The Good Life
May 21, 2024
Hi! How is each and every one? Isn’t it just and right that after Jesus ascended into Heaven to sit at the right side of His Father, the Holy Spirit descends to stay with us on earth and in the Church? And then the day after, we celebrate Mary Mother of God, Mother of the Church? Greater than her no one but God!
We have ten more days to go to Our Lady this month that is especially dedicated to her. Come and let us plan to go alone with everyone virtually tagging along or with friends physically going to Our Lady. You and I will do ourselves a great good to do so and our family and friends and everybody else over the world.
The Holy Rosary is a powerful weapon; pray it without ceasing; The good Lord and our mother Mary are watching and listening to His children. Trust Him and our Lady and tell them throughout the day “Jesus, I trust in You”. Maintain a hopeful joy through the days doing what ought to be done and doing it well in thanksgiving and love of God.
Let us continue discovering how to live the
good life, a life that is full of meaning, intimacy and virtue. Remember what
St Augustine said: “Bad
times, hard times, this is what people keep saying; but let us live well, and
times shall be good. We are the times!
Such as we are, such are the times.” (Sermon 80:8).
Defining “the Good Life”
What does
satisfying the divine longing for abundance actually require of us? Research reveals that abundance can be
defined by the pursuit of three qualities:
meaningfulness, intimacy, and virtue.
When we try to
bring meaningfulness into our lives,
we use our gifts, talents, and abilities in a manner that is both enriching to
us and a blessing to others. We can
pursue meaningfulness in bigger ways, for instance, by choosing a career or
volunteer work in which we help make the world a better place. We can also pursue meaningfulness in smaller
ways, for instance, by doing our best to apply ourselves fully and creatively
to whatever mundane tasks fill our day instead of just cutting corners to get
the job done.
For instance, extreme refinement in dealing with others, good manners and social conduct, care for little things around the house, in the office, in school and any place we find ourselves, good grooming, cleanliness, respect for others, respect for their space and their things, moderation in the use of resources, electricity, water, etc.
Living with meaningfulness is akin to what St. John Paul the Great refers to as “self-donation,” a kind of heroic generosity that asks how I might use whatever God has given me—not just my talents, gifts, and abilities, but my body as well—to make others’ lives better or more joyful. Living a meaningful life contributes to our sense of abundance by helping us feel that we matter, that we have what it takes to make a difference in the lives of others, that our very presence can be a gift.
May I share with you what transpired in my monthly social space? Last Thursday, I felt the urgent need to go and have my monthly haircut to the house of Manang Luz. While she was cutting my hair, I kept looking at myself in the mirror and I felt good at the sight of my face. I thought I don’t look the way I feel. I was pleased with the way I look afterall.
I said, “Manang Luz, bakit maganda ako sa salamin ninyo?” “O tignan mo, maganda naman ako?” (Manang
Luz, why do I look beautiful in your mirror?)(Look, don’t I look beautiful?)
She replied, “May mga salamin na mapintasin.” “Yan din po ang sinasabi ng mga tao. E talaga namang maganda kayo, ang kinis kinis po ninyo.” (There are mirrors that criticize.)(That is what people say) (But you really look beautiful, your skin is so smooth.)
“Alam ninyo, Manang Luz, ganyan din yung salamin dun sa mananahi ko. Pag sinusukat ko yung tinahi niya na damit, e parang ang ganda ganda ko sa salamin niya.” (You know, Manang Luz, that’s how the mirror of my seamstress is.) (Whenever I fit the dresses she has sewn for me, I find myself looking good in them.)
Isn’t it true that a haircut that is due truly makes one pretty and feel pretty as well?
I was done after thirty minutes. I hailed a tricycle and proceeded to have my mani/pedi that was half a month overdue. I came fifteen minutes before they were supposed to open and while I was being done, the second manicurist arrived and said, “O ang ganda ganda naman ng umaga ko. Mam, ang ganda naman ninyo.” (Oh how beautiful the morning is! Mam, You are so beautiful!)
The beautician said, “Mam, may kamukha pa po kayo na veteranong artista sinauna maliban kay Nova Villa.”(Mam, there is also another known actress who looks like you aside from Nova Villa)
“Parang alam ko kung sino siya. Si Aawitan Kita? Armida Signon Reyna?”(I think I know who she is. Aawitan kita, Armida Signon Reyna.)
“Ay siya nga po. Maganda rin po siya. Kamukha nga po ninyo. Bakit po hindi kayo nagartista?”(Yes, she is the one. She is also beautiful. Looks like you. Why didn’t you become an actress?)
I always remind myself that my couturier, beautician, companion, adviser, friend, beloved, inspiration, teacher, coach, guide, physician is no other than the Holy Spirit. Whenever episodes like the above happen, I thank Him for sharing with me the merits and credits that are His. I tell Him: “That’s You! The credits are yours.”
Intimacy refers to our ability to work for deep, close, healthy and supportive relationships. Think of intimacy as a unit of measure for love, like gallons for liquid or inches for length. If love is a body of water, intimacy tells us whether that body of water is a puddle or an ocean. People who pursue intimacy work hard to draw closer to others in healthy ways that allow them to experience their relationships as a gift. In his theology of the body, St. John Paul the Great reminds us that we are called to create “communities of love” where we and the people in our lives are mutually committed to working for one another’s good. People who pursue intimacy make a priority of both seeking deeper communion with the healthy people in their lives and setting boundaries that might help more difficult relationships to become healthier in time. Intimacy contributes to our sense of abundance by making us part of a community where we are loved, cherished, and valued as persons. The human person is relational by nature. The pursuit of intimacy helps us make certain that our relational selves are as healthy as they can be.
(From catholiccounselors.com) We all have different backgrounds, different experiences, and different opinions. While this can be a positive thing, it can also often lead to conflict in our conversations and in our relationships.
The Theology of The Body reminds us that our primary mission is to create communities of love out of the relationships we have with all the people in our lives. One of the lessons we all need to learn in order to accomplish this goal is how to manage conflict, tension, and differences of opinion gracefully. Humility is the virtue that makes us open to the experience of others, even others we disagree with vehemently. Each of us has a story that deserves to be heard. Each of us is wounded in a way that deserves to be respected. The positions we hold, the choices we make, and the attitudes we have are rooted in those stories and wounds. We can’t hope to build a relationship with another person–much less change their minds–if we aren’t willing to take the time that’s necessary to understand how they got to where they are. Listening and empathizing are the two most important tools in addressing conflict gracefully.
Finally, virtue refers to our ability to take whatever life throws at us and use it to become better, stronger, healthier people—more integrated examples of all the things we claim to stand for or believe in. The word “virtue” comes from the Latin words for “strength” and “manliness.” Virtue is the quality that allows us to take everything life gives to us, even the challenges, and ask, “How can I respond to this in such a way that growth and good may come of it?” Virtue contributes to our sense of abundance by empowering us to see that there is no such thing as failure or hardship. Rather, every experience I have is another opportunity to discover how I might live a full, rich, life rooted in wisdom and strength.
Following
is Pope Francis in his March 13, 2024 general audience speaking about virtuous action
(his
catechetical cycle on vices and virtues)
The Roman philosophers called it virtus, the Greeks aretè. The Latin term highlights above all that the virtuous person is strong, courageous, capable of discipline and ascesis: therefore, the exercise of the virtues is the fruit of long germination, requiring effort and even suffering. The Greek word, aretè, instead indicates something that excels, something that emerges, that elicits admiration. The virtuous person therefore does not become warped by distortion, but remains faithful to his own vocation, fully realizing himself.
We would be off-course if we thought that the saints were the exceptions of humanity: a sort of restricted circle of champions who live beyond the limits of our species. The saints, from this perspective we have just introduced regarding the virtues, are instead those who become themselves fully, who fulfill the vocation proper to every man or woman. What a happy world it would be if justice, respect, mutual benevolence, broadmindedness, and hope were the shared normality, and not instead a rare anomaly! This is why the chapter on virtuous action, in these dramatic times of ours in which we often have to come to terms with the worst of humanity, should be rediscovered and practiced by all. In a distorted world, we must remember the form in which we were shaped, the image of God that is forever imprinted upon us.
But how can we define the concept of virtue? The Catechism of the Catholic Church offers us a precise and concise definition: “A virtue is a habitual and firm disposition to do the good” (no. 1803). Therefore, it is not an improvised or somewhat random good that falls from heaven sporadically. History shows us that even criminals, in moments of lucidity, have performed good deeds; certainly, these deeds are inscribed in the “book of God,” but virtue is something else. It is a goodness that stems from a slow maturation of the person, to the point of becoming an inner characteristic. Virtue is a habitus of freedom. If we are free in every act, and every time we are required to choose between good and evil, virtue is what enables us to have a tendency towards the right choice.
If virtue is such a beautiful gift, a question immediately arises: how is it possible to obtain it? The answer to this question is not simple, it is complex.
For the Christian, the first aid is God’s grace. Indeed, the Holy Spirit acts in us who have been baptized, working in our soul to lead it to a virtuous life. How many Christians have reached holiness through tears, finding they could not overcome some of their weaknesses! But they experienced that God completed that work of good that for them was only a sketch. Grace always precedes our moral commitment.
Moreover, we must never forget the very rich lesson from the wisdom of the ancients, which tells us that virtue grows and can be cultivated. And for this to happen, the first gift to ask of the Spirit is precisely wisdom. The human being is not a free territory for the conquest of pleasures, emotions, instincts, passions, without being able to do anything against these forces, at times chaotic, that dwell within. A priceless gift we possess is open-mindedness, it is the wisdom that can learn from mistakes in order to direct life well. Then, it takes good will: the capacity to choose the good, to form ourselves with ascetic exercise, shunning excesses.
Dear brothers and sisters, this is how we begin our journey through the virtues, in this serene universe that is challenging, but decisive for our happiness.
The good life is life attuned to the Divine design.
We have shared a lot of good thoughts above that you and I can talk to God about in our moments of silence with Him. Let us make time and enjoy the time you and I talk with Him. Listen attentively and engagingly with Him. He will tell you and me more meaningful, intimate, virtuous things to think about, to act on and be happy doing so.
See you in the next post, “May tomorrow be a perfect day; may you find love and laughter along the way; may God keep you in his tender care; ‘til He brings us together again.”
Guadalupinky
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