Abriendo Horizontes. Semblanza de Jose Maria Hernandez Garnica

By: Jose Carlos Martin de la Hoz

BookNo.: r038

Asunto: highlights

Fecha: 16/03/12

• Very brief biography.
• Madrid 1913- Barcelona 1972
• Joined Opus Dei in 1934 or 35, few days after Don Alvaro.
• Civil war: prisoner, suffering, condemned to death, saved by a whisker.
• Days of darkness in San Sebastian. (vocation, fidelity)
• Fully given to Opus Dei.
• 40's: director, Engineering studies, trips, priestly studies.
• Ordained in 1944.
• The work with women of Opus Dei in Spain, then France, Rome, Germany, throughout Europe.
• Capacity and eagerness to adapt himself. (self-giving, generosity)
• Never gave up looking at the difficulties of apostolic task... God would put the rest. (apostolate , fortitude)
• "Secret of Christian life is that the more you give, the more you have" (self-giving, generosity)
• Utter fidelity to St Josemaria's spirit... He would dissappear next to him.
• Respect for freedom... Long hair people.
• Suffering due to illness, especiallywhen no more celebrating the Holy Mass... Increased intensity of norms of piety...
• He would complain of the expenses and say he was a bad investment... But would allow others to take care of him. (docility, poverty)
• Tags: Garnica, Chiqui, Fidelity, Opus Dei, Suffering, Fortitude, Apostolic expansion, cheerfulness
• Listen to audio file.

Friends of God, chapter 2

By: St. Josemaria

Ch. 2. Freedom, a gift from God

• Lord do not depart from me for w/o you I can do no good at all.
• In all creation only man can decide whether to give or deny glory to God.
• This is the light n shade of human freedom
• The fruit of the best freedom of all is deciding in favor of God
• Freedom is used properly when is directed towards the good; and misused when turned away from the Love of loves.
• It should lead to ask, what do you want from me Lord?
• Truth will make you free.
• If do not realize is a child of God, is unaware of the deepest truth about himself.
• Freedom is insufficient by itself, it needs a guide. Christ
• Choices that prefer error do not liberate
• Men's supreme dignity lies on this, that they are directed towards the good only by themselves and not by others
• God's love is jelous, not satisfied if we come with conditions.
• Serving Christ involves suffering
• Even when God's will seems painful, it coimcides perfectly with our freedom
• A person who does not choose freely to follow an upright code of conduct, ends up being manipulated by others.
• W/o love of God, individual and reponsible use of freedom becomes impossible
• Is false to oppose freedom and self surrender: the later is consequence of the first
• Freedom can only be given up for love
• Because we love freedom we tie ourselves down. Pride sees such bonds as heavy chains
• The only freedom that can assail faith is a missinterpreted freedom = license.
• Freedom of consciences means nobody can licitly prevent man from worshipping God
• No one is permitted to impose on somebody the practice of the faith he lacks
• Each soul is master of its own destiny
• When man sins he acts against reason, being led by the impulse of another, so anyone who comits sin is a slave to sin
• Wherever there is comitment (to something good or bad) and real passion, the person involved lives enslaved, joyfully devouting himself to fulfill his task
• We will be slaves either way. But if we recognize Love makes us slaves of God, we become then friends, sons. We will then do the same as others do but with peace in our hearts.
• I opt for God because I want to, freely.
• We are answerable to God, no room for anonimity
• We can be forced to many things, but we can only believe if we want to
• Religion is the greatest rebeloion of men, who refuse to live like animals
• Dilemma: children of God or slaves to pride, to sensuality, to selfishness
• Love of God marks out the way of truth, justice n goodness
• When we decide for God we loose nothing n gain everything

BookNo.: r010

Asunto: highlights

Fecha: 30/12/10

Tags:

Praying 15 days with Saint Josemaria

By Guillaume Derville


15th day
Constructing the new city of love
We must learn to recognize Christ when he comes out to meet us in our brothers, the ppl around us


14th day
A love that knows no bounds
The Lord never forces himself on us. He wants us to turn to him freely... We have to hold him back (like the disciples of Emmaus)


13th day
True love of God is as far removed from sensuality as it is from insensitivity, and as far from sentimentality as it is from heartlessness or hard-heartedness.
Purity gives love wings. It sets us free.
Speak out. When water flows it stays clean; blocked up, it becomes a stagnant pool full of repugnant filth.

12th day
The fundamental motive behind prudence is to fulfill the will of God who wants us to be straight forward w/o being childish, friends of truth but never superficial or bewildered.
To love the truth gives peace & makes possible authentic dialogue w others . Speaking the truth is a sign of authentic respect and condition for real love.
Dialogue , freedom n responsibility go together.
To defend the truth we must love.
The true charity of Christ involves affection n warmth

11th day
The disciples didnt understand Jesus' choice of a donkey. Didnt realice it was to fulfill the Scripture, nor that it represented each of them.


10th day
Learning to love like a child
If you want to be great, make yourself little. To be little you must believe, love, abandon yourself, pray as children do.
Be children means be simple in pr and ask for the moon if need be
Grown ups feel embarrassd when they tumble... Children just get up
Humility is the virtue that helps us to recognize , at one and the same time, both our wretchedness and our greatness




9th day
St Josemaria used to call penance 'the sacrament of joy'
Jesus does not condemn. He forgives. In him, God loves us.
Humor - a word with the same root as humility

8th day
We have God with us; we can receive him every day and, if we want to, we can speak intimately with him... As we talk with love itself.
St Josemaria often meditated on 7 pgospel passages about prayer of petitiion he had written in his planner.
So it is necessary to ask with faith.
With faith n love we can steal God's heart, making him fall madly in love.



7th day
love of freeedom
Freedom finds its true meaning when it is put to the service of the truth which redeems.
In creating us God has accepted the risk and the adventure of our freedom.
Things are not all on the same plane, and love is always supreme.
The source of respect forbfreedom lies in love.


6th day
As at Nazareth, so also there (Bethany) the human face of God was visible in his holy humanity in a special way.
Follow example of both sisters, spending time with Jesus means working as well as praying.
Jesus Christ was not, and is not insensitive to the suffring that stems from love... But at the same time requires tha we first admit the pre-eminence of divine love.
We must be very human, otherwise we cannot be divine.
The love we experience on earth when it is really genuine, helps us to savor divine love.



Book No. r001
Date: 27/12/10 onwards

El Hombre de Villa Tevere. Chapter XIII

Freedom, it is a right, a virtue which St. Josemaria defended with a lot of energy, because he knew that freedom is essential for people to serve God well.

In 1961, Fernando Valenciano asked openly in the get-together to Dick Rieman from U.S.: "Have you voted for J.F.Kennedy?@ The father, with energy and conviction cut the conversation, there and there, making it clear that that was Dick's own business. In Opus Dei's centres people never speak politics so as to make sure that nobody's freedom is cut short at any moment, and any person is aable to choose whatever political ideollogy he may want to follow, as any other Catholic may do, just following the broad guidelines of the Church.

St. Josemaria asked Father Javier Echevarria if he wanted to be his secretary when he was just 20 years old. This request came just a short time after he had repriminded him strongly for a small-importan fault in which he had slightly 'betrayed' his trust (he took a visiting-card from his desk without permission when he had been told to take nothing from there).

To non-Catholics and non-Christians he always told them that he thought he was right and they were wrong. But he told them that he would even give his own life for the respect of their freedom.

Respecting freedom is very important for people who may want to join Opus Dei. Javier Cremades before joining Opus Dei was 'taking care' of himself because he thought they were 'after' him. Once he met St. Josemaría and he spoke so much about freedom that Javier realized that nobody was 'after' him and he decided to join the Work.

Talking about himself and everybody's freedom, St. Josemaria said:

If I wear this "umbrella cover" [referring to his black cassock] is... because I want to! I told once to God: "I give you my freedom". And with his grace I've been able to keep the promise.