Opening Prayer
Thou calledst, Thou criedst aloud, and Thou brokest through my deafness; Thou flashedst, Thou shonest, and Thou chasedst away my blindness. I blush for the time I wasted, chasing outward beauties while Thou wert within me. Now that I have tasted Thee, I hunger and thirst for Thy peace.
I petition Thee to retrieve me whenever I am distracted by the world. Grant me the grace to stay within Thy presence, for I cannot please myself unless I am in Thee. Break through my residual blindness and deafness so that I may never again lose my way.
Amen.
Luke 1:57-68
57Now Elizabeth’s full time of being delivered was come, and she brought forth a son. 58And her neighbours and kinsfolks heard that the Lord had shewed his great mercy towards her, and they congratulated with her. 59And it came to pass, that on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they called him by his father’s name Zachary. 60And his mother answering, said: Not so; but he shall be called John. 61And they said to her: There is none of thy kindred that is called by this name. 62And they made signs to his father, how he would have him called. 63And demanding a writing table, he wrote, saying: John is his name. And they all wondered. 64And immediately his mouth was opened, and his tongue loosed, and he spoke, blessing God. 65And fear came upon all their neighbours; and all these things were noised abroad over all the hill country of Judea. 66And all they that had heard them laid them up in their heart, saying: What an one, think ye, shall this child be? For the hand of the Lord was with him. 67And Zachary his father was filled with the Holy Ghost; and he prophesied, saying: 68Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; because he hath visited and wrought the redemption of his people:
St. Augustine
St. Augustine famously laments, “Too late have I come to love You!” He realized that while he was “looking for God outside”, God was “right here within”. This Church Father perspective highlights the Sacramental reality that God “touches us” and “breathes upon us fragrantly” through Grace. In the Mystical Body, we are called to “be renewed” and “return” to the one who chased away our blindness. This “Hound of Heaven” satisfies the “hunger and thirst” he Himself creates in us.
Augustine renounces himself to choose God, acknowledging that he “could please neither You nor myself unless I am in You.” He hunger and thirsts for the peace only God provides. He describes how the “things You had created kept me far from You,” yet those things only exist “in You.”
“You called to me and cried aloud, and you broke through my deafness. You flashed, and shone, and chased away my blindness.”
— St. Augustine
Mary and the Magisterium
Mary is the “Star of the Sea” who assists in this pursuit, taking us to Jesus. The Magisterium, through the Bishop, “preserves the unity” of those who have been “found” by God. The Pope acts as the visible sign of the “Good Shepherd”. The Bishop heals the “whole class of sins” through the Sacraments, acting as the instrument of the God who calls and cries aloud. Mary, full of grace, helps us “renounce ourselves” to find our Life in her Son.
- In what ways am I still "looking for God outside myself"?
- How has the Lord "touched me" recently to draw me back into His "peace"?
Closing Prayer
Hound of heaven, thank you for pursuing me. Whenever I start to lose my way… seek me out and retrieve me.
Amen.
