Steps to Discipleship

  It’s not easy to discuss prayer: exposing our hearts is not necessarily appreciated or understood. Regrettably, many perceive prayer as mere articulation, liturgical celebrations, or emotionally focused gatherings; few pierce the ramparts to discover its heart. Virgil’s ‘ Amor gignit amorem ’ (Love begets love), guides my steps; like an Oriental garden, stepping stones expressive of envisaged choices form a path fusing the past to the future in the present.  Augustine’s affirmation that prayer is the articulation of love offers a fundamental insight. Saint John Damascene strengthens this discernment by observing that prayer is the raising of one’s mind and heart to God because only our longing of mind and heart makes prayer genuine. Saint Bonaventure’s I tinerarium in Mentis elucidates this comprehension. Saint Teresa’s affirmation also demands attention: prayer is an act of love; words are superfluous (Interior Castle), verified by Bernini’s portrayal of her in Santa Maria...

What is written often has a long-lasting impact, maturing with time: what begins as a silent sound roaming in the unconscious ends up engraved in ink.  Not all that is expressed is welcomed nor desired, but, as pointed out by Bonhoeffer, “ God does not fulfil all our desires, but all His promises .”  Integrating this insight, it is difficult to speak of discipleship, ignoring Dietrich Bonhoeffer: his ‘ Nachfolge ’ (first published in 1937, translated as ‘ The Cost of Discipleship ’) sets the mode of this reflection.  While questioning some of Bonhoeffer's biblical and theological notions, his witnessing the Magister and contributions to modern theological thought within a short time – he was hanged at the age of thirty-nine – remains much treasured. Hence, exploring Bonhoeffer’s insight concerning discipleship, we need to define it. Bonhoeffer provides us with an insight by equating discipleship with ‘ Following in the sense of coming consciously after the Magister ’, whi...

As Joyce points out in his daring Finnegans Wake , “ They lived and laughed and loved and left .” Many prefer to be amiable without actually embellishing their cordiality with commitment: they are happy to meet occasionally, eat something and even travel together, but then each to his own, unconcerned. This can refer to the remembrance of a long-loved person who refuses to wake up from its slumber: lost friendships that never flowered into love. Shakespeare points out, “ Most friendship is feigning, most loving folly ” ( As You Like It , II.7 ). Most don’t seem to notice or prefer not to and yet,  beyond our misplaced feelings, fellowship embellishes our commitment to Christ.  This comprehension is accentuated because fellowship in a brave new cosmic order, subjected to social media, simulates instant coffee: press a button and a friendship is born! Neither love nor commitment is envisaged: we neither walk with each other nor suffer with or for each other, so that fellowship...

  Speaking of love in the Second Testament, it is necessary to distinguish ‘ Agapeo ’ (unconditional love underlined by commitment) from ‘ Phileo ’ (a desired mutual friendship).  ‘ Agapeo ’ ascertains God’s ‘ nature ’, for God is ‘ Agape ’: “ Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love ” (1John 4,7-8).  Rather than a feeling, Agape identifies with what it does, not with what it feels. Thus, the above-cited “ Dear friends ” doesn’t express the author’s intention. He uses ‘ agapetoi ’ to emphasise that theirs is not mere friendship but a communion experienced in faith marked by their commitment to the Magister. Only thus can the author affirm: “ This is how God showed his agape among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him ” (1John 4,9).  ‘ Agape ’ indicates a commitment beyond imposed limits; expectations...

Solitude and faith have deep roots in scripture and the writings of the church fathers. They often appear together, highlighting spiritual growth and communion with God.  Unsurprisingly, Jesus often withdrew to lonely places to pray (Luke 5,16). His example reaffirms the need to examine our understanding of solitude and its role in deepening God’s Presence in our life. Solitude is not a withdrawal from responsibility, but a thirsting after God: its purpose highlights its role. It is not accidental that “ Ora ed Labora ” summarises Saint Benedict’s vision of monasticism because solitude intends personal commitment surpassing a comfy existence: it is service-focused, allowing us ' to smell the sheep ' (Pope Francis). The stillness that accompanies reinforces this insight.  Stillness deepens our understanding of faith as relational trust, and not just intellectual assent: the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11,1). This invo...

  Pureness of heart permits us to encounter God in others (Matthew 5,8). Lacking pureness of heart, abuse is ensured: focusing solely on ourselves is easily mistaken for God’s will and the temptation to use others to satisfy personal needs or interests.  Neither can we limit it to things sexual, which sometimes is interpreted as an excuse to detach from others in an attempt not to get hurt.  We are tempted to speak rather than to listen; to teach rather than to learn; to do rather than to be, but this does not suffice when speaking of discipleship highlighted by prayer focused on the cross.  Contemplating the Crucifix, we learn not to rush: to embrace Shabbat’s stillness, now encountered on Golgotha, as a path to better insights and more profound exploits, which identify with the empty tomb.  Revitalised by this stillness, contemplating His body upon the cross, we are invited to live committed love because our wounds have been healed (1Peter 2, 24): to be “ stil...

Questions are not necessarily welcome. Locked behind barred doors for fear of others (John 20,19), it’s dangerous stepping outside, because “ if you don’t keep your feet, there’s no knowing where you might be s wept off to ” (J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring ). We readily limit the significance of the cross to an emblem to consolidate a religious or cultural identity, not as indicative of my search for truth, which can be merely subjective, conditioned by an inability to question: does this suffice for a Christian?  Laying the old life behind in the mists, we venture into the light. This adventure intends to explore the Magister’s assertion: “ I am the way and the truth and the life ” (John 14,6). No, the cross is not an excuse to enhance our misery because “ misery acquaints a man with strange bed-fellows ” (William Shakespeare, The Tempest II.2 ). The cross’s significance highlights our baptism because, as pointed out by Saint Augustine, all those who belong to Jesus Ch...

  Contemplation is not an excuse for laziness because a life centred on prayer motivates us to do more, as Mother Teresa and others demonstrate.  We are accountable for our actions, even for those we do our best to ignore. Rather than fear, this warning intends to awaken us from our inertia, which is balanced by a criterion: ‘ Ora et Labora ’ (Prayer and Work). Origen points out that praying ceaselessly merges prayer with work ( Treatise on Prayer ). This is verified by the Prayer of the Heart , which insists that we become prayer so that work becomes its visible sign. Unless our actions are imbued with a listening heart, our doings mirror our subjectivity, not our willingness to witness the Magister.  Focused on who we are in God's eyes, we are aware that our attitude can either enrich or impoverish our prayer and doings. This is clearly emphasised by Paul’s insistence: “ Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing y...

  Contemplation is usually associated with monks and cloistered nuns: a lifestyle focused on prayer.  But how does it relate to us, soaked in a hive of activity?  Undoubtedly, contemplation not only underlines but also furnishes meaning to our lives.  To keep my mind in my heart marks the beginning  of contemplation - an insight associated with the Prayer of the Heart . What underlines this acumen is an awareness that the ‘ contemplatio ’ relates to a “ locked garden, a spring enclosed, a fountain sealed ” unlocked by love (Song of Songs 4,9.12; 5,1-2).  Rather than being distracted by our doings, unwilling to comprehend the Magister’s words, we need, as St. Jean Marie Vianney suggest, to close our eyes and mouth as we open our hearts in a dialogue focused on love: to seek in God our wholeness as we recognise our imperfections.  To comprehend this insight we need to listen: to sit at the Magister’s feet and let his voice enlighten us. So doing, we real...

  Focusing on Shabbat’s stillness, the cross becomes a sanctuary in time. Challenging our trustworthiness, it expresses a lived-out ' silentium'  underlined by the Magister’s reassuring presence: ‘ Come to me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest ’ (Matthew 11,26).  Living our Agape – our committed love - hurts because, enkindled by the warmth of Christ’s presence, we mirror his ' self-emptying ’ (Kenosis) by being loyal to our baptismal promises.  Enkindled, we seek our restfulness in the Father through His Son, which offers us an equilibrium underlined by serenity strengthened by the Holy Spirit.   Unafraid, we plunge into the darkness of troubled hearts that lack the Magister’s restfulness, witnessing God’s ‘ loving-kindness ’ (Hesed), which initiates an adventure best defined by St. Ignatius as ‘ Contemplatio ad amorem ’.  Adventures can prove misleading when mistaken for escapades: hence, the need to identify with the Magister ...

  The insistence on “ babbling like pagans ” (Matthew 6,7) tempts us: it is freely embraced when God’s graciousness no longer suffices, and the cross is belittled.  Sometimes, we yearn for His gifts, rather than His presence, taking comfort in our presumptions! To understand our craving, which might take time, we need to place the cross as the key to sustaining our integrity.  The cross is God’s therapy, enabling us to encounter our fears and frustrations. It recalls us to its silence and how this experience contributes to the formation of our conscience (Catechism num. 1783-1785).  This silence sustains a dialogue of love: ignoring it reflects an attempt to hide our hearts from God: frustrated, because, as Jeremiah warns, “ You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. ” (29,13). Restless, ignoring prayerful dialogue, this endeavour is unrealistic.  Prayer exposes our hearts to God: recognising deceptions while discerning what underlies our...

Self-righteousness confirms ignorance: the inability to “ Know Thyself ”: excluded, discipleship is illusory because it fails to deliver results.  Focusing on this wisdom - knowing yourself , its deeper meaning -allows us to marvel at discipleship’s true significance: the Magister’s gaze, which provides us with a renewed self-understanding illuminating our choices,  unlocking our heart to a love that informs our conscience.  Abraham’s listening faith addresses this path: courageously, we embark on an adventure,  revealing the Divine’s  silence encountered in prayerful dialogue, which is preparatory to sustaining our deepening search for intimacy with the Magister.  Neither the risks nor the fears involved should be minimised. We should not confuse our desires with a fanciful imposed deception concerning discipleship: the initial accompanying emotions should be recognised for what they are; a passage pointing to deeper insights. We should, therefore, not be ...

Peacefulness, the sort of peace that pertains to the eye of the storm, is fictitious because, beyond the apparent quietness, the storm rages on.   Life is like that: as long as we direct its course, all appears normal. But as the storms of life penetrate our quietness, awakened from our slumber, we cry out: “ My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? ” (Psalm 22,1; Matthew 27.46; Mark 15,34).  This cry accompanies us in our adventurous decision to follow the Magister who points out that, “ a disciple is not above his teacher ” (Matthew 10,24). Forgetful, we create our own paths or pretend to do so and yet, he reminds us: “ I am the way and the truth and the life ” (John 14,6).   Encountering the raging waves, beyond the eye of the storm, the illusions of fidelity are swept away when we realise that our love is self-centred. We associate sin with what we do and not with what we become: hardened, calloused hearts; hardly able to hear, our eyes are sealed (Matthew 1...

The cost of discipleship is not determined by an imposed comprehension because the illusion of being what one is not limits clear-mindedness: an identity crisis that highlights the decline of some religious institutions now reduced to evoking traditions they once represented, but which are now mere memories used to justify themselves.  What is being questioned is not discipleship, but the unwillingness to live it: a discernment accompanies, namely, that desiring something does not necessarily imply that we are willing to pay the price of acquiring it.   We mistakenly think that we are called to enjoy ourselves by imposing our intentions, ignoring set objectives. To understand these objectives, the Magister remains the measure of our choices and, consequently, our actions. Responding to Jesus challenges our intention to answer wholeheartedly, which integrates personal insights and experiences now renewed by our willingness to respond. Hence, we are called to become somethi...

Deepening our discipleship, a realisation takes hold: the need to be diverse without being detached from others, especially the afflicted and those ignored.  What guides this undressing is the Magister’s ‘ self-emptying ’ through his Incarnation and obedience to his Father (Philippians 2,7). Surpassing the romanticised idealisation, its implementation proves adventurous.  This undressing articulates the desire to follow the Magister without ignoring what hinders me from doing so; it is neither forced nor imposed.  Desiring it can be delusional when I fail to discern the need to implement it; compromised when reduced to mere words lacking commitment to repentance and the fear of being unmasked.  What is intended is not others’ conversion, but my own. Ignoring it explains the encountered inconsistencies. Sustaining them degrades the Good News to mere ideological affirmations, unable to communicate God’s love, which requires a desired experienced self-emptying sustained...

Walking is a  downplayed  image, but it dominates the Gospels as the Magister crisscrossed the Galilee, Samaria, Judea, and beyond.  It defines discipleship as we follow Jesus through choices that edify our shared path, now enriching a fellowship centred on the breaking of bread and the sharing of the ‘ one cup of salvation ’ (Psalm 116,13).  Exploring t his insight allows us to experience ‘ self-emptying ’ because “ Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation in the blood of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ? ” (1Corinthians 10,16)  As Aquinas indicates, this sharing not only displays but generates commitment, because nothing matters but the Magister: “ Non nisi te, Domine ” (Nothing if not you, Lord).  Musing, faithfulness highlights this intended fellowship:  it sharpens awareness of the Kingdom’s mysterious workings within our hearts.  Within this context, Balthasa...

A challenging question keeps reappearing: ‘ Do you love me more than these others? ’ (John 21,15). To answer this question honestly, we have to share Peter’s dilemma and experience the significance of the Cross ourselves.  Some resolve this dilemma by perceiving discipleship as gnostic: an exclusive elitism for the few. This understanding is dishonest because it contradicts the Magister’s understanding: “ I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance ” (Mark 2,17; Matthew 9,10-13; Luke5,32).   Self-righteousness confirms ignorance: the inability to “ know thyself ”. Excluding this wisdom,which includes repentance, discipleship is illusory. A lived-out mirage, disappointing since it fails to deliver results.   Focusing our attention on the deeper meaning of repentance allows us to marvel at love’s true significance: God's commitment to each one of us. What this tells us is that the disciple is a person  addressed by the Magister’s loving g...

Discipleship, in the sense of ‘ coming after ’ the Magister, cannot be imposed because it is rooted in a free response inspired by faithfulness: the willingness to live it.  What highlights our faithfulness is preciousness, because it highlights a search that distinguishes what is really important from what is not:   “ Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it ” (Matthew 13,45-46). Within this framework, discipleship concerns a voice quietly inviting a personal response, which evolves into a prayerful dialogue accentuated by intimacy, highlighting its preciousness.  Awareness accompanies, because “ the course of true love never did run smooth ” (William Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night’s Dream , I, 2).  Clear-mindedness deepens our response to avoid pitfalls: envy dressed up as a concern or imposed racism to justify the blue-eyed boys, sometimes o...

 Caught up in our routines and aspirations, like fish convinced that their bowl is an ocean, we are confined by our shadows unable to confront our fears. Not experiencing the light of the Resurrection, we can only dream of having done so.  Sometimes, like the prodigal son (Luke 15,11-32), we need to experience what it means to reach rock bottom before we can understand, because Golgotha precedes the empty tomb: Mary Magdalene’s love defines the difference (John 20,1-18). Ignoring this love, some think they are immune and persist in their delusions. Despite hearing his voice, they fail to recognise their ‘ Rabboni ’: fear constrains them; bolted doors highlight their anxious apprehensions (John 20,19).   This anxiety is a repeated experience that needs exploring if one intends discipleship. Ignoring it is more common but dreams can become nightmares once the sun awakens from its sleepiness. Some pretend otherwise: like whirling dogs trying to catch their tails, they i...

Eastertide  concerns brokenness, which characterises the story of the Samaritan woman (John 4,1-26): it asks us to consider that “ the Lord is close to the broken-hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit ” (Psalm 34,18). This realisation permits us to live our conversion because, quoting Saint Augustine, “ In my deepest wound I saw your glory and it dazzled me ”.    Lent allowed us to consider the emptiness that accompanies those seeking fulfilment in empty relationships – she had multiple relationships (John 4,16-18) and satisfaction in the wrong places: in the possibility of not having to come to the well.  ‘ Comfort sought? ’ Partly, because she came to the well alone and at noon, avoiding others either due to shame or rejection: an outcast in her community (John 4,6-7)?  Not ignoring her, we are similar: at times, we are shamed by our attitudes or choices, other times we are ostracised for no apparent reason. These experiences can break or make us, ...

Preaching Christ does not necessarily entail living Him: human words, independently of their good intentions, can never fill this void.  Our words are often a barrier to ‘ hearing ’ (Deuteronomy 6,4) God and our hearts: deafening, they neither enhance us nor grace those who hear them.  Hence,  Paul’s advice: “ Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what helps build others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen “ (Ephesians 4,29).  Focused on ourselves, we silence consciences by superfluous words, intended to hide our shortcomings. Roaming in circles, we ignore the cross and its power: “ when I am lifted from the earth, I will draw all people to myself ” (John 12,32).  Undermin ing its power, we are stuck, unable to reconcile our affirmations with our choices. We overlook that although pure and blameless, “ God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God ” ...