distracting. To enter into this season of Advent means to focus our desires and use our energies and time in the service of the Gospel message that our God comes to save us. In Latin the meaning of the word ‘advenit‘, from which our English ‘Advent’ derives, is ‘he comes.’ May we so participate in this season that we are ready to welcome him with desire and firm faith when he arrives in our midst and takes up his abode in our hearts at Christmas" (Abbot John Eudes Bamberger: November 28th, 2010)

      As we journey through our Advent season it is important to take the time and prayerfully place everything into proper perspective. As the commercial reality of the holiday season invites material consumption, we are called to remember the true focus of Christmas and to prepare ourselves to welcome the Lord. As challenging as it may be we must strive during this Advent season to be consumed by Christ and not consumerism. 

We are called to keep Christ as the center of the season.
   Fr. John Eudes Bamberger reminds us of the importance of making an effort to grow in our faith during the Advent season and to prepare ourselves interiorly for the coming of Christ into our midst. He calls us to a deepening of our prayer lives and self denial in order to cultivate an "inner detachment from the pleasures that bind us to those activities that are distracting".  There are numerous distractions that are presented to us during the Advent season. By committing ourselves to special periods of prayer we can remain focused on our Lord and the reason for our joy this season. 
  Today as we celebrate the feast of St. Nicholas we are reminded of the simplicity of the gifts we are to give and share with one another. Let us strive to recognize the gifts that our Lord has given to us and in turn give ourselves more fully to Him. It is through this giving of ourselves to the Lord with love that we will be able to present ourselves as a gift to others and share the light of Christ this season. Let us continue to prepare the way with prayer. (CC)