Sanctifying daily life
Our daily lives can be transformed into prayer that then overflows to others through a simple, friendly and natural apostolate.
One of Malta’s intellectual giants, Oliver Friggieri, forcefully argued the case for putting Our Lord back at the centre of Maltese culture and, more specifically, of literature (The Sunday Times, May 20). In his view, we cannot appreciate our nation’s identity without rediscovering the religious roots of our forefathers.
Science is doing wonders to help us understand how we actually exist, but it is faith that proposes answers as to why.
One could object and say that putting faith at the heart of all human endeavours may run counter to our human dignity and freedom. Since we live in a world whose problems need to be addressed, what help could faith give us if, as some say, it is essentially oriented towards the afterlife?
One could counter-argue that while solutions based solely on the here-and-now could offer help to some people for some time, they do not ultimately guarantee the authentic happiness of those in need of lasting solutions. Faith, lived according to the Magisterium of the Catholic Church, has done just this to our nation, and continues to do so today.
Ordinary people generally divide their time between their family, in educational institutions or their workplace and, generally, in social relations. Accordingly, the ordinary way by which their lives are sanctified is through their active and altruistic participation in community life, their study or work, and their family life, configured according to how God has always wanted it.
As Fr Josemaría Escrivá, founder of Opus Dei, a small part of the Roman Catholic Church, said in a homily in 1967, “there is something holy, something divine, hidden in the most ordinary situations, and it is up to each one of us to discover it”.
Following a mystical experience he had in 1928, Fr Escrivá, then a 26-year-old priest studying in Madrid, propounded this universal call to holiness. He spent the rest of his life mostly in Rome, putting this message across. Through his life, teachings and Opus Dei, he helped thousands appreciate the treasure we all have within our reach.
The core message of Opus Dei is that holiness is not the preserve of the chosen few. The dignity of adopted sons and daughters of God, conferred on us through Baptism, entails the right and duty to reach the heights of holiness, whoever we are and whatever our role in society.
It is possible to change every moment of our lives into occasions for growing closer to God, serving others and improving society. All aspects of our daily lives can be transformed into prayer, and this cannot be kept for ourselves: it just overflows to others through a simple, friendly and natural apostolate that instils confidence.
It leads to the discovery that with the person of Jesus Christ at the centre of our lives, we can keep away from the temptation – to quote again from the abovementioned homily – “of living a kind of double life... with on the one hand an interior life, a life of relation with God, and on the other, a separate and distinct professional, social and family life, full of small earthly realities”.
This integrated approach to life does not mean that we do not fail. We do, but the secret is to recognise our failures and begin again, and again. So interested is God in all the small details of our ordinary lives that He makes available to us His grace, if only we ask Him for it.
This is the holiness which St Josemaría Escrivá showed all of us could, and should, reach. It is, indeed, the message of the Gospel, ever so old and so new, that the Second Vatican Council reiterated.
To mark the liturgical feast of St Josemaría Escrivá, Gozo Bishop Mario Grech will lead a concelebrated Mass on Saturday at 11 a.m. at the parish church of the Transfiguration of Our Lord, Lija. Everyone is invited to attend. Priests will be available for confession from 10.30 a.m.
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Pule' Carmel
Jul 31st 2012, 00:56
As mentioned above,"Science is doing wonders to help us understand how we actually exist, but it is faith that proposes answers as to why."
According to Albert Enstein.
"Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind."
I suppose one can say that Religion and Faith, came before, Science and proof! I shall not ask "why" for I might hurt many people. As an engineer I can fully appreciate that occasionally one requires a change over of a belief or a system. The horse and cart which provided transport service for thousands of years eventually had to give way to the car, not without problems, and regulations were made for a man with a flag to walk before a car in order to protect people from the new invention, while the horse and cart awaited their destiny. Later the ocean going liners as the Queen Mary and the Queen Elizabeth which stood like giants in the transport world were slowly replaced by Jumbo Jets whose technology was better and safer.
Now microlelctronics are packing miracles into such a tiny volume which we can carry with us, where children can see their mother living on the other side of this world! Engineering Miracles indeed.
Now I can understand that one who is loosing grounds will react to it and this is what I read in the expression,"Science is doing wonders to help us understand how we actually exist, but it is faith that proposes answers as to why." I personally do not see any logic in thinking that there is a "why" to every question that any man can come up with , For example, is there any sense in asking, " Why pigs do not fly and crawl like snakes?"
I cannot fully accept that there is a "why question" for anything to exist. If by ,why, we mean a reason , well there is definitely a scientific reason why something develops after some material come together and reacts in a scientific manner. But any further contents of "Why" is illogical on many occasions.
I feel the Religion's reactions to the development of science is only a natural reaction for more longevity in religions as they are, but I personally feel that Old Religions should not worry too much for like the service in transportation changing from one method to the next, I feel that the religious content must also change.
Science has made men to travel out in space and the myth of looking up to the sky to see God has now gone so we learnt to look for God somewhere else, and so it will proceed. Religion will be assisted by Science to know where not to look for God. Science will never tell Religon to stop looking for God, it merely will tell Religion to stop looking where it spent a lot of time in vain looking for God.
That is what Enstein meant when he conjoined the two together. science cannot live without religion, but for Religion to claim that with Faith it can answer why, well I am sure that in a few decades science will indicate that why is not solved through faith but still the search for God will proceed with Religion and science holding hands, and with Science carrying a heavier burden , taking over what Religion did many centuries ago.
It is much harder for religion to accept science than for science to accept religion, so it seems.
In my opinion, the high priests of science and religion must pray holding hands, if each of them is to care for the future of mankind. My predicament is at things stand to whom would a scientist pray? I am sure that most scientists would give attention to God through having some difficulty understanding nature, but because they do not understand it, they are not willing to invest in faith , but though waiting or inspirations while perspirations come forthwith through a new and ever changing efforts.
Kenneth Cassar
Jun 21st 2012, 10:17
Faith cannot provide answers - only more questions.
Please choose the reason of your report below: