The 7 gifts of the Holy Spirit; knowledge

We are getting there, 5 gifts down, 2 more to go!  The great feast of Pentecost is only a few days away now!  It is time to really get excited, to pray more fervently than ever for the gifts of the Holy Spirit, that they may come down on the people of God like never before, and put us on fire like never before for the Gospel!


These last three gifts (understanding, knowledge, and wisdom), as I stated last time, sound similar, but are distinct.   We discussed understanding in the last post.  Tonight, we will discuss the gift of knowledge.  Here is my definition of knowledge that I gave in my summary several posts back.


The gift of knowledge is a result of the gift of wisdom.  Whereas wisdom allows us to desire the things of God, and therefore see the world and our life in it accordingly, knowledge is our actual seeing of those aforementioned things.



As I said before, we are not going in the order we originally listed them.  Since wisdom is the highest gift, we are ending with it, not starting with it, even though it is traditionally known as the 1st Gift of the Spirit.  Therefore, that definition I just gave may not make much sense, since we have not discussed wisdom yet.  Let's just say for now that wisdom deals directly with God, especially as the cause of all things, whereas knowledge deals with the created things of God.  (Again, we will discuss wisdom more in the next post.)




This gift of knowledge has many profound effects.  Now, as you read these, some of these may seem like sad things, and after reading this, you may not think this gift will make you happy.  Indeed, some of the things this gift enlightens us to can, and perhaps should, trouble us.  However, this gift also gives us the peace and consolation that comes with all the gifts of the Spirit.  We who are graced to receive it will know true peace and joy, true happiness.




Here are the effects:




1) It helps us see created things as God sees them.  It teaches us how to use them in a holy way.  For example, we come to know how and when and when not to use our sexual faculties.  We see that our end cannot be created things alone.  We see there is another life, that this one is a "valley of tears". 



2) It engenders a sense of sorrow for when we were wrong about things.  We see our defects and the defects of mundane things in general. 



3) It enlightens us to the state of our souls. It enables to know quickly and rightly where we are in the spiritual life, and what we need to do for our sanctification, and for that of others. 



4) Often suffering accompanies this gift because we see how difficult things truly are (for example, the reality that many souls may be in jeopardy because of how bad things are in the Church with poor attendance and poor catechesis).  True reality is seen and felt in all its splendor, and in its depths of misery, as well.   



5) It helps us to discern when someone or something is saying or doing, or not saying or doing, something in harmony with the Faith.  It helps us overcome those challenging the Faith, and gives us what we need to effectively share it with others. 



6) It allows us to discern the best way to interact with our neighbor so it leads us both to eternal life.




This gift is connected with the Beatitude "Blessed are those who mourn."  Matthew 5:4.  I think we can see why when we consider the effects of the gift as summarized above.  Those who are in tune with reality know that they must lament their sins, their state in life, as well as the state of the world, so as to truly acknowledge reality, and turn to God for meaning, purpose, strength, and guidance.




To dispose us to receive this gift, we can:



1) As for all the gifts, practice prayer, recollection, and mortification.



2) Consider the vanity of created things.



3) Refer all created things to God.



4)  Oppose the spirit of the world.



5)  See the hand of God in the government of the world and our lives.



6)  Cultivate simplicity of heart, so we desire God, and not the things of the world.




So far, the gifts of the Spirit have led us to acknowledge our place in the order of things (fear of the Lord),  garner strength to begin and persevere in our journey to God (fortitude) , gain a healthy respect, love and devotion to God and others (piety),  receive and give insight from God and others on our journey to God (counsel),  understand the Faith he has gifted us with (understanding), and see his hand in the created world (knowledge).




Now, in the next post, we will discover the greatest gift, wisdom, which points us more directly to the mystery of God himself than any of the other gifts have.




Joseph, solace of the wretched, pray for us.

The 7 gifts of the Holy Spirit; understanding

We now move on to the final, the greatest three gifts of the Holy Spirit, and that is understanding, knowledge, and wisdom.  These gifts deal more directly with speculative matters than practical, so we may think them less important in our day to day lives.  However, just as contemplation of God is a greater good than action on his behalf (see the Gospel story of Martha and Mary), so too then gifts that dispose us to contemplation must be considered higher than gifts that dispose us to right action, important and as valuable and as life giving as those more "practical" gifts are.   However, even though these gifts are not directly geared toward something practical, they can give us insights that will help us make better practical decisions, so we can, in a sense, say they are indirectly practical, in addition to being speculative.



These three words (understanding, knowledge, and wisdom) in common parlance can mean similar things, but they are distinct at least when discussing the gifts of the Spirit.  We will begin today with understanding.



Here is the definition of understanding that I gave in my summary at the start of this series.



Understanding is indeed similar to wisdom, but slightly different.   Understanding goes beyond just accepting and valuing the truths of the Faith, but it allows us, as it implies, to "understand" them a little bit, although that will be impossible to do 100% this side of eternity.



This gift gives us an intuitive certitude about some aspect of the Faith.    It allows us to go beyond just assent to a truth that God has revealed (which is an aspect of the theological virtue of faith), to being certain of it.  We see the truth with a level of clarity that is not possible on human effort alone.  We see also how that truth fits in with all the other truths, and so, we see how the faith is a coherent, dynamic, harmonious, package.  It keeps us from thinking of God in a human way.  It also allows us to recognize when something that is said is not compatible with the truth.



This gift corresponds with the Beatitude that says "Blessed are the clean of heart for they shall see God" (Matthew 5:8).  Faith helps us see and understand God as he truly is.  This gift allows us to understand the Faith with more clarity and certitude.  Therefore, it stands to reason that this gift will allow us to see God more clearly.




Here are the effects of this gift:



1) It discloses hidden meaning of Scriptures (i.e. symbols in the Old Testament as precursors of things in the New Testament [for example, Jonah three days in body of whale prefigures Jesus three days buried in the Earth]).


2) We can likewise see deeper meanings of the sensible things in the liturgy of the Church (i.e. we see a heavenly banquet, and Christ's Body and Blood at Mass).


3) It allows us to see causes and effects of God, saints, also the devil and his legions, and how they operate in the world.


4)  It strengthens our faith.


5)  It helps us to contemplate God, by seeing the truths of Faith as he sees it.



To dispose us to receive this gift, we can:



1) Prayer and practice mortification (which we have said is valuable to help one be disposed for all the gifts).



2) Work to become holier, so we can see the faith with more clarity.



3) Seek purity of soul and body; faith is easier to understand when our own lives are integrated.



4) Practice frequent interior recollection to quiet and focus our minds.



5) Make acts of faith (see prayer below for an example of one).



6) Study the faith (for example, commit to read a few paragraphs from the Catechism everyday.)



In the world today, we see many whose faith life is divorced, or not integrated with their overall life.  For example, we see people who say they are Catholic, but vote to enact pro-abortion policies, or think it not a big deal to miss Mass on Sundays.  The faith in them is something "cornered off" so to speak, and not, as we say, "stirred up" throughout their bodies and souls.  And there are many who may live good Catholic lives, but who have a hard time explaining or defending the Faith.    This is all evidence that this gift of understanding is not operating in the way it can be in the lives of many faithful.



Every single one of us, including this blogger, needs more of this gift of understanding operative in our life.  As I stated above, making acts of faith can help us be more disposed to receive this gift.  If we each said the below short prayer just once a day, I believe it could make a huge impact in having this gift more operative in our lives, and our lives would have more impact in the Church and in the world.



O my God, I firmly believe that you are one God in three Divine Persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; I believe that your Divine Son became man, and died for our sins, and that He will come to judge the living and the dead. I believe these and all the truths the Holy Catholic Church teaches because You have revealed them, who can neither deceive nor be deceived.



Joseph, light of Patriarchs, pray for us.

The 7 gifts of the Holy Spirit; counsel

Earlier today, we discussed the gift of piety.  We now move on to the fourth of seven gifts, counsel. 



Before proceeding further, you may notice that I am not discussing these gifts in the same order I listed them in before when I summarized them all.  The order I had them in in my initial summary is the traditional one (wisdom being the highest, and fear of the Lord being the last.)   However, the order I am going in in this series of posts is the order used by a priest I respect who gave a detailed talk on these gifts.  I like it because fear of the Lord (the first one he discussed)  is the foundation of being able to receive all the other gifts, and therefore, it made sense for me to start with that one.  The order I am using here goes from that foundational gift all the way to the highest (wisdom).  I think it makes sense to go that way.



This was the definition of counsel that I gave in my summary of the gifts several posts back:



Counsel is the gift that allows us to judge what we should do in a particular instance, almost by instinct.  It is like, as it implies, that we have a "counselor" inside us, giving us very good advice.



This gift is God, who knows everything, directing us in what to do so that our action leads us to him in the way of salvation and sanctification (which is being made holy, more and more in the image and likeness of God.)



This gift has these affects:



1) It prevents us from the danger of a false conscience.

2) It provides solutions to unexpected situations and problems.

3) It gives superiors guidance how to direct people under them.

4) It increases docility to legitimate superiors.



Here is how you can cultivate this gift:



1) Pray and practice mortification, as with all the other gifts we have discussed.

2) Practice humility so you can more readily accept the promptings of the Lord.

3) Foster patience; God will let us know what to do at the right time

4) Listen to God, rather than be influenced by human considerations.

5) Act upon his promptings, and he will be inclined to give us more promptings in the future.

6) Practice silence so you can hear better the promptings of God.



The gift of counsel is closely connected with the Beatitude "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy." (Matthew 5:7).  The gift of counsel, Aquinas notes, directs the distribution of mercy.   Two of the spiritual works of mercy; instructing the ignorant, and counseling the doubtful, link to this gift the most as they imply giving direction to someone.    Every time this gift is operative in our life, it is an act of mercy, since we are given direction which will lead us to a place(s) we could not have gone ourselves, and on our own, our actions would have led us to a place(s) that most likely would have been bad for us.



It is extremely important for all of us, but especially for Church leaders, to have this gift operative.  This gift will give the leaders of the Church insight into how to stir up, coordinate and distribute the many gifts that exist in the Body of Christ.   This gift ensures they will function together appropriately, and build unity, and not divide.



Finally, the gift of counsel perfects the virtue of prudence.  Exactly one year ago today actually, on a post on the four cardinal virtues, I quoted from paragraph 1806 in the Catechism , "prudence is the virtue that disposes practical reason to discern our true good in every circumstance and to choose the right means of achieving it".  However, this gift of counsel is different from this virtue of prudence in that in this gift, it is God that operates with a grace, whereas in the virtue, it is we who operate with reason.  Practicing prudence disposes us to the workings of God, especially this gift, but it is distinct, as are all the gifts, from all the virtues.  The gifts perfect the virtues.



This gift is a wonderful treasure.  Its existence shows that we never have to worry if we have what we need to make the right decisions in life, and/or that we will indeed make them.  As long as we are in a state of grace (free from mortal sin), and practice at least a few of the suggestions above to make us more disposed to receive this gift, we can be assured that we will be given what is necessary to make the right decisions, even if they be difficult ones.



Joseph, most obedient, pray for us.

The 7 gifts of the Holy Spirit; piety

We now move on to the third of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit, piety, as we continue to prepare for the great feast of Pentecost in a little over a week.

Here is the definition of piety that I gave in my overview of the gifts several posts ago:

Piety is the gift of desire to please God by worshiping and serving Him, this God whom we have come to know and understand a little via the other aforementioned gifts of wisdom, understanding, and knowledge.  It gives us the grace to practice true religion. 

The gift of piety is a filial devotion to God as Father.  It is a desire to be intimate with Him, while maintaining a healthy level of respect and awareness that we are not him, and that he is greater than us.   This is the vertical dimension of this gift (there is a horizontal one, which we will note below.)

It is important to note that this gift of piety is distinct from the natural virtue of piety, which is a certain filial love and respect for human authority, notably our parents, and our countries (fatherlands). It is also distinct from the virtue of religion, which is a practice of duty and worship to God as Creator (but not as Father).  The gift of piety perfects the respect and obedience that is practiced in the virtue of religion, but also adds a filial dimension, of which the natural virtue of piety is a reflection of.  This gift makes our worship flow from authentic love, and not from disordered appetites.  We come to worship God from a place of intimacy and closeness with Him.   This gift will dispose one to worship and pray correctly.

I think this balance of love and respect is lacking in many a relationship with God in our times.  We could use a good dose of this gift to bring it to a more healthy balance.  Many of us seem to view as God as distant, not personal, perhaps even something or someone to be feared, while others of us have no fear of him at all, and consider him just "one of us."   This gift of the Spirit allows us to have healthy balance of intimacy and reverence.  The world could stand to have a lot more people in it with this gift operative.(  Of course there are many who do not believe he exists at all, in which case perhaps the gift of the fear of the Lord needs to be experienced first!)

There is also a horizontal dimension to this gift.   When we recognize, and proceed to grow intimate with God as our Father, we realize everyone else is also a child of God, and we treat them with the respect they, too, deserve, and have a love and concern for them.  We will seek to bring others to the merciful Father.  Furthermore, this gift will incline us not just towards fellowship with our fellow creatures on Earth, but also, the cult of the saints in heaven, in veneration of them.   Like our fellow pilgrims on Earth, we honor them as children of God, but we also recognize them of models as to how to properly worship and love of God, and since they are in the presence of God, and can speak to him on our behalf, we pray for their intercession for our needs.

The effects of this gift are as follows:

1) Filial love and respect for the heavenly Father

2) Tender knowledge that leads us to sacrifice for God, in order to please Him

3) Obedience towards the Wisdom of God, his plan for our life

4) Confidence in our heavenly Father, that He will provide all that we need, and he loves us

5) The ability to see and treat our neighbor as brothers and sisters in Christ

To cultivate this gift we can:

1) Practice prayer and mortification (as with all the gifts we have discussed so far).

2) Love our neighbor for God's sake.

3) Foster a spirit of universal kinship of all mankind.

4) Consider all things as belonging to the house of God.

5) Practice abandonment to God, as many spiritual writers propose and describe

6) Reflect often on God's mercy (the practices associated with the Divine Mercy are good for this).

7) Do all our acts in order to please God.

8) Ask the Blessed Mother to intercede and perfect our work and prayer to make it more pleasing to God.

This is a wonderful gift.   It can give us true peace and true love, even in the most difficult moments of our lives.  And even more importantly perhaps, it gives us the graces to spread that true peace and love to others, help them discover the source of it for themselves, and in the process, help spread true, authentic, and lasting peace and love in the world.

Joseph most faithful, pray for us.

The 7 gifts of the Holy Spirit; fortitude

Continuing our series on the 7 gifts of the Holy Spirit, we move on from fear of the Lord to fortitude.  Here is the definition of fortitude I gave in my introduction to this series.



Fortitude is connected to counsel, because it gives us the grace to follow through on the counsel we receive.  It gives us the strength to do what needs to be done, even if it involves possible suffering.



Counsel allows us to judge what to do in a given circumstance.



Sometimes, what we must do is very difficult.  The gift of fortitude gives us the strength to do that, even if what we must do goes beyond the human level.



The gift of fortitude gives us the ability to face things that cause us stress, put us in danger, or even cause our death, if enduring those things is of benefit to our eternal salvation.  It allows us to endure trails and difficulties that come from being faithful to the will of God.  It even gives us certain gladness in suffering for the faith.  The martyrs are great examples of ones who have this grace operative in them to a high degree.   



What does this gift do to us, which allows us to do all of the above?



1)  It gives us relentless vigor in the practice of virtue.   Living virtuously as we know in today's world is difficult, requiring strength.   This gift gives us that strength.

2)  It helps us overcome lukewarmness in living our faith.  

3)  It tempers our fears, whatever they may be of.   

4)  It enables our souls to suffer with patience and joy, and it gives the soul the quality of heroism in great and in small things.



To dispose us to receive this gift, we can:



1)   Engage in prayer and recollection (like we did with fear of the Lord.)

2)   Recognize that our strength comes from God, not ourselves.

3)   Practice fortitude in circumstances of our lives by performing our duties as we are supposed to do them, when we need to do them.  This way, when duties call for something even more heroic, we will be more disposed to do it.

4)  Do not ask for crosses to be removed from our life.  Rather, embrace them.

5)  Make purposeful small sacrifices on a regular basis for a special intention, like the souls in purgatory.  This will dispose us more to be ready when the time comes to make larger sacrifices.



The gift of the Holy Spirit that is fortitude perfects the cardinal virtue of fortitude.  They are similar, but distinct, in that the virtue of fortitude is a disposition to be firm and constant in the pursuit of good whereas the gift gives us the grace to do extraordinary things like suffer martyrdom or some other severe punishment (i.e. torture) for the sake of Christ.   This gift allows us to do supernatural things.  It gives energy, enthusiasm, and vitality to the virtue of fortitude.



Life is hard.  Christian life is especially hard.   How, then, can we make sense of the words of Our Lord when he says, "For my yoke is easy, and my burden light."  (Matthew 11:30).



The answer to that hard question is actually pretty simple.  It is this gift of fortitude.  It allows to ensure all kinds of suffering with an ease and a tranquility, and even a joy, that may or may not surprise us (depending on how far along the spiritual path we are), but will definitely surprise our adversaries, both the devils within, and the devils without.



Joseph most strong, pray for us.

The 7 gifts of the Holy Spirit; fear of the Lord

As stated in the post earlier today, we will devote a separate post for each of the 7 gifts of the Holy Spirit, as we approach the great feast of Pentecost in a few weeks.   I hope to complete a post on each of the gifts prior to that feast.

Before we begin the first gift, though, I would like to clarify one point I made towards the end of the last post, and that is, we don't make use of these gifts ourselves, which I may have implied we did.  These are graces from God in which he operates in us.   We are not the operator of these gifts, God is.  He is the cause of them, and he causes whatever the effects of them are in us.

Also, their work in our lives is usually not very perceptible unless we are pretty far along on the spiritual path.  It is very hard for the spiritual novice to explain how one or more gifts are working in his or her life.  That kind of insight, given by God, can usually only be given by a person in an advanced stage of the spiritual life, or perhaps by his or her spiritual director, who is him or herself very knowledgeable on spiritual things.

Nonetheless, these gifts are given to us, and do have meritorious effects in our lives, so we should seek them no matter what stage of the spiritual life we are at.  Our ability to realize them or explain how they are operating in our lives is not the most important thing, the most important thing is that they are given and operate in our lives.

Tonight, we will begin with fear of the Lord.   It is said in Proverbs 9:10, "the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom."  To me, it is the start of the spiritual life.  Wisdom is considered the "first" gift, and this is considered the lowest.  It makes sense for us, I think, to start here.

Here is the definition of fear of the Lord I gave in the earlier post:

This gift gives us the desire not to offend God, and the certainty He will give us the grace not to.  This is analogous to our relationship with our parents.  We do not want to hurt them, not because we are afraid of them per se, but rather, because we respect them because of how much they mean to us.

There are four types of fear of the Lord, according to Thomas Aquinas.  There is a worldly fear of the punishment of the Lord, in which we fear God's punishment.  There is servile fear of the Lord, in which a person fears going to hell, but has or is given the desire to change to avoid that fate, or is at least aware that he can.   There is initial fear of the Lord, which is fear of offending him because he is good and holy.  This is the first type of fear in which the fear is truly a "holy" fear and not a "scared" fear.   This is the true beginning of turning away from the world and towards God.    Finally, there is filial fear of the Lord, which is fear not so much of offending God directly, but fear for us doing something to offend him. (Initial fear is kind of in between servile and filial.)   This final type of fear, of the Lord, filial, is the one that is given by the Holy Spirit.  One can see, however, that one must normally proceed through the other stages of fear to get to this one, and I do believe we can say the Spirit works to lead us through those stages, although it would seem to me to be more human effort still at this point (see below where I discuss things we can do to help move us along in this process).  The teaching of Aquinas is quite firm that the gift itself in the traditional sense is only the fourth type of fear, filial.

Fear of the Lord does have positive effects.

1) It allows us to see the grandeur, majesty, sanctity and purity of God, and therefore, dispose to us to have a reverence toward him.  (The word "reverence" is sometimes used instead of fear.)

2) It gives us a horror of sin, and sorrow for having committed sin.

3) It gives us a desire to avoid sin, and the near occasions of it.

4) It gives us a perfect detachment from all created things.

5) It gives us a lofty degree of humility.

6) It gives us an appreciation of the spiritual life of grace.

To dispose us to receive this gift, and to increase its operation in our lives, we should meditate often on the majesty and grandeur of God, and the corresponding horror of sin, practice reverence and look on holy things regularly, examine our conscience regularly, as well as practice detachment from earthly things, enter into solitude on regular occasions, and practice the spiritual works of mercy towards others who may like us, need help recognizing the majesty of God, and the horror of sin.

This gift perfects the virtue of hope.  By realizing who God is, and who we are, we turn to him, not ourselves, for our hope of salvation.  It also perfects the cardinal virtue of temperance, because when we fear God, we realize everything comes from him, and we therefore use created things, including our bodies, with reverence, and not to excess or defect.   Finally, this gift corresponds to the Beatitude of poverty of spirit.   When a man fears God, he does not seek greatness in himself.  He, instead, realizes and embraces his littleness, empties himself so as to be full of God, and becomes happier in the process.

Pope Francis has this to say about fear of the Lord. “This is the fear of God: abandonment into the goodness of Our Father who loves us so. … This is what the Holy Spirit does in our hearts: He makes us feel like children in the arms of our Daddy … with the wonder and joy of a child who sees himself served and loved by his Father.”

May we dispose ourselves to receive the gift of fear of the Lord and become true children of God.

Joseph most chaste and obedient, pray for us

 

The 7 gifts of the Holy Spirit revisited

In the Church's liturgical calendar, we are approaching the great Feast of Pentecost, which will be celebrated in two weeks.  Pentecost is known as the "birthday of the Church" because on that day, in the Upper Room, the Apostles and Mary received the promised Holy Spirit, which animates the Church.  It is like the battery that keeps it running (as I heard in a homily this morning).   Indeed, the Catechism states in paragraph 688 that the Holy Spirit can be found in all of the below aspects of the life of the Church.



- in the Scriptures he inspired;

- in the Tradition, to which the Church Fathers are always timely witnesses;

- in the Church's Magisterium, which he assists;

- in the sacramental liturgy, through its words and symbols, in which the Holy Spirit puts us into communion with Christ;

- in prayer, wherein he intercedes for us;

- in the charisms and ministries by which the Church is built up;

- in the signs of apostolic and missionary life;

- in the witness of saints through whom he manifests his holiness and continues the work of salvation.



The Spirit is the Third Person the Blessed Trinity, the love between the Father and the Son.  He is Love itself, the love we have been invited to share in through our Baptism.   He has been present, yet hidden, from the beginning of the world, indeed from eternity.  However, as with the rest of the Trinity, he was fully revealed in a full way in the time of Our Lord Jesus Christ.  Specifically, he was revealed at Pentecost, as the Catechism says in paragraphs 731 and 732:



On the day of Pentecost when the seven weeks of Easter had come to an end, Christ's Passover is fulfilled in the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, manifested, given, and communicated as a divine person: of his fullness, Christ, the Lord, pours out the Spirit in abundance. On that day, the Holy Trinity is fully revealed. Since that day, the Kingdom announced by Christ has been open to those who believe in him: in the humility of the flesh and in faith, they already share in the communion of the Holy Trinity. By his coming, which never ceases, the Holy Spirit causes the world to enter into the "last days," the time of the Church, the Kingdom already inherited though not yet consummated.



As members of the Church, therefore, the Holy Spirit is now, after Pentecost, open and available to each of us.  We received the Holy Spirit at our Baptism, and that gift was completed and ratified at Confirmation. What are the effects of having the Spirit in us?  Well, we can see from the above that the Holy Spirit helps us pray as we ought, he intercedes for us, he gives us charisms to be used for the blessings of others and the build-up of the Church, and he helps us become saints, which really is the end all be all of life itself.



To do all this, the Holy Spirit does not leave us to our own devices.  He gives us gifts.   On May 15 of last year, the feast of Pentecost,  I wrote the following on the 7 gifts of the Holy Spirit:



The Catechism of the Catholic Church speaks of these seven gifts in Paragraph 1830.  The moral life of Christians is sustained by the gifts of the Holy Spirit. These are permanent dispositions which make man docile in following the promptings of the Holy Spirit.



Here are the seven.



1) Wisdom   Wisdom is the gift that allows us to value the truths of the Faith, and see the world through the eyes of that faith.  We see creation as God's gift to us, we see our place in relation to God, and our need of a Savior, the reality that Jesus Christ is that Savior, and that He founded One Church for the salvation of all men.

2) Understanding   Understanding is indeed similar to wisdom, but slightly different.   Understanding goes beyond just accepting and valuing the truths of the Faith, but it allows us, as it implies, to "understand" them a little bit, although that will be impossible to do 100% this side of eternity.

3) Counsel   Counsel is the gift that allows us to judge what we should do in a particular instance, almost by instinct.  It is like, as it implies, that we have a "counselor" inside us, giving us very good advice.

4) Fortitude  Fortitude is connected to counsel, because it gives us the grace to follow through on the counsel we receive.  It gives us the strength to do what needs to be done, even if it involves possible suffering.

5) Knowledge   The gift of knowledge is a result of the gift of wisdom.  Whereas wisdom allows us to desire the things of God, and therefore see the world and our life in it accordingly, knowledge is our actual seeing of those aforementioned things.

6) Piety  Piety is the gift of desire to please God by worshiping and serving Him, this God whom we have come to know and understand a little via the other aforementioned gifts of wisdom, understanding, and knowledge.  It gives us the grace to practice true religion. 

7) Fear of the Lord  This gift gives us the desire not to offend God, and the certainty He will give us the grace not to.  This is analogous to our relationship with our parents.  We do not want to hurt them, not because we are afraid of them per se, but rather, because we respect them because of how much they mean to us.



This year, I will devote an individual post to each of the above gifts.  I think it is high time that we become more familiar with the Holy Spirit, and how he operates in our life.  Hopefully, by looking into each of these gifts in a little more detail, they will become more operative in each of our lives.  There is no better way to prepare for, and celebrate Pentecost, then by coming to understand, appreciate, and use the gifts of the Spirit to make our lives more holy, and make the Church radiate more fully the splendor of Christ.

The Church and science, Part 7

In this final post in this series on the Church and science, we will look at a few challenges that exist with the Holy Father’s encyclical on the environment, Laudato Si.

Overall, as we hopefully have showed, there is much more positive than negative to the document.  It has a goal, and I hope it is achieved, of bringing the human person back to the center of the discussion in the environment.   Social life has an impact on the environment, and vice versa.   There is just not a world of nature “out there”; there is an internal nature to men and women that needs to factor into discussion of the natural world.    His critique of consumerism and the rapid pace of modern life is certainly worthy of prayerful reflection, as well as his raising attention to some of the negative features of the technological age.   His affirmation of Catholic teaching against forms of population control, and also maintaining the unique dignity of each of the sexes, is noteworthy in an encyclical on the environment.  He points out that other issues, such as resource inequality, are causes of the problems more so than there being too many people in the world.  His perusing of various places in Scripture and Tradition where positive references to the natural world are made, showing it is a gift from God that we must treasure, as well as showing how different doctrines of the Church like the Trinity and the Sacraments also point to, or at least imply, a positive relationship with the environment, are all positive contributions to the current discussion on the environment. 

The main issue with the encyclical, as I see it is as follows.  The Church’s competence is in the area of faith and morals, and a fair amount of this encyclical falls outside that realm, in the realm of science, which is not proper to the Church’s authoritative teaching.   Like we have seen, the Church has a great respect for science.  Many of her members are and have been renowned scientists.   Popes have spoken very highly of scientific endeavors.  However, the Church does not have the authority, in its Magisterial office, to speak authoritatively on matters of science. This is where I fear this encyclical may cross a line.

Few will say that the Pope invoked infallibility here, which he clearly did not.  However, as Catholics, we are called to religious assent, even in non-infallible teachings.   The Catechism states this clearly in paragraph 822 Divine assistance is also given to the successors of the apostles, teaching in communion with the successor of Peter, and, in a particular way, to the bishop of Rome, pastor of the whole Church, when, without arriving at an infallible definition and without pronouncing in a "definitive manner," they propose in the exercise of the ordinary Magisterium a teaching that leads to better understanding of Revelation in matters of faith and morals. To this ordinary teaching the faithful "are to adhere to it with religious assent" which, though distinct from the assent of faith, is nonetheless an extension of it.    I fear that some who read this document will not realize that in matters of science, religious assent is not required.   They may feel they have to because this is, after all, a papal encyclical, assent to everything that is said in there.   I do not believe that that is the case.  This assent is only required in areas of faith and morals, as is clearly outlined in this quote from the Catechism.  

What are some areas where disagreement may occur?  The one that sticks out probably all else is the issue of climate change, which the Holy Father discusses in paragraphs 23-26.  Here are some standout quotes:   A very solid scientific consensus indicates that we are presently witnessing a disturbing warming of the climatic system…It is true that there are other factors (such as volcanic activity, variations in the earth’s orbit and axis, the solar cycle), yet a number of scientific studies indicate that most global warming in recent decades is due to the great concentration of greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide, methane, nitrogen oxides and others) released mainly as a result of human activity… Warming has effects on the carbon cycle. It creates a vicious circle which aggravates the situation even more, affecting the availability of essential resources like drinking water, energy and agricultural production in warmer regions, and leading to the extinction of part of the planet’s biodiversity. The melting in the polar ice caps and in high altitude plains can lead to the dangerous release of methane gas, while the decomposition of frozen organic material can further increase the emission of carbon dioxide. Things are made worse by the loss of tropical forests which would otherwise help to mitigate climate change. Carbon dioxide pollution increases the acidification of the oceans and compromises the marine food chain. If present trends continue, this century may well witness extraordinary climate change and an unprecedented destruction of ecosystems, with serious consequences for all of us.

The Holy Father is stating what he deems facts on science here, not faith and morals.  Therefore, because he is not speaking here on faith or morals, these words, while they demand respect and consideration, do not require the level of religious assent that is typical in Magisterial teaching.

Certainly, the vast majority of people in the scientific field agree climate change is occurring.  A smaller majority, however, would agree that that this change is properly termed “warming”.   And even a smaller majority would posit that this climate change, or global warming, is caused by man.  There is not consensus in the scientific community on this issue, especially on the question of whether the change is caused by human activity.  This encyclical does not give credence to the dissenting opinions.  I myself have a hard time believing in “man made” global warming.  I believe the climate is changing, but it is always changing, as it has for the billions of years it has existed, and that that change is caused more by natural process, that have existed for centuries and centuries, than an by anything a generation or two does or does not do on their short stays on this planet.

The other major issue many could find with this encyclical was its positing government as the primary solution to the environmental problems rather than the free market.   The Holy Father speaks in several areas about the positive value of politics, but rarely does he speak about the positive aspects of business.  Yes, there are ruthless businessmen who will do anything for profits, but at their best, businessmen want to make money, and be sustainable for years to come, and to do so, it would be logical to think that they would want to be environmentally and morally friendly.   

However, in this encyclical, the Holy Father tends to speak about only the positives about political, and not the negative, while doing the reverse about free market business solutions.  This quote is noteworthy: Society, through non-governmental organizations and intermediate groups, must put pressure on governments to develop more rigorous regulations, procedures and controls. Unless citizens control political power – national, regional and municipal – it will not be possible to control damage to the environment.    This seems very alarmist and does not seem to respect the great power of the individual and smaller communities to make an impact in the world in their private lives.   Here is another noteworthy quote; A healthy politics is sorely needed, capable of reforming and coordinating institutions, promoting best practices and overcoming undue pressure and bureaucratic inertia.  The Church has for a long time spoken highly of societal institutions like the family and school; quotes like this seem to reflect not having much faith in them, and that they need political/ government intrusion to function properly.

This encyclical, in my opinion, lacks the balance of previous Papal encyclicals on social justice that struck a balance between the extremes of socialism on one hand and a total free market on the other.  This encyclical, in my reading of it at least, leans much more heavily on the side of government regulation to solve problems rather than the free market.

So, those are my thoughts.   In three short posts, I cannot do this lengthy encyclical complete justice, but I hope I have given you all a fair taste of what is in there, both the good, and the controversial.   I hope not only these three posts, but this entire series, has given you a better appreciation for the Church as a great promoter and believer in science, while recognizing that it (science) serves a larger purpose, and that is the physical and moral development of man.  Part of man’s responsibility and growth is being a good steward of the Earth.  Nature, while distinct from God, is a great gift of God that demands our gratitude and respect, in addition to our good stewardship.

I thank you for joining me for this series.  I welcome any comments on any topic that was brought up in this series, or in any of my blog posts.   I will close this post and series with this prayer which was composed by Pope Francis, and are the last words of Laudato Si (Praise be to you!)

Father, we praise you with all your creatures.
They came forth from your all-powerful hand;
they are yours, filled with your presence and your tender love.
Praise be to you!

Son of God, Jesus,
through you all things were made.
You were formed in the womb of Mary our Mother,
you became part of this earth,
and you gazed upon this world with human eyes.
Today you are alive in every creature
in your risen glory.
Praise be to you!

Holy Spirit, by your light
you guide this world towards the Father’s love
and accompany creation as it groans in travail.
You also dwell in our hearts
and you inspire us to do what is good.
Praise be to you!

Triune Lord, wondrous community of infinite love,
teach us to contemplate you
in the beauty of the universe,
for all things speak of you.
Awaken our praise and thankfulness
for every being that you have made.
Give us the grace to feel profoundly joined
to everything that is.

God of love, show us our place in this world
as channels of your love
for all the creatures of this earth,
for not one of them is forgotten in your sight.
Enlighten those who possess power and money
that they may avoid the sin of indifference,
that they may love the common good, advance the weak,
and care for this world in which we live.
The poor and the earth are crying out.
O Lord, seize us with your power and light,
help us to protect all life,
to prepare for a better future,
for the coming of your Kingdom
of justice, peace, love and beauty.
Praise be to you!
Amen.

Saint Joseph, pray for us.

The Church and science, Part 6

In this evening’s post, as we continue our reflection on the environment in the light of Catholic teaching, we will finish our summary of the positive highlights of Pope Francis’ encyclical Laudato Si (Praise Be to you).  In the last post, we discussed Chapters 1-3.  In this post, we will discuss Chapters 4-6.

The Holy Father begins Chapter 4 by calling for what he calls an integrated ecology.   The dictionary defines ecology as “the scientific analysis and study of interactions among organisms and their environment.”   Pope Francis seems to want to move beyond this definition, which seems to include just biological and physiological relations among living organisms and the environment, to include both, as he says, “one which clearly respects its human and social dimensions.”  Paragraph 155, where he expounds on this point, and in which he includes a quote from Pope Benedict XVI on this topic, is worth quoting in full:

Human ecology also implies another profound reality: the relationship between human life and the moral law, which is inscribed in our nature and is necessary for the creation of a more dignified environment. Pope Benedict XVI spoke of an “ecology of man”, based on the fact that “man too has a nature that he must respect and that he cannot manipulate at will.  It is enough to recognize that our body itself establishes us in a direct relationship with the environment and with other living beings. The acceptance of our bodies as God’s gift is vital for welcoming and accepting the entire world as a gift from the Father and our common home, whereas thinking that we enjoy absolute power over our own bodies turns, often subtly, into thinking that we enjoy absolute power over creation. Learning to accept our body, to care for it and to respect its fullest meaning, is an essential element of any genuine human ecology. Also, valuing one’s own body in its femininity or masculinity is necessary if I am going to be able to recognize myself in an encounter with someone who is different. In this way we can joyfully accept the specific gifts of another man or woman, the work of God the Creator, and find mutual enrichment. It is not a healthy attitude which would seek “to cancel out sexual difference because it no longer knows how to confront it”

So, in his view, ecology should include the human being, and how he or she relates to the environment, and to each other.  He posits there is indeed a connection.  One cannot study the environment and/or environmental issues such as pollution without studying social factors.  Ecology includes cultural factors, and also the quality of the environment can affect our daily life (i.e. areas that lack clean water, or are overcrowded, and have excess pollution).  

The Holy Father then moves on to discuss that an integrated ecology ties in with the classic Christian concept of the common good.  He quotes Vatican II when he says, “The common good is “the sum of those conditions of social life which allow social groups and their individual members relatively thorough and ready access to their own fulfilment”.   There is a universal destination for the world’s goods, and the environment is one of them.  The common good extends into future generations, and here, we must ensure the environment must be sustainable for future generations.

To ensure the common good, Pope Francis calls for dialogue on this issue among the international community.   He also calls for action at the national and local level so that there is fairer distribution of resources, and better living conditions among all people in a nation or state, as opposed to just a select group controlling the majority or all of the resources.   Sometimes the policies that need to be implemented to ensure this need to be long-term in nature, and as we implied earlier, we must not only think of the present, but also the future, when considering policy on the environment or anything else.  There needs to be transparency and dialogue when formulating policy.  He calls out both political and economic systems for too often not seeking the common good.   They often blame one another instead of dialoguing and working together to come up with solutions.  Those who wield greater power have an even greater responsibility for the common good.  Economics or politics alone cannot be the bottom line. Another area of dialogue the Holy Father asks for is that between religion and science, as well as dialogue among believers, and dialogue between the different branches of science.  The Holy Father’s last paragraph in the area of the common good (188) is worth quoting in full: There are certain environmental issues where it is not easy to achieve a broad consensus. Here I would state once more that the Church does not presume to settle scientific questions or to replace politics. But I am concerned to encourage an honest and open debate so that particular interests or ideologies will not prejudice the common good

In the last part of the encyclical (Chapter 6), the Pope calls for an integrated ecological education and spirituality.  He asks us to turn from consumerism.  Obsession with consumerism, in addition to harming the environment, can also be the cause of social unrest.   Education can play a role in changing our lifestyles from being less materialistic and more simplistic, and environmentally friendly.   He proposes that an authentic Christian spirituality can help with the fostering of an authentic integrated healthy ecology.   Here are some notable quotes from this section: This conversion calls for a number of attitudes which together foster a spirit of generous care, full of tenderness. First, it entails gratitude and gratuitousness, recognition that the world is God’s loving gift. ..Various convictions of our faith, developed at the beginning of this Encyclical can help us to enrich the meaning of this conversion. These include the awareness that each creature reflects something of God and has a message to convey to us, and the security that Christ has taken unto himself this material world and now, risen, is intimately present to each being, surrounding it with his affection and penetrating it with his light. Then too, there is the recognition that God created the world, writing into it an order and a dynamism that human beings have no right to ignore. We read in the Gospel that Jesus says of the birds of the air that “not one of them is forgotten before God” (Lk 12:6). How then can we possibly mistreat them or cause them harm? I ask all Christians to recognize and to live fully this dimension of their conversion. May the power and the light of the grace we have received also be evident in our relationship to other creatures and to the world around us. In this way, we will help nurture that sublime fraternity with all creation which Saint Francis of Assisi so radiantly embodied. ..We are speaking of an attitude of the heart, one which approaches life with serene attentiveness, which is capable of being fully present to someone without thinking of what comes next, which accepts each moment as a gift from God to be lived to the full. Jesus taught us this attitude when he invited us to contemplate the lilies of the field and the birds of the air, or when seeing the rich young man and knowing his restlessness, “he looked at him with love” (Mk 10:21). He was completely present to everyone and to everything, and in this way he showed us the way to overcome that unhealthy anxiety which makes us superficial, aggressive and compulsive consumers...One expression of this attitude is when we stop and give thanks to God before and after meals. I ask all believers to return to this beautiful and meaningful custom. That moment of blessing, however brief, reminds us of our dependence on God for life; it strengthens our feeling of gratitude for the gifts of creation; it acknowledges those who by their labours provide us with these goods; and it reaffirms our solidarity with those in greatest need.  This is a great ask, in my opinion!

The Holy Father then speaks of love and care in general, and he mentions that care for nature is part of a lifestyle which includes the capacity for living together and communion. Jesus reminded us that we have God as our common Father and that this makes us brothers and sisters.   We need each other, and in order to meet each other’s needs, we need to exist together and in order to do that, we need to love one another, and this includes civic and political life.  It is easier to demonstrate and live out care for nature when we love each other first.

In the next sections, he discusses distinct elements of Catholic spirituality and how they link in to a healthy integrated spiritual ecology.  He first mentions that the Sacraments have something to teach us in this area.  God reaches us in a privileged way in the Sacraments through matter that has been cultivated in the earth, most notably in the bread and wine that becomes the Body and Blood of Christ at Mass.   Receiving the Sacraments can help us better appreciate the Earth from which the matter that is used for them comes from. The Eucharist also highlights the importance of a healthy rhythm of life.  I did a post on Sunday Mass and on Sunday rest a little while ago.  If observed properly, the Lords’ Day can become a day that because we are resting and enjoying nature, we can grow in our appreciation and respect for it.

Next up is the Trinity. The world was created by the Trinitarian God. For Christians, believing in one God who is Trinitarian communion suggests that the Trinity has left its mark on all creation… The divine Persons are subsistent relations, and the world, created according to the divine model, is a web of relationships. Creatures tend towards God, and in turn it is proper to every living being to tend towards other things, so that throughout the universe we can find any number of constant and secretly interwoven relationships… Everything is interconnected, and this invites us to develop a spirituality of that global solidarity which flows from the mystery of the Trinity.

Finally, there is the example of Mary and Joseph, Mary is the Woman, “clothed in the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars” (Rev 12:1). Carried up into heaven, she is the Mother and Queen of all creation. In her glorified body, together with the Risen Christ, part of creation has reached the fullness of its beauty. She treasures the entire life of Jesus in her heart (cf. Lk 2:19,51), and now understands the meaning of all things. Hence, we can ask her to enable us to look at this world with eyes of wisdom.  Joseph shows great tenderness, which is not a mark of the weak but of those who are genuinely strong, fully aware of reality and ready to love and serve in humility. That is why he was proclaimed custodian of the universal Church. He too can teach us how to show care; he can inspire us to work with generosity and tenderness in protecting this world which God has entrusted to us.

So, those are the highlights, as I see it, of the second half of this encyclical.  I again encourage you to read the encyclical if what I have stated here has wetted your appetite.  One can see here hopefully that like with science in general, the Church highly values the environment and is concerned about its protection and upkeep.

Despite some positive things, many of which I have highlighted in these last two posts, there have been some critiques of this encyclical, both from within the Church and outside of it.  I do have some concerns with it as well, and I will discuss those in the next and final post in this series on the Church and science.

Saint Joseph, protector of the Universal church, pray for us.