Resolutions of St. Maria Faustina

Yesterday I posted Pope John XXIII's daily decalogue. Today it's Sister Faustina's resolutions from her diary. Like Pope John XXIII, she offers me concrete ways to grow in love, virtue and holiness. I've never been much for making New Year's resolutions, but I do follow St. Francis de Sales' advice to make a resolution each morning and stick to it throughout the day ahead. Since he wisely observes that unless we're specific in our resolutions, they will amount to nothing, I strive to make my resolution as particular as possible. For example, let's say that today my resolution is #8. As I review my schedule for the next 24 hours, I note that it's going to be the sort of day wherein "the whirl of work" may possibly consume me. So I carefully plan here and there for mini retreats to "look up to heaven" so as to refresh my soul and restore my balance. Between Pope John XXIII and St. Faustina, I have an ample supply of resolutions for the year ahead. And every day, thanks be to God, I can begin afresh. Oh, glory!

RESOLUTIONS OF ST. FAUSTINA
from her Dairy of Divine Mercy, #226-227

1. The duty of the moment that I most often fail to obey, I will do my very best to improve.

2. I will keep silent before others who grumble.

3. I must take no heed of the opinion of others.

4. I must do everything and act in all matter now as I would like to do at the hour of my death.

5. In every action I must be mindful of God.

6. I must be faithful in my spiritual exercises.

7. I must have great appreciation for even the most minute task.

8. I must not let myself become absorbed in the whirl of work, but take a break to look up to Heaven.

9. I must speak little with people, but a good deal with God.

10. I must pay little attention to who is for me and who is against me.

11. I must not tell others about those things I have had to put up with.

12. I must maintain peace and equanimity during times of suffering.

13. In difficult moments I must take refuge in the wounds of Jesus; I must seek consolation, comfort, light and affirmation in them.

14. In the midst of trails I will try to see the loving hand of God.

Dear Saint Faustina, please pray for me to be at peace in Divine Mercy. Amen!

Today's Memorial: St. Maria Faustina Kowalska

When I look into the future, I am frightened. But why plunge into the future? Only the present moment is precious to me, as the future may never enter my soul at all.

It is no longer in my power to change, correct or add to the past; for neither sages nor prophets could do that. And so, what the past has embraced I must entrust to God.

O present moment, you belong to me, whole and entire. I desire to use you as best I can. And although I am weak and small, you grant me the grace of your omnipotence.
And so, trusting in Your mercy, I walk through life a little child, offering You each day this heart burning with love for Your greater glory.

~St. Maria Faustina Kowalska, Divine Mercy In My Soul

Dear Lord, how greatly I exult in the gift, the wonder, the utter joy of this and every present moment! May I live them well for You. Thank you, my Jesus, for your divine mercy in my soul. Amen.

No Measure In Mercy

Praise the Lord, my soul, for everything, and glorify His mercy, for His goodness is without end. Everything will pass, but His mercy is without limit or end. And although evil will attain its measure, in mercy there is no measure. ~from Divine Mercy In My Soul (#423) by St. Maria Faustina

Photography by Ann L. Krumrein

Days of Work and of Monotony

One of my regular tasks as weekday sacristan in my parish is to clean the two thuribles, which get used a lot since we're one of the largest parishes in Texas. We have nine Sunday Masses along with many weddings and funerals week after week. When incense is placed on the lit charcoal inside the thurible, it releases oil, which gets cooked onto the inside as the heat and smoke rise. By Monday morning, I can always count on finding a thick layer of gunk inside the thuribles. What a mess! And it must be cleaned up because if the gunk isn't removed, it gets pretty stinky the next time the thurible is used. So I pull out my ample supply of Goo-Gone, steel wool and elbow grease, set myself to the task at hand, and soon everything is bright and shiny. But no sooner do I finish, it seems, than the process starts all over again…and again…and again.

In what St. Francis de Sales calls the inferior part of my soul, I've had my moments when I've felt as though this is an exercise in futility that I'm doomed to repeat in perpetuity. But Providence recently led me to this passage in my well-worn copy of St. Maria Faustina's diary, Divine Mercy In My Soul:

"Now a gray, ordinary day has begun...O you days of work and of monotony, you are not monotonous to me at all, for each moment brings me new graces and opportunity to do good."

Just the reminder that I needed! Yes, the light of Christ shines through all our gray, ordinary days, filling every moment with His radiant beauty. Even in my solitary task of cleaning the thuribles, I can do good – by doing the best job I can, by thinking positive thoughts, by praying for others, and by contemplating the Lord of All who spent many years living a simple life in Nazareth where he worked as a carpenter.

Thank you, dear Lord, for being the light of our world! Amen!

St. Faustina and the Present Moment

O Jesus, I want to live in the present moment, to live as if this were the last day of my life. I want to use every moment scrupulously for the greater glory of God, to use every circumstance for the benefit of my soul. I want to look upon everything from the point of view that nothing happens without the will of God. God of unfathomable mercy, embrace the whole world and pour Yourself out upon us through the merciful Heart of Jesus.

St. Faustina in Divine Mercy in My Soul, #1183

Divine Mercy Sunday

Today we celebrate Divine Mercy Sunday. We can be sure that our devotion to Divine Mercy is authentic and pleasing to God when it leads us to works of mercy in our everyday lives. As Our Lord said to St. Faustina, to whom He revealed Himself as Divine Mercy, "I demand from you deeds of mercy which are to arise out of love for me. You are to show mercy to your neighbors always and everywhere. You must not shrink from this or try to excuse yourself from it." (Divine Mercy in My Soul, #742).

The Catechism of the Catholic Church (#2447) states: "The works of mercy are charitable actions by which we come to the aid of our neighbor in his spiritual and bodily necessities. [Isa 58:6-7; Heb 13:3] Instructing, advising, consoling, comforting are spiritual works of mercy, as are forgiving and bearing wrongs patiently. The corporal works of mercy consist especially in feeding the hungry, sheltering the homeless, clothing the naked, visiting the sick and imprisoned, and burying the dead. [Mt 25:31-46] Among all these, giving alms to the poor is one of the chief witnesses to fraternal charity: it is also a work of justice pleasing to God." [Tob 4:5-11; Sir 17:22; Mt 6:2-4]

The Scriptural basis for the corporal works of mercy is, of course, the parable in the Gospel of Matthew in which Jesus teaches his disciples about God’s criteria for the Last Judgement (Mt 25:35-42).

Scripture passages that provide a basis for the spiritual works of mercy include:

My brothers, if someone is detected in sin, you who live by the Spirit should gently set him right. (Gal 6:1)

Let the word of Christ, rich as it is, dwell in you. In wisdom made perfect, instruct and admonish one another. (Col 3:16)

Correct those who are confused. (Jude 23)

As a mother comforts her son, so I will comfort you. (Is 66:13)

Help carry one another’s burdens; in that way you will fulfill the law of Christ. (Gal 6:2)

Because you are God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with heartfelt mercy, with kindness, humility, meekness and patience. Bear with one another; forgive whatever grievances you have against one another. Forgive as the Lord has forgiven you. (Col 3:12)

Pray constantly and attentively for all. (Eph 6:18)

As I reflected on the works of mercy earlier today, I thought about how important discretion is in my practice of them. Being discreet will keep me from embarrassing those on the receiving end as well as from being pleased with myself over my kindness to others. Our Merciful Lord told St. Faustina that our deeds of mercy should arise out of love for Him. Such love gives birth to discretion. So does remembering how merciful God is to me. As St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus said, "To me He has shown infinite mercy." Blessed be Jesus, our Divine Mercy!