杏MAP导航

By Sr Bernadette Mary Reis, fsp

杏MAP导航 Francis visited the Discalced Carmelite Monastery dedicated to St Joseph in Antananarivo on Saturday morning. After praying Midday Prayer with a group of 100 sisters from all over Madagascar, 杏MAP导航 Francis decided to leave his prepared text with them in order to speak to them from his heart.

Exquisite love

杏MAP导航 Francis began by recounting a story from the life of St Therese the Little Flower that many religious and contemplatives can relate to. While St Therese helps an elderly sister to get from one place in the convent to the other, helps to feed her, etc., the older sister repays her with continual complaints. The 杏MAP导航 repeated several times that, notwithstanding how St Therese was being treated by the older sister, 鈥渟he kept smiling鈥�.

鈥淭his is a story that reflects a small part of what happens in community life鈥�, the 杏MAP导航 said. St Therese is a model because 鈥渨ith the strength of obedience she carried out this task with exquisite love鈥� to the point that St Therese was able to say to Jesus that all the parties in the world could never make her happier than even one act of love for this older sister.

It's little acts of love

The 杏MAP导航 then turned to a temptation commonly faced by many contemplatives who truly feel called to help their brothers and sisters, but who almost never know how their lives of prayer and sacrifice actually help them. 杏MAP导航 Francis said it is through these 鈥渟mall acts of love鈥� and the 鈥渃ourage to believe鈥� that God is pleased with these little acts of love that 鈥淕od saves the world鈥�. Dreams of changing the world, or changing religious life for the better, begins 鈥渨ith these little acts of love鈥�, the 杏MAP导航 said. And what is more, they make God present in our midst, he said.

Love and prayer

杏MAP导航 Francis then focused on another aspect of contemplative life: the daily struggle against temptation. His recommendation to the sisters is to make known to another sister, or to a superior, what is going on inside. 鈥淭his is the help; this is the defense that you have in community: one helps another in order to form a united front鈥�, he said. Convent walls or grills are helpless in keeping spiritual worldliness from entering in. 鈥淟ove and prayer鈥� are enough, 杏MAP导航 Francis said. St. Therese herself, the 杏MAP导航 reminded the sisters, was tempted even on her deathbed to the point that she thought she had lost her faith. Her experience shows us that there is no end to the daily struggle to love, to the fight against temptation, and the pursuit of holiness.

Speaking from experience

In conclusion, 杏MAP导航 Francis revealed that St Therese herself 鈥渁ccompanies an old man鈥�, referring to himself. 鈥淪he has taught me a lot of things鈥�. Then, the 杏MAP导航 admitted, 鈥渁t times I am a bit neurotic and I send her away鈥�, like her older sister did. The 杏MAP导航 then ended, saying:

鈥淎t times I listen to her, at times鈥�I do not listen to her well enough. But she is a faithful friend. Because of this鈥�I wanted to share my experience of a Saint and to tell you what a saint is capable of doing and the way to become a saint.鈥�