Clothed in Virtue

St Edmund Campion SJ Jesuit Priest and Martyr, 1540 - 1581 This is the earliest known portrait of Campion. " we should live soberly and justly and godly in this world" - Titus 2      Too many people live in a lukewarm spirit.  Maybe you don't commit mortal sins, but still willfully commit venial sins.  Many live indifferent to God, praying half-heartedly and without conviction.  You obey church laws and go through the motions to check off the boxes: Mass. Communion, confession.  It becomes routine without any real devotion in it.  Some never  really put the advice from confession into practice.  Some never really listen to the message of the sermon.  Day to day, month to month, and year to year, they are not really undergoing any kind of real change.  Things stay the same.      Yet, at the same time, they give their time and attention to worldly things. They try to live a comfortable live, without ...

A successful life is one that achieves its purpose. Happiness is not pleasure. Pleasure is on the level of the senses — something that feels good when the senses are appeased. Pleasure is when our appetites are satisfied. It’s in the emotion. It’s not permanent, it does not last.  Happiness is in the will — it is a good that we achieve. It’s something that is lasting and cannot be taken away. This is why we can be happy amidst our suffering because when we do God’s will, we are achieving our end (our purpose). “Happiness” that the word pushes upon us is really just pleasure — seeking instant gratification and calling that happiness. But that’s not real happiness. Happiness comes from virtue, not through pleasure-seeking. A majority of millionaires in the world are not truly happy. They seek more and more because they are never satisfied You can be happy without having your senses appeased. Many of the saints had nothing and yet were still happy. Often times the poor are more dispos...

"Restore all things in Christ."        Today we celebrate the feast of Saint Pius X, our patron.       It is good to look back and see the first of St. Pius' encyclicals. This encyclical letter which began his pontificate gave the bishops his mission and goal which can be summed up in this short sentence: to restore all things in Christ.      It’s an interesting letter that we can profit from. At the beginning, he expresses his doubts — he says he sees the pontificate as a difficult burden that he can’t bear alone. He then says but I have accepted because I know it is from God, and God will help me to bear this burden and get through this difficulty. He didn’t jump into the pontificate thinking it would be a breeze but that it would be very difficult. We are often faced with difficult tasks — what is our response? Do we ask for divine help or do we just give up?      Why did he choose the name Pius? — he says “as I ...

  "And behold all generations shall me blessed."      Today we celebrate the beautiful feast of the Assumption. The Assumption is the culmination of Mary's earthly life, which began at her Immaculate Conception and finished here, at the Assumption. She continues to be an advocate in Heaven, showering graces upon us.      What does this feast mean? What are we celebrating? Let’s pause today and see what it is that we truly celebrate and what it means for us.      The Immaculate Conception is when we celebrate Mary’s conception in her mother’s womb, the womb of Ann, conceived without sin.  Today, we  celebrate Our Lady being taken up, body and soul, into heaven, being assumed by God into heaven. This is different from the Ascension of Jesus Christ where Jesus used his own divine power to ascend into heaven. He raised Himself at the Ascension, whereas the Assumption is God bringing Mary into heaven. It wasn’t by her own power, it ...

“I have handed on that which I also have received.”   What does it mean to be a "Traditional Catholic?" Is this truly what we are? Should we call ourselves Traditional Catholics? To be Catholic means to stand apart from the rest of men and from the rest of the world.  Being Catholic means that we strive to put God in his proper place by giving the honor and glory that is due to Him, at least to the degree that it is humanly possible. Today we live in a world that has rejected God. In the supposed "Age of Enlightenment," man turned away from God and turned to himself, and the world became man-centered rather than God-centered. With the battle cry of “liberty” and “freedom," man made himself the center of the universe, the most important thing that exists. Liberty logically follows from this assertion, as liberty allows men to do whatever they want.  Nowadays people have, by and large, rejected the moral law.  It's an "anything goes" society, as lon...

August 1st, 2021 Tenth Sunday after Pentecost Today’s gospel gives us a good look into the spiritual life by comparing the difference between the Publican and the Pharisee. According to society, the Pharisees were the "ideal.” They studied the law and knew the most about the Jewish religion. They served in the temple, made important decisions, and did many acts of public mortification.  The  Publicans were despised by the Jews because they worked with the Romans to collect taxes. They were tax collectors, which was bad enough, but they also worked with the Romans. They were hated for these two reasons. Our Lord uses these two people as an example for us.  Jesus was speaking to those  "who trusted in themselves as just, and despised others...”  He spoke to enlighten these people about themselves, but the same applies to us. This gospel was written for us. Is the spiritual life about externals? Your first answer is probably no -- it’s not about externals. That’s t...

  What shall I do because my lord taketh away from me my stewardship? To dig I am not able, to beg I am ashamed. I know what I will do, that when I shall be removed from the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses.... Eighth Sunday after Pentecost “For the children of this world are wiser in their generation than the children of light.” We read this in the Gospel, and it’s very striking to read these words of Our Lord. These words were addressed to His disciples and apostles, but they are addressed to all of us as well. Is this really true? That the children of this world are wiser than the children of light?  It’s not that the people of the world will save their souls by this wisdom that they have, but that the people of this world have goals and then seek after those goals. A business man, a scientists, an athlete, whoever it may be, they set their goals and do what it takes to achieve those goals. The children of God do far less. So often they seek after only nat...

 07-11-21 7th Sunday After Pentecost Moses and the Ten Commandments Our Lord, Jesus Christ, today reminds us that it’s not sufficient to give lip service. We must make an effort with all of our heart to do the will of His Father in Heaven. It’s not enough to claim to be Catholic or to be a discipline of Jesus Christ, if we do not strive to obey Him. Jesus asks the Pharisees: which of the two brothers does the will of his father? The one that says “I go,” but then does not go; or the one who says “I will not go” but later repents and goes to do the work? It’s important to DO the will of God. How then can I know the will of God? There are instances where it is not immediately apparent, and we are in a bind going between two things. It’s important to reflect here: what is the will of God? In general, the will of God for us is what St. Paul tells us: the will of God is your sanctification. God’s only purpose in creating a human soul, the only reason any of us exist at all, is to become...