Preparing for Consecration

Spirit of the World

Spend this period casting off the spirit of the world which is contrary to that of Jesus Christ.

Reflection

The Holy Fathers remind us to continually persevere.  Have we grown lukewarm in our devotion?  Have we relaxed in our battle to pursue truth and holiness?  What a splendid example they set for us, examples of patience and persistence.  Let us take heart in their success and beg God to grant us the grace to follow in their footsteps. – Bernadette Harmon

The Imitation of Christ, Book 1, Chapter 18 (cont.), Thomas à Kempis

The example set us by the Holy Fathers

Outwardly destitute, inwardly they were full of grace and divine consolation. Strangers to the world, they were close and intimate friends of God. To themselves they seemed as nothing, and they were despised by the world, but in the eyes of God they were precious and beloved. They lived in true humility and simple obedience; they walked in charity and patience, making progress daily on the pathway of spiritual life and obtaining great favor with God. They were given as an example for all religious, and their power to stimulate us to perfection ought to be greater than that of the lukewarm to tempt us to laxity.

How great was the fervor of all religious in the beginning of their holy institution! How great their devotion in prayer and their rivalry for virtue! What splendid discipline flourished among them! What great reverence and obedience in all things under the rule of a superior! The footsteps they left behind still bear witness that they indeed were holy and perfect men who fought bravely and conquered the world.

Today, he who is not a transgressor and who can bear patiently the duties which he has taken upon himself is considered great. How lukewarm and negligent we are! We lose our original fervor very quickly and we even become weary of life from laziness! Do not you, who have seen so many examples of the devout, fall asleep in the pursuit of virtue!