Duc in Altum

Over the past nine months or so, most posting has been very occasional. I continue to believe that there might be a more full return to action. Or at least a more frequent schedule of posting. Perhaps it would be best if I consider an achievable goal such as once a week. That seems somewhat reasonable.

That being said, this is my first attempt at moving in that direction. However, the most important thing is that I place all of this in His hands. I have been reading and listening to the book, Abandonment to Divine Providence by Jean-Pierre de Caussade, S.J. I received the tip on this book from Fr. Groeschel who mentioned that he has been re-reading it ever since he first read it as a teenager.

Reading this book has solidified in many ways what I have thought and experienced in my life. Namely, that the path to following God is one in which one completely abandons oneself to following God's will in the present moment. Every item of one's life, no matter how mundane, is important to the life that God has planned. In each moment, He is calling to me to be obedient to His Will. Focusing on the past or the future will not help me as much as my concentrating on doing His will by fulfilling my duties in the present moment.

Although there is only Way for salvation, there are countless variations of the details of how to follow Christ that are made particular by God to suit the individual creatures He has created. In practical terms, I will not be called to live as you are called to live. You will not be called to live as I am called to live.

This seems so obvious, but in reality, many stumble in this area because they expect, conscioulsy or uncounscioulsy, everyone to follow the details which they follow. For example, I have found people who practically function as if one mass time on Sunday at a particular parish is the only mass to attend for "serious" Catholics. This is nonsense. What if God is calling them to attend that mass, but God is calling me to attend mass at a different time? Indeed He does this all of the time. The volumes of the lives of the saints are filled with men and women who did not necessarily follow the established path. The common bond for these saints was that they submitted to God's will, as best they could, in every moment of their lives. Perhaps today they are called to do one thing. The next day God might call them to do something else. Their trust in Him allowed them to not become attached to either things or creatures, but to remain attached to Jesus. This is my hope. That, I too, would strive to radically follow Jesus wherever He may lead me in the present moment He has given me. Much of this will be mundane fulfillment of the duties of my state in life. No matter, if it is what He wills, it is the best for me.

Labels: Books, General