Saint Anthony of Egypt

THURSDAY 17th, EVENING 2013   
SAINT ANTONY
Patriarch of Monks
(251-356)

---- Forwarded Message -----
From: Nivard ... 
Sent: Thursday, 17 January 2013, 8:25
Subject: I want to cure you

1 Thur 17 Jan 2013 Mk 8 40-45

“Of course, I do want to cure you”.

‘Magnificat Adapted’

  

   Jesus says to the leper, “Of course, I do want to cure you”.  Jesus continues to whisper the same message in our ears all day long.

    Ceaseless prayer is the ideal of the monastic life. St Anthony developed it. Its goal is purity of heart, that is, a heart so filled with love of God and neigh-bour that there is room for nothing else.

     Its tool is discernment. Discernment is the habit of watchfully testing the inner movements of the heart. It follows those that come from God. It ignores those that do not come from God.

     This is the desert legacy to all who seek God in any walk of life.

 

Father, Increase our hope. The essential note of hope is not primarily our desire for beatitude. Rather, grant us the assurance that you always come to our aid. You heal us, soul and body, through ...

 

The Lepers Essential Note of Hope FATHER BERNARD BRO, O.P  

Here we become aware of the complete conversion, the about-face, that our attitude and imagination must make, as far as hope is concerned.

It is not we who wait for God, and draw his attention, but it is God who awaits us. It is not we who are anxious to see him realise our desires, but it is he who wishes to enter into our plans and to invest us with his own strength. And in prayer it is he who anticipates us, giving us an opportunity to work for and with him, in the absolute certainty of success. "For thirty years I searched for God, and at the end I saw that it was he who was waiting for me."

This is the first response of God, the secret of our hope, and what should be the foundation of our certitude.

In this connection, it seems that too often we believe that the essential element in hope ("its formal object", as we say) is the desire to possess happiness and to possess God. Yet the essential note of hope is not primarily the desire for beatitude, but the assurance that God comes to our aid.

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Father Bro is a French Dominican priest, a distinguished theologian, and the author of many books.