Union and Communion, PT I

This is another four part posting from St. Catherine of Siena's Dialogue (also from, A Treatise of Discretion). This has the same format as the last set of posts:

"And they have a special participation with those whom they closey loved with particular affection in the world, with which affection they grew in grace, increasing virtue, and the one was the occasion to the other of manifesting the glory and praise of My name, in themselves and in their neighbor; and, in the life everlasting, they have not lost their love, but have it still, participating closely, with more abundance, the one with the other, their love being added to the universal good, and I would not that thou shouldest think that they have this particular good, of which I have told thee, for themselves alone, for it is not so, but it is shared by all proved citizens, My beloved sons."

St. Catherine's Vision of the Eschaton, PT IV

The second half of the quote ties very nicely in with the first half.

St. Catherine goes from talking about the soul bringing joy to the body, but here she mentions what will happen. The body will pass through walls? Is that part of the glorified body? While it's really cool, and while it'll be great to be neither injured by fire or water, we must look at something else here.

In this passage St. Catherine mentions that these graces come from Grace Incarnate. It is through Christ that the body can be glorified. There is nothing that we can do on earth, apart from Christ, that will aid us in walking through walls. It is a mystery, although a very cool one, to think that one day we could be able to do that. But, it is even more interesting to think about how grace could make this happen.

When we think of the Transfiguration, we must wonder what the amazing reality of grace occurred that Sts. Peter, James, and John were able to behold the glorified Christ. It is simply amazing. They were able to see firsthand what the Final Resurrection would bring. And even more amazing, they probably remembered that event at their deaths, holding great joy in what was to come.

This grace so affected the soul, that it led St. Peter to be crucified upside down. It led him to his Calvary to "share in the sufferings of Christ." Grace affects the lives of saints and helps bring about amazing miracles: St. Joseph Cupertino's elevation at the consecration, St. Gerard's instant conflagration, St. Teresa of Avila's ecstasy, St. Catherine of Siena's wedding ring from Christ, St. Pio's bilocation to save an Italian city, St. Paul's conversion, St. Therese's purity, and the Blessed Mother's life in and of itself. All of these, whether showy miracles or not are examples of grace affecting the body of a person, whether it is through miraculous external or internal instances.

Grace has the power to convert the greatest sinner. Grace has the power to actuate the glorification of the body. We must contemplate this great thought. Grace can actually alter the physical nature of things. That is amazing. Christ is Grace Incarnate. We can see that through the Transfiguration, where Grace was shown Incarnate. We will hopefully all experience this too in the Eschaton.

What an amazing thing to be Catholic.

Finally, if you noticed that there was a section missing from the second half, I took it out because it is a great prayer. This is what St. Catherine says:

"The eye of the intellect is not sufficient to see, nor the ear to hear, nor thy tongue to tell of the good of the Blessed. Oh, how much delight they have in seeing [God], who is every good!"

St. Catherine's Vision of the Eschaton, PT III

Here is the second half of the quote:

"For, as the soul is made immortal, stayed and established in Me, so the body in that union becomes immortal, and, having lost heaviness, is made fine and light. Wherefore, know that the glorified body can pass through a wall, and that neither water nor fire can injure it, not by virtue of itself, but by virtue of the soul, which virtue is of Me, given to her by grace, and by the ineffable love with which I created her in My image and likeness...Oh, how much delight they will have in being with the glorified body, though, not having that delight from now to the general Judgment, they have not, on that account, pain, because no bliss is lacking to them, the soul being satisfied in herself, and, as I have told thee, the body will participate in this bliss."

St. Catherine's Vision of the Eschaton, PT II

We can find great wisdom in this amazing quote. Now, at the same time, we must not think that St. Catherine is in any way saying the body isn't good. Rather, she's arguing that beacuse of the soul, the body has meaning.

At first glimpse, this might seem to contradict JPII's assesment, that the body creates a theology of its own. Afterall, he does say, "At the Incarnation, the body entered theology through the main door." Over and over again, he mentions that the body creates and reveals a theology. "The body, and only the body, can make visible the invisible, the spiritual and the divine" (new translation). This might make one person think that it might be the other way around: the body gives reason for the soul to exist.

That would be wrong. We can look to death to find the reason why. At death, the body and soul are separated. The soul leaves the body, and longs for the return of the body at the Final Resurrection, as St. Catherine states. Yet, the body does present a theology, nonetheless. What we must understand though, is that while the body presents a theology and makes visible the invisible, it only does so because of the presence of the soul.

Angels are spiritual beings with no bodies. They are beautiful in the eyes of God. Up until the Resurrection, they were held higher than sinful man. Yet, thanks to the Word made flesh, the body is given a new dignity, and glorified man is held higher than the angels. If it isn't so, then Christ must've been confused since he came as a man. The Incarnation alters all of history. It affects all of creation, especially the crowning joy - man. Thanks to the Incarnation, "the body enters theology through the main door." It is the Word being made into flesh that does this. It is the soul that gives joy to the body. Not the other way around. While our bodily actions do affect the state of our souls, i.e. virtuous acts or sinful ones, it is the state of the soul that directly affects the state of our body. If our soul leaves our bodies, we die. That's what happens at death (I guess that "Death and the Theology of the Body" could be a post in and of itself). Yet, we must remember that the body and soul are so intricately intertwined that as St. Catherine says, "The soul will give of her abundance, and will re-clothe herself on the Last Day of Judgment, in the garments of her own flesh."

This will bring great joy to heaven.

St. Catherine's Vision of the Eschaton, PT I

This is the first of a four part posting on St. Catherine of Siena's Description of the Eschaton from The Dialogue of St. Catherine of Siena (A Treatise of Discertion). The first part is a quote, the second is the explanation of that quote, the third is the second half of the quote, and the fourth is the explanation of that half. Enjoy part i :

"They [the just] have a desire too, to regain the gifts of their body, but this desire does not afflict them, as they do not actually feel it, but they rejoice in tasting the desire, from the certainty they feel of having it fulfilled. Their desire does not afflict them, because, though they have it not yet fulfilled, no bliss is therby lacking in them. Wherefore they feel not the pain of desire. And think not, that the bliss of the body after the resurrection gives more bliss to the soul, for, if this were so, it would follow that, until they had the body, they had imperfect bliss, which cannot be, because no perfection is lacking to them. So it is not the body that gives bliss to the soul, but the soul will give bliss to the body, because the soul will give of her abundance, and will re-clothe herself on the Last Day of Judgment, in the garments of her own flesh which she had quitted."

Feast of St. Stephen, Protomartyr

This is from the Office of Readings from the Liturgy of the Hours for today:

From a sermon of St. Fulgentius of Ruspe:

"Yesterday our king, clothed in his robe of flesh, left his place in the virgin’s womb and graciously visited the world. Today his soldier leaves the tabernacle of his body and goes triumphantly to heaven."

When we think of just what happened yesterday, the virgin birth of the Savior, it almost seems odd to celebrate the feast of anyone during the Octave of Christmas. Yet, the Church proudly celebrates the feast of the Protomartry (first martyr), St. Stephen.

Moreso, when we look at St. Fulgentius's words, we can look at just how important the body really is.

Christ didn't spurn the Blessed Mother's virginity when He was born. In the sense of the physical virginity, this is amazing. When birth occurs, the actual physical characteristics of a woman can prove that this birth really did occur. However, when Christ was born, the Blessed Mother maintained ver virginity. She didn't have to suffer the pangs of childbirth, being that they were a result of original sin. Neither did her buffer alter do the birth of Christ. This is simply amazing. Unfathomable, but still real.

Similarly, we can see in the Protomartyrs birth into heaven, the virginal sense of his union with the Divine. His assent to heaven at his death, shows that his body, like the Blessed Mother's was a tabernacle. Similarly, when he was born into the Divine, he did not suffer, even though, martyrdom should bring about physical pain. We can see the joy in his face above, and there is no doubt that even if he felt pain, it was a completely sweet sensation (just like St. Catherine of Siena drinking puss).

So when we think of our own lives, let us not forget that our bodies are tabernacles, and that one day they will be reunited with our souls, and we shall have our glorified bodies in union with the Divine.

"Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God? You are not your own; you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body." - 1 Cor. 6:19-20

Bl. Marmion on the Eucharist

In continuing to read Bl. Columba Marmion for an Advent devotional, I came across these passages:

"If ordinary bread, which is without life, preserves the life of our bodies, with what a wonderful life shall we not live who eat a Living Bread, Life itself, at the table of the Living God?" (Christ, the Life of the Soul, conference viii, ch. i)

Furthermore, he explained this:

"This prayer of the Church leads us to understand that the Eucharistic action overflows from the soul upon the body itself. It is true that it is to the soul Christ immediately unites Himself; it is to the soul that He comes first of all, to assure and confirm its deification: Ut inter ejus membra numeremur cujus Corpori communicavimus et Sanguini. But the union of body and soul is so close that in increasing the life of the soul, in powerfully drawing it towards heavenly delights, the Eucharist tempers the heat of the passions, and brings peace to all our being." (Christ, the Life of the Soul, Conference viii, ch. iii)

This confirms what St. Teresa of Avila wrote: "Do you think, my daughters that this most holy nourishment does not also sustain the body, and is not a remedy for its ills. As for myself, I know it has this virtue." (The Way of Perfection, ch. xxxv)

More commentary on this will come soon.

St. Jane de Chantal on the Martyrdom of Love

This is a great TOB insight that I make sure to expound upon later, but for right now, here's the thought (a little late since her feast was two days ago).

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From The Memoirs by the secretary of Saint Jane Frances de Chantal:

"'My dear daughters, many of our holy fathers in the faith, men who were pillars of the Church, did not die martrys. Why do you think that was?' Each one present offered an answer; then their mother continued. 'Well, I myself think it was because their is another martyrdom: the martyrdom of love. Here God keeps his servants and handmaids in this present life so that they may labor for him, and he makes of them both martyrs and confessors.'...

One sister asked what form this martyrdom took. The saint answered: 'Yield yourself fully to God, and you will find out! Divine love takes its sword to the hidden recesses of our inmost soul and divides us from ourselves.'...

Finally ,the saint was asked whether this martyrdom of love could be put on the same level as martyrdom of the body. She answered: 'We should not worry about equality. I do think, however, that the martyrdom of love cannot be relegated to a second place, for love is as strong as death. For the martyrs of love suffer infinitely more in remaining in this life so as to serve God, than if they died a thousand times over in testimony to their faith and love and fidelity.'"

In Light of the Incarnation

Bl. Columba Marmion once wrote:

"It is as if he [Christ] said: 'You will never attain to the Divinity save in passing through my humanity.'" (Christ the Life of the Soul, Conference on Prayer, ch. 7)

In this, Bl. Marmion is going to show what the Body of Christ really means. To be one with Christ as a piece of His body is to gain eternal life. That is the path. That is what is meant by the idea, so often wrongly interpretted, that there is no salvation outside the Church. The Church is the Body of Christ after all. So through it, salvation comes because salvation was given as a gift by Christ Himself.

But, for the main thought here, we can look at the words "passing through my humanity." St. Ambrose made this comment in light of Christ saying, "No man cometh to the Father, but by me" (John 14:6). This is remarkable when we think about the body. Christ took on a body through His humanity. It is by passing through that humanity that we are brought to the Divinity.

In other words, by living as Christ lived, not just in a spiritual sense as is so often thought, but rather through a personal sense (personal meaning the whole person, body and soul), we can truly live our calling in life. It is by living as Christ lived, by passing through His humanity that we can be brought before the Beatific Vision.

This is extremely important for us all in our growth in holiness. The call to holiness extends to all facets of our life. It incorporates all that we do. It is who we should be. We should all be holy, and to achieve that, we need to look to what holiness is.

We can see that in Christ and His Blessed Mother, who was immaculately conceived. She was born free from original sin and suffered none of its effects. This was Christ's greatest sign of salvation. He chose His mother who participated in giving Him His humanity. For her, she was on the other end. Part of her DNA was inscribed in His. She passed on genes to Him. He fed off her milk and nourishment. She participated in giving Him His humanity so that we could likewise live our humanity to the fullest.

On this Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, we should look to the Immaculate Conception and seek her assistance to become more like her Son in all things, especially His humanity.

Our Lady Full of Grace

Our Lady, Full of Grace...pray for us

In light of Blessed Fra Angelico's Annunciation above, think about the difference between the moments of the Annunciation and that of the Incarnation. Then look back at the image in light of the Incarnation.

If you look at the expression on Blessed Mary's face to the right, you will notice that she's not actually looking at St. Gabriel, she is staring off into space. At the same time she is holding her chest, indicating that she has already conceived Christ in her heart. Furthermore, in light of the more artistic points, there is no gate present (gates are often present in the Annunciation being that Mary is the Gate for Christ to come into the world, and He's already entered the gate at this point), and there is no Holy Spirit descending upon our Blessed Mother either.

On a note that rings more of the TOB, the expression on her face is similar to Batoni's The Ecstasy of Catherine of Siena:


When we think about ecstasy in the saints, we must not separate the bodies from the souls. In images of St. Catherine of Siena or St. Teresa of Avila in ecstasy, we can clearly see that their bodies are feeling the effects of the ecstasy as well. Other saints have levitated in ecstasy or even caught on fire with the fire of Divine Love. Just imagine how much union must exist between body and soul for if the soul is in bliss, then the body should be in bliss too.

St. Thomas Aquinas talks about Christ exuding grace from His Body, especially at the Transfiguration. Thus, grace must've become tangible in some sense at the Transfiguration. After all, the rock, which can still be found at the spot, changed to a marvellous white color that still cannot be replicated by modern science.

Thus, when we think of the Blessed Virgin, and how she is called "Full of Grace" by the angel Gabriel, we have to wonder what that really means.

Our Lady, Full of Grace...pray for us

(Happy feast of the Presentation of the BVM)

St. Bernard on the "Canticle of Canticles", PT I

"It [the bride] does not ask for liberty, nor reward, nor nor heritage nor even knowledge, but a kiss - clearly after the manner of the chaste spouse burning with a holy love and altogether powerless to conceal the flame that consumes her." (St. Bernard, On the Canticle of Canticles, Chapter 4)

Chaste love. What a beauty! The love that the bride shares for the Bridegroom in the Canticle of Canticles is simply amazing. It is nothing less than the epitome of love. This love comes from a desire for union with the beloved rather than from the selfish desire to be pleased herself.

St. Bernard further comments how the love between the bride and bridegroom is pure when it mirrors the love of the Trinity. This he explains:
"Certainly if the Father is rightly interpreted as giving the kiss and the Son as receiving it, it will not be very far from the fact to understand the kiss itself as the Holy Spirit who is the unalterable peace, the indissoluble bond, the indivisible love, the inviolable unity between the Father and the Son" (Chapter 5).

This love of the Trinity, the exchange of the kiss (which comes from Canticle of Canticles 1:1), is the summation of the eternal exchange of love that is the goal of the bride and the bridegroom. This peace, bond, love, and unity all wrapped up into one is what love is about. Far from the selfish desires that society tells us make up love, St. Bernard seems to hit love right on the head. Maybe that's why he's the Mellifluus Doctor, to which Pope Pius XII quotes him saying,
"O holy and chaste love! O sweet and soothing affection! . . . It is the more soothing and more sweet, the more the whole of that which is experienced is divine. To have such love, means being made like God." (Encyclical Letter, Mellifluus Doctor, 17)