Master

The only way forward is to master the direction.  And the direction must be upwards – past the emotions – through the reason – and into FAITH…

Saint Dominic De Guzman

How important it is to control my emotional reaction to things.  I am generally an emotional person.  And I use the word, generally, as the operative one.  In other words, some things do not cause me to react emotionally, but other things do.

My work is generally a very unemotional space for me to be in.  But other things make me experience very strong emotions.  I am extremely emotional about my children – that is certainly for sure.  Sometimes that additional emotion is helpful – I love my children fiercely.  And sometimes, it is unhelpful – my children can make me more angry than almost anyone in the world.

Saint Dominic de Guzman said, “A man who governs his passions is master of his world. We must either command them or be enslaved by them. It is better to be a hammer than an anvil.”

And I have been thinking about that.

You see, God is my Parent, and He has far more reason than me to be angry at His sinful children.  And unlike me – the anger of God is righteous – in other words, the anger of God is completely just and justifiable.  And what I really mean by this is that sometimes my children make me terribly angry, but it is partly their fault and partly the fault of other things – like I might be tired or  stressed or worried about something else.

And that is why having mastery over my emotions – or being the master of my emotions – is so important…

Saint Dominic De Guzman was born in the late twelfth century, after his mother, Blessed Jane of Aza prayed in the Church of Saint Dominic for the birth of a son (her older two boys were priests).  During her pregnancy, Blessed Jane dreamed that a dog leapt from her womb carrying a torch in its mouth to set the world ablaze.  And in many ways this is what Saint Dominic did.  He also entered the priesthood and cared for the poor (selling rare and valuable books to pay for food for the poor during a famine).  Throughout his travels to the South of France, Saint Dominic preached to correct heresy and founded the Dominican Order of Preachers, who committed to defend the truth of the Catholic Faith.  It was to Saint Dominic that the Blessed Virgin appeared, carrying a new devotion – the Holy Rosary.  And this was to be the torch by which this dog of God would set the world ablaze.

And I have been reflecting on that today, for it seems that at each stage of his life, Saint Dominic may have chosen to digress into emotion.  After all, while it is theoretically easy to argue against heresy, the arguments are riddled with real human frustration and emotions can run high – and the Evil One preys on that.  And so, it seems that the only way forward is to master the direction.  And the direction must be upwards – past the emotions – through the reason – and into FAITH…

For with prayer, I stand on Holy Ground where everything is clear. Here. At the Foot of the Cross.