Spirituality of St. Francis de Sales  

  This six week program will explore a spirituality that is   down to earth and open to people of all walks of life. St. Francis de Sales encouraged people to find holiness in every day matters.

  In whatever state of life men and women themselves, they can discover the way to God, joyfully and without fear. God can be found anywhere, everywhere and by everyone.

  The hours we spend in our daily chores need not be spiritually empty or useless. It is in the daily chores that we live out our life of faith.

  You are invited to participate in a program that will offer insights to enhance your own spiritual life.

BEING AND BECOMING OPTIMISTIC (2)

BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD.

Be in your prayer space, follow the usual steps and settle into silence.

Sit still…..Relax…….Do not rush………

Take a couple of gentle, slow and deep breaths…becoming aware of your breath going in and out… stay focused on this breath of life……

Settle into silence, into peacefulness, into profound silence, into pure joy. Keep listening in such quietness and serenity. Come to that place, that space within, that place of deep silence – Solitude…to just being here and now without having to accomplish something.

Now from the depth of your heart begin to wish your mind well……….

As deformed by sin, violence and war, the shape of this world will pass away. We are offered the hope that God is preparing a new dwelling place and a new earth where justice and peace meet, embrace and abide……… and the blessedness that comes from this transformed world will surpass all the longings for peace which spring up in the human heart.

On our earth the Kingdom of God is already present in mystery: it is and it is not yet. It is the beyond that is within! One who is transformed by the beatitudes will come to know the “beyond that is within”. This is our hope….this is the source of optimism.

To be part of the reign of God means to enter into a process of continually experiencing conversion…..John the Baptist and Jesus called for “repentance” and that is what conversion is……an ongoing, life-long conversion!

A necessary and integral part of this continual conversion for the disciple of Jesus, in search of a more just and non-violent world, is the conversion from discouragement and the temptation to escape the suffering of the world to an enduring commitment based on hope. The temptation we often face is to give up the struggle totally, to stop reading the newspaper, to withdraw into a privatized spirituality.

This is not the spirituality of the Gospel of Jesus. The Beatitudes lead us to ‘creative insecurity’ or ‘dynamic insecurity’. If you are secure, you don’t need grace….you don’t need prayer…. you don’t need brothers and sisters… you don’t need the power of God’. If the reign of God is to be ours, we must have hope….we must be optimistic.

Our Optimism is rooted in the unconditional love of God for each human being. God never gives up on anyone. God’s love is everlasting…..steadfast…..unconditional. Hope in the Old Testament is centered on people like Abraham and Sarah. The Old Testament breathes an atmosphere of hope throughout — dynamic expectation, not a passive desire or wish. Even Israel’s unfaithfulness did not hinder hope. The motive of hope is the past deeds of Yahweh, which gives confidence in God’s power to fulfill his promises and makes us optimistic.

In the New Testament, Jesus announces the arrival of the Kingdom, the reign of God, in the world. It is a future near at hand…..a future present in the present!!! The believer lives in hope. The concept of hope is most fully developed by St Paul, especially in his letter to the Romans. We boast of our hope for the glory of God. (See chapter 5) In hope we were saved. But hope is not hope if its object is seen; how is it possible for one to hope for what he sees? Hoping for what we cannot see means awaiting it with patient endurance. Rejoice in hope, be patient under trial, persevere in prayer. (See Ch. 8 & 12)

Paul does not think that hope is easily attained; it is the fruit of proved virtue which in turn is produced through patient suffering.

Jesus’ resurrection is our most radical sign of hope. It means that the power of sin and death has been overcome (1 Corinthians 15) and that we share in the freedom of the resurrection. We share in it as individuals and as a people.

Believing in the resurrection means making a commitment to live in hope despite the injustices that we are aware of, despite the acts of violence that we read about or, perhaps, have experienced.

Abide in these thoughts for some time

Optimism calls us to nurture a “resurrection” attitude. To maintain a resurrection-outlook, we need to be attentive to the ’signs of hope’ in and around us………

Whatever the justice or peace issue that most captures your heart, you will find signs of hope if you keep in mind two realities: big ships (i.e. social structures) turn slowly and attitudes take a longer period to change than do actions.

We need to be able to rejoice in small victories and to concentrate on the good already being done rather than continually lament the absences. This disposition leads us to hope and enables us to work for further change with perseverance….be optimistic.

It is important to realize how you are a sign of hope, a source of optimism for others: by your faith lived out in a commitment to compassion and peace, by your joyful love and by your persevering dedication, to be a person of the Beatitudes in an ongoing, continual process of conversion, transformation………..

In the biblical world one hopes for the future because one has already seen the creative event taking place in the past. We are empowered to hope for our personal future and for the future of our world because we have seen and are seeing creative events stimulated by the Spirit and carried out by our brothers and sisters, carried out by us……

Optimism is hearing the melody of the future. Living the Beatitudes in a spirit of hope is to sing and dance the resurrection………to be people of the resurrection……to develop a “resurrection attitude”. It is to live in the reign of God.

Every moment comes to us pregnant with a command from God, only to pass on and plunge into eternity, there to remain forever what we have made of it.

Obstacles are things you see when you take your eyes of the goal. Stay focused on the goal and be optimistic!!

Be optimistic! People can change and become what they are created to become.

Optimism is an attitude, a disposition toward the world as a good and positive place.

An optimist generally believes that people and events are inherently good; that most situations work out in the end for the best.

Optimism is a spiritual posture, a dynamic and positive way being present in the world and not just an emotional state or mere sentimentality.

Be optimistic! Hold your head high even in the midst of trials and testing times.

I pray that you continue to be optimistic……

• when you are afraid and lose confidence in you, in others and in God…….
• when the busyness and schedules of your day press upon you and you become tense and nervous and doubtful…..
• when you doubt yourself in difficult moments in your life…..
• when you lose sight of God’s grace and blessings in your life…..
• when emptiness, loneliness and other such slings and arrows come your way….
• when you struggle to be good and share your goodness with others….

Be positive! Think positive! Be a remarkable sign of hope for the world!

Fr. Gus Tharappel,msfs

BEING AND BECOMING OPTIMISTIC (1)

Today, we begin a new series of meditations, titled “Being and Becoming Optimistic”. As you know, this is our reflection theme for the year 2008.We want to explore Optimism, in all its dimensions and look at the possibility of nurturing optimism as an integral part of our life-style.

Optimism is a dynamic, creative and empowering attitude that creates conditions for success by doing the best that is possible under the given circumstances. An Optimist focuses on looking at the constructive, creative and open aspects of life. Optimism goes far beyond certain positive outlook or attitude or disposition toward life, the world and the future. It implies personal commitment to a way of life, a way of thinking and acting.

Optimism rises from our faith in the unconditional love of God for each human being and for the universe that he created. God never gives up on us or on our world. God’s love is everlasting, steadfast, unconditional, invincible. Optimism is not wishful thinking…..it is confident and faithful walk into the mystery of tomorrow.

I invite all of you to walk with me on this journey of being and becoming optimistic, nurturing a creative, constructive, positive and open attitude that is grounded in the steadfast, unfailing love of God.

BEGIN NOW!

BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD.

Be in your prayer space, follow the usual steps and settle into silence.

Sit still…..Relax…….Do not rush………

Take a couple of gentle, slow and deep breaths…becoming aware of your breath going in and out… stay focused on this breath of life……

Settle into silence, into peacefulness, into profound silence, into pure joy. Keep listening in such quietness and serenity. Come to that place, that space within, that place of deep silence – Solitude…to just being here and now without having to accomplish something.

Now from the depth of your heart begin to wish your mind well……….

Be optimistic about yourself! See the good that you already are doing, appreciate moments of integrity and self-sacrifice however small or insignificant they may be; be grateful for the past deeds of God in your own life that have enabled you to do more than you ever imagined possible; rejoice in the memories of God lighting your path with periodic glimpses of his presence even in the desert and trying times of your life……..

Be optimistic about those around you! There are many signs of hope in those around you, your family, your church community, your friends, your colleagues: their faith and their persevering commitment to live a decent, noble and Christian life despite the many obstacles they encounter……….

Be optimistic about the world! There are many signs of hope in the world: stories of heroic men and women in your own country and elsewhere, people who embody the message of Jesus; stories of various countries working together to organize food drops to isolated villages revealing great concern for the starving people all over the world; stories of liberation movements of oppressed peoples and so on.

There are many stories of hope…you need to look for them and be encouraged by them and allow them to enable you to be optimistic!

You need to be able to rejoice in small victories and to concentrate on the good already being done rather than lament the absences. This disposition leads us to hope and enables us to work for further change with optimism.

It is important to realize that you are a sign of hope for others when you are optimistic about life and the world around!

So, look within and around…see signs of hope, capture images of hope…keep them in your heart…….cherish them……let them bless you and challenge you to be men and women of hope…be optimistic!

Optimism is not an idea or a doctrine. It is an attitude, an inner disposition. It is a way of seeing life and the world, a way of seeing the past, the present and the future, a way of seeing realities beyond the accidentals and the trivia, a way of looking beyond the immediate…

Optimism is a dynamic force that enables you to see possibilities where the world sees impossibilities.

Optimism is a dynamic force that gives you power in the face of powerlessness and keeps you moving through the trials and difficulties of life.

The optimist knows that the difference between difficult and impossible is that the difficult is outside and the impossible is inside….it is an attitude that says with God all things are possible!

Be optimistic. Optimism makes stepping stones out of stumbling blocks!

When burdens come, the optimist remembers that God gave him/her shoulders.

The optimist is unafraid of doubts and questions because he uses doubts and questions as vehicles to come to the truth.

Be optimistic! Light your candle. All the darkness of the world can not put out the light of one small candle.

Be optimistic and do all things as if it were impossible to fail!

Be optimistic and get up one more time when you are knocked down!

Be optimistic! No matter what your situation may be in life, build something on it.

Be optimistic! Obstacles are things you see when you take your eyes of the goal. Stay focused on the goal!

Remember, no one ever injured their eyes by looking at the bright side of things.

I pray that you continue to be optimistic……

• when you are afraid and lose confidence in you, in others and in God…….
• when the busyness and schedules of your day press upon you and you become tense and nervous and doubtful…..
• when you doubt yourself in difficult moments in your life…..
• when you lose sight of God’s grace and blessings in your life…..
• when emptiness, loneliness and other such slings and arrows come your way….
• when you struggle to be good and share your goodness with others….

Next time your morning seems to be going wrong and you can’t seem to  find the car keys and you hit every traffic light, don’t get mad or  frustrated……Be optimistic! Praise God instead because God is at work watching over you. You are where God wants you to be!

When you are stuck in traffic, miss an elevator, turn back to answer a ringing telephone …. all the little things that annoy you …… think to yourself, this is exactly where God wants me to be at this very moment.

May God continue to bless you and keep you optimistic when all those annoying little things come your way!

If you find yourself in a situation where there are no optimists, strive to be an optimist.

Be positive! Think positive! Be a remarkable sign of hope for the world!

Fr. Gus Tharappel,msfs