Msgr. Esseff reflects on Blessed Mother Teresa whom he met in 1984 in Beruit, Lebanon. Msgr. Esseff worked alongside Blessed Mother Teresa in Calcutta, Lebanon, West Africa, Haiti and elsewhere and would go on to serve as a spiritual director and confessor for Mother Teresa and her sisters. (The last few minutes of the reflection are particularly poignant)
Msgr. Esseff discusses HALT and how it is the response to False Generosity. False Generosity can be destructive…we don’t even realize we are doing it.
When you find yourself:
H – Hungry, A- Angry, L – Lonely, T – Tired
We must take care of ourselves! Msgr. Esseff first gives a checklist to attend to our physical needs and then he addresses our prayer lives. When you become the source of others feeding off you, you will become drained! You cannot give to your brothers and sisters what you do not receive from Him. Discernment is key! When you get exhausted, frustrated, overwhelmed, or run down it is your body saying you are doing things that are none of your business. God is not asking you to do what is not in your ability. Serving God may involve suffering, fatique, and even moments of great physical or emotional pain, but none of this pull you away from your deepest self or from God. Those who want to be helpful to their community must ask themselves, “What do I need to be present to and what is it that I need to refrain from?
28* “Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened,* and I will give you rest.29*p Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for your selves.30For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.”
Children, it is the last hour;
and just as you heard that the antichrist was coming,
so now many antichrists have appeared.
Thus we know this is the last hour.
They went out from us, but they were not really of our number;
if they had been, they would have remained with us.
Their desertion shows that none of them was of our number.
But you have the anointing that comes from the Holy One,
and you all have knowledge.
I write to you not because you do not know the truth
but because you do, and because every lie is alien to the truth
Manual for Spiritual Warfare by Dr. Paul Thigpen Ph.D.
In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God.
He was in the beginning with God.
All things came to be through him,
and without him nothing came to be.
What came to be through him was life,
and this life was the light of the human race;
the light shines in the darkness,
and the darkness has not overcome it.A man named John was sent from God.
He came for testimony, to testify to the light,
so that all might believe through him.
He was not the light,
but came to testify to the light.
The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.He was in the world,
and the world came to be through him,
but the world did not know him.
He came to what was his own,
but his own people did not accept him.
But to those who did accept him
he gave power to become children of God,
to those who believe in his name,
who were born not by natural generation
nor by human choice nor by a man’s decision
but of God.
And the Word became flesh
and made his dwelling among us,
and we saw his glory,
the glory as of the Father’s only-begotten Son,
full of grace and truth.
John testified to him and cried out, saying,
“This was he of whom I said,
‘The one who is coming after me ranks ahead of me
because he existed before me.’”
From his fullness we have all received,
grace in place of grace,
because while the law was given through Moses,
grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
No one has ever seen God.
The only-begotten Son, God, who is at the Father’s side,
has revealed him.
Msgr. Esseff leads us through a year-end examination of conscious.
Here are some scripture to reflect on:
Reading 1 1 jn 2:3-11
Beloved:
The way we may be sure that we know Jesus
is to keep his commandments.
Whoever says, “I know him,” but does not keep his commandments
is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
But whoever keeps his word,
the love of God is truly perfected in him.
This is the way we may know that we are in union with him:
whoever claims to abide in him ought to walk just as he walked.
Beloved, I am writing no new commandment to you
but an old commandment that you had from the beginning.
The old commandment is the word that you have heard.
And yet I do write a new commandment to you,
which holds true in him and among you,
for the darkness is passing away,
and the true light is already shining.
Whoever says he is in the light,
yet hates his brother, is still in the darkness.
Whoever loves his brother remains in the light,
and there is nothing in him to cause a fall.
Whoever hates his brother is in darkness;
he walks in darkness
and does not know where he is going
because the darkness has blinded his eyes.
5Put to death, then, the parts of you that are earthly:c immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and the greed that is idolatry.*
6Because of these the wrath of God* is coming [upon the disobedient].d
7By these you too once conducted yourselves, when you lived in that way.
8But now you must put them all away:* anger, fury, malice, slander, and obscene language out of your mouths.e
9Stop lying to one another, since you have taken off the old self with its practicesf
10* and have put on the new self, which is being renewed, for knowledge, in the image of its creator.g
11Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcision and uncircumcision, barbarian, Scythian,* slave, free; but Christ is all and in all.h
12Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience,i
13bearing with one another and forgiving one another, if one has a grievance against another; as the Lord has forgiven you, so must you also do.j
14And over all these put on love, that is, the bond of perfection.k
15And let the peace of Christ control your hearts, the peace into which you were also called in one body. And be thankful.l
16Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, as in all wisdom you teach and admonish one another, singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.m
17And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.n
Episode 6- Great Works in Western Literature with Joseph Pearce – Jonathan Swift
Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift is one of the greatest satirical works ever written. Through the misadventures of Lemuel Gulliver, his hopelessly “modern” protagonist, Swift exposes many of the follies of the English Enlightenment, from its worship of science to its neglect of traditional philosophy and theology. Swift’s satire on the threats posed by the Enlightenment and the embryonic spirit of secular fundamentalism makes Gulliver’s Travels priceless reading for today’s defenders of tradition.
Based on the Ignatius Critical Edition, this series examines, from the Judeo-Christian perspective, the life,the times, and influence of authors of great works in literature .
Joseph Pearce is currently the Writer-in-Residence and Visiting Fellow at Thomas More College of Liberal Arts in Merrimack, New Hampshire. He is also Visiting Scholar at Mount Royal Academy in Sunapee, New Hampshire. He is also Visiting Scholar at Mount Royal Academy in Sunapee, New Hampshire. He is co-editor of the Saint Austin Review (or StAR), an international review of Christian culture, literature, and ideas published in England (Family Publications) and the United States (Sapientia Press). He is also the author of many books, including literary biographies of Solzhenitsyn, J. R. R. Tolkien, C. S. Lewis, G. K. Chesterton, and Oscar Wilde..
Msgr. Esseff discusses the crippling effects of fear and it’s remedy. Fear, in a very real way, is the opposite of faith. There’s an adage in spirituality that says that if we can name the demon we can tame it. Jesus wants us not to be afraid. He may challenge us in some ways, so that we can name it and bring it out of the darkness into peace. The Light dispels the fear! Fear fuels sin. Ultimately, it’s a fear of not being loved and losing relationship in some way. Luke 15 ( the parable of the Prodigal Son) shows us how much the Father loves us…no matter what! He’s waiting with open arms to relieve the pain and suffering. Look at the One who wants to pick you up! Some suffer in silence, especially when falsely accused…stand with Jesus at the first station of the cross. Do not take your eyes off the face of Jesus…we are meant for eternal life. Learn from the examples of the saints… BELIEVE.
Isaiah 41:10 So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
Catherine Doherty addresses the Eastern Catholic Charismatic Renewal conference in 1979. Her subject is sobornost, a Russian term, translatable as "unity".
“Faith is the father of love, faith is the father of hope also, and its in faith, and faith alone, that we can plunge ourselves, like in a warm sea, to swim the strange currents that will come our way.”
On the beginning of unity “…you become a prayer…you contemplate God, because He always contemplates you…see how simple it is?”
The angel Gabriel was sent from God
to a town of Galilee called Nazareth,
to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph,
of the house of David,
and the virgin’s name was Mary.
And coming to her, he said,
“Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.”
But she was greatly troubled at what was said
and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.
Then the angel said to her,
“Do not be afraid, Mary,
for you have found favor with God.
“Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son,
and you shall name him Jesus.
He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High,
and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father,
and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever,
and of his kingdom there will be no end.”
But Mary said to the angel,
“How can this be,
since I have no relations with a man?”
And the angel said to her in reply,
“The Holy Spirit will come upon you,
and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.
Therefore the child to be born
will be called holy, the Son of God.
And behold, Elizabeth, your relative,
has also conceived a son in her old age,
and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren;
for nothing will be impossible for God.”
Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.
May it be done to me according to your word.”
Then the angel departed from her.
Archbishop Lucas offers insights on the US Catholic Catechism for Adults Chapter 3:
Blessed John XXIII and the Second Vatican Council itself illustrate how the Church constantly draws upon Tradition and Sacred Scripture. This chapter examines these foundations of the Church teaching because its through Tradition and Scripture that the Church knows God’s Revelation and transmits it from one generation to another.
The Most Reverend George J. Lucas leads the Archdiocese of Omaha.
Archbishop Lucas offers insights on the US Catholic Catechism for Adults Chapter 2:
Through the use of reason, we can learn much about God from both creation and conscience, but Revelation enables us to learn about God’s inner life and his loving plan to save us from sin and share in his divine life. No amount of unaided thinking could penetrate such a mystery. God freely chose to share this hidden mystery with us . God’s sharing was an act of friendship for us, revealing himself as one reveals his or her heart to a friend. Love does such things.
The Most Reverend George J. Lucas leads the Archdiocese of Omaha.
Msgr. Esseff worked alongside Blessed Mother Teresa in Calcutta, Lebanon, West Africa, Haiti and elsewhere and would go on to serve as a spiritual director and confessor for Mother Teresa and her sisters. (The last few minutes of the reflection are particularly poignant)
may involve suffering, fatique, and even moments of great physical or emotional pain, but none of this pull you away from your deepest self or from God. Those who want to be helpful to their community must ask themselves, “What do I need to be present to and what is it that I need to refrain from?
Msgr. Esseff refers repeatedly in this podcast to “The Manual for Spiritual Warfare” by Dr. Paul Thigpen Ph.D. which he HIGHLY RECOMMENDS!
