Traditional Catholic Teaching - TWENTY-FIRST SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST

TWENTY-FIRST SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST

Be strengthened in the Lord and in the might of His power.
Ephesians 6: 10.

To-day's Gospel reveals to us the heavy punishment which God in His justice will inflict upon impenitent sinners, for we read that the servant was given over by his master to the tortures, until he should pay his debt in full, and this debt was so enormous that its payment was impossible.

We have great need of strength to avoid incurring such a penalty, and we can obtain it only from God. As St. Paul teaches us in the epistle, we must be strengthened in the Lord and in the might of His power. Our strength is mere weakness, and if we rely upon it we shall perish; therefore it behooves us to do our utmost to become worthy to receive strength from God. One of the best means of obtaining it is Christian solitude.

Of course I am not now referring to the sort of solitude in which the hermits lived, who, aiming at great perfection withdrew altogether from the world and spent their whole life in absolute seclusion, dedicating their time completely to the service of God. Very few are called to such an existence, and it would be harmful for anyone not having a special vocation to retire into solitude of this kind. Our work lies out in the world, in the company of our fellow men, and our vocation is to do good wherever and whenever we can. Yet we ought not to lose all taste for Christian solitude, nor fail to practise it. Quite apart from the absolute solitude of the hermits there are three other kinds, which are not only possible, but even necessary to people living in the world.

The first kind of solitude possible to them consists in the avoidance of superfluous and useless intercourse with others, and as such we may describe any intercourse not required by our social position, the claims of politeness and charity, or our own legitimate need of recreation. All that can be said with reference to the avoidance of superfluous intercourse with others is stated with admirable simplicity by Thomas A Kempis, and anyone who is tempted to excessive indulgence in social distractions ought seriously to take his words to heart. He is addressing religious, but we need only substitute "room" for "cell," and then what he says becomes most suitable and profitable to us all. He writes in the Following of Christ (I: 20): "It is easier to keep retired at home than to be enough upon one's guard abroad. He, therefore, who aims at inward and spiritual things, must with Jesus turn aside from the crowd. . . . If thou wouldst feel compunction to thy very heart, enter into thy chamber and shut out the tumult of the world; as it is written: 'Be sorry in your beds' (Psalm 4: 5). Thou wilt find in thy cell what thou wilt too often lose abroad. . . . In silence and in quiet the devout soul maketh progress and learneth the hidden things of Scripture."

Well will it be for you if you accept this truth, and do not have with bitter sorrow to acknowledge that the concluding words of the same chapter are applicable to you: "Leave vain things to vain people; look thou to those things which God hath commanded thee. Shut thy door upon thee, and call unto thee Jesus, thy beloved; stay with Him in thy cell, for nowhere else shalt thou find so great peace. If thou hadst never left it, nor hearkened to any rumors, thou wouldst have remained longer in happy peace. But the moment thou delightest to give ear to what is new, thou must suffer thenceforth disquietude of heart."

The second kind of solitude possible to all consists in withdrawing at definite times from society and the temporal business of life, in order to examine our conscience, to cleanse our souls by contrition, and to renew our spiritual energy by means of prayer and meditation. This is what our Lord did in the wilderness and also at the close of each day's work during His public ministry, and He taught the Apostles to adopt the same practice. When they returned from their first missionary journey and told Him all that they had done, He said to them: "Come apart into a desert place and rest a little" (Mark 4: 31), and they went to a lonely spot near Bethsaida, where, associating only with their Divine Master, they found in prayer and meditation strength to undertake further labors.

What is the consequence of concerning ourselves always exclusively with our exterior duties, and remaining in constant intercourse with the world, without occasionally devoting a few days, or at least a few hours, to the welfare of our souls? We are very likely to pay no attention at all to our faults, and gradually to slip unawares into greater sins. Therefore it is most beneficial to withdraw from time to time and to shut out ail worldly matters and devote a little while, if only an hour, to things connected with our own salvation.

The third and best kind of solitude possible to those living in the world is that of the heart. It consists in a silent uplifting of the heart to God, undisturbed by the din of life, and unnoticed by those around us. Amidst all his worldly business and distractions a Christian can withdraw, as it were, into the privacy of his own heart, in order to commune with God. Whoever accustoms himself to do this is preserved from many temptations and strengthened in good works. Sorrows and labour may weigh heavily upon him, but inwardly he prays for strength to bear them. He may be in the midst of noisy distractions, but inwardly he implores grace not to forget God, the Giver of all that he enjoys. Others may suggest mean principles to him, but in his heart he begs to be strengthened in the faith. Thus outward temptations lead him to pray for help, and outward persecutions make him offer himself as a willing sacrifice.

If only we withdrew frequently into this solitude of the heart, in order to look up at God, to ask Him for strength, to renew a good resolution in His sight, to make an act of contrition for sin as soon as it is committed, or to offer up a good work to Him, we should never be at a loss for strength and consolation, and we should enjoy the inward peace resulting from true progress in virtue.

Solitude of the heart is preferable to all kinds of external solitude, although no one succeeds in practising it who does not often withdraw into some sort of retirement. It is the essence of all solitude and has rightly been called the secret of all virtue and perfection.

You will lead a good life if you always and everywhere keep God in your hearts, so as to look up to and pray to Him, whilst renewing your good resolutions. Most earnestly do I desire you to aim at this sort of solitude, and to find out the comfort to be derived from it. May you receive the blessing promised by Christ when, referring to this dwelling with God in the seclusion of one's heart, He said: "If any one love Me, he will keep My word, and My Father will love him, and we will come to him and will make our abode with him" (John 14: 23). Amen.

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