Jesus said to his disciples: "If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have won over your brother. If he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, so that every fact may be established on the testimony of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell the Church. If he refuses to listen even to the Church, then treat him as you would a Gentile or a tax collector. Amen, I say to you,whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again, amen, I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything for which they are to pray, it shall be granted to them by my heavenly Father. For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them."
REFLECTION
Again, amen, I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything for which they are to pray, it shall be granted to them by my heavenly Father.
When her husband lay dying, she prayed fiercely, fervently and bargained with God. She had trouble forgiving the man who accidentally shot her husband. Widowed at the age of 28 with four children all under the age of four, she was left alone with loss, grief and pain.
Turning her situation was discovering the Suffering God. Her suffering awakened in her a strong desire to give herself completely to God. She began to live differently, performing acts of charity and grew in patience, humility and trust in Him.
Bishop St Francis de Sales became her spiritual director and with His mentoring these two saints had a communion in their shared love for God and a desire to walk the narrow road of sanctity. They helped one another become saints. Rather than forcing herself into extraordinary practices, she was advised to seek God's will faithfully in the ordinary circumstances of her life.
Their friendship can be read in the spiritual letters they wrote to each other. What was striking about their letters was the deep spiritual insight that St Francis offered in response to Jane's questions. Together they established what became the Order of the Visitation of Holy Mary, a community in which women--widows and women unable to endure the severe physical austerities of established religious orders -could live a life of profound prayer while also performing works of charity.
Do we find ourselves crying to God, "Why did you let this happen?" How have we handled grief, loss and the unrelenting pain and perhaps regret of our past? Is it possible that we can become a spiritual force?
Excerpt of a letter sent by St Francis de Sales to St Jane Frances de Chantal:
" Do not be troubled by the dryness of your prayer, for it is in this dryness that the Lord is working most powerfully in your soul. Remember, the soul is like a garden; it must be pruned, even in the winter, so that it might bear fruit in the spring."
God Bless You
(1) St Jane Frances de Chantal, by Reverend Tobias Hartwell
(2)_ Wisdom from the Letters of St Francis de Sales and St Jane Frances de Chantal, by Louise Perrotta
Thank you!