Until I chose to make myself less my God will never have room to come in and make EVERYTHING more…
I love Saint John Vianney. Saint John Vianney is called the Patron Saint of Priests because he, himself, was a very holy priest.
After having received the sacraments in secret because Catholicism was not accepted in France at that time, Saint John Vianney studied in the seminary for many years because he struggled to pass the exams. After being ordained, Saint John Vianney was prohibited from administering the Sacrament of Reconciliation because his superiors considered him intellectually inferior to the task.
And yet, after all that time and all that disruption, Saint John Vianney eventually became the most well-known priest in France, with millions of people visiting Ares during his lifetime for the opportunity to receive the sacrament of Reconciliation from this Saint…
And I have been reflecting on that, because Saint John Vianney spent twelve to fourteen hours in the confessional each day hearing confession. He did not dot he minimum, he did MORE…
And I compare him to the Pharisees, who Christ knew. They made rules. And their rules were prohibitive and they applied them liberally, while doing LESS…
And Christ grieved for the souls of men like that. He grieved because in their eagerness to do more and push others harder, those men forgot to see the humanity in the lesser offerings of the people there. People flocked to see Saint John Vianney and to hear his words, not because HE was more, but because he made himself SMALL enough that God had room in his soul.
And this is really – in essence – the foundation of holiness. The Blessed Virgin – for example – supressed her own will in ALL THINGS, making herself the Handmaid of the Lord, just so that she would make room for God to do whatever He wished in her life and to use her for His pleasure and His good…
And the Saints imitate this. Once, the assistant priest for Saint John Vianney, Father Toccanier, asked the Saint, “If Our Lord gave you the possibility to choose between going straight to Heaven on the spot or staying a bit longer to keep working for the salvation of souls, what would you choose?” Without hesitation, the Saint replied, “I would stay. Saints are extremely happy, but... They can't gain souls for God like us, with their work and sufferings.”
And those sufferings can only be used when I invite God in and accept that He allows them as part of His holy will.
And I have been thinking about that today. Because my soul is so full of me that I have left barely any room for my Beloved to enter. And that worries me today because it means that I have much work yet to do. And until I chose to make myself less my God will never have room to come in and make EVERYTHING more…
For with prayer, I stand on Holy Ground where everything is clear. Here. At the Foot of the Cross.