God knows more than we do, and sometimes hard times may do us as much good as good times. St. Leo the Great reminds us to be thankful for both, and let the uncertainty of life teach us spiritual constancy. God wants us to be good, because he is good. So none of God’s judgments should displease us. For if we don’t give him thanks in all things, what are we doing but blaming him to some extent? Let whatever... Read more
Making a humorous but still pointed apology for a long sermon, St. Basil tells his congregation that the longer he keeps them there, the longer they stay out of trouble. Unless your leisure is also filled with love of the Lord, it’s easy to fall into the pit of vice. I’m ashamed to see that my sermon has gone on longer than usual. If I consider the abundance of matters on which I have just discoursed to you, I feel... Read more
St. Basil points to the bees as an example to all Christians. They work industriously with no complaints, their queen leads them by mildness (St. Basil calls it a king, but most of the rest of his entomology is surprisingly accurate), and if they sting they die. Some of these unreasoning creatures even have a government, if the feature of government is to make the activity of all the individuals serve one common end. This may be observed in bees.... Read more
The rich have many problems, says Tatian, and the poor have few. Be satisfied with a little, and you’ll find it much easier to get what you want. I don’t want to be a king. I’m not anxious to be rich. I decline military command. I detest fornication. No insatiable greed makes me go to sea. I don’t strive for chaplets; I have no mad thirst for fame. I despise death; I’m above every kind of disease. Grief does not... Read more
It’s easy to have more than enough to get by, says St. Ambrose. But lust and greed always want more. Control them, and you’ll find that you live in abundance. If you want to be rich, you must be poor. Then you will be rich in everything, if you are poor in spirit. It isn’t property that makes you rich, but the spirit. There are those who humble themselves in the midst of abundant riches, and they act rightly and... Read more
Fish follow the order of nature, says St. Basil, and no one has to tell them to do it. We should learn from the fish to be happy with the place God has given us, and not break God’s laws to take what belongs to others. How is it that each sort of fish, content with the region that has been assigned to it, never travels over its own limits to pass into foreign seas? No surveyor has ever distributed... Read more
Marge Fenelon is a Catholic wife, mother, award-winning author and journalist, blogger, and speaker. She’s been awarded the 2015 Egan Journalism Fellowship, which recognizes exceptional journalists who have demonstrated excellence in their reporting for Catholic media in the United States. She’s written for a variety of Catholic media including National Catholic Register, Our Sunday Visitor, CatholicMom.com, and Catholic Digest. She’s a weekly contributor to Relevant Radio’s “Morning Air Show” and is a popular guest on other Catholic radio and television... Read more
Rome came very close to being destroyed by Attila the Hun, but Pope St. Leo the Great went out unarmed to meet the unstoppable conqueror and somehow persuaded him to turn back. Here Leo scolds the Romans for failing to give proper thanks to God for their deliverance. I beg you, dear friends, let the words of the Savior touch our hearts. When by the power of his mercy he had cured ten lepers, he said that only one out... Read more
We can’t ever completely comprehend the nature of God, says St. Cyril of Jerusalem. But that doesn’t keep us from studying what we can understand and praising God for his glory. But someone might say, “If what God is can never be comprehended, why do you even talk about these things?” So, then, because I can’t drink up the whole river, am I not even allowed to take in moderation what’s good for me? Because with eyes made like mine... Read more
You can’t be a Christian and a grump at the same time, the visionary Hermas is told. If you let grief take hold of you,it will lead you away from God. Get rid of your grief. Don’t crush the Holy Spirit who lives in you, or he might withdraw from you and plead against you to God. For the Spirit of God, who has been given to us to dwell in this body, doesn’t stand for grief or narrowness. So... Read more
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