Opening Prayer
The whole of a good Christian life is a holy desire to see God as He is. I commit to the “hard scrubbing” of my soul, pouring out the vinegar of worldly love to make room for the honey of Thy presence. Stretch me out toward Thee, Lord, so that when Thou comest, Thou findest a container ready for Thy divinity.
I petition Thee for the expansion of my soul’s capacity to be filled with Thee. Grant me the grace to wait in hope, stretching the pouch of my heart through holy desire. Measure my capacity to hold Thee by the depth of my longing, and purge from me all that would compete with Thy indwelling.
Amen.
Matthew 16:13-19
13And Jesus came into the quarters of Caesarea Philippi: and he asked his disciples, saying: Whom do men say that the Son of man is? 14But they said: Some John the Baptist, and other some Elias, and others Jeremias, or one of the prophets. 15Jesus saith to them: But whom do you say that I am? 16Simon Peter answered and said: Thou art Christ, the Son of the living God. 17And Jesus answering, said to him: Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jona: because flesh and blood hath not revealed it to thee, but my Father who is in heaven. 18And I say to thee: That thou art Peter; and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. 19And I will give to thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven. And whatsoever thou shalt bind upon earth, it shall be bound also in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose upon earth, it shall be loosed also in heaven.
St. Augustine
St. Augustine compares the soul to a “pouch” that God stretches through hope. By making us wait, He “makes the soul capable of holding more”. This Church Father insight defines the Spiritual life as a holy desire to see God. In the Mystical Body, we must “empty what we want to be filled”, pouring out the “vinegar” of worldly love to make room for the “honey” of God. This “cleaning with hard scrubbing” is the work of Confession and the “preparation” for the Eucharist.
Augustine explains that the whole of a good Christian life is a holy desire. He uses the analogy of the pouch and the container to show that we must “pour out what is evil” before we can be filled with “Something beyond words”. He encourages us to stretch ourselves out to Him.
“God, by making us wait in hope, stretches our desire. By making us desire, he stretches our soul. By stretching our soul, he makes it capable of holding more.”
— St. Augustine
Mary and the Magisterium
Mary is the “Treasure” who was “stretched” by her sorrows. The Magisterium, through the Bishop, provides the “Standard of the Church’s interpretation” to ensure our desires are “holy”. The Bishop preserves the unity of the Church by protecting the faithful from “private tastes and fancies” that would fill the soul with “vinegar”. Mary, as the “Mirror without tarnish”, was perfectly “filled and overflowed” because she was perfectly stretched.
- Is my "container" currently full of "vinegar"—bitterness, worldliness, or selfish desire?
- What "hard scrubbing" through Confession or penance do I need to prepare for God’s "honey"?
Closing Prayer
Lord, my soul is small and narrow, and filled to the brim with so many things. Empty me and open me wide.
Amen.
