September 05, 2012

PERFECTION 1


Frequently and wholeheartedly kiss the crosses God sends you, without stopping to consider what kind they are. For the more ignoble and unwanted they are, the more they deserve to be called crosses. The merit of crosses does not depend on their weight, but on how they are carried. At times it takes more virtue to carry a cross of straw than a heavy one, because the lightest crosses are also the most inglorious, and the least to our liking which always seeks the spectacular.  St. Francis de Sales

St. Francis de Sales undertook many long and hazardous journeys, but he was never heard to complain about the cold, the wind, the sun, or the quality of food served him. He accepted everything from the hands of God, and the greater the insults and ill-treatment he received, the happier he was. Whenever he had a choice to make, he would select the worst for himself.

St. John Climacus relates that there was a young monk who, because of small defects, was given light punishments by his superiors. However, he was treated uncharitably and severely by everyone else. St John Climacus felt sorry for him and tried to console him, but the young monk said: "Father, please do not worry about me. They treat me in this way not because they lack charity, but because God permits it so that I may exercise patience, which is necessary to try the true servant of God." Two years passed and the young monk was called to a better life. Before dying he said to his confreres: "I thank Jesus Christ and you, Fathers, and I attest that, having been tried by you for my greater good, I was never taken in by the deceits of the devil, and now I die in peace."



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