Opening Prayer
Lord, I acknowledge Your Word as the science of salvation and the Heart of the Word as the source of all heavenly light. I submit my intellect to Your truths, which You teach through Your Church to dispel the shadows of my sin and ignorance. Let the beam radiating from Your face imprint Your divine character upon my soul, guiding me in the way of perfect service and intellectual clarity.
Grant me the knowledge necessary to love You perfectly, drawing from the same light that was infused into the soul of Jesus at the moment of his Incarnation. Let Your truth be the foundation of my life, a cornerstone upon which I build every thought and professional action. May I remain faithful to the Tradition of the Church, avoiding the snares of private judgment and the fantasies of the world.
Amen.
Matthew 20:17-28
17And Jesus going up to Jerusalem, took the twelve disciples apart, and said to them: 18Behold we go up to Jerusalem, and the Son of man shall be betrayed to the chief priests and the scribes, and they shall condemn him to death. 19And shall deliver him to the Gentiles to be mocked, and scourged, and crucified, and the third day he shall rise again. 20Then came to him the mother of the sons of Zebedee with her sons, adoring and asking something of him. 21Who said to her: What wilt thou? She saith to him: Say that these my two sons may sit, the one on thy right hand, and the other on thy left, in thy kingdom. 22And Jesus answering, said: You know not what you ask. Can you drink the chalice that I shall drink? They say to him: We can. 23He saith to them: My chalice indeed you shall drink; but to sit on my right or left hand, is not mine to give to you, but to them for whom it is prepared by my Father. 24And the ten hearing it, were moved with indignation against the two brethren. 25But Jesus called them to him, and said: You know that the princes of the Gentiles lord it over them; and they that are the greater, exercise power upon them. 26It shall not be so among you: but whosoever will be the greater among you, let him be your minister: 27And he that will be first among you, shall be your servant. 28Even as the Son of man is not come to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a redemption for many.
St. John Eudes
St. John Eudes stands by the belief that the light of faith is a participation in the truth. He differentiates “human science” from “penetrating God’s shadows”. The Gospel “Cup of Christ” is the narrative of suffering for love. St. John Eudes famously said, “Faith lets you know that everything in Jesus… is infinitely great.” He lived the narrative of the indwelling. We often separate “theology” (the light) from “devotion” (the fire). Eudes reminds us that “faith makes you know Him as He is… all goodness and gentleness“. The spiritual paper cuts of religious dryness are healed when we open our doors to the Holy Spirit. We must remain with the holy Catholic Church to keep this light burning.
Faith is the “science of salvation” that imprints the “light of the countenance of God” upon the soul. It acts as a projection of the divine light that filled the mind of Jesus, enabling us to see all things—God, self, and world—as they truly are. By submitting our intellect to this light, we dispel the shadows that lead to error and moral collapse.
“The light of faith is a participation in the truth and light of God… It shows you things as God sees them… Faith penetrates God’s shadows and His darkness to go straight to the infinity of His perfections.”
— St. John Eudes
Mary and the Magisterium
Faith allows us to penetrate God’s shadows, seeing the Truth that reason cannot reach. Mary’s heart was the first to see God face to face through the darkness of faith.
- Am I "contemplating God with the eyes of faith," or only with my "feeble reason"?
- Is my heart a "Kingdom of Delights" for the Divine Guest?
Closing Prayer
Lord Jesus, thank You for bringing the light of God’s mind into my darkness.
Amen.
