St. Joseph's Corner: "Called to Love" meditations

Is your relationship with Christ out of tune?

Do you desire to be in rhythm with your baptismal obligations?

Here is helpful spiritual direction written by Pierre-Marie Dumont, publisher of Magnificat:

"Picture Jesus withdrawing, alone, to the heart of a rough and rocky desert. Behind Him, light begins to overcome the darkness.  Twilight hues merge into those of dawn: the old Law fades into the new and eternal Law to reveal the coming of the Son of God.  In this spiritual battle, He prepares Himself to open the final, tragic act of His earthly mission.  Before entering into His public life, that is, before completely fulfilling His own sublime vocation, it was necessary that the Son of Man test His human freedom in the fire of privation. For this freedom would be put to the harshest of tests, to the ultimate sacrifice: to the point of choosing, with an ineffable groan, to say, "Father, not my will but Yours be done." 

If, in Jesus, God went to the desert to remain a free man, how much more ought we to follow Him there, at least each time our free will is tasked with making an important commitment.  For two laws govern anyone who wishes to consecrate his life to the coming of the Kingdom of God: the law of love - "Does what I am doing advance the fulfillment of the will of the Father?" - and the law of freedom - "Does what I am doing make me dependent, a slave, keep me from being totally free to let my life be guided by the law of love?" In other words, "If, in order to completely fulfill my vocation, I have to say no to some urge, some desire, some habit, some addition to food, drink, sex, Internet, the phone, my amusements, my work, would I be capable of doing it?"  To answer this question honestly, we must imitate Jesus and retreat to the desert.

With this in mind, to gauge our level of Christian freedom, each of us can test ourselves.  Not for forty days, not in the Sahara...but at home, just for a couple of days.  The program?  Silence, prayer, meditation, lectio divino, nature walks, religious services, visits to the Blessed Sacrament, uplifting reading about spiritual battles...And where is this desert? First, we must totally disconnect: no more keyboards, no Internet, no screens.  Then, we must avoid all distractions: no work, no home repairs, no games, no newspapers, no frivolous reading.  Finally, we must feel hunger.  So, only cold water and a bit of bread at noon and at night...Courage!" (Magnificat, February 2016, Vol.17, No.12)

If after reading the following meditation, you are a little anxious because you feel you are being called to a religious vocation but don't know how to go about finding out which community you may be called to, it means that your soul is seeking a vocation retreat.

The Sisters of St. Joseph the Worker in Walton, Kentucky are hosting two "Called to Love" Vocation Retreats in February.  One is being held on Saturday, February 17, 2018 for young ladies in grades 6th-12th and the other is being held on Friday-Sunday, February 23rd-25th for young women 18-30. Each retreat is a welcome withdrawal from the world into periods of silence, prayer, community, and recreation much needed for the spiritual growth of the soul.

To learn more about our retreats or to register for one of the events email your confirmation to Sister Patricia Jean, Vocation Director at: sjwvocations@gmail.com.