Thoughts of St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, O.C.D.

Deus, in adjutorium meum intende. Domine, ad adjuvandum me festina.
O God, come to my assistance. O Lord, make haste to help me.



                I wasn't going to write anything for the blog until I get a new computer;
                but I have a couple of things that I don't want to put off. This wasn't one
                of them; but I felt it was worth passing on.


Our pastor shared these thoughts in our bulletin for the 10th Sunday after Pentecost. They are the words of a 20th century martyr. Edith Stein and her sister, were Jews who converted to Catholicism. Both became Carmelite Sisters. Her religious name was Teresa Benedicta of the Cross. Born Octoer 12, 1891, she and her sister were killed at Auschwitz, August 9, 1942.  She has since, through miracles performed through her, been declared a saint.

   "Whatever did not fit in with my plan did lie within the plan of God. I have an even deeper and firmer belief that nothing is merely an accident when seen in the light of God, that my whole life down to the smallest details has been marked out for me in the plan of divine Providence and has a completely coherent meaning in God's all-seeing eyes.

   "To be a child of God, that means to be led by the Hand of God, to do the Will of God, not one's own will, to place every care and every hope in the Hand of God and not worry about one's future. On this rests the freedom and the joy of the child of God. But how few of even the  truly pious, even of those ready for heroic sacrifices, possess this freedom.

   "When night comes, and you look back over the day and see how fragmentary everything has been, and how much you planned that has gone undone, and all the reasons you have to be embarrassed and ashamed: just take everything exactly as it is, put it in God's hands and leave it with Him. Then you will be able to rest in Him - really rest - and start the next day as a new life."

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And speaking of saints: Three great saints were celebrated last week. 

On July 31 we honored Ignatius of Loyola, the founder of the Jesuits (The Society of Jesus), which have disgraced his name. God forgive them. Ignatius was born in Spain in 1491. He was son of a noble and later a soldier. Badly wounded he was forced to convalesce for some time. He wanted to read to pass the time. The only things available were some spiritual books on the lives of Christ and the saints. He rose a changed man and dedicated his life to Our Lord. Not only did he found a religious order, he compiled a series of "Spiritual Exercises," which are still used  for retreats and in personal prayer. His motto and that of the Jesuits was "To the Greater Glory of God: Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam." To the vows of poverty, chastity and obedience, St. Ignatius added a fourth - to go wherever the Pope would send them for the salvation of souls. They were to be an army for Christ. The Jesuits in North America, seven of whom became martyrs,  preached to the Native Americans. They were called Black Robes by the tribes. Ignatius died on July 31, 1556.

On August 2 we remembered St. Alphonsus Mary de Liguori, Bishop, Confessor and Doctor of the Church.  Born in 1696 in Naples, Italy, he renounced a brilliant career as a lawyer to devote himself to serving God.  He wrote many religious works of profound learning and piety. He emphasized prayer, saying, "He who prays is saved, he who does not pray is damned." He founded the Redemptorist Order of Priests and Brothers and composed a method of praying the Stations of the Cross, which we still observe. St. Alphonsus died in1787 at the age of 91.

St. Dominic, from Spain, like Ignatius, was born to a noble family and was destined to become one of the great saints. He fought against heresies and founded the Order of the Friars Preachers, the Dominicans. Several popes and saints have come from their ranks. The four popes include St. Pius V. Eleven saints, including four women are in the ranks. There are 268 beatified men and 24 beatified women, 300 of whom were martyrs. There have been numerous cardinals, bishops, doctors, preachers and illustrious writers who were Dominicans. It is to St. Dominic that Our Lady appeared and gave to us, through him, our devotion to the Rosary as it is has been prayed since then. Many Dominicans, like the Jesuits, fell prey to modernism and the relativism that infects the Church today. Dominic died in 1221.

                        These were saints who took the Gospel of the Talents to their hearts.

(Matthew xxv: 20-21)  Lord, Thou didst deliver me five talents: behold I have gained other five over and above. Well done, good and faithful servant; because thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will place thee over many things; enter thou into the joy of thy Lord.