Christian theological movement
POPULARITY
10 episodes with Jansenism
9 episodes with Jansenism
4 episodes with Jansenism
3 episodes with Jansenism
2 episodes with Jansenism
2 episodes with Jansenism
2 episodes with Jansenism
2 episodes with Jansenism
2 episodes with Jansenism
Episode 11 – Spiritual Fruits of Small Acts – St. Thérèse and Marie: The Story of Two Cousins with Fr. Timothy Gallagher Fr. Timothy Gallagher and Kris McGregor take a look at the spiritual development of Marie, cousin of St. Thérèse of Lisieux, through her letters to Celine, and Thérèse's teachings. After Thérèse's death, Marie grew into a spiritual guide for Celine, who faced challenges in her married life. The letters reveal Marie’s assimilation of Thérèse’s “Little Way,” focusing on love in daily, seemingly small acts. Thérèse's advice, including humility, joy, and charity in daily interactions, reflects her practical approach to holiness. She urged Marie to let go of self-focus, embrace sacrificial love, and make virtuous choices in ordinary settings, even during recreation, fostering relationships through selfless acts of love. They also discuss Thérèse's transformation of spiritual attitudes prevalent in her time, such as the lingering effects of Jansenism. Thérèse believed in God's merciful love over fear and judgment, demonstrating a path to holiness accessible to all, even in mundane tasks. Her counsel to “forget oneself” and focus on love for God and others highlights her conviction that profound spiritual growth lies in simple, consistent acts of love. Discerning Hearts Reflection Questions * Spiritual Growth Through Relationships: How can I guide others spiritually while remaining open to my own growth in faith? * Embracing Humility: In what ways can I practice humility by seeking forgiveness, even when I am not at fault? * Living the “Little Way”: How can I fill the small, everyday moments of my life with love and intentionality? * Overcoming Self-Focus: What steps can I take to forget myself and center my thoughts and actions on loving God and others? * Finding Joy in Sacrifice: How can I offer small sacrifices in my daily interactions as acts of love and charity? * Sanctifying Ordinary Activities: How can I approach routine or recreational moments with the same fidelity and virtue as prayer or work? * Being Cheerful for Others: How can I bring joy and encouragement to others, even when I am facing personal sadness? * Rediscovering God’s Mercy: How do I view God’s love and mercy, and how can I overcome fears rooted in a harsh image of God? * Reflecting on Daily Duty: How does my approach to daily responsibilities reflect my love for God and commitment to holiness? * Building Virtuous Relationships: How can I intentionally foster love, patience, and kindness in my relationships, following the example of Thérèse? About this Series Fr. Timothy Gallagher reflects upon the enduring legacy of St. Thérèse of Lisieux, exploring how her life and spirituality were deeply influenced by her family and how it offers profound insights into everyday holiness. He examines the role of family and spiritual friendships in nurturing faith, the importance of compassionate care for others, and how Thérèse’s example can inspire listeners to seek sanctity in their daily lives. He also brings forth more details of the spiritual bond between the Martin and Guérin families, offering a model for fostering deeper connections within one’s own family and community. Father Timothy M. Gallagher, O.M.V., was ordained in 1979 as a member of the Oblates of the Virgin Mary, a religious community dedicated to retreats and spiritual formation according to the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius. Fr. Gallagher is featured on the EWTN series “Living the Discerning Life: The Spiritual Teachings of St. Ignatius of Loyola.” For more information on how to obtain copies of Fr. Gallaghers's various books and audio, which are available for purchase, please visit his website:
Discover the profound connection between God's mercy and justice. We often think of them as opposites, but what if they're not? Explore how this truth transforms your understanding of God's love and deepens your capacity to receive His mercy. (Divine Mercy mini series, part 1 of 2) Discussed in this episode: Why this may be the most important topic ever discussed on the Being Human podcast; The surprising truth: mercy and justice are not opposites but inseparable; Why God is never angry with us, even if there are corrections we need to make; The idea of a wrathful God is a misunderstanding rooted in Calvinism and Jansenism, not Catholic teaching; God knows every detail of our lives—our wounds, weaknesses, and struggles—and judges us with complete understanding and compassion; Justice means seeing the full picture of our lives, and God's infinite mercy flows from this perfect understanding; How the Enlightenment and postmodern thinking shaped our misconceptions of authority and objective truth; Why God's justice isn't about wrath but about seeing the whole picture of our lives; The deep psychological connection between forgiveness, mercy, and justice; The invitation to deepen our capacity to receive God's mercy. Resources mentioned or relevant: Grow in self-awareness and self-compassion through Catholic Mindfulness; Need help? Schedule a free consultation to discuss your next best step; Feeling called to help others? Learn more about our Certification program (CPMAP): CatholicPsych Model of Applied Personalism; Sign up for our weekly newsletter to stay up to date on the exciting developments at CatholicPsych; Visit our website to read the CatholicPsych blog, shop in the CatholicPsych bookshop, or discover other resources we have available; Download The Integrated App for access to free audio exercises, courses, prayer resources, and more; Become a member of the Integrated Life Community to get access to every course Dr. Greg has created, plus the opportunity to participate in Integrated LIVE's - weekly, Mentor hosted Q&As covering topics like boundaries, communication, trauma, forgiveness, and more! Follow: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CatholicPsych Instagram: @catholicpsych X: @CatholicPsych Contact us! Have a topic or a question you would like Dr. Greg to address on the podcast? Want to give some feedback about this episode? Email us at beinghuman@catholicpsych.com - we would love to hear from you! Rate, review, and subscribe Please help us in our mission to integrate the Faith with Psychology by hitting subscribe and also sharing this podcast with your friends. Please consider rating or leaving a review of our show. It helps us reach other Catholics just like you who want to become more integrated, whole, and happy human beings. For Apple podcasts, click here, scroll to the bottom, tap to rate 5 stars, and choose “write a review.” Then type your sincere thoughts about the show! If you haven't already, make sure to subscribe so you don't miss out on any episodes. Subscribe to the podcast now!
Accompaniment in times of suffering, Jansenism, Islam, LSD, are some of the topics on today's Called to Communion with Dr. David Anders.
Accompaniment in times of suffering, Jansenism, Islam, LSD, are some of the topics on today's Called to Communion with Dr. David Anders.
Friends of the Rosary, Today is the Memorial Day of St. Margaret Mary Alacoque (1647-1690). Our Lord chose this French Visitation nun and mystic to spread devotion to his Sacred Heart. This privilege took place at a time when Protestantism and the heresy of Jansenism were trying to separate Catholics from their faith and their God. Margaret had always intensely loved the Blessed Sacrament and preferred silence. In one of her visions, she was instructed to spend an hour every Thursday night meditating on Jesus' Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane, a practice known as “The Holy Hour” that later became widespread. In December 1673, Jesus appeared to Margaret Mary again and allowed her to rest her head on His heart. His human heart was to symbolize His divine-human love. He revealed to her the wonders of His love and explained to her that he wished to make these wonders known to all the world. A group of theologians declared her visions delusions and suggested she eat better. Even parents of children she instructed began calling her an imposter. Margaret eventually gained the support from the community's confessor, St. Claude de la Colombiere, who declared her visions were genuine. St. Margaret Mary later led the monastery in observing the Feast of the Sacred Heart and inspired the construction of a chapel to honor it. Margaret Mary died a couple of years later, at 43, on October 17, 1690, while being anointed. She said, “I need nothing but God and to lose myself in the heart of Jesus.” After her death, the Jesuits adopted devotion to the Sacred Heart, but it remained controversial within the Church. The practice did not become officially recognized until 75 years later. St. Margaret Mary Alacoque was officially canonized in 1920 by Pope Benedict XV. In 1928, Pope Pius XI upheld the Church's position. He stated that Jesus “manifested Himself” to Margaret and confirmed the chief features of devotion to the Sacred Heart were the “reception of Holy Communion on the first Friday of each month, Eucharistic adoration during a ‘Holy hour' on Thursdays, and the celebration of the Feast of the Sacred Heart.” Ave Maria!Jesus, I Trust In You!St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, Pray for Us! Come, Holy Spirit, come! To Jesus through Mary! + Mikel Amigot | RosaryNetwork.com, New York • October 16, 2024, Today's Rosary on YouTube | Daily broadcast at 7:30 pm ET
The very words of St. John Climacus seem to carry us up to heights hitherto unknown and unexpected. The experience of this ascent takes place as we feel our hearts begin to burn for love of God and the desire for him in prayer. St. John quickly moves us away from looking at prayer as a mere discipline and rather our being drawn into the depths of Mystery, the very Mystery of the Triune God. The act of praying is a blessing in and of itself. To enter into this converse with God is also to experience the action of the Spirit within our hearts, the groans of Love that are beyond words. In all of this, St. John reshapes are understanding of the nature of prayer. It is not a discipline but an expression of our true nature in Christ. We are to become prayer, consumed by love for the Lord; anxious to show that love and treat it cheaply. Faith, St. John tells us, gives wings to prayer. Through it we see with clarity our hearts' desire. An urgent longing takes hold of the heart that seeks quick satisfaction; that is, seeks to take hold of the Beloved without delay. --- Text of chat during the group: 00:08:23 Bob Cihak, AZ: P. 237, #26 00:12:17 iPhone: Thank you, Bob 00:12:37 Myles Davidson: Hi Father. Which edition of Isaac the Syrian's AH will you be using? 00:13:38 iPhone: Beautiful book 00:13:51 Bob Cihak, AZ: Previous posts don't show for newcomers, so I repeat: P. 237, #26 00:14:02 Bob Cihak, AZ: Yes! “The Ascetical Homilies of Saint Isaac the Syrian, revised 2nd Edition” published by Holy Transfiguration Monastery, https://www.bostonmonks.com/product_info.php/products_id/635 . 00:14:16 Cindy Moran: I just got mine in the mail---loving the glossary. 00:14:43 Cindy Moran: Excellent...yes! 00:26:15 Anthony: I think the focus on law and duty that we see in some Catholic subcultures damages our understanding of prayer in this mystical way. At least, I think it was not healthy for me, with efforts like "storm heaven with this novena." 00:27:53 Myles Davidson: Reacted to "Yes! “The Ascetical ..." with ❤️ 00:30:43 Anthony: Another thing about legalism is that it chokes faith. 00:34:13 Anthony: Like how God said His name was blasphemy among the nation's by bad behavior of the Chosen people. 00:35:35 Kate : I have had to undo a lot of this strict legalistic teaching over the years. Sometimes I fall back into it, and I think it is actually easier for my mind to grasp this legalism rather than open myself and surrender myself to the Love of God. His Love is almost incomprehensible sometimes, but wonderfully so! 00:35:42 iPhone: Glad you mentioned corporal punishment. When I was five or six, I realized how unjust this violence was and I saw that the nun hit us hard enough to make us cry. In my desire for Justice, I resolved not to cry and I didn't. After that I was marked as a problem child and never got a break. So, yeah, learning to trust is big 00:36:49 iPhone: The nuns meant our best, I'm sure. But something was really off with Irish Catholicism at that time (early 60s) 00:37:13 Anthony: Replying to "The nuns meant our b..." It's Jansenism 00:38:19 iPhone: I think Jansenism is applicable but not the whole story 00:39:21 iPhone: Oh this is Una. Forget to put in my name 00:55:33 Cindy Moran: It's a sort of Divine healing radiation 01:04:21 Erick Chastain: Sorry about that got in car mode 01:04:27 iPhone: Ignatius and remote preparation 01:06:53 Jeff O.: So it all starts with obedience….is this the general movement…recognizing that it's not quite so linear? obedience —> humility —> discernment —> dispassion —> true prayer 01:12:22 Jacqulyn: Reacted to "Sorry about that got..." with
St Alphonsus Liguori - Being Who God Made Him to Be *St Alphonsus - Saint for a Difficult Time *St Alphonsus and Jansenism *Uniformity with God's Will *Confession, Means of New Evangelization
Full Text of ReadingsMemorial of Saint Alphonsus Liguori, Bishop and Doctor of the Church Lectionary: 404The Saint of the day is Saint Alphonsus LiguoriSaint Alphonsus Liguori’s Story Moral theology, Vatican II said, should be more thoroughly nourished by Scripture, and show the nobility of the Christian vocation of the faithful and their obligation to bring forth fruit in charity for the life of the world. Alphonsus, declared patron of moral theologians by Pius XII in 1950, would rejoice in that statement. In his day, Alphonsus fought for the liberation of moral theology from the rigidity of Jansenism. His moral theology, which went through 60 editions in the century following him, concentrated on the practical and concrete problems of pastors and confessors. If a certain legalism and minimalism crept into moral theology, it should not be attributed to this model of moderation and gentleness. At the University of Naples, Alphonsus received a doctorate in both canon and civil law by acclamation, at the age of 16, but he soon gave up the practice of law for apostolic activity. He was ordained a priest, and concentrated his pastoral efforts on popular parish missions, hearing confessions, and forming Christian groups. He founded the Redemptorist congregation in 1732. It was an association of priests and brothers living a common life, dedicated to the imitation of Christ, and working mainly in popular missions for peasants in rural areas. Almost as an omen of what was to come later, he found himself deserted after a while by all his original companions except one lay brother. But the congregation managed to survive and was formally approved 17 years later, though its troubles were not over. Alphonsus' great pastoral reforms were in the pulpit and confessional—replacing the pompous oratory of the time with simplicity, and the rigorism of Jansenism with kindness. His great fame as a writer has somewhat eclipsed the fact that for 26 years he traveled up and down the Kingdom of Naples preaching popular missions. He was made bishop at age 66 after trying to reject the honor, and at once instituted a thorough reform of his diocese. His greatest sorrow came toward the end of his life. The Redemptorists, precariously continuing after the suppression of the Jesuits in 1773, had difficulty in getting their Rule approved by the Kingdom of Naples. Alphonsus acceded to the condition that they possess no property in common, but with the connivance of a high Redemptorist official, a royal official changed the Rule substantially. Alphonsus, old, crippled and with very bad sight, signed the document, unaware that he had been betrayed. The Redemptorists in the Papal States then put themselves under the pope, who withdrew those in Naples from the jurisdiction of Alphonsus. It was only after his death that the branches were united. At 71, Alphonsus was afflicted with rheumatic pains which left incurable bending of his neck. Until it was straightened a little, the pressure of his chin caused a raw wound on his chest. He suffered a final 18 months of “dark night” scruples, fears, temptations against every article of faith and every virtue, interspersed with intervals of light and relief, when ecstasies were frequent. Alphonsus is best known for his moral theology, but he also wrote well in the field of spiritual and dogmatic theology. His Glories of Mary is one of the great works on that subject, and his book Visits to the Blessed Sacrament went through 40 editions in his lifetime, greatly influencing the practice of this devotion in the Church. Reflection Saint Alphonsus was known above all as a practical man who dealt in the concrete rather than the abstract. His life is indeed a practical model for the everyday Christian who has difficulty recognizing the dignity of Christian life amid the swirl of problems, pain, misunderstanding and failure. Alphonsus suffered all these things. He is a saint because he was able to maintain an intimate sense of the presence of the suffering Christ through it all. Saint Alphonsus Liguori is the Patron Saint of: TheologiansVocations Saint of the Day, Copyright Franciscan Media
Full Text of ReadingsMonday of the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time Lectionary: 365The Saint of the day is Saint Joseph CafassoSaint Joseph Cafasso's story Even as a young man, Joseph loved to attend Mass and was known for his humility and fervor in prayer. After his ordination, he was assigned to a seminary in Turin. There he worked especially against the spirit of Jansenism—an excessive preoccupation with sin and damnation. He used the works of Saint Francis de Sales and Saint Alphonsus Liguori to moderate the rigorism popular at the seminary. Joseph recommended membership in the Secular Franciscan Order to priests. He urged devotion to the Blessed Sacrament and encouraged daily Communion. In addition to his teaching duties, Joseph was an excellent preacher, confessor, and retreat master. Noted for his work with condemned prisoners, he helped many of them die at peace with God. Joseph urged one of his former pupils—Saint John Bosco—to establish the Salesians congregation to work with the youth of Turin. Joseph Cafasso died in 1860, and was canonized in 1947. His liturgical feast is celebrated on June 23. Reflection Devotion to the Eucharist gave energy to all Joseph's other activities. Long prayer before the Blessed Sacrament has been characteristic of many Catholics who have lived out the gospel well: Saint Francis, Bishop Fulton Sheen, Cardinal Joseph Bernardin, and Saint Teresa of Calcutta among them. Saint Joseph Cafasso is the Patron Saint of: PrisonersPrussia Saint of the Day, Copyright Franciscan Media
Guile. It is rarely a word that is used in our day; nor one which we use to examine our own minds and hearts. Yet, as St. John describes it, guile has an impact upon our vision of life, God, ourselves, and others. Our vision becomes wholly distorted and perverted. While guile is a kind of intelligence - it is sly and cunning. Understanding, then, is used to manipulate others and circumstances for one's own benefit. This in turn creates an aversion to humility and repentance. The pretense of religion and religiosity begins to prevail in a person's life. Reverence and piety becomes a sham. One becomes diabolical, and they use what is good in order to commit evil. It creates within the human heart a love of sin and so makes an individual the companion of the devil. We are to live upright lives; that is, we are stand upright with our eyes fixed forward toward the life that God has made possible for us. How often we choose the path of beasts; our eyes directed downwards towards the things of this world and the satisfaction of our own appetites. The mind and the heart become sick and incapable of seeing the truth - so deeply have they sunk into the abyss of this unholy cunning. --- Text of chat during the group: 00:17:26 Celine Fournier: Hello I am new to the zoom. 00:18:12 FrDavid Abernethy: page 178 para 20 00:18:44 Walter Viola: First time attending. Been following via YouTube for a year. 00:29:39 David Swiderski: Wouldnt this be what we call today sociopaths? Often highly intelligent but are only able to see this benefits me now and this does not. There is no empathy or concept of a right and wrong. Working with excecutives in several pulbic companies I am convinced this is abnormally high in that group. 00:30:46 Louise: Guile seems to be the modus vivendi of psychopaths, or people I call satanic souls. 00:30:59 Kevin Burke: What is meant by “hindrance to resurrection?” 00:31:19 sue and mark: how would gaslighters come into play with this? 00:31:20 Anthony Rago: Yesterdays Gospel mentioned guile. Christ addresses Nathaniel as an Israelite in whom is no guile, is that to show he was outstanding in a crowd of people with guile? Or is it that he is an excellent specimen of a crowd of honest people? And what does that have to do with sitting under the fig tree? 00:32:38 Louise: If you meet one, go away, leave the scene ASAP. 00:36:02 Louise: Could we say that the ones are the bad seeds, the weeds? 00:36:49 Louise: ''he guile ones'' 00:38:17 Carol: do you think guile can exist more subtly in the hearts of all of us 00:39:38 Maureen Cunningham: Guile is when you plan to hurt another soul. 00:44:01 Daniel Allen: Not to change texts but this makes me think of the wisdom of St Isaac, “above all things love silence”. I tend to regret my words more than biting my tongue 00:44:37 Anthony Rago: This is why Jansenism was so serious. Pure as angels; Proud as devils 00:46:47 Maureen Cunningham: I did see that movie 00:47:06 Cindy Moran: Love that movie 00:48:32 Louise: What is the name again? 00:48:38 Cindy Moran: Jennifer Jones 00:48:40 Rod Castillo: Jennifer Jones 00:48:52 Rod Castillo: Song of Bernadette 01:00:30 Louise: Father, we lost you. 01:00:36 Cindy Moran: Frozen 01:03:09 David Swiderski: A priest in Spain explained this well to me. All churches are filled with stainglass windows of the saints who let the light of God enter into our lives. By struggling we slowly clean our own windows and dark stains to let the light of God to enter into this world and our communities. 01:17:26 Maureen Cunningham: If we are always looking at what is bad in us ? In the same way can gaze at how far we have come closer to Him 01:20:59 Cindy Moran: Fun fact: Jennifer Jones was married to movie mogul studio film executive David O. Selznick [Gone With the Wind] who was born here in Pittsburgh 01:21:08 Rebecca Thérèse: Thank you
A rare in-person episode! Join us as we look into the beginnings of the scientific revolution and what that meant for Church history. We look at new ways that politics plays into religion, various degrees of religious toleration, some great saints, the rise of Jansenism, and more! And as to be expected with in-person episodes, we go on plenty of tangents, including about the issues with modern Classics scholars and hating the skeptics!Follow us on Twitter! https://twitter.com/UlmtdOpinions
Friends of the Rosary: One of the saints we honor today is St. Margaret Mary Alacoque (1647-1690), a French nun chosen by Our Lord to spread devotion to his Sacred Heart, at a time when Protestantism and the Jansenism heresy tried to separate Catholics from the true faith.Our Lord appeared to her often, usually as the Crucified Christ. In this revelation of the Sacred Heart to the nun, Christ Jesus made known His burning desire to be loved by all men. Margaret Mary communicated Our Lord's wish that the faithful receive Holy Communion on the first Friday of each month and observe the Feast of the Sacred Heart on the Friday after the octave of Corpus Christi. Through her apostolate of devotion to the Sacred Heart, many sinners have repented and found grace with God. Many pilgrims to St. Margaret Mary's tomb have sought and obtained favors. Ave Maria!Jesus, I Trust In You!St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, Pray for Us! To Jesus through Mary! + Mikel A. | RosaryNetwork.com, New York • October 16, 2023, Today's Rosary on YouTube | Daily broadcast at 7:30 pm ET
In this episode, I take a look back at a 1995 book by the Polish philosopher Lezsek Kolakowski, "God Owes Us Nothing: A Brief Remark on the Religion of Pascal and the Spirit of Jansenism." Kolakowski's book tackles the problem of theodicy (how a good and just God can allow evil in the world) via an examination of the 17th century heresy of Jansenism. In this episode I take a look at his arguments for the idea that God is not a subject of any human moral obligations, and that the modern split between faith and science has left believers with an all-powerful but inscrutable God who "owes us nothing." --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/churchcontroversies/message
Full Text of ReadingsMemorial of Saint Alphonsus Liguori, Bishop and Doctor of the Church Lectionary: 402The Saint of the day is Saint Alphonsus LiguoriSaint Alphonsus Liguori’s Story Moral theology, Vatican II said, should be more thoroughly nourished by Scripture, and show the nobility of the Christian vocation of the faithful and their obligation to bring forth fruit in charity for the life of the world. Alphonsus, declared patron of moral theologians by Pius XII in 1950, would rejoice in that statement. In his day, Alphonsus fought for the liberation of moral theology from the rigidity of Jansenism. His moral theology, which went through 60 editions in the century following him, concentrated on the practical and concrete problems of pastors and confessors. If a certain legalism and minimalism crept into moral theology, it should not be attributed to this model of moderation and gentleness. At the University of Naples, Alphonsus received a doctorate in both canon and civil law by acclamation, at the age of 16, but he soon gave up the practice of law for apostolic activity. He was ordained a priest, and concentrated his pastoral efforts on popular parish missions, hearing confessions, and forming Christian groups. He founded the Redemptorist congregation in 1732. It was an association of priests and brothers living a common life, dedicated to the imitation of Christ, and working mainly in popular missions for peasants in rural areas. Almost as an omen of what was to come later, he found himself deserted after a while by all his original companions except one lay brother. But the congregation managed to survive and was formally approved 17 years later, though its troubles were not over. Alphonsus' great pastoral reforms were in the pulpit and confessional—replacing the pompous oratory of the time with simplicity, and the rigorism of Jansenism with kindness. His great fame as a writer has somewhat eclipsed the fact that for 26 years he traveled up and down the Kingdom of Naples preaching popular missions. He was made bishop at age 66 after trying to reject the honor, and at once instituted a thorough reform of his diocese. His greatest sorrow came toward the end of his life. The Redemptorists, precariously continuing after the suppression of the Jesuits in 1773, had difficulty in getting their Rule approved by the Kingdom of Naples. Alphonsus acceded to the condition that they possess no property in common, but with the connivance of a high Redemptorist official, a royal official changed the Rule substantially. Alphonsus, old, crippled and with very bad sight, signed the document, unaware that he had been betrayed. The Redemptorists in the Papal States then put themselves under the pope, who withdrew those in Naples from the jurisdiction of Alphonsus. It was only after his death that the branches were united. At 71, Alphonsus was afflicted with rheumatic pains which left incurable bending of his neck. Until it was straightened a little, the pressure of his chin caused a raw wound on his chest. He suffered a final 18 months of “dark night” scruples, fears, temptations against every article of faith and every virtue, interspersed with intervals of light and relief, when ecstasies were frequent. Alphonsus is best known for his moral theology, but he also wrote well in the field of spiritual and dogmatic theology. His Glories of Mary is one of the great works on that subject, and his book Visits to the Blessed Sacrament went through 40 editions in his lifetime, greatly influencing the practice of this devotion in the Church. Reflection Saint Alphonsus was known above all as a practical man who dealt in the concrete rather than the abstract. His life is indeed a practical model for the everyday Christian who has difficulty recognizing the dignity of Christian life amid the swirl of problems, pain, misunderstanding and failure. Alphonsus suffered all these things. He is a saint because he was able to maintain an intimate sense of the presence of the suffering Christ through it all. Saint Alphonsus Liguori is the Patron Saint of: TheologiansVocations Saint of the Day, Copyright Franciscan Media
Walking with the Saints Podcast | Feast of St. Alphonsus De Liguori, Patron of Confessors and Moral Theologians| August 1 St. Alphonsus de Liguori, founder of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer or the Redemptorists.He was endowed with a well-rounded talents so much so that he was also a composer, musician, artist, poet, writer, lawyer, philosopher and theologian. St. Alphonsus was born, eldest of seven children, in Marianella, near Naples, Italy, of a noble lineage on September 27, 1696. His father sent him to study as a lawyer. Before entering the university he was taught by tutors. At 16, he graduated from the University of Naples with doctorates in civil and canon law. When he was 18, he joined the Confraternity of Our Lady of Mercy to assist in caring for the sick at the hospital. Meanwhile, he was also practicing law, which according to him was full of difficulties. After eight years of practice, losing for the first time an important case at age 27, he resolved to leave the legal profession. That was when he heard a voice saying: “Leave the world and give yourself to me.” Soon, he decided to become a priest and entered as a novice at the Oratory of St. Philip Neri, but his father allowed him as long as he would not become an Oratorian. He was ordained on December 21, 1726 at the age 30. He spent his first years as a priest with the homeless and marginalized youth of Naples. He became very popular due to his simple and down-to-earth preaching. He was heard saying: “I have never preached a sermon which the poorest old woman in the congregation could not understand.” That was why his sermons were very effective and they converted many who had gone away from the faith. He founded centers of prayer, preaching, community social activities and education for the youth. They called them Evening Chapels. There were thousands active members and participants. In 1729 Alphonsus left his family home and resided in the Chinese Institute in Naples and began missionary work in the interior regions of Naples. There, he found people who were much poorer and much more abandoned than those in his first missionary territory. In 1731, while ministering to earthquake victims in Foggia, Italy Alphonsus said he had a vision of the Virgin Mary who appeared as a girl of 14. This vision and his scruples about sin, led to a greater intimacy with God and an ardent desire to serve Him unreservedly. Thus, on November 9, 1732, he founded the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer. The charism of the congregation is to preach in the cities and the countryside, in the slums and other poor places. Besides preaching, the members of the newly founded congregation fought against Jansenism, the heresy that preached a very excessive and strict morality which did not consider forgiveness. The Redemptorists rightly believed that: “penitents must be treated as souls to be saved rather than as criminals to be punished.” The Redemptorists specialized in hearing Confession. In 1766, St. Alphonsus founded also the Redemptoristine nuns in St. Agatha. When St. Alphonsus was already sickly, he resigned his post as Bishop and he continued to live with the Redemptorist community in Pagani, Italy where he died. St. Alphonsus was beatified on September 15, 1816 by Pope Pius VII. He was canonized on May 26, 1839 by Pope Gregory XVI. He was named “Patron of Confessors and Moral Theologians” by Pope Piuys XII on April 26, 1950. His voluminous writings are still extant today and a famous Christmas song in Italian is still among the favorites: “Tu scendi dalle stelle” (From starry skies descending). In 1949, the Redemptorists founded the Alphonsian Academy for the advanced study of moral theology. St. Alphonsus is a Doctor of the Church and his greatest contribution were his writings on moral theology. The devotion to Our Mother of Perpetual Help was begun by his followers in 1923.
Full Text of ReadingsMemorial of the Immaculate Heart of Mary Lectionary: 573The Saint of the day is Saint Joseph CafassoSaint Joseph Cafasso's story Even as a young man, Joseph loved to attend Mass and was known for his humility and fervor in prayer. After his ordination, he was assigned to a seminary in Turin. There he worked especially against the spirit of Jansenism—an excessive preoccupation with sin and damnation. He used the works of Saint Francis de Sales and Saint Alphonsus Liguori to moderate the rigorism popular at the seminary. Joseph recommended membership in the Secular Franciscan Order to priests. He urged devotion to the Blessed Sacrament and encouraged daily Communion. In addition to his teaching duties, Joseph was an excellent preacher, confessor, and retreat master. Noted for his work with condemned prisoners, he helped many of them die at peace with God. Joseph urged one of his former pupils—Saint John Bosco—to establish the Salesians congregation to work with the youth of Turin. Joseph Cafasso died in 1860, and was canonized in 1947. His liturgical feast is celebrated on June 23. Reflection Devotion to the Eucharist gave energy to all Joseph's other activities. Long prayer before the Blessed Sacrament has been characteristic of many Catholics who have lived out the gospel well: Saint Francis, Bishop Fulton Sheen, Cardinal Joseph Bernardin, and Saint Teresa of Calcutta among them. Saint Joseph Cafasso is the Patron Saint of: PrisonersPrussia Saint of the Day, Copyright Franciscan Media
Heresy has always been a hot topic — not just today, but also many hundreds of years ago. Fr Columba looks at two of the big ones, Arianism and Jansenism, and what we can learn from them. Turns out we need to think of God as a "both and", not an "either or" in most cases.
GUEST: (Author) Archdule Eduard Habsburg The Habsburg Way: 7 Rules for Turbulent Times is written with warmth and candor, by Archduke Eduard Habsburg — a member of the royal family and Archduke of Austria — shares insights about the Seven Principles (maxims) at the root of the Habsburg family dynasty from thought, to action, politics, and family life. Few families in history are as renowned as the Habsburgs, one of the principal sovereign dynasties of Europe from the thirteenth to the twentieth century. These enthralling pages provide glimpses into the lives of their esteemed members. The lessons that their lives teach will hopefully help guide readers in faith and will help principles to live in peaceful prosperity and grow in holiness. Readers will find stories about the Imperial House of Habsburg's saints and heroes, sinners, assassinations, and affairs, and the impact that freemasonry, Jansenism, and the Enlightenment had on them and on all of Europe.
Friends of the Rosary: Today, April 28th, the Universal Church celebrates the memorial day of Louis Marie Grignion de Montfort, a 17th-century saint who is revered for his intense devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary, especially through the Holy Rosary. "Mary is the safest, easiest, shortest, and most perfect way of approaching Jesus," he wrote. In this spirituality, he preached the total consecration to Jesus through Mary and the fidelity to the Cross. He wrote: "The Incarnation of the Word is for him the absolute central reality." Born in Montfort, Brittany (France), in 1673, this priest and poet took the name Marie at his confirmation. St. Louis Marie Grignion de Montfort formulated the prayer of entrustment to Our Lady, "Totus Tuus ego sum," which means, "I am all yours." The late Pope John Paul II took the phrase "Totus Tuus" as his episcopal motto. Another motto of this saint was "God Alone", repeated over 150 times in his writings. A gifted preacher, he often drew crowds of thousands to hear his sermons in which he encouraged frequent communion (not the custom then) and devotion to Mary. But he also met with opposition, especially from the Jansenists, a heretical movement within the Church that believed in absolute Predestination, in which only a chosen few are saved, and the rest damned. Much of France was influenced by Jansenism, including many bishops, who banished St. Loius Marie from preaching in their dioceses. He was even poisoned by Jansenists in La Rochelle, but survived, though he suffered ill health after. While recuperating from the effects of the poisoning, he wrote the masterpiece of Marian piety, "True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin," which correctly prophesied it would be hidden by the devil for a time. His seminal work was discovered 200 years after his death. The book became a classic explanation of Marian's devotion and the basis for the consecration to Mary. Louis Marie de Montfort also wrote another masterpiece, The Secret of the Rosary. [PDF, free Download] He founded the Missionaries of the Company of Mary (for priests and brothers) and the Daughters of Divine Wisdom, who cared especially for the sick in hospitals and the education of poor girls. On this special day, we will celebrate at 7:00 pm in St. Catherine of Siena Parish, in Greenwich, Connecticut, a Holy Mass for the eternal rest of María Blanca Gonzalez de Amigot, Blanki. At 6:30 pm it will take place the Holy Rosary – today the Sorrowful Mysteries. María Blanca went to the Father on October 28, 2021, eighteen months ago today. The Amigot Gonzalez family invites everyone to the event. Ave Maria!Jesus, I Trust In You!St. Louis Marie Grignion de Montfort, Pray for Us! + Mikel A. | RosaryNetwork.com, New York • April 28, 2023, Today's Rosary on YouTube | Daily broadcast at 7:30 pm ET
The particular history of Jansenist secularization in Quebec and the Social Gospel in English Canada prepared the ground for our extraordinary Wokeness.
Join the MOC Guild family to access Guild content and communityOR donate Watch The Kennedy Report Paleocrat Patreon Terror of Demons: Reclaiming Traditional Catholic Masculinity City of God vs. City of Man (the Manifesto of this Apostolate)
Cathy McClive (Florida State University) offers the first full-length bilingual edition of an extraordinary treatise on childbirth written by a seventeenth-century French midwife in The Art of Childbirth: A Seventeenth-Century Midwife's Epistolary Treatise to Doctor Vallant (University of Toronto Press, 2022). In 1671, Marie Baudoin (1625-1700), head midwife and governor of the Hôtel-Dieu of Clermont-Ferrand, sent a treatise on the art of childbirth to her powerful Parisian patron, Dr. Vallant. The story of how Baudoin's knowledge and expertise as a midwife came to be expressed, recorded, and archived raises the question: Was Baudoin exceptional because she was herself extraordinary, or because her voice has reached us through Vallant's careful archival practices? Either way, Baudoin's treatise invites us to reconsider the limits of what we thought we knew midwives "could be and do" in seventeenth-century France. Grounding Marie Baudoin's text in a microanalysis of her life, work, and the Jansenist network between Paris and Clermont-Ferrand, this book connects historiographies of midwifery, Jansenism, hospital administration, public health, knowledge and record-keeping, and women's work, underscoring both Baudoin's capabilities and the archival accidents and intentions behind the preservation of her treatise in a letter. Jana Byars is the Academic Director of Netherlands: International Perspectives on Sexuality and Gender. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network
Cathy McClive (Florida State University) offers the first full-length bilingual edition of an extraordinary treatise on childbirth written by a seventeenth-century French midwife in The Art of Childbirth: A Seventeenth-Century Midwife's Epistolary Treatise to Doctor Vallant (University of Toronto Press, 2022). In 1671, Marie Baudoin (1625-1700), head midwife and governor of the Hôtel-Dieu of Clermont-Ferrand, sent a treatise on the art of childbirth to her powerful Parisian patron, Dr. Vallant. The story of how Baudoin's knowledge and expertise as a midwife came to be expressed, recorded, and archived raises the question: Was Baudoin exceptional because she was herself extraordinary, or because her voice has reached us through Vallant's careful archival practices? Either way, Baudoin's treatise invites us to reconsider the limits of what we thought we knew midwives "could be and do" in seventeenth-century France. Grounding Marie Baudoin's text in a microanalysis of her life, work, and the Jansenist network between Paris and Clermont-Ferrand, this book connects historiographies of midwifery, Jansenism, hospital administration, public health, knowledge and record-keeping, and women's work, underscoring both Baudoin's capabilities and the archival accidents and intentions behind the preservation of her treatise in a letter. Jana Byars is the Academic Director of Netherlands: International Perspectives on Sexuality and Gender. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/history
Cathy McClive (Florida State University) offers the first full-length bilingual edition of an extraordinary treatise on childbirth written by a seventeenth-century French midwife in The Art of Childbirth: A Seventeenth-Century Midwife's Epistolary Treatise to Doctor Vallant (University of Toronto Press, 2022). In 1671, Marie Baudoin (1625-1700), head midwife and governor of the Hôtel-Dieu of Clermont-Ferrand, sent a treatise on the art of childbirth to her powerful Parisian patron, Dr. Vallant. The story of how Baudoin's knowledge and expertise as a midwife came to be expressed, recorded, and archived raises the question: Was Baudoin exceptional because she was herself extraordinary, or because her voice has reached us through Vallant's careful archival practices? Either way, Baudoin's treatise invites us to reconsider the limits of what we thought we knew midwives "could be and do" in seventeenth-century France. Grounding Marie Baudoin's text in a microanalysis of her life, work, and the Jansenist network between Paris and Clermont-Ferrand, this book connects historiographies of midwifery, Jansenism, hospital administration, public health, knowledge and record-keeping, and women's work, underscoring both Baudoin's capabilities and the archival accidents and intentions behind the preservation of her treatise in a letter. Jana Byars is the Academic Director of Netherlands: International Perspectives on Sexuality and Gender. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/gender-studies
Cathy McClive (Florida State University) offers the first full-length bilingual edition of an extraordinary treatise on childbirth written by a seventeenth-century French midwife in The Art of Childbirth: A Seventeenth-Century Midwife's Epistolary Treatise to Doctor Vallant (University of Toronto Press, 2022). In 1671, Marie Baudoin (1625-1700), head midwife and governor of the Hôtel-Dieu of Clermont-Ferrand, sent a treatise on the art of childbirth to her powerful Parisian patron, Dr. Vallant. The story of how Baudoin's knowledge and expertise as a midwife came to be expressed, recorded, and archived raises the question: Was Baudoin exceptional because she was herself extraordinary, or because her voice has reached us through Vallant's careful archival practices? Either way, Baudoin's treatise invites us to reconsider the limits of what we thought we knew midwives "could be and do" in seventeenth-century France. Grounding Marie Baudoin's text in a microanalysis of her life, work, and the Jansenist network between Paris and Clermont-Ferrand, this book connects historiographies of midwifery, Jansenism, hospital administration, public health, knowledge and record-keeping, and women's work, underscoring both Baudoin's capabilities and the archival accidents and intentions behind the preservation of her treatise in a letter. Jana Byars is the Academic Director of Netherlands: International Perspectives on Sexuality and Gender. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/medicine
Cathy McClive (Florida State University) offers the first full-length bilingual edition of an extraordinary treatise on childbirth written by a seventeenth-century French midwife in The Art of Childbirth: A Seventeenth-Century Midwife's Epistolary Treatise to Doctor Vallant (University of Toronto Press, 2022). In 1671, Marie Baudoin (1625-1700), head midwife and governor of the Hôtel-Dieu of Clermont-Ferrand, sent a treatise on the art of childbirth to her powerful Parisian patron, Dr. Vallant. The story of how Baudoin's knowledge and expertise as a midwife came to be expressed, recorded, and archived raises the question: Was Baudoin exceptional because she was herself extraordinary, or because her voice has reached us through Vallant's careful archival practices? Either way, Baudoin's treatise invites us to reconsider the limits of what we thought we knew midwives "could be and do" in seventeenth-century France. Grounding Marie Baudoin's text in a microanalysis of her life, work, and the Jansenist network between Paris and Clermont-Ferrand, this book connects historiographies of midwifery, Jansenism, hospital administration, public health, knowledge and record-keeping, and women's work, underscoring both Baudoin's capabilities and the archival accidents and intentions behind the preservation of her treatise in a letter. Jana Byars is the Academic Director of Netherlands: International Perspectives on Sexuality and Gender. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/intellectual-history
Cathy McClive (Florida State University) offers the first full-length bilingual edition of an extraordinary treatise on childbirth written by a seventeenth-century French midwife in The Art of Childbirth: A Seventeenth-Century Midwife's Epistolary Treatise to Doctor Vallant (University of Toronto Press, 2022). In 1671, Marie Baudoin (1625-1700), head midwife and governor of the Hôtel-Dieu of Clermont-Ferrand, sent a treatise on the art of childbirth to her powerful Parisian patron, Dr. Vallant. The story of how Baudoin's knowledge and expertise as a midwife came to be expressed, recorded, and archived raises the question: Was Baudoin exceptional because she was herself extraordinary, or because her voice has reached us through Vallant's careful archival practices? Either way, Baudoin's treatise invites us to reconsider the limits of what we thought we knew midwives "could be and do" in seventeenth-century France. Grounding Marie Baudoin's text in a microanalysis of her life, work, and the Jansenist network between Paris and Clermont-Ferrand, this book connects historiographies of midwifery, Jansenism, hospital administration, public health, knowledge and record-keeping, and women's work, underscoring both Baudoin's capabilities and the archival accidents and intentions behind the preservation of her treatise in a letter. Jana Byars is the Academic Director of Netherlands: International Perspectives on Sexuality and Gender. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Cathy McClive (Florida State University) offers the first full-length bilingual edition of an extraordinary treatise on childbirth written by a seventeenth-century French midwife in The Art of Childbirth: A Seventeenth-Century Midwife's Epistolary Treatise to Doctor Vallant (University of Toronto Press, 2022). In 1671, Marie Baudoin (1625-1700), head midwife and governor of the Hôtel-Dieu of Clermont-Ferrand, sent a treatise on the art of childbirth to her powerful Parisian patron, Dr. Vallant. The story of how Baudoin's knowledge and expertise as a midwife came to be expressed, recorded, and archived raises the question: Was Baudoin exceptional because she was herself extraordinary, or because her voice has reached us through Vallant's careful archival practices? Either way, Baudoin's treatise invites us to reconsider the limits of what we thought we knew midwives "could be and do" in seventeenth-century France. Grounding Marie Baudoin's text in a microanalysis of her life, work, and the Jansenist network between Paris and Clermont-Ferrand, this book connects historiographies of midwifery, Jansenism, hospital administration, public health, knowledge and record-keeping, and women's work, underscoring both Baudoin's capabilities and the archival accidents and intentions behind the preservation of her treatise in a letter. Jana Byars is the Academic Director of Netherlands: International Perspectives on Sexuality and Gender. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/european-studies
Cathy McClive (Florida State University) offers the first full-length bilingual edition of an extraordinary treatise on childbirth written by a seventeenth-century French midwife in The Art of Childbirth: A Seventeenth-Century Midwife's Epistolary Treatise to Doctor Vallant (University of Toronto Press, 2022). In 1671, Marie Baudoin (1625-1700), head midwife and governor of the Hôtel-Dieu of Clermont-Ferrand, sent a treatise on the art of childbirth to her powerful Parisian patron, Dr. Vallant. The story of how Baudoin's knowledge and expertise as a midwife came to be expressed, recorded, and archived raises the question: Was Baudoin exceptional because she was herself extraordinary, or because her voice has reached us through Vallant's careful archival practices? Either way, Baudoin's treatise invites us to reconsider the limits of what we thought we knew midwives "could be and do" in seventeenth-century France. Grounding Marie Baudoin's text in a microanalysis of her life, work, and the Jansenist network between Paris and Clermont-Ferrand, this book connects historiographies of midwifery, Jansenism, hospital administration, public health, knowledge and record-keeping, and women's work, underscoring both Baudoin's capabilities and the archival accidents and intentions behind the preservation of her treatise in a letter. Jana Byars is the Academic Director of Netherlands: International Perspectives on Sexuality and Gender. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Cathy McClive (Florida State University) offers the first full-length bilingual edition of an extraordinary treatise on childbirth written by a seventeenth-century French midwife in The Art of Childbirth: A Seventeenth-Century Midwife's Epistolary Treatise to Doctor Vallant (University of Toronto Press, 2022). In 1671, Marie Baudoin (1625-1700), head midwife and governor of the Hôtel-Dieu of Clermont-Ferrand, sent a treatise on the art of childbirth to her powerful Parisian patron, Dr. Vallant. The story of how Baudoin's knowledge and expertise as a midwife came to be expressed, recorded, and archived raises the question: Was Baudoin exceptional because she was herself extraordinary, or because her voice has reached us through Vallant's careful archival practices? Either way, Baudoin's treatise invites us to reconsider the limits of what we thought we knew midwives "could be and do" in seventeenth-century France. Grounding Marie Baudoin's text in a microanalysis of her life, work, and the Jansenist network between Paris and Clermont-Ferrand, this book connects historiographies of midwifery, Jansenism, hospital administration, public health, knowledge and record-keeping, and women's work, underscoring both Baudoin's capabilities and the archival accidents and intentions behind the preservation of her treatise in a letter. Jana Byars is the Academic Director of Netherlands: International Perspectives on Sexuality and Gender. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Cathy McClive (Florida State University) offers the first full-length bilingual edition of an extraordinary treatise on childbirth written by a seventeenth-century French midwife in The Art of Childbirth: A Seventeenth-Century Midwife's Epistolary Treatise to Doctor Vallant (University of Toronto Press, 2022). In 1671, Marie Baudoin (1625-1700), head midwife and governor of the Hôtel-Dieu of Clermont-Ferrand, sent a treatise on the art of childbirth to her powerful Parisian patron, Dr. Vallant. The story of how Baudoin's knowledge and expertise as a midwife came to be expressed, recorded, and archived raises the question: Was Baudoin exceptional because she was herself extraordinary, or because her voice has reached us through Vallant's careful archival practices? Either way, Baudoin's treatise invites us to reconsider the limits of what we thought we knew midwives "could be and do" in seventeenth-century France. Grounding Marie Baudoin's text in a microanalysis of her life, work, and the Jansenist network between Paris and Clermont-Ferrand, this book connects historiographies of midwifery, Jansenism, hospital administration, public health, knowledge and record-keeping, and women's work, underscoring both Baudoin's capabilities and the archival accidents and intentions behind the preservation of her treatise in a letter. Jana Byars is the Academic Director of Netherlands: International Perspectives on Sexuality and Gender. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/french-studies
Today on the show, we look at Jansenism and the life of Pierre Nicole. @1517 #christianhistory #christian #history — SHOW NOTES are available: https://www.1517.org/podcasts/the-christian-history-almanac GIVE BACK: Support the work of 1517 today CONTACT: CHA@1517.org SUBSCRIBE: Apple Podcasts Spotify Stitcher Overcast Google Play FOLLOW US: Facebook Twitter Audio production by Christopher Gillespie (gillespie.media).
Level: intermediate In this video I am joined by Dr. Shaun Blanchard to speak about Jansenism and the synod of Pistoia.Shaun Blanchard is Senior Research Fellow at the National Institute for Newman Studies in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. A graduate of North Carolina, Oxford, and Marquette, Shaun writes on a variety of topics in early modern and modern Catholicism. He is the author of The Synod of Pistoia and Vatican II (OUP: 2020) and, with Ulrich Lehner, co-edited The Catholic Enlightenment: A Global Anthology (CUA: 2021). Forthcoming works include an anthology of Jansenist sources (co-edited with Richard Yoder), and Vatican II: A Very Short Introduction (co-authored with Stephen Bullivant). He lives in Baton Rouge with his wife Ann-Marie, and loves cats, fried chicken sandwiches, and English beer. Shaun's devotion to the University of North Carolina's football team has taught him more about eschatological hope than any of his theological study.Dr. Blanchard's book on Pistoia:https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-synod-of-pistoia-and-vatican-ii-9780190947798?cc=us&lang=en&Dr. Blanchard's book on Vatican II:https://global.oup.com/academic/product/vatican-ii-a-very-short-introduction-9780198864813?cc=us&lang=enIf you enjoy this content, please leave us a review!Support the show
September 27: Saint Vincent de Paul, Priest1581–1660Memorial; Liturgical Color: WhitePatron Saint of all charitable societies, hospitals, and leprosy victimsA powerhouse priest organizes multitudes for charity and renews priestly formationToday's saint was one of the brightest stars in the galaxy of saintly men and women whose light rejuvenated Catholicism in seventeenth-century France. Saint Vincent de Paul established charitable societies that have endured to this day. He also founded male and female religious orders that still thrive in the twenty-first century. He was a trusted counselor to bishops, cardinals, and royalty. His ideas reformed how seminarians and priests were trained so fundamentally that this vision became normative for the world-wide Church. He was the hub of many spokes: a close friend of Saint Francis de Sales, his own co-founder Saint Louise de Marillac, and the almost-saint Pierre de Bérulle. Saint Vincent had a great influence over Jean-Jacques Olier, the founder of the Sulpician Order and a prime mover behind the group of French Catholics who risked everything to found Ville-Marie de Montreal, the explicitly Catholic settlement at the farthest edge of French Canada. Our saint also inspired Blessed Frédéric Ozanam, the lay intellectual who established the Saint Vincent de Paul Societies so commonly found in parishes throughout the world.Few saints achieved as much as Vincent de Paul. He stood at the core of an evolving group of similarly minded French saints who left an impact like a meteor on the face of the Church. So, although he cannot be understood apart from the charitable Society that bears his name, neither can his achievements be confined to that Society alone. Saint Vincent tried to use his education and personal charm to correct the errors of Jansenism, an overly rigorous spiritual and moral approach to the Christian life that infected wide swaths of the French faithful. When his personal efforts were unproductive, he became more polemical and was instrumental in procuring a papal denunciation of Jansenism.Our Saint's contributions to the renewal of the life of the clergy were notable. He was a proponent and founder, along with de Bérulle, of the so-called French school of spirituality, which has been so universally adopted in priestly formation that there is, in reality, no other approach. This spirituality combines asceticism, practical and active concern for the poor, a missionary drive to the unconverted, a sophisticated theological education, simple and direct preaching, and a total reliance on the Virgin Mary and the Holy Trinity in seeking to do the will of God. These high ideals, this total approach, also inspired Vincent's near contemporaries Saints John Eudes, Louis de Montfort, and Jean-Baptiste de La Salle to become who they were. To be a man of action and contemplation. To be educated but able to discourse with the simple. To focus on the salvation of souls but also on the material concerns of the needy. To be fully a priest but to have wide circles of lay friends and followers. This was the vision of Saint Vincent de Paul for all priests, and the vision he himself put into action in his own life. He was a force of nature who stormed through life for the glory of Christ alone. Devotion to Saint Vincent followed soon after his death. He was canonized in 1737. His remains are displayed for veneration in a glass coffin above the altar in the ornate chapel of the Vincentian Fathers in central Paris, not far from the chapel of the Miraculous Medal. A partially concealed staircase allows access for the faithful to see the great man up close.Saint Vincent de Paul, you worked tirelessly for the poor, orphans, and widows. You gathered around yourself numerous helpers. Your primary motivation was not social justice but the pure will of God. Inspire us to be so committed, so dedicated, and so faithful.
We continued to listen to the Father‘s counsel on avoiding relationships or circumstances that can bring us spiritual harm. Such thought is not guided by a lack of love or charity or hospitality; rather it is rooted in an understanding that we are first to love the Lord our God with all of our mind, soul, heart, and strength. It is only having our love ordered and directed toward Him that our love of the things and and people within the world can be rightly ordered. We were given one example after another of how necessary it is to discern when relationships are drawing us away from God or the ways that the devil can use us through our negligence to harm others spiritually. We don't engage in the spiritual battle in a state of isolation. Nor do we seek to live the life of virtue simply for ourselves. Love demands that we be attentive to loving God above all things in order that we might draw all toward Christ. Such simplicity and clarity in the way that one views the world and oneself, creates the purity of heart that is necessary to discern the path and the will of God. --- Text of chat during the group: 00:29:57 Anthony: This is how I learned there was something wrong with some Catholic commentators. They left me agitated about the legal aspect of the Faith....am I searching myself well enough, did I do this good enough? etc. Jansenism 00:30:31 Anthony: on the church 00:30:37 Anthony: correcting the Novus ordo 00:30:42 Anthony: noveau telogie 00:32:36 Emma C: Where do we see the line between judging others vs judging their actions to know who to avoid? 00:35:42 Kevin Clay: I think we need to see that we can be that “foolish and thoughtless friend” to ourselves and not just others. We can be unwise, greedy, quarrelsome, arrogant, etc. We need to separate ourselves from our passions and the things that stir the passions. 00:44:37 Rachel: I was wondering about what you just mentioned. About being detached from ego. I was told recently to " Be at peace." in relation to something I did not realize was a distraction. At first, it made me wonder and uncomfortable. Since if I am not at peace, then something of what I spoke of must not be of God. It reminded me instantly of what a holy and wise priest told me. He said, not to speculate over matters. and it was clear, that the only thing needed was to stay in the moment with Our Lord. 00:45:35 Rachel: That these distractions are a result of idle distractions,no matter how good they appear. That God will take care of each moment and situation in His good Providence. 00:50:27 Debra: St. Bonaventure has a beautiful post-Communion prayer https://tinyurl.com/4de5cj7z 00:50:54 Anthony: Thinking of just yourself and God: In "A Man for All Seasons," St. Thomas More tries to break Richard Rich from avarice by telling him of the honor he would have as a mere teacher before God as his audience. Had Richard Rich followed this advice, he would have avoided his moral downfall later on, and maybe even in his saving his soul, much of England would have been spared some of the violence of the 1500s. "Acquire a spirit of peace and thousands around you will be saved." ~ St. Seraphim of Sarov 00:58:18 carolnypaver: If he had just said “no” the people would have wondered if the “brigand” would have been released IF ONLY the Elder had asked. The Elder removed all doubt. 01:03:03 Rachel: I left a comment above about something you addressed. It seems his current reading ties into the discipline it takes to be detached not only from the things of this world but from oneself as well. Since our nous can be darkened, idle curiosities and distractions can wreak havoc in one's own life and those around them. Since the person given to these distractions will act from that skewed vision instead of the pure place of ordering everything to God and His good will alone 01:18:14 Rachel: You mentioned that purity in our day will be like the martyrs, because of the way the world is..in a beautiful homily our priest once gave, he mentioned St. Catherine of Siena. How she felt desperately that our Lord had left her in grave temptations. Yetm he reassured her that not only had he not left her but that she was more pleasing to him. 01:18:40 Rachel: So, it seems that fighting to stay with our Lord wont always feel rosy. 01:19:15 Ambrose Little: Advertising is not like in the old days. Moby Dick was a 900 page advert for the whaling industry.
Full Text of ReadingsMemorial of Saint Alphonsus Liguori, Bishop and Doctor of the Church Lectionary: 407All podcast readings are produced by the USCCB and are from the Catholic Lectionary, based on the New American Bible and approved for use in the United States _______________________________________The Saint of the day is Saint Alphonsus LiguoriMoral theology, Vatican II said, should be more thoroughly nourished by Scripture, and show the nobility of the Christian vocation of the faithful and their obligation to bring forth fruit in charity for the life of the world. Alphonsus, declared patron of moral theologians by Pius XII in 1950, would rejoice in that statement. In his day, Alphonsus fought for the liberation of moral theology from the rigidity of Jansenism. His moral theology, which went through 60 editions in the century following him, concentrated on the practical and concrete problems of pastors and confessors. If a certain legalism and minimalism crept into moral theology, it should not be attributed to this model of moderation and gentleness. At the University of Naples, Alphonsus received a doctorate in both canon and civil law by acclamation, at the age of 16, but he soon gave up the practice of law for apostolic activity. He was ordained a priest, and concentrated his pastoral efforts on popular parish missions, hearing confessions, and forming Christian groups. He founded the Redemptorist congregation in 1732. It was an association of priests and brothers living a common life, dedicated to the imitation of Christ, and working mainly in popular missions for peasants in rural areas. Almost as an omen of what was to come later, he found himself deserted after a while by all his original companions except one lay brother. But the congregation managed to survive and was formally approved 17 years later, though its troubles were not over. Alphonsus' great pastoral reforms were in the pulpit and confessional—replacing the pompous oratory of the time with simplicity, and the rigorism of Jansenism with kindness. His great fame as a writer has somewhat eclipsed the fact that for 26 years he traveled up and down the Kingdom of Naples preaching popular missions. He was made bishop at age 66 after trying to reject the honor, and at once instituted a thorough reform of his diocese. His greatest sorrow came toward the end of his life. The Redemptorists, precariously continuing after the suppression of the Jesuits in 1773, had difficulty in getting their Rule approved by the Kingdom of Naples. Alphonsus acceded to the condition that they possess no property in common, but with the connivance of a high Redemptorist official, a royal official changed the Rule substantially. Alphonsus, old, crippled and with very bad sight, signed the document, unaware that he had been betrayed. The Redemptorists in the Papal States then put themselves under the pope, who withdrew those in Naples from the jurisdiction of Alphonsus. It was only after his death that the branches were united. At 71, Alphonsus was afflicted with rheumatic pains which left incurable bending of his neck. Until it was straightened a little, the pressure of his chin caused a raw wound on his chest. He suffered a final 18 months of “dark night” scruples, fears, temptations against every article of faith and every virtue, interspersed with intervals of light and relief, when ecstasies were frequent. Alphonsus is best known for his moral theology, but he also wrote well in the field of spiritual and dogmatic theology. His Glories of Mary is one of the great works on that subject, and his book Visits to the Blessed Sacrament went through 40 editions in his lifetime, greatly influencing the practice of this devotion in the Church. Reflection Saint Alphonsus was known above all as a practical man who dealt in the concrete rather than the abstract. His life is indeed a practical model for the everyday Christian who has difficulty recognizing the dignity of Christian life amid the swirl of problems, pain, misunderstanding and failure. Alphonsus suffered all these things. He is a saint because he was able to maintain an intimate sense of the presence of the suffering Christ through it all. Saint Alphonsus Liguori is the Patron Saint of: Theologians Vocations Saint of the Day, Copyright Franciscan Media
Are you a perfectionist? If so, you're at war against yourself. Though he despises sin, God loves us for who we are, regardless of how we've failed him. Fr Columba explains this and more, including the link between perfectionism and Jansenism, and how perfectionism kills performance in Olympic athletes.
Full Text of ReadingsFriday of the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time Lectionary: 369All podcast readings are produced by the USCCB and are from the Catholic Lectionary, based on the New American Bible and approved for use in the United States _______________________________________The Saint of the day is Saint Joseph Cafassoclass="content"> Jun 17, 2020 Franciscan Media Image: Statue de San Giuseppe Cafasso | José Luiz Bernardes Ribeiro Saint of the Day for June 17 (January 15, 1811 – June 23, 1860) Audio file Saint Joseph Cafasso's story Even as a young man, Joseph loved to attend Mass and was known for his humility and fervor in prayer. After his ordination, he was assigned to a seminary in Turin. There he worked especially against the spirit of Jansenism—an excessive preoccupation with sin and damnation. He used the works of Saint Francis de Sales and Saint Alphonsus Liguori to moderate the rigorism popular at the seminary. Joseph recommended membership in the Secular Franciscan Order to priests. He urged devotion to the Blessed Sacrament and encouraged daily Communion. In addition to his teaching duties, Joseph was an excellent preacher, confessor, and retreat master. Noted for his work with condemned prisoners, he helped many of them die at peace with God. Joseph urged one of his former pupils—Saint John Bosco—to establish the Salesians congregation to work with the youth of Turin. Joseph Cafasso died in 1860, and was canonized in 1947. His liturgical feast is celebrated on June 23. Reflection Devotion to the Eucharist gave energy to all Joseph's other activities. Long prayer before the Blessed Sacrament has been characteristic of many Catholics who have lived out the gospel well: Saint Francis, Bishop Fulton Sheen, Cardinal Joseph Bernardin, and Saint Teresa of Calcutta among them. Saint Joseph Cafasso is the Patron Saint of: Prisoners Prussia Saint of the Day, Copyright Franciscan Media
Text of chat during the group: 00:28:07 Josie: Does the first monk who said that he wanted to trust in God in the solitude of the desert demonstrate to us that God won't save someone who is alone or that this isn't the way that we approach the idea of complete trust in God? The context of my question being the mantra that we should trust only and fully in God and only he can help us. 00:29:51 Josie: So being completely alone isn't a sort of extra trust in God? 00:33:14 Anthony: Even in a non-monastic setting, being alone, outside of accountability to family and community, opens the mind to lots of thoughts or evil suggestions. And a person can be alone in this sense either literally solitary or in a crowd like a college. People can be severely tried when solitary in these senses. There's something in Ecclesiastes that Father quotes, about walking alone, when you fall, who can help? When you are with others they are even a preventative to falling. 00:33:36 Anthony: other people are encouragement to the heart. 00:45:18 Josie: is it weird to reveal our thoughts rather than actions and sins in the confessional? 00:45:33 Anthony: On a theological or social-theological note, this destructive sense of obedience - as I understand it, comes from Jansenism. A Catholic Calvinism...and Calvinism focused for some reason on God's election, no place for a free love, it seems to me. 00:48:21 Ren: It is so powerful to compare the image of one who commands obedience put forward by Christ - a shepherd whose voice is followed, who carries those who are not strong enough to walk; one who stands in the midst of their followers as one who serves - to what you put forward just now - a hammer who drives others into a exact place by sheer force. Wow. Really amazing to reflect on. 00:53:45 Forrest Cavalier: μεγάλε 00:56:45 Ren: Satan - the relentless bartender :-D 00:57:42 Tyler Woloshyn: Reminds of the classic cartoon villain who keeps getting foiled by the virtuous protagonist. 01:04:29 Ren: I love this story so much. One of my favorites in the book so far. 01:04:40 Josie: me too 01:04:45 Ashley Kaschl: Same. It's so good. 01:06:00 Josie: father does fasting help with the psychological temptations or only physical temptations of the body? hope this q makes sense 01:09:40 Tyler Woloshyn: We know that these texts were written in a different technological era. Fasting seems to become more of a battle today for lay, clergy, and monastic alike given technology. Temptations and challenges to fasts can be magnified even more now then they were in the age of the Fathers. The devil does not need to walk down the road here, he can be at the tip of one's fingers with screen time. 01:10:37 Josie: someone said on Twitter "the Lord gives the solution then he allows the problem" 01:12:11 Josie: he was quoting a Rabbi i think, and was talking about the internet 01:12:46 Anthony: I think what matters is what flask you drink from - or don't. Since 2018, the Catholic news has been consumed with obkective wrongs, which exist, but can become consumptive: 2018-2019: sex scandal. 2019, Pachademon in Vatican. 2020-2022, election , Great Reset and covid. 2022, Ukraine. The imbalance and fixation is real but can be a poison to imbibe and gets in the way of classic spiritual food and drink. But maybe we can turn this to our good 01:14:26 Anthony: and being one oriented to fixing social problems, this negative world tone affected my spiritual life. 01:17:06 Rachel: lol 01:17:55 keynote: Thank you Fr.!! 01:18:02 Josie: thank you father 01:18:07 Rachel: Thank you! 01:18:15 Tyler Woloshyn: Good night and God bless! 01:18:21 Sheila Applegate: Thank you!
This evening we started a new Hypothesis, number 20. The focus is on receiving the advice of the fathers and how important it is not to develop an individualistic approach to the spiritual life. Asceticism can very quickly become something of our own making. Whenever we are guided simply by our own judgment, spiritual practices can very easily lead us into pride. The longer that we are in such a state, the greater the danger of falling into delusion. One who thinks he is above the elders' or anyone else's judgment, he who seeks no one else's counsel, will come to experience the greatest darkness. We are part of the living body of the Church and God has given us that which is most essential for our sanctity. Despite the darkness that we see within the world and sometimes see within the life of the Church, we do not want to lose sight of God‘s Providential care and the guidance of the Spirit. Nor do we want to lose sight of those God has put on our path to help support us and guide us. Such an attitude requires from us an openness to the guidance of the Spirit in our lives. Above all it requires humility. Our path as Christian men and women is distinctly the path of humility, the path of the cross, and so we must never be deluded to the extent that we place our own judgment above others. In the end such an attitude will eventually lead us to place our judgment above God himself. From such a tragic darkness - we may never emerge. --- Text of chat during the group: 00:16:39 Anthony: Look at the history of Family Radio for a contemporary example. 00:18:33 John White: O felix culpa! O happy carbuncle! 00:18:52 carolnypaver:
Tonight we continued our reading of Hypothesis 19 on obedience, its value, and how is attained. We began with the Fathers' understanding of the value of obedience. In it is realized all of the Commandments because through obedient love one conforms oneself to Christ. In this sense the person who is obedient, who embraces the will of another in whose care they are placed, becomes a “confessor of the Faith”. One who abandons his own will is rewarded more greatly than those who pursue virtue in accord with their own judgment or opinion. The clarity of the Fathers' focus upon emulating Christ is essential for us to understand. Obedience is not a slavishness; it is a self-emptying love that is rooted in the desire to please and serve the other. It is rooted in trust and shaped by self-sacrifice. May we never complicate it so as to make it unrecognizable. Within it is the power to redeem even what seems lost in our families, in our communities, and in life as a whole. It carries within it to seed of divine love that can reshape everything; even that which seems impossible to us. --- Text of chat during the group: 00:10:32 Lyle: Looking forward to another evening where someone may decisively, yet lovingly, dismantle erroneous ecclesiology for those of us catechumens. 00:19:55 Anthony: I'm guessing it was a fig branch or twig. That's one way to propagate figs. In year three, you get figs. 00:21:51 Ambrose: 1 John 2:3-5 ‘And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected.' 00:22:18 Ambrose: John 14:15 ‘If you love me, you will keep my commandments.' 00:28:35 Anthony: This has implications for laity in problem parishes and dioceses and clergy under bishops with issues. 00:28:52 Anthony: Also had political implications against revolutions. 00:42:07 Ren: How does one reclaim the spirit of obedience once it has been lost? Once you have let resentment and even contempt of a particular authority figure to establish itself? 00:42:33 Jos: this was my question too but on the level of family/ generations 00:44:34 Ambrose: This one got me this morning. From lauds intercessions: Forgive us for failing to see Christ in the poor, the distressed and the troublesome, and for our failure to reverence your Son in their persons. (particularly the "troublesome" part) 00:45:22 Carol Nypaver: Amen, Ambrose. 00:45:43 Anthony: We find our identity in the wrong. Yeah, that's not healthy. 00:46:37 Ambrose: and not "sharing" it in social media 00:46:59 Jos: sorry I can't unmute 00:47:23 Carol Nypaver: Can you type it, Jos? 00:48:40 Jos: I wanted to ask about whether when one is born into a culture/ family structure and many generations that is filled with this pattern of resentment, lack of obedience etc, if it is then even possible to really change without enormous amounts of effort. 00:49:22 Lyle: Fr. David, I‘ve always appreciated the way you and some other spiritual directors continually point us to the Lord Jesus as our ultimate example whenever we need an example. 00:49:41 Jos: in our culture and my generation it is very common and it seems for many of us like outside of a very concerted effort it is nearly impossible to break out of the habitual that's been solidified in the unconscious 00:50:09 Anthony: Seeing each others flaws only - it can lead to long term and serious and acute resentments as with antipathy of different Slavic or Balkan peoples - or any of the old rivalries of Europe. 00:50:59 Ren: Agreed Lyle! “He humbled himself, by becoming obedient to death - even death on a cross.” 00:52:11 Ren: I have never been willing to be “obedient to death”
The Traditionalist Movement could result in the next Church schism. Preferring one style of the Mass over another isn't an issue. So, what is? In this third and final installment in the Simpleton Podcast's 3-part series on the Traditionalist Movement in the Catholic Church, Clark and Laura discuss: • The sociological and spiritual problems found in some proponents of the TLM (Traditional Latin Mass) • What true "pastoring" looks like • How the heresy of Jansenism can relate to the Traditionalist Movement • Religious rigidity and error (how to avoid becoming a Pharisee or Sadducee) • What can be done to prevent a schism You can also find the video version of this episode on YouTube. Just search "The Simpleton Podcast", or go to https://youtu.be/8tZ1EvSZGOk NEW! The Simpleton Podcast is now on Odysee! Just go to odysee.com/@asimplehouseU to view the latest episodes of The Simpleton Podcast. --- The Traditionalist Movement (TM) Series: (Pt. 1 of 3) Where Did the Traditionalist Movement Come From?: https://youtu.be/OW36CmGj8e4 (Pt. 2 of 3) What's Wrong With the Traditionalist Movement?: https://youtu.be/ETErWvFqmxI (Pt. 3 of 3) Heresy Hidden in the Traditionalist Movement?: https://youtu.be/8tZ1EvSZGOk --- Like, subscribe, share the podcast, and most of all, send us your feedback! We want to hear from you about what you loved, what you didn't, where you want to see the podcast go, and any other thoughts you have. Send us an email at asimplehouse@gmail.com with the subject line "The Simpleton Podcast Feedback". To learn more about A Simple House and The Simpleton Podcast, visit asimplehouse.org. You can also follow us on these platforms: YouTube - A Simple House: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6LYNoV7AFGhKP4LR0Qqgnw YouTube - A Simple House U (home of The Simpleton Podcast): https://www.youtube.com/asimplehouseu_2022 Facebook: @asimplehouse Instagram: @asimplehouse.catholic
Tonight we concluded letter 77 and went on to read letter 78. As we have seen in past weeks, Theophan is much more direct with Anastasia now that she has made her decision to enter into the religious life. In multiple ways, she has been tempted either by those who have no faith, by her fear of injustice and false accusation, or her desire to express and pursue her own freedom. Theophan warns her against all these things and the kind of false freedom especially that we cling to that offers no hope. In fact, Theophan refers to it as an “evil impulse that is evil”. We are called to walk the path of the cross; to die to self and to self-will and to live for Christ. We have not been promised the love of the world. Rather, we have been promised just the opposite - its hatred. Why would she want to flee her parents house when in reality it is a protective environment for her? It is there that she can learn the life of a obedience at the hand of those who love her the most. What greater opportunity is there to be formed for the religious life than this? Don't chase false freedoms, he warns her. The impulse to freedom is like chasing rainbows or desiring to catch shadows. When we look at the world we see unhappy people desperately seeking to assert themselves - often at the cost of others. She must learn to look at her life in the light of Christ and her freedom in light of the communion of love in which she exists with God. Anything else is an illusion. --- Text of chat during the group: 00:06:03 Art: Posting a follow up to Eric C's question from last week. While he was asking I was reminded of one possible answer to the dilemma whether to obey the Church 10 years ago or the Church one month ago. Rather than butcher the response, I've included the actual source. It begins around 15:28 and ends around 20:50 Two points I found helpful were the comments that in a crisis there is an objectively right thing to do. “You hold on to what was always believed everywhere by everybody.” “What has the Church always believed? That is what I must continue to believe.” And “The faith does not change. What was once true is still true. Either it was false then, in which case it is false now. Or else it was true then and it's true now.” The speaker is Fr. David Sherry SSPX. Hopefully you find it helpful. http://sspxpodcast.com/2021/12/crisis-series-49-father-what-can-i-do-about-the-crisis-in-the-church/ 00:32:13 Anthony: I've wondered if this applies to legal processes such as the cases for freedom to act according to a well formed conscience. OK, suppose you lose the case....would that change your acting according to a well formed conscience? We are called to accept persecutions. 00:35:35 Anthony: Would the truth of the cross apply to suffering under the English "Reformation," the French Revolution and the Vendee, the American Revolution....and current events like in Eastern Europe? 00:40:30 John Clark: I once had to confront an office bully…It was a good outcome 00:43:00 Lyle: Today, some of us were meditating on the Office of Readings regarding St. Polycarp's martyrdom. His last words brought tears to my eyes. “I praise you for all things, I bless you, I glorify you through the eternal priest of heaven, Jesus Christ, your beloved Son. Through him be glory to you, together with him and the Holy Spirit, now and for ever. Amen”. 00:43:21 Lyle: Surrounded by the fire, his body was like bread that is baked, or gold and silver white-hot in a furnace, not like flesh that has been burnt. So sweet a fragrance came to us that it was like that of burning incense or some other costly and sweet-smelling gum. 00:44:18 Carol Nypaver: Amen! St. Polycarp, pray for us! 00:46:48 Erick Chastain: you get an academic department at a major public university 00:47:22 Erick Chastain:
Subscribe to Quotomania on Simplecast or search for Quotomania on your favorite podcast app!Blaise Pascal, (born June 19, 1623, Clermont-Ferrand, France—died Aug. 19, 1662, Paris), was a French mathematician, physicist, and religious philosopher. The son of a mathematician, he was a child prodigy, earning the envy of René Descartes with an essay he wrote on conic sections in 1640. In the 1640s and '50s he made contributions to physics (formulating Pascal's law) and mathematics (working on the arithmetic triangle, inventing a calculating machine, and contributing to the advance of differential calculus). For work done in his early years, he is regarded as the founder of the modern theory of probability. At the same time, he became increasingly involved with Jansenism. Les Provinciales were a series of letters defending Jansenism and attacking the Jesuits. His great work of Christian apologetics, Apologie de la religion chrétienne, was never finished, but he put together most of his notes and fragments between 1657 and 1658; these were published posthumously as Pensées (1670). He returned to scientific work, contributing to the Élements de géométrie and publishing his findings on cycloid curves, but he soon returned to devotional life and spent his last years helping the poor. The pascal was named in his honor.From https://www.britannica.com/summary/Blaise-Pascal. For more information about Blaise Pascal:Previously on The Quarantine Tapes:Simon Critchley about Pascal, at 20:40: https://quarantine-tapes.simplecast.com/episodes/the-quarantine-tapes-008-simon-critchleyVictor Brombert about Pascal, at 07:25: https://quarantine-tapes.simplecast.com/episodes/the-quarantine-tapes-034-victor-brombertWalter Mosley about Pascal, at 07:20: https://quarantine-tapes.simplecast.com/episodes/the-quarantine-tapes-084-walter-mosleyMaggie Nelson about Pascal, at 27:25: https://quarantine-tapes.simplecast.com/episodes/the-quarantine-tapes-048-maggie-nelson“Blaise Pascal”: https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/pascal/“Blaise Pascal on the Intuitive vs. the Logical Mind and How We Come to Know Truth”: https://www.themarginalian.org/2015/06/19/blaise-pascal-intuition-intellect-pensees/
1 Jn 4:19–5:4 Father talks about the difficulty of real love and how we conquer the world Letters: What were the papal states? Father answers a letter about depriving someone of nutrition Is Mary's question to the angel an act of discernment? Word of the Day: Synagogue Callers: Jesus said no one great than John the Baptist - does that include Mary? What is the heresy of Jansenism and does it affect us today? When was Latin started in the mass? My niece doesn't want to baptize her daughter, what should I tell her?
Summary: In this episode, we explore the conventional secular and the traditional spiritual ways of understanding scrupulosity, bringing in the experts to define scrupulosity, tells us the signs of being scrupulous, speculate on the causes of the trouble, discuss that standard remedies in the secular and spiritual realms. Then I share with you my views on it, looking at scrupulosity through an Internal Family Systems lens, grounded in a Catholic worldview. We discuss how parts have different God images and the role of shame and anger in the experience of scrupulosity. Description of Scrupulosity Suddenly my stomach tightens up, there's a choking in my throat, and my torture begins. The bad thoughts come. . . . I want to drive them out, but they keep coming back. . . . It is terrible to be in a struggle like this! To have a head that goes around and around without my being able to stop it; to be a madman and still quite rational, for all that. . . . I am double. . . . at the very time that I am trying to plan what I want to do, another unwanted thought is in my mind. . . . Distracting me and always hindering me from doing what I want to do. -- Quoted in Albert Barbaste, “Scrupulosity and the Present Data of Psychiatry,” TheologyDigest, 1.3 (Autumn 1953) 182. Fr. William Doyle: Around 1900 “My confessions were bad. My confessor does not understand me, he is mistaken in me, not believing that I could be so wicked. I have never had contrition. I am constantly committing sins against faith, against purity. I blaspheme interiorly. I rashly judge, even priests. The oftener I receive Holy Communion, the worse I become,” Around 1900 My story just turned 19 -- terrible bout of scrupulosity. Around sexuality Just started dating the first woman I might consider marrying Physical touching -- romantic contact How far was too far? Thoughts of sex with her -- plagued me. Do I break up with her? How do I handle this? What was sinful, what was not? Was I on the road to hell? Was I putting her on the road to hell? I thought I was going crazy. Review: I encourage you to review the last episode, number 86 -- Obsessions, Compulsions, OCD and IFS That episode went deep into obsessions and compulsions and serves as a basis for today's episode. Today's episode, number 87 is entitled Scrupulosity: When OCD Gets Religion and it's released on December 6, 2021, St. Nick's Day. I am Dr. Peter Malinoski, clinical psychologist and passionate Catholic and together, we are taking on the tough topics that matter to you. We bring the best of psychology and human formation and harmonize it with the perennial truths of the Catholic Faith. Interior Integration for Catholics is part of our broader outreach, Souls and Hearts bringing the best of psychology grounded in a Catholic worldview to you and the rest of the world through our website soulsandhearts.com Overview Start out with definitions of scrupulosity both from spiritual and secular sources, really want to wrap our minds around what scrupulosity is and the different types of scrupulosity. We will discuss the connection between scrupulosity and OCD -- discussion of OCD We will then move to the signs of scrupulosity -- how can you tell when there is scrupulosity? Then we will get into the internal experience of scrupulosity. What is it like to experience intense scruples? Had a taste in the intro, but we will get much more into that. We will discuss what religious and secular experts have to say about the causes of scrupulosity Then what religious and secular experts have to say about the treatment of scrupulosity -- that most recommended therapy approach and the medications typically prescribed. After we've discussed the conventional secular and spiritual approaches to treating scrupulosity, I will how I think about scrupulosity, the root causes of scrupulosity, and how scrupulosity develops and how it can be treated. I will give you an alternative view, grounded in a Catholic understanding of the human person and informed by Internal Family Systems thinking. Definitions: You know how important definitions are to me. We really want to make sure we understand what we are talking about. Scruple comes from the Latin word scrupulum, "small, sharp stone" -- like walking with a stone in your shoe. Ancient Roman weight of 1/24 of an ounce or 1.3 grams. Something tiny, but that can cause a lot of discomfort. Definitions from Spiritual Sources Fr. William Doyle, SJ. Scruples and their Treatment 1897: Scrupulosity, in general, is an ill-founded fear of committing sin. Fr. Hugh O'Donnell: Scrupulosity may be defined as a habitual state of mind that, because of an unreasonable fear of sin, inclines a person to judge certain thoughts or actions sinful when they aren't or that they are more gravely wrong than they really are… Scrupulosity involves an emotional condition that interferes with the proper working of the mind and produces a judgement not in accordance with object truth, but with the emotion of fear. Fr. James Jackson, article "On Scrupulosity" A very good definition Scrupulosity is an emotional condition, an ultra-sensitivity to sin, which produces excessive anxiety and fear from the thought of eternal damnation…This condition is a religious, moral and psychological state of anxiety, fear and indecision. It is coupled with extreme guilt, depression and fear of punishment from God. However, each person who suffers from it does so uniquely. Fr. Marc Foley: The Context of Holiness: Psychological and Spiritual Reflections on the Life of St. Therese of Lisieux Excellent, very psychologically informed study of the Little Flower Not only the best psychological profile of St. Therese of Lisieux, but the best psychobiography of any saint from any author I've read. A very in-depth look at her mother, St. Zelie as well and the limitations and lack of attunement in the Martin family Highly recommended reading -- all of chapter 12 is on The Little Flower's scrupulosity. Scrupulosity is an extremely painful anxiety disorder. It consists of annoying fear that one is offended God or could offend God at any moment and that God will cast her into hell. To protect yourself from eternal damnation, the scrupulous person dissects every thought, motive, and action in order to ascertain if she has send. And since she is deathly afraid that she might have sent, the scrupulous person seeks absolute certitude that she hasn't send in order to assuage her fears. Definitions from Secular Sources Timothy Sisemore, Catherine Barton, Mary Keeley From Richmont Graduate University Scrupulosity is a "sin phobia." Jaimie Eckert, Scrupulosity Coach: Scrupulosity is where faith and OCD collide. International OCD Foundation Fact Sheet: What is Scrupulosity? By C. Alec Pollard: A form of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) involving religious or moral obsessions. Scrupulous individuals are overly concerned that something they thought or did might be a sin or other violation of religious or moral doctrine. Bridging the Secular and the Spiritual Joseph W. Ciarrocchi's The Doubting Disease: Help for Scrupulosity and Religious Compulsions -- published in 1995, and still the most cited text in Catholic circles, even more than a quarter century later. Dr. Ciarrocchi, a former Catholic priest, trained as a clinical psychologist and served as professor and chairman of pastoral counseling at Loyola University in Maryland prior to his death in 2010. Scrupulosity refers to seeing sin where there is none. He viewed scrupulosity as a sub-set of obsessive- compulsive disorder (OCD), basically a kind of “religious OCD.” He distinguishes developmental scrupulosity self-limited form of scrupulosity often occurring in adolescents or shortly after a conversion experience (e.g. St. Ignatius of Loyola) Temporary, usually disappears. emotional scrupulosity -- symptoms of OCD More enduring conditions Can vary in intensity over time, from being overwhelming to just mildly irritating Can last for years. Core experience of scrupulosity: "an intrusive idea, often associated with a sinful impulse, which the person abhors but cannot shake." "The French label the emotional condition which is sometimes part of scrupulosity "the doubting disease." Signs of Scrupulosity What do we see. A lot we don't see. Fr. Thomas Santa, past director of Scrupulous Anonymous and Author of the book Understanding Scrupulosity When people struggle with the scrupulous disorder, most of the suffering, fear, and anxiety they experience happens in isolation. Scrupulosity is mostly an interior struggle, seldom manifesting itself with easily identifiable or observable mannerisms or behaviors. You can't tell if people are scrupulous by looking at them. While some compulsions of obsessive-compulsive disorder are identifiable, most of the suffering associated with the disorder is personal. Only the sufferer fully knows its debilitating nature. Sources IOCDF Fact Sheet Jaimie Eckert Scrupulosity Coach The Gateway institute website Doubting Disease 1995 by Joseph Ciarrocchi Obsessions -- excessive concerns about Fears of Blaspheming, accusing God of being negligent or abusive or evil, cursing God Fears of Sacrilege, abusing our Lord in the Eucharist for example Fears about impulses -- taking one's clothes off in Church, screaming obscenities during Mass Example of the man concerned about touching his infant daughter's genitals Sexual thoughts about a romantic partner Sexual thoughts or images about a religious figure -- Jesus, Mary, a saint, or possibly a priest or religious. Fears around harming others I might cause the death of someone if I sneeze or cough during Mass -- I coughed. Maybe I'm sick. Maybe I have COVID. Maybe I'm a spreader. A pharmacist worries she will fill prescriptions incorrectly and poison customers at her pharmacy. Fears around aggression -- Driver goes over a bump in the Church parking lot in the dark after the parish council meeting. Is concerned he may have run over the pastor. Cooperating in the sins of others "Man participates in a discussion about a historical figure dead for more than 1000 years, who is alleged to have been a homosexual. He worries that he has committed the sin of detraction." -- Example from Joseph Ciarrocchi. Being a sinful person, dishonest, lacking integrity -- honesty Ruminating about past mistakes, errors, past sins Purity -- looking for moral perfection Not Loving Others enough -- Mother worrying she doesn't love her children enough. Going to hell Death A loss of impulse control Cyclical Doubts Often about salvation, selling your soul to the devil, in mortal sin Intrusive thoughts and images 666, Satan, Hell, pornographic images, etc. Compulsions Behavioral Compulsions Excessive trips to confession Repeatedly seeking reassurance from religious leaders and loved ones Repeated cleansing and purifying rituals Acts of self-sacrifice Repetitive religious behaviors Avoiding situations (for example, religious services) in which they believe a religious or moral error would be especially likely or cause something bad to happen Avoiding certain objects or locations because of fears they may be sinful Mental Compulsions Excessive praying (sometimes with an emphasis on the prayer needing to be perfect) I compulsions about praying. Tithing prayer. 1.6 hours vs. 2.4 hours. Needing to pray perfectly or at least adequately enough. Repeatedly imagining sacred images or phrases Repeating passages from sacred scriptures in one's head Making pacts with God to avoid hell or buy time or just to get a little relief in the present moment. Intense sense of guilt-- feeling guilty all the time -- about things that don't carry moral weight. Inflated sense of responsibility Not distinguishing between thoughts and actions. Example: Joseph Ciarrocchi The Smith family traditionally joins hands around the dinner table to give thanks in prayer before the meal. Susie, age 4, and Billy, age 6 sometimes are fidgety (and always hungry). Mrs. Smith worries that Susie, Billy, and perhaps herself haven't not “truly prayed” due to the multiple distractions: Susie is scratching her mosquito bite, Billy is leering at the chocolate pudding, and Mrs. Smith remembers she has a school board meeting after dinner. She doubts that their prayers were “heard,” and so request of the family repeat their prayers. Sometimes she makes the whole family repeat them, and sometimes only the children. Once the children needed to repeat them four times, even the Mr. Smith tried to intervene after the second time. Mrs. Smith sought advice from her pastor who urged her not to repeat the prayers, either for herself or the children. When she attempts to follow this advice, however, her entire meal is ruined as she attempts to sort out in her head whether this is acceptable to God. She will continue to worry about it throughout the rest of the evening, including her school board meeting. Distinguishing Scrupulosity of normal religious practice IOCDF Fact Sheet: Unlike normal religious practice, scrupulous behavior usually exceeds or disregards religious law and may focus excessively on one trivial area of religious practice while other, more important areas may be completely ignored. The behavior of scrupulous individuals is typically inconsistent with that of the rest of the faith community. Internal Experience of Scrupulosity Plutarch: a first century priest for the Greek god Apollo at the Temple at Delphi. He wrote about the so-called “superstitious” man, who… And so is the soul of the superstitious man. He turns pale under his crown of flowers, is terrified while he sacrifices, prays with a faltering voice, scatters incense with trembling hands, and all in all proves how mistaken was the saying of Pythagoras that we are at our best when approaching the gods. For that is the time when the superstitious are most miserable and most woebegone.... OCD Center of Los Angeles: One of the first documented references to Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) was in a 1691 sermon by Anglican Bishop John Moore of Norwich in which he discussed men and women who were overwhelmed with unwanted thoughts, and tormented by feelings of guilt and shame over what he described as “religious melancholy.” Priests had started to notice that some churchgoers were attending confession several times a day, and repeatedly confessing to the same sins and shortcomings that they feared would result in divine judgment and eternal damnation. Their penance and absolution would provide only a fleeting glimpse of peace, and then their fears would come roaring back. William Van Ornum, A Thousand frightening fantasies: understanding and human scrupulosity in obsessive-compulsive disorder 1997 24-year-old computer programmer writes, “what worries me is that at any moment and in only a few seconds I can commit serious sin. The only remedy is confession. I worry about what I've done until I confess it; then it's all over. The problem is that I fall or worry again and need to go back.” Fr. Thomas Santa: Being possessed by a thousand frightening fantasies Constructing a spider web in the mind. People with the disorder often feel as if they are isolated in darkness. They describe this feeling as a “cloud” that perpetually engulfs them. They feel the disorder constantly and uncomfortably, even in the background of day-to-day living. Scrupulosity demands constant attention and can feel like a severe and unrelenting master. At best, most people who suffer with the disorder have learned to live with it. They hope it does not get more pronounced or spill into other areas of life. Relief does not exist, so any promises of relief through activities like rituals are essentially dead ends. For those who are religious, consistent spiritual practices can help and at the same time be debilitating. From Joseph Ciarrocchi's Book "Doubting Disease Bob is 28-year-old married Jewish man who works for an accounting firm. He is thrilled with the birth of his first child, a bubbly infant girl. Bob is about to be totally involved with her as a parent and share in all aspects of childcare. He was shocked by the following experience: Bob was changing his daughter's diaper when the thought, idea, or image (he wasn't quite sure which close parentheses flashed through his mind – “Touch her private parts.” The first time it happened he shuddered, tried to dismiss the idea, and hurriedly completed diapering her. All they tried not to think about it. The next time he changed her diaper, however, the idea came back, but this time in the form of a graphic picture of Bob engaging in the dreaded behavior. This time he felt nausea, became dizzy, and called his wife to finish, saying he thought he was ill and would pass out. The idea began to torment Bob. He found himself not wanting to be alone with his daughter, Les T “give in” to the simples. He refused to bathe her or change her diaper. Sensing something was drastically wrong his wife urged him to seek help. He talked to his rabbi who tried to assure him that he was not a child molester and should dismiss the thoughts. Psychodynamic perspective Sources Nancy McWilliams Psychoanalytic Diagnosis -- Psychdynamic Diagnostic manual Thinking and Doing predominate over Feeling, sensing, intuiting, listening, playing, daydreaming, enjoying the creative arts and other modes that are less rationally driven or instrumental Hold themselves to very high standards, sometimes impossibly high. Central conflict: Rage and being controlled vs. fear of being condemned or punished. Cooperation and rebellion Initiative and sloth Cleanliness and slovenliness Order and disorder Thrift and improvidence Polarizations inside. Emotion is unformulated, muted suppressed, unavailable, or rationalized and moralized. Except anxiety and sometimes depressed mood Consign most feelings to an undervalued role, associated with childishness, weakness, loss of control, disorganization and dirt Cognition Condemning oneself for internal thought crimes -- consciously or unconsciously Body states Hyperarousal -- expressing anxiety through the body Often health problems due to excessive washing Difficulties with Play Humor Spontaneity Pain about isolation. Shame about being considered weird and unacceptable to others Capable of loving attachments, but often not able to express their tender selves without anxiety and shame Relational patterns -- seek relationships in which they can control the partner, sometimes partners who can reassure them Being intimate in relationships Emotional connection Sexuality Causes of Scrupulosity Spiritual Sources Fr. James Jackson The Fathers of the Church considered scrupulosity – or psychasthenia, as the Greek Fathers called it – to be a spiritual problem which leads to a psychological malfunction. Timothy A. Sisemore. Catherine Barton, Mary Keeley -- The History and Contextual Treatment of Scrupulous OCD 15th and 16th Century -- connected scruples to moral reasoning, addressed under conscience -- concept of erroneous conscience. -- frees the person to act without resolving the doubt. Secular Sources IOCDF Fact sheet: The exact cause of scrupulosity is not known. Like other forms of OCD, scrupulosity may be the result of several factors including genetic and environmental influences. OCDUK.com Lots of controversy. Biological factors Strep infections affecting the Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorders associated with Streptococcal Infection -- PANDAS Genetic factors Runs in families -- 2001 metaanalytic review reported that person with OCD is 4 times more likely to have another family member with OCD than a person who does not have the disorder Cognitive theory Everyone experiences intrusive thoughts at times People with OCD have an inflated sense of responsibility and interpret these thoughts as very significant and important Caught up in a pattern of Try to resist, block or neutralize them What is the meaning of the thought to the person? Joseph Ciarrocchi citing David Barlow -- OCD causes Those temperamentally disposed to having high levels of nervous energy, more pronounced bodily reactions to stress, greater levels of anxiety OCD is different from other anxiety disorders because those with OCD believe that certain kinds of thoughts are dangerous in themselves If I think certain thoughts those events will happen. If I think certain thoughts or spontaneously imagine certain things, or if I have an impulse to do such a thing, then I am the kind of person who would do such things. No moral distance between the spontaneous thought or image or impulse and actually doing the act. I must be bad. Unclean. Unworthy. Model for the development of Scrupulosity Strong belief that certain thoughts are dangerous and unacceptable Leads to the occurrence of these same intrusive thoughts This generates significant anxiety Leading to strong efforts to suppress the thoughts Which accelerates the frequency of the same kinds of thought Leading to a need to "turn off" the anxiety by any means Mental rituals Physical rituals These rituals are the compulsions And then there is a temporary respite, a bit of relief. The compulsive rituals are reinforced because they temporarily decrease anxiety. But then we loopback to the occurrence of the intrusive thoughts again. Psychodynamic understanding Nancy McWilliams -- Psychoanalytic Diagnosis Obsessive and Compulsive Personality styles: Marc Foley's Approach in The Context of Holiness about St. Therese of Lisieux's scrupulosity Parental figures who set high standards of behavior and expect early conformity to them E.g. making little kids sit still during Mass Strict and consistent in rewarding good behavior and punishing malfeasance Risk of condemning not only behaviors but the feelings that go with them Especially anger Issues of control in families of origin. Alternative -- a really lax family in which children are underparented Child concludes he has to model himself after a parental figure that he invents himself Child might have an aggressive, intense temperament -- projected on to that idealized parental figure. Self esteem comes from meeting the demands of internalized parental figures who hold them to a high standard of behavior and sometimes thought. Value self-control over nearly all other virtues. Discipline Order Loyalty Integrity Reliability Perseverance Is a particular religion a cause? No: Timothy Sisemore, Catherine Barton, Mary Keeley: A tendency to blame religion, but no more than counting OCD to be blamed on math class Joseph Ciarrocchi "Religion doesn't cause scrupulosity and more than teach someone French history causes him to believe he is Napoleon. All human beings exist in some cultural context. IOCDF Fact sheet: Scrupulosity is an equal opportunity disorder. It can affect individuals from a variety of different faith traditions. Although more research is needed to truly answer this question, there is currently no evidence to link scrupulosity to a specific religion. OCD Center of Lost Angeles It is worth noting that Scrupulosity is not partial to any one religion, but rather custom fits its message of doubt to the specific beliefs and practices of the sufferer. Yes: Joseph Ciarrocchi …religion may contribute when its content is presented in an overly harsh, punitive manner. Students of such presentations are likely to associate the context of the religious message with fear and anxiety. Jonathan Edwards, 18th Century Pastor and Theologian in the Congregational Church The God that holds you over the pit of hell, much as one holds a spider, or some loathsome insect over the fire, abhors you, and is dreadfully provoked: his wrath towards you burns like fire; he looks upon you as worthy of nothing else, but to be cast into the fire; he is of purer eyes than to bear to have you in his sight; you are ten thousand times more abominable in his eyes, than the most hateful venomous serpent is in ours. You have offended him infinitely more than ever a stubborn rebel did his prince; and yet it is nothing but his hand that holds you from falling into the fire every moment. It is to be ascribed to nothing else, that you did not go to hell the last night; that you was suffered to awake again in this world, after you closed your eyes to sleep. And there is no other reason to be given, why you have not dropped into hell since you arose in the morning, but that God's hand has held you up. There is no other reason to be given why you have not gone to hell, since you have sat here in the house of God, provoking his pure eyes by your sinful wicked manner of attending his solemn worship. Yea, there is nothing else that is to be given as a reason why you do not this very moment drop down into hell. Heresies from Fr. James Jackson: Manicheanism: Manichaeism states, on principle, that all matter is evil. If, for example, a child grows up with an extreme attitude to modesty – where the flesh is seen as evil because it is the cause of forbidden impulses – then the slightest catering to the demands or needs of the flesh can result in a torment which rejects the goodness of the body. Pelagianism: There was once a British monk named Pelagius, who taught that a man can observe God's laws by human effort alone, that grace was not needed to do so. If the heresy of Pelagianism works its way into the soul it is an easy step to thinking that any lack of perfection is entirely one's own fault. One thinks, “this business of salvation is my work, so I'd better be perfect when I …” Thus salvation becomes something one must achieve by personal effort instead of by cooperation with grace. Jansenism: Jansenism is another heresy in which scrupulosity can grow well. It emphasizes that Christ did not die for all, stresses man's sinfulness, and requires extreme penances on a regular basis. It leads to infrequent communions and flowers into scrupulosity as a matter of course. Jansenism flourished within Roman Catholicism primarily in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, but was condemned as heresy by Pope Innocent X in 1653. Jansenism was also condemned in 1713 by Pope Clement XI in his famous Bull Unigenitus. Jansenism focuses on how it was impossible for men and women to obey the Lord's commandments and to be redeemed without God's special, divine, irresistible grace. Jansenism taught that Christ died only for the elect -- a real sense of predestination Fr. Marc Foley agrees: Jansenism identified as the "remote cause: of St. Therese of Lisieux's troubles growing up. Biographer Conrad de Meester: "Zelie's mother, who taught her daughters an excessive fear of offending God, used to harp on the phrase 'that's a sin' to curb the least imperfections." Zelie had an excessive fear of sin and hell. Zelie was terrified that her five-year-old daughter Helene was in purgatory or perhaps even in hell, because she once told a lie. Spiritual Means of Recovery Joseph Ciarrocchi “Scruples in the History of Pastoral Care” (chapter four of the Doubting Disease) puts scrupulosity in the context of church history before it was viewed through the modern lens of psychiatric diagnosis. He describes several principles for the treatment of scruples from the pastoral care tradition. Act contrary to the scruples. Follow the example of others without lengthy and burdensome moral reasoning. Rely on the guidance of one spiritual advisor rather than consulting multiple spiritual authorities. Put oneself in situations that trigger the obsessional thought. Avoid religious rituals/prayers, which serve as compulsions. Ciarrocchi writes that these main pastoral principles “contain the seeds of modern behavioral treatments” that include modeling by others, exposure to the upsetting situation, and blocking the compulsive response. Fr. William Doyle 1873-1917 -- more than 100 years ago. General Remedies from Fr. William Doyle Prayer -- pray in temptation Vigilance Struggle against depression -- sadness increases scrupulosity Obedience to an experienced confessor -- perfect, trustful and blind obedience Obedience of action putting into practice the freedom of conscience Obedience of understanding -- soul remaining in revolt and persisting in its own erroneous ideas. Vanquishing errors of the intellect. Generosity in Self-Conquest -- acts of self-denial Particular remedies from Fr. William Doyle 19th century Doubts must be ignored Belief in the easiness of forgiveness Presuming decisions (of the spiritual director) Lenient view of one's faults -- magnifying glass Promptness in acting on decisions Broad-minded interpretation of advice -- broadening the way. Not piling up questions Ten Commandments for the Scrupulous -- Fr. Thomas Santa, CSsR (2013) Without exception, you shall not confess sins you have already confessed. You shall confess only sins that are clear and certain. You shall not repeat your penance or any of the words of your penance after confession—for any reason. You shall not worry about breaking your pre-Communion fast unless you put food and drink in your mouth and swallow as a meal You shall not worry about powerful and vivid thoughts, desires, and imaginings involving sex and religion unless you deliberately generate them for the purpose of offending God You shall not worry about powerful and intense feelings, including sexual feelings or emotional outbursts, unless you deliberately generate them to offend God. You shall obey your confessor when he tells you never to repeat a general confession of sins already confessed to him or another confessor. When you doubt your obligation to do or not do something, you will see your doubt as proof that there is no obligation When you are doubtful, you shall assume that the act of commission or omission you're in doubt about is not sinful, and you shall proceed without dread of sin You shall put your total trust in Jesus Christ, knowing he loves you as only God can and that he will never allow you to lose your soul Pastoral approach here. Predestination for heaven, Jesus will make us go to heaven. A lot of scrupulous clients are well enough formed to not believe that. Secular means of recovery IOCDF: Scrupulosity responds to the same treatments as those used with other forms of OCD. Cognitive behavior therapy featuring a procedure called “exposure and response prevention” is the primary psychological treatment for scrupulosity. A certain kind of medicines called Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs) is the primary drug treatment for OCD. Treatment for scrupulosity may also include consultation from leaders of the patient's faith tradition. Exposure and Response prevention See the last Episode Difficulties with ERP for scrupulosity. Joseph Ciarrocchi "Doubting Disease": My opinion, based on the clinical and theoretical aspects of scruples, is that scruples are resistant to change because their religious nature places many of them in the domain of overvalued ideas. In other words, the person sees the stakes are so high in religious doubts (i.e. salvation depends and being correct) that the senselessness of the behavior is less evidence. After all, faith itself implies looking beyond sensory experiences in the surface meaning of reality. Scrupulous people usually know that their peers do not act the way they do. But since religious salvation is such an individual experience, can one really take a chance and ignore that's “inner voice”? Therefore, the religious aspects of scruples create a motivational drive around the symptoms which become overvalued ideas, and hence resistant to change. Jaimie Eckert Scrupulosity Coach: ERP can feel like it has deep moral and spiritual implications. Although it is a method that is helping you develop a normal spirituality, it can feel terribly frightening. For example, the woman who prays compulsively, repeating her prayers dozens of times until she feels they are done “right,” might be asked to pray only once and then stop, no matter how she feels. This can easily feel like a denial of faith. So scrupulous sufferers begin dropping out of treatment when ERP gets more intense. Kevin Foss, Founder of the California OCD and Anxiety Treatment Center in Fullerton, CA: People suffering with Religious Scrupulosity struggle with the ERP process because they fear that exposure therapy will result in a genuine sin, convey that they are OK with sin and that they do not respect God or God's will. Furthermore, Scrupulosity sufferers are generally knowledgeable of their faith's doctrine and Biblical texts, so they are quick to present chapter and verse explaining why they should avoid exposure and give in to compulsive acts. Despite my reminders of clients' logical arguments, they respond with “But you never know” and “But what if God mistakes my intention in the exposure and I'm now really guilty of sin?” So, to do anything that could potentially put that into question or undermine it was experienced as possibly damaging the practice of faith, challenging one's fundamental belief in God, or leaving one vulnerable to shifting beliefs and a slippery slope into sin. Psychodynamic approaches for treating OCD but can be applied to scrupulosity. McWilliams Ordinary kindness -- they know they are exasperating for reasons that are unclear to everybody Priests get frustrated. Parents get frustrated Do not hurry them, advise them, criticize them. Avoid becoming the equivalent of the controlling, demanding parent -- no power struggles But still relate warmly. A lot of acceptance. Avoid intellectualization Help them express anger. Discover their emotions and help them enjoy them. Joseph Ciarrocchi. Doubting Disease Treatment program is laid out in his book, Doubting disease. It is essentially exposure and response prevention. Target the scruples you want to change Identify your obsessional scruples through self-monitoring. Write them down. Identify you compulsive scruples -- write them down. Avoidance acts to reduce anxiety Record the circumstances surrounding the scruples Making ratings of the intensity of the anxiety triggered by each of the obsessions and compulsions. Record the amount of time spent worrying about the scruples Lots of forms and charts, all in the book. Increase your Motivation to Change Looking at how motivated you are, and where you are in Prochaska and Di Clemente's stages of motivation to change. Developing a Personal Motivation Plan Listing the Benefits of eliminating scruples Listing the Costs of not changing scruples Preparing for Change Setting up the plan for repeated exposure to the feared object or condition. From the very start of the fear response, the body actually starts a counter-response mean to return the body to normal activity levels. Habituation. Nervous system gets bored with the danger, returns to normal. Example of jackhammer breaking up the asphalt on your road. Exposure must be prolonged Exposure must generate significant anxiety Exposure must be repeated The compulsive response must be blocked. Prevented from happening so it breaks the cycle of some relief from the compulsion. Blocking the physical compulsion or the mental compulsion. More charts and forms What I think about scrupulosity. IFS-Informed Approach I'm going to start with the bottom line. I think scrupulosity is generated by a desperate attempt to find safety from a terrible, dangerous and uncaring God for shameful, undeserving, despicable sinner Scrupulosity is a twisted, frantic attempt to find some kind of safety from an angry, heartless God for me, a reprobate, a delinquent, an evildoer. At the core, scrupulosity starts with really appalling, awful God Images -- and the scrupulous person usually isn't aware of the how terrible his or her God images really are, because they are not allowed into conscious awareness. I discuss God images at length in episode 23-29 of this podcast, a seven episode series, all about God images, so check that out. God Images = My emotional and subjective experiences of God, who I feel God to be in the moment. May or may not correspond to who God really is. What I feel about God in my bones. This is my experiential sense how my feelings and how my heart interpret God. God images are often outside of our conscious awareness Initially God images are shaped by the relationship that I have with my parents. My God images are heavily influenced by psychological factors Different God images can be activated at different times, depending on my emotional states and what psychological mode I am in at a given time. God images are always formed experientially; God images flow from our relational experiences and Also how we construe and make sense of those images when we are very young. My God images can be radically different than my God concept. God Concept = What I profess about God. It is my more intellectual understanding of God, based on what one has been taught, but also based on what I have explored through reading. I decide to believe in my God concept. Reflected in the Creed, expanded in the Catechism, formal teaching. Now I'm really going to apply IFS to Scrupulosity, grounding it in a Catholic understanding of the human person. Discussed Robert Fox and Alessio Rizzo's Internal Family Systems approach to OCD in the last episode -- number 86 -- Obsessions, Compulsions, OCD and Internal Family Systems. Brief review: Definition of Parts: Separate, independently operating personalities within us, each with own unique prominent needs, roles in our lives, emotions, body sensations, guiding beliefs and assumptions, typical thoughts, intentions, desires, attitudes, impulses, interpersonal style, and world view. Each part also has an image of God. You can also think of them as separate modes of operating if that is helpful. Brief review: Self: The core of the person, the center of the person. This is who we sense ourselves to be in our best moments, and when our self is free, and unblended with any of our parts, it governs our whole being as an active, compassionate leader. Here is the critical idea: Each Part has a God Image -- each part has a way of understanding God based on its limited experience and how it understands that experience We have as many God images as we have parts. How God images form in parts. Parts have distorted God images for three main reasons: Parts learn via experience and the ways they interpret experience, especially in their spiritual inferences, can be markedly different than what God has revealed about Himself through the Catholic Church -- for example, a part whose role is to be dissociated from the rest of the system so as not to overwhelm the core self and other parts with its burden of interpersonal trauma may see God as distant, disconnected and uncaring, in a Deistic way; Parts may be very afraid of, angry at, disappointed with or disinterested in God and therefore refuse to connect with Him, preventing them from having needed corrective relational experiences of a loving God Part's understandings of God can vary wildly. One part may be angry and rejecting of God, another parts may be terrified of God, a third grieving the loss of God, a fourth distant and cold toward God and a fifth part, in the same person, may not believe that God even exists. As different parts come up and blend with the self, becoming more prominent in the system, they bring their God images into conscious awareness. That explains how our conscious perspectives of God can shift. Whichever part of us has taken over, which ever part of us has blended and is driving our bus, that part's God image is dominating in the moment So, in my view, a scrupulous person's parts are in a life and death battle with each other about God. It's more than physical life or death. It's about spiritual life or death, eternal life or death, the stakes couldn't be higher. The scrupulous person's managers believe that if they don't suppress parts with negative God images, the consequence could be to be damned to hell for all eternity. Manager parts are trying to appease God -- seek his approval, make things all right, strive to meet his demands, to be perfect Fr. Thomas La Santa: I will make God love me by becoming perfect. In this way God will have to love me. An enormous amount of energy is wasted by the scrupulous person trying to "fix" himself or herself or trying to become perfect. Fr. Marc Foley: The command "Be ye perfect..." does not enjoin us to strive for a flawless performance in the various tasks of life, but to do them as God wills us. We feel driven to do an A+ job on projects in which we have overinvested our egos. But doing God's will often demands the courage to do a C+ job because God bids us to spend our time and energy on other tasks. In order to do that, the manager parts have to suppress or exile the parts that have "offensive" God images or who may otherwise seem inappropriate or unacceptable to God. Those that are angry at God Those that are disappointed in God Those who are disgusted with God. Those that are indifferent toward God. Those that don't believe God exists. All those ways of construing God makes sense if you understand the part's experience and how it construes its experience. They are not accurate, they don't correspond to how God really is, but the part doesn't know that. Those that generate impulses to get God's attention via acting out in negative ways. Manager parts reject any part that experiences God in any negative way. Parts seeing other parts as evil, harmful, and terrifying. Demons Lepers Tax collectors Prostitutes Dangerous sinners -- banishing them. Manager Parts can speak for God -- they assume they know what God wants. Not in relationship with him, though. Really following a code or a list of rules or expectations. It's not about relationship, really. First two conditions for secure attachment -- 1) felt safety and protection; 2) feeling seen known, heard and understood. Drawing from Daniel P. Brown and David S. Elliott 2016 book Attachment Disturbances in Adults: Treatment for Comprehensive Repair. Felt safety and protection In Scrupulosity, there is no felt sense of safety and protection for so many parts, because of their God images and their fears about the God images of other parts being expressed. . The first primary condition of secure attachment is not met. The most basic relational need is not met -- no felt safety, no felt protection. The first primary condition for secure attachment is felt safety and security. It has be felt. And not just by other parts, but by the target part. We all have heretical God images. Pastor Jonathan Edwards: The wrath of God is like great waters that are dammed for the present; they increase more and more, and rise higher and higher, till an outlet is given; and the longer the stream is stopped, the more rapid and mighty is its course, when once it is let loose. It is true, that judgment against your evil works has not been executed hitherto; the floods of God's vengeance have been withheld; but your guilt in the meantime is constantly increasing, and you are every day treasuring up more wrath; the waters are constantly rising, and waxing more and more mighty; and there is nothing but the mere pleasure of God, that holds the waters back, that are unwilling to be stopped, and press hard to go forward. If God should only withdraw his hand from the flood-gate, it would immediately fly open, and the fiery floods of the fierceness and wrath of God, would rush forth with inconceivable fury, and would come upon you with omnipotent power; and if your strength were ten thousand times greater than it is, yea, ten thousand times greater than the strength of the stoutest, sturdiest devil in hell, it would be nothing to withstand or endure it. How are you going to feel safe with a God like that? Feeling Seen, Known, Heard, Understood because there is no feeling of safety and protection for some parts, they don't want to be seen, heard, known and understood by God. They don't want to be near God, they don't trust him And that makes sense, given how they see God. Some parts may want to be seen heard known and understood by God, even if they don't feel safe -- they are desperate for attention, any kind of attention from God, even negative attention, so they signal distress by intense impulses toward acting out, especially in ways designed to get God's attention -- blasphemy, for example. Just like a neglected little kid, desperate for some kind of attention from his father may act out. Scrupulosity is the son of anger and the grandson of shame. Core issues of shame that are suppressed and generate anger. Anger is suppressed and generates fear and scruples. Shame -- the root of so much psychological and emotional distress -- whole 13-epsiode series on shame, from episode 37 to 49. All goes back to identity. Who am I and Who is God. Scrupulous individuals have a very hard time allowing their anger with God to emerge into conscious awareness and with anger in general. Dangerous emotion But look at the unreasonably demanding and exacting God images their manager parts have -- Their God images are unjust. Who would want to be with a God like that? No part has a really positive God image Not wanting hell But not really wanting heaven either -- to be face to face with a God like that for all eternity? So God has no opportunity to show the scrupulous person, in relationship, who He really is. Self-perpetuating. I wrote a blog on this on the Souls and Hearts website last week, on Inner Pre-Evangelization: A Focus on Internal Trust. My Approach Lead from Self --The core of the person, the center of the person. This is who we sense ourselves to be in our best moments, and when our self is free, and unblended with any of our parts, it governs our whole being as an active, compassionate leader. We want to be recollected, we want the self governing all of our parts Like the conductor -- leading the musicians in an orchestra Like the captain -- leading and governing all the sailors on a ship. When we are recollected, in self, 8 C's Calm Curiosity Compassion Confidence Courage Clarity Connectedness Creativity Kindness Self as the secure internal attachment figure for the parts. Parts coming to trust the self -- Blog on Working collaboratively with the parts -- contracting with them to not overwhelm Really accepting the parts right now, where they at. Trusting that God is good enough to understand and tolerate our parts' feelings. Scrupulosity as a gift, a signal. Look for the disorder underneath it. Not a question of willpower. Diabolical aspects Leaving people to their own devices Discouragement, inward focus, despising self, Spiritual Approach Not about overcoming scrupulosity Blessed are the merciful for mercy shall be theirs Childlike Simplicity and trust lessens our burdens. Parvulos. Little Children. Dust and ashes. Example of a parent -- would you prefer your child to be working on self-perfection Perfectionism draws us to be big, perfect, competent, having it all together. Jacques Phillipe: The Way of Trust and Love -- particularly helpful for those struggling with scrupulosity. p. 7 : The heart of Christian life is to receive and welcome God's tenderness and goodness, the revelation of his merciful love and to let oneself be transformed interiorly by that love. “We would like to be experienced, irreproachable, never making mistakes, never fall, possess unfeeling good judgment and unimpeachable virtues. Which is to say, we would like to have no more need of forgiveness or mercy, no more need of God and his help. 41 If we accept ourselves as we are, we also accept God's love for us. But if we reject ourselves, if we despise ourselves, we shut ourselves off from the love God has for us, we deny that love. 48-49 We need to practice gentleness toward ourselves so as not to get discouraged and condemn ourselves when faced with their weakness while also nurturing a great desire for holiness. But not a desire for extraordinary perfection. Holiness is different; it is a real desire to love God and our neighbor, and, issuing a kind of halfway love, go to loves extremes. 52 …we shouldn't fall into a kind of stubborn “therapeutic obstinacy,” with the aim of ridding ourselves absolutely of all imperfections or healing every wound. In doing that, we risk becoming impatient and concentrating our efforts on something God isn't specifically asking of us or, ultimately, paying more attention to ourselves than to him. 56-57 The more we accept ourselves as we are and are reconciled to our own weakness, the more we can accept other people and love them as they are. 49 What this podcast is all about. Contrast that with Pastor Jonathan Edwards -- sinners in the hand of an angry God: The bow of God's wrath is bent, and the arrow made ready on the string, and justice bends the arrow at your heart, and strains the bow, and it is nothing but the mere pleasure of God, and that of an angry God, without any promise or obligation at all, that keeps the arrow one moment from being made drunk with your blood. Remember, you as a listener can call me on my cell any Tuesday or Thursday from 4:30 PM to 5:30 PM. I've set that time aside for you. 317.567.9594. (repeat) or email me at crisis@soulsandhearts.com. The Resilient Catholics Community at Soulsandhearts.com/rcc. So much information there and videos. I want to invite you to the Resilient Catholics Community The Why of the RCC -- It's all about loving with your whole heart -- all of your being. Getting over all the natural level issues that hold you back from tolerating being loved and from loving God and others. Who Who is the Resilient Catholics Community for? It's for you. If you really are into this podcast, if these ways of conceptualizing the human person and integration and human formation and resilience are appealing to you, then the Resilient Catholics community, the RCC may be for you. I am looking for listeners who want to be with other like-minded Catholics on the journey, on this adventure of human formation with me. Who deeply desire a personal, intimate relationship with God and with Mary, a real human, close connection And who recognize they have some natural-level impediments to that deep relating and who are willing to make sacrifices in time, effort, money, humility and courage to grow in human formation and overcome natural-level impediments to being loved and to loving What want to shore up their natural foundation for the spiritual life, because grace perfects nature. Who want to become saints. Who are willing to be pioneers at the cutting edge in this adventure of human formation. Really at the tip of the spear, the first explorers of this human formation ground for laymen and laywomen. First of all the RCC is My Tribe, my people, bringing together two groups into one First, faithful, orthodox, serious Catholics who are wounded and suffering and know it And Second, who are psychologically minded (or at least want to be psychologically minded), who believe in the unconscious and who embrace the unity and multiplicity of the human person And who want to see through the lens of a core self and parts. Unity and multiplicity make sense. What of the RCC $99 nonrefundable registration fee gets you the The Initial Measures Kit -- which generates the Individual Results Sheet and the Personalized Human Formation Plan 5 pages of results about your parts -- we've done about 70 of these now, and our members are amazed at the results, how accurately we are in helping them identify their parts and how their parts relate to each other, and the why behind their parts' desires and impulses. Weekly premium Inner Connections podcast, just for RCC community members --Lots of experiential exercises. A complete course for working on your human formation 44 weekly sessions over the course of a year for $99 per month subscription Daily check ins with your companion -- accountability and structure Weekly company meetings with 7 or 8 other members in your small group. Office hours with me Conversation hours with me All this for $99 per month. And we make it financially possible for anyone who is a good fit for the RCC to join through write-offs and scholarships. The fees are not the tail that wags the dog. And there also is opportunities for some parts-based individual coaching as well. Essentially, the What of the RCC is a pilgrimage together. The When of the RCC We open twice per year to new members in December and June, open until December 31.. We are open now. Soulsandhearts.com/rcc to register. Call me with questions! 317.567.9594. (repeat) or email me at crisis@soulsandhearts.com. So sign up Soulsandhearts.com/rcc.
How I cherish these opportunities to read St. Theophan and to share in the rich of the discussion and joy of the members of the group. St. Theophan clearly loves his directee, Anastasia, and this transmits to her and all of us what it is to be in love with Christ and to subordinate all things to Him. Theophan is a true elder if there ever was one! Synopsis: Tonight we concluded Letter 69 with St. Theophan‘s discussion of an evangelical preacher that Anastasia had encountered. Again, he warns her to be discriminating in giving this individual any attention. Despite his stressing the importance of the Holy Spirit, which is indeed true, everything else this man says reveals that he knows absolutely nothing about the Spirit or how the Spirit is received. He lacks a sense of the importance of the experience of God, especially in and through the sacramental life. It is through the holy mysteries that God draws us into his life and enlivens us with his Spirit. To lack these realities, failing to participate in them, is to lack that which is essential. In letter 70, Theophan continues to discuss with Anastasia the importance of discrimination in regards to reading spiritual books and secular books. He begins with two examples - Saint Anthony the Great and Saint Seraphim of Sarov. Neither man was well educated in worldly terms but each had a deep experiential knowledge of God. Pursuing only worldly knowledge, Theophan warns Anastasia, can be detrimental. If it pushes out the life of faith and the primacy of the spiritual life, then it is to be removed for it as a threat to our very salvation. If we are “backwards” in the ways of the world what does that matter to us so long as we have Christ? If we lack many things in this world, including worldly knowledge, but have Christ - we lack nothing! --- Text of chat during the group: 00:09:25 Ashley Kaschl: I have to go
Today we remember how the Vatican placed the Pascals Provincial Letters on the Index. He was a brilliant French polymath, the inventor of the syringe and a promoter of an exaggerated theology called Jansenism
ST. PETER JULIAN EYMARD | APOSTLE OF THE EUCHARIST Feast Day: AUGUST 2 Today, we bring to you the life story of St. Peter Julian Eymard, the saint whose driving passion in life was Jesus Christ in the Eucharist. He is the Founder of the Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament. He was born in Le Mure, Isere, France on February 4, 1811. His family was a devout Catholic and immediately he learned about Jesus in the Eucharist. Even as a child he used to enter the church by himself and kneel before the Tabernacle. It is related that when he was five years old, he did not go home after playing. His sister looked for him and found him in the church, standing on a stool close to the Tabernacle. When asked what he was doing, his answer was “I am listening to Jesus.” As a young boy, he expressed his desire to become a priest, but his father opposed his vocation. He, however, entered a seminary, but he got seriously ill and went out. When he got well, he tried another and was successful. He was ordained on July 20, 1834 at the age of 23. He was assigned in a parish at the Diocese of Grenoble. Peter Julian's spirituality was influenced by Jansenism, a heresy which focusses on the sinfulness of man and on predestination that was why he lived a life of penance and reparation, avoiding sin at all cost. Already a diocesan priest, he joined the Society of Mary (Marists) and professed the three vows on August 20, 1839. He visited Marian shrines and made contacts with Eucharistic movements. He was drawn more to a contemplative life despite the many administrative duties given to him, and worked hard notwithstanding his fragile health. His favorite homilies were about the Eucharist and he had an intense attraction to the Eucharistic Jesus. When he was tasked to write a new rule for the Third Order of the Society of Mary, he suggested a Eucharistic rule, but that was not the charism of the Marists. A little later, still desirous to dedicate himself more to the exaltation of the Eucharist, he made a painful decision to leave the Marists and worked to establish an institute with a Eucharistic orientation. Fr. Eymard found support in Archbishop Marie Dominique Auguste, who understood his desire to emphasize not only the Holy Mass, Eucharistic adoration, but also to evangelize and serve those who were far from the Church. Young men joined him, the institute grew and the Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament (SSS – Societa Sanctissimi Sacramenti) was approved on May 13, 1856. He also founded a congregation for women called Servants of the Blessed Sacrament, whose main work is Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. Besides preaching he also wrote books about the Eucharist. Three years before his death in 1865, he made a retreat in Rome. He related that he discovered the great love of Jesus for him and in response he desired to make a gift of himself to Jesus. Being always fragile in health, he died of a complication from a stroke on August 1st, 1868 at age 57. He was beatified on July 12, 1925 and was canonized on December 9, 1962. His incorrupt body lies at the Blessed Sacrament Fathers' Chapel in Paris. “St. Peter Julian, you discovered in the Eucharist the great love of Jesus for you and the world. Help us to love Jesus in the Eucharist and receive Him worthily in Holy Communion.” Do I have time to visit Jesus in the Tabernacle or at least make a Spiritual Communion whenever I pass by a church? Do I receive Jesus often in Holy Communion?
Full Text of ReadingsEighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time Lectionary: 113All podcast readings are produced by the USCCB and are from the Catholic Lectionary, based on the New American Bible and approved for use in the United States _______________________________________The Saint of the day is Saint Alphonsus LiguoriMoral theology, Vatican II said, should be more thoroughly nourished by Scripture, and show the nobility of the Christian vocation of the faithful and their obligation to bring forth fruit in charity for the life of the world. Alphonsus, declared patron of moral theologians by Pius XII in 1950, would rejoice in that statement. In his day, Alphonsus fought for the liberation of moral theology from the rigidity of Jansenism. His moral theology, which went through 60 editions in the century following him, concentrated on the practical and concrete problems of pastors and confessors. If a certain legalism and minimalism crept into moral theology, it should not be attributed to this model of moderation and gentleness. At the University of Naples, Alphonsus received a doctorate in both canon and civil law by acclamation, at the age of 16, but he soon gave up the practice of law for apostolic activity. He was ordained a priest, and concentrated his pastoral efforts on popular parish missions, hearing confessions, and forming Christian groups. He founded the Redemptorist congregation in 1732. It was an association of priests and brothers living a common life, dedicated to the imitation of Christ, and working mainly in popular missions for peasants in rural areas. Almost as an omen of what was to come later, he found himself deserted after a while by all his original companions except one lay brother. But the congregation managed to survive and was formally approved 17 years later, though its troubles were not over. Alphonsus' great pastoral reforms were in the pulpit and confessional—replacing the pompous oratory of the time with simplicity, and the rigorism of Jansenism with kindness. His great fame as a writer has somewhat eclipsed the fact that for 26 years he traveled up and down the Kingdom of Naples preaching popular missions. He was made bishop at age 66 after trying to reject the honor, and at once instituted a thorough reform of his diocese. His greatest sorrow came toward the end of his life. The Redemptorists, precariously continuing after the suppression of the Jesuits in 1773, had difficulty in getting their Rule approved by the Kingdom of Naples. Alphonsus acceded to the condition that they possess no property in common, but with the connivance of a high Redemptorist official, a royal official changed the Rule substantially. Alphonsus, old, crippled and with very bad sight, signed the document, unaware that he had been betrayed. The Redemptorists in the Papal States then put themselves under the pope, who withdrew those in Naples from the jurisdiction of Alphonsus. It was only after his death that the branches were united. At 71, Alphonsus was afflicted with rheumatic pains which left incurable bending of his neck. Until it was straightened a little, the pressure of his chin caused a raw wound on his chest. He suffered a final 18 months of “dark night” scruples, fears, temptations against every article of faith and every virtue, interspersed with intervals of light and relief, when ecstasies were frequent. Alphonsus is best known for his moral theology, but he also wrote well in the field of spiritual and dogmatic theology. His Glories of Mary is one of the great works on that subject, and his book Visits to the Blessed Sacrament went through 40 editions in his lifetime, greatly influencing the practice of this devotion in the Church. Reflection Saint Alphonsus was known above all as a practical man who dealt in the concrete rather than the abstract. His life is indeed a practical model for the everyday Christian who has difficulty recognizing the dignity of Christian life amid the swirl of problems, pain, misunderstanding and failure. Alphonsus suffered all these things. He is a saint because he was able to maintain an intimate sense of the presence of the suffering Christ through it all. Saint Alphonsus Liguori is the Patron Saint of: Theologians Vocations Saint of the Day Copyright Franciscan Media
Full Text of ReadingsThursday of the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time Lectionary: 368All podcast readings are produced by the USCCB and are from the Catholic Lectionary, based on the New American Bible and approved for use in the United States _______________________________________The Saint of the day is Saint Joseph Cafassoclass="content"> Jun 17, 2020 Franciscan Media Image: Statue de San Giuseppe Cafasso | José Luiz Bernardes Ribeiro Saint of the Day for June 17 (January 15, 1811 – June 23, 1860) Audio file Saint Joseph Cafasso's story Even as a young man, Joseph loved to attend Mass and was known for his humility and fervor in prayer. After his ordination, he was assigned to a seminary in Turin. There he worked especially against the spirit of Jansenism—an excessive preoccupation with sin and damnation. He used the works of Saint Francis de Sales and Saint Alphonsus Liguori to moderate the rigorism popular at the seminary. Joseph recommended membership in the Secular Franciscan Order to priests. He urged devotion to the Blessed Sacrament and encouraged daily Communion. In addition to his teaching duties, Joseph was an excellent preacher, confessor, and retreat master. Noted for his work with condemned prisoners, he helped many of them die at peace with God. Joseph urged one of his former pupils—Saint John Bosco—to establish the Salesians congregation to work with the youth of Turin. Joseph Cafasso died in 1860, and was canonized in 1947. His liturgical feast is celebrated on June 23. Reflection Devotion to the Eucharist gave energy to all Joseph's other activities. Long prayer before the Blessed Sacrament has been characteristic of many Catholics who have lived out the gospel well: Saint Francis, Bishop Fulton Sheen, Cardinal Joseph Bernardin, and Saint Teresa of Calcutta among them. Saint Joseph Cafasso is the Patron Saint of: Prisoners Prussia Saint of the Day Copyright Franciscan Media
It is significant that De La Salle wrote this meditation, during the time when the Pope's authority was being seriously challenged, over the issue of Jansenism, especially in France. The firm support of the Pope, illustrated by this meditation, is one of the chief characteristics of De La Salle's teaching to the Brothers, and through them, to the students in the Christian Schools. (MTR) Photo by Briana Tozour on Unsplash
Full Text of ReadingsMonday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time Lectionary: 335All podcast readings are produced by the USCCB and are from the Catholic Lectionary, based on the New American Bible and approved for use in the United States _______________________________________The Saint of the day is St. Claude de la Colombire On Feb. 15 the Catholic Church honors Saint Claude de la Colombiere, the 17th century French Jesuit who authenticated and wrote about Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque's visions of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.When he canonized St. Claude in 1992, Blessed John Paul II upheld him as a model Jesuit, recalling how the saint gave himself completely to the Sacred Heart, 'ever burning with love.' Even in trials he practiced forgetfulness of self in order to attain purity of love and to raise the world to God.Born in the south of France during 1641, Claude de la Colombiere belonged to a family of seven children, four of whom entered the priesthood or religious life. He attended a Jesuit school in his youth, and entered the order himself at age 17.As a young Jesuit recruit, Claude admitted to having a horrible aversion to the rigorous training required by the order in his day. But the novitiate of the Society of Jesus focused and sharpened his natural talents, and he would later take a private vow to obey the order's rules as perfectly as possible.After completing his order's traditional periods of study and teaching, Claude became a priest in 1669. Known as a gifted preacher, he also taught at the college level and served as a tutor to the children of King Louis XIV's minister of finance.In 1674, the priest became the superior of a Jesuit house in the town of Paray-le-Monial. It was during this time, in his role as confessor to a convent of Visitationist nuns, that Claude de la Colombiere became involved in events that would change his own life and the history of the Western Church.One of the nuns, later canonized as St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, claimed to have experienced private revelations from Christ urging devotion to his heart as the symbol and seat of God's love for mankind. Within the convent, however, these reports met with dismissal and contempt.During his time in Paray-le-Monial, Father la Colombiere became the nun's spiritual director, giving careful consideration to her testimony about the purported revelations. He concluded that Sister Margaret Mary had indeed encountered Jesus in an extraordinary way.Claude la Colombiere's writings and his testimony to the reality of St. Margaret Mary's experiences helped to establish the Sacred Heart as a feature of Western Catholic devotion. This, in turn, helped to combat the heresy of Jansenism, which claimed that God did not desire the salvation of some people.In the fall of 1676, Father la Colombiere, was called away from Paray-le-Monial to England. During a time of tension in the religiously torn country, he ministered as chaplain and preacher to Mary of Modena, a Catholic who had become the Duchess of York.In 1678, a false rumor spread about an alleged Catholic plot against the English monarchy. The lie led to the execution of 35 innocent people, including eight Jesuits. La Colombiere was not put to death, but was accused, arrested, and locked in a dungeon for several weeks.The French Jesuit held up heroically during the ordeal, but conditions in the prison ruined his health before his expulsion from England. He went back to France in 1679 and resumed his work as a teacher and priest, encouraging love for Christ's Sacred Heart among the faithful.In 1681, Claude de la Colombiere returned to Paray-le-Monial, the site of St. Margaret Mary Alacoque's revelations. It was there, during 1682, that the 41-year-old priest died from internal bleeding on the year's first Sunday of Lent, Feb. 15.St. Claude de la Colombiere was beatified in 1929 nine years after the canonization of St. Margaret Mary Alacoque and canonized 63 years later. Saint of the Day Copyright CNA, Catholic News Agency
A Spirituality of Trust In podcast 6, Peter Land and Malcolm Schluenderfritz discuss the Fr. Gaitley’s book Consoling the Heart of Jesus and the spirituality that underlies it: the great love that Jesus has for each of us, despite our sins and failings, and the great importance of absolute trust in his mercy. We also discuss The Little Way of St. Therese of Lisieux and Pope Francis’ call to go to the peripheries. Other topics mentioned include: scrupulosity; an outward focus; pride; “performance orientation;” Pelagianism; the Good Thief; St. Paul; attachments and addictions; the danger of self-sufficiency; the danger of agendas; the Prodigal Son; C. S. Lewis; detachment; A.A.; St. Faustina; St. Margaret Mary; Eucharistic Adoration; Pharisees; Jansenism; and St. Benedict Joseph Labre. (All transcripts edited for clarity and readability.)
Tonight we picked up with Letter 40 - considering again the various causes of spiritual cooling. Theophan begins by discussing a rather chilling thought - the willful falling away from the divine will, in full consciousness and in defiance. We can be overcome by anger, frustration and disappointment in our life to such a degree that we begin to turn away from God; perhaps subtly at first but then in greater measure. If we are not careful we can fall under complete darkness. Therefore, Theophan tells her to avoid this at all cost. She must fear it like fire, like death. He instructs her instead to hold on to her zeal and keep fast to her rule of prayer. She may need to alter it given the circumstances, such as illness. But she is never to let go of her routine even if she receives no consolation. In letter 41, Theophan begins to discuss with her some final considerations before she goes to confession. He begins by dealing with the most familiar of problems - fear. It is this that she must let go of and trusts above all in the mercy in the gentleness of God who waits for her with open arms. The priest is but the witness and the vehicle for healing and forgiveness. Thus, Theophan tells Anastasia to confess more frequently. With this anxiety will diminish. To aid in this process she should write down every one of her sins in order that she is truly confessing what is in her heart and on her conscience. “Don't make the priest ask you”, he tells her. He wants her confession to be as genuine as possible - a reflection of what's going on within her and not prompted by the questions of the priest. Over time she will come to see the deep and grand beauty of the sacrament. --- Text of chat during the group: 00:22:28 Mark Cummings: Not related but Divine Office 2nd reading today is awesome...from On Spiritual Perfection by Diadochus 00:39:55 Mark Cummings: From today's 2nd reading in office of readings...Therefore, we must maintain great stillness of mind, even in the midst of our struggles. We shall then be able to distinguish between the different types of thoughts that come to us: those that are good, those sent by God, we will treasure in memory; those that are evil and inspired by the devil we will reject... 00:45:05 Eric Ash: I also see a greater emphasis in the east on having a spiritual director. It doesn't just fall on an individual's discernment to decide if they are altering their prayer routine to benefit or delude themselves. They take it to their spiritual father that knows their strengths/weaknesses/problems/potential. 00:49:27 Eric Williams: I think St. Philip Neri and others like him in the West would wish that we all would make such faithful, consistent, and humble use of a spiritual director and regular confessor. 01:07:14 Ren Witter: I find that if I do not write things down I am so anxious about remembering everything that I am not really present. Writing it down also allows for much more extensive reflection. 01:16:39 Eric Williams: Who's on first?! 01:17:19 Eric Williams: Talk about being slain in the Spirit! 01:31:03 carolnypaver: At certain times (Jubilee Year) there is a plenary indulgence attached to making a general confession. 01:34:13 Eric Williams: Perhaps scrupulosity was more common when Jansenism was a serious problem. 01:36:29 Eric Williams: Sometimes priests imply or suggest scrupulosity by giving overly simplistic penances. 01:41:40 Mark Cummings: Thank you!
The latest talk in our series on important heresies in the history of the Catholic Church, this time on the heresy and movement known as Jansenism, recorded live on Zoom, December 20th, 2020. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/churchcontroversies/support
Full Text of ReadingsTwenty-sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time Lectionary: 136All podcast readings are produced by the USCCB and are from the Catholic Lectionary, based on the New American Bible and approved for use in the United States _______________________________________The Saint of the day is St. Vincent de PaulOn Sept. 27, the Catholic Church remembers Saint Vincent de Paul, the French, 17th century priest known as the patron of Catholic charities for his apostolic work among the poor and marginalized.During a September 2010 Angelus address, Pope Benedict XVI noted that St. Vincent keenly perceived the strong contrast between the richest and the poorest of people, and was encouraged by the love of Christ to organize permanent forms of service to provide for those in need.The exact year of Vincents birth is not definitively known, but it has been placed between 1576 and 1581. Born to a poor family in the southwest of France, he showed his intellectual gifts from a young age, studying theology from around age 15. He received ordination as a priest in the year 1600, and worked as a tutor to students in Toulouse.During a sea voyage in 1605, Vincent was seized by Turkish pirates and sold into slavery. His ordeal of captivity lasted until 1607, during which time the priest converted his owner to the Christian faith and escaped with him from Tunisia. Afterward, he spent time studying in Rome, and in a striking reversal of fortune served as an educator and spiritual guide to members of an upper-class French family.Although Vincent had initially begun his priesthood with the intention of securing a life of leisure for himself, he underwent a change of heart after hearing the confession of a dying peasant. Moved with compassion for the poor, he began undertaking missions and founding institutions to help them both materially and spiritually. The one-time slave also ministered to convicts forced to serve in squalid conditions as rowers aboard galley ships.Vincent established the Congregation of Priests of the Mission in 1625, as part of an effort to evangelize rural populations and foster vocations to remedy a priest shortage. Not long after this, he worked with the future Saint Louise de Marillac to organize the Daughters of Charity, the first congregation of women religious whose consecrated life involved an extensive apostolate among the poor, the sick, and prisoners.Under Louises direction, the order collected donations which Vincent distributed widely among the needy. These contributions went toward homes for abandoned children, a hospice for the elderly, and an immense complex where 40,000 poor people were given lodging and work. Vincent was involved in various ways with all of these works, as well as with efforts to help refugees and to free those sold into slavery in foreign lands.Though admired for these accomplishments during his lifetime, the priest maintained great personal humility, using his reputation and connections to help the poor and strengthen the Church. Doctrinally, Vincent was a strong opponent of Jansenism, a theological heresy that denied the universality of Gods love and discouraged reception of the Eucharist. He was also involved in the reform of several religious orders within France.St. Vincent de Paul died on Sept. 27, 1660, only months after the death of St. Louise de Marillac in March of the same year. Pope Clement XII canonized him in 1737. In 1835, the French scholar Blessed Frederic Ozanam took him as the inspiration and namesake for the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul, a lay Catholic organization working for the relief of the poor. Saint of the Day Copyright CNA, Catholic News Agency
Hello? Is anyone there? Hello? Is this Big Dick Bryan? I’m sorry about the windshield and oak tree. I’m sorry for the loss of your namesake. Sorry I don’t seem aware of how phones work. Hello? Is it Jansen? No, he abandoned us? Oh, what a dick. Unsubscribe to Jansenism.LIWstudiosYoutube for LIWstudiosCheck out our friends Raiders Of The Lost Flicks and here.
Hello? Is anyone there? Hello? Is this Big Dick Bryan? I’m sorry about the windshield and oak tree. I’m sorry for the loss of your namesake. Sorry I don’t seem aware of how phones work. Hello? Is it Jansen? No, he abandoned us? Oh, what a dick. Unsubscribe to Jansenism.LIWstudiosYoutube for LIWstudiosCheck out our friends Raiders Of The Lost Flicks and here.
We begin by recapping last week's episode on the journey through the early Church councils, leading to the great dogmatic definition at the council of Chalcedon. now we look at more contemporary questions about the identity of Jesus, namely Jansenism and Modernism.
On episode 12 of The Holy Joes Podcast, we explore the concept and reality of being a man of Virtue. We are joined on this episode by Samuel Baker, Founder of the Apostolate, Catholic Man UK & Ireland which aims to help men to lead virtuous lives. Check it out online.Samuel talks about his upbringing in a big Irish community in Luton and also the negative impact of his early Catholic formation as he was given a false presentation of the Catholic faith impacted by Jansenism and a lack of male role models. This in many ways was a catalyst for Samuel to consider what it means to be a real man and some of his own inadequacies he had to work on to be a Catholic Man of Faith.He helps us to reflect on the Cardinal/Theological virtues and even brings in a bit of philosophy with St Thomas Aquinas and Aristotle. He also presents us with a real challenge to be manly. Grab a cuppa, grab a snack, come and listen to some Catholic craic. St Joseph, Foster Father of Jesus, Pray for Us.
Today's show looks at Jansenism, Jephtha's vow and the three fold use of the law.
Coronavirus Crisis: Carpe DiemTitle: Your Catholic Body and this Crisis: Bodyset Episode 10: April 20, 2020Welcome to the podcast Coronavirus Crisis: Carpe Diem. Seize the day! This twice-weekly podcast helps us rise up and embrace the possibilities and opportunities for spiritual and psychological growth in this time of crisis, all grounded in a Catholic worldview. I'm clinical psychologist Peter Malinoski with Souls and Hearts at soulsandhearts.com. It is great to be here with you. This is Episode 10 and its April 20, 2020, entitled Your Catholic Body and this Crisis: Bodyset. Today we are focusing on the body. Your Catholic body. Does that sound weird to you? That your body is Catholic? I bet it does. Why? Is your body not Catholic? We're going to get ito all at that body stuff in today's episode.[cue music]ReviewWe're in the middle of a program about building resilience in this crisis, so that we are ready to take advantage of the opportunities God is giving us to grow, to grow spiritually of course, but also to grow psychologically, to grow in faith, but also to grow in our human formation, in the natural realms. Episode 4 – the Four Pillars of Resilience Mindset, Heartset, Bodyset, Soulset. That episode introduced the four major domains, the four major parts of us. Mind, Heart, Body, Soul. We need these four areas of our lives ordered so that we can be resilient and adapt well in a crisis. If you're new to the podcast, you can listen to each episode in its own, it can stand alone, but remember they all hang together into a program to strengthen your resilience to live out our duties of state, to live our your vocation. So if you have the time and interest, it's great to go back to episode 4 and work your way up to this one. In Episodes 5 and 6 we got into mindset. Our mindset is the position of our intellect, and how we habitually apply reason to our situation, to our experiences. In Episode 7 we moved into heartset. Our heartset consists of the dispositions or the orientation of our heart, the emotional and intuitive ways of our heart. We discussed the huge mistake of neglecting our emotions, the costs of that neglect, and how to get in touch with our emotions again. In Episode 8 we had a brief detour and we discussed reconciling psychology and Catholicism, and I shared the story of how I got into the field of psychology.In Episode 9 we got back into heartset, with another huge issue, the issue of being overwhelmed by emotion, and how to prevent that and with that we wrapped up our initial look at heartset. So now we're continuing and we're working with a new pillar – our bodies. How do our bodies impact our capacity to cope in a crisis. That's the deep dive for us today. So just a review from Episode 4 – what is bodyset again, Dr. Peter? Glad you asked. Bodyset is how our body affects us, how our physical reactions impact us and our dispositions and inclinations. We are embodied beings, composites of body and soul. Our physical bodies have a huge impact on us. The state of our body, our relationship with our body, that's bodyset. Here is the main message: We need to listen to our bodies and respond in love to them. What does that mean, Dr. Peter? We need to listen to our bodies? Aren't we supposed to subjugate our bodies? Aren't we supposed to control them, keep them from leading us into sin? Are not our bodies the “flesh” that St. Paul condemns so often in his letters?And this business of loving our bodies? What does that mean? Sounds fishy. Sounds dangerous. So let me back up a bit and tell you how I as a psychologist got interested in the body.Episode 8 – told you a bit of my story. Pretty unimpressed with the clinical training I was getting, really uncertain about how to ground psychotherapy in a Catholic worldview. And that was so central to me. I never wanted to lead anyone astray morally or spiritually Program not helpful at all. I also was far from convinced that psychotherapy was really effective. So I clinically I got into health and rehabilitation psychology -- I could see the benefit in that. Pain control, helping people stop smoking, weight loss stuff. Helping people sleep better, helping people recover and cope with traumatic bodily injuries. But it was all about symptom management and habit control. And I was interested in the meaning of the bodily symptoms and the body habits that troubled people. Nailbiting Symbolic meaning. Anger. 8 months. Here is the main message: We need to listen to our bodies and respond in love to them. Why. Because our bodies are us. My body is a part of me. Because we tend to be down on the body. Lots of people hate their bodies. Body getting a bad rap – the flesh. Jansenism, Manicheanism The good part is the soul (which is composed of light) and the bad part is the body (composed of dark earth). JPII Theology of the BodyThere are many references to “the flesh” in the New Testament, especially in the letters of St. Paul. The phrase is confusing to those who think it synonymous with the physical body. While Scripture many times uses the word “flesh” to refer to the physical body, when it is preceded by the definite article, it usually means something more. Only rarely does the biblical phrase “the flesh” refer only to the physical body (e.g., John 6:53, Phil 3:2, 1 John 4:2).From Mgsr. Charles Pope: What, then, is meant by the term “the flesh”? Most plainly, it refers to the part of us that is alienated from God. It is the rebellious, unruly, and obstinate part of our inner self that is always operative. It is the part of us that does not want to be told what to do. It is stubborn, refuses correction, and does not want to have anything to do with God. It bristles at limits and rules. It recoils at anything that might cause one to be diminished or something less than the center of the universe. The flesh hates to be under authority or to yield to anything other than its own wishes and desires. It often wants something simply because it is forbidden.OK Dr. Peter, so I have the distinction between the flesh and the body. St. Paul was not condemning our physical bodies when he discusses the flesh. We need to listen to our bodies? And this business of loving our bodies? What does that mean? Sounds fishy. Sounds dangerous. Recognize what my body is saying. Poker Tells (my knee, jaw clench, high neck pain, low back pain) GI problems, headache, yoke pattern on neck and shoulders. Symbolism. Psychodynamic work. Caring for your body. Neglecting it. Not showering, fuzzy bunny slippers, shaving. Personal hygiene. Being good to the body. Somatic therapy— Diane from Maryland who emailed me. Internal Family Systems, EMDRExercise to listen in: If that body part could speak, what would it tell you. What does it want you to know. Not listening is much more dangerous. Holds experiences. Caring for the body Shoulder. Promise. Update in Wednesday email. Email me at crisis@soulsandhearts.com or call at 317.567.9594. Tell me what you came up with. And that's a wrap for today. Let's invoke our patroness and patron: Mother Mary, undoer of knots, pray for us. St. John the Baptist, pray for us.
Seth introduces us to St. Gertrude, Christine gives an overview of Jansenism, Erica discusses the German film Vision (about St. Hildegard Von Bingen), and the gang then talks about the sometimes tense relationship between Linear Law and Not-so-Linear Mysticism in Catholic Tradition. We honestly didn't intend for this to be a Girls Vs Boys thing, that's just how it worked out this time. Come check us out on Social Media!FB: @Take3TheologyIG: /thetake3theologicalvarietyhour
St. Margaret Mary Alacoque brought the antidote to the problem of Jansenism (scrupulosity): The Sacred Heart of Jesus teaches us authentic love. Living out vocations to Priesthood and Matrimony. Smart Rosary: recognizes when you make the sign of the cross; for $6,300 you can get the “Superior iPhone” that features Steve Jobs’ signature etched on […] All show notes at Jansenism, Amazon Synod Intervention, Tech & Faith, Judging/Condemning Others 10.16.19 - This podcast produced by Relevant Radio
This episode of What Catholics Believe covers the following subjects and questions: • The comic book industry and its shift to the occult. • What to think of Essential Oils and healing oils? • What to make of Ayurveda teas? • Exorcism and the Prayer to St. Michael the Archangel. • The rigorism and scrupulosity associated with Jansenism. • And guidelines on types of music to listen to. Please visit wcbohio.com for more content.
Join us for our first episode of Compendia, a new series of mini-episodes of the Sed Contra podcast. In this episode, Dr. Taylor Patrick O'Neill will consider how St. Thomas Aquinas can maintain that God infallibly moves the human will (such as in the case of actual grace) but without imposing any necessity on the human will (and thus without falling into the errors of Calvinism or Jansenism).
Fr. Robinson discusses: When are faithful obliged to obey their pastors? Is it ok to eat Halal food? Is counting prayers superstition, Jansenism, or good?
The difference between “good” and “fine” can have a big impact on how we view God. When someone says, “it’s fine” they often mean, “I will grit my teeth and accept this, but below the surface I’m harboring a lot of resentment.” God is good, but we often think of him as fine. We gloss over the cliche “God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good,” but it wasn’t always so widely accepted. In [Story of a Soul](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00FBY4BGE/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?encoding=UTF8&btkr=1), St. Therese always refers to God as the _Good God. She did this in response to Jansenism, the idea that we have to earn God’s approval through our own merit. But we don’t have to do anything to earn God’s love, because he is good, not just fine. Take ten minutes of prayer today to reflect on God’s goodness. "The idea that we’ve got to earn God’s approval by doing good things is a low view of human nature, and a really low view of God. God is good, he’s not just fine." - Colin MacIver
Luke & Kiara discuss St Thérèse of Lisieux's Story of a Soul, the beauty of the Communion of Saints, and the heresy of Jansenism. The post Catholics Read Story of a Soul appeared first on Cradio.
An Imitation of the Human--Technology In and As Metaphor: An Interview With Dr. Brian Sudlow, Lecturer of French with Translation Studies and Director of Undergraduate Programmes at Aston University in Birmingham, U.K. A discussion of how technology shapes us individuals and societies, the danger of viewing technologies as a given, worries regarding "mechanized bureaucratic Jansenism," and the difference between evangelizing the Faith as an alternative to dehumanization, and evangelizing the Faith as just one more technology.
Dr. Chris and Fr. Andrew discuss the doctrine and devotion of the Sacred Heart and why it matters in the Church today
Part 2 of 4 finds us once again with Bishop Timothy Mansfield of the Apostolic Johannite Church discussing some bodily Gnosis. How do awareness and meditation techniques apply to the body? How did a 17th century fringe Christian theology called Jansenism have a profound impact on the development of world religions? The body and the […]
June 17 St. Joseph Cafasso (1811-1860) ven as a young man, Joseph loved to attend Mass and was known for his humility and fervor in prayer. After his ordination he was assigned to a seminary in Turin. There he worked especially against the spirit of Jansenism, an excessive preoccupation with sin and
Today's host(s): Scot Landry and Fr. Matt Williams Today's guest(s): Jaymie Stuart Wolfe, Associate Editor of Children's Books at Pauline Books and Media Today's topics: Jaymie Stuart Wolfe Summary of today's show: Jaymie Stuart Wolfe talks with Scot and Fr. Matt about her years of ministry in the Church, including being a columnist for the Pilot and now working as an editor at Pauline Books and Media. They also discussed her new books that make the words of the Popes more accessible, especially to youth and young adults, and another that explains the Mass for children, including the new translation coming up in Advent. 1st segment: Scot said Fr. Matt is in Maine today on a retreat and is joining the show via the phone. He was in Chicago last weekend for the baptism of a friend's daughter. He was able to play tourist in Chicago as well and to be part of his friend's family's life. On retreat, he's been doing some spiritual reading by a Carmelite priest called “,” about St. Therese of Lisieux. He explains the spiritual context of St. Therese from the French Revolution to Jansenism in France. At the time, there was a lot of focus on God's justice without focusing on the mercy of God. Therese looks at it from the perspective of the childlike way and the love by which God sends his son Jesus. A child is completely open to allowing himself to be loved as God loves him. They are so open to receiving God's love. For Therese, the Sacred Heart devotion was not once per month, but every day. She has four new books, one she edited, , and co-edited , “Adoring Jesus with the Holy Father”, “Honoring Mary with the Holy Father”, “Praying with the Holy Father”. 2nd segment: Scot welcomed Jaymie Stuart Wolfe to the show. Scot asked about all the many ways she has served the Church. She came into the Church in her senior year of college. She said she read her way out of evangelical Protestantism. She hit the bottom of evangelical ecclesiology and discovered the Church. She got involved in work in the Church through having children (she has 8 and 5 grandchildren) and getting involved in the pro-life movement. She's done spiritual concerts of music, writing, speaking, and many others. She also has a longtime column in the Pilot, starting in 1995. She had just had a baby in November, right after finishing her first book, and then a week later a priest connected to the Pilot asked her to write a column. Scot said that's about 26 columns per year and hundreds of columns since then. She's enjoyed writing how family life leads you deeper into faith. She's enjoyed how her life changes because a child enters in. Her kids bring all of their variety and diversity of interests into her own life and enriched it. And then she sees how God's call everyone differently. One of her daughter spent the summer working with the Missionaries of Charity in Calcutta. She is now a student at the University of Dallas. Prior to her role at the Daughters of St. Paul, Jaymie was faith formation director and music minister at St. Maria Goretti parish in Lynnfield. She said most adult Catholics have faith at a level of 8 or 10 or 12 years old. They've progressed in all other aspects of their life, but their faith life hasn't matured. Much of that comes from not understanding why we do the things we do. Also, that being Catholic is not about a few hours on a Sunday morning, but a call to life. Baptism is not an event but a calling to a life, an identity. For most people who graduate from CCD when they're confirmed, they will never know everything about faith. Theology is not basketweaving. But the beauty of the faith is that once you're in a relationship with Jesus, you have a reason to learn about him for the rest of your life. 3rd segment: Jaymie said for people wanting to learn more about their faith, they should start with the Bible, and specifically the Gospels. Start with the life of Jesus and listen to what he says and does and the integrity that what he says is what he does. What brought Jaymie into the Church was Lumen Gentium, the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church from Vatican II. Scot recommended the book by Edward Sri. Jaymie also told people to challenge God to prove himself to you, to talk to you in a way that you can hear his voice. He will speak to you in a language you will understand: art, music, liturgy, a conversation with a friend. Scot asked Fr. Matt what he tells to those who ask where to start. Fr. Matt concurred with starting with the Gospel of Matthew, to ask God to guide as you read. He also recommended the , the new catechism for youth commissioned by Pope Benedict XVI and distributed at World Youth Day. There are many online resources, including those from the Daughters of St. Paul at Pauline.org. Scot asked Jaymie about the “…with the Holy Father” books, which break the Holy Father's words down into bite-sized bits on the same topics. Jaymie said there are lots of gems in the Pope's words, but it can be difficult to wade through all of the theological language to get to the nuggets. Jaymie said she was inspired by wanting to have her kids be able to listen to the Holy Father and understand him. She took her family to New York in 2008 to see Pope Benedict at Yankee Stadium. Everyone was thrilled, but they couldn't tell you what they heard and if they went to look at the writings online, all the brilliant words were somewhat inaccessible to the average person. So they approached the Vatican and asked if they could take the words of the Pope and bring them to a level that a 10 to 14-year-old could understand. The Daughters didn't expect to get approval but they didn't. Jaymie said the three books covered the writings of 19 different popes. She read everything from every pope on the Vatican website that was available in English. It took her about a month. Many of the encyclicals that are very heavy have beautiful prayers at the end of them or speeches at audiences or gatherings. She said she got a whole new appreciation for Pope Pius XII, who was pope during World War II. It was how he wrote about Mary and the Scriptures and how he approached his daunting task of leading the Church in a challenging time. Scot asked why they chose selections of about 100 words at a time. Jaymie said you don't want to crowd prayer. That's about the attention span of a reader. She read a sample of one of the selections. Fr. Matt said the books are listed as for young adults, but “young” can have a broad definition. Young can be a new Catholic or even just someone who doesn't want to stumble over difficult words. 4th segment: It's time to announce the winner of the weekly WQOM Benefactor Raffle. Our prize this week is The Battle for the Family DVD by Peter Herbeck and , by Michaelann Martin. This week's benefactor card raffle winner is Carmela Tringali from Medford, MA. Congratulation, Carmela! If you would like to be eligible to win in an upcoming week, please visit . For a one-time $30 donation, you'll receive the Station of the Cross benefactor card and key tag, making you eligible for WQOM's weekly raffle of books, DVDs, CDs and religious items. We'll be announcing the winner each Wednesday during “The Good Catholic Life” program. 5th segment: The Mass Explained for Kids has sold 10,000 copies already in just a few weeks. Scot said it's not just about the new translation of the Mass, but it explains what we're doing. Jaymie said it has the liturgical text on one page with color-coordinated explanations on the facing page. She said 75% of Catholics don't know that the translation is changing on the first Sunday of Advent. It's an unprecedented opportunity to learn about the Mass and understand what is happening in the Church on Sunday in the central prayer of our faith. Scot said imagine going to a football game and not knowing what's going on. Jaymie gave an example of the beginning of the Mass where we will now respond to the priest: “And with your spirit.” It's very inexpensive at $1.99 and they're also creating a smartphone app version as well.
Jansenism was a religious movement in Seventeenth-Century France that threatened Church and State. Its apologists, including Blaise Pascal and Jean Racine, thought their movement, based on its re-discovery of the teachings of St. Augustine, could save Christianity from the Protestants. Its detractors thought Jansenism WAS Protestantism, but a Fifth Column of it, burrowing away within the Catholic Church. The two positions were irreconcilable. The Jansenists lost, and lost catastrophically. What an interesting lesson here in 'Church', and State.
This is Part 2 of The Rationalist Option on Communio Sanctorum, History of the Christian Church.In our last episode, we took a look at the genesis of the Enlightenment in England and France. We'll come back to France a bit later after taking a brief look at the Enlightenment in German and Russia.Germany took a bit longer to join the Enlightenment. That was due in part to the condition of the land following the Thirty Years War. It's estimated the population shrank from twenty million to just seven after it. There's also the issue of Germany not really being a country. It was at that time a collection of independent statelets, united by language and culture, but divided between Catholics and Lutherans.The low regard for contemporary culture at that time in Germany is illustrated by the fact that while Newton, Locke, and Voltaire were regarded as heroes in their realms, Germany's equivalent, Gottfried von Leibniz, was never popular during his lifetime. Yet he was one of the most brilliant men, not just of his day, but of all time. Born in 1646 in Leipzig, Leibniz was the son of a professor of philosophy. He studied law before taking up with a disreputable group of alchemists and worked for the Elector of Mainz.Leibniz came to the attention of the world in 1672, when he was sent on an unofficial ambassadorial mission to Paris. The purpose of this trip was to present Louis XIV with a plan he'd worked out for the invasion of Egypt, by which he hoped to distract the Sun King from ambitions he might have toward Germany. Nothing came of Leibniz's diplomacy, although Napoleon seems to have adopted his strategy a century later. In any case, while in Paris, Leibniz took the opportunity to meet with all the luminaries in the foremost city of culture in Europe. He studied mathematics, quickly becoming one of the foremost mathematicians in the world, and made a number of important discoveries, including differential calculus, for which tens of thousands of students have hated him ever since. He also proudly demonstrated an extraordinary mechanical calculator he had built.Leibniz's interests were so wide-ranging he could never keep his mind on what he was doing. In 1676, he became Court Chancellor of Hanover and was put in charge of the library. But he was more interested in the mines at Harz and spent several years devising increasingly ingenious devices to solve the problem of draining them. He eventually worked for several German states, as well as the cities of Berlin and Vienna, for which he designed a number of civic improvements. In his spare time, he traveled extensively around Europe, meeting other rationalist luminaries, and carrying out his work in mathematics, chemistry, physics, metaphysics, and theology. He produced hardly any books of importance, but his vast correspondence, much of which is still in the process of being edited and published, dwarfed the output of most of his contemporaries; and there cannot have been any subject, however obscure, with which he did not deal, and on which he was not an authority. Leibniz died in 1716, an increasingly marginalized figure, defiantly wearing his long brocade coat and huge wig which had gone out of style decades before.Despite Leibniz's virtual single-handed attempt to kick-start the German Enlightenment, it didn't get rolling until the 18th C. Prussia, the largest of the German states, took the lead, as its rulers sought to drag their country into the modern era. Frederick Wilhelm, who came to the throne in 1713, reformed the economy after staying with relatives in the Netherlands.Wilhelm, a careful Lutheran, had no love for Catholic France, but his son, Frederick II, known as Frederick the Great, was a quite different person than his father. Upon his accession to the throne in 1740, he set about building on his father's practical reforms with a program of cultural renovation. Among his first acts as ruler was to recall from exile Christian Wolff, the leading German philosopher, and Leibniz's heir. Frederick II's enthusiasm for French culture meant the usual coldness between the two realms saw a remarkable thaw. French was even spoken in his court, and it was at his invitation Voltaire moved to Prussia in 1749. Frederick was also keen to bolster the position of Prussia in Europe, which he did by engaging in a series of wars between the 1740s and 60s.During the late 17th C, the Russian Czar Peter the Great traveled all over Europe on a mission to learn all he could about the Enlightenment. He was eager to see what impact it had had on the realms of culture, economics, and engineering. His plan was to return to Mother Russia and drag it, if need be, into the modern world.Although Western Russia geographically is considered a part of Europe, it had for centuries been isolated. It was ruled by the Mongols for much of the late Middle Ages and was a bastion of Orthodox Christianity, a separate denomination from the Catholics and Protestants in the West. Westerners knew virtually nothing about Russian religion, and Russians cared virtually nothing for the West.It's hardly surprising that, when Peter returned home, he had to enforce his reforms with an iron hand if he was going to make headway. Beards, a revered symbol of Orthodoxy, were banned in an attempt to get people to look more Western. Young men were happy to comply, as many women preferred. But most older men kept their beards in boxes, fearing they were bereft of salvation without them. Traditional Russian dress, which reached the ankle, was banned. Everyone had to dress like the French, and anyone who refused had their clothes force-tailored. English hairstyles were mandatory for women. Schools were built, the calendar reformed, military conscription introduced, and church hierarchy was placed firmly under State control. Like Louis XIV's France, Peter's Russia was an avowedly Christian country. As a symbol of the new, Westward-leaning Russia, Peter transferred the capital to a new city, St Petersburg, on the Baltic coast.But Peter was hardly a model of Enlightenment tolerance. In 1718, he had his son tortured to death for treason. Still, his reforms were extended and completed by Catherine the Great, a Prussian who became Empress of Russia in 1762. She organizing a coup against her own husband. Unlike Peter, Catherine grew up in Western Europe and had thoroughly imbibed Enlightenment principles. She corresponded with Voltaire and other leading cultural figures; patronized the arts, and founded the famous Hermitage Museum in St Petersburg. Catherine was also a skilled diplomat, and as the most powerful monarch in Europe, extended Russian influence throughout the continent.Okay, so, you're wondering how this is church history. I thought it wise to spend a little time charting the broad outlines of the Enlightenment so we could see how the thinking it produced affected theology.That happens with the advent of Rationalism.Rationalism reached its apex in the 18th and 19th Cs. It's characterized by an interest in the physical world and its confidence in the powers of reason. In Western Europe, there'd been a growing interest in Nature since the 13th C. That was the era of Albert the Great and Thomas Aquinas, who reintroduced Aristotelian philosophy as a tool for doing theology. One of the points of contrast between Aristotelianism and the earlier Platonism that dominated theological thought was precisely that the new philosophy emphasized the importance of the senses and perception. The later Middle Ages, with its distrust of speculation, continued in the same vein. The art of the Renaissance, with its appreciation for the beauty of the human body and the world, was an expression of this interest. By the 17th C, many thought the goal of reason was understanding the world of nature.Parallel to that, there appeared growing confidence in the powers of reason. Often, these two trends were combined in an effort to show the degree to which the order of nature coincides with the order of reason. This can be seen, for instance, in the work of Galileo, who was convinced the entire natural world was a system of mathematical relations, and that the ideal of knowledge was the reduction of all phenomena to their quantitative expression. Every success of such efforts seemed to confirm the most optimistic expectations of the power of reason.This all led to the philosophy of René Descartes in the first half of the 17th C. His system was based on great confidence in mathematical reasoning, joined to a profound distrust of all that is not absolutely certain. He compared his philosophical method to geometry, a discipline that accepts only what is an undeniable axiom or has been rationally proven.In applying his method, Descartes felt he ought to begin with an attitude of universal doubt, making sure that, once he found something he could not doubt, he would be certain of its truth. He then found that undeniable first truth in his own existence. He could doubt everything, but not that the doubting subject existed. “I think, therefore I am,” became the starting point for his philosophy. But this I whose existence cannot be doubted is only the subject as a thinker. The existence of his body wasn't proven, so must be doubted.Before proving his existence as a body, Descartes felt he could, get this >> Prove the existence of God. He found in his mind the idea of a “more perfect being,” and since his mind could not produce such an idea, which was above itself, it must have been placed there by God. Therefore, Descartes's second conclusion was that God exists. It was only then, on the basis of the existence of God, and of trust in the divine perfection, that Descartes felt free to move on to prove the existence of the world and of his own body.Descartes was a profoundly religious man who hoped his philosophy would be found useful by theologians. But not all agreed with him. Many theologians feared the challenge of Cartesianism—as his philosophy was called. The universal doubt Descartes proposed as his starting point seemed to some a kind of crass skepticism. The faculties of several universities declared Aristotelianism was the philosophical system best suited to Christian theology, and there were those who declared Cartesianism lead to heresy. Dismayed, Descartes decided to leave his native France. He moved to Sweden, where he lived the rest of his life.But he was not without supporters. In France, those intellectual circles where Jansenism had been popular embraced Cartesianism. Eventually, others among the more orthodox also took it up, and debates continued for a long time.The main point at which Cartesianism led to further theological and philosophical developments was the question of the relationship between spirit and matter, between soul and body. It's at this point we could really get into a sticky wicket as we parse all the various ways theologians and philosophers offered ideas on the inter-relationship between the thinking self and the thing that occupies space in the form of a body. But we won't go into the theories of Occasionalism, Monism, and Preestablished Harmony.Let me just say this became a realm of contentious debate between a Dutch Jew named Baruch de Spinoza and our friend Leibniz.While these philosophical developments took place on the Continent, in Britain, philosophy took a different route in what's called Empiricism. It's drawn from a Greek word meaning experience. Its leading figure was Oxford professor John Locke, we considered in the previous episode. In 1690, Locke published his Essay on Human Understanding. He read Descartes and agreed the order of the world corresponded to the order of the mind. But he didn't believe there was such a thing as innate ideas to be discovered by looking inward. He contended that all knowledge is derived from experience; the experience of the senses, and the working of our minds. That meant the only genuine knowledge is based on three levels of experience: Experience of self, Experience of the world around us, and Experience of God, whose existence is manifest by the existence of ourselves and the world.To this Locke added another level of knowledge, that of probability. Probability works like this; You and I have repeatedly experienced someone's existence; let's call him George. We know George. He's a friend we see a couple of times a week. When George isn't standing in front of us, we still have reason to believe He exists, even though at that moment, we have no purely empirical basis to believe in his existence. Still, sound judgment gives us reason to discern the probability of George's existence. Locke said that this judgment of probability allows us to get on with the practical affairs in life.Faith, Locke said, is assent to knowledge derived from revelation rather than reason. Therefore, although highly probable, knowledge derived by faith can't be certain. Reason and judgment must be used in order to measure the degree of probability of what we believe by faith. For this reason, Locke opposed the “fanatical enthusiasm” of those who think that all they say is based on divine revelation. For the same reason, he defended religious toleration. Intolerance is born out of the muddled thinking that confuses the probable judgments of faith with the certainty of empirical reason. Besides, toleration is based on the very nature of society. The state does not have the authority to limit the freedom of its citizens in matters such as their personal religion.In 1695, Locke published a treatise, The Reasonableness of Christianity, in which he claimed Christianity is the most reasonable of religions. He said the core of Christianity is the existence of God and faith in Christ as Messiah. But Locke didn't believe the Christian Faith had added anything of importance to what could, in any case, have been known by the proper use of reason and judgment. In the final analysis, Christianity was little more than a very clear expression of truths and laws that others could have known by their natural faculties.Others would come along later and drive a wedge between faith and reason, divorcing them into different camps. And in the settlement, Faith would be left impoverished while Reason drove off with all the goodies.One of those who drove the wagon was David Hume in the mid-18th C. In my estimation, Hume can be blamed for the post-modern tendency of knee-jerk negativity toward absolutes. An illustration may best help to describe his philosophy, or better, his anti-philosophy. Hume was skeptical of reason, saying the only reason, reason seems to work is because of mental habits we've developed. In other words, In Hume's system, Descartes' doubt didn't go far enough; he ought to have doubted his own ability to reason.Hume maintained, for instance, that no one has ever experienced what we call cause and effect. We've seen, for instance, when a pool ball collides with another ball, there's a noise and the second ball moves off in some direction. If we repeat that several times, we see similar results. So we conclude by the power of reason that the movement of the first ball caused the movement of the other. But, Hume contended, we've not seen any such thing. All we've witnessed is a series of phenomena, and our mind has linked them by means of the notion of cause and effect. This last step, Hume claimed, taken by any who see a series of phenomena that are seemingly related, has no basis in empirical observation. It is rather the result of our mental habits. So, by an empiricists' definition, that's not rational knowledge.Hume's uber-skepticism places such strict rules on interpreting what our senses tell us, there's no room left for the working of logic and deduction. He cripples us and turns his followers into inveterate skeptics.It wasn't long until some Enlightenment thinkers washed their hands of faith altogether and began to envision a world without God or religion.We'll talk about later developments in Philosophy and their impact on theology in a later episode.
This 130th episode is titled Up North, Then South.This is the last episode in which we take a look at The Church in Europe following the Enlightenment. The narrative is nowhere near exhausTIVE. It's more an exhaustING summary of Scandinavia, the Dutch United Provinces, Austria, and Italy. We've already looked at Germany, France, and Spain.The end of the 17th century proved to be a brutal time in Scandinavia. Some 60% of the population died from 1695-7 due to warfare and the disease and famine of its aftermath. As if they hadn't had enough misery, the Great Northern War of 1700–1721 then followed. In the desperation of the times, Lutherans provide devotionals offering hope and comfort, while calling for prayer and repentance.Along with northern Germany -- Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and Finland were Lutheran strongholds. Citizens were required to swear loyalty to a Lutheran State Church in league with absolutist monarchs.But during the Great Northern War, Swedish King Charles XII suffered a massive defeat by the Russian armies of Peter the Great. Sweden lost large tracts of land and the throne lost clout with the people. A so-called “Age of Liberty” followed that lasted most of the rest of the 18th century. The Swedish Parliament gained power and reformers gave a rationalist slant to Swedish education. They battled with Lutheran clergy who wanted to retain some theology in the education of Sweden's young.Many returning captured Swedes imprisoned in Russia, had converted to Pietism by missionaries sent by Francke and the University at Halle we talked about last time. The soldiers became advocates for Pietism back home. Moravians also promoted revivals in Scandinavia.After a grab for power in 1772, Gustavus III nullified the Swedish Constitution restraining the reach of royal power. He imposed a new Constitution designed to reinforce Lutheranism as the basis of government. He said, “Unanimity in religion, and the true divine worship, is the surest basis of a lawful, concordant, and stable government.” But in 1781, limited toleration came to Sweden when other Protestant groups were once again allowed. Catholicism, however, remained banned.From 1609, when the Dutch won their liberty from Spain, until Louis XIVth's invasion in 1672, the Dutch United Provinces had its “Golden Age” and enjoyed what Simon Schama called an “embarrassment of riches.” This was due mostly to their lucrative international trade and free market economy. The Dutch eschewed the traditional monarchy dominating the rest of Europe in favor of a far more egalitarian Parliamentary system.Amsterdam was a thriving commercial and cultural center. Its population more than doubled from 1600 to 1800. Amsterdam's docks were always packed. Its warehouses stuffed with goods from all over the world and the trade of the massive and powerful Dutch East India Company. From its earliest days, this trading enterprise supported Reformed missionary work at posts in the Malay Archipelago, Sri Lanka, and South Africa. In July 1625, Dutch traders established New Amsterdam, later known as New York City.The United Provinces were intellectual a religious crossroads for Europe through its universities, publishing houses, and churches. Protestant students from Germany, Finland, and France flocked there to study at the University of Leiden and other schools.The main task of the faculty at the University of Leiden was the study of Scriptures. Its chief professor was Joseph Scaliger whose knowledge of the classics and biblical textual criticism made him one of Europe's premier scholars. Others notable scholars were scholars included Arminius and Gomarus.As many of our listeners know, the 17th century was the Dutch golden age of art. Thousands of painters created millions of paintings with scenes ranging from battles and landscapes, to churches, still life, and portraits. Among the more famous masters were Rembrandt, Frans Hal, and Vermeer. But by the 18th century, the quality of Dutch art had somewhat fallen.The Dutch Reformed Church affirmed the 1561 Belgic Confession of Faith. It addressed topics ranging from the Trinity, the work of Christ, and the sacraments, to Church-State relations. Although the Reformed Church was the “official” faith, the United Provinces were known for their toleration of other groups. That didn't mean there weren't heated theological rows. Two parties emerged in the Dutch Reformed Church: the “precise” Calvinists who wanted churches to possess binding doctrinal authority, and the “loose or moderate” Calvinists who desired greater freedom of religious thought.The Dutch Provinces often served as a haven for those seeking relief from persecution in other parts of Europe. Amsterdam was a notable home to a large Jewish community. Some 70,000 French Huguenots took refuge there and married into the populace. An Anabaptist community flourished. Religious dissidents like Baruch Spinoza and Anthony Collins, an exile from England, weren't much respected but they were at least not beat up.Many Europeans admired the Dutch Republic for its successful war of liberation from the Spanish, its egalitarian government, as well as its vital free market economy. By 1675, there were fifty-five printing presses and 200 booksellers in Amsterdam, adding to the burgeoning base of middle-class scholars.During the 18th century, the Dutch, while continuing to be officially Reformed, saw an increase in the number of those they'd been less tolerant toward; namely=Catholics, Dissenters, and Jews. Revivals frequently passed through more rural domains. In 1749 and 50, emotionally-charged revival meetings took place with the ministry of Gerard Kuypers. Villages in the Netherlands and nearby Germany experienced similar revivals.In a foreshadowing of Intelligent Design and the fine-tuning of the universe arguments, a number of Dutch theologian-scientists wrote works in which they sought to demonstrate that the intricacy of designs in nature prove God's existence. Until the 1770s, the Reformed Church played a dominant role in Dutch public life. Some 60% of the population was Reformed, 35% Catholic, 5% percent Anabaptists and Jews.There really never was a Dutch version of the Enlightenment. Most of its participants never espoused a militant atheism, but sought to accommodate their faith to educational reforms and religious toleration. They appreciated the new science and advances in technology.Now we turn back to Geneva; adopted home of John Calvin.During the early 1750s, Geneva was the home of both Voltaire and Rousseau, well-known Enlightenment thinkers and scoffers at Christianity.Several of Geneva's pastors proposed a reasonable and tolerant form of Christianity that warmed to some of the more liberal Enlightenment ideas. This was a huge turn from the position of Francis Turretin who in the mid-17th century, led the Reformed and conservative theologians of Geneva to the idea that the City was a theocracy with God as its ruler. Turretin said the government ought defend “the culture of pure religion and the pious care of nurturing the church.” Turretin's party defended the Masoretic pointing of the Hebrew text, making this belief binding on the Swiss church. These pastors feared if Hebrew vowels were left out, the Hebrew words of the Old Testament were susceptible to interpretations that varied from those they approved. They also tried to force pastoral candidates to repudiate the doctrine of “universal grace” being championed by an emerging class of theologians.But in 1706 Turretin's son, Jean, repudiated his father's work and embraced a more liberal theology that advocated the role of reason in determining truth. He denied his father's soteriology, doctrine of salvation, and eschewed limited atonement. By the 1720s, Arminianism had taken firm root in Geneva.In Feb, 1670, the Hapsburg, Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor and a devout Roman Catholic, ordered all Jews to leave Austrian lands. Vienna became a major center of cultural. After the defeat of the Turks, it's population boomed, growing from about 100K in 1700 to twice that 80 years later. The construction of the Schwarzenberg and Schönberg Palaces enhanced its prestige while the music of Haydn and Mozart made Vienna famous across Europe.The Hapsburg Emperors Joseph I and Charles VI supported Jesuit missionary efforts to convert Protestants. Jesuits created a baroque Catholic culture in Austria and Bohemia with the construction of magnificent churches in cities and the countryside.Though loyally Catholic, the Hapsburgs rejected the pope's interference in Austria's religious and political life. They'd proven their devotion to Rome when in 1683, Leopold saved The Church from the Turks. Austria was the “rock” on which the Catholic Church was built. It was the Hapsburgs who saved the faith form the infidel, not the pope.In October of 1740, at the death of her father, Maria Theresa took the titles Archduchess of Austria, Queen of Bohemia, and Queen of Hungary. In 1745, her husband, Francis Stephen, became the Holy Roman Emperor under the name Francis I. Disturbed by the Prussian Frederick II's seizure of Silesia, Maria Theresa attempted to reform the military and governmental structures of Austria after Enlightenment ideals. She became the proponent of what's called “Enlightened Absolutism.” At the same time, she was ready to apply repressive measures against those who resisted her reforms. On one occasion she warned that he is “no friend to humanity who allows everyone his own thoughts.”Maria Theresa was a devout Catholic influenced by counselors favorable to Jansenism. With the advice of her chancellor, she tried to establish a national Catholic Church in which the pope had authority only in spiritual matters.Maria Theresa did not allow Protestants to sell their property or leave her lands. She required those who refused to convert to Catholicism to emigrate to Transylvania, where Protestantism was permitted. Nor did Maria Theresa intercede to save the Jesuits when their society was dissolved. She allowed 2000 Protestants to live in Vienna, but she forced the city's Jews to live in a ghetto.Upon the death of Maria Theresa, Joseph II passed Edicts of Toleration that allowed greater freedoms for non-Catholics and continued the policy of subjugating Church power to that of the State. He confiscated the property of over 700 monasteries, displacing 27,000 monks and nuns and used the proceeds to build new churches.Like Germany, during the 18th century, Italy didn't exist as a nation as we know it. It was a hodge-podge of various principalities. They didn't even share a common language.The population of the peninsula grew from eleven to fifteen million in the first half of the century. But in the 1760's a severe famine struck Florence, Rome, and Naples.The region of Tuscany was a hot-bed of the Jansenists who, as you'll remember, were a kind of Calvinist-Catholics.A handful of Italian academics promoted rationalist views in the Catholic church, eliminating what they regarded as backward features of Italian culture. But the Enlightenment just didn't gain the traction in Italy it did in the rest of Europe.The popes of the 18th century had difficulty dealing with the now powerful secular rulers of Europe, no longer threatened by Church power or political machinations.Even the Papal States were frequently invaded by foreign powers. Conquerors only left after they'd secured hefty ransoms. Popes were forced to make concessions that made their weakness evident to all. Despite that, Rome continued to attract large numbers of pilgrims, students, and artists. Pilgrims hoped for a blessing from the Pope or a healing while visiting the many shrines.Then there were the youth on the Grand Tour, as it was called. They were most often graduates of Cambridge, Oxford, the University of Paris or some other school who headed to Italy to gain knowledge in classical culture. In 1776, Samuel Johnson underscored the importance of Italy as a destination for those making the Grand Tour: “A man who has not been in Italy, is always conscious of an inferiority. The grand object of traveling is to see the shores of the Mediterranean. On those shores were the four great Empires of the world; the Assyrian, the Persian, the Grecian, and the Roman.”Several popes supported the establishment of academies, colleges, and universities and encouraged general scholarship. Under their generous patronage Rome's artistic riches in painting, sculpture, music, and monuments flourished. Pope Clement XI initiated plans for the Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps in the early 18th century.But to give you an idea of how the tables had turned and now kings dominated popes, it was this same Clement, who became a pawn in the hands of Emperor Joseph I and Louis XIV. Louis forced Clement to issue a papal bull dealing with the Jesuit-Jansenist controversy.Papal prestige suffered seriously during the French Revolution. Pope Pius VI was obliged to condemn the “Declaration of the Rights of Man” as well as the “Civil Constitution of the Clergy.” This split the French between those revolutionaries who wanted to throw off the Absolutist government of the French monarchy but maintain their Catholicism, and those French who wanted to be done with religion as well.Bottom Line: The Enlightenment witnessed serious challenges to both the papacy's temporal and spiritual authority.
The title of this 128th Episode is Backing Up.… because once again we're backtracking a bit to hop into the story of Church History earlier than where our last few episodes have taken us. We're focusing this time on what happened in France during the late 17th and into the 18th century.This period saw a massive struggle between the French monarchy and two groups; Catholic Jansenists and Protestant Huguenots. At stake was the throne's claim that it alone had the power to determine the religion of the French people.France was the most populous and wealthy country in Europe. It was also the most feared, admired, and imitated. By the time of the French Revolution in 1789, the population was 28 million.From the late 17th century to the Revolution, the Court at Versailles, the main residence of the French kings, was the center of political life. But a mix of disparate factors led to a growing disillusionment with the Crown. Philosophes engaged each other in Parisian salons in political discussions that implemented dangerous new ideas; to the Crown anyway. And once the King found out about these dangerous liaisons, they became downright lethal to those who engaged in them. As the power of the French court grew, Masonic lodges popped up all over, advocating more subversive ideas. Illegal books and broadsides were printed by a clandestine press. All these challenged Versailles's political dominance in the second half of the 18th century. A powerful “court of public opinion” emerged to dare the status quo into change.France's monarchs wanted to protect their inheritance rights while expanding the kingdom's economic and political power over more of Europe and overseas. Continental Wars often spilled over into the colonies. Louis XIV occasionally referred to “French Europe” and France's ongoing conflict with Spain. But after his passing, France often teamed with Spain in opposition to England and other European powers.After the American victory at the Battle of Saratoga in 1778 during the War for Independence, Louis XVI, to spite the English, supported the Americans in their quest to gain independence from the British. But this French aid took an ironic turn. Louis abetted revolutionaries who aimed to throw off a monarchy in favor of a democratic republic, while at the same time adding to France's already massive debt.In Late Spring of 1789, Louis was forced to call a meeting of the French Parliament, called the Estates-General to deal with the now intense fiscal crisis. After intense debate, delegates of the French people declared they represented the “nation” choosing that word rather than ”kingdom” and invited members of the clergy and nobility to join them. Many did. On June 17, the Assemblée Nationale formed and claimed it, rather than the King, represented the realm.This was a severe blow to a principle that had found varying degrees of expression in Europe for hundreds of years; that is, the Divine Right of Kings.Earlier, in his work Politics Drawn from the Very Words of Holy Scripture, Jacques Bossuet [boo-sway], advisor to Louis XIV, justified the divine right of kings by citing Scripture. He wrote, “God is the King of kings: it is for Him to instruct them and to rule them as His ministers. Listen then, Monseigneur, to the lessons which he gives them in His Scripture, and learn from the examples on which they must base their conduct.” He said, “Rulers act as the ministers of God and as his lieutenants on earth. It is through them that God exercises his empire.” Bossuet argued the king's power was absolute. But the king wasn't to act like a despot issuing arbitrary and selfish decrees. He was in covenant with his subjects and was called to care for them the way a father cares for his children.According to divine right theory, kingship was a sacred position, manned by someone uniquely called to occupy the center of the religious sphere. Without him, chaos would descend. His lineage stretched back to Adam thru mythical figures like Pharamond, Clovis, Pepin, and Charlemagne. From the Middle Ages on, writings knowns as the Mirrors of Princes called on the French monarch to be pious, just, and good; while avoiding wanton luxury, cruelty, and moral weakness.At the king's coronation, the archbishop of Reims anointed him with sacred oil and blessed his gloves, scepter, and ring. The king swore an oath to uphold the Catholic faith. If his subjects rebelled against, since he was a God-ordained sacred person in a sacred office, they deserved death. In 1757, Robert Damiens attempted to assassinate Louis XV. He was pulled apart before a cheering crowd of thousands. A subversive word against His Majesty earned the author time in prison.Louis XIV became king at age five but due to his age, wasn't allowed to rule till he was 22. As he waited for the throne, France was torn apart by civil war in which his agents were barely able to eke out a victory. Traumatized by what he saw during this time, Louis determined to short-circuit future revolts by establishing an absolute monarchy. He learned well how to rule under the watchful eye of the shrewd politician Cardinal Mazarin. He came to control of France by a sophisticated system of rewards and honors that kept everyone beholden to his favor. He understood the threat of various religious factions all vying for control and set a Gallican, a French form of Catholicism for the realm, regardless of what they might profess to believe.Since 1516, the year before Luther published his 95 Theses, French kings selected bishops for the French church. They filled the positions with loyal nobles. When Pope Innocent XI rejected Louis XIV's naming of bishops and his appropriation of funds from vacant bishoprics, the king, with approval of the Clergy, encouraged Bossuet to draw up a Declaration of Gallican Liberties of 1682, stipulating that kings “were not subject to any ecclesiastical power in temporal affairs.”The result was that French bishops had sweeping authority to rule both in temporal and spiritual matters. Besides ordinations and baptisms, they mandated that religious books could be published only with their permission. They regularly called on censors in the National Librairie to condemn what they called “wicked books.” The bishops' personal privileges were extreme. They ruled over a church that owned 10% of the land. In exchange for immunities from taxation, they gave a [uh-humm] “gift” to the king.In 1690, Pope Alexander VIII condemned the Declaration of Gallican Liberties. Three years later, Louis XIV rescinded the declaration. Then two years after that gave his bishops authority over all priests. The French throne and church both exhibited a willingness to defy the papacy in temporal and spiritual matters. There was only one realm in which the Gallican Church and Vatican united; in the contest between the Jansenists and Jesuits.As we saw in a previous episode, Jansenists were followers of Cornelius Jansen, a professor of theology at the University of Louvain and for a time, the bishop of Ypres. Jansen proposed an interpretation of Augustine's theology in his posthumous work Augustinus that extolled God's sovereignty and denied any role humans have in salvation thru free will. Jansen said the elect are saved by God's grace alone. As their lives are transformed, the elect do the will of God by performing acts of love for God and others. In seeking assurance of salvation, the elect overcome temptation by following an austere lifestyle of rigorous penance and frequent celebration of the Mass. Yep; They were Catholic Calvinists; an oxymoron if there ever was one.Jansenists argued forcefully for the inviolability of the individual conscience of the believer; even to the point of refusing to accept a church teaching, they deemed errant.Jansenists were especially critical of Jesuits, whom they believed had succumbed to the teachings of Molinism, a theology based on the work of Luis Molina who advocated free will. Molina was a Spanish Jesuit who'd argued that God provides sufficient grace to move someone to repentance, but didn't force it. Molina said God elects according to His foreknowledge of our choices.Jansenists also rejected the Jesuits' defense of a papal monarchy. Like the Gallicans, they held a conciliarist position: that the authority of the church was vested in all the members of the body of Christ, including themselves as a Catholic minority.The Jansenists criticized the Jesuits for their rule-based ethics, their love of classical pagan culture, and their worldliness. In the Provincial Letters, the Jansenist Blaise Pascal parodied the Jesuits to the delight of most Parisians. But Louis XIV wasn't amused and ordered the book burned.The Jesuits fired back; accusing Jansenists of being anti-monarchical Protestants.To clear themselves of that charge, leading Jansenists of the mid-17th century, became major combatants in the Eucharistic Controversy of the 1660s and 70's. This was the debate that raged in Reformed churches over how to understand the elements in Communion. Just as the Controversy had run in the 9th century in the Catholic Church, now it ran in the Reformation churches of Europe in the 17th. Jansenists believed in the classic Catholic position of Transubstantiation, which all reformed churches had rejected to one degree or another. The Jansenists knew by adhering to it, they could set themselves over against the label Protestant being tossed at them by the Jesuits.Despite their best anti-Protestant efforts, the Jansenists failed to win Louis XIV's favor. In 1678, they were forced to leave France.On September 1, 1715, Louis XIV died, leaving the French church deeply divided. Though the Jansenists had been officially exiled, many of the French were secret, and some, not-so-secret Jansenists. Numerous appeals were made to Rome by high-ranking clergy for a repeal of anti-Jansenist rulings.Then, a series of reported healings took place at a Jansenist leader's graveside. This seemed to mark God's favor on the movement. Throngs of Parisians flocked to the cemetery. In 1732, the government closed it to curb its propaganda value. A jokester posted a sign on the cemetery's entrance: “By order of the king: God is prohibited to do miracles in this place.”The Jansenists may have lost the support of the religious and political hierarchy, but their popularity soared with commoners. Priests were regarded as successors to Christ's disciples. This undercut the authority of bishops. Then the law courts reasoned if priests had as much authority as bishops, THEY had as much authority as bureaucrats and nobles. As adjudicators of the Law, collectively they had as much authority, maybe MORE, than the king.So, although originally a theological movement, Jansenism took on a political dimension; as theology often eventually does. Jansenists effectively used the printed page to keep the public current regarding their struggles in France and the rest of Europe.Rumors swirled through Paris in December 1756 and into January of armed revolt. Three-fourths of Paris backed the Jansenists. A rumor said the Jesuits would soon be slaughtered.On the bitterly cold afternoon of Jan 5, 1757, Robert-François Damiens broke through the king's guards and drove a knife into the side of Louis XV. He was immediately arrested. The wound was superficial. The assassin's short knife didn't make it far enough through the king's thick coat to inflict a fatal wound. But Parisians were shocked and profoundly saddened. They feared another St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre was upon them.Despite torture, Damiens remained resolute in denying the existence of co-conspirators. After a trial in which judges assumed his guilt, Damiens's body was literally pulled apart at a public execution witnessed by a large and boisterous crowd.Louis XV was badly shaken by the attempt on his life and the rumor his own cousin was behind it. In September, he lost the will to enforce anti-Jansenist and Protestant restrictions.In Nov. 1764, Jansenists scored a victory against the 3,300 Jesuits in France when the court ordered them to vacate the kingdom and its colonies, and Louis XV reluctantly agreed. The Jesuits had stumbled rather badly in some mission ventures in China and South America which tarnished their reputation and raised a public outcry against them.Three years later, Charles III of Spain, King of Naples and Duke of Parma, expelled the Jesuits from their lands. Eventually, in 1773, the papacy dissolved the order with its 26,000 members worldwide and its nearly 1,000 colleges and seminaries. It wasn't till 1814 that the Society of Jesus was re-established.Despite complaints Protestants brazenly touted their new toleration under Louis XV, the French Church affirmed Catholicism as the only legitimate religion in France. In 1765, the Assembly of Clergy declared, “There is, Sire, in your Kingdom, only one master, one single monarch whom we obey: there is only one single cult and one single faith.” They called on the king to uphold anti-Protestant legislation. Louis XV said he would, but as stated, he didn't have the will to enforce it.In 1774, Louis XV died of smallpox. Louis XVI was crowned king in the cathedral of Reims. During a magnificent coronation service, he affirmed his desire to uphold the Catholic religion and to reinvigorate the sacred character of his union with the people of France. In 1776, a resurgence of Roman Catholic devotion took place in Paris. But in 1787, Louis yielded to a well-orchestrated campaign by Jansenists and the Protestant Pastor Rabaut Saint-Etienne. He issued the Edict of Toleration for Protestants.We wrap this episode by noting that as the religious landscape opened up in France, so too did the political. New ideologies and political theories were popping out of the Enlightenment like fleas off a mongrel. John-Jacques Rousseau was popular, and his ideas began to infiltrate the minds of the French public. If the individual was free to think for him and herself, and worship according to one's own conscience, why not extend that idea to the lesser realm of human governments? If bishops aren't supreme, the Bishop of the bishops, the Pope isn't either. And if the Pope isn't supreme, neither is the king. The Divine right of kings was an ideology on the way out.
The title of this episode is Faith in the Age of Reason, Part 2.In our last episode we briefly considered Jakob Hermanzoon, the Dutch theologian who'd sat under the tutelage of Theodore Beza, John Calvin's successor at the Academy in Geneva. We know Hermanzoon better by his Latin name Jacobus Arminius.Arminius took exception to Beza's views on predestination and when he became pastor of a church in Amsterdam, created a stir among his Calvinist colleagues. It was while teaching a series of sermons on the Book of Romans that Arminius became convinced Beza had several things wrong. The implication was that because Beza was Calvin's successor and the standard-bearer for Calvinism, Arminius contradicted Calvin. Things came to a head when Arminius' colleague Peter Planck began to publicly dispute with him.Arminius hated controversy, seeing it as a dangerous distraction to the cause of the Gospel and pressed for a synod to deal with the matter, believing once his views were set alongside Scripture, he'd be vindicated.In 1603, Arminius was called to the University at Leiden to teach when one of the faculty members died. The debate Arminius had been having with Planck was shifted to a new controversy with one of the other professors at Leiden, François Gomaer.This controversy lasted the next six yrs as the supporters of both Calvinism and Arminius grew in number and determination. The synod Arminius had pressed for was eventually held, but not till nine years after his death in 1609.In the meantime, just a year after his death, Arminius' followers gathered his writings and views and issued what they regarded as a formal statement of his ideas. Called the Five Articles of the Remonstrants, or just the Remonstrance, it was a formal proposal to the government of Holland detailing the points of difference that had come to a head over the previous years in the debate between Arminius and Gomaer.Those 5 points were –That the divine decree of predestination is conditioned on Faith, not absolute in Election.That the intent of the Atonement is universal;Man cannot of himself exercise a saving faith;That though the grace of God is a necessary condition of human effort it does not act irresistibly in man; and finally -By the enabling power of the Holy Spirit, believers are able to resist sin but are not beyond the possibility of falling from grace. In 1618, the Dutch Church called the Synod of Dort to answer the Remonstrance. The results of the Synod, called the Canons of Dort, strongly upheld Theodore Beza's formulation of the Calvinist doctrine of predestination and developed their own five-point response to the Remonstrance.It comes as a major surprise to most students of Church history to learn that TULIP, or the famous Five Points of Calvinism were a RESPONSE to the challenge of Arminianists; that they'd come up with their 5 points first. Most people who've heard of Calvinism and Arminianism have never even heard of the Remonstrance; yet it's the thing that formalized the debate between the two camps; a debate that's continued to today and has led to some prolific arguments and controversies among Christians.Put a Presbyterian elder and Methodist deacon in a room together and let the fun begin!Now, lest we think the Protestants fell out in the Calvinist-Arminianist brouhaha while the Catholics sat back, ate popcorn and watched the show, realize things were FAR from being all united and just one big happy family over in the Roman sector of the Church. Catholics were no monolithic entity at this time. It was a mixed bag of different groups and viewpoints with their own internal disagreements.In the late 16th and early 17th Cs there was a long dispute between the Jesuits and the Dominicans over how divine grace and human free-will interacted.In the late 17th C, Pope Innocent XI, spent his reign playing a power game with Louis XIV and the Gallic theologians who believed in the authority of the Church, but not the Pope.More serious was the rise of Jansenism. This movement grew out of the work of Cornelius Jansen, a professor at Louvain University. Jansen published a book in 1640 titled Augustinus, in which he stated what he believed were the doctrines of Augustine. Jansen sounded a lot like Calvin and argued that divine grace can't be resisted, meaning it overrides the human will. He fiercely opposed the doctrine of the Jesuits that salvation depended on cooperation between divine grace and human will. So, the Jansenists believed in predestination, which meant that although they were Catholics they were in some ways more like Calvinists.Jansenism proved a thorn in the side of the Catholic Church, and especially the Jesuits, for quite a while. Its leading exponent after Jansen himself was Antoine Arnauld, an intellectual and cultural giant of the 17th C. Arnauld corresponded with such philosophical luminaries as Descartes and Leibniz. He possessed a penetrating critical faculty; and as a theologian he was no less brilliant.But back to our previous theme, stated at the beginning of the last episode – Protestant Scholasticism, or the Age of Confessionalism, in which the various branches of the Protestant church began to coalesce around distinctive statements of their theology.The Anglican Church of England occupied a curious position in the midst of all this. On the one hand it was a Protestant church, having been created in the 1530s when King Henry VIII took command of the existing Catholic Church in England. The Lutheran sympathies of his advisers, like Thomas Cranmer and Thomas Cromwell, influenced the new church, but so too did the Catholic tendencies of later monarchs like Charles I and churchmen such as William Laud. Unlike other churches throughout Europe, the Church of England rarely had to struggle for the soul of its nation with another movement. So it had never been forced to define its beliefs and practices in the face of opposition to others. By the turn of the 18th C, the one thing all Anglicans agreed on was a shared distrust of Roman Catholics.The doctrinal openness of the Church of England meant that it was in England that religious free-thinking had the greatest chance of taking root. In the late 16th C it was still possible to be burnt at the stake in England for denying the Trinity, but a C later those who asserted such things had no need to fear anything more damaging than government censure and a deluge of refutations by the clergy. The Church of England prided itself on its doctrinal orthodoxy, understood in terms of common sense, and a middle way between what were regarded as the bizarre excesses of continental Protestants and Catholics. This middle way was based on what its followers felt was a healthy respect, but refusal to fawn, for tradition. This took shape in the principle of the apostolic succession, an ancient Christian notion we've examined in previous episodes. Apostolic succession claims that Christian doctrines can be known to be trustworthy because they are taught in churches which were founded by the apostles or their immediate followers. In other words, great trust was placed in the notion of an unbroken chain of tradition going back to the apostles themselves. It was this ‘apostolic succession', together with the Scriptures, themselves handed down as part of this authoritative tradition, that mainstream Anglicans felt guaranteed the trustworthiness of their church. By contrast, many thought, the Catholics had added to that tradition over the centuries, while the more extreme Protestants had subtracted from it.There was considerable tension between the churches. The worst example was France, where after the Revocation of the Treaty of Nantes in 1685 Protestants were an actively persecuted minority: they felt especially threatened by surrounding Catholics, and all the more determined never to give in to them. Persecution only strengthened their resolve and inspired sympathy from Protestants throughout the Continent, who by the same token became increasingly hostile to Catholicism.In England, Catholicism was the minority faith: officially banned, its priests had to operate in secrecy.There's a story from this time of a Catholic bishop who, functioning as a kind of religious spy, held Mass in an east London pub for a congregation of Irish workers disguised as beer-guzzling patrons.Many people were scared of Catholics, whom they regarded as tools of a foreign power; those sneaky French or the Pope. There was also great suspicion of ‘Dissenters'—members of any churches other than the Church of England. ‘Dissenters' and Catholics alike, it was feared, were eating away at the social fabric of the country, and the policies of tolerance followed by the Whig party were opposed by many. Some Anglican churchmen formed a party with the slogan ‘Church in Danger', which spent its time campaigning against Catholics, Dissenters, deists, the principle of toleration and, essentially, everything that the Enlightenment had produced.In 1778, the English Parliament passed the Catholic Relief Act, which decriminalized Catholicism—to the enormous anger of a sizeable minority in the population. Two years later a Scottish aristocrat named Lord George Gordon led a huge mob to London, resulting in a week of riots in which Catholic churches were looted, foreign embassies burnt, and nearly 300 people were killed.But we ought not think it was all petty small-mindedness that ruled the day. There were some who worked tirelessly to effect peace between the warring camps of Christendom. In the 17th C, a number of attempts were made to open a dialogue between Roman Catholic and Protestant churches with the aim of reuniting them.The godfather of this endeavor, sometimes known as ‘syncretism', was a German Lutheran theologian named George Callixtus. He devoted huge effort in the early 17th C to find common ground between the different groups. Like his contemporary Hugo Grotius in the Reformed Church, he believed it should be possible to use the Apostles' Creed, and a belief in the authority of the Bible alone, as a basis for agreement among Christians.Callixtus made progress with Calvinists but the Catholics were less receptive. The Conference of Thorn, called by King Vladislav IV of Poland in 1645, attempted to put these ideas into practice, but after several weeks of discussions the Catholic, Lutheran and Calvinist theologians were unable to pull anything substantive together.Sadly, Callixtus's efforts met with the greatest opposition from his fellow Lutherans.Let's turn now from the acrimony and controversy that marked Protestant Scholasticism for a moment to take a look at a guy more like the rest of us; at least we probably hope so.He was an obscure, uneducated Frenchman of the late 17th C.Nicolas Herman, a manservant from Lorraine, tried to live his life around what he called ‘the practice of the presence of God'. He was not a very good manservant, having a pronounced limp from his army days and appallingly clumsy; but he performed his duties diligently until 1651, when, at the age of 40, he went to Paris and became a Carmelite monk. His monk's name was Lawrence of the Resurrection.Brother Lawrence was put to work in the monastery's kitchen—a task he hated, but which he did anyway because it was God's will. To the surprise of the other monks, he not only did his work calmly and methodically, but spoke to God the entire time. Brother Lawrence declared that, to him, there was no difference between the time for work and the time for prayer: wherever he was, and whatever he was doing, he tried to perceive the presence of God. As he wrote to one of his friends:“There is not in the world a kind of life more sweet and delightful, than that of a continual conversation with God: the only ones who can understand it are those who practice and experience it. But I do not advise you to do it from that motive. It is not pleasure which we ought to seek in this exercise, but let us do it from a principle of love, and because God would have us. If I were a preacher, I would, above all other things, preach the practice of the presence of God. And if I were a spiritual director, I would advise all the world to do it. That is how necessary I think it is—and how easy, too.”Brother Lawrence became a minor celebrity among the hierarchy of the French Catholic Church, and he was visited by more than one archbishop, anxious to see if the reports of his humility and holiness were true. Lawrence's sixteen Letters and Spiritual Maxims testify of his sincere belief in God's presence in all things and his trust in God to see him through all things. They also testify to the way in which holy men and women continued to devote themselves to God's will, both in and out of monasteries, even as the intellectual revolutions of the Enlightenment were at their height.It's easy when considering the Age of Reason, to suppose theology was increasingly being seduced by philosophy, and that the simple, heartfelt faith of the commoners of the Middle Ages and the Reformation was being replaced by rationalism. That was true in some quarters, but the 17th and 18th centuries had their share of sincere and pious saints, as well as heretics, as much as any age; and there were some important movements that recalled the faithful to a living and wholehearted religion. As the theologians bickered, ordinary Christians were getting on with things, as they always had.As we bring this episode to a close, I want to end with a look at Blaise Pascal. That's a great name, isn't it? Blaise. Sounds like a professional skateboarder.Pascal was a Jansenist, that is, a member of the Roman Catholic reform movement we took a look at a moment ago. While the Jansenists began as a movement that sought to return the Roman Church to the teachings of Augustine, since Augustine's doctrines were considered as being based in Scripture, the Jansenists were a Roman Catholic kind of back to the Bible movement.A few days after Blaise Pascal's death, one of his servants noticed a curious bulge in the great scientist's jacket. Opening the lining, he withdrew a folded parchment written by Pascal with these words . . .The year of grace 1654. Monday, November 23rd.,… from about half past ten in the evening until about half past twelve, God of Abraham, God of Isaac, God of Jacob, not of the philosophers and scholars. >> Certainty, certainty, feeling, joy, peace. >> God of Jesus Christ, I have separated myself from Him. I have fled from Him, Renounced Him, crucified Him. May I never be separated from Him. Renunciation, total and sweet.For eight years Pascal had hid those words in his coat, withdrawing them now and again to read them and be reminded of the moment when grace seized his soul.Pascal's mother died when he was only three. His father, Stephen Pascal, began the education of his children, Gilbert, Blaise, and Jacqueline. Occasionally he took the young Blaise with him to meetings of the Academy of Science. The youth's scientific curiosity was aroused.Before he reached the age of 27 Pascal had gained the admiration of mathematicians in Paris; had invented the calculating machine for his father who was a busy tax-collector; and had discovered the basic principles of atmospheric and hydraulic pressures. He belonged to the age of the Scientific Greats.Blaise's initial contact with the Jansenists came as the result of an accident his father had. On an icy day in January, 1646, Stephen tried to prevent a duel. He fell on the hard frozen ground and dislocated a hip. The physicians who treated him were devoted Jansenists. They succeeded not only in curing their patient but in winning his son to their doctrines.They told the Pascals physical suffering was an illustration of a basic religious truth: man is helpless; a miserable creature. Blaise had seldom enjoyed a day without pain. He knew how helpless physicians could be, so the argument struck him with unusual force. It deepened his sense of the tragic mystery of life.He also learned from these Jansenist physicians how profoundly the Bible speaks to the human condition. He became an avid student of Scripture, pondering its pages as he had atmospheric pressures. He came to see the Bible as a way to a transformed heart.In 1651, Pascal's personal tragedy deepened with the death of his father. The loss brought him to a crisis. His sister, Jacqueline, renounced the world by entering the Port-Royal convent, and Blaise was left alone in Paris.He now gave himself to worldly interests. He took a richly furnished home, staffed it with servants, and drove about town in a coach drawn by four horses; an extravagance. He pursued the ways of elite but decadent Parisian society. After a year of pleasure he found only a “great disgust with the world,” and he plunged into quiet desperation. He felt abandoned by God.Blaise turned again to the Bible, to the 17th ch of the Gospel of John, where Jesus prepares for His sacrifice on the cross. It was then that Pascal felt a new blaze of the Spirit. As he wrote, “Certainty, certainty, feeling, joy, peace.”Pascal's new faith drew him magnetically into the orbit of the Jansenists. Late in 1654, he joined his sister, Jacqueline, as a member of the Port-Royal community. He was then asked by one of the Jansenist leaders for assistance in his defense against the attack of the Jesuits.Pascal responded brilliantly. He penned eighteen Public Letters exposing Jesuit errors in flashes of eloquence and sarcastic wit. As each letter appeared, the public snatched them up. They were instant best-sellers. Port-Royal was no longer an obscure Jansenist monastery; it was a center of public interest. The Pope condemned the Letters, but all educated French read them, as succeeding generations did for the next two centuries.Upon completing the Letters in March, 1657, Pascal planned a book on the evidences for Christianity. He was never able to complete it. In June, ‘62, he was seized with a violent illness and, after lingering a couple months, died on August 19 at the age of just 39.Friends found portions of his writing on faith and reason, and eight years after his death they published these notes under the title Thoughts (Pensées-Pahn'-sees). In the Pensées, Pascal is a religious genius who cuts across doctrine and pierces to the heart of man's moral problem. He appeals to the intellect by his passion for truth and arouses the emotions by his merciless descriptions of the plight of man without God.Man, Pascal said, is part angel and part beast; a Chimera. In Greek mythology the chimera was a she-goat with a lion's head and a serpent's tail. Pascal wrote, “What a Chimera is man! What a novelty, a monster, a chaos, a contradiction, a prodigy! The glory and refuse of the universe. Who shall unravel this confusion?”Reason, as great a faculty as it is, is no sure guide, Pascal warns. If we trust reason alone, we will doubt everything except pain and death. But our hearts tell us this cannot be true. That would be the greatest of all blasphemies to think that life and the universe have no meaning. God and the meaning of life must be felt by the heart, rather than by reason. It was Pascal who said, “The heart has its reasons which reason does not know.”He saw the human condition so deeply yet so clearly that men and women in our own time, after three centuries, still gain perspective from him for their own spiritual pilgrimage.
© 2020-2025 Ivy Podcast Discovery LLC
