Communication with Visitors* Spirit of the Living God, fall afresh on us! April 1, 2003 (P.S. April 10, 17, 25, 28) Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ, It is nice to be communicating with you again. Recently, the world has experienced many troubles which do not seem to end easily, such as the sex scandals, the North Korea nuclear problem, the war in Iraq, the SARS, the woe of airlines, the constant worsening of the Middle East crisis, etc. From all these, it is clear that this global village needs to be saved from all its disastrous chaos. If the mere drop of a pin (according to some top scientists) or the sole move of a finger (according to a Japanese Zen Master) can affect the rest of the universe, how much more can a prayer do! However, a comfortable prayer alone cannot help much without sufficient sacrifice or reparation, as the unsurpassed prototype (or prime example) of Our Lord Jesus Christ shows. As we know, Christ saves the world not merely through His wonderful prayer, but also His sacrificial suffering or cross. Since we are dealing with a world which has gone so far astray from God (e.g., just check our electronic junk mails for verification), it is perhaps the way of Christ, i.e., our prayer and sacrifice and countless of them, which can make a difference. Combining "prayer" and "sacrifice", we would find "prayerful sacrifice" (like doing some heroic spiritual and corporeal acts of mercy) or "sacrificial prayer" (like making a humble Confession, fasting, doing all-night vigil, praying the Rosary on our kneels, praying when we do not feel like praying, etc.) as effective ways of helping this troubled world of ours. God never changes His blueprint of creation. Indeed, we may see our present world in terms of God's ultimate purpose of creation, i.e., God creates us primarily to be full of God, and in such fullness or fulfillment of the First Great Commandment we are to practice the Second Great Commandment. If so, what the world has been going through since September 11, 2000 is a radical process of reparation and purification (or self-emptying) with regards its very sinfulness, darkness or ungodliness without which no fullness of God (or God's Light) in the present and future world is possible. In other words, God can never alter his original plan for us, even at the expense of our many overwhelming temporal sufferings. As the whole world or universe belongs to God, God allows all these seemingly negative things to happen (and perhaps even many more to come) only to help fully fill or restore the positive fullness of God everywhere. Generally speaking, the Holy Spirit seems to be guiding the present world, especially since 911, towards three extraordinary Rs, i.e. , Reparation, Repentance, and Restoration, in order that God would be All in all (cf. 1Cor 15:28). Apparently, God's fullness in the world would begin only with God's fullness in individuals, i.e., individual activation of God's omnipresence or omnipresent Divine Energy. If so, it is necessary that we do so individually through many prayers and good acts as "lights of the world" , activating, radiating and permeating the world with God's Divine Light or Energy in the process of Divine Energization. As one darkness after another is darkening the world, each single light (however small) is being appreciated more and more, since it can effectively help brighten the whole world. Just imagine the difference being made by a small candle in the midst of a thick darkness covering the earth. The darker it is around us, the more light this small light seems to be radiating or lighting up the world. Let the spirit and mission of the World's Youth Day therefore continue, so that we may truly become the lights of this world. The above is a little sharing. Praise God if it makes some sense. Yours sincerely in Christ and Our Heavenly Mother, Editor P.S. (April 10) Unspeakable Importance of Doing Voluntary Reparation of Our Sins An offense committed against God or the truth requires reparation (cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2nd edition, no. 2509). In other words, a certain unavoidable duty is due as the consequence of a sin committed (cf. CCC 1487). If modern society has been moved by "the economic principle of the invisible hand" (Adam Smith, 1776) , it appears that the whole world or universe has been run by "the spiritual principle of the Invisible Scale" with regards the offenses committed against God or God's holy nature as practically reflected by the Ten Commandments. On the one scalepan there is the total sum of all the sins ever committed against God, others and oneself (by an age, society, group, individual, etc.), and on the other scalepan there is the total sum of all the reparation(s) of sins done (by an age, society, group, individual, etc.). Unless God or sins did not exist at all, we cannot conduct our lives as if nothing has occurred after sins are committed. Much against our desire, if insufficient voluntary reparations are done, God's divine justice (or divine mercy lest something much worse such as the severe suffering in Purgatory or the eternal punishment in Hell would happen to us) would have to allow sufficient non-voluntary reparations or temporal punishments to take place, however many due to our sins committed. This may be exactly what is taking place in the world today (and perhaps in the near future also) as so many unpleasant events have occurred. It is true that Christ has redeemed the whole world with His suffering and death as the Reparator par excellence (cf. CCC 411, 615) . But according to God's divine justice or mercy, we too have a part to play, insofar as the continuous balance of the Invisible Scale is concerned (cf. Col 1:24). Besides the prayerful sacrifices and sacrificial prayers mentioned as effective means for reparation, it seems that the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is the best means to offer our reparation, and to help reduce our temporal punishments due to offenses against the Almighty, All-holy and All-present God. "As sacrifice, the Eucharist is also offered in reparation for the sins of the living and the dead to obtain spiritual or temporal benefits from God" (CCC 1414). Further, the doctrine and practice of indulgences in the Church appear to be closely linked with the concept of reparation here. "An indulgence is a remission before God of the temporal punishment due to sins whose guilt has already been forgiven, which the faithful Christian who is duly disposed gains under certain prescribed conditions through the action of the Church which, as the minister of redemption, dispenses and applies with authority the treasury of the satisfactions of Christ and the saints." (CCC 1471). "An indulgence is partial or plenary according as it removes either part or all of the temporal punishment due to sin. The faithful can gain indulgences for themselves or apply them to the dead" (CCC 1471). As a footnote, many good Christians today seem to have understood very well the untold importance of doing Reparation or penance for the world we are living in. For a shining example, click here. Praise God if the above makes some sense to the chaotic world we are encountering today. P.S. (April 17) Holy Thursday Earlier today the Holy Father has issued a timely encyclical on the Holy Eucharist entitled Ecclesia de Eucharistia (abbreviated below as EE). The following is not a summary but is only a few thoughts similar to certain parts of the encyclical. As we know, there has only been One Mass, i.e., the Holy Sacrifice of Christ Himself. Apparently, the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is the Holy Sacrifice of Christ Himself (cf. EE, 12). The Mass is therefore Christ and His salvation of the world being made alive and efficacious. It is a perfect prayer and an infinite act of Reparation of all the sins committed by the whole humanity, giving us sufficient grace for repentance and for the restoration (transformation or healing, etc.) of the world, spiritually, emotionally and even physically (cf. EE, 62). The Holy Sacrifice of Christ or Mass has been re-enacted, activated or re-activated daily, even unceasingly, for the last two millennia. As Christ is God, or God the Son, in Whom God the Father and God the Holy Spirit dwell fully without ceasing, the potential effect or power of the Mass is therefore infinite. If it is so, why it is that the world is still so much broken? Obviously, the problem lies in our actual absorption or activation of the effect. As such, the "absorption" and "the activation of the effect" of the Holy Sacrifice of Christ can be understood in terms of Ex Opere Operato and Ex Opere Operantis. Ex Opere Operato is defined as follows: "Latin 'on the basis of the act performed' . The objective efficacy and fruitfulness of sacraments, which do not primarily depend on the attitudes or merits of those receiving or administering the sacraments" (G. O'Collins, S.J. and E. G. Farrugia, S.J., A Concise Dictionary of Theology, 1991, p. 74). Accordingly, Ex Opere Operantis is "Latin 'on the basis of the one acting' . The subjective dispositions for receiving a sacrament, which function not as a cause but rather as the condition for the full effectiveness of God's grace" (ibid.). While Ex Opere Operato guarantees us the potential objective effect every time when a normal Mass is said or attended, Ex Opere Operantis teaches us that it is important for the subject, whether the celebrant or the attendant, to possess the right dispositions which function as the condition for the full effectiveness of God's grace. Without the former, no one is sure of the validity of the Mass being said. But without the latter, it is like eating a nutritious meal with little or no absorption. What a big waste it is! The celebration of the Holy Sacrifice of Christ (or the Mass) may also be seen in three parts : (a) the necessary preparation, (b) the necessary celebration, and (c) the necessary absorption or activation of the effect of the Mass. To attain the fullest effect, all the three parts are needed. St. Maximillian de Kolbe seemed to offer us an excellent example in the absorption or activation of the effect of the Mass. As we know, he divided his ordinary day into two, the first half for the preparation of the Mass, and the other half for thanksgiving in grateful prayer, adoration and good acts, etc. (cf. EE 25 and 20). It is perhaps why Pope John Paul II has to issue his timely encyclical on the Holy Eucharist today, i.e., to help us with regards the necessary preparation, celebration, and absorption or activation of the effect of the Mass. At the same time, the Holy Father also warns us against abuses and sacrileges of Christ's Sacrifice (cf. EE 10, 61). For further information regarding the sacred Triduum which begins tonight, click here. Praise God if the above makes some sense. P.S. (April 25) John has written an important note. At the same time, he plans to spend the whole months of May and June to complete a major conference paper for URAM 2003 being held in August. He, therefore, has to designate this note as his main contribution for the month of June. However, as this note deals directly with SARS, it may be important for this note to be presented to our readers now, i.e., two months ahead of its designated time. All in all, please feel free to download this note and pass it around if you think that it is important to our current battle against SARS. To access it, click here. Alleluia! P.S. (April 28) The world forgot to thank God During the service celebrating the Divine Mercy Sunday, the Pope reminded us that peace is a gift of the Risen Lord as Christ is peace. This is exceptional for the world has always forgotten to give thanks to God after a certain world crisis was overcome. For example, at the collapse of the Berlin Wall, various parts of the world rushed in to claim credits and forgot to thank God. They also forgot to acknowledge the power of prayer and those who did pray. The same ingratitude appears to have happened in the case with the seemingly fast ending of the Iraq war. In case there were a sudden turn of the SARS crisis, the same may happen again. Let us give thanks then to the risen Lord, as the Holy Father did. Alleluia! * Fr. Michael Lapierre, S.J., and the editor John Cheng are currently taking part in this monthly column. While the former is writing in January, March, and May, etc., the latter is doing so in February, April and June, etc. As usual, we take July and August as our summer holidays. The background hymn is a version of "Immaculate Mary". Thank you. A spiritual insight which may help as we are overwhelmed by so many troubles in the world: It appears that we are all called to become very strong in our spirit, even as never before. To be spiritually strong means to be always filled (in varying degrees as God is pleased) with the many gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit (which God is pleased to give us if we pray), such as wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, fear of the Lord, etc. (Is 11:1-2) , as well as love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, etc. (Gal 5:22-23), regardless of the situation we are in. Praise be to God, the Catholic Church has provided us with all the means needed to become very strong today. It would be impossible for us not to become very strong if we attend Mass, make an holy hour of sacred quietude, meditate on God's Word, pray the Divine Office, Divine Mercy Prayer and the whole Rosary daily, besides going for Confession at least once a month. If we cannot do the above exactly, at least we spend much time in other forms of prayer. In the final analysis, unless we pray a lot, however imperfectly, there is no other way in which we can become very strong spiritually during these days or months of trials. At the same time, God does allow spiritual, emotional, and physical deserts, etc., to happen to our lives, for God is always more interested in our humility than anything else. Is it not what sins or virtues are always about, ultimately speaking? Praise God if the above makes some sense.
April 1, 2003 (P.S. April 10, 17, 25, 28)
Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,
It is nice to be communicating with you again. Recently, the world has experienced many troubles which do not seem to end easily, such as the sex scandals, the North Korea nuclear problem, the war in Iraq, the SARS, the woe of airlines, the constant worsening of the Middle East crisis, etc. From all these, it is clear that this global village needs to be saved from all its disastrous chaos. If the mere drop of a pin (according to some top scientists) or the sole move of a finger (according to a Japanese Zen Master) can affect the rest of the universe, how much more can a prayer do! However, a comfortable prayer alone cannot help much without sufficient sacrifice or reparation, as the unsurpassed prototype (or prime example) of Our Lord Jesus Christ shows.
As we know, Christ saves the world not merely through His wonderful prayer, but also His sacrificial suffering or cross. Since we are dealing with a world which has gone so far astray from God (e.g., just check our electronic junk mails for verification), it is perhaps the way of Christ, i.e., our prayer and sacrifice and countless of them, which can make a difference. Combining "prayer" and "sacrifice", we would find "prayerful sacrifice" (like doing some heroic spiritual and corporeal acts of mercy) or "sacrificial prayer" (like making a humble Confession, fasting, doing all-night vigil, praying the Rosary on our kneels, praying when we do not feel like praying, etc.) as effective ways of helping this troubled world of ours.
God never changes His blueprint of creation. Indeed, we may see our present world in terms of God's ultimate purpose of creation, i.e., God creates us primarily to be full of God, and in such fullness or fulfillment of the First Great Commandment we are to practice the Second Great Commandment. If so, what the world has been going through since September 11, 2000 is a radical process of reparation and purification (or self-emptying) with regards its very sinfulness, darkness or ungodliness without which no fullness of God (or God's Light) in the present and future world is possible. In other words, God can never alter his original plan for us, even at the expense of our many overwhelming temporal sufferings. As the whole world or universe belongs to God, God allows all these seemingly negative things to happen (and perhaps even many more to come) only to help fully fill or restore the positive fullness of God everywhere.
Generally speaking, the Holy Spirit seems to be guiding the present world, especially since 911, towards three extraordinary Rs, i.e. , Reparation, Repentance, and Restoration, in order that God would be All in all (cf. 1Cor 15:28). Apparently, God's fullness in the world would begin only with God's fullness in individuals, i.e., individual activation of God's omnipresence or omnipresent Divine Energy. If so, it is necessary that we do so individually through many prayers and good acts as "lights of the world" , activating, radiating and permeating the world with God's Divine Light or Energy in the process of Divine Energization. As one darkness after another is darkening the world, each single light (however small) is being appreciated more and more, since it can effectively help brighten the whole world. Just imagine the difference being made by a small candle in the midst of a thick darkness covering the earth. The darker it is around us, the more light this small light seems to be radiating or lighting up the world. Let the spirit and mission of the World's Youth Day therefore continue, so that we may truly become the lights of this world.
The above is a little sharing. Praise God if it makes some sense.
Yours sincerely in Christ and Our Heavenly Mother,
Editor
P.S. (April 10) Unspeakable Importance of Doing Voluntary Reparation of Our Sins
An offense committed against God or the truth requires reparation (cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2nd edition, no. 2509). In other words, a certain unavoidable duty is due as the consequence of a sin committed (cf. CCC 1487). If modern society has been moved by "the economic principle of the invisible hand" (Adam Smith, 1776) , it appears that the whole world or universe has been run by "the spiritual principle of the Invisible Scale" with regards the offenses committed against God or God's holy nature as practically reflected by the Ten Commandments.
On the one scalepan there is the total sum of all the sins ever committed against God, others and oneself (by an age, society, group, individual, etc.), and on the other scalepan there is the total sum of all the reparation(s) of sins done (by an age, society, group, individual, etc.). Unless God or sins did not exist at all, we cannot conduct our lives as if nothing has occurred after sins are committed. Much against our desire, if insufficient voluntary reparations are done, God's divine justice (or divine mercy lest something much worse such as the severe suffering in Purgatory or the eternal punishment in Hell would happen to us) would have to allow sufficient non-voluntary reparations or temporal punishments to take place, however many due to our sins committed. This may be exactly what is taking place in the world today (and perhaps in the near future also) as so many unpleasant events have occurred.
It is true that Christ has redeemed the whole world with His suffering and death as the Reparator par excellence (cf. CCC 411, 615) . But according to God's divine justice or mercy, we too have a part to play, insofar as the continuous balance of the Invisible Scale is concerned (cf. Col 1:24). Besides the prayerful sacrifices and sacrificial prayers mentioned as effective means for reparation, it seems that the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is the best means to offer our reparation, and to help reduce our temporal punishments due to offenses against the Almighty, All-holy and All-present God. "As sacrifice, the Eucharist is also offered in reparation for the sins of the living and the dead to obtain spiritual or temporal benefits from God" (CCC 1414).
Further, the doctrine and practice of indulgences in the Church appear to be closely linked with the concept of reparation here. "An indulgence is a remission before God of the temporal punishment due to sins whose guilt has already been forgiven, which the faithful Christian who is duly disposed gains under certain prescribed conditions through the action of the Church which, as the minister of redemption, dispenses and applies with authority the treasury of the satisfactions of Christ and the saints." (CCC 1471). "An indulgence is partial or plenary according as it removes either part or all of the temporal punishment due to sin. The faithful can gain indulgences for themselves or apply them to the dead" (CCC 1471).
As a footnote, many good Christians today seem to have understood very well the untold importance of doing Reparation or penance for the world we are living in. For a shining example, click here.
Praise God if the above makes some sense to the chaotic world we are encountering today.
P.S. (April 17) Holy Thursday
Earlier today the Holy Father has issued a timely encyclical on the Holy Eucharist entitled Ecclesia de Eucharistia (abbreviated below as EE). The following is not a summary but is only a few thoughts similar to certain parts of the encyclical.
As we know, there has only been One Mass, i.e., the Holy Sacrifice of Christ Himself. Apparently, the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is the Holy Sacrifice of Christ Himself (cf. EE, 12). The Mass is therefore Christ and His salvation of the world being made alive and efficacious. It is a perfect prayer and an infinite act of Reparation of all the sins committed by the whole humanity, giving us sufficient grace for repentance and for the restoration (transformation or healing, etc.) of the world, spiritually, emotionally and even physically (cf. EE, 62). The Holy Sacrifice of Christ or Mass has been re-enacted, activated or re-activated daily, even unceasingly, for the last two millennia. As Christ is God, or God the Son, in Whom God the Father and God the Holy Spirit dwell fully without ceasing, the potential effect or power of the Mass is therefore infinite. If it is so, why it is that the world is still so much broken? Obviously, the problem lies in our actual absorption or activation of the effect.
As such, the "absorption" and "the activation of the effect" of the Holy Sacrifice of Christ can be understood in terms of Ex Opere Operato and Ex Opere Operantis. Ex Opere Operato is defined as follows: "Latin 'on the basis of the act performed' . The objective efficacy and fruitfulness of sacraments, which do not primarily depend on the attitudes or merits of those receiving or administering the sacraments" (G. O'Collins, S.J. and E. G. Farrugia, S.J., A Concise Dictionary of Theology, 1991, p. 74). Accordingly, Ex Opere Operantis is "Latin 'on the basis of the one acting' . The subjective dispositions for receiving a sacrament, which function not as a cause but rather as the condition for the full effectiveness of God's grace" (ibid.).
While Ex Opere Operato guarantees us the potential objective effect every time when a normal Mass is said or attended, Ex Opere Operantis teaches us that it is important for the subject, whether the celebrant or the attendant, to possess the right dispositions which function as the condition for the full effectiveness of God's grace. Without the former, no one is sure of the validity of the Mass being said. But without the latter, it is like eating a nutritious meal with little or no absorption. What a big waste it is!
The celebration of the Holy Sacrifice of Christ (or the Mass) may also be seen in three parts : (a) the necessary preparation, (b) the necessary celebration, and (c) the necessary absorption or activation of the effect of the Mass. To attain the fullest effect, all the three parts are needed. St. Maximillian de Kolbe seemed to offer us an excellent example in the absorption or activation of the effect of the Mass. As we know, he divided his ordinary day into two, the first half for the preparation of the Mass, and the other half for thanksgiving in grateful prayer, adoration and good acts, etc. (cf. EE 25 and 20). It is perhaps why Pope John Paul II has to issue his timely encyclical on the Holy Eucharist today, i.e., to help us with regards the necessary preparation, celebration, and absorption or activation of the effect of the Mass. At the same time, the Holy Father also warns us against abuses and sacrileges of Christ's Sacrifice (cf. EE 10, 61).
For further information regarding the sacred Triduum which begins tonight, click here.
Praise God if the above makes some sense.
P.S. (April 25)
John has written an important note. At the same time, he plans to spend the whole months of May and June to complete a major conference paper for URAM 2003 being held in August. He, therefore, has to designate this note as his main contribution for the month of June. However, as this note deals directly with SARS, it may be important for this note to be presented to our readers now, i.e., two months ahead of its designated time.
All in all, please feel free to download this note and pass it around if you think that it is important to our current battle against SARS. To access it, click here. Alleluia!
P.S. (April 28) The world forgot to thank God
During the service celebrating the Divine Mercy Sunday, the Pope reminded us that peace is a gift of the Risen Lord as Christ is peace. This is exceptional for the world has always forgotten to give thanks to God after a certain world crisis was overcome. For example, at the collapse of the Berlin Wall, various parts of the world rushed in to claim credits and forgot to thank God. They also forgot to acknowledge the power of prayer and those who did pray. The same ingratitude appears to have happened in the case with the seemingly fast ending of the Iraq war. In case there were a sudden turn of the SARS crisis, the same may happen again. Let us give thanks then to the risen Lord, as the Holy Father did. Alleluia!
* Fr. Michael Lapierre, S.J., and the editor John Cheng are currently taking part in this monthly column. While the former is writing in January, March, and May, etc., the latter is doing so in February, April and June, etc. As usual, we take July and August as our summer holidays. The background hymn is a version of "Immaculate Mary". Thank you.
A spiritual insight which may help as we are overwhelmed by so many troubles in the world:
It appears that we are all called to become very strong in our spirit, even as never before. To be spiritually strong means to be always filled (in varying degrees as God is pleased) with the many gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit (which God is pleased to give us if we pray), such as wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, fear of the Lord, etc. (Is 11:1-2) , as well as love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, etc. (Gal 5:22-23), regardless of the situation we are in. Praise be to God, the Catholic Church has provided us with all the means needed to become very strong today. It would be impossible for us not to become very strong if we attend Mass, make an holy hour of sacred quietude, meditate on God's Word, pray the Divine Office, Divine Mercy Prayer and the whole Rosary daily, besides going for Confession at least once a month. If we cannot do the above exactly, at least we spend much time in other forms of prayer. In the final analysis, unless we pray a lot, however imperfectly, there is no other way in which we can become very strong spiritually during these days or months of trials. At the same time, God does allow spiritual, emotional, and physical deserts, etc., to happen to our lives, for God is always more interested in our humility than anything else. Is it not what sins or virtues are always about, ultimately speaking? Praise God if the above makes some sense.