Let Us Pursue What Makes For Peace And For Mutual Upbuilding

We are given a wealth of devotions in the church, and each of them can and do much good for those who practice them. The rosary, the Jesus prayer, eucharistic adoration, icon corners,  novenas, chaplets, scapulars and the like are all wonderful and capable of helping devout souls attain salvation. If it is good for you, do it. However, one of the worst things to do is to universalize one’s own private devotions and to think something less of those who do not do the ones you do. Not everyone is going to pray the rosary, but this, of itself, does not indicate anything ill about those who do not (if they oppose the rosary, of course, one can point out the error of their objections, but merely not praying the rosary is not indicative of an unfaithful Catholic). We have to realize that the wealth of spiritual resources and traditions in the church are there for us; they are to be used to help us in our pursuit of holiness. If we turn our devotion as a tool to criticize others, we fail to understand and appreciate the tool for it what it is. If we have not love, we have nothing. “And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing” (1 Cor. 13:2-3 RSV). Our devotions should serve to help us increase in love. If we find they are leading us to be critical of others, of judging them because they do not do what we do, we are not following them properly. We are turning our devotions as a thing of self-praise, seeking to prove ourselves better than everyone else, just like the Pharisees of old. “”Beware of practicing your piety before men in order to be seen by them; for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven” (Matt. 6:1 RSV).

If we want to be critical of someone, we should be critical of ourselves:

Do you want to play the judge? Be one for yourself and your own faults – no one will stop you; in fact, in this way you will correct your own sins and sustain no harm from the exercise. But if you neglect your own case and sit in judgment on others, you will not be aware you are amassing a greater burden of sins on yourself.[1]

It is very easy to confuse one’s own methodology of showing appreciation and love to God as being the only way this can be done. The church, in her wisdom, does not think this. The church gives a large variety of practices, even in liturgical celebration. It recognizes different people can and do have different ways of showing their love for God. What is in one’s heart is where one’s devotion is to be found. The actions you do may or may not show irreverence, but if the church permits a particular practice, it indicates reverence can be had in that practice. We must not confuse the ways we best express our reverence as being the ways others best do so. Standing during the consecration can be a sign of great respect or irreverence, but the church has both within her long-standing tradition, and we can find both practices being emphasized in different liturgical rites today. If it is the tradition in a rite to kneel, then one should kneel; there is certainly a kind of humility involved, and so, it does allow for (but not necessitate) reverence. If it is the tradition to stand, then one should stand; the ancient practice was to stand during liturgy as a sign of respect, just like in many public events, it is a sign of respect to stand until a guest of honor is seated. However, if you are looking around and judging what others are doing, it is certain, in your silence you have neglected respect for the eucharist and the communion of love which it is meant to bring. The same can be said in many other liturgical practices: if communion in the hand is allowed, then one cannot judge those who engage it as being irreverent. They might be, but your judgment on them has already turned you away from the communion of love, and therefore, your judgmental attitude has already turned you away from true reverence of the Lord: you are heaping upon yourself the condemnations you put on others. If you want to show reverence to the Lord, judge not your neighbor and their relationship with God. “Who are you to pass judgment on the servant of another? It is before his own master that he stands or falls” (Rom 14:4a RSV).

Follow your conscience, act in the way you feel you are called (as long as the church allows it), and leave the rest up to God.