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Missionary Spirituality 3
Carthusians at home?
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The questions arises from our own historical
background: what about Alphonsus’ dictum that we are to be
Carthusians at home and apostles abroad? Let’s consider one text in
which Alphonsus talks about this. It’s context clarifies what he
meant. It was written in 1749 to the novices.
The devil, finally, usually tempts in another
way those who have been favored by God with spiritual
consolations of the senses, with tears and burning arrows of
love. Can’t you see, he says to such a person, that you are not
called to the active life but to a life of contemplation, to the
solitary life and union with God? It is necessary, therefore,
that you go to an Institute of contemplative life or at least
become a hermit: this is your vocation.
If the devil were ever to tempt me in this
way I would, for my part, respond to him: Since you’re speaking
about vocation – then I must follow my own vocation, not my
temperament or your suggestions. Since God has called me to this
community of laborers, who can assure me that leaving it is
inspiration and not a temptation?
I say the same to you, my brother. No doubt
that God calls some to the active life and others to the
contemplative. But, since he has called you to a community of
laborers you must rather believe that the other vocation does
not come from God but from hell, which pretends to make you lose
your true vocation. Saint Philip Neri used to say that one
should not abandon a good state for a better one without the
certainty of the divine will. Therefore, in order not to make a
mistake, you must be more than morally certain of God’s will
before going into the other state of life. But, how can you
reach this conviction, particularly when your Superior and your
spiritual father tell you that it is a temptation?
You must also consider, as Saint Thomas
teaches, that if the contemplative life is in itself more
perfect than the active, nevertheless, the mixed life, that is
to say, a life that intertwines prayer and action, is the most
perfect for such was the life of Jesus Christ. This is the life
of all well ordered communities of laborers, particularly of our
Congregation, in which we find so many hours of prayer each day,
so many hours of silence. We have a retreat that is almost
perpetual, except for once a week when we are allowed to go out.
Therefore, we can say that when we are outside the house we are
missionaries; yet when we are home we are hermits [romiti].
Thus, my brother, don’t let yourself be
deceived by the enemy with false pretexts. You must be aware
that if you leave the Congregation you will be sorry, as has
happened to some. And you will see the error when you no longer
can remedy the situation; for, once one leaves the Congregation,
one will not be easily accepted back.
For many years the very last sentence of this
paragraph was changed and taken out of context. The Carthusian
model was proposed as the model for Redemptorist life when at home
and not preaching missions. That approach assumed a monastic model
and made difficult the dynamics of integrating the apostolate with
spirituality in an active Congregation. But it goes against the
vision of Redemptorist life explicitly put forth by Alphonsus: a
life intrecciata d’orazione e d’azione. Here is the basic
principle that Alphonsus envisioned. The meaning of the text is
clear from its context. Alphonsus’ ideal for the Congregation is
found in the mixed life, in Jesus’ own life style. Prayer and
ministry are intertwined, integrated in a particular style of life.
Of course life has it’s rhythms and there will be times when, for
example, prayer will come to the forefront as a need, at other times
the apostolate will take up a good part of our energies and
attention. But the basic lifestyle, that which underlies and gives
meaning to the whole of our lives and consecration is that one
cannot exist without the other in Redemptorist life.
In the same work Alphonsus adds this observation:
It will happen to you that, when you are
looking for solitude in order to dedicate yourself to prayer and
study, you will find yourself very busy with external
commitments. In fact, it is true that the solitary life is lived
in the Congregation when one is home. It is also true that our
houses are outside of inhabited areas in order to enjoy
solitude. It is just as true that we have many hours of silence,
the annual ten day retreat in perfect silence, the one day
monthly retreat, besides the fifteen days before investiture and
another fifteen days before the oblation when we make our vows.
However, it is necessary to be aware that we are active laborers
dedicated to the salvation of souls. Thus, if a subject lives
according to obedience, he will be happy with the time for
prayer and exercises provided by the community. He should also
be ready to leave even these if obedience demands it, without
protest or anguish: he understands very well what Saint Mary
Magdalene of Pazzi stated: Everything done out of obedience
is a prayer.
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