:: Bloom where you are planted :: Recollections with St. Francis de Sales

RECOLLECTIONS WITH St. FRANCIS DE SALES





JULY 2002 - APRIL 2003



    September 2002:

The Goal of Life

1. Personal Study and Reflection

1.1.    Scripture References

Jn. 14: 6: Jesus said, I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
Phil. 3: 4 -14: I press on toward the goal
Phil. 2: 2-5: Be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind... Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus.
Mt. 5: 48: Be perfect as the heavenly Father is perfect.

1.2. Teaching of St. Francis de Sales

St. Francis de Sales, while inviting us to fix our gaze on our real goal presents in contrast the distorted goals, which many follow:

" ...Preoccupied and anxious in gathering wealth...

.. .obsessed with worthless things...

...corrupted by their brutish longings..." (cf. Introduction to Devout Life, Part I, Chapter 18).

Having pointed out the goals that lead us astray, St Francis de Sales places before us very forcefully the goal of the human person as well as of the whole universe.

"The Human person is the perfection of the universe Spirit is the perfection of the human person Love is the perfection of spirit Charity is the perfection of love.”

That is why the love of God is the goal, the crowning point, the be-all and end-all of the universe" (Treatise on the Love of God, Book 10, Chapter 1).

The distorted goals lead us to Death and Hell and the real goal leads us to Life and Heaven.

1.3. Biographical Notes: Trial in Paris

From December 1586 to Jan 1587, Francis, then nineteen years of age, underwent a terrible crisis, a temptation, a trial. There were several causes: his natural tendency to anxiety and the problem of pre-destination that was keenly discussed in theological circles in those days. Above all, there was a mystical dimension to the trial: an unselfish, pure love of God and total surrender to Him in which lay the answer to his problems as he was being tempted to despair of his own salvation.

One day in January 1587, Francis went into the church of St. Etienne des Gres. He went to the chapel of Our Lady and knelt down in front of the statue. He was inspired to make an unconditional surrender of his salvation to God, using the words: "O God, Just Judge and Merciful Father, at least in this life will I love you, if it is not given to me to love you in life everlasting." Then he saw there a card with the prayer Memorare: "Remember, O Most Gracious Virgin Mary..." He took it and earnestly prayed it. He was instantly healed. The temptation vanished. Strength and confidence returned to him.

(From the Biographical Note in the MSFS translation of the Introduction to Devout Life, 1995, p. 25.)

2. Apostolic Community Meeting

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Shared Prayer before the Blessed Sacrament (One Hour)

Points for Reflection and Sharing:

What was Jesus' goal in life? Explain to the group.

Whenever you are faced with any kind of trial, is your first reaction to accept and surrender yourself to the Lord?

Have you a definite goal in life? Can you express it in clear terms?

Do you enable those in your pastoral care to have a clear vision of life and a definite goal in life?

Recall a concrete situation or an anecdote and explain how you would act with the mind of Christ.

3. Evaluation and Decisions

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Share the concrete follow up of the decisions taken.

What practical steps do we need to take to assimilate at the individual and community level the insights we have gained from this Recollection?