November 11, 2008

366 Spiritual Sayings of St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria


FOREWORD
by Fr. Giovanni M. Villa, CRSP, Superior General of the Barnabite Fathers

"I am pleased to present to you this calendar with St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria’s thoughts, which will accompany you during the days of the year. These thoughts are taken from the writings of this Saint, who lived in the 16th century: a time very similar to our time, which is marked by great transformation and a decadence of faith and religious morals. The people of St. Anthony Mary’s time had a need of a convincing and persuasive example and testimony. It was for this that he chose St. Paul the Apostle as his spiritual guide and master. Like St. Paul who had been completely changed by the grace of the Lord, so St. Anthony Mary desired that everyone might carry out the “reform”: change oneself according to Jesus’ word, so that he may in turn change others and the society he lives in."....


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August 31, 2008

Who St. Anthony M. Zaccaria is for you?

1. How has Saint Anthony Mary Zaccaria been an inspiration to you?
Saint Anthony Zaccaria has been an inspiration by his extraordinary embrace of patience despite many obstacles. He was quoted as saying, “No one can come close to God unless he willingly practices patience in many tribulations."

2. What is the spiritual message St. Anthony Zaccaria proclaims? How did he proclaim it, e.g., by witness, practice, verbal or written proclamation?
Saint Anthony Zaccaria's message is that his followers have the capacity to become great saints. They need to give back to Jesus Crucified the good qualities and graces that He has given to them. He manifested this in the way he lived his life and proclaimed it in verbal and written form.
3. What are the dates and times Saint Anthony Zaccaria lived?

What influenced them to be charged with living the gospel of Jesus Christ?Saint Anthony Zaccaria was born in Cremona, Italy in 1502 and died there in 1539. After several years of caring for people's bodies as a physician, Saint Anthony felt a greater urge to care for their souls.
Genuine love for his fellowman influenced him to be charged with living the gospel of Jesus Christ as a priest.
4. Did Saint Anthony Zaccaria start a religious order or foundation or create many followers?
Saint Anthony Zaccaria was the founder of three religious groups; Clerics Regular of St. Paul known as The Barnabites (priests), The Angelic Sisters of Saint Paul (nuns) and The Laity of Saint Paul.
5. What is the '"take home message" you want us to remember about Saint Anthony Zaccaria so that his spirituality now becomes a part of our spirituality?
Saint Anthony Zaccaria held Jesus Christ in the forefront of his mind. He never wavered in this regard. Like Christ, Saint Anthony Zaccaria with his love and compassion lived to ease the burdens of those less fortunate.
________
written by Ms. Fran Stahlecker

July 9, 2008

A Daily Lesson in Holiness of St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria on FERVOR - July

On FERVOR
July 1
The good and holy fervor is, the fire of the Father, the splendor of the Son, and the flame of the Holy Spirit.

July 2
Because it is His gift, without great fervor no one will ever become great in front of God.

July 3
Authentic spiritual fervor consists in a vigorous and continuous reform of the mind toward good.

July 4
Fervor is a stimulus for any perfection, an increase of good will, a confirmation of holy resolutions and stable perseverance.

July 5
Fervor is in the mind’s eye, through which one concentrates exclusively on the sincere honor of God while dismissing everything else.

July 6
Fervor leads to the observance of all divine precepts and counsels, not only those which are known but also those which can be surmised.

July 7
Out of love of God, fervor makes the hate of oneself [one’s self diminish] grow beyond any measure. This is why it exterminates all passions, like a very strong army formation.

July 8
The Devil saw the formation of the fervent and became afraid at the sight, because he was forced, against his will, to always bring it new crowns.

July 9
True fervor always grows in prosperity as in adversity. It grows in consolations as in desolations.

July 10
Fervor does not know any way or measure, since it always believes to have done nothing. It always looks at what has to be done and the more it gains, the more it desires.

July 11
Fervor wants to know God through the virtues of the heart in order to advance to the order of the Seraphims.July 12 The fervent are situated at the highest degree of freedom. They pity those who lack fervor.

July 13
Fervor leads toward an active, noble and contemplative life, without omitting those things needed for each state.
July 14
Those who complain because God does not give them fervor, add blasphemy to their lack of proper disposition.
July 15
Rid yourself of what is contrary to fervor, like distractions of the mind and pleasures of the senses. God will then ignite fervor in you.

July 16
When fervor becomes perfect it sometimes seems to loosen up, but actually it has not diminished, rather it has transcended into a delightful habit.

July 17
When goodwill and firm resolutions remain steadfast, do not be sad even though fervor seems to be dead. Although the sensible fervor may have failed, it cannot be dead.

July 18
Fervor starts as a gift from God, is kept through a firm resolution, and must never stop during this life.

July 19
An indecisive person loses fervor and becomes lukewarm.

July 20
Acquire stability and fervent perseverance in spiritual matters so that you may never again way between fervor and tepidity, but rather may enjoy a steady and holy fervor, nourished by life-giving water and enriched by new vigor.

July 21
Retain selfsame fervor both when the Superior is present and when he is absent and also when you deal with others exactly as you would with your Superior.

July 22
Fervor leads toward an active, noble and contemplative life, without omitting those things needed for each state.

July 23
I hope to grow in Jesus' love; and the good Lord crucified will give me back the spiritual light and fervor, which used to keep me spiritually alive.

July 24
Never allow yourself to be entangled in imaginations and dreams while praying, and also never abandon prayer should you feel no sensible fervor, but rather renounce the latter if it came upon you, and consider yourself unworthy of it.

July 25
One thing is exterior fervor and devotion, and quite another is interior fervor and true devotion. And that is why you should know that God very often for your own good takes away this exterior fervor and devotion that you may understand that this is not within your own power, but God's gift, and thus you may humble yourself more and more.

July 26
Authentic spiritual fervor consists in a vigorous and continuous reform of the mind toward good.
July 27
Those who complain because God does not give them fervor, add blasphemy to their lack of proper disposition.

July 28
The good and holy fervor is, the fire of the Father, the splendor of the Son, and the flame of the Holy Spirit.

July 29
True fervor always grows in prosperity as in adversity. It grows in consolations as in desolations.
July 30
Rid yourself of what is contrary to fervor, like distractions of the mind and pleasures of the senses. God will then ignite fervor in you.

July 31
Fervor starts as a gift from God, is kept through a firm resolution, and must never stop during this life.

July 4, 2008



by late Fr. Louis Peter Bonardi, CRSP (a Barnabite)



The Forty Hours' Devotion or more commonly known as the Forty Hours, is a definite form of divine worship of the Blessed Sacrament in the Catholic Church. This form of worship is effected by the Holy Eucharist being solemnly exposed for adoration for forty hours in memory of the period of time Christ's Body lay in the tomb, and for the purpose of making reparation. The founder or institutor is the person responsible for starting this particular devotion.

The Forty Hours' Devotion presents a process of successive developments throughout the ages. From very simple and almost private beginnings, all of a sudden this devotion assumed a solemn and resplendent form of worship universally accepted.

In the first part of the Sixteenth Century and up to the Council of Trent, it was not an era in which the spirit dominated over matter. The Renaissance had awakened the people but it also had a corrupting influence on their morals. What marked the religious decadence in these years was the culmination of evil customs and abuses of the preceding centuries. All sorts of abuses were prevalent even in churches with practices unbecoming to divine worship. The Holy Eucharist the glory and the most treasured possession of the church was the subject of profanity, irreverence, and indignities, As a result, Christ in the Eucharist was exiled from His churches and relegated to obscure corners of sacristies. It was evident that in order to reform the Christian people, the churches had to be restored to their former splendor of the house of prayer; the Blessed Sacrament had to be returned to its church and take a prominent place in it, and the people had to be brought back to Christ in the Holy Eucharist.

It is the Forty Hours' Devotion which really became the means of accomplishing this. A Eucharist devotion under such name was established back in the Twelfth Century in the city of Zara. It was Pope Alexander III who gave his approbation and granted an indulgence for this pious practice. Mention of Prayer of the Forty Hours was made in Milan In 1527 and again in 1529. The Forty Hours' Devotion as we know it today in the Catholic Church did not start until 1537, and this took place in Milan, Italy.

St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria is the founder of the Forty Hours' Devotion. In his zeal for the salvation of souls, St. Anthony Mary had already founded two religious orders, one of Priests, the Bamabite Fathers, and one of Nuns, the Angelics Sisters of St. Paul. Devotion to Christ Crucified and Christ in the Blessed Sacrament was the double-edged sword which the Saint employed in combating the enemies of the Church of that century. Before he became a Priest, he was a Doctor of Medicine. His medical experience helped him to put his finger on the sore spot of the society of his day which was a conspicuous lack of Eucharistic life among the people. To obviate this critical situation, he plunged into a great sea of activity. In 1539, when only thirty-six years of age St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria died of sheer exhaustion, obedient to the common of St. Paul never to spare oneself when the glory of God and the salvation of souls are involved.

Some sources refer to the Forty Hours as having been started in 1534 in Milan by a Cremonese hermit Fra Bono. Documentary evidence, however, points to the year 1537 as the most probable. In regard to Fra Bono, it has been ascertained that he was what one might call the right hand of St. Anthony Mary in establishing this devotion and in preparing the churches to receive it.

In that same year of 1537, there was in Milan a Capuchin Father who was famous for his preaching and holiness of life, Father Joseph Piantanida de Femo. The Capuchin sources testify that Father da Femo seeing the distress of the city because of wars promised peace from God while preaching if the Milanese people would take over the Forty Hours’ Devotion for one year.
This testimony, although not lacking altogether in authority, contradicts the

Bamabite tradition and the testimony of an eye witness of the events of the year 1537. The Capuchin tradition was codified almost half a century after the narrated facts. By then, the Forty Hours had been accepted in most of Italy through the merits principally of Capuchin Fathers. The fact that Father Joseph da Femo was the first Capuchin to promote the Forty Hours in his missions helped to confuse the issue.

The tradition of the Capuchin Fathers rests absolutely with Father Joseph da Femo to the exclusion of any other concerning the founder of the Forty Hours. On the contrary, the tradition of the Barnabite Fathers in the institution of the Forty Hours is for the founder of their Order at the exclusion of anyone else. The Barnabite and the Capuchin traditions can be somewhat reconciled in the light of the testimony of Gianmarco Burigozzo, the Milanese merchant, who witnessed and left a written narrative of the beginning of the Forty Hours' Devotion in 1537. It
is, therefore concluded that St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria with his first followers is the founder of the Forty Hours' Devotion. He exposed the Eucharist with solemnity without the use of veils and richly adorned it with tapestries, lights and flowers. He proposed and obtained that each church of the city take up in turns the Forty Hours' Devotion. Probably, the Saint would not have had such a great response from the people if the preacher of the Cathedral, Father Joseph de Femo, had not recommended in his fervor and zeal the practice to the faithful.

At the present stage of study, the following represents the conclusions of the problem. Father Joseph da Femo is the first promoter of this devotion throughout Italy and the greatest in accomplishments. St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria is the founder of the Forty Hours' Devotion as it is know today in the Catholic Church, that is, a solemn and public exposition of Blessed Sacrament observed in all of the Catholic Churches.

______
NOTE:
Abstract from theses “The Origin of the Forty Hours Devotion and its Modern Founder” Presented by Fr. Louis Peter Bonardi, CRSP to Niagara University, 1961).

June 28, 2008

Day 9- For Brotherly Love

Let us run like madmen not only toward God but also toward our neighbors,
who alone can be the recipients of what we cannot give to God,
since He has no need of our goods.

(St. A. Zaccaria, Letter to B.Ferrari and G. Morigia)

A reading from the second Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians (Gal 2:15-21)

Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law. The commandments, "Do not commit adultery," "Do not murder," "Do not steal," "Do not covet," and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this one rule: "Love your neighbor as yourself." Love does no harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.

A reading from the forth Sermon of St. Anthony Zaccaria

You wish to know how to acquire the love of God as well as to find out whether it is in you? One and the same thing helps you acquire, expand, and increase it more and more, and reveals it as well when it is present. Can you guess what it is? It is love ―the love of your neighbor.
God is a long way from our direct experience; God is spirit (John 4:24); God works in an invisible fashion. Thus, His spiritual activity cannot be seen except with the eyes of the mind and of the spirit, which in most people are blind, and in all are wavering and no longer accustomed to seeing. But man is approachable, man is body; and when we do something to him, the deed is seen. Now, since He has no need of our things, whereas man does, God has set man as a testing ground for us. In fact, if you have a friend very dear to you, you will also hold dear those things he loves and cherishes. Therefore, since God holds man in great esteem, as He has shown, you would show meanness and indeed little love for God, if you did not think very highly of what He bought at a great price.


Invocations
Saint Anthony, man gentle and humane …Pray for us
Saint Anthony, Man burning with charity…Pray for us
Saint Anthony, Man ruthless against vices…Pray for us

Prayer
Eternal Father, you love everyone and want everyone to be saved, grant that we do find you and love you in our brothers and sisters so that they too, through me, may find you. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory be...

Prayer to St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria

Saint Anthony Zaccaria, helper of the poor and the sick, you who devoted your life to our spiritual welfare, listen to my humble and hopeful prayer. Continue your work as doctor and priest by obtaining from GOD healing from my physical and moral sickness, so that free from all evil and sin, I may love the LORD with joy, fulfill with fidelity my duties, work generously for the good of my brothers and sisters, and for my sanctification. AMEN

Day 8- For Holiness

You have decided to give yourselves to Christ and I desire that you do not fall victims to lukewarmness, but rather that you grow more and more fervent.

(St. A. Zaccaria , Letter to Mr. Bernardo Omodei and Madonna Laura)


A reading from the second Letter of St. Paul to the Romans (Rom 12:1-2)

Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

A reading from the letter of St. Anthony Zaccaria to the Bernardo Omodei and Madonna Laura

Anyone willing to become a spiritual person begins a series of surgical operations in his soul. One day he removes this, another day he removes that, and relentlessly proceeds until he lays aside his old self. Let me explain. First of all, he eliminates offensive words, then useless ones, and finally speaks of nothing else but of edifying things. He eradicates angry words and gestures and finally adopts meek and humble manners. He shuns honors and, when they are given to him, not only is he not interiorly pleased, but he also welcomes insults and humiliations, and even rejoices in them. He not only knows how to abstain from the marital act, but, aiming at increasing in himself the beauty and merits of chastity, he also renounces anything smacking of sensuality. He is not content to spend one or two hours in prayer but loves to raise his mind to Christ frequently. (…)
What I do say is: I would like you to be intent on doing more every day and on eliminating every day even licit sensual inclinations. All this is, indeed, for the sake of willing to grow in perfection, of diminishing imperfections, and of avoiding the danger of falling prey to lukewarmness.
Do not think that my love for you or the good qualities you are endowed with, may have me desire that you be just little saints. No, I greatly desire that you become great saints, since you are well equipped to reach this goal, if you will it. All that is required is that you really mean to develop and give back to Jesus Crucified, in a more refined form, the good qualities and graces He has given you.
Invocations
Saint Anthony, angel in flesh and bones …… Pray for us.
Saint Anthony, youth grown as a lily … … Pray for us.
Saint Anthony, rich man stripped of everything …… Pray for us.

Prayer
Holy Father, you predestined us to be holy and without blame in your presence, enlighten our hearts so that we may know the hope of my vocation. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory be...

Prayer to St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria

Saint Anthony Zaccaria, helper of the poor and the sick, you who devoted your life to our spiritual welfare, listen to my humble and hopeful prayer. Continue your work as doctor and priest by obtaining from GOD healing from my physical and moral sickness, so that free from all evil and sin, I may love the LORD with joy, fulfill with fidelity my duties, work generously for the good of my brothers and sisters, and for my sanctification. AMEN

Day 7 – For Love of God

“What is necessary, yes, I emphasize, necessary, is to have love
―the love of God, the love that makes you pleasing to Him”

(St Anthony Mary Zaccaria, Sermon IV)



A reading from the Letter of St. Paul to the Romans (Rom 8:35-38)

What will separate us from the love of Christ? Will anguish, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or the sword? As it is written: For your sake we are being slain all the day; we are looked upon as sheep to be slaughtered. No, in all these things we conquer overwhelmingly through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor present things, nor future things, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

A reading from the forth Sermon of St. Anthony Zaccaria

“Who could go through so many dangers, hardships, troubles and afflictions, if he were not uplifted by love? No one. What traveler, no matter how light-footed and prudent, could walk on so narrow and so rough a road without getting some delight? What lover, deeply infatuated with his beloved, could ever leave her, were it not for another one? Could we, then, drunk with visible and ever present things -- and necessary things, besides -- give up loving them, were it not for a greater love compelling us to do so? No way!
… Consider what a great love is demanded of us: a love that can be none other but the love of God. … How happy good Christians are as they find themselves free from any attachment, for on account of this.

Invocations
Saint Anthony, True friend of God…Pray for us
Saint Anthony, True lover of Christ…Pray for us
Saint Anthony, Friend and herald of the Holy Spirit…Pray for us

Prayer
All merciful Father, you so loved the world that you gave your only begotten Son for the forgiveness of sin, through His Holy Blood sanctify me in love. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory be...

Prayer to St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria

Saint Anthony Zaccaria, helper of the poor and the sick, you who devoted your life to our spiritual welfare, listen to my humble and hopeful prayer. Continue your work as doctor and priest by obtaining from GOD healing from my physical and moral sickness, so that free from all evil and sin, I may love the LORD with joy, fulfill with fidelity my duties, work generously for the good of my brothers and sisters, and for my sanctification. AMEN

Day 6 – For Wisdom



O Wisdom above all wisdom! O inaccessible Light! You turn the learned into ignorant, and those who see into blind; and, on the contrary, you turn the ignorant into learned.

(St A. Zaccaria Sermon I)

A reading from the second Letter of St. Paul to the Corinthians (2 Cor 2:6-16)

We do, however, speak a message of wisdom among the mature, but not the wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. No, we speak of God's secret wisdom, a wisdom that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began. None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. However, as it is written: “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him” but God has revealed it to us by his Spirit.

The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man's spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words. The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. The spiritual man makes judgments about all things.

A reading from the fist Sermon of St. Anthony Zaccaria

He knew how to arrange creatures in that admirable order that you see. Notice that, in his Providence, God leads man, created free, in such a way as to force and compel him to enter that order; yet without forcing or compelling him to do so.
O Wisdom above all wisdom! O inaccessible Light! You turn the learned into ignorant, and those who see into blind; and, on the contrary, you turn the ignorant into learned, and the peasants and the fishermen into scholars and teachers. Therefore, my friends, how can you believe that God, the very apex of wisdom, may have been wanting in resourcefulness and unable to accomplish His work? Don't believe that.
Invocations
Saint Anthony, enlightened by the sublime science of Jesus Christ …Pray for us
Saint Anthony, Man inspired by the sublime wisdom of Jesus Christ… Pray for us
Saint Anthony, wise educator of the people of God … Pray for us

Prayer
All powerful Father, you sent your Son so that through Him we might call ourselves and truly be your children, grant unto me the gift of wisdom to know the mystery of your will. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory be...

Prayer to St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria

Saint Anthony Zaccaria, helper of the poor and the sick, you who devoted your life to our spiritual welfare, listen to my humble and hopeful prayer. Continue your work as doctor and priest by obtaining from GOD healing from my physical and moral sickness, so that free from all evil and sin, I may love the LORD with joy, fulfill with fidelity my duties, work generously for the good of my brothers and sisters, and for my sanctification. AMEN

Day 5 – For Perfection


For God, who is Eternity itself, Light, Incorruptibility, and the very Apex of all perfection, willed to come to live in time and to descend in darkness and corruption and, as it were, in the very sink of vice.


(St. Anthony Zaccaria, SermonVI)


A reading from the first Letter of St. Paul to the Thessalonians (1Tes 4:1-3:7-8: )

Brothers, we earnestly ask and exhort you in the Lord Jesus that, as you received from us how you should conduct yourselves to please God--and as you are conducting yourselves--you do so even more. For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus. This is the will of God, your holiness: that you refrain from immorality…For God did not call us to impurity but to holiness. Therefore, whoever disregards this, disregards not a human being but God, who (also) gives his holy Spirit to you.

A reading from the six Sermon of St. Anthony Zaccaria


Choose, then, what is good and leave out what is bad. But which is the good side of created things? It is their perfection, while their imperfection is the bad side. Therefore, draw near to their perfection and withdraw from their imperfection. Look, my friends: if you wish to know God, there is a way, "the way of separation" as spiritual writers call it. It consists in taking into consideration all created things with their perfections and in distinguishing God from them and all their imperfections, so as to say: "God is neither this nor that, but something far more excellent. God is not prudent; He is Prudence itself. God is not a particular and limited good; He is the Good, universal and infinite. God is not just one perfection, He is perfection itself without any imperfection. He is the all good, the all wise, the all powerful, the all perfect, etc."

Invocations
Anthony Mary, magnanimous hero, you have fought without pay the good fight … pray for us
Anthony Mary, exultant champion, you have quickly finished the race… pray for us

Anthony Mary, blessed servant, you have remained faithful unto death… pray for us


Prayer
Christ, Head of the Church, you called St. Anthony Mary to fight the lukewarmness, "this pestiferous and great enemy" of you Crucified, grant to the Church not "small saints" but big ones, to reach the fullness of perfection. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.


Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory be...


Prayer to St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria


Saint Anthony Zaccaria , helper of the poor and the sick, you who devoted your life to our spiritual welfare, listen to my humble and hopeful prayer. Continue your work as doctor and priest by obtaining from GOD healing from my physical and moral sickness, so that free from all evil and sin, I may love the LORD with joy, fulfill with fidelity my duties, work generously for the good of my brothers and sisters, and for my sanctification. AMEN

Day 4 - For Piety



Man turns externally to God also by obeying His commandments, and above all by coming to know the One who is the truth, Jesus Christ, and His Gospel,

and by preaching them both to others.


(St. Anthony Zaccaria, Sermon III)


A reading from the Letter of St. Paul to Philippians (4:8-10)

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.

A reading from the third Sermon of St. Anthony Zaccaria

Sanctification means turning oneself to God both internally and externally. You turn to God internally, dear friends, when you reflect on your sins or on God's blessings. Yes, you keep holy the Lord's day when you meditate within your heart on His blessings and on your faults, especially those of previous days.
... Externally, you turn to God by means of some Scripture reading, by reciting or singing psalms, and, besides, by offering Him sacrifices: the sacrifice, of your bodies kept under control by penance for the love of God, the sacrifice of your souls eager to unite themselves with Him, but above all the sacrifice par excellence, the most holy Eucharist.
…Man turns externally to God also by obeying His commandments, and above all by coming to know the One who is the truth, Jesus Christ, and His Gospel, and by preaching them both to others.
Do you want, dear friends, to become holy? Imitate Christ, imitate God: be merciful, particularly on holidays, feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, clothe the naked, welcome the stranger, visit the sick, set the prisoners free (Matt 25:35), plan your deeds ahead of time and perform them for God's sake; have the right intention; choose the best, fulfill what is good. In all things let love impel you.

Invocations
Anthony Mary, Man divine and holy … pray for us
Anthony Mary, Man resolute in acting… pray for us
Anthony Mary, Man relentless against lukewarmness… pray for us

Prayer
Christ Priest, you granted Saint Anthony Mary an angelic piety for the Eucharist and made him its ardent adorer and untiring apostle, grant that I too, pure of heart, could taste the ineffable gift of God. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory be ....

Prayer to St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria

Saint Anthony Zaccaria , helper of the poor and the sick, you who devoted your life to our spiritual welfare, listen to my humble and hopeful prayer. Continue your work as doctor and priest by obtaining from GOD healing from my physical and moral sickness, so that free from all evil and sin, I may love the LORD with joy, fulfill with fidelity my duties, work generously for the good of my brothers and sisters, and for my sanctification. AMEN

Day 3 – For Divine Knowledge



Man first leaves aside the exterior world and enters his own interior world,
and only then from there he ascends to the knowledge of God.

(St. Anthony Zaccaria , Sermon II).


A reading from the first Letter of St. Paul to the Corinthians (1Cor 13:2)

If I had all knowledge, and knew also the mysteries and secrets of God, and if I had besides such a great faith as to move the mountains, which would move and stop elsewhere, yet I had not love, I would be nothing.

A reading from the forth Sermon of St. Anthony Zaccaria

If eloquence does not seem to you to be a great quality, knowledge certainly is such an excellent thing that everybody wishes to have it. You have been taught by Adam how great is its value when, for the pleasure of becoming like God in the knowledge of good and evil, he disobeyed the commandment of the Lord God. But no matter how excellent a quality knowledge is, it, too, is of very small advantage, as Solomon can prove to you by his own story. For, notwithstanding his great public and world wide reputation for having superior knowledge, he is believed by some to have ended up at the bottom of hell. Even if this were not true, he cannot be cleared of the fact that, despite all his great wisdom, he committed countless and grave sins of lust and of idolatry. Indeed, the servant who knows his master's will and does not do it, will be punished more severely, as Christ says (Luke 12:47).

I am not telling you of this regarding only the knowledge of worldly things, but even more regarding the knowledge of God's secrets, like having the prophetic gift, and knowledge of supernatural things by the prophetic light, as proven by that most evil prophet, Balaam, by his own ruin (Num 31:8). And with far greater reason I affirm the uselessness of the knowledge of things that God alone knows, and we too come to know by faith ― even that faith which empowers man to work miracles.


Invocations
Saint Anthony, Prudent in discernment … Pray for us.
Saint Anthony, Adorned with all virtues … Pray for us.
Saint Anthony Mary, pride of great teachers …Pray for us.

Prayer
Christ Teacher, you enriched with divine knowledge St. Anthony Mary, to make him father and guide of souls toward perfection, teach me how to announce “the spiritual liveliness and the alive spirit everywhere.” Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory be...

Prayer to St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria
Saint Anthony Zaccaria ,helper of the poor and the sick, you who devoted your life to our spiritual welfare, listen to my humble and hopeful prayer. Continue your work as doctor and priest by obtaining from GOD healing from my physical and moral sickness, so that free from all evil and sin, I may love the LORD with joy, fulfill with fidelity my duties, work generously for the good of my brothers and sisters, and for my sanctification. AMEN

Day 2 – For Steadfast Prayer



Enter into conversation with Jesus Crucified and discuss with Him all or just a few of your problems. …Chat with Him and ask His advice on all your affairs, whatever they may be.
(St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria, Letter to Carlo Magni)





A reading from the first Letter of St. Paul to the Thessalonians (1 Thes 1:17-23; 27-28)

Pray without ceasing. In all circumstances give thanks, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus. Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophetic utterances. Test everything; retain what is good. Refrain from every kind of evil. May the God of peace himself make you perfectly holy and may you entirely, spirit, soul, and body, be preserved blameless for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. …Brothers, pray for us (too). The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.


A reading from the letter of St. Anthony Zaccaria to Carlo Magni


Enter into conversation with Jesus Crucified as familiarly as you would with me and discuss with Him all or just a few of your problems, according to the time at your disposal. Chat with Him and ask His advice on all your affairs, whatever they may be, whether spiritual or temporal, whether for yourself or for other people.
…If you practice this way of prayer, I can assure you that little by little you will derive from it both great spiritual profit and an ever-greater love relationship with Christ. I am not going to add anything else, for I want experience to speak for itself.


Invocations
Saint Anthony, Man ever absorbed in prayer… Pray for us
Saint Anthony, True Lover of Christ … Pray for us.
Saint Anthony, Imitator and Missionary of the Crucified Lord …Pray for us.


Prayer
Christ Redeemer, you found Saint Anthony Mary in steadfast, compassionate and loving conversation with you, the suffering One, grant us to make progress on the way of the Cross toward the glory of the resurrection. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.


Our Father…Hail Mary…Glory be to the Father …


Prayer to St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria


Saint Anthony Zaccaria ,helper of the poor and the sick, you who devoted your life to our spiritual welfare, listen to my humble and hopeful prayer. Continue your work as doctor and priest by obtaining from GOD healing from my physical and moral sickness, so that free from all evil and sin, I may love the LORD with joy, fulfill with fidelity my duties, work generously for the good of my brothers and sisters, and for my sanctification. AMEN

DAY 1 – For Faith



"It is necessary that you always trust in God's help
and come to know by experience that you are never to be without it."

(St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria, Constitutions XVII)


A reading from the Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians s (Gal:15-21)

We, who are Jews by nature and not sinners from among the Gentiles, (yet) who know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified. But if, in seeking to be justified in Christ, we ourselves are found to be sinners, is Christ then a minister of sin? Of course not! But if I am building up again those things that I tore down, then I show myself to be a transgressor. For through the law I died to the law, that I might live for God. I have been crucified with Christ; yet I live, no longer I, but Christ lives in me; insofar as I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God who has loved me and given himself up for me. I do not nullify the grace of God; for if justification comes through the law, then Christ died for nothing.

A reading from the letter of St. Anthony Zaccaria to the Father Bartolomeo Ferrari

Thus as a result of both your faith and theirs God will provide for any person under your care. You can be sure that, before you speak and in the very moment of speaking, Jesus Crucified will anticipate and accompany, not only every word of yours, but your every holy intention. St. Paul said that he would push forward but stay within the limits of the work that Christ had set for him. As for you, Jesus Crucified has also set a limit when he promised that you would get enough strength to pierce to their marrow the hearts of people. Don't you see that He Himself has opened the doors for you with His own hands? Who, then, will hinder you from entering those hearts and from changing them so completely as to renew them and beautify them with holy virtues? Nobody, of course-neither the devil nor any other creature.

Invocations
St. Anthony, precursor of catholic reform… Pray for us.
St. Anthony, faithful administrator of the divine mysteries…Pray for us.
St. Anthony, good minister, you who have remained faithful till death…Pray for us.

Prayer
Christ, our Savior, you endowed St. Anthony Mary with the light and flame of a solid faith. Increase our faith, so that we may learn to love the true and living God. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Our Father…Hail Mary…Glory be to the Father …

Prayer to St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria
Saint Anthony Zaccaria ,helper of the poor and the sick, you who devoted your life to our spiritual welfare, listen to my humble and hopeful prayer. Continue your work as doctor and priest by obtaining from GOD healing from my physical and moral sickness, so that free from all evil and sin, I may love the LORD with joy, fulfill with fidelity my duties, work generously for the good of my brothers and sisters, and for my sanctification. AMEN

June 27, 2008

THEME 13: Faith Must Be Transformed Into Culture


13 Spiritual Themes
of
St. Anthony Zaccaria
.
THEME 13:
Faith Must Be Transformed Into Culture

By Fr. Antonio M.Gentili, CRSP

This thought underlines John Paul II's message, following the Council invitation: “men need to be diligently educated to a more vast culture of the spirit." This expression seems to trace the experience of St. Anthony M. Zaccaria. Back home in Cremona, after graduating from the school of Medicine in Padua, he became aware of the need of moral values as the foundation for any orderly culture of life. With his catechesis on the Decalogue he was aiming at rekindling in the hearts of his fellow citizens the great moral norms which constitute not only the support of an authentic religious life, but also of the same social co-existence.


The sense of disorientation and ambiguity Anthony Mary senses in his contemporaries was not different from today's reality. On one side he reprimands the facility with which indiscriminately "human opinions and inventions, like heresies, and man’s opinions" (Sr I, 74) are welcomed, and on the other hand the tendency to superstition which did not spare the very religious experience of the Christians who considered as miraculous the practice of prayer, fasting, and the sacraments (Ibid, 75) and even those consecrated, whom he reprimands for practicing a "superstitious prayer" (Ibid, 78).

The Rot of Conscience

The basic moral principles, source of man's full truth, cannot avoid to refer to the Decalogue, so well eviscerated by Zaccaria of its Biblical, theological, and practical contents, repeating the invitation to "investigate very carefully your own conscience" (Ibid, 72; cf. 75,76), to find faster its "rot' (Sermon II). What is needed is to transform the Saint's catechesis into a healthy occasion to look for those "many things" (Sermon IV) which reveal themselves to whomever makes an unbiased reflection on his own conduct. Once "Shown ... the evil," we have to be the ones to search for "the way and the medicines" to heal it (Lettre III).

There is no doubt that Anthony Mary wants to create a spiritual group which would adopt the evangelical beatitudes as its rule of life (Sermon IV). But before we aim at the extraordinary we have to measure up to the ordinary, "If you want to keep the law of Christ, it is necessary that you first keep the old law" (Sermon I), that is, the Decalogue. To reach the "freedom of the Spirit" (Anthony Mary had learned from his teacher, Thomas Aquinas, that the law of the New Testament is the same Holy Spirit!), we have to make the effort "to keep first the Commandments" (Ibid, 76).

Once the aim is reached, the Christian moves in the spirit of the beatitudes, which inspire not only religious life but also civil life, and not only personal but also social life. In fact, Anthony Mary affirms without compromise that if one should refuse to risk for justice, forgetting that the "blessed are those persecuted…," he "would not be talking like a Christian, rather not even as a good citizen" (Sermon IV).

Cultivate the Spirit

At this point the longing for a more responsible and profound spiritual life becomes urgent. The spirit, our Holy Founder says, is "the most precious talent" (Sermon II). To experience it (Sermon VI), to taste it (Sermon II) is the supreme good for man, to the point that if we will not have this yearning, the very observance of the Commandments will fail. It is like saying that the extraordinary is the salvation of the ordinary. Is this not the way we act also in life? One who wants to pass the exam is going to study more than the minimum needed or indispensable. A thought expressed by Anthony Mary in a phrase which has become lapidary "Whoever wants to avoid the danger of transgressing the commandments, must observe the counsels" (Sermon VI).

NOTES:
(original text in Voce, 1989:4)
All the 13 Spiritual Themes of St Anthony M. Zaccaria were translated from Italian by Fr. Frank Papa, CRSP and edited by Ms. Fran Stahlecker.

THEME 12: The Gift of a Continuous Prayer



13 Spiritual Themes
of
St. Anthony Zaccaria




THEME 12: The Gift of a Continuous Prayer
By Fr. Antonio M.Gentili, CRSP


Anthony M. Zaccaria offers a special "Charism of Prayer," especially of interior prayer. Here it is how it is described by Fr. Louis Minelli (d. 1891), one of the most zealous Barnabites in promot­ing the cult of the Holy Founder, in his work, (Spirito e Apostolato del Beato Antonio M. Zaccaria, vol. II, Turin, 1888-1889):

" ... Blessed Anthony was a great lover of prayer. He would not start any activity unless he had meditated over it together with Jesus, and asked for his enlightenment. Any available time he would spend at the feet of Jesus present in the Eucharist, from whom he would draw help and strength for his own sanctification and the one of others. Since his living, thinking and acting were' totally directed toward God, with great ease he was able to recollect himself into prayer, so that in any place and after any activity right away he was able to concentrate his soul on God. Prayer was his principal refuge for all his needs, and his relief and comfort in his work. Since during the day, being so busy on behalf of souls, he had very little time to spend with his God he made up for this during the night, sometimes spending part or all of it in prayer. Then he would recommend to God not only his own needs, but also the ones of his neighbor and of the whole Church. And he used to do this with such a zeal and trust in the divine bounty, that his prayers couldn't not be granted by God. This is confirmed by what was said by the Angelic Antonia Sfondrati, 'Fr. Anthony was a man of such great prayer that each of his spiritual children gave witness of the help received through it.' But what made sweet so many hours of prayer was meditation and contemplation of heavenly subjects. Sometime he was so absorbed in it that he seemed to be out of his senses. The fruit Anthony Mary wanted and actually derived from his prayers, was the supreme science of Jesus Christ and a deep love for Him" (op. cit., 2, 69-70).

Vigils and Fasts

Anthony Mary draws inspiration directly from Christ, "He," he writes to the laity in Cremona, "suffered ... hunger and thirst, passed many long nights in prayer" (Sermon IV) This is the source of his invitation always to the laity gathered in the little church of St. Vitale, in Cremona: "macerate your body with hunger. .. , stay awake in prayer" (Sermon I) Above all, this was the example of Paul to whom Zaccaria was often referring to. It would be enough to remember what he said to the very first Barnabite confreres in a tempestuous moment of their history, exhorting them to imitate the Apostle in "sleepless nights and fasting" (Sermon VII; cf. 2 Cor 6:5).

Therefore, we are not surprised when he recommends to Charles Magni, a Cremonese law­yer immersed in his business, to pray "at all time, that is, night and day" (Letter III), and that he takes for granted that the spouses Omodei would be dedicated "to pray for one or two hours" (Letter XI), trying to "often elevate your mind to God" (Letter III) and "to Christ" (Letter XI) throughout the day. This is also what he prescribes with great determination for the religious, "we want to establish that at least for two hours between day and night, we dedicate ourselves to Prayer, without being involved in any other work. We beg you also…, raise your hearts to God" (Constitutions X).

Vigils and fastings are only means. Even if "an order has been given and accepted to increase fasts and vigils" to better keep the precepts of God and of the Church, still these "are not appropriate and necessary instruments for that end," Zaccaria observes in the Constitutions, "Instead con­sider as necessary means for that end, the voluntary humiliation of oneself, the resolution to want to endure sufferings and pains similar to the ones of Christ and of the Saints, to put aside their own feelings and their own opinions" (Constitutions XIX).

Let us give thanks to our Saint for a vision of spiritual life which is committed and balanced, and…let us imitate him.

NOTES:
(original text in Voce, 1988:3)
All the 13 Spiritual Themes of St Anthony M. Zaccaria were translated from Italian by Fr. Frank Papa, CRSP and edited by Ms. Fran Stahlecker.

THEME 11: The Two Vineyards



13 Spiritual Themes
of

St. Anthony Zaccaria
THEME 11: The Two Vineyards
By Fr. Antonio M.Gentili, CRSP


On February 15, 1548 the Community of St. Barnabas was invited to intensify its preparation for Easter meditating on the two vineyards.

The Vineyard of the Soul

"We need to diligently cultivate the vineyard of our soul, to eradicate all thorns, and to remove all stones which could hinder a full hundredfold yield. In so doing, with the fragrance of sweet virtues acquired with the help of our love, the sweet Christ, we will draw our neighbor to Christ."
To be able to cultivate the vineyard ad our soul first of all our heart must become soft as wax so as "to receive the imprint of the voice" of the Lord, "piercing more than any sword."
Secondly, "the soul must fast from vices, ambitions, presumptions, curiosities, anger, resent­ments, suspicions, pretenses, negligence, laziness, sadness, vane thoughts and words. quarrels, stubbornness, toughness in our opinions never wanting to yield to others, judgments, complains, desires for comfort and of being loved, and other imperfections"

Only if "we nourish ourselves with virtues and practice them" we can "spend our life, body and blood, for our neighbor, to whom we cannot give what we do not have, since no one can produce a fruit in others if he does not produce it in himself"

The Vineyard of the Lord

Only through a tireless tending of the vineyard of our soul can we "busy ourselves in the vineyard of the Lord, to make it yield a more abundant fruit."

We have to make clear our desire for "the Lord to make use of us," and "lead us to his beautiful and sweet vineyard, so much in ruin in our days, devastated and badly tended, as you can see" As you can see! We should ask ourselves if our times are much different from that far away 1548, when from the monastery of "St. Paul Converted" by St. Eufemia in Milan, the Angelic Paola Antonia Negri was signing, addressed to the Brothers in St Barnabas, one of her 133 letters It reechoes a teaching very dear to our Holy Founder and often resumed during the reflections done by the members of the three Institutes gathered together for their "spiritual sharings" (Collazioni), or community meetings. "Let us first of all produce fruit in ourselves and then in Our Neighbor," was the slogan of their program. On the other hand, they did not miss the truth of the opposite, that is, "the more one dedicates himself to others, moved by the love of God, the more fullness of the spirit he receives." These texts of the Acts of the Community are matched by another thought by the Angelic Negri, "This privilege grants charity to those who labor for her, the grace not to lack that very good which they procure for others," so that "as we work in the others, Christ will work in us," and "to exert ourselves to win the souls of our brothers for Christ, will consume in us any imperfection." Did not Anthony Mary write to a missionary in Vicenza, I wish "she would try to make progress not only in herself, which would be very little, but also in the others" (Letter VI).
NOTES:


(original text in Voce, 1988:2)


All the 13 Spiritual Themes of St Anthony M . Zaccaria were translated from Italian by Fr. Frank Papa, CRSP and edited by Ms. Fran Stahlecker.


THEME 10: Spouse of The Cross


13 Spiritual Themes
of
St. Anthony Zaccaria


THEME 10: Spouse of The Cross


By Fr. Antonio M.Gentili, CRSP



They were proceeding toward the altar singing the Litanies. They were more than two hun­dred young religious representing over forty Institutes, who were invoking their Founders, adding to the name an expression which would symbolize his spiritual character, his charism. Anthony M. Zaccaria was defined as the "Spouse of the Cross." "To go by the way of the Cross" is for Anthony Mary a synonym for Christian life and, ultimately, for holiness, if it is true that it consists in "giving back the talents given us by Christ Crucified."


But holiness is only a generic expression of good intentions if it does not become concrete in specific efforts. This is why Anthony Mary always accompanies his teaching with precise, accurate, and exacting demands. Who would forget his characteristic way of express­ing himself, "Run away, run away from it" he says about lies; "Eliminate, eliminate the offense of your neighbor," "Stand up, stand up and try to satisfy your debt," that is, to do your duty in keeping: he Commandments; "Go, go" to Holy Communion; "Get rid, get rid" of the weights which prevent you from going to perfection.

Observe What I Have Written


"My friend," Zaccaria writes to the lay Charles Magni, for sure older than himself and from a higher social level, "I beg you, if my words are of any value to you, I compel you in Christ: please, your eyes and pay attention to what I have written, and try to read it not only with the lips but with facts. I promise you that for sure you will become a different person from the one you are now, in the way you are supposed to be" (Letter III). Anthony Mary is convinced of the generating power of his words, which contain: "I do not know what" "of great advantage to you" (Letter XI) "able to lead to higher perfection" (he says. to "consumed" holiness), that is, full and tested. He used to conclude his exhortations to the laity in St. Vitale, Cremona, with suggestions and demands, like: "I want to lead a spiritual life ... I want to have God always in my heart. I will prepare my heart for God in full truth, simplicity, and sincerity. In his grace may God live forever in my heart and make it His temple" (Sermon II).

"Imitate Christ, imitate God, be full of mercy…, feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, the naked, welcome the stranger, visit the sick, free the prisoners ... Plan your activities, perform them for the love of God, have a right intention, select the best, do the right and in everything may you be motivated by charity" (Sermon III).


"I want to conquer this love" and this is why "I will submit myself to all, I will be humble and will go along with all, so that God, in his goodness, may put my heart on fire" (Sermon IV). Throughout the writings of the Saint we find suggestions not less lively as he invites to obtain "true integrity of body and soul," "to long for poverty," to "getting along in sincerity and simplicity with everybody," where "getting along" (push) indicates the dynamism of Christian life and moral conduct: to practice “a voluntary humiliation of oneself," to "put aside their own feelings and their own opinions" (Sermon III), to "long with avidity" for the nourishment of Holy Scripture (cf Constitutions VIII), to "always delight in pondering over some good things" (Constitutions X).

You Have the Duty to Please Me

"If someone is very dear to you, you will love the things he loves and values" (Sermon IV). Zaccaria reminds us. It is like as if he was saying to us if you love me, you have to share what I love, my tastes, my preferences, perhaps even my…"strange ways," if it is true that the saints have been defined as "deviant personalities," understood, of course, according to the ordinary routine of hu­man life. From the principle mentioned above, Anthony Mary derives immediate and decisive con­clusions: "You have the duty to please me…," "I am ready to shed my blood for you, so long as you do this" (Letter XI).


So those who have Anthony Mary as their spiritual father and guide are confronted by a call and a challenge. We have to welcome these challenges and make a program of life out of them, assisted by the blessing of our Father: "We have prayed Christ Crucified. We do not want anything from Him, unless it is in accordance with you and your desires" (Letter VIII). How true are the words of the Saint, "I will ... spent time in consultation in front of the Crucified Lord" (Letter III). He lives at the presence of the Crucified-Risen Lord and intercedes for all of us, wanting to conquer us to the love of God, since, "He does not want to give to anyone but to his friends and faithful disciples the gift of perfection, the taste of God, the knowledge of His secrets" (Sermon III).

NOTES:
(original text in Voce, 1989:1)
All the 13 Spiritual Themes of St Anthony M . Zaccaria were translated from Italian by Fr. Frank Papa, CRSP and edited by Ms. Fran Stahlecker.

THEME 9: The Chapter of Tears


13 Spiritual Themes
of
St. Anthony Zaccaria

THEME 9: The Chapter of Tears

By Fr. Antonio M.Gentili, CRSP



"Our origins were composed of public mortifications in the city of Milan and in the house," one of the first Barnabites, Fr. John Baptist Soresina, remembers.
Some Confreres would go through the streets of the city holding a crucifix, to preach about Christ Crucified.
Some, standing on a pedestal to be well visible in the midst of crowded places, would speak with great emphasis about the contempt of the world.

Some, inflamed with hate for pride and vanity of which they had been guilty, despicably dressed and with a grimace on their face, would walk among the people, aim of mockeries, or would draw insults throwing themselves at the feet of those passing-by.

Some, dressed as mendicants, would stand by the doors of a church to beg for alms.
Some carrying a huge cross, would walk through the central nave of the Cathedral imploring in a loud voice God's mercy, or would scourge themselves publicly in the church.

Some would go to the public market, with a rope on their neck, a basket in their hands, and would offer their service to anyone to transport their groceries.

The Signs

Anthony M. Zaccaria was very much aware of the importance of signs, concentrating his attention on two of them: the crucifix and the Eucharist For the first he came up with the idea of ringing the bells at 3:00 p.m. of every Friday in commemoration of the Passion of the Lord for the Eucharist he promoted the solemn celebration of the Forty Hours with the various churches of the city taking turn. But before his reform channeled itself into these two forms which, up to now, have withstood the trials of time, Anthony Mary had the intuition of the importance of glamorous ges­tures, either to urge true conversion among his followers, or to awaken the lukewarm or sleeping Christian.

But the shock caused so massive and dangerous a reaction as to put in danger the very existence of the young Pauline Institute.

Fr. John Baptist Gabuzio, the first historian of the Bamabite Congregation, who had re­ceived an eyewitness report by Fr. Soresina, writes, "As he saw his little vessel exposed to grave danger because of the persecutions infuriating against the Congregation, afraid of damage, he imme­diately ran to the rescue doing everything possible to avoid the danger that the healthy practices of his disciples would be diminished or totally abandoned, and the weaker ones would, out of fear, falter from the initial zeal."

The vibrant speech Zaccaria gave to the first group of his disciples has the meaningful date of October 4, 1534, feast of St. Francis of Assisi.

Anthony Mary first of all reminds them of St. Paul's teaching, patron and guide of his new Institutes. It is true "we are fools for Christ's account!" It is possible to be a follower of Christ only if we accept the foolishness of the Cross. The mystery of the Cross keeps knocking at the door of today's society. The Episcopal Synod on the 25th anniversary of the Vatican Council II (1986) affirms, "We believe that in our modem days difficulties, God wishes to teach us in a deep way the value, importance and centrality of the Cross of Jesus Christ."

And who has identified himself with the Crucified Lord better than Francis of Assisi, the minstrel of "perfect joy?" Anthony Mary uses St. Francis as an example to encourage the disoriented disciples. Fr. Soresina writes, "Fearful that some of us may loose the way (on which we had started), he called us in his room and he gave us an exhortation so full of fervor that he inflamed all of us so much that we, full of tears, threw ourselves on the floor promising to persevere. With our hearts full of generosity we promised God to keep walking on the road of contempt. Finally, we were so inflamed that, eliminating any sign of indifference in our hearts, we all promised to spend the rest of our life for the love of our Lord, who for us has died on the Cross. Kneeling we embraced each other, resolving in the midst of abundant tears, to do anything our Father would say, without any reservation. In this way we started to live together in poverty, busing ourselves with the mortifica­tion of the eradication of vices and passions, and gaining our neighbors, not worrying about efforts insofar as it was of benefit to all."

Tears and Fire

A memorable encounter, then, this encounter of October 4, 1534. We like to call it the Chapter of Tears. Those tears were tears meant to melt hearts of stone, and to root them in the love of Christ Crucified, confirming them on a steep road leading to contestation. In that Chapter the Congregation lived out her Baptism, coming out save and affirmed. Since tears are always accompanied by the fire of the Spirit, "We were all inflamed," Fr. Soresina wrote.

This chapter of tears, the solemn and dramatic overture of the history of the Zaccarian foundations, can be a most fitting overture for the celebration of the 450th anniversary of the death of our Saint. Five years later he paid with his own life that "not worrying about efforts insofar as it was of benefit to all" If the past has to be open to the future, one thing is for sure: without tears that little plant of the young Congregation could not have survived; the charism of Anthony M. Zaccaria incarnated itself in a history by now multicentennial.

NOTES:
(original text in Voce, 1988:4)
All the 13 Spiritual Themes of St Anthony M . Zaccaria were translated from Italian by Fr. Frank Papa, CRSP and edited by Ms. Fran Stahlecker.

THEME 8: Our Only Debt

THEME 8: Our Only Debt
By Fr. Giuseppe M.Cagni, CRSP

At the conclusion of the Fourth Commandment St. Anthony M. Zaccaria condenses the whole doctrine he has exposed in St. Paul's sentence, "Own no debt to anyone except the debt that binds us to love one another" (Rom 13:8).

The phrase, quite bold in itself, seems to have almost a reductive tone, instead it is terribly challenging. The Apostle Paul completes it saying that it "has fulfilled the law," while we say that it is the summary of the whole Gospel and its spiritual life.

The neighbor, in fact, for our Saint is everything. It may seem strange since God is our whole. But God is invisible, cannot be experienced, cannot be grasped (Sermon IV, 110); instead we are concrete and in need of concrete things, to render human that is authentic our relationship with the Lord. We could not pretend for Christ to protract to infinity his life on earth for our sake, but although we live in the era of faith, we still need a minimum of concrete not to build up in the sky. The Lord knows it, and has provided for it putting on our side our …neighbor.

The neighbor, I was saying, is everything for our Saint, because we cannot go to God unless we go through our neighbor. There is no other way, "Throughout the whole Scripture, my friend, you will find that God sets up your neighbor as an instrument to reach His Majesty" (Ibid, 113). And he quotes chapter 25:40 of St. Matthew's Gospel, where Jesus says, "I assure you, as often you did it for one of my least brothers, you did it for me." As a follower of St. Paul he could not miss the passage in Acts 9:4, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?" Persecuting the Christians, Paul is persecuting Christ, because the Christians are Christ. More modestly our Holy Founder says our neighbor "is the one who receives what we cannot give to God" (Sermon V). He is the only means, there are no other, or there are but they are not for sure.

From this we can understand what a central role our neighbor, the love toward our neighbor, plays in the spirituality of our Holy Founder. Not for nothing he was a doctor, that is, a practical man. He knew that in spiritual life the great risk is illusion. He wanted "true and real, not imaginary" virtues (Constitutions IX). This is why he was situating them in the context of concrete and often radical experiences, so that they would emerge from life itself And since he knew that the virtue which easily is a subject of illusion, is the love of God, he has bound it tightly to the love of neighbor on a Scriptural foundation, "If anyone says, 'My love is fixed on God,' yet hates his brother, he is a liar" (1 Jn 4:20)

For sure the leading virtue is the love of God. We have to love him "with all our heart, with all our soul, with all our strength and with all our mind" (Lk 10:27). It is the first Commandment; it is the vow that all Christians, Religious or not, have professed at Baptism But how, the Saint asks, do we acquire a great love of God? And are we sure to have it?

The answer is clear, "One and the same thing helps you to acquire it, to increase it, to aug­ment it, and in addition it shows when it is there. Do you know what it is? It is charity the love of our neighbor" (Sermon IV). He continues saying that "God has put man as our neighbor to test us" (Ibid, 110, 112), as a verification. He insists, "The means of God's love is the love for our neighbor" (Ibid, 119); and following God's style who in his work uses various media, he continues, "The man who wants to reach God has to use another man as his means" (Ibid, 111); "we need man as our means to reach God" (Ibid.); "God usually operates in this way, one man with another" (Ibid, 112); "does not God work in the creatures through the creatures?" (Ibid, 110).
Therefore, our neighbor is a sacramental reality through which God reaches us and we God. Our contact with God takes place in and through our neighbor. "Our neighbor … is the one who receives what we cannot give directly to God" (Letter II) To give is the essence of any love. Even our love for God wants to be expressed as a gift, and since "God does not need any of our goods" (Ibid, 21), God has put beside us our neighbor, so that we could express our love for Him in a gift, since we really give to God what we give to our neighbor. Moreover, our neighbor itself becomes for us a supreme gift, because it allows us through itself to realize our supreme desire: to reach God.
There is no greater exaltation of our neighbor than this. Surely, so many other aspects of the theology of charity are present to our Holy Founder'. we have to love our neighbor because the others are like us, because God's love for them is infinite, and is glad to see them loved, while is saddened when they are saddened (Sermon IV), because the sure deep need of man is to have a little love (Ibid, 112), because love is the first lesson taught by the Incarnation (Ibid, 107), because only love sustains and fulfills us (Ibid, 109). All these aspects are true and profoundly inspiring, but not as much as considering our neighbor as the supreme benefactor, because it is through him that we reach God.

In this light human rapport is illumined. Fraternal love remains always a debt, the only debt; but we gladly pay it off, as a ride leading us to encounter our loved one. In the journey our heart is transformed: from a "stony heart" becomes a "natural heart" (Ez 11: 19; 36:26). From the heart, then, the conversion moves to the whole being bringing the reality of our Holy Founder's wish, "In everything be motivated by charity" (Sermon III).

NOTES:
(original text in Ecco dei Barnabiti, 1991:2)
All the 13 Spiritual Themes of St Anthony M . Zaccaria were translated from Italian by Fr. Frank Papa, CRSP and edited by Ms. Fran Stahlecker.