HISTORY OF CHRISTIAN SPIRITUALITY.

·                     17/10/2009

In our journey to the priesthood, we cannot but be spiritual

F    What is Spirituality?

Spirituality is that part of theology that deals with Christian perfection and the ways that leads to it. For a Christian aiming at perfection in a particular call of the sacred priesthood or the religious life, to be adequately formed for the onerous task, he/she must not lack human formation which is its necessary foundation.

F    Human Formation

Human formation is the moulding of human personality in such a way that it becomes a bridge and not an obstacle for others in their meeting with Jesus Christ the Redeemer.

F    Characteristic of Human Formation

There are basically two forms of the characteristic of human formation

v    The characteristics a normal person ought to have.

·                     Truthful

This is the ability to say yes when you mean yes or o when you mean no. when a person is truthful, definitely that person is usually trusted.

·                     Royal

·                     Respect for every person

The human person needs to be respected. This is very important; consequently one must avoid underrating anybody.

·                     Justice

Justice is the ability to do the right thing, to give to every person a fare hearing or giving every one his right.

·                     Being true to your word

By being true to one’s words, one says something and stands by it no matter the consequence. One needs to be principled but not necessarily rigid.

·                     Compassionate

Compassionate implies a caring attitude and sympathy towards those in any kind of need.

·                     Integrity

This implies high moral standard. It also means the quality of being honest

·                     Balanced in judgement and behaviour

To be balanced in judgement means knowing the truth and standing by it – calling a spade a spade as the saying goes

v    The characteristics needed in view of priestly ministry.

·                     Not to be arrogant

An arrogant person thinks himself very important and so he behaves rudely

·                     Not to be quarrelsome

In order to avoid quarrelsomeness, one needs to cultivate the ability or habit of trying to understand the other person’s temperament.

·                     To be hospitable

One has to be welcoming, showing kindness and friendliness to others.

·                     Sincere in words and heart

This implies doing exactly what one says. This is the case of being principled

·                     To be affable

This means being friendly and approachable. However, one needs to have limits in his friendliness.

·                     Prudent and discrete

Prudence implies a sensible and careful attitude that enables one to avoid unnecessary risks. Being discrete implies saying or doing something in a careful way so as to avoid upsetting, offending or embarrassing other people

·                     Generous and ready to serve

A generous person is that person who is disposed enough to render services; working diligently and carrying out his duty as they should.

·                     Quick to understand

It is important that one tries to be attentive in what some other person is saying. It would be improper to give people the impression that you are not interested in them or that you do not understand them.

·                     Forgive and console

Forgiving implies forgiving actual offences against oneself and being readily available so as to console those who have all kinds of troubles.

·                     Brotherly relationship

Brotherly relationship entails the ability of opening oneself to others and encouraging same to others.

F    How does a soul rise to perfection?

The soul rises to perfection by passing through three stages:

·                     It gets free from sin by penance and mortification

·                     It forms inner virtues by prayer and the imitation of Christ.

·                     It advances in the love of God till it reaches habitual union with him.

v    24/10/09

F    Spiritual Formation

In the context of priestly training, spiritual formation would be the spiritual component that enjoys priority in the total formation process of the seminarian. It has as its goal the seminarian’s continual growth in his personal relationship with Christ and his commitment to the Church and his vocation. Spiritual formation sets the foundation of the attitudes, habits and practices of the spiritual life in a life time of priestly ministry especially as it regards priestly celibacy.

F    Penance

Penance, penitence or repentance is a dimension of conversion as a dynamic of Christian spirituality. It is an attitude or virtue motivating Christians to resist evil and sin and to undo the harm done by sin. Penance is linked by spiritual writers with the virtue of justice, that is, obligations to God and charity, responsibility to ones neighbour.

In time, the scriptural understanding of conversion was reduced to penance. Penance is generally treated in terms of hatred of sin and atonement for sin. Its practice was often identified with mortification as means of atoning for ones past sins. Spirituality and spiritual direction have often emphasised penance as sorrow or contrition for ones sins and the effort to atone for them: expiation, satisfaction (what is due to God and God’s punishment of sin and charity towards ourselves and others).

v    November 7, 2009

Works of penance are often understood as self-purification and self-punishment in purgatory. The underlying constant is that penance as a dimension of conversion is an ever present dynamic of the Christian life, not a one time or occasional reality. Spiritual growth thus requires sensitivity to sin, a consciousness both of our sins and of others sins and also of the evil present in the society. This will lead to motivation for actively resisting sin and evil in our own lives and in the society.

Making amend for personal sins and the sins of others is not self punishment or payment to God; it is rather the wholehearted acceptance of ones responsibilities as a call to holiness and the difficulties that come with the effort to fulfil these responsibilities and vocation. It involves expiation such as fasting and abstinence or other penitential works. It is a struggle against evil inclination in order to subject them to the will of God. Expiation highlights the restoration of friendship with God and of the personal or social values weakened or destroyed by sin.

v     23//01/2010

F     Church Fathers

The church fathers (early church fathers who took over from the Apostles in the practice of Christianity are also called Apostolic Fathers). They are: Clement of Rome, Ignatius of Antioch, and Polycarp of Smyrna.

·                     Clement of Rome

Clement holds the 3^rd place among the successors of St. Peter. The official order is as follows: Peter: AD 62 – 67; Linus 67 – 78; Cletus 78 – 90; Clement 90 – 100; Irenaeaus wrote that Clement knew St. Peter and Paul well.

Origin and Eusebius march Clement with the one who Paul mentioned was his fellow worker in Philippians 4: 3. In his letter, he wrote to the church in Corinth in AD 96.

·                     Spiritual Legacy left by him

1. There must be unity among God’s chosen people rather than perpetuating factions. This is seen in his letter to the church at Corinth.

2. We must be in constant faith

3. Our Christian piety must be sober and selfless.

4. We must be hospitable to everyone. It might be the case that the people of Corinth were neglecting this hospitality, he then admonished then for to be more hospitable. Corinth was a natural stopping place between Rome and the East.

5. We must be humble showing complete absence of self-assertion. Be ready to offer submission. The humility of Christ and the saints should be our example.

6.  We must discipline ourselves by overcoming jealousy that brings about internal strife. Jealousy is sinful. It caused Cain to kill Abel. Also, it was jealousy that made Jacob to take flight from his brother Esau. Jealousy made Joseph to be sold into slavery.

7. He enjoins us to observe order. Arrogance is absurd for man is nothing

8. Without love, nothing is acceptable to God. Christ showed us that nothing is more beautiful than charity when he gave his flesh for our flesh and his soul for our soul.

9. It is never too late to repent.

10. We should be obedient to any authority placed over us as did the saints.

11. We should renounce obstinacy and seclusion, that is, stubbornness in bad things. We should forget ourselves assertion ad braggadocio and stupid quarrelling and do what the Bible tells is instead. The Holy Spirit says: “the wise is not to brag of his wisdom or the strong man of his strength or the rich man of his wealth. Do not boast. If anyone should boast, let him boast in the Lord. Jeremiah 9: 9-12.

12. Harmony and cooperation are lesions which nature itself teaches us.

13. There are no grounds for doubting the resurrection.

14. There is nothing God does not see and hear. Therefore let us approach him with awe and amend our lives – Ps. 198

15. Faith must be accompanied by good works.

16. There should be unity and cooperation for the common good.

17. The church’s liturgy and hierarch are of divine institution and must be respected

18. Opposition to God’s ministers(s) are impious.

v    March 26, 2010

F    Saint Ignatius of Antioch – AD 107

Saint Ignatius was the third Bishop of Antioch succeeding Saint Evodus who was the immediate successor of Saint Peter. He is accounted an Apostolic Father by reason of his having been an apostle of Saint John. He was put to death by being sentenced to the beasts in the arena during the reign of Emperor Trajan – AD 98 – 117, probably in the year AD 107.

On his way to Rome from Antioch, he wrote seven letters to different Christian communities: at Ephesus, Magnesia, Thyatira, Rome, Philadelphia and                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   Smyrna. He wrote personal letter to Bishop Polycarp of Smyrna. The most important of these letters is the one he wrote to Rome but the seven are treasures to the history of dogma. His letter to the Ephesians contains:

1.            Your conduct and practices should correspond closely to the mind of the Bishop or your superior.

2.            The more reserved a Bishop seems to be, the more he should be respected.

3.            Let no one mislead you.

4.            Men with different doctrines are in your mist, pay deaf ear to them

5.            Regarding the rest of mankind, you should pray for them unceasingly for we can always hope that repentance will enable them to find a way to God. Give them a chance to learn from you or at all events, on the way you act. Meet their animosity with mildness, their high words with humility, and their abuse with prayers. Stand firm against their error and if they grow violent, be gentle instead of wanting to pay them back in their own coin.

6.            Meet more often in prayer to give thanks and glory to God. When you meet more frequently, the powers of Satan are confounded and in the face of your corporate faith, his malificience crumbles. Nothing can better a state of peaceful accord from which every trace or spiritual or earthly hostility has been banished.

7.            A thorough-going faith and love for Jesus Christ will make everything to be obvious to you. Life begins and ends with those two qualities. Faith is the beginning and love is the end and union of the two together is God. All that makes for a soul’s perfection follows in their train for nobody who possesses faith commits sin and nobody who possesses love can feel hatred.