St. Thomas Aquinas, Doctor, on The Natural Law

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St. Thomas Aquinas.1.Wikiped

January 28th is the Memorial of St. Thomas Aquinas, priest and Doctor of the Church.  Known as the Angelic Doctor, he wrote the Summa Theologiae as well as Adoro te devote, O salutaris, Tantum ergo, and Pange lingua. Arguably the greatest philosopher of all time and unarguably one of the greatest (even among agnostic and athiests).

The daily prescription, a quotation from St. Thomas’ Tretise on Law.” and taken from the Catechism of the Catholic Church #1955.

“The natural law is nothing other than the light of understanding placed in us by God; through it we know what we must do and what must be avoided. God has given this light or law at the creation.”

So if we examine our consciences daily, practicing our “logic muscle” in light of our actions, we can, according to St. Thomas come to better understand what we must do and what we must not do (and in turn, know right from wrong.)

Peace,

Deacon Tom Gotschall, The Deacon Dad at:

http://tomgotschall.wordpress.com/

https://doctorsofthechurch.wordpress.com/

Deacon Tom Gotschall on YouTube.

St. Francis de Sales, Doctor, on Prioritizing Our Lives

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St. Francis de Sales, taken at the Salesian Center for Faith and Culture, Center Valley, PA

St. Francis de Sales, taken at the Salesian Center for Faith and Culture, Center Valley, PA

January 24 is the Memorial of St. Francis de Sales, Bishop and Doctor. Today’s Prescription of the Doctor comes from his work entitled Love of God (8,6).  The short piece below is quoted in and taked from the Catechism of the Catholic Church, #1974.

“[God] does not want each person to keep all the counsels, but only those appropriate to the diversity of persons, times, opportunities, and strengths, as charity requires; for it is charity, as queen of all virtues, all commandments, all counsels, and, in short, of all laws and all Christian actions, that gives to all of them their rank, order, time, and value.”

While the translation is written in a way that does not instantly ring relevant in the 21st century, it’s worth re-reading and pondering the logic of how God wants us to operate within our station in life…and to discern that station…that calling.

Peace,

Deacon Tom Gotschall, The Deacon Dad at:

http://tomgotschall.wordpress.com/

https://doctorsofthechurch.wordpress.com/

Deacon Tom Gotschall on YouTube.

 

 

St. Hilary of Poitiers, Doctor, on Baptism

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St. Hilary of Poitiers, who’s memorial we celebrate on January 13, was, like St. Athanasius, a great defender of the belief that Jesus Christ is “true God and true man”, particularly against the Arian heretics in the 4th century.  In the quote from St. Hilary below, we see a developed understanding explained that, by our baptism, we have a blessed relationship with God.

“Everything that happened to Christ lets us know that, after the bath of water, the Holy Spirit swoops down upon us from high heaven and that, adopted by the Father’s voice, we become sons of God.” In Matth. 2, 5: PL 9,927.

It screams “OPPORTUNITY!”

So here’s the question for you:

  • Do you live in such a way that our Heavenly Father can say about you, “This is my son (my daughter), in whom I am well-pleased.”?

Peace,

Deacon Tom Gotschall, The Deacon Dad at:

http://tomgotschall.wordpress.com/

https://doctorsofthechurch.wordpress.com/

Deacon Tom Gotschall on YouTube.

St. Hildegard, Doctor

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St. Hildegard of Bingen.1.Wikip

St. Hildegard was a multi-talented woman. Named a Doctor of the Church by Pope Benedict XVI on October 7, 2012, she is not well known however we suspect her following will continue to grow as the faithful get to know her. She adds to the body of knowledge and understanding of our Faith.  As we prepare for Sunday Mass, let’s consider her words concerning the power of music and worship as our “prescription of the day.”

“The words symbolize the body, and the jubilant music indicates the spirit; and the celestial harmony shows the
divinity, and the words the humanity of the Son of God.”

Gregorian Chant.1

Peace,

Deacon Tom Gotschall, The Deacon Dad at:

http://tomgotschall.wordpress.com/

https://doctorsofthechurch.wordpress.com/

Deacon Tom Gotschall on YouTube.

St. Gregory Nazianzen, Doctor, on The Baptism of the Christ

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St. Gregory Nazianzen.1.Wikipedia Image

This short excerpt, written by St. Gregory Nazianzen in the late 4th century comes from the Second Reading from today’s Office of Readings of the Liturgy of the Hours.  It’s a timeless message that inspires anew to this day.

“Today let us do honor to Christ’s baptism and celebrate this feast in holiness. Be cleansed entirely and continue to be cleansed. Nothing gives such pleasure to God as the conversion and salvation of men, for whom his every word and every revelation exist. He wants you to become a living force for all mankind, lights shining in the world. You are to be radiant lights as you stand beside Christ, the great light, bathed in the glory of him who is the light of heaven. You are to enjoy more and more the pure and dazzling light of the Trinity, as now you have received — though not in its fullness — a ray of its splendor, proceeding from the one God, in Christ Jesus our Lord, to whom be glory and power for ever and ever. Amen.”

And so…

  • How do you become a living force for all mankind?
  • How do you become the radiant light standing beside Christ.
  • Are you fully enjoying the PURE and DAZZLING light of the Trinity?

Let us know…

Peace,

Deacon Tom Gotschall, The Deacon Dad at:

http://tomgotschall.wordpress.com/

https://doctorsofthechurch.wordpress.com/

Deacon Tom Gotschall on YouTube.

 

St. Athanasius, Doctor, on Mary the Mother of God

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St. Athanasius. source, www.1902encyclopedia.com

St. Athanasius. source, http://www.1902encyclopedia.com

January 1 is the Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God.  St. Athanasius, bishop and doctor of the church wrote a letter on how the Word made flesh took on human nature from Mary, his mother. St. Athanasius makes an important point concerning Jesus physical relationship to his mother, and thus to all of humanity.  Here’s what he said,

“The Apostle tells us: The Word took to himself the sons of Abraham, and so had to be like his brothers in all things. He had then to take a body like ours. This explains the fact of Mary’s presence: she is to provide him with a body of his own, to be offered for our sake. Scripture records her giving birth, and says: She wrapped him in swaddling clothes. Her breasts, which fed him, were called blessed. Sacrifice was offered because the child was her firstborn. Gabriel used careful and prudent language when he announced his birth. He did not speak of “what will be born in you”to avoid the impression that a body would be introduced into her womb from outside; he spoke of “what will be born from you” so that we might know by faith that her child originated within her and from her.“

  • Imagine the difference the relationship would be if Mary were simply a “surrogate mother”.
  • A very holy priest explained Mary the Mother of God this way.  She was the:
  •           Daughter of the Father
  •           Mother of the Son
  •           Spouse of the Holy Spirit.

Peace,

Deacon Tom Gotschall, The Deacon Dad at:

http://tomgotschall.wordpress.com/

https://doctorsofthechurch.wordpress.com/

Deacon Tom Gotschall on YouTube.

St. Augustine, Doctor, on The Holy Family

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St. Augustine.1.Wikip.

St. Augustine, in just a few sentences, brilliantly explains how the Holy Family simply works. In his Harmony of the Evangelists [ca. 400 AD]:

“Matthew, therefore, follows out the human generation of Christ, noting His ancestors from Abraham onwards, carrying them on to Joseph, the husband of Mary, of whom jesus was born.  For in this way it was not allowed that He should be thought of as apart from the marriage of Mary, although she bore Christ not from intercourse in that marriage but as a virgin.  By this example it is strongly intimated to the married faithful that even when continence is observed by their common consent, their marriage can still perdue and still be called a marriage, not by a physical joining of the sexes but by the maintaining of the affections of the mind.”

So this prescription calls for:

  • Meditate on the first and second chapter of Matthew’s Gospel to better appreciate this understanding of the Holy Family.

St. Mary and St. Joseph, pray for us.

Jesus, have mercy on us.

Peace,

Deacon Tom Gotschall, The Deacon Dad at:

http://tomgotschall.wordpress.com/

https://doctorsofthechurch.wordpress.com/

Deacon Tom Gotschall on YouTube.

St. Thomas Aquinas, Doctor, on the Holy Innocents

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St. Thomas Aquinas.1.Wikiped

Today is the Feast of the Holy Innocents.  The Gospel of Matthew (2:16) tells us, “Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, was in a furious rage, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under, according to the time which he had ascertained from the wise men.”

The Church recognizes these children as saints and venerates them because, as St. Thomas Aquinas said, they “suffered as martyrs and confessed Christ non loquendo, sed moriendo, not by speaking, but by dying.” Com. on Mt., in Loc.

So here are some things to consider:

  • If you were to ask the Holy Innocents for their intercession before God, what would you ask them?
  • They died as a result of the most hideous form of selfish jealousy.  Can you be inspired to be less selfish of jealous after reflecting on the passage?
  • Imagine the victories achieved by The Innocents; their distraction to Herod, their role in protecting the Lord, keeping Herod from achieving his evil goal, their happiness forever with God in heaven.

Oh dear, Holy Innocents, pray for us,

Peace,

Deacon Tom Gotschall, The Deacon Dad at:

http://tomgotschall.wordpress.com/

https://doctorsofthechurch.wordpress.com/

Deacon Tom Gotschall on YouTube.

St. Basil the Great, Doctor, on Stewardship of the Conscience

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St. Basil the Great, who lived from 330 AD – 379 AD is one of the four original Doctors declared by the Eastern Church.  In addition to exegetical and doctrinal works dozens of his homilies are preserved.  Today’s daily prescription of St. Basil, Doctor, is a short edited excerpt from his homily on Deuteronomy 15: 9.  He prescribes the following:

     “We are to be diligent guardians of the resources given to us by God, ever shunning sin as brutes shun poisons, and ever hunting after righteousness, as they seek for the herbage that is good for food. Take heed to yourself, that you may be able to discern between the noxious and the      wholesome.

This taking heed is to be understood in a twofold sense.  Gaze with the eyes of the body at visible objects.   ‘Take heed to yourself.’Look at yourself from every point of view.  Keep your soul’s eye sleepless.  Hidden nets are set for you in all directions by the enemy.

Look well around you, that you may be delivered ‘as a gazelle from the net and a bird from the snare.  It is because of her keen sight that the gazelle cannot be caught in the net.  And the bird, if only she take heed, mounts on her light wing far above the wiles of the hunter.”

And so:

  • Have you thought of your conscience as a resource, that which you are to be a “guardian”?
  • Have you thought of your conscience in terms of “stewardship”?
  • Do you exercise the resource each day in an examination of conscience?

St. Basil, pray for us.

St. Basil the Great, pray for us.

Peace,

Deacon Tom Gotschall, The Deacon Dad at:

http://tomgotschall.wordpress.com/

https://doctorsofthechurch.wordpress.com/

Deacon Tom Gotschall on YouTube.

St. Gregory Nazianzen, Doctor, on Chrism

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St. Gregory Nazianzen, whose Memorial we celebrate on January 2, was a 4th century Patriarch (Bishop) of Constantinople and known as a great teacher and orator.

St. Gregory was one of the first four Doctors named by the Eastern Church, (along with St. Athenasius, St. Basil, and St. John Chrysostom.)

Of his many theological works and impressive letters is a clear treatment of the meaning and importance of the Chrism used at a Christian baptism.  This small excerpt, from (paragraph 4) the Lecture on Chrism, as a prescription, is a worthy assignment.

“For as Christ after His Baptism, and the visitation of the Holy Ghost, went forth and vanquished the adversary, so likewise you, after Holy Baptism and the Mystical Chrism, having put on the whole armour of the Holy Spirit, are to stand against the power of the adversary, and vanquish      it, saying, I can do all things in him who strengthens         me.” (Phil 4:13)

So consider the following:

  • Have you ever considered the receiving the Gift of the Holy Spirit, those who have been baptized, as a “putting on the whole armour of the Holy Spirit” as taught by St. Gregory?
  • What is your responsibility as one who is baptized?
  • When you examine your conscience daily, do you plot ways to avoid and, when necessary, stand against Satan the adversary?

St. Basil the Great, pray for us.

Peace,

Deacon Tom Gotschall, The Deacon Dad at:

http://tomgotschall.wordpress.com/

https://doctorsofthechurch.wordpress.com/

Deacon Tom Gotschall on YouTube.