BUILDING THE CHURCH

Outside the Church there is no salvation.
But who is inside the Church? Who is outside? Are all baptized Catholics inside the Church, the Mystical Body of Christ?

When the Saints, like Francis, Ignatius, Vincent de Paul established their orders they were aiming at holiness with their first few companions. Knowing that the Church was supposed to be holy --aside from being one, catholic, and apostolic, they knew the Catholic Church existed, but somehow, they could not pinpoint where she was. One thing they knew -- they could not find it in their surroundings. So they were moved by God to establish it where they were. They did not mean to establish orders or congregations within the Church. They were, in fact, building the Church in their locality.

Most founders did not know the exact theological description of their efforts. They were concerned with establishing a group whose members were of one heart and one mind in becoming holy....which is the description of the Church. They did not say: "There is no Catholic Church here; therefore we shall build the Church here," yet that was exactly what they were doing.

If we analyze the environs of Francis, Ignatius and Louis de Montfort, they were surrounded by "catholics" who were not part of the Mystical Body of Christ, dead branches attached to the Vine. The Church was hardly visible. And so they had to do something under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit to build the Church in Assisi, Manresa and France. This is also what St. Boniface did in Germany and Augustine in England. Their efforts can be described,using the text of "Lumen Gentium," or any treatise on Ecclesiology (like the one of Pope Benedict XVI.), as building up the Catholic Church in places where she does not exist. And they knew that the Church, existing somewhere would, with Her prayer, aid them.

If these founders of orders and congregations knew where the Church was by Her visible signs of being One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic, they would have simply entered the Church, finding no need to separate themselves from the rest of society in order to seek holiness on their own. And since they could not find those visible signs, so God taught them the dynamics on how Christ builds His Mystical Body on earth, thus building their respective congregations. Their Holy Rules would show how a soul can " connect" with the Mystical Body of Christ, the Catholic Church. St. Boniface built up the Church in Germany at that time. Germany was then pagan. But why did St. Francis and St. Ignatius do the same when Italy and Spain were already Catholic? Is it because the Catholic Church in their respective countries have ceased to show the signs of being Catholic? There seems to be no other reason.

To found a religious community is to found the Church. When God raises Saints to establish communities, it is His way of directly intervening in the ordinary way of the church (hierarchy) in order to add faithful members to His Mystical Body. The church hierarchy is empowered to do this, but their seeming failure to do so makes God intervene directly by raising up saints who would found communities after His heart, according to the one and the same spirituality -- the Evangelical Spirituality. (Isn't it quite strange when spiritual writers talk of Carmelite spirituality or Rosminian spirituality when they really have the same Evangelical spirituality?)

This is why promises made during religious professions are made to the Church, so that by profession, a person of any congregation is added to the Mystical Body of Christ, not so much to the Order that he or she has chosen to enter.

Today, there are many emerging communities. But many of them do not correspond to the dynamics on how the Church is built according to St. Augustine, Thomas of Aquinas, Bellarmine and "Lumen Gentium." But worthy of note is the community of Antonio Rosmini who was recently declared venerable by Pope Benedict XVI and scheduled for Beatification this year. His writings show the right way of building the Church. Buffeted by the period of "enlightenment" members of other congregations watered down the Holy Rules of their founders which is equivalent to watering down the teachings on the Catholic Church, thus preventing them from entering the Mystical Body of Christ through faith, hope and charity.

All Orders founded by their Holy Founders were built following the dynamics of building the Church. But somewhere along the way many of their followers fell short. They could have continued building the Church if they were faithful to their Holy Rules. But many were not, so they ceased becoming members of the Church or the Mystical Body of Christ.

It is indeed necessary to find out how God through Christ built the Church; how it was meant to function in the salvation of souls, and how we are moved to enter the Church.

The Mass at CARYANA

At the Caryana Lay Monastic Comunity, a community that follows the Rule of St. Benedict, the "Work of God," the Liturgy, is of the utmost importance. St. Benedict stressed, quoting St. Augustine, that in any spiritual renewal there must be order. And that order must begin with the Liturgy or with prayer in general. It is in this spirit that years before the Motu Proprio of Pope Benedict XVI, the Mass in this community has been celebrated in the manner which His Holiness desires the whole Catholic world to go back to observing.

The Mass Proper, i.e. the Introit, Gradual, Alleluia, Offertory and Post Communion are all sung in Gregorian chant; also the Common of the Mass, i.e. the Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus, and the Agnus Dei.

While the Proper of the Mass is sung by the monastic choir, the Common of the Mass is sung alternately with the congregation who by this time had already memorized the melodies.

While all the Gregorian Chant, versicles and responses by the congregation are in Latin, the Collect and the three readings are in English. The Gospel is followed by a homily based on the writings of the Fathers of the Church.

Whereas before, the Canon was recited in English, now with the Motu Proprio of Pope Benedict, the congregation participate in singing all those parts that His Holiness wants recited or sung, in Latin.

During the Communion of the faithful, the Sacred Host is received kneeling down on the Communion rail, and on the tongue, while the monastic choir sings sacred Renaissance songs of Palestrina, Vittoria, Gabrielli, DiLassus, Tallis, Dufay, etc.

The Post Communion prayer is in English, but the rest, up to the Dismissal, is sung in Latin with the congregation responding. After Mass, the prayer to St. Michael is recited, followed by a seasonal hymn to the Blessed Virgin sung by all as the exit hymn. Then the Thanksgiving Prayer after Mass is entoned and joined in by the congregation, followed by the Our Father, Hail Mary and Glory Be, all recited in Latin so to enable the congregation to memorize them as the Holy Father has encouraged the faithful to do so from the first year of His Pontificate.

Just as the congregation has been instructed to wear proper clothes during Mass, including the wearing of veils, at the end of the Mass the congregation is encouraged to proceed home quietly avoiding all forms of socializing.

With the Motu Propio, the entire Canon of the 1962 Mass shall be recited and sung in Latin starting Sept 14. (Photo is a bishop celebrating Mass on the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe.)

GREED

There are several degrees of greed, from the harmless to the most serious. The first degree is when we want to be united with God, but find the need to seek food, shelter and clothing in order to pursue our quest. The desire for food, shelter and clothing may be described as a harmless form of greed, and may be no greed at all.

The second degree, however, may then be aptly called the beginning of greed : this is when we remove our focus from God and turn our gaze down towards food, shelter and clothing. This can go on to the next (third) degree of greed which is now becoming more grievous because we begin to desire nice food, nice shelter and nice clothings; in which case the desire for more money is cultivated. From here it can go to the desire for even nicer food, nicer shelter and nicer clothing; in which case a greater fortune is needed. Such was the vice of the man who tore down his barn to build a bigger one; and that of the young rich man who rejected Christ's invitation to follow Him. The former wanted more, the latter wanted to keep what he already had.

At first sight it is difficult to see what is wrong with these two men. But the root of their problem is pride, and its fruit? Apostasy.

The beginning of greed , or avarice, as we mentioned above, is when a soul forgets his supernatural goal and focuses his faculties on food, shelter and clothing. And since avarice is the root of all evil (which is the more accurate translation according to St. Jerome), then we have the root of the dictatorship of relativism, of liberalism and all other modern evils.

When a person wants more food, more shelter and more clothing, and he is incapable of raising the money for them, he is open to all forms of graft and corruption (all evil) which essentially are acts of stealing; thus the saying, avarice is the root of all evil.

Why are the greedy insatiable? Because they cannot see what they already have, both from God and from those around them, in their greed to acquire what they still do not have. So, naturally, they are ungrateful, the sign of pride.

Our civilization is one that enthrones Avarice; s0 that like original sin, the vice is interred into the bones of every child. Greed is the immoderate desire for temporal things. It is the handmaid of apostasy. Is it any wonder, then, that we are experiencing a great apostasy in the Church today, of which St. Paul warns us is a prelude to the end times? ("The Return of the Prodigal Son" by Murillo, 1670.)

The CONVERSION and PEACE promised at Fatima.

In the Old Testament, the Jewish people were waiting for an earthly kingdom. They were wrong. The kingdom Christ promised was a spiritual kingdom. The same at Fatima. Our Lady promised the conversion of Russia and peace in the world if the necessary consecration of Russia was made to her Immaculate Heart. These conversion and peace are both spiritual. Conversion is an act of grace which God alone can accomplish; and the peace which Christ mentioned was one which the world cannot give but He alone. Both conversion and peace are spiritual realities humanly unattainable.

The Benedictines made "Peace" their motto. It is written all over their monasteries. And I believe this peace, promised at Fatima, has been given to many faithful who have obtained it through a long process as described below. But many are waiting for a political, worldly peace as propagated by the United Nations. That is not the peace Mary promised.

Of the promise of the conversion of Russia, we should not expect to see a grand ceremony of mass baptism into the Catholic Faith. It is a conversion of the heart which is not visible, not even to the persons who will attain it.

Conversion is a long process. When Mary called the Church to repentance at Fatima, most Catholics could not do it. So the threatened chastisement befell men. If Catholics find it difficult to repent, the step prior to conversion, how can we expect Russia to be converted without passing through the long and difficult process of repentance?

Peace, according to St. Augustine, is the fifth stage through which the soul normally passes as it advances to the perfection of Charity. To reach that stage the soul must have virtues, the fourth stage. 'Avoid evil, do good and pursue peace' ... is an evangelical axiom that shows peace is practically the last step in the development of the spiritual life, the peace that "surpasses all understanding."

Perhaps the promise of Mary at Fatima is that when Russia is consecrated, she will help her to go through the slow process of repentance that will lead her to what spiritual writers call "the first conversion" and consequently peace. Then perhaps Russia will suddenly realize the beauty of its Christian roots and return to her communion with Rome. Thus the process towards repentance leading to conversion would then begin. A slow process that could take years, and we cannot rush it because of man's free will, but Mary will help.

As for peace, it is also a long process to attain. Peace is a gift of the Holy Spirit that is given in aid of the Theological virtues for the perfection of Charity. With Repentance too difficult for most Catholics, thus preventing them from entering into the Theological virtue of Faith that leads to the "peace that no one can give but God alone," how can the world expect to easily attain the gift of peace?

If Rome seems not to have acted upon the wishes of the Virgin at Fatima, it is probably because many would expect a worldly peace to ensue wherein wars and crimes will stop, thus making Rome liable of giving a wrong notion of the peace of Christ which really is the exact opposite of worldly peace, as He has said, " I came not to bring peace . . ."

Our hope is that mankind obeys Mary's plea to Repent. If we do this, we will all be well on the way to Conversion and Peace.

THAT Small COMMUNITY

Pope Pius XII was once upon a time overwhelmed by the problems besetting the Church that he became withdrawn, which led him to live an heremitical life. He then promulgated "Provida Mater Ecclesia," encouraging lay secular institutes or third orders. This was how the Catholic Church begun: small groups, living the fulness of the Gospel in their homes, and eventually in the desert. They were all laymen. His enthusiasm blazed a trail that carried up to the time of the late Pope John Paul II and the present Pope Benedict.

Pope Benedict showed special interest in these small communities in his "Ratzinger Report," and even in his earliest writing "The Theology of History according to St. Bonaventure," his thesis when he was just a young priest. As newly-elected Pope, he mentioned about "a small Church" and after doing so, caricatures portraying him carrying a small "St. Peter"s Basilica, stressed his point. He expects a very small Catholic Church! How did he get that notion when news abound that the Church, especially in Africa, is growing?

Why should a Pope be interested in these small, new communities when Rome has already discouraged the establishing of new orders, presuming that the present, existing, approved Religious Orders were doing their jobs of fulfilling the needs of the Church? Perhaps because of one special characteristic common to them: these small lay communities usually acquire a deep and complete knowledge of the teachings of Christ through infused knowledge, without books or teachers, but simply by their way of life.

In the apocalypse, it is implied that the Church was once in the world and then, personified by the Woman, was transferred to the desert. Suddenly the Church had a new ambience: the members of the Church would learn the totality of the teachings of Christ in all its depths without human teachers. They would see the face of God without the need for books, lecturers, theological and catechetical centers. They would attain knowledge of God comparable to St. Thomas of Aquinas or St. Therese of Lisieux ...simply by their way of life.

St. Therese, in fact, is a typical example. Considering the few books she has read, she could not have described Charity as well as Pope Benedict did in "Deus Caritas Est" unless her knowledge was infused, attained through her way of life at home and perfected at Carmel. In her younger years, in a Benedictine school, she amazed the Abbe who called her "my little doctor of the Church." The recent publication of the writings of St. Bernadette Soubirous shows the same infused knowledge. So did Alphonse Ratisbonne, a Jewish convert, and Claude Newman, an illiterate Black slave who was converted and executed in prison. This is exactly like what happened at Pentecost, with the small community of apostles and disciples with Mary; and like the Apocalyptic woman with her children in the desert. Mary and the apostles were imbued with infused knowledge.

The first Christians knew this secret, and this is what drove them to the desert, like St. Antony the Hermit: to learn and worship God with full knowledge and love, foreshadowed by Israel's sojourn in the desert. It seems that Monasticism was that "small community."

Today, true monasticism, as envisioned by the Theology of Grace according to St. Paul, seem to have disappeared from the face of the earth, and attempts to renew it have been frustrating, just as De Rance's recent efforts to renew the Benedictines.

The first Christians knew this image from the Apocalypse. They lived according to that image of the Catholic Church in the desert. But through the centuries, the Christian world has forgotten how to live that life, and left the "Desert" for the busy cities -- the world, just as the Israelites desired to return to Egypt.

Today, a big portion of the Church have returned to Egypt. But Pope Benedict is looking for those still left in the Desert, aware perhaps that the invitation of the Woman of the Apocalypse for her children to join her there, has not ceased since Pentecost. And if this is so, then seminaries, theological and Catholic schools would be irrelevant. Only Scriptures and the writings of the Fathers of the Church would be needed for the members of that community to confirm what they already know. Because their knowledge would be infused, and there would be no danger of heresy, schism or apostasy. This would solve the present problem of learning our religion as if it were just another subject like Science.

Pope Benedict, because of his research on St. Bonaventure, knows that this "small community" is made up of unschooled children (to emphasize the supernaturalness of their infused knowledge and wisdom) who are imbued with profound knowledge of God and exceptional holiness. The existence of such communities is a thin golden chain in the history of the Church. They have always existed; and especially today, to prepare the world for the Parousia, according to the Benedictine Tradition, as noted by St. Louis de Montfort. They bear the stamp of the true Church: they are One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic; and beside this, they are Contemplative and Mystical. The Apocalypse mentions that there will be members of the Church out in the world, children of the Woman, especially chosen by God to stay on and work there in order to point to all where the Church is, in the Desert.

Perhaps aware that St. Benedict had succeeded in establishing such a community, (which explains our present Holy Father's predilection for the Benedictines), could it be that Pope Benedict has an inkling where to find that small community? There, wherein is found the fullness of Benedictine Life. This should narrow down his search. ("Pentecost" by Henri and Antoine Cibille, XVII centuy.)

LIMBO - Pope Benedict's INSIGHT

1. We can never fully understand the teachings of Christ. We understand them gradually, thus the concept of the "Development of Doctrines." Our understanding depends on our Faith, Hope and Charity, but ultimately on the will of God who reveals or withholds truths from us. Many doctrines are implicit in Scriptures. But they are there.

2. Limbo is one concept God withheld for a while, since Repentance, Faith, Hope and Charity were more important. It does not matter how Heaven, Hell, and Purgatory look like. Christians are exhorted to focus and aim for heaven.

3. As with Heaven and Hell, we need Faith to believe in what we cannot see. Attempts to explain matters of Faith are fruitless. But we can only show their reasonableness when based on known truths.

4. The Fathers of the Church did not attempt to explain the mystery of the Blessed Trinity, but they wrote showing its reasonableness. And where ever the Fathers could not fully explain matters of Faith they depended on theological constructs, that is, attempts to make concepts rational.

5. But sometimes constructs can be unclear, and so sometimes seem unreasonable, as what happened with the construct on Limbo. But there is a way of clarifying unclear Evangelical concepts: consult directly the Author, God. We have heard of Saints, like St. Thomas of Aquinas, whose queries were answered by St. John the Evangelist and the Blessed Virgin.

6. Pope Benedict XVI must have 'consulted' St. Augustine who, now in Heaven, would know the truth about Limbo. Can you imagine a simpler way? Could this be what the Holy Father did in Pavia when he visited St. Augustine's tomb?

7.From the time of the early Church, Limbo has been described as a place where the Patriarchs, martyrs, heroes and saints of the Old Testament had to wait, before they could finally enter Heaven and receive their reward, till Christ has fulfilled the Father's Will to redeem man through His suffering and death. It wasn't Heaven. But considering that Christ "descended to the dead" before He resurrected, in order to open the gates and free those who were waiting for Him to accomplish His mission, it is welcome news that Pope Benedict has finally cleared up the matter which has been long overdue : Limbo no longer exists.

8.Why should it still exist? To continue believing that it still does would nullify the effect of Christ's death, which was to open to us the gates of Heaven. This is the reason also why Limbo had also been called the netherworld, for the righteous men of the Old Testament were kept apart from, and could not enter, Heaven till Christ has suffered and died. If the O.T. Fathers who had original sin and committed actual sins, venial or mortal sin, and repented of them, could go to Heaven, why could not unbaptized babies who had no actual sin? Among those whom Christ freed from Limbo when He "descended to the dead" was King David who committed adultery and repented of it. There is Mary Magdalene, also Demas the Good Thief. Would Christ have freed those Old Testament repentant grown- ups and bring them to Heaven and left behind innocent babies?

9.The Holy Innocents were so-called (Holy) because they were martyred for Christ. But they were naturally innocent before this, bearing the image and likeness of God, though tarnished by original sin, before they were slaughtered. If sinners could atone for so many sins and attain an immediate crown of glory with one blow for the sake of Christ, why should innocent babies, still in their pristine innocence, who had no chance to be baptized when they were slaughtered by their own parents who refuse to obey God rather than accept His Will, why should they be forever separated from the lot of repentant sinners who enjoy the beatific vision despite the sins they have committed, if indeed Limbo still exists?

10.When Christ said : "unless you become like children ..." "whatever you do to these little ones..." "he who welcomes them welcomes me ..." He was pointing at unbaptized children, setting them up as models for those who want to be His disciples. Did He say these to us only to encourage us go to Limbo? He would not have set them up as models for discipleship unless they were meant for Heaven. He also said "Do not prevent them from coming to Me ..." If God still holds Limbo in existence, where then is the truth about Him" .... Quae nec fallere, nec falli potest...?"

11.There is a purgatory wherein the "sins of the just" may be expiated before they eventually go to Heaven. If Limbo still exists, children who have never committed any sin will forever be denied Heaven. Such thought militates against both the mercy and justice of God. Would it not be more according to God's love if He were to rather send unbaptized innocents to purgatory and purge them of their original sin rather than forever cut them off from the vision of God by languishing in Limbo?

12.Come Judgment Day, there will only be Heaven and Hell as final rewards; even purgatory will be obsolete and would no longer exist. But think about those poor, unbaptized babies in Limbo, if God has not forever closed it!

13. The Beatific Vision is a gift of God. If He could freely give this to the patriarchs who have sinned, wouldn't he to unbaptized, innocent children, for whom He had always shown special tenderness?

14. All Christian doctrines must support each other like a jigsaw puzzle. Maintaining the present existence of Limbo does not fit into the doctrine of Divine Providence which states that God has made provisions to give all a chance to be saved. From this doctrine it is certain He made provisions for unbaptized children. His eternal imaginativeness will certainly find means to save them. ("Origin of the World," by Wiliam Blake, 1824.)

REPENTANCE: IS IT DIFFICULT ?

The teachings of the Catholic Church may be summarized into four general headings: Repentance, Faith, Hope and Charity. The last three are infused theological virtues, gifts from God and humanly unattainable. In effect, Repentance is man's only human effort in the work of salvation, though still with the help of grace.

The Old Testament taught Repentance, John the Baptist being its last preacher. In the New Testament, Christ perfected the doctrine; and the Apostles preached this perfected version of Repentance. So did the Fathers of the Church, those who followed the Apostles. Later on the other great preachers also preached repentance. Among them were St. Wilfrid, Savonarola, and St. Louis de Montfort. The Popes, in different ways, reminded us of the need to repent. In these last days Mary herself has urged us to repent, from La Sallete to Fatima.

Christ emphasized the importance of repentance by living his 30 years of hidden life "repenting" but for our instruction. This hidden life was picked up by the early Christians in the form of the monastic life. Thus St. Benedict wrote in his Holy Rule that the life of a monk is a life-long Lenten observance of repentance. In fact, St. John Climacus divided his work "The Ladder" into 30 chapters, representing the 30 years of hidden life of Christ and the spiritual activities that make up the life of Repentance.

Is repentance truly so difficult as to give the prophets a difficult time preaching it in the Old Testament? Neither did Christ have an easy time teaching it in the New Testament. Neither did the Fathers of the Church and the Saints find it easy. The Blessed Virgin at Fatima included a threat to her invitation to repent. But the fulfilment of the threats made at Fatima showed that mankind failed to repent. Perhaps some did but, like in Sodom and Gomorrah, the number was not good enough for God to hold back His threat.

God wills to give us the three theological, infused virtues of Faith, Hope and Charity if we have the proper disposition. Repentance disposes us to be worthy. The way towards these three virtues are easy, especially if we are like children. But when we become adults we pile up obstacles to these virtues. Repentance removes the obstacles, aside from preserving the initial innocence of childhood.

But then again, why does repentance seem so difficult? Well, it really isn't, because it is an act of grace, and therefore, easy. First, we must remove the wrong concept from our minds that repentance is merely that brief moment we spend examining our conscience, then confessing our sins to the priest, then receiving absolution, and finally saying a number of Hail Marys given us as penance, and then . . . that's it! No, that is merely external repentance. But internal repentance, as Sts. Benedict, Ambrose and Augustine described it, is a way of life that lasts for life. The first monasteries and convents were for life-time internal repentance. A sin is an offence against an infinite God and restitution has to be made for a lifetime.

The beginnings of the life of repentance must include an act of supernatural Faith, motivated by Hope of receiving forgiveness, and the fear of God which is enlivened by Charity and aided by the gift of the Holy Spirit. Note that the junction where Repentance, Faith, Hope, Charity and the Fear of the God meet are all works of God. What takes effort and time is approaching the junction to dispose ourselves to receive those graces.

True repentance can only be had by living a monastic life, as St. Benedict mentions in his Rule.

And the steps for repentance are clearly and specifically enumerated in the Parable of the Prodigal Son. The 30 chapters of "The Ladder" of St. John Climacus can be summarized into the 5 steps of the same Parable.

The parable has splendidly enumerated the 5 steps of repentance that can lead us back to God. If we do the first step well, the next steps would follow easily. (The parable also enumerates the 5 steps we take to depart from God.)

The first step towards repentance is coming to oneself: "he (the Prodigal Son) came into himself." This is similar to the exhortation to "take heed," which St. John Chrysostom commented on. Everything in the world today prevents us from going into oneself. Everything is luring our intellect and free will to focus on things outside ourselves. The external stimuli is so overwhelming we almost have no choice but to be lured to them. The lusts of the flesh and of the eyes make us commit sin and keep us in our sins. And the devil sees to it that new inventions, new foods, new tourist spots fill the earth that will attract our attention. And our priests are not spared by this siren call.

Thus the first rule of Christ's hidden life and adopted by the monastic movement is "fuga mundo." It is easier to flee the world now than undergo the misfortunes of the Prodigal Son to learn our lesson. And both St. Augustine and St. Benedict emphasized the importance of being free from this overwhelming stimuli that prevent us from beginning our repentance by coming into ourselves. We must come into ourselves so that we may see the 5 (opposite) steps that brought us away from God. Only then can we say like the prodigal son "I will arise."

Since there are very few who are preaching true repentance nowadays, an option would be to take recourse from Scriptures, the Fathers, and the writings of the saints and Papal documents. But we can also pray that the Lord send labourers to His field in order to sow seeds of repentance.

(Painting is "Mary Magdalene" by Simon Vouet, 1700.)