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CIS
NEWSLETTER
No.
53 - April 2008
The Pharisee and
the Publican
A Reflection
I have often been intrigued by the parable of our Lord on the
Pharisee and the tax collector [Lk 18: 9-14], and the more I pray
over the text and share with others in my homilies, the more depths
I discover. I hope these reflections of mine will help you too to
discover more in this simple story.
“The Pharisee went to the temple to pray”. But was he actually
praying? I like to imagine Jesus telling the story with a glint in
his eyes and a smile as he mimics the bombastic language of this
man.
“The Pharisee said this prayer to himself, ‘I thank you, God, that I
am not grasping, unjust, adulterous like everybody else.’” Wow! He
is the only good man on earth – everybody else is grasping, unjust
and/or adulterous. But he is above reproach, and no doubt he thinks
God looks upon him with admiration, as the paragon for all of
humanity! To pray essentially is to enter the presence of the
all-holy and all-loving God. How can one be in his presence and
utter such nonsense?
“I fast twice a week; I pay tithes on all I get.” I have to admit,
this man is really generous. To fast 100 times a year, when many
today find it hard to fast on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday is no
small achievement. Even the Capuchins, I hear, have cut down on
their traditional fasts during the year. And what about his
contribution to the temple treasury? To give 10% of your income to
its maintenance, again, is very commendable. I am sure the treasurer
welcomed him with a broad smile each time he came to give his
contribution.
But was God pleased with this man’s “justice” [holiness]? I doubt
it. Even in the Old Testament God said that “It is not with your
sacrifices that I find fault…You sit there, slandering your own
brother, you malign your own mother’s son. You do this and am I to
say nothing?” [Ps 50: 8a and 20-21a].
God is not interested in our deeds, unless they are an expression of
our love – love for him and love for his children, who are our
brothers. The Pharisee’s attitude comes out very clearly when in his
“prayer” he says: “I am not… like everyone else, and particularly I
am not like this tax collector here.” Which contrasts with the
latter’s prayer: “The tax collector stood some distance away, not
daring even to raise his eyes to heaven; but he beat his breast and
said, ‘God be merciful to me, a sinner.’”
I would even say that instead of praying, the Pharisee was sinning –
he was condemning and judging another person. And surely, God is
always on the side of ‘the little one’. ‘Imagine a family with a
disabled child, who fully supports the education and health of its’
neighbours child, will the fully educated and supported child have
the guts to approach the supporting family and say, “ Thanks for
everything, I’ve made it to the top with your support, pity your
child couldn’t take the same route”
The lad’s benefactor would surely feel extremely hurt and angry. Is
God not also hurt when we insult one of his sons or daughters? Can
he be pleased with us when we do not show any respect to those for
whom he has showed a particular love in the Person of his incarnate
Son.
From this I would draw two conclusions: to pray I have first to
enter God’s presence, which means that I have to be aware that I am
in the presence of a Father who is pure love. “.. with my mind
raised on high, [I] consider that God our Lord beholds me” [SE 73]
with great love, knowing that he loves each person on earth as he
loves me.
Secondly, that the more I pray in this genuine manner, the greater
will my love for God and for my brothers and sisters be. And
conversely, the more I love my neighbour, the greater will my love
for God become.
In its brevity this parable is a practical lesson in the two great
commandments: to love God sincerely, and to love my neighbour as God
wants me to, that is, as Jesus has loved me.
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Points for Reflection
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As I approach
God intimately in prayer, am I puffed up in pride pretending to be
self-righteous and spotless or do I approach God as the Publican
with the words of Psalm 51 –“ Have mercy on me, O God, in your
faithful love, in your great tenderness, wipe away my offences, wash
me clean from my guilt, purify me from my sin.”
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After the prayer of
contrition, do I drag on with verbal prayer, as if trying to make
‘my case’ before a judgemental God, or do I humbly listen to God
to enlighten my life with His Spirit, to create in me a clean
heart which surpasses rituals and sacrifices?
Fr. Harry Formosa
SJ
Book Review
Called to Share in His
Name
Introduction to a contemplative way of life and the Jesus prayer (a
retreat).
Franz Jalics, S.J.;
original title: Kontemplative Exerzitien.
Translated by Sr. Lucia Wiedenhover, OCD.
St. Paul’s, Mumbai, India, 2002, Pages 357.
ISBN 81-7109-398-1
As the subtitle
indicates this is a book to be prayed rather than read through. It
is a handbook for a retreat whether made with the author who runs a
retreat house, or by oneself. The retreat is spread over ten days.
Each day includes a talk, an instruction for meditation, and a
number of dialogues which serve to highlight the various experiences
of retreatants and answers to difficulties that crop up. Over ten
days the retreatant is guided towards union with God and surrender
to Him – depending on the retreatant himself and God’s leading.
These are ten days of awareness, of what is not the retreatant,
awareness of the retreatant himself, and awareness of God who is in
fact the deeper life of the retreatant. These are days of
progressive detachment from all that is not God, and attachment to
God himself.
I will quote from the book in order to show what it is all about:
“Let us imagine (that the rich young man) asks Jesus not how to win
eternal life, but how to make a retreat. Jesus would say to him:
‘Meditate on your life, go through the sins of your past and be
converted to the way of the commandments, then take the Gospel,
meditate on it, and grow from virtue to virtue. Work at changing
your character and study your psyche to work through your
unconscious conflicts. Should it be necessary, make a choice by
considering arguments for and against, and observing the interior
movements of consolation and desolation.’ The rich young man would
answer: ‘Lord, I make a retreat like that every year. Is there not
something more?’ Jesus Christ could answer him: ‘I show you a
steeper way. Sell your thoughts, your concepts and reflections, your
concern about psychological health. Sell your worries about plans,
decisions and activities. Give away your wishes, your images and
representations. When you have lost all the supports of your usual
prayer to which you can cling, and feel completely helpless, then
come and remain poor and naked in my presence.’ (from pages 129-130)
The book has relevance for those who go through the Spiritual
Exercises of St. Ignatius for a whole month, or for a few months in
daily life, or for a week or so over a number of years. When not in
retreat, should the retreatant go on praying in the same manner as
in the Spiritual Exercises, or should one desire and seek to become
more intimate with the Lord? I will again quote, this time from the
experience of a Jesuit. He is sharing about the prayer “Take Lord
and receive…” (Sp. Ex. No235). “More than a devout prayer of
self-offering, it is the foundation of contemplation. After saying
this prayer one cannot meditate in the same way as before. It really
depends on surrendering one’s understanding to God and remaining in
loving wonder. It is really important to surrender the memory and
stop being occupied with one’s past. To be occupied with his past
would mean that his love is not sufficient for us. To surrender our
will means, henceforth, no longer to want anything for him, but to
enter more and more into ‘not wanting’ and ‘letting God act’.
According to the mind of this prayer even our prayers of petition
lose much of their meaning, for his grace and love ‘suffice’. He
takes care of everything. We can surrender to him for ever our cares
for others. We do not need to implore him for individual matters.
All prayers of petition are already contained in our existence for
him. . . . Our dealings with Him change. . . . It dawned on me that
the prayer ‘Take O Lord’ introduces us into a form of prayer where
everything that is thought, memory, will, planning, striving for
perfection, has to cease completely. It is replaced by loving and
being. I have freshly rediscovered the meaning of this prayer. It is
for me the Ignatian foundation of life according to the Exercises,
of contemplative life in the life of action.” (from pages 348-349)
The first time I took up this book, I read it from cover to cover,
but then put it aside. Someone reminded me of it and then I got
through it slowly, going through the retreat myself, and I found a
treasure, and an answer to my question: ‘What, after the Spiritual
Exercises?’
Victor Degabriele SJ.
SURRENDER
Take, O Lord, and receive my entire liberty,
my memory, my understanding
and my whole will.
All that I am and all that I possess
You have given me:
I surrender it all to
You to be disposed of according to Your will.
Give me only Your love and Your grace;
with these I will be rich enough,
and will desire nothing more.
St. Ignatius of Loyola
From the CIS Programme
APRIL
‘Lectio Divina’
Il-‘Lectio Divina’ hi metodu qadim u dejjem ġdid ta’ qari spiritwali
tal-Kotba Mqaddsa, ta’ talb bil-Bibbja. Il-‘Lectio Divina’ fiha erba’
stadji : 1. Il-‘Lectio’ (il-qari), 2. Il-‘Meditatio’, (il-meditazzjoni),
3. L-‘Oratio’, (it-talb), 4. Il-‘Contemplatio’, (il-kontemplazzjoni).
Dan hu bħal sellum, magħmul minn erba’ skaluni, li bih nitilgħu
mill-art lejn is-sema. Saqajh iserrħu fuq l-art, imma l-quċċata
tiegħu tinfed is-sħab u tgħarrex is-sigrieti tas-sema. (Guigo c-Certosin).
Dan se jkun irtir fis-silenzju li fih nitgħallem nitlob bil-‘Lectio
Divina’.
Data: Mill-Ġimgħa,
25 ta’ April, 2008 fis-7.00 ta’ filgħaxija sal-Ħadd, 27
ta’April wara l-pranzu.
Imexxi: Fr. Alex Refalo
Post: Dar Manresa,
Victoria, Għawdex.
MEJJU
Irtir fuq il-Quddiesa
Kull irtir, bħall-ħajja Nisranija kollha, għandu bħala ċentru l-Ewkaristija.
Dan l-Irtir mhux biss hekk, imma it-talb stess u r-riflessjoni jsiru
fuq il-Quddiesa: il-bażi teoloġika tagħha; it-tifsira ta’ kull parti:
il-miġemgħa, il-Kelma ta' Alla, l-offerti, il-kliem ta' Gesù fl-Aħħar
Ċena, u t-tqarbin ; u fl-aħħar kif ngħixu l-Quddiesa fil-ħajja ta'
kuljum. B'hekk nittamaw li nidħlu dejjem iżjed fil-fond ta' din l-azzjoni
li ħallielna Gesu` biex nagħmluha b'tifkira tiegħu.
Data: Mill-Ġimgħa 16 ta’ Mejju fil-għaxija sal-Ħadd 18, wara nofs
in-nhar
Imexxi: Fr Mario Jaccarini S.J.
Post: Mount St Joseph Retreat House, Mosta
Aħna ulied id-Dawl
Flimkien permezz tat-talb nippruvaw nidħlu dejjem aktar 'l gewwa
fil-misteru ta' Alla. Naraw ukoll x'impatt għandu fuq il-ħajja
tagħna ta' kuljum it-twemmin tagħna f'dan il-misteru. X'jgħidilna
fuq ir-relazzjonijiet tagħna fil-familja, mal-ħbieb, fis-soċjetà dan
il-misteru?
Data: Mill-Ġimgha, 23 ta' Mejju, 2008 fis-7.00 ta' filghaxija
sal-Ħadd, 25 ta' Mejju wara l-pranzu.
Imexxu: Dr. Edward Warrington u Fr. Paul Zammit, SJ
Post: Dar Manresa, Victoria, Ghawdex
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