The Life of Virtue

In the second reading for the Second Sunday of Lent , the faithful are presented with a passage from St. Paul's letter to the Philippians.  Not long after the beginning of that passage, we hear that many people in the world "conduct themselves as enemies of the cross of Christ" (Phil. 3:18).  Throughout the lectionary readings for the remainder of the week, the characteristics of such enemies are laid out quite clearly.  It is no coincidence, though, that the sure and steadfast mercy of God is presented right alongside the traits of enemies.  The Lord and His Church are intent on revealing the fact that mercy is available to all.  Otherwise, our end would be destruction (cf. Phil. 3:19). Throughout the week, the Gospel passages present Jesus' undeniable statements about whom He considers enemies of the Cross, enemies of mercy.  In Matthew 23 , we read and hear that the enemies are those who take a Pharisaical approach to religion, the ones who "tie up hea...

Today, the Catholic Church celebrates the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord.  This celebration commemorates the day when the Messiah, Jesus Christ, was dedicated in the Temple at Jerusalem according to the Law of Moses.  On the fortieth day after birth, each first-born Jewish male was presented for service to the Lord.  It makes sense that Jesus was presented and consecrated in this way since He was both the first-born of Mary and the Eternal Son of God.  This moment  enables the Temple to become Jesus' natural and comfortable habitat, and it  marks the first step in allowing the Him to increase "in wisdom and in stature, and in favor with God and man" (Luke 2:52). Rembrandt, Simeon's Song of Praise (1631) Although we are not still bound by the Law of Moses, it is good and right for Christian parents to follow the same process for our children and our families.  If parents desire that the place of worship, the Church, becomes a natural and...

When we look around at the world, the culture, and human beings, there is little room for doubt that something needs to be fixed.  Our daily experience proves to us that relationships and the rhythm of life are fractured and broken.  Yet, we fool ourselves if we think that we can create the solution to the problem.  More efficient and effective legal justice, along with more technichal and governmental oversight, will probably only serve to illuminate more and deeper troubles. Something else is needed to save individuals, social groups, and the collective culture from its clear and present woes.  And, that something must come from outside of the same individuals, groups, and culture.  That something must come from the Divine Source of all created life.  That something is mercy. The Catechism of the Catholic Church provides a simple definition of mercy: "the loving kindness, compassion, or forbearance shown to one who offends" (Glossary of the 2nd Editi...

Merriam-Webster defines "renaissance man" as one who has interest and expertise in many areas.  The Urban Dictionary mentions that a person described by this term is "talented in all spheres of human endeavor."  A general (and incomplete) litany of such spheres would include language, philosophy, religion, science, sport, art, and, perhaps, food.  The person who attains noteworthy accomplishment in most or all of these realms, and who could pass on knowledge and wisdom to others, is considered to have attained the ideal. The historical figure who seems to have attained this ideal most notably (at least in the modern age) is Leonardo da Vinci.  Da Vinci receives credit as a painter, a botanist, an urban planner, a man of high intellect, and a designer of flying machines.  If all of this is attributable to him in fact, then it is right to place him in the limited company of true renaissance men.  Of course, there are also fictional expressions of this id...

I have recently been blessed to experience beautiful weather along with magnificent sunrises and sunset.  Such moments of aesthetic appeal call to my mind other instances of natural beauty that I have been blessed to see.  I am reminded of a return flight from Australia during which I viewed the most captivating burnt orange aura encircling the earth as the sun set over the earth's horizon.  I also recall many late summer evenings when everything around seemed to radiate in an extraordinary way.  The sunrise that I witnessed this morning was no different.  In every case, these glimpses of beauty have brought me to ponder God more deeply. Romano Guardini is the author of a book whose final pages capture this reality as well.   The Living God concludes with a reflection on the "gentle and powerful beauty [that] reigns over all."  This is the reason that natural events (sunrises, sunsets, schools of fish swimming, etc.) and natural forms (mountain...

The second sorrowful mystery of the Rosary calls us to meditate on Christ being scourged at the pillar.  As I've prayed the various mysteries of the Rosary over the years, it has taken quite some time for me to grasp the supposed fruit of reflecting on this event in the Lord's life: a spirit mortification.  I am hardly known for espousing a giddy approach to fasting, and I'm still warming up to the idea of sacrificing my body for something other than an athletic feat.  So, I continually ask the Lord to reveal to me the way(s) in which I can grow in such a disposition, and it seems that He has done so today. Flagellation of Christ by Peter Paul Rubens As I reflected again on this mystery earlier today, I was led to a poignant understanding.  Rather than focusing on acts of fasting and prayers of penance, the spirit of mortification that God wants to develop in me ought to be centered on a death to self that really transforms this prideful and stubborn soul....

There are two, and only two, things that must increase within each of us throughout our lives.  Those two things are knowledge of truth and charity.  Knowledge and love are the most powerful faculties of every human person.  Without growing in one or both, any individual person will not develop fully as he is intended to do so.  Nothing is more important than these and, in fact, all good things in our lives flow directly from one or both of them. As I prayed over Scripture last week, and prepared for a lecture on truth and charity, an amazing connection occurred to me.  In John 8:32, while speaking to an audience of Jews, Jesus remarks, "and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free."  Whatever is found to be truth (not just truthful, but truth itself) clearly effects liberation of the person who seeks it.  So, finding truth leads to freedom. Later, Jesus clarifies the object of the search for truth, the reality that seekers must...

The Gospel reading for the Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A) is a portion of the Sermon on the Mount ( Matthew 5:17-37 ), "the greatest sermon ever preached by the greatest Preacher who ever preached," according to Peter Kreeft.  In this segment of the sermon, just a few sentences after listing the Beatitudes, the Lord provides His audience (the hearers on the mount and us in the modern age ) a new and fulfilled understanding of the Law.  Those who follow Christ must examine their attitudes and actions in a way that is different than the legalistic culture of His day and the world in which we live.  Quite simply, a person who claims to be a disciple of Jesus must be ready to cultivate virtues, which will help her to choose rightly in the face of anger, lust, or even cultural tradition. Virtues are the habitual dispositions of mind and heart that lead individuals to act according to God's gracious plan.  It is no coincidence, then, that there are certain vi...

An envelope arrived in my mailbox, sometime late last year.  Above my name and address, this envelope encouraged me to "Give the World What It Needs Most..."  The return address bore the emblem of my alma mater.  Given that I attended a really big, state-funded university without religious affiliation, I was curious as to the claim about "what the world needs most."  I was virtually certain that my answer and the university's answer would differ greatly. The claim surprised me.  My university wasn't trying to give the world more technology or more business professionals with higher degrees or more access to secularized "arts."  My university wants to provide leaders to the world.  With some slight adjustments of their understanding of leadership and the value that it provides to the world, I just might be able to get behind this project.  If there were dollars in my family budget to give toward cultivating great leaders for the next generation, ...

I often read and hear about the "fast food" culture in which we live, which is akin to the "sound bite" culture by which we consume our information.  While fast food and sound bites may provide some benefits at some intervals, they certainly are no way to maintain healthy bodies and minds.  Instead, human beings require good, fresh food and holistic learning if they are going to grow to their fullest potential. In recent days, I've been thinking about the many ways that a person's dining and learning habits might reflect his or her spiritual habits.  Does a person expect spiritual health with quick and small bites of information and formation?  From all the available evidence, it is clear that many in our culture think and act according to such a paradigm.  People surmise that they can cultivate deep spirituality and win answered prayers by way of distracted worship rituals, quickly-recited rote prayers, and commercial-bookstore "spirituality" t...