Traditional Catholic Teaching - Fourth Sunday after Epiphany

Fourth Sunday after Epiphany

Lord, save us, we perish. St. Matthew 8: 25

We are sailing, as it were, on the ocean of life, and are perpetually in danger of shipwreck and of failing to secure our Salvation. We ought, therefore, always to be filled with fear, and such fear is beneficial, not injurious to us, whereas false assurance of safety, by making men fancy themselves incapable of falling, often brings about their ruin. If always and everywhere we feel this wholesome fear, and if we distrust our own great weakness, we shall cling with confidence to Him who is able to support us, and we shall ever be mindful of God's holy presence.

Because Jesus was with them, the disciples in their hour of peril cried: "Lord, save us!" We may learn from this short prayer how we too ought frequently to remind ourselves of God's presence. Wherever we are, let us lift up our hearts to God in short but fervent prayers, or exclamations. This practice is very important, and is in fact inseparable front that of living constantly in the presence of God; for such Exclamatory Prayers (sometimes called "Arrow Prayers") are glances at Him, and help us to do right and avoid evil. By means of them we are reminded of many virtues, especially at the moment when we are a called upon to practise them. They suggest to us now a heartfelt act of faith, now a resolution to trust implicitly in God, and now a feeling of love. In times of temptation we send up a short prayer beg for strength from God, and it serves to recall to us His and guard us against suggestions of evil, whilst, when we are hesitating between two courses, it is an admonition not to stray I from the path that God would have us follow. If we frequently lift up our hearts to Him thus, our understanding will be enlightened, our perception of what is dangerous and sinful will be quickened, and our will to strip off all earthy weakness and attachments will be strengthened.

If many times in the day we send up to God these little flashes of prayer, we shall really be praying without ceasing, and, as St. John Chrysostom says, we are withdrawing ourselves for a brief space from the company of men, in order to join with the holy angels in praising God. By means of these frequent glances at Him we may to some extent imitate the saints in glory, who always behold Him and praise Him without interruption.

These short prayers have the advantage of being always available. They do not interfere with our work, nor do they check any enjoyment that is pleasing to God; on the contrary, they complete and sanctify everything that we do. They can even take the place of our regular prayers, if for some good reason we cannot devote our usual time to them, and, when in case of illness we are too weak to make long prayers, short exclamations bring comfort and strength. Happy is the soul that at its last hour departs to God with the words: "Lord, into Thy hands I commend my spirit"; it seems to be borne aloft on wings of submission and love. Our Saviour, dying on the Cross, set us the best example how to lift up our hearts in words few indeed, but full of ardent love.

What ought we to take as the subject of these short aspirations to be made frequently throughout the day?

A pious man has said with perfect truth that everything heard, seen or perceived supplies us with a subject or motive for such aspirations. If only we were in the habit of referring the things in our daily life to God, any sight, any word heard, any little event would be enough to fill our minds with thoughts of faith, hope, charity, sorrow for our sins, or joy at God's mercy, goodness and wisdom. An Exclamatory Prayer may often consist of some saying that we have heard, or of a text from Holy Scripture or of a quotation from some pious writer, which we constantly call to mind. In speaking of spiritual reading and of meditation, I pointed out how excellent a plan it was to sum up in a few short words the chief points that we have noticed, and to go back upon these words often in the course of the day. By doing this we are lifting up our hearts to God, a most important and beneficial thing, and it is only thus that any lasting good is derived from reading and meditation. We may very likely forget what we have read and thought, and even our good resolutions are apt to vanish, unless they are constantly renewed. A kind of spiritual motto, however, comes back again and again to our minds, and serves to impress the whole subject more deeply upon our memory, and at the same time it increases the grace of God within us by means of the devotion and good will that we show when we repeat it. It is not difficult to connect such aspirations with particular times, places or things, so that each of the latter inevitably suggests to us one special pious thought or exclamation. Good prayer books supply us with many instances of such short prayers.

Some may be connected with definite moments in our daily life; thus, on awakening, we may say: "All for love of God!" or "Lord Jesus, in Thy Name I will begin this day," or "If this were to be the last day of my life, should I spend it in sin? Give me, therefore, grace to resist all impulses to anger, envy, etc., and all evil thoughts and inclinations."

On lying down to rest at night: "I lie down not knowing whether I shall ever wake again. Therefore I put myself in Thy Hands, that Thou mayst protect me in body and in soul." Particular places may be made to suggest short aspirations. For instance, when we see a church, we may offer a little prayer to Jesus in the most Holy Sacrament of the altar. When we go into any house, we may say: "Peace be to this house and to all that dwell in it." Such thoughts as these would often put us on our guard against frivolous and uncharitable conversation, which is so apt to destroy peace. Particular things seen may remind us to say a few words of prayer. Why are crosses, statues and pictures of saints put up in our houses and streets unless it be that the sight of them may suggest a pious thought to those who are prone to forget such things amidst the business of life? The striking of a clock ought to remind us how quickly time flies, and that it behooves us to make good use of it. The tolling of the passing-bell should make even the most thoughtless reflect: "Thou, too, wilt soon appear before thy Judge."

It is true that at first it is somewhat difficult to form the habit of making Exclamatory Prayers, and we are so careless and so much distracted by the work, joys and sorrows of our every-day life, that we easily forget them. Yet everything that seems hard at first grows easy by practice, and finally becomes a sort of second nature.

I would gladly see you adopt this practice, but you must beware of praying mechanically, merely from force of habit saying certain words on certain occasions, without thinking about them at all, and without deriving fervor, admonition and comfort from their meaning and from all that they contain. They should not simply be repeated, but they should influence you in your actions. Accustom yourselves frequently to lift up your hearts to God in holy aspirations, and then even if you have no friend at hand to counsel you, you will never lack advice; if you no longer hear words of comfort, you will enjoy the sweetest consolation; and even if everything seems dull, mean and commonplace, you will be truly united to God. You will never perish through thoughtlessness, for Jesus will ever be with you, if only you call upon Him saying: "Lord, save us!" He will guide you safely through all the monotony and all the storms of life. Amen.

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