Steps to Discipleship

The year’s yearnings accompany, sometimes devouring, leaving us breathless. We need rest! Similar to the Shabbat, Lent offers us a space in time to be real by resting from what we do, which often summarises our self-understanding.  Lent can help us to understand the patterns that underpin much of our doing. And as we understand, like Saint Mary of Egypt, encountering the Cross, we discover our freedom.  Most of us are neither cold nor hot: “ I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So because you are lukewarm – neither hot nor cold – I am about to spit you out of my mouth ” (Revelation 3,15). The price we pay for being lukewarm is that we become indifferent, ignoring ourselves. Fear dominates! Like the Laodiceans, to whom the passage is addressed, we fail to make a difference in the world by being a light (Matthew 5,14), because we have lost our saltiness (Matthew 5,13), replacing it with feeling snug, soothing in our unhea...

There was a time, not so distant, when philosophy was discouraged and theology was excluded from our university. Some insisted that an education enlightened by the Classics is wasteful! Not thinking critically is advantageous to  ‘ Big Brother ’ seeking to impress us with a fallacious salvific presence. This is part of our story: we cannot ignore its impact, but this does not mean that we have learned from it. The Classics offer insights unavailable to those unlucky enough to ignore them. For example, ‘ hubris ’ (hybris) speaks of a personality undermined by excessive overconfidence. Hubris proves a frequent theme in Greek mythology, often portrayed as a hero’s fatal flaw that leads to disaster. ‘ Icarus ’ is one example. Attempting to escape from Crete, his father, ‘ Daedalus ’, made him wings made of feathers and wax. Despite being warned by his father, Icarus flew too close to the sun: his waxed wings melted and tumbling into the sea, he drowned.  Self-importance undermines...

I find myself roaming in one of these trendy shopping centres replacing our village squares, where individuals were once conscious of being part of a greater whole. People rush dreamily here and there, preoccupied with themselves but little else besides. Limnos emerges: the dream island where Hypnos had his cave, poppies decorating its entrance. Watered by Lethe, the river of forgetfulness, day and night are indistinguishable. His brother Thanatos (Death) watches on as their parents, Nyx (Night) and Erebus (Darkness), extend their shadowy presence.  Emporiums, carols trumpet, but the king is ignored as images of Christmas Father replace him. Solitary, moving statues, lacking dialogue, ignore each other because the latter presumes an existing relationship, surpassing one-night stands. Every relationship aspiring to intimacy is contemplative, which exhibits a willingness to listen. This envisaged silentium is expressive of ‘ committed love ’ (Agape), which, having surpassed the fear ...

Nothing should be presumed: neither that our hearts are immune from envy nor that talking of faith is necessarily indicative of faithfulness. Sometimes, envy permeates the heart even if concealed in a mirage intended to convince others that we mean well: “ Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves ” (Matthew 7,15). Unfortunately, neither clerics nor religious are immune.  Envy is dangerous if ignored, more so when denied. A Spanish proverb affirms, “ Envy bites but never eats, that is why it always insists ”. Its insistence is a recipe for restlessness: the lack of peace within the heart, indicative of the Magister’s absence.  It contradicts discipleship because ‘ committed love ’ (Agape) “ is patient, love is kind: it does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud ”(1 Corinthians 13,4). It is, therefore, futile that we tolerate it, since “ envy makes the bones rot ” (Proverb 14,30). Thus, Moses did not rebuke Eldad and M...

Liturgically speaking, we have entered the ‘ Ordinary Time ’: some thirty weeks intended as preparatory to celebrating those special moments known as Advent and Lent. I usually begin this time with a five-day silent retreat focused on listening to God’s word, intended to recharge my batteries through intimate dialogue.  One accompanying fundamental insight into our liturgy is that each season provides me with something special: a discernment of who I am in God’s eyes. A question accompanies: “ Am I ready to deepen this sagacity? ” Answering this question, I realise that sometimes I lack the necessary attention to appreciate, let alone live, these insights. Silence helps me to order my priorities: not to let tiredness overwhelm me or think that somehow I am better than others, no longer in need of redemption. Being less (Minorem) is a key to this self-understanding.  Comforted by silence, I reconsider the significance of being less: a bridge that unifies, rather than a pier lea...

How often have I heard the Gospel proclaim, “ Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me ”(Matthew 16,24)! Three questions accompany this affirmation: (i). “ What does ‘deny myself’ imply ”? (ii). “ What does the reference to the cross mean ”? (iii). “ Why are these qualities specified as conditions to discipleship ”? These questions increasingly preoccupy me because, approaching the fortieth anniversary of my ordination, like a good accountant, I need to add up my ‘ numbers ’ and discover the results: numbers do not lie. Wisdom demands self-criticism because “ the unexamined life is not worth living ” (Plato, Apology, 38a5-6). Thinking, examining my life, another Gospel passage draws my attention: “ Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to ” (Luke 13,24). The narrow door identifies with the cross because, as noted, it specifies the willingness to follow the Ma...

Nothing stands in the way, but we must not presume that the mere imposition of our will edifies our self-understanding of discipleship: being blind doesn’t mean I can see. Discipleship is an invitation to embrace the Magister’s ‘ self-emptying ’ (Kenosis), which necessarily involves a deeper understanding of the cross as a gateway to deeper insights. Ignoring or attempting to replace it merely muddles things, especially if conceit accompanies us. Ignoring the cross, tradition’s triviality highlights our presumptions and consolidates childishness by downplaying childlikeness. In Nietzsche’s footsteps, often misunderstood and misused, childlikeness identifies with self-transformation guided by the principle that we relate not to what lies deep within us, but beyond us.  Childishness not only accompanies us; sometimes, it defines us. The need to self-overcoming, integral to being childlike, is, therefore, necessary. It is, thus, no wonder that Paul invites us to distinguish between th...

It is inescapable, unless one is deaf not to hear. This is not necessarily advantageous: sometimes, it proves expedient to be deaf and be spared the wasteful chattering increasingly consolidated by social media. Exposed to man’s unceasing babbling, it is easily assumed that “ humanity must perforce prey on itself, like monsters of the deep. ”(William Shakespeare, King Lear , IV.2) Things were not always so, but sometimes things change unnoticed: by the time we notice, it is too late to do anything about it.  Musing on past times that recall my childhood and beyond, it is striking how much noise has advanced its cause! Softly imposed ‘ music ’, though sometimes not so softly; its invasive presence is felt everywhere. A disturbing presence that reminds us of Orwell’s insight: “ You will be hollow. We shall squeeze you empty, and then we shall fill you with ourselves ” (George Orwell, 1984 ).   Like Fama in Ovid’s opus, whose domus contains a chaotic cosmos where words repla...

Judging others obscures my self-understanding. Consequently, though not easily admitted, it undermines my discipleship because, “ with the measure you use, it will be measured for you ” (Matthew 7,2). My negative evaluations of others serve to justify my idiocy: a way to hide myself from myself, forgetful that “ if the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit ” (Matthew 15,14). We need to take to heart this affirmation: “ Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be pulled up by its roots ” (Matthew 15,13). Cicero’s “ Fortis est non pertubaris in rebus asperis ” (Show strength by keeping to the right path), enlightens our paths. Establishing the right path is not easy: experience is the great teacher because, as Seneca points out, ‘ we learn for life, not for school ’ (Non scholae sed vitae discimus). One way of doing this is to listen attentively to what comes out of our mouths and how this can defile us: “ Listen and understand! It is not what goes into the mou...

Despite our denials, we presume that our ‘ witnessing-to ’ has an impact, blinding us as to how ‘ witnessing-from ’ others surpasses our presumptions of being better. One reason for this failure is an inability to appreciate how the least considered person often deepens our faith not by what they say, but by what they do. The reason to ignore this richness concerns an inability to be still and notice, amidst the surrounding confusion, the kingdom’s mysterious workings. Hence, the Magister’s insight regarding the widow opens unperceived paths if we care to listen: “ Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few cents. Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, ‘Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. They all gave out of their wealth; but sh...

This time of year is characterised by an invitation to be compassionate and dig into our pockets. This call to think of others is desirable, but it raises questions about how to interpret it, enlightened by the Magister, rather than social activism.  Understanding his empathy, it is insightful that when the Magister speaks of the sinful woman’s search for forgiveness, he stresses her love: “ Therefore I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven – as her great love has shown ”(Luke 7,47a). Considering the nature of my search, I find this affirmation disturbing since he continues: “ But whoever has forgiven little loves little ” (Luke 7,47b). Yes, “ Acta non verba ”; it is better to do well than to speak well!  Describing her love, the evangelist uses ‘ egapesen ’ (she loved), emphasised by ‘ polu ’ (much): her loving was a ‘ committed love , greatly so’. This should serve me as an eye-opener to what it means ‘ to repent ’ (Metanoia), which we often associate with doing less (s...

 Advent is upon us:  a threshold recalling us to Bethlehem, hard to fathom as parties, shopping and benevolence dominate. Nevertheless, it offers us the opportunity to renew our faith, which involves rethinking our traditions, especially our Christmas crib, increasingly replaced by decorations that ignore this season’s worthiness, which intends to awaken us to a hope rooted in faith.  This hope underlined by the enactment of the Christmas crib at Greccio , which was not a romanticised version of Bethlehem: it offered those present an opportunity to understand the manger as preparatory to comprehending the cross, itself fundamental to being childlike. We are, therefore, invited to grasp the significance of Paul’s affirmation: “ In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus, who being in the very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being...

Responsibility proposes availability underlined by open-heartedness, embellished by the Spirit. It envisages an otherness that seeks to understand things differently, not due to ideological persuasions but a means to deepen one’s baptism. It is thus interesting to note how the Magister emphasises his otherness as a means to greater insights still evolving: “ I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now…he will guide you into all the truth …”(John 16,12-15). Seasoned discipleship points the way if one intends to understand the Magister’s promise, but self-centred conviction is not a guarantee of enriching insights into discipleship.   This nominated otherness is not mere intellectual affirmations or lived-out spiritual haughtiness. Its significance can be best understood in the silence that underlines intimate prayer: a consciousness expressive of Isaiah’s “ Here am I, here am I ” (61,5). Since a disciple is not greater than his teacher (Matthew 10,24), t...

To judge others is qualified by distinguishing between judging others and the need to recognise others for who they are: the latter is positive because it provides us with the clearness of mind to avoid delusions. Recognising the depravity encountered in others offers us an opportunity not to ignore our unrighteousness, “ for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God ” (Romans 3,23). This recognition entails a process, which integrates the formation of our conscience; hence, the need to let the Magister illumine our hearts and minds to avoid delusions (John 8,12). We, therefore, need to listen carefully as doers of the word and not merely hearers who deceive themselves (James 1,22) because “ I am sending you out like sheep among wolves; so be wise as serpents, and innocent as doves ” (Matthew 10,16).  The formation of conscience requires that we have no self-serving agendas that obscure the truth. These venal motivations impair truth because, self-absorbed in our subjectiv...

“ We few, we happy few, we band of brothers ” concerns the rousing Saint Crispin’s Day Speech given by the King in Shakespeare’s Henry V. Exhorting his men to greater valour, the speech enhances the victory against the French at Agincourt. Applied, it enhances a better understanding when we speak of a shared discipleship as we realise that, despite the claims, few intend to actualise them. Crucially, this failure enhances the illusion of knowing yourself and, consequently, judging others.   Fellowship requests an inner equilibrium capable of eliminating the fear of the other: to recognise in the other, the other half of myself, for as we are told, “ Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another ” (Proverbs 27,17). This understanding gives way to deeper insights: “ But if we walk in the light, as he is the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his son, cleanses us from all sin ” (1John 1,7).  These insights help us redefine our understanding...

Hopkins, of whom I can never tire because he often says what I want to say but cannot, sets the mood. Personal boundaries protect the inner core of one’s identity: a sustained insight that underlines our inter-relationships. This essential inner core, expressive of values and personal dignity, must be intact as inter-relations are transformed or surpassed (Brett Beasley, Acting Christ: The Christocentric Exemplarism of Gerald Manley Hopkins , Literature and Theology, Vol. 34, Issue 2, June 2020, pp. 228-244). No one bestows nor should anyone plunder this inner core: it is proper to each person.   It is easily forgotten that dignity is a shared value, not an exclusive possession: honouring personal boundaries also means respecting the boundaries of others. Accordingly, personal formation is identified with wholeness, which includes emotional stability and clear-mindedness. Lacking this understanding, we mimic Lear’s blindness to Goneril’s and Regan’s meaningless flattery and Cordeli...

 Encountering the Magister’s face, now mirrored in other faces, challenges us to re-assess our self-understanding as we proclaim His presence. When we are unwilling to renew our faith “ from top to bottom ” (a capite ad calcem), an unnoticed dichotomy between our affirmations and practice accompanies. Somehow, it does not worry us: confined to an ornate subjectivity, we convince ourselves otherwise by wearing particular garbs or evoking particular devotions, overlooking our perfidies. Some claim innocence seeking truth, but “ light, seeking light, doth light of light beguile; so ere you find where light in darkness lies, your light grows dark by losing of your eyes ” (William Shakespeare, Love’s Labor’s Lost , I.1).  Carefulness is required, because blinded, our subjectivity dressed up as objectivity is confined by prejudices, self-gratifications and claims whose purpose is our comforts, not our discipleship. Despite claims to being Minorem, our choices speak otherwise because...

To l ive remembering death (Vive memor leti) might sound pessimistic, but it recalls us to our senses because we easily make choices that ignore the limits imposed by death. This is one reason why we need to focus on our familiarity – the little things in life that illuminate us as light gives way to the magical: the privilege to live and let others live, to think and understand, to enjoy and appreciate, to love and be loved. Accordingly, life’s familiarity enhances our discipleship because it reminds us how God reveals Himself and challenges us to understand beyond ourselves. It should not, therefore, surprise us that God uses familiarity to attract our attention as He did with Moses: “ Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. There, the angel of the LORD appeared to him in flames of fire from within the bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fi...

Preamble      Unfortunately, most encounter the Psalms within a liturgical setting as short interludes between one reading and another. We take it for granted that they exist without necessarily comprehending their origins. Ordained ministers are obliged to recite them daily, forming the backbone of their ministry (CCC 276, § 2, n.3): ignoring their spiritual richness, decadence infiltrates.       The Psalms animate some parish communities: they are regularly recited, but this practice is not sufficiently diffused. They come alive within the monastic communities whose days and nights are regulated by their chanting, whose breath is synchronised as they pray the Psalms in the name of the faith community. But what about those beyond the ‘Claustrum’: how can we benefit from the Psalms? It is this question that addresses this reflection. Henceforth, insights that have proven helpful to praying with the Psalms are shared. I am indebted to former students, m...