St. Peter Canisius Apostolate

From In Conversation with God: Volume One: Advent and Christmastide, First Sunday of Advent:

“At that time, Jesus said to His disciples: Take heed, watch and pray; for you do not know when the time will come … Watch, therefore — for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or in the morning — lest he come suddenly and find you asleep. And what I say to you I say to all: Watch!” (Mark 3.33-37)

To maintain this state of alertness we need to struggle, for we all have a tendency to live with our eyes fixed on the things of the earth. Especially during this time of Advent let us not forget that our hearts are darkened by gluttony and drunkenness and the cares of this life, and so loose sight of the supernatural dimension which every action of ours should have as its milieu. St. Paul compares this guard over ourselves to that of “the well-armed soldier who does not allow himself to be taken by surprise.” This adversary tries to wreak havoc in whatever way he can; and since he does not devise his tactics without attention to detail, neither should we.

We will remain at the ready if we are attentive to our personal prayer, which enables us to avoid lukewarmness and the dwindling and cooling of our desires for sanctity. We will be constantly on the alert if we do not become slipshod about those little mortifications which keep us awake to the things of God. We will remain attentive through a refined examination of conscience, which makes us look to those points at which, almost without noticing it, we are departing from our path.

We normally don’t think of Advent as a penitential season. In fact, I must confess that in past years Advent for me has been little more than a countdown to Christmas.  This year, however, I’m making a point to be more serious about entering into the spirituality of the season itself — to live it as a time of anticipation and preparation. I found that the above passage not only provides the rationale for such an attitude (we are tempted by many things during this time of year, and therefore we must pay attention to the details of our spiritual life), but at it also offers some solid points on how to live this season (an attentiveness to prayer, mortification, and our examination of conscience).

If there’s any point in the liturgical season during which the Church calls us to an attitude that is at odds with our culture, it is Advent. Society, in general, is focused on slowing down for the holidays and putting off things until next year, whereas the Church calls us to be more attentive to the basics of the spiritual life. And during a time in which we are to make lists of “all the things we want,” part of our meditation is on a family who had so little that their first and only child had to be born in a cave, swaddled in rags, and placed in a trough for a bed.

Though I’m not sure how I’d change my family’s celebration of Christmas — with a wife and kids, not to mention grandparents and two aunts, I can’t just call it off — but I am thankful for feeling ill over how far removed our Western culture in general and my own circumstances in particular are from the spirit of Advent. Perhaps that’s how it should be.

The three monotheistic religions of the world all profess there is only one God. But of these three, the Christian profession of God is fundamentally distinct.

Islam professes that the one divine nature subsists fully in one divine person — called Allah.

Judaism professes that the one divine nature subsists fully in one divine person — Yahweh.

Christianity, however, professes that the one divine person subsists fully in three distinct persons — Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Now this teaching isn’t just some addendum to the Church’s teaching on God. Rather, the mystery of the Trinity stands at the heart of Catholic teaching. As the Catechism of the Catholic Church says in paragraph 234:

The mystery of the Most Holy Trinity is the central mystery of Christian faith and life. It is the mystery of God in himself. It is therefore the source of all the other mysteries of faith, the light that enlightens them. It is the most fundamental and essential teaching in the hierarchy of the truths of faith. The whole history of salvation is identical with the history of the way and the means by which the one true God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, reveals himself to men and reconciles and unites with himself those who turn away from sin.

I could spend a long time talking about this passage. In fact, when I wrote a book on the Trinity (the first draft of which is sitting in my drawer) I spent the first chapter explaining this paragraph.

But all I want to say here is this: The Church doesn’t just teach that “the mystery of the Most Holy Trinity is the central mystery of Christian faith and life,” she practices it as well.

Consider: Only one prayer during Mass addresses God in the singular — the Confiteor: “I confess to almighty God . . . .”  This is logical, of course, because when we sin we don’t just offend one of the Divine Persons, but, rather, all of the Divine Persons. So it is right, when we confess our sins, to address God in the singular.

But every other prayer at Mass addresses the Father through the Son in the Holy Spirit. When we sing the Gloria, we first praise the Father, then the Son, and then the Holy Spirit. When we pray the Creed, we first profess our faith in the Father, then in the Son, and then in the Holy Spirit. And all of the Eucharistic Prayers are addressed to the Father, reminding the Father of what his Son, Jesus Christ, for the sake of our salvation.

So never think that the Trinity isn’t an essential part of our faith. Rather, it is the most important part of our faith. So in your spiritual life, you should try to make the Trinity part of your prayer. Speak to the Father, speak to the Son, and speak to the Holy Spirit. It might seem odd at first, but soon you’ll develop a distinct relationship with each of them.

And if you find this post intriguing, I encourage you to hop on over to the “Jesus and the Catholic Church Podcast” and listen to the episode on the Trinity.

An excerpt from Cardinal Francis George’s address at the Synod of Bishops, as reported by Zenit:

“Scripture is the soul of liturgy even more than it is the heart of theology,” the president of the US bishops’ conference said. “With decreased participation in the Sunday liturgy, the faithful cut themselves off from contact with Scripture in the context of communal worship.

“Through steady attention to the Scriptures that shape the liturgical cycles and calendar, the believer opens himself to conversion and development in the life of grace.”

Cardinal George called regular attendance at Mass a “schooling in the obedience of faith.”

“A love of Scripture,” he continued, “feeds the desire to worship in spirit and in truth, and, in turn, our worship gives God the opportunity to transform us more profoundly into the image of Christ.”

The cardinal commented on the practice of “lectio divina,” which he called a form of prayer “so apt to purify one’s desires and bring one’s will into harmony with God’s will,” yet so “far from common even among those who regularly come to Church.”

He said that if pastors are attentive, “people will not fear confusion when they read and listen to the Bible. It will not be for them a grand puzzle but a path to the freedom that comes from personal surrender to God’s world, God’s mind, God’s will.

“If the power of God’s word in Holy Scripture is to be felt in the life and mission of the Church, pastors must attend to personal context as well as to inspired text.”

Sacrosanctum Concilium, no. 7. Christ indeed always associates the Church with Himself in this great work wherein God is perfectly glorified and men are sanctified. The Church is His beloved Bride who calls to her Lord, and through Him offers worship to the Eternal Father.

Rightly, then, the liturgy is considered as an exercise of the priestly office of Jesus Christ. In the liturgy the sanctification of the man is signified by signs perceptible to the senses, and is effected in a way which corresponds with each of these signs; in the liturgy the whole public worship is performed by the Mystical Body of Jesus Christ, that is, by the Head and His members.

From this it follows that every liturgical celebration, because it is an action of Christ the priest and of His Body which is the Church, is a sacred action surpassing all others; no other action of the Church can equal its efficacy by the same title and to the same degree.

In Part 8, we saw how Christ is present in the Church’s liturgy. Here the Council gives us the theological conclusion to Christ’s presence in the liturgy.

Because Christ is present in various ways in the liturgy, the liturgy itself is the work of Christ. Let us take as an example the Holy Mass. Christ is present in the proclamation of the Scriptures. He is present in the priest; through the priest Christ offers himself to the Father. He is also present in a special way in the consecrated Eucharistic species that is offered to the Father — for in the Eucharist Christ offers himself. Finally, he is present in the congregation who participates in the Mass; that is to say, Christ is present in the members of his mystical body.

One can legitimately ask: What part of the Holy Mass falls outside of Christ’s care? The obvious answer is that no part of the Mass falls outside of Christ’s care. It’s for this reason that the Church calls the liturgy the greatest work of Christ, for through the liturgy Christ offers that perfect praise and worship of the Father.

However, the liturgy is not the only work of Christ and the Church. As the Second Vatican Council explained:

Sacrosanctum Concilium, no. 9. The sacred liturgy does not exhaust the entire activity of the Church. Before men can come to the liturgy they must be called to faith and to conversion: “How then are they to call upon him in whom they have not yet believed? But how are they to believe him whom they have not heard? And how are they to hear if no one preaches? And how are men to preach unless they be sent?” (Rom. 10:14-15).

Therefore the Church announces the good tidings of salvation to those who do not believe, so that all men may know the true God and Jesus Christ whom He has sent, and may be converted from their ways, doing penance. To believers also the Church must ever preach faith and penance, she must prepare them for the sacraments, teach them to observe all that Christ has commanded, and invite them to all the works of charity, piety, and the apostolate. For all these works make it clear that Christ’s faithful, though not of this world, are to be the light of the world and to glorify the Father before men.

The first paragraph of Sacrosanctum Concilium, no. 9 is pretty simple to understand: Evangelization and missionary work is absolutely necessary to bring people to the great gift the liturgy.

More difficult to understand — or accept — is the second paragraph because it places more demands upon us. Note how the Council highlights “believers.” The Church is calling us . . .

1. to a deeper faith;
2. to do penance;
3. to a better understanding of the liturgy and the sacraments;
4. to observe all that Christ has commanded;
5. to engage in works of charity;
6. to engage in works of piety;
7. to engage in the apostolate;
8. and to remember that we are to be a light to the world; that is to say, through our actions we are to teach others about Christ.

Spiritual writers often say that we need to attend Mass and receive Holy Communion with a “proper disposition.” I used think that this phrase meant nothing more than a general desire to be holy. But now I’m not so sure. Perhaps a fuller, more concrete understanding of a “proper disposition” can be found in this list. Do we approach Holy Mass with a desire for a deeper faith, for a spirit of penance, for a better understanding of the Church’s teaching, for a longing to observe all of Christ’s commands, and so forth? Perhaps we need to rewrite this list in the form of a liturgical self-examination — something we can reflect upon weekly or biweekly to ensure that we truly are approaching Holy Mass and the Sacrament of Confession with a proper disposition.

Sacrosanctum Concilium, no. 7: To accomplish so great a work, Christ is always present in His Church, especially in her liturgical celebrations. He is present in the sacrifice of the Mass, not only in the person of His minister, “the same now offering, through the ministry of priests, who formerly offered himself on the cross,” but especially under the Eucharistic species. By His power He is present in the sacraments, so that when a man baptizes it is really Christ Himself who baptizes. He is present in His word, since it is He Himself who speaks when the holy scriptures are read in the Church. He is present, lastly, when the Church prays and sings, for He promised: “Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them” (Matt. 18:20).

In this paragraph, the Council lists the ways Christ is present in the Church’s liturgy. For the sake of clarity, let’s list them here. Christ is present in:

1. the priest who offers the sacrifice of the Mass;
2. the Holy Eucharist in a special way;
3. the ministers of the sacraments;
4. the Sacred Scriptures, which are His word;
5. the congregation who participates in the liturgy.

Much can be said about each one of these; but I want to highlight three:

First, of the five ways listed, the Council emphasizes Christ’s presence in the Eucharist. This shouldn’t come as a surprise to any Catholic, but it’s always surprising to me how often this teaching doesn’t come up — or, perhaps better stated, how under-emphasized it is. Whenever I hear a homily on Christ’s presence in the Eucharist, I feel both great exhilaration and well as deep sadness that I’m exhilarated. I mean, is it not sad that we feel joyful when the truth of the faith is actually preached? At any rate, of the five ways Christ is present in the Church, he is especially present to us in the Holy Eucharist, for it is the sacrament of his presence.

Second, Christ is also present in his ministers. This truth is noted twice: Christ is present in the priests who offer Mass, and Christ is present in the ministers of his sacraments. This teaching dates back to the time of St. Augustine who argued against the Donatists that the power of the sacraments does not come from the minister of the sacraments, but, rather, from Christ who gives the sacraments through the ministers. It’s important to remember that in the Church’s liturgy Christ is present giving his grace. It is Christ who baptizes, Christ who absolves us from our sin, Christ who prepares the person for his or her final transition from this life to the next.

Third, Christ is present in the congregation who participates in the liturgy. The “spirit of Vatican II” crowd would like us to believe that the laity’s participation in the liturgy must take on some kind of external form. But this cannot be the case because then the Christ would be present only in those who are externally participating in the liturgy. What is little know to the “spirit of Vatican II” crowd is that Pope St. Pius X encouraged active participation in the liturgy by the laity. What he meant by it, and what Vatican II meant by it, is that the laity should follow along with the liturgy and make the words of the liturgical prayers their own. And in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, the laity should unite themselves to Christ’s offering on the Cross, seeking to imitate his sacrifice in the happenings of their everyday life. So Christ is present in the congregation who has gathered in his name, who intends to pray with the Church, and who seeks to imitate Christ’s gift of self in all that they do.

Sacrosanctum Concilium 2. For the liturgy, through which the work of our redemption is accomplished, most of all in the divine sacrifice of the Eucharist, is the outstanding means whereby the faithful may express in their lives, and manifest to others, the mystery of Christ and the real nature of the true Church.

Here the Council sketches the spiritual power the liturgy has in the life of the Church. Two ideas are being expressed in this sentence: first, through the liturgy Christ’s salvific work is accomplished, and second, through the liturgy the faithful are empowered to bring Christ to others. Let’s go into this in a bit more detail.

The liturgical actions of the Church make the sacraments available to us. The sacraments are the divinely ordained ways God has chosen to offer us the free gift of grace. Though it is true that Christ’s work of redemption was finished through his passion, death, and resurrection, it is also true that this work must be made available to us. Protestant Christianity believes Christ offers us redemption by spiritual means alone: through an explicit faith in Christ one is justified and saved. Catholic Christianity does not undermine the necessity of faith (cf. Mk 16.16), but the Church believes that Christ himself set up a way to give us his grace through tangible means. What did Jesus mean when he claimed that the spiritual rebirth that is necessary for salvation is to be effected by water and the spirit (Jn 3.5)? What did our Lord mean he spoke of the necessity of eating his flesh and drinking his blood (Jn 6.52-59)? The Church, from its earliest days, has always understood these teachings of Christ to be the foundations for the sacraments of Baptism and the Eucharist. St. Paul tells us the meaning of these sacraments: through baptism we participate in the death and resurrection of Christ; we have died to sin and are enabled to live a life worthy of God (Rom 6.1-11). Through the Eucharist we have communion with the Lord (1 Cor 10.14-22); this communion is so real that if we receive the Eucharist in an unworthy manner (i.e., in the state of mortal sin) we shall be guilty of profaning the body and blood of Christ (1 Cor. 11.27-32). It’s clear that the sacraments unite us in a very real way to the salvific actions of Christ, and it’s through this union that we are given the grace of redemption.

This union to Christ, particularly that union we have to him through Holy Communion, has a real effect in us. As St. Thomas Aquinas said: “The proper effect of the Sacrament is to change man into Christ, so that he can say with the Apostle, I live; no, it is not I who live. It is Christ who lives in me” ¹. Thus, through the sacramental action of the Church — through the Church administrating the sacraments to us, and through our own generosity to God — the sacraments bring about a true transformation in us. We are made, as Archbishop Fulton Sheen said, into “little Jesuses.” Because we have been transformed into Christ, we are able to bring Christ and his grace to others. Understanding this deep reality makes the prayer of St. Teresa of Avila resonate with profound meaning:

Lord Christ, You have no body on earth but ours, no hands but ours, no feet but ours. Our are the eyes through which your compassion must look on the world. Ours are the feet by which you may still go about doing good. Ours are the hands with which you bless people now. Bless our minds and bodies, that we may be a blessing to others.