Episode Transcript
Speaker 0 00:00 <inaudible>.
Speaker 1 00:04 The Catholic church is not here to teach us, uh, to feel good. Christ established his church to teach his how to be good, to guide us in the ways of holiness. That's what the church is here for, to teach us how to be holy. And one of the most common problems for anyone who's striving to become holy arises or confronted with important decisions. Why? Because if we're accident and whole interested in holiness who want to be careful to follow God's will, but that's not always crystal clear. So when we're faced with a difficult or confusing decision and we wonder just what is the will of God and all of this, what are we supposed to do today? We'll find out what the church has suggested. Keep in mind that God is the absolutely perfect father. He loves us and is part of his providential love for us.
Speaker 1 01:10 He's provided us with examples in guys, different states to help us in particular situations. For example, in the area of morals, we have Saint Alphonsus near your material life. We have Saint Teresa of Alvera, Saint John of the cross, and of course the little flower for philosophy and theology. We have to create some times to clients and so forth, so it isn't a surprise that God would also send us the same to teach us how to handle difficult or confusing decisions. Today we'll take some time looking at the teaching and the method of that particular saying, the message for making difficult choices or decisions. It's taught by that great saying, the founders, the Jesuits, Saint Ignatius of Loyola. As we will see, this message is extremely practical and easy to understand. We'll explain it in a sermon and then everybody can get a copy of this pamphlet after mass.
Speaker 1 02:11 It's sitting there and in the back and also if you have it mortify your appetite straight now and listen to, I'll explain it. You can look at it later, but just set it aside for now. Anyway, this is San Ignatius's guide for making important decisions. It's taken from the spiritual exercises and I just slightly edited to make it more clear what he's talking about only not to change any of the meaning of Saint Ignatius, but some of the more obscure terms. So I certainly have kept faithful to what he's saying. Although I have changed a few words only for that reason. Anyway, saying gay should start out by pointing out something that should be obvious to all of us that the most important thing, the single most important thing that's saying that we always need to keep in mind is that we've been created specifically to give glory to God.
Speaker 1 03:01 And by doing that to save our souls, he points out that this idea, this fundamental notion needs to be the basis for all our choices. Saint Ignatius quote can make a good choice. Our intention bought to these simple only looking what at what we are created for, namely the praise of God, our Lord and the salvation of our soul. And so I could choose whatever I do that it may help me for the end for which I'm creating. Close quote Saint Ignatius. Okay, so what has he done? He just reminded us that when we're doing something, we need to keep our mind in our eye firmly on the goal charts, which we're headed. But now the saying yes, it's a very important warning and your young people, it's critical you let down your ears unless listen right now, Saint Ignatius warns us, we have to be careful to choose the right means to reach our end from everybody.
Speaker 1 04:05 That the end is to give glory to God and save our souls. He warns us that many people do not do this. Here's Saint Ignatius is slightly edited explanation about many people choose thirst to marry, which is a means and secondarily to serve God our Lord in the married life. But this is upside down since we've been created to serve God in the first place. Remember that to serve God is our end. There are also those who want in the first place to have comfortable lives and then to serve God in them. The problem here is that these men do not go straight to God, but they want God to come straight to their disorder tendencies. So what they should have taken first. They take last because in the first place we have to set as our AME service of God. That's our end and in the second place we take a particular job or married, which is the means by which we may accomplish.
Speaker 1 05:18 Then close quote Sandy Ignatius of Loyola. His basic point here is the basis for our choices. Like this is simple. Why do we choose something like a job or a state in life or what do recheck that job or that state in life, we keep the one goal in mind that we're here to give quality, God and us to save ourselves. We have to keep that in the first place, keep that young people in pies to all of us. The young people are at the age where you have to start thinking about which direction am I go in your life. This is what you keep fine in Santa. Then you make your choice on that basis and we don't turn things upside down by making our decisions first and then expecting we're going gonna rest around God, so he takes our point of view. Then he's not God.
Speaker 1 06:13 He's in charge. He's in the driver's seat and we are to submit to him and not expect him to submit to us. Notice also that we don't make these decisions on the basis of how we feel. We have to keep the glory of God and the Salvation of ourselves front and center. Now, how I feel, we better not choose what we feel like and expect God to put his rubber stamp on it. Okay? That's completely upside down. That's not the path to holiness. Okay? Before explain his message, Saint Ignatius, snakes, three more preliminary points. First, anything we choose has to be allow by holy mother the church. If it isn't, it isn't the will of God. That's just a no brainer. X. Dot one out. That's forbid mother church and God doesn't want me to do it. Number two, some choices are unchangeable such as priesthood.
Speaker 1 07:13 I'm stuck or marriage or everyone's married here is stuck. Third, if we've made an unchangeable choice, it's a done deal. We're stuck. If we chose wrongly, what do we do? Saying, Hey, she points out that we repent, but then we work out our salvation by leading a good life. In our situation. In that situation, we don't try to squirt out from under it. We lead a good life in that situation. Okay, so anything we choose has to be allowed by holy mother church. Things like the priesthood and marriage unchangeable. If we've made an unchangeable choice, it's a done deal. Even if we messed up and what do we do? We were pack and work out our salvation in that particular state. So much for the preliminaries. Now let's go through some of the methods at San Diego. She's composers for us to come to knowledge of what God's will is when we're trying to make a difficult decision.
Speaker 1 08:11 We'll consider three messages this morning. These are methods that are done when our soul is that relative peace. There's stuff for when things are turbulent. We'll talk about that another day. They are mentioning here, but we need more details and for the sake of time we'll limit ourselves to things when our soul is relatively at peace or struggling with a particular decision, but it isn't a big storm. We can stay at somewhat at peace. Okay. The first method we'll look at has six steps that are easy to keep track of. The first thing, step one, we placed the call and before this is best to do in front of the bus. It's stacking as possible if not in front of a crucifix or a picture of the sacred heart. We kneel down, we placed that problem us. Should I go to the monastery? Should I stay out in the world, say, take this job or not because I have a vocation to marriage or what?
Speaker 1 09:05 Okay. Step two, we keep in mind this principle font that we've been created specifically for the glory of God and for the salvation of our soul and then keeping that in mind. We imagine ourselves as it were in the middle of the handouts where on the one side we have the taken and another said we have leave. It. Should I take this job? Should I leave it? Should I go to the monastery? Should I stay in the world? Should I date this man? Should I not? Okay the take it or leave it thing right there. Then in their mind's eye, we balanced this so we're not more inclined to take this thing than to leave it or leave it and take it. We get that in their minds. I balanced like this. Okay, should I stay in the world? Should I go to the monastery?
Speaker 1 09:50 We bounced the Pan because what we're trying to do is find out which choice is more for the glory of God and salvation of souls. So now we have this internal doubt in internal balance before God. Step three, we begged God to move our will and make it clear to us what he wants us to do. We're asking God to make that clear for us. Step forward. Now keeping in mind we got to keep this in mind. This glory God, the salvation of our souls. We reckon up the advantages in taking this particular choice. And on the other hand, the disadvantages from taking it. So we're looking at the advantage and disadvantage from taking it. Like what would I do? What are the advantages to go in the monastery? What are the disadvantages to go into monster? On the other hand, then we flip it over.
Speaker 1 10:37 We reckon what did an exam she is to not go into the monastery. What are the advances? Disadvantaged is not going. She would either either one, you know, what are the advantages and disadvantages for taking this choice? What are the advantages and disadvantages for not taking it? This is not an economic calculation. What are the advantages and disadvantages? Wait, in the light of eternity, we're saying which is more for the glory of God and the salvation of my soul advantage. Disadvantage, which is more to the glory of God and the salvation. My soul. You know, it's like if I leave it to advantage, disadvantage. Okay, so we got those so we have it bounced out like that. In light of eternity, we've looked at the advantage and disadvantage for either taking the choice or leaving the choice. Step five after we've considered the advantages and disadvantages from taking it again just in different versions from leaving it, we then choose according to creator inclination of reason.
Speaker 1 11:36 What's more reasonable now what my ceilings say, we want to remember, thanks to us, the gifts, integrity, or feelings are all over the place. We don't pay attention to those who are doing it according to the inclination of reason. Our feelings might be going one way, but our reason tells us southern, we follow. Our reason. Safe is what? In the intellect, not in our emotions. If we want God to help us, we don't get dragged around by our feelings that if we want somebody to help us with our feelings, we're going to have the wrong guy helping us there. God will help us with the intellect. That's where we get to lights from him. Sixth step, we placed this choice before God in prayer and ask him to confirm it if it be for his greater honor and glory. Okay? Let's review those six steps real quickly.
Speaker 1 12:20 Number one, we placed this thing before us. Number two, we keep in mind what we're here to do, give glory to God if save our souls and we set up that handouts and our imagination and we balanced it so we're needing not more inclined to take it or leave it. We come to balance. Step three we begged God to move our will as to which direction he wants, what make it clear to us. Then after we've asked him for that, keeping in mind the Cory, God and salvation of our souls, we reckon up the advantages and disadvantages for taking it and the advantage gets Dan just for leaving it. Then step five we choose according to the creator inclination of reason, not according to our serious reason that feelings. Finally, step six we placed this choice before God in prayer and ask him to confirm it if it's for his greater honor and glory.
Speaker 1 13:12 That's the first method. The next two are very easy to remember. Saint Ignatius, the second mass we'll look at, he proposes us another way, matching the man that we've never seen, talk to her, met before, walking up to us and he comes to us with a problem. The very problem that we're considering. Let's suppose I'm wondering whether I should go in the monastery. He comes up to me and asked me for advice, so in prayer I'm thinking about this shit comes this man should I go to the monastery and he gives me all this reasons. We sit there, I want this man to become a saint. I wanted to give greater glory to God and that save his soul. So he proposed me, tells me the whole situation and then I give him my advice. Then you just turn right around and take that advice for yourself.
Speaker 1 13:57 It's a way of to catch in your feelings so you can speak just passionately to another person who isn't you, about you. That's what Saint Ignatius is doing for us. It at least I really liked that particular way, but they're all good. Another message from Saint Ignatius, imagine we're right at the very pointed debt. There. We are laying on her deathbed, we're looking back over our life and we consider this particular problem right there in the light of eternity's. We're dying. We consider what would we have liked to done and that particular situation and we take that advice. Now there's other things in this pamphlet. There's other methods that's just through three that we're looking at for the sake of time. There are other things in it. Take one of these really carefully keeping your Bible, your Ms slitter prayer book. Keep it somewhere where you can refer to when you need it.
Speaker 1 14:47 Saint Ignatius brings two fundamental truths to our tension. Fundamental truths are almost totally lost in our acs. Take materialistic culture. The first truth, is it a choice? Any choice is judged by one standard at one standard. Only. A choice is only a good choice when it's permitted by the church and it's being done for the creator of Glory of God and the salvation of our soul now on what we feel like or what we desire. The second truth is that this life is basically just bootcamp for eternity. It's just a short testing period for eternal life. What we do right here and right now has eternal consequences. Let's call it, we'll close with a thought from Santa can anxious about to make a good choice. Our intention ought to be simple only looking at what we're created for, namely the praise of God, our Lord, the salvation of our soul, and so I did choose whatever I do that it may help me for the end for which I am created. Close Quote Sandy Ignatius of Loyola.
