“The fundamental duty of every Christian is to press
earnestly toward the goal of perfection, to become more perfect moment by
moment. Only in this way can he preserve his supernatural life and ensure its
unfolding.”[1]
This fundamental duty of every Christian is
intensified in the life of the cloistered religious that makes a lifelong
commitment of Solemn Vows. It is amplified in the secular world in the life the
Oblate that makes Solemn Promises. Not only are we avowed [or promised] to
Obedience and Stability. We are also avowed [or promised] to Conversatio Morum
[often referred to as Conversion of Life].
Abbot Baur, in the quote mentioned above, states that it is
only through earnestly pressing toward the goal of perfection that the
supernatural life is preserved and ensured of its unfolding. This statement
captures and distills into an essence what Benedict spells out in the 73 short
chapters of The Rule of Saint Benedict. Conversatio Morum, Conversion of Life,
is our commitment to and the process of consciously and actively moving toward
a more intimate realization of God in our lives in an environment enriched by
obedience and stability. Herein we are continually growing in grace and in our
knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.[2]
Placid Jordan, O.S.B., in his introduction to In Silence
with God , recounts an incident in the life of Saint Macarius [AD 300 – 391[3]
] where he found a skull in the desert sand.
He asked the skull, “Whose head have you been?”
“A pagan’s,” the voice came back from within the skull.
“And where is your soul?”
“In Hell.”
“How deep is Hell?”
“As deeply down as the earth is lower than Heaven.”
“Are there,” the Saint finally asked, “any souls thrust
down into Hell even more deeply than yours?”
“Yes,” the voice of the skull replied. “The souls of
those who were redeemed by Jesus Christ, but held their privilege cheaply.”
A lot of people, this side of the Reformation and its
various subsequent divisions, embrace and live under the influence of the
Eternal Security notion. Personally, I cannot accept the once saved always
saved notion. It was not taught by either Jacob Armenius or John Wesley
[two significant theological influences in the school of theology that prepared
me for pastoral ministry in the Protestant realm]. It has never been believed or
taught by the Catholic Church. The concept does not appear anywhere in the Old
Covenant as a prelude or aspect of the New Covenant.
The Catholic Church has always held that mortal sins committed
by those who have embraced Christ and his Church, result in the loss of charity
and the privation of sanctifying grace, that is, of the state of grace. If not
redeemed by repentance and God’s forgiveness, mortal sins cause exclusion from
Christ’s kingdom and the eternal death of hell, for our freedom has the power
to make choices for ever, with no turning back.[4]
It is only through the Sacrament of Penance [Reconciliation or Confession] and
contrition on the part of the individual that mortal sins can be absolved.[5]
The point here, though I personally consider the doctrine to
be a dangerous one, is not to argue about who is right/wrong regarding the
notion of once saved always saved. The point is more toward looking at what the
Magisterium has always held as part of the Deposit of Faith. The point is more
toward looking at what Benedict held to be truth … truth that motivated him to
leave the world and seek the face of God in a cave.
The simple truth of the matter is that I do not want to
arrive at that eventual Meeting just beyond the transparent veil only to find
myself consigned to the fate of those who, according to the story related by
Macarius, held their privilege cheaply. I say this as one who knows, all
to well, how easy it is to get caught up in life with all its selfish,
prideful, egotistical, derailing sidetracks that lead the soul away from a way
of life that is an honest reflection of the words it is no longer I who
live, but it is Christ who lives in me.[6]
“The Abbot ought always to remember what he is and what
he is called, and to know that to whom much hath been entrusted, from him much
will be required; and let him understand what a difficult and arduous task he
assumeth in governing souls and accommodating himself to a variety of
characters. Let him so adjust and adapt himself to everyone—to one gentleness
of speech, to another by reproofs, and to still another by entreaties, to each
one according to his bent and understanding—that he not only suffer no loss in
his flock, but may rejoice in the increase of a worthy fold. Above all things,
that the Abbot may not neglect or undervalue the welfare of the souls entrusted
to him, let him not have too great a concern about fleeting, earthly,
perishable things; but let him always consider that he hath undertaken the
government of souls, of which he must give an account. And that he may not
perhaps complain of the want of earthly means, let him remember what is
written: "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His justice, and all these
things shall be added unto you" (Mt 6:33). And again: "There is no
want to them that fear Him" (Ps 33[34]:10). And let him know that he who
undertaketh the government of souls must prepare himself to give an account for
them; and whatever the number of brethren he hath under his charge, let him be
sure that on judgment day he will, without doubt, have to give an account to
the Lord for all these souls, in addition to that of his own. And thus, whilst
he is in constant fear of the Shepherd's future examination about the sheep
entrusted to him, and is watchful of his account for others, he is made solicitous
also on his own account; and whilst by his admonitions he had administered
correction to others, he is freed from his own failings.”[7]
I remind myself that monasticism, especially monasticism that
is founded in the Catholic faith, will always stand in direct opposition to the
confusion generated by the world. I remind myself that the confusion generated
by the world has always affected the Church. I remind myself that none of us
should be surprised at the effects being experienced in our contemporary
setting.
I remind myself that it was this type of against the confusion of
the world at all cost radicalism that first attracted me to Saint Benedict.
[1]
Benedict Baur, Archabbot of Beuron, In Silence with God, p. 36
[2] 2
Peter 3:18
[3] Saint
Macarius is venerated in the Roman Catholic and Orthodox Churches. Macarius of
Egypt was a Coptic Christian monk and hermit. He is also known as Macarius the
Elder, Macarius the Great and The Lamp of the Desert.
[4]
Catechism of the Catholic Church #1861
[5] Catechism
#1440
[6]
Galatians 2:20
[7] Holy
Rule 2:30-40
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