Friends of God, chapter 1

By: St. Josemaria

Ch. 1. The richness of ordinary life

• Jesus is at our side guiding us like a shepherd
• He has chosen us to be part of his family to be saints
• His invitation obliges us to struggle to the point of heroism
• These world crisis are crisis of saints
• Concern for souls follows from the fact that God has chosen us.
• Success in attracting souls depends on how much interior life we have
• Ppl are not born holy. Holiness is formed by God's grace n man's correspondence.
• Holiness God asks of us is in daily duties, n these will almost always consist of small realities.
• You will not lack opportunities to show love of God in the small n ordinary things around you.
• We are few n worth little
• A disciple of Christ calls error error but the person in error he will correct with kindness
• Victory only comes to those who strive to behave as Christians. Thus there are so many who from a human point of view should be happy but aren't. They appear to be, but just scratch the surface and...
• Interior life consists of begining once n again... The struggle is never ending
• Child helping the fishermen...if we come to God like that, knowing our weakness, we shall more easily reach the goal
• You must let yourself be helped by a spiritual director
• Have you been pursuing God's or your own glory in everything you do?
• Ppl who fly to the heights w/o interior life are like that fellow flying on the wings of a plane...frightening
• In work n dealing w others we should maintain dialogue w God which is not audible but does manifest outwards in the care we put in doing things.
• Be of one piece
• The more we advance in interior life, the more we see our own failings
• Saints were ppl like us, with weaknesses who managed to master themselves for love of God.
• Your boat -your talents, achievements, etc- are worth nothing if not left in Christ's hands.
• If we let him take command, how safe the boat will be!
• We want him to do as he pleases with all we posses
• Only in his shelter will we find true happiness

BookNo.: r010

Asunto: highlights

Fecha: 29/12/10

El hombre de Villa Tevere. Chapter 10

This chapter makes you pray telling about the deep interior life of St. Josemaria, his relationship with God without the miracles.

A deep interior life based on the practice of a few pious actions during the day, the Norms of piety any member of Opus Dei does, such as daily Holy Mass, Mental Prayer, spiritual reading, etc.

His interior life would lead him to live in the presence of God at all times, doing everything for Him and in Him. everything would lead him to think of god, and he would make use of everything to go towards God, even for instance, of songs which talked about human love, directing those words towards God or towards the Virgin Mary.

But that wouldn't take him out of the world, on the contrary, thanks to that presence of God he would be very attentive of other people's needs or likings. For example, once, while leaving a farm house at which he had been resting and working in the summer of 1967, Father Javier Echevarria found in the house a snake. Skillfully he managed to kill it, and when triumphantly announced it, St. Josemaria asked him if he had removed it so that the people who would clean, wouldn't get scared finding it there (instead of just thinking of the adventure.

His love for the Virgin Mary was not theoretical but shown in deeds. When an image (a statute) was 'rescued' from Switzerland (it had been disposed) and arrived to Villa Tevere, he immediately went to welcome her, kissed her hand and told her beautiful praises and many words of love.

He also praised, loved, prayed and learn many things from various saints, without making of his devotion a full catalogue of practices or rituals.

His love for the Mass was intense, clear, intellectual, theological, and again very down to earth, shown in material ways. Preparing his Mass, not allowing distractions such as photographers getting very close to the altar. Usually, he would celebrate Mass at mid-day and prepare 15-minutes prior to that. One day, because of heavy work, they forgot to tell him 15 minutes in advance and they told him only when it was already time. At first he was upset, but then, he was so much in love with the Mass and God in the Eucharist that he was able to concentrate very well, in spite of not having been able to stop, take a break to focus on it prior to the appointed time.

He also had a great devotion to the guardian angels.... he saw a lady of the Work on the stree and next day he told her he had prayed to her Guardian Angel.

He needs to be praying, like the beating of the heart, that's hy, he said, he can never loose his temper for more than a couple of minutes.

He is so immersed in prayer that even when in dangerof dying (the car was slipping uncontrallably towards a cliff) he didn't stop praying or got out of control.

This presence of God cannot be improvised, it comes from being well rooted in God throught the practice of the otehr Norms. Prayer cannot be anonimous, he said, it has to be an intimate relationship with God, one to one. Heave is guaranteed for those who do the Norms well.