February Meditation

Psalm 3

ALL: O Lord, how many are my foes!
Many are rising against me;
Many are saying to me,
“There is no help for you in God.”
But you, O Lord, are a shield around me,
My glory, the one who lifts up my head.
I cry aloud to the Lord, and he answers me from his holy hill.
I lie down and sleep; I wake again, for the Lord sustains me.
I am not afraid of tens of thousands of people
Who have set themselves against me all around.
Rise up, O Lord! Deliver me, O my God!
Deliverance belongs to the Lord.
May your blessing be on your people.

Meditation: “Meaning and Happiness” by Ron Rolheiser

Am I happy? Is my life a happy one? Am happy inside my marriage? Am I happy with my family? Am I happy in my job? Am I happy with my church? Am I happy inside my own skin?

Are these good questions to ask ourselves? No. They’re questions with which to torture ourselves. When we face our lives honestly this kind of question about happiness is more likely to bring tears to our eyes than solace to our souls because, no matter how well our lives are going, none of us live perfectly fulfilled lives. Always there are unfulfilled dreams. Always there are areas of frustration. Always there are tensions. Always there are deeper hungers that are being stifled. A lot of times it is not easy to feel happy.

But we are asking the wrong questions. The question should not be: Am I happy? Rather the questions should be: Is my life meaningful? Is there meaning in my life? Is there meaning in my marriage? Is there meaning in my family? Is there meaning in my job? Is there meaning inside my church? We need to ask the deep questions about our lives in terms of meaning rather than in terms of happiness because, for the most part, we have a false, over-idealized, and unrealistic concept of happiness.

We tend to equate happiness with two things, pleasure and lack of tension. Hence we fantasize that for us to be happy we would need to be in a situation within which we would be free of all the tensions that normally flood into our lives from: pressure, tiredness, interpersonal friction, physical pain, financial worry, disappointment in our jobs, frustration with our churches, frustration with our favorite sports teams, and every other headache and heartache that can appear. Happiness, as it is superficially conceived of, means perfect health, perfectly fulfilled relationships, a perfect job, no anxiety or tension in life, no disappointments, and the time and money to enjoy the good life.

But that isn’t what constitutes happiness. Meaning is what constitutes happiness and meaning isn’t contingent upon pain and tension being absent from our lives:  Imagine if someone had come up to Jesus as he was dying on the cross and asked him the question: Are you happy up there? His answer, I am sure, would have been unequivocal: “No! And today in particular I am not happy!” However, the perspective is quite different if, while on the cross, Jesus would have been asked this question: “Is there meaning in what you are doing up there?” There can be deep meaning in something even if there isn’t happiness in the way we superficially conceive of it.

Song: Prayer of St. Teresa of Avila

Nada te turbe,
Nada te espante;
Quien a Dio tiene
Nada le falta
Nada te turbe,
Nada te espante;
Solo Dios basta.
Todo se pasa,
Dios no se muda,
La pacienca todo lo alcanza.
En Cristo mi confianza,
Y de El solo mi asimiento;
En sus cansancios mi aliento,
Y en su imitacion
mi holganza.
Aqui estriba mi firmeza,
Aqui mi seguridad,
La prueba de mi verdad,
La muestra de mi firmeza.
Yo no durmais, no durmais,
Pues que no hay paz en la tierra.
No haya ningun cobarde,
Aventuremos la vida.
No hay que temer, no durmais,
Aventuremos la vida.

Let nothing trouble you,
Let nothing scare you;
He who loves God
Needs nothing.
Let nothing trouble you,
Let nothing scare you.
God alone is enough.
Everything passes by,
God does not change.
With patience, everything is possible.
In Christ is my confidence
And my affection is his alone.
My breath is present in His weariness
And my peace of mind comes
By imitating Him.
Here lies my steadfastness,
Here lies my safety,
The proof of my truth,
The evidence of my steadfastness.
I no longer sleep, no longer sleep,
Because there is no peace on earth.
Let us not be cowards,
Let us venture to live.
Do not have fear, do not sleep.
Let us venture to live

Sacred Silence 

Scripture (Matthew 5:3-12)

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.
Blessed are the poor in heart, for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven.