Saturday of the Twenty-Fifth Week in Ordinary Time
“For greater things you were born.” (Ven. Mother Luisita)
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 26th Lk. 9: 43b-45 “Pay attention to what I am telling you. The Son of Man is to be handed over to men.”
Jesus also said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.” (Mt. 16:14) There are different types of crosses! Today we will meditate on the cross of temptations. Behind every cross is the possibility of glory!
Cross of Temptations by Saint John Vianney, Cure d’Ars (+1859)
“If you have no temptations,” says Saint Gregory, “then the devil is your friend, your guide, and your shepherd. If he now permits your life to flow on in peace, he will at the end of your life draw you down into the abyss.”
Saint Augustine says that the greatest of all temptations is not to be tempted; for such a one is abandoned by God and delivered over to his passions, and will be lost.
I have said that temptation is necessary for us, to preserve us in humility and distrust of self, and to oblige us to take refuge with God.
We read in history that a superior said to a hermit who was violently tempted by the devil, “My friend, do you wish me to ask God to deliver you from these temptations?” “No, Father,” answered the hermit; “for they have the effect of keeping me continually in the presence of God, because it constantly necessitates my taking refuge with God, that He may stand by me in my struggles.”
Meantime, my brethren, we can say that it is one of the surest signs that we are on the path to heaven, if we are tempted, no matter how humiliating the temptations may be. There remains only one thing for us to do, and that is to fight courageously, for temptation is the time of harvest, as the following example will prove.
We read in the lives of the saints that a certain saint was so troubled by the devil during a long term of years that she looked upon herself as lost. God appeared to her for her consolation, and disclosed to her that she had gained more in these particular years than at any other time in her life.
Saint Augustine teaches that everything which we do without overcoming temptations is of very little value.
Instead of being discouraged, therefore, we must, on the contrary, thank Almighty God, and fight courageously, because we are sure of the victory, and because we are certain that God will not give way to the devil, and that He will prepare for us the crown of glory which I wish you all.
IGNATIAN TWO STANDARDS—STANDARD OF CHRIST AND STANDARD OF SATAIN—AND TYPICAL TEMPTATIONS
From Exodus 17:8-16
This Biblical passage can set the scene for our Contemplation of the Two Standards. In this passage, there is a war going on. Moses is perched on the top of the mountain. When Moses lifts his arms towards heaven, the Israelites are victorious. However, when weary due to the weight of his arms, Moses’s arms sink, then the Amalekites prove victorious. The secret of the victory: Hur and Aaron have Moses sit on a stone and both of them on Moses’ right and left elevate his arms. As such Joshua, the Commander and Chief, and his men mow down their enemies with the sword.
The Two Standards present a mortal battle that is waged within us. To win the battle we must rely on the strength of God. However, of great importance is to know the way, the tactics, and the astute and crafty measures that the enemy uses to win souls over to him, and the means to counter them. Therefore, we will humbly beg for the grace of self-knowledge and awareness of the many ways the devil works in our lives with the purpose of tempting, enslaving, and dragging us away from Jesus, our true Captain!
One of the fundamental truths in the Spiritual Exercises is the reality of Spiritual Warfare. In other words, we are constantly in a battle between good and evil, the lie against the truth; sin as opposed to virtue. In the Two Standards, Saint Ignatius presents the two different camps or battlefields. Jesus, standing erect and surrounded by His followers, sends them out with the message of embracing poverty, detachment, and even humiliations. Satan, on the contrary, sends his devils out using the nets of riches, vanity, and pride—and from these all the other attractions which eventually are transformed into chains and vices.
In this Meditation we would like to raise our spiritual antennae on high so as to capture the bad waves that we call temptations and that the enemy, Satan, is accustomed to launch at the followers of Christ. What are these?
1. STATE OF DESOLATION. Part of living is the reality of desolation. Nobody is exempt from this state, nor should we be ashamed when we encounter ourselves in this state. However, we must know what to do in this state, what is our spiritual strategy when in desolation. Sadness, depression, discouragement, lack of faith, hope, and charity, a desire to throw the towel in and give up—these are all manifestations of the state of desolation. Be very clear on this: this state of desolation is when the devil always seeks to tempt us. Be aware and be well-armed!
2. LAZINESS. How true the saying: “Idleness is the workshop of the devil.” When we have nothing to do, no plans, a lot of free time on our hands, this is a big opening for the devil to attack. A saint has said: “When we are busy, one devil is present to tempt us. However, when we have nothing to do, then an army of devils are on the prowl to attack.” Rewind the film of your life and you will see how many of your sins were preceded by laziness, indolence, and lack of an orderly schedule.
3. THE DEVIL IS STRONG WITH THE WEAK, BUT WEAK WITH THE STRONG. This is a summary of Rule 12 in the Rules for Discernment of Spirits. What is meant by this concept is the following: When the devil tempts you and you start to give in, then the devil becomes all the more powerful and shoots for the kill. However, if you are tempted but reject the temptation at the outset, manfully rebuffing the assault of the devil, then coward that he is, the devil recoils and retreats until another opportunity presents itself.
4. KEEP IT A SECRET. Another Rule for Discernment of Spirits that explains the tactics of the devil is Rule 13. In this Rule, Saint Ignatius explains that the tactic of the devil is to move you to keep your interior state of turmoil, confusion, sadness, and desolation to yourself. Then the devil magnifies the problem in your mind. In a word, he turns a mole-hill into a mountain. He takes something relatively small and blows it out of proportion. One of the keys to conquering the devil is to have a set Confessor or Spiritual Director to whom you can open up freely, easily, frankly, and with total transparency. In the Diary of Saint Faustina there is an entry in which she speaks about the importance of opening up to a Confessor or Director. This exposes, deflates, and defeats the lies of the devil—knocking the wind out of his sails!
5. GET TO KNOW YOUR KRYPTONITE. The last Rule for Discernment of Spirits of the First Week of the Spiritual Exercises is Rule 14 and it is indeed a masterpiece. An easy summary of this Rule is to go back to SUPERMAN and see this strong man weakened when exposed to the famous alien mineral KRYPTONITE. Put bluntly, the devil knows our weak point; he knows when we are vulnerable and weak, and with all his cleverness, wiliness, and machinations he aims for the kill. Athletes, debaters, soldiers, all are aware of the importance of knowing their own weak-point and the weak-point of their opponent!
6. WHAT IS MY KRYPTONITE??? Great question! If you rewind the scheme of the Spiritual Exercises, you will remember the meditation on the Seven Capital Sins. You begged for the grace of SELF-KNOWLEDGE. Behold the list: Gluttony, Sloth, Lust, Greed, Envy, Anger and Pride. We are all infected by all of the Seven Capital Sins as a result of Original Sin, but there is one or two that are predominate in our life right now. To conquer the enemy, we must pinpoint these weak points and work on practicing the opposite virtues!
7. PRESSURE, ANXIETY, OVER-LOADED WITH WORK, TENSION. All of these sentiments that we all experience to at least a limited degree can open the door to the attacks of the devil. In the midst of turmoil, we must strive always to maintain interior peace of soul by trusting in God! When we place our trust in God, the power of the devil is greatly diminished.
8. LACK OF PRAYER: A TRUE OPEN DOOR FOR THE ENEMY! Without a doubt, one of the most powerful and revealing Biblical passages that explains this number related to a lack of prayer or at least a weak prayer life is the whole scene of Jesus and the Apostles in the Agony in the Garden. Jesus experienced a most profound desolation, so much so that He actually sweat huge drops of Blood. Jesus is a model for us; in this profound state of desolation, He prayed all the more fervently! As a result, He was given the power to drink the Chalice and undergo His cruel and agonizing Passion and death for our salvation. Quite the contrary with the three Apostles—Peter, James, and John. Instead of praying, these three best friends of Jesus fell asleep. Due to giving in to desolation and not praying, they abandoned Jesus when He needed them most! If you look back in retrospect over your life, you will notice a common denominator: lack of prayer leads to desolation and falling into sin. It can almost be proven mathematically! In short, we must be striving constantly for faithfulness and dynamic growth in our prayer life!
9. WATCH OVER THOSE EYES. Today more than ever, the devil can use the modern electronics media as a window through which he can tempt us, attack us, and win us over. Remember the sin of David!!! Therefore, it must be said with utmost honesty that individually, personally, and in the family there must be a constant vigilance over access and use of the Internet. Saint Elizabeth Seton (in the 18th century) had a vision that a black-box would enter into the homes of the United States, and this little black-box would end up wreaking havoc and destroying numberless families. We will leave the interpretation of that little black-box up to you!
10. SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT/MILIEUX. Finally, it must be highlighted, the reality of certain places can easily be an occasion for temptations of the devil. We must always rely upon the grace of God in all times and in all places. “Our help is in the name of the Lord who made heaven and earth.” (Ps. 124:8) However, it is incumbent upon us to avoid any person, place, thing, or circumstance that opens up the door to the possibility of the devil tempting us. Indeed, “he who plays with fire will get burnt.” What does this mean in concrete? Certain persons, places or situations are often a near occasion of sin for us and the devil jumps at these opportunities! Bars, Casinos, being alone with certain people, exposed to a gossiper, alone with the big-screen or phone, and certain friends who are really not friends at all!!! All of these and many more can pave the way for the devil launching his fiery arrows ready for the kill!
Final words of wisdom. Remember the Acronym B.U. T. Be aware! Understand! Take action! And remember to turn to the Blessed Mother Mary and Saint Joseph in your temptations – both have the title: Terror of Demons.
Copyright 2020 Oblates of the Virgin Mary
St. Peter Chanel Church, Hawaiian Gardens, CA
