{"id":5798,"date":"2023-11-03T00:30:19","date_gmt":"2023-11-03T06:30:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/thelatinright\/?p=5798"},"modified":"2023-11-02T17:18:00","modified_gmt":"2023-11-02T23:18:00","slug":"the-travels-of-a-christian-pilgrim-guest-contributor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/thelatinright\/2023\/11\/the-travels-of-a-christian-pilgrim-guest-contributor\/","title":{"rendered":"The Travels of a Christian Pilgrim – Guest Contributor"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

The below article was provided by regular reader and commentator, Pilgrim.<\/p>\n

The Travels of a Christian Pilgrim <\/strong><\/h3>\n " \u201cThe sacrifice acceptable to God is a broken spirit; <\/em>a broken and contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.\u201d<\/em> (Psalm 51:17<\/a>)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n \u00a0<\/em>Saint Augustine in his Commentary on the Sermon on the Mount<\/em><\/a>, begins with the proclamation that \u201canyone who piously and earnestly ponders the Sermon on the Mount \u2013 as we read in the Gospel according to Mathew \u2013 I believe he will find therein\u2026 the perfect standard of the Christian Life.\u201d <\/em><\/p>\n The modern tendency is to project the Beatitudes as calls to social reform, an external concern with lifting the poor and seeking a worldly peace. As external precepts, the Beatitudes may well better our society, but such a gain can only be superficial and temporary. St. Ambrose reminds us, \u201cour own evil inclinations are far more dangerous than any external enemies.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n The Beatitudes (Matthew 5:3\u201312<\/a>) are directed inward towards internal poverty and the attainment of spiritual peace as a preparation for the combat necessary to save our souls and to help \u201ccolonise\u201d the \u201cheavenly country.\u201d<\/p>\n God fulfilled His promise given by Ezekiel to Israel, through Jesus Christ who gathers all who belong to God and forms them into His New Israel (Ezekiel 36: 24-27<\/a>):<\/p>\n " \u201c\u2018I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land \u2026 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.\u201d <\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n The Beatitudes are the contours of this new spirit. The Holy Spirit, \u201cwrites\u201d this on our hearts; hearts prepared, changed, and elevated by Divine grace. This new law is an interior law. A sharing in the life of God by entering a relationship with Christ. By uniting with Him, first prompted, then drawn, deepened, and sustained by grace, we enter His joy \u2013 into His kingdom.<\/p>\n The first is foundational:<\/p>\n " \u201cBlessed are the Poor in Spirit; the kingdom of heaven is theirs.\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n The poor in spirit are aware of their utter need for God and open themselves to Him. The result of this simple, yet complex act of openness, is the unmerited gift of grace, faith, and the kingdom of heaven as it unfolds in our lives on earth, culminating in the life to come.<\/p>\n Do we have an acute awareness of our radical need for God, a poverty of spirit? Do we call out to God amid our interior darkness? Or do we live in a spirit of internal prosperity, spending our days without an awareness of our need for God? Do we experience makarios<\/em>?<\/p>\n After many years in a spiritual wilderness, I was in Westminster, London, attending a conference. It was a particularly difficult stage in my life, professionally and personally. I happened to be passing Westminster Cathedral<\/a> on my way to Victoria Railway Station, and felt drawn to enter. I had not crossed the threshold of a Catholic Church for many years and had a sense of ambivalence about this; a pull in the opposite direction.<\/p>\n I sat outside for quite a while; left to go on my way; sat down, smoked a cigarette, then went back and into the Cathedral. I sat at the back, feeling like an intruder. This hymn<\/a> was being sung by the choir and, truthfully, it triggered a process that reshaped my life. Today when I hear it, it takes me back to that precious moment.<\/p>\n After the service, I sat in the Cathedral for some time contemplating many things. The Cathedral offers the sacrament of Confession throughout the day. Eventually, I went to Confession; not easy after some 20+ years of sinning! I recall the young priest saying to me: \u201cThese are serious sins.\u201d<\/em> My reply: \u201cWell, yes, Father; that\u2019s why I\u2019m here!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n After celebrating Mass and receiving the Eucharist, I felt a sense of peace, love, and a welcome home.<\/p>\n God seeks and eventually finds those He foresees will accept His offer. He found this \u201clost sheep.\u201d <\/em>Not that I am being presumptuous \u2013 my journey here is not over yet, it is a series of daily conversions, each day bringing its own challenges! But He put me on His shoulders, carried me, and set me back in the \u201csheepfold.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Here are the words of the hymn:<\/p>\n Do not be afraid, <\/em><\/p>\n For I have redeemed you. <\/em><\/p>\n I have called you by your name; <\/em><\/p>\n You are mine. <\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em>When you walk through the waters I\u2019ll be with you, <\/em><\/p>\n You will never sink beneath the waves. <\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em>Do not be afraid \u2026 <\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em>When the fire is burning all around you, <\/em><\/p>\n You will never be consumed by the flames. <\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em>Do not be afraid \u2026\u00a0 <\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em>When the fear of loneliness is looming, <\/em><\/p>\n Then remember I am at your side. <\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em>Do not be afraid \u2026 <\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em>When you dwell in the exile of a stranger, <\/em><\/p>\n Remember you are precious in my eyes. <\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em>Do not be afraid \u2026 <\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em>You are mine, O my child; <\/em><\/p>\n I am your father, <\/em><\/p>\n And I love you with a perfect love. <\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em>Do not be afraid \u2026<\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Thank you!<\/h3>\n Read The Latin Right\u2019s other writing\u00a0here<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n \n***** ** *****Please click the link below to join.<\/span><\/p>\n Voices of the Faithful in the Synod on Synodality<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n Please make your voice heard.<\/span><\/p>\n I Support Church Teaching in the Synod of Synodality<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n ***** ** The Travels of a Christian Pilgrim<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" ** *****The below article was provided by regular reader and commentator, Pilgrim. The Travels of a Christian Pilgrim \u201cThe sacrifice acceptable to God is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.\u201d (Psalm 51:17) \u00a0Saint Augustine in his Commentary on the Sermon on the Mount, begins with the proclamation that […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4615,"featured_media":5816,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[1097,1100],"class_list":["post-5798","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-catholic-theology","tag-guest-writer","tag-the-beatitudes"],"yoast_head":"\nThe Travels of a Christian Pilgrim - Guest Contributor<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The below article was provided by regular reader and commentator, Pilgrim. 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