O Virgin, Receive Our Last Breath

This reflection was written by the Carthusian, Dom Louis Rouvier. It really allows us to take a peak into some Carthusian gems concerning our Blessed Lady. There is some namedropping in this writing which gives us a rare opportunity to read about some Carthusians who have had personal experiences with our Blessed Mother. Unless we were in the Order, these are monks that otherwise we probably would never hear of. Most likely, Dom Louis Rouvier’s intention was that this was to be shared only with his own and other Carthusian Houses. But his thoughts here have found their way outside of monastery walls. There is one name, however, that is mentioned who has some accolades outside of the Order, and that is Dom Henry Kalkar. He was also a writer in the Carthusian Order and was the Prior of several Charterhouses in Germany. He died at 80 years of age in the year 1408 where he was serving as Prior of Cologne. Dom Louis Rouvier, in this writing, also shares some Carthusian prayer customs. The main theme of this reflection is death, and how a strong devotion to our Lady doesn’t come to full fruition until that most mysterious moment of transition from this life into eternity.

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“In me is all grace of the way, and of the truth; in me is hope of all life and virtue” (Ecclesiasticus 24:25). These words the Church puts on the lips of our Lady in her Office that we say every day. It is at death and only at death that devotion to Mary receives its final fruit. Thus it is particularly with this moment in view that we address to the Queen of Heaven our most ardent entreaties. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us . . . now . . . and at the hour of our death.

In our Carthusian liturgy, five times a day, in the hymn of her Office, the . . . religious repeat to the most powerful Protectress of the dying, the words:

Per tuum, Virgo Filium,
Per Partem, per Paracletum,
Adsis prœsens ab obitum,
Nostrum muni exitum.

O Virgin, by your Son,
By the Father, and the Holy Spirit
Receive our last breath
And protect us at our departure from this world.

What has been her response to a plea made to her name of all that is dearest to her heart?

In this prayer, so frequently renewed, is largely the secret of the interior peace which most always surrounds the death of a Carthusian. Often enough in the course of the ages, God has revealed by exterior signs the efficacy of this assiduous recourse to her who is called Consoler of the Afflicted (Litany of Our Lady).

First, there is the incident recorded in our annals of the professed monk of the Charterhouse of Vallis Christi in Spain, Dom Giles de Bidon, who had the happiness of leading two Moslems to the Christian faith. As he lay dying, a third follower of the Prophet, whom he had tried in vain to convert, entered his cell. The good monk earnestly recommended him to our Blessed Lady, who at that moment had appeared to him to announce his approaching death. Suddenly, touched by grace, the follower of the Prophet asked for baptism, and Dom Giles breathed his last breath in a rapture of gratitude for the supreme consolation granted him (Le Vasseur: Ephemerides, Volume II).

Dom James Saline of the Charterhouse of Porta Cœli, near Valencia, loved to address his Mother often with this greeting: Salve, Sancta Parens (Introit of the Mass of Our Lady). Now, three days before he died, it being a Wednesday, when the community had gathered around him to assist him with their prayer, he said: “Do not be anxious, dear Fathers, I shall not die until next Saturday when you are singing the Salve, Sancta Parens.” And so it came about. At the Introit of the conventual Mass, it being the Mass of Our Lady, as the first words of the Introit were being sung, the soul of the Father took flight (Le Vasseur: Ephemerides, Volume III).

Dom Cyril Abendaño, a monk of Vallis Christi, after receiving the Last Sacraments, was transported in spirit, as he himself related after coming out of his rapture, to the Spring called Ribas, which gushes forth at the foot of a mountain, at the summit of which is found a grotto where there is a statue of the Madonna. “Our Lady of the Grotto,” he said, “purify me in the fountain.” At that, he came to himself, filled, as he said, with heavenly consolations. And as he lay dying, he had the strength to sing the Salve Regina, and the prayer Sub tuum præsidium (We fly to thy protection, O holy Mother of God). His last prayer was: “O Maria, absque peccati originalis labe concepta . . . O Mary, conceived without sin.”

O most beloved Mother of the Carthusians, continue to grant to the sons of Saint Bruno your assistance at the hour when their eternity is at stake. Extend to all the Houses of the Order the favor which you declared to a novice of the Charterhouse of Montrieux. “I promise,” you told him, “the religious of this House that they will all enjoy in their last moments the perfect purity of conscience, and that they will fall asleep with tranquility and in peace” (Molin: Historia Cartusiana, Volume I). For all our brethren still suffering in exile, we address to you, O heavenly Mother, this prayer which you yourself taught to one of your most devout servants, Dom Henry Kalkar: “O Queen of virgins, surpassing Tabernacle of the august Trinity, Mirror of the angels, Ladder of saints, and sure Refuge of sinners – behold our distress, O loving Mother, and pray for us now and in the hour of our death. Amen” (Le Vasseur: Ephemerides, Volume IV).

Second Sunday of Advent - December 7, 2014

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First Reading Commentary

To sum up what the prophet Isaiah is sharing with his listeners here is to not be dejected because the Babylonian captivity has ended; and what will follow is the coming of the long awaited Messiah. 

An interesting note on translation: for the word “service” found in the second sentence of this Reading, the Latin Vulgate uses the word “malitia” which means “wickedness” referring to the evil Jerusalem has witnessed and experienced.  Other ancient copies translate as “warfare”.  What is likely the true meaning here is “servitude” as it applies to military service.  The New Vulgate uses the word “militia” which does indeed mean “military service”. 

In this Reading also are those familiar words of prophecy that we associate with John the Baptist.  The images like wasteland, highway, valley, mountain, hill, rugged land, plain, rough country and a broad valley seemingly desires to turn the readers of this passage towards thoughts of a new Exodus; and like the first Exodus from Egypt, this prophesied new Exodus is also accompanied by a manifestation of the glory of God. 

As this Reading closes, a literal crying out to the cities of Judah is called for because God has returned with the Jewish exiles.  Prophetically, this points to the Incarnation of Christ, and His mission as Chief Shepherd of the flock.  

Second Reading Commentary

This Reading exhorts us to be convinced of the truths revealed.  Someday each of us will carry our final cross to the hill of Calvary; and someday our Lord Jesus Christ will return in glory.  Regardless of how far away or close at hand that “someday” is, it is a mere speck of dust compared to eternity.  Time has no relevance in eternity which is why “that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years and a thousand years like one day.”  To the devout Christian, however, this could bring with it a mixed bag of emotions.  On the one hand, as we strive to be all that God made us to be, that part of us is ready to shout from the highest mountaintops: “Veni, Domine Iesu!— Come, Lord Jesus!” (Revelation 22:20).  On the other hand, quite in touch with our own human weaknesses, there is evil lurking which seeks our submission to temptation, and ultimately, the ruination of our souls; and since insecurity is a familiar human trait, that part of us can be quite content with our Lord’s “delay” until we can better prepare ourselves. 

It’s very difficult to be absolutely certain about our own salvation.  Even the spiritual greats like Saint Pio of Pietrelcina and Saint John Paul II were insecure about it.  Fortunately, God’s infinite mercy and His love for humanity is patient with us, not willing that any of us should perish, but that all of us would return to Him by a sincere repentance.  All things in the world shall pass in a short time; therefore, it is not prudent to devote a lifelong credence to any of those things.  Holiness is measured in our love for eternal things.  In this life, that translates into zeal for souls.  We eagerly “await new heavens and a new earth.”  May our Lord also find in that eagerness, unblemished souls.  

Gospel Commentary  

The word “Gospel” is a Saxon word which translates as “God’s spell” or “good spell,” that is, “God’s word” or “good speech.”  In modern terminology this all translates to mean the Good News of the coming of Jesus Christ and the glad tidings of salvation brought by Him. 

In the beginning of this Gospel, Saint Mark confirms the authority of the prophets, in this case, Isaiah.  Most likely he does this to convince his readers to willingly accept the story that is to follow since they too accepted the authority of the prophets. 

Saint John the Baptist is portrayed as a messenger possessing extraordinary sanctity; but what is meant by “he will prepare your way” is that John the Baptist has been chosen to prepare the minds and hearts of the people of God to receive their Messiah; and he prepares God’s people by his baptism, a call to repentance and by his powerful preaching. 

There have been other ideas bounced around over the centuries that portrayed John the Baptist as an angel because of what has been written by the prophet Malachi: “Behold, I send my angel, and he shall prepare the way before My Face” (Malachi 3:1). 

“A voice of one crying out in the desert: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight His paths.’”  The prophet Isaiah spoke these words on behalf of the deliverance of the Jews from Babylonian captivity; but this was a figure of the eternal freedom of humanity that would come through Jesus Christ.  Most practitioners of the Law and the Prophets of that day expected that Elijah would return to prepare the way of the Messiah but it was John the Baptist who was raised up by God in the spirit and power of Elijah, to proclaim the coming of Jesus Christ. 

John’s baptism could not wash away sins.  He clearly professes this by saying that he baptizes “with water”; but the Messiah will baptize “with the Holy Spirit.”  John also needed to clear up any misconceptions about himself because many thought he was the Messiah.  Without a baptism of the Holy Spirit, the remission of sins is not possible.  John’s baptism is for repentance; that is, the baptized formally profess a desire to change their sinful ways.  This would also require a rebuilding, so to speak, of the interior life.  John, perhaps tactically, proclaimed the awaited Messiah as One Who was mightier than him.  He doesn’t outright say that the Messiah is the Son of God, although by prophesying a baptism by the Holy Spirit, he did at least intimate it.  Hinting at it may have been by design because the people’s hearts possibly were not fully prepared to have that bombshell dropped on them. 

The Messiah’s form of baptism compared to that of John’s, who was not among the chosen Twelve and thus not an ordained priest of Christ, confirms that only God can bestow upon us the grace of the Holy Spirit.

Happy Thanksgiving

To readers in the United States:

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Intense Love for Jesus

Today on the Carthusian liturgical calendar is the feast of Blessed Béatrice d’Ornacieux. At the very young age of thirteen she joined the Carthusian Order and became a nun of the Order at Parménie where her novice mistress was another well-known Carthusian, Marguerite d’Oingt.

Béatrice was subject to demonic torments and often was attacked with impure illusions and nightly fantasies which included seeing dangerous animals and hearing frightening sounds. Like anyone would do in these types of occurrences, she pleaded with God to be delivered from these attacks and even asked Him to be taken from this earth. Her prayers received a miraculous response with a Voice that said: “Receive the consolations that I give you and do not refuse the sufferings that I send you.” After that encounter she was able to completely surrender herself to the will of God.

Béatrice was intensely in love with Jesus Christ and lived a life of penance in order to follow Him in His sufferings. In response to her love, Jesus gave her the wonderful gift of possessing an intimate knowledge of Himself but she would, however, later experience the “dark night of the soul” in which she felt completely abandoned by the Lord. This caused her great suffering. After that period of refinement she once again regained full intimate union with Jesus, a union that would never again be interrupted.

In the year 1300, Béatrice was the foundress and Prioress of a new monastery at Eymeu where she continued to live in holiness until her death in 1309.

When the Carthusian Order gave up the monastery at Eymeu, Béatrice’s relics were moved to Parménie. An uprising of the Albigensians caused the nuns to flee Parménie. Shortly after, the monastery was burned down and Béatrice’s relics were lost. In the seventeenth century her relics were found and in the year 1697 pronounced authentic by a Cardinal of that region. Later, in the year 1839 the relics were once again inspected by the Bishop of Grenoble and thirty years later in 1869 Pope Pius IX gave permission for her feast to be celebrated by the Carthusian Order.

First Sunday of Advent - November 30, 2014

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First Reading Commentary

The opening verse prophesies that our heavenly Father and Redeemer are One, Who is our Lord and our God.  Out of love He has given us free will, and the choice is before us: to follow Him or to wander.  Free will is the simple answer as to why we wander from God’s ways but the complete answer is a little more complicated than that. 

Many of us can recall the various occasions of temptations we’ve succumbed to, the times we have hardened our hearts.  Still, a lingering question is why is it so difficult to tap into the power of God when the enemy is egging us on?  That’s the question that has no simple answer. 

In His Fatherhood some of the choices we make as His children surely grieve Him; and perhaps we can read into this with eternal eyes even from the Old Testament, that the grief our God experiences caused by our disobedience is a form of suffering He also allows us to experience, not as a payback but because His eternal plan was to lovingly invite us to be co-workers in His work of redemption; and thus, our acceptance of suffering would have a redemptive value.  And so, the Father of all in a very great mystery would also experience the other side of life by rending the heavens and coming down among us as a Child through a Virgin Mother. 

The pains of His Divine Love we may never fully comprehend; but it was enough for Him to become one of us in order to save us that we may spend an eternity at His Bosom.  So great and incomprehensible is this Divine Love that would cause Him to sacrifice His only Son for our sake!  So mysterious and holy is this Love that would permit an Immaculate woman to also experience this suffering by means of a sword piercing her soul because she is the Mother and eyewitness of God’s suffering Son as well as the Mother of all His adopted and not always obedient sons and daughters.

Second Reading Commentary

We learn something very important here from Saint Paul about fellowship with Jesus Christ and how that is applied to our daily lives.  It’s all about sharing -- sharing God’s graces with each other -- sharing our spiritual gifts with each other.  In doing so, we will not be lacking in our Lord’s spiritual gifts as we wait for Christ’s glorious return.  In other words, the spiritual gifts that God did not impart to one soul, that same soul can still be a beneficiary of those gifts through another soul that willingly shares his/her talents, and vice-versa.  This is clearly a description of how important each body part is in the mystical body of Christ.  And our faith in Christ is confirmed by these graces and gifts which we receive from the Holy Spirit through the waters of Baptism.    

Gospel Commentary

One of the early heresies declared that not even Jesus Christ Himself knew the exact time of His return.  After reading this Gospel, it’s not all that difficult to find yourself honestly asking within yourself what Jesus did or did not know.  Certainly as our Omnipotent and Omniscient God, He is fully aware of the exact time of His glorious return.  What we may interpret from this Gospel is that it was not part of Christ’s Messianic mission to reveal when His return would occur.  But we human beings are very inquisitive and desire to know all the mysteries of life.  Not knowing when Jesus will return, however, is actually merciful.  Saint Gregory and other saints have taught that it is indeed a very great mercy of the Almighty to veil our knowledge of this so that we can make good use of our time by always being prepared for the Second Coming.  When you think about it, if we believe that it is never too late for conversion, then how haphazardly would many of us conduct ourselves if we knew the exact time of the Parousia?   Saints Gregory and Bonaventure also teach us that God’s choice to leave us in this uncertainty was to help prevent our attachment to temporal goods. 

The words evening, midnight, at the cockcrowing and morning are symbolic of the different ages of a human life: that is, infancy, youth, adulthood and the twilight years.  We are exhorted to be always ready, for we do not know when the Judge will return.  We are expected to watch, because we are charged with the care of our soul, which is also the temple or house of God, and which is to remain His temple for all eternity.  The Greek verb used for the word “watch” does not necessarily mean watching with the eyes but more about staying alert lest one is overtaken by something unfortunate, such as indifference to one’s salvation.

Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe - November 23, 2014

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First Reading Commentary

The Solemnity of Christ the King was instituted in 1925 by Pope Pius XI in his encyclical Quas Primas.  It was originally celebrated on the last Sunday of October, immediately preceding the Solemnity of All Saints.  The revision of the liturgical calendar placed it at the final Sunday in Ordinary Time. 

This Reading precisely prophesies the arrival of a Chief Shepherd Who is none other than God Himself.  As it continues, we learn that God will be among us and will tend to us; He is the Light for our darkness, He is our Provider and in Him is where we can find rest.  He shows us the way when we are lost, binds our wounds and cures our sicknesses; and therefore, He is a Healer. 

“Rams and goats” are listed to distinguish the obedient from the disturbers of the flock.  The Hebrew word for flock includes goats with sheep.  Rams and goats, in Hebrew terminology, are indicative of the ruling classes and thus are susceptible to egoism.  Therefore, “I will judge between one sheep and another, between rams and goats” implies a removal of disturbers or oppressors from the flock.  

Second Reading Commentary

If what Saint Paul teaches in this Reading were untrue, that the dead “shall be brought to life”, then Christ has not fully repaired the damage caused by the fall; and therefore, Christ is not the King of all creation.  But Jesus is indeed the “firstfruits” which literally means the “first installment” which implies there will be more installments. 

Paul frequently compares Adam to Christ.  Because of Adam, death is inevitable; but because of Christ, rising to eternal life is also inevitable for those who belong to Jesus.  Our Lord’s role as Messiah and Redeemer will cease when all who are to be redeemed are gathered.  This is “the end”, as Saint Paul calls it; when a Mediator will no longer be needed.  Jesus, however, maintains His Human Nature forever. 

It is clear that Paul is quite familiar with the Psalms and recognizes Christ as the fulfillment of them: “For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet” is an adaptation of Psalm 109 (110), verse 1: “Sit at My right Hand until I make Your enemies Your footstool” --  “When everything is subjected to Him” can be applied to Psalm 8, verse 8: “You have subjected all things under His Feet.”  God will be “All in all” when there will no longer remain anything that is opposed to God.           

Gospel Commentary

In the United States, with its governance by a democracy, sometimes it can be difficult to fully grasp monarchal terms such as describing Jesus as “King” and also reading from this Gospel about His glorious “Throne”.  In America as in many nations we choose our leaders; and it’s not just the President who leads us, but also many men and women who form the Congress.  Therefore, coming to grips with a sole king as a ruler, although still present in some countries, is nonetheless a foreign ideology to Americans.  But there isn’t any form of government that will ultimately succeed until it acknowledges that God is the Supreme Ruler.  And right now our nation may be walking on thin ice because God has revealed that which He considers abominations, and perilously, some of these things which are to be avoided are actually legal in our nation. 

This Gospel does not shy away from what is the end result of disobedience to the true King, or more familiarly, the King of kings.  Jesus clearly indicates that there is a separation of good from evil at the final judgment. 

The early Church scholar, Origen, writes something that should prompt a personal examination of conscience.  He writes: “When a man prays that God’s Kingdom may come, he is praying, as he should, for the Kingdom of God which is within him, that it may rise, flourish and reach its full growth.  We must understand this about the Kingdom of God – as there is no partnership between righteousness and iniquity, no fellowship of light with darkness, no accord of Christ with Belial, so the kingdom of sin cannot co-exist with the Kingdom of God.  If we would have God reign over us, then, sin must have no reign in our mortal body.  We must put to death what is earthly in us and bear the fruits of the Spirit, so that God may walk in us as in a spiritual garden and reign alone in us with His Christ, so that Christ may be seated within us at the right Hand of that spiritual Power for which we pray, seated until all His enemies within us are made a footstool for His Feet and all the principalities and authorities and powers are destroyed in us.” 

There are religious orders that are dedicated to taking care of the poor and hungry as well as committed lay ministries who visit prisons; and all of these worthy orders, organizations and ministries can use our help either through volunteer work or financial support.  “These works of mercy,” says Saint Augustine of Canterbury, “prevail towards life everlasting and to the blotting out of former sins.”  But let’s take it another step and consider this on a higher realm: Those who are spiritually starving and those who are spiritually imprisoned by their own wills and desires.  These are plagues that exist the world over.  And the remedy for this can only come by encountering those who are spiritually nourished and experience spiritual freedom without the use of any of this world’s goods; but instead by using the spiritual gifts that God has given to them.  This is an encounter with Christ living in the soul.  By applying both the physical and the spiritual to these plagues, one can see why the world is often at odds with our Lord.  Those who are physically poor and hungry generally display an “other worldly” joy and spiritual fulfillment as missionaries have attested to; while those who have material wealth could easily fall into a secular trap by thinking that the comfort of their lives means that God is not necessary. 

Those imprisoned for crimes committed, often find God in their confinement and discover spiritual freedom.  Those who are incarcerated by their own desires and addictions such as pornography, drug abuse and alcoholism actually think they are living a life of freedom.  Regardless of where we fit in by society’s standards, the joy, happiness and freedom that lasts an eternity can only come from Him Who is Eternal.  As conflicting as it sounds, true happiness cannot be found until we enter into the Wounds of our crucified Lord.  There’s an intimacy here that cannot be fully expressed in words.  Our Lord mysteriously identifies Himself with the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the naked, the sick and the imprisoned.  This is hardly the world’s view of what a king is.  Supreme Perfection has lovingly embraced imperfection.  True freedom cannot be experienced until we surrender to Him Who is Christ the King.

Star of the Sea

Many of the giants of our faith had a devotion to the Holy Souls. From Saint Faustina’s account in her diary, it sure sounds like the souls in purgatory are dependent upon our prayers. They need us now and we’ll surely need them later. Pray for the Holy Souls! Here’s what Saint Faustina wrote.

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I asked the Lord who… I should pray for. Jesus said that on the following night He would let me know for whom I should pray. The next night I saw my Guardian Angel, who ordered me to follow him. In a moment I was in a misty place full of fire in which there was a great crowd of suffering souls. They were praying fervently, but to no avail, for themselves; only we can come to their aid. The flames which were burning them did not touch me at all. My Guardian Angel did not leave me for an instant.

I asked these souls what their greatest suffering was. They answered me in one voice that their greatest torment was longing for God.

I saw our Lady visiting the souls in Purgatory. The souls called her the Star of the Sea. She brings them refreshment.

I wanted to talk with them some more, but my Guardian Angel beckoned me to leave. We went out of that prison of suffering. I heard an interior voice which said, "My mercy does not want this, but justice demands it." Since that time, I am in closer communion with the suffering souls.

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It’s interesting that their prayers for themselves are “to no avail” but it is our prayers that relieve their sufferings. This clearly delineates our connectedness as the Body of Christ. With all our prejudices, hang-ups, worldly enticements and judgments, it is a lesson we struggle so hard to embrace and practice in this life. Rampant secularism has diminished our culture's "longing for God."

Keep in mind that at Fatima our Lady revealed to us the story of a young girl who will remain in purgatory until the end of time. Our Blessed Mother isn't using scare tactics. She is embracing her children, pleading with them that Jesus is the only way.