Gulf Pine Catholic

Gulf Pine Catholic • March 22, 2019 18 Complete My Joy From page 17 22. Werner Haug and Phillipe Warner. “The Demographic Characteristics of the Linguistic and Religious Groups in Switzerland” by of the Federal Statistical Office, Neuchatel. The study appears in Volume 2 of Population Studies No. 31, a book titled The Demographic Characteristics of National Minorities in Certain European States , edited by Werner Haug and others, published by the Council of Europe Directo. 23. Familiaris Consortio , 17. 24. Benedict XVI, Deus Caritas Est , 1. 25. Pope St. Paul VI. Evangelii Nuntiandi , 41. 26. These can include various parish small family groups, Teams of Our Lady, Domestic Church Groups, Mar- riage Encounter, Couples for Christ and other apostolates. 27. Confessions of St. Augustine . Book 3, Chapter 12. 78. I know well that the third dimension, spiritual leadership, is often the most difficult. Yet, God will in no way fail to give you the grace to enter this place of spiritual battle within yourself and on behalf of your family. Your steadiness in maintaining the grace of weekly Mass and the sacraments, your growth in disci- plined prayer and your pursuit of deeper personal con- version throughout your life provide an indelible lesson in spiritual leadership. This indeed, along with your love for your wife and care for your children, will be the best of fatherly gifts. “. . . bring them up with the training and instruction of the Lord.” EPHESIANS 6:4 79. St. Paul twice tells fathers not to provoke their children, but to “bring them up with the training and instruction of the Lord.” (Eph. 6:4) He writes this immediately before he gives his most forceful teaching to us about spiritual warfare. Your presence and encour- agement build your son or daughter in a uniquely mas- culine way and make a stunningly powerful difference in their lives and faith. 22 When you as fathers affirm your sons in word and deed and time together, you are giving the authoritative pronouncement of their good- ness so that they can live confidently as beloved sons without trying to find their ultimate meaning in the things of the world. When your daughter is affirmed as good, beautiful and precious by you, the most impor- tant man in her life, she will be confident and well- equipped to say no to the false flattery of the world that so often fails to see her true dignity, value and worth. 80. In your renewed determination to live your mas- culine mission as provider, protector and spiritual leader of your home, you will often have setbacks and moments of doubt. We all do! Stay the course. Lean in to St. Joseph, the husband and foster-father who faced difficulty after difficulty in providing for protecting and leading his holy family. Ask him to intercede for you whenever you do not see the path ahead clearly. He is the “Protector of the Holy Family” and the “Terror of Demons.” He knows your struggle and is a great saint of prayer. Faith Formation and Human Formation of Children 81. Your domestic church, as you continue to grow, educates your children powerfully. This begins when families introduce their young children to Jesus in the Eucharist. I want to especially encourage you to bring your young children to Mass. Your family of the Church. While the squirming or crying of children may seem bothersome, these certainly do not block your reception of God’s grace. “If the Church is not crying, it is dying.” Present at Mass during these early years, your children are learning the rhythm of relationship with the Lord and His Church. 82. As children get older, it is important for parents to consider the best way to intentionally bring them up in the faith so that they take part in the mission to “guard, reveal and communicate love.” 23 Of course, to take part in this mission, your children must first have known and experienced that love themselves. This will happen by way of prayer, liturgy, the sacraments, cate- chesis, retreats and family customs. 83. Here I offer three considerations to you parents to take up in prayer. First, how your children will understand the faith. Second, how they will experience God’s love. And, third, how they will see the faith in the witness of others. 84. The propaganda of atheism has made great inroads in sowing doubt in our young people, even as young as elementary school age. Atheistic arguments often include the idea that somehow science has dis- proved religion as simply superstitious and even a cause of more harm than good. Sadly, we have often failed to proclaim the faith in a credible way, which further allows these errors to gain traction. I assure you that these arguments are no match for the sound intel- lectual tradition that is ours. It is the mission, not just of the clergy, but also the domestic church to understand and communicate these truths. The family should be a place where young people work these questions out and are encouraged to engage the faith. A knowing faith is a strong faith. 85. Our faith also entails an encounter. Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI famously said, “being Christian is not the result of an ethical choice or a lofty idea, but the encounter with an event, a person, which gives life a new horizon and a decisive direction.” 24 Have you encountered Jesus? Are your children convinced that they have encountered Jesus Christ personally? Do they know the Holy Spirit’s voice of peace in them in such a way that they can be led by Him? When your children encounter God’s love in a true way, they will be able to own their Catholic faith in a more profound way. This happens first and foremost in your family as you are attentive to God’s presence and as you are faithful to prayer and the sacraments. In addition, the various youth retreats and school activities that give young people Christian experiences can play a vital role in ensuring that young people have the encounter with Christ and so be His disciple. 86. Finally, quite often the faith of a young person is invited to greater depth by the example of others. You parents are, of course, the first examples. The families and friends that your children spend time with will also make a tremendous difference. The words of Pope St. Paul VI remain true, that we listen “more willingly to witnesses than to teachers.” 25 Young people, upon see- ing the witness of others, especially peers and those just older than them, can be encouraged to step beyond a private notion of the faith and be the encouragement for others. How hard it is for a young person to live the faith alone. Here I encourage the many ways families get together to support and build each other up in faith. 26 AWord for Parents Whose Children have Strayed 87. I wish here to speak directly to those of you whose children, for one reason or another, have strayed from the faith. I am one of you! As a spiritual father, I know the pain of watching the children leave the fold. The remarkable life of a heroic saint can help us here. Though St. Monica lived over 1,600 years ago, her wit- ness is as relevant as ever. She, out of love for her son, Augustine, prayed unceasingly for over 20 years for his conversion from sin and error. 88. I encourage you to imitate the faith and perse- vering trust of St. Monica. While it may be difficult and, at times, tempt you to despair, I encourage you with the words of a faithful bishop upon seeing her great prayer, “it is not possible that the son of these tears should perish.” Not only did he not perish, 27 St. Augustine became one of the Doctors of the Church. In addition to your prayer, your abiding love and support for them is also invaluable. Teaching will likely have to come from someone else once they are adults, howev- er; St. Monica is said to have been told by the bishop, St. Ambrose, “Speak less to Augustine about God and more to God about Augustine.” In addition to your prayer, your abiding love and support for them is also invaluable. The Family’s Mission to Extended Family Members, Friends, the Church and Society 89. As you take care of each and every member among you in the ups and downs of life, you witness to Christ before the world. This happens ordinarily as you welcome children into the world with unconditional love. This is done in an extraordinary and particularly beautiful way when families give witness to love by accepting children with special needs of any kind and, if called by God, by opening your home to foster and adopted children in need of love and care. 90. The elder generation occupies a crucial place in families. As Pope Francis reminds us, “grandparents have a capacity to understand the most difficult situa- tions: a great ability -- and when they pray for these situations, their prayer is strong. It is powerful.” This is indeed a treasure for the family. When special care is required for those who are elderly, the family is chal- lenged to offer more in service and personal attention. This too is a great lesson and even a source of peace for the young, especially if it entails the spiritual care and affection given up to the moment the Lord calls their loved one home. This continues in the prayer and funeral rites offered for the deceased. SEE COMPLETE MY JOY, PAGE 19